How To Meditate: Fifth Pauri of the Japji

Hopefully, I've made it easier for you to follow how to meditate with this video with my new editing job.  The fifth pauree of the Japji must be recited when you feel a sense of failure within yourself. When you feel that you are not up to the job this pauree will grant you all success.

Happy Winter Solstice!

How To Meditate: Fourth Pauri of the Japji

OK, my video editing is gaining sophistication.  Here is the latest how-to-meditate to the Japji, and you will see the transcription.  This way you can either chant-a-long, and you'll still get the effects: this pauri blesses those trapped in feelings of poverty and lack of means. It blasts through the trap of these feelings like a thunderbolt from the blue!

Let me know if this works for you.  I'm still trying to get the right educational formula for teaching this important meditation for the soul.  Thanks!

Help from Yelp

I love reviewing on Yelp, and now they make it easy to link up on my blog.  Check it out:

Recent reviews by Erica L.

What's this?

What is Kundalini Yoga?

This is a fantastic explanation.  I love that he says, "Yoga in the heart is compassion.  Yoga in action is excellence.  Yoga in mentality is intuition.  Yoga is not just a posture.  Yoga is an experience in consciousness in how we relate to ourselves and everything else in the world."

Watch it here:

In my personal experience, that uniting power of yoga and meditation really is true.  I've set goals and by doing yoga, it's helped fast-forward those goals towards me.  Little things, big things...they have manifested.  As Yogi Bhajan said, "Thoughts are things."  

   

Don't Be Disappointed

Meditating on personal addictions, I discovered that I have been ruled by a fear of disappointing others.  You hear about people's need for approval, but that saying never hit home for me...until now.  If you fear disappointing them, you'll have a need for approval.  The problem with that is you're playing into their game, and not staying true to your own path.

For most of my life, I realize I've had this fear -- particularly of my mother.  And by compromising my authentic self, it's steered me in some unpalatable situations.

During meditation, the thought, "I can be a disappointment!" came up.  As weird as that sounds, saying that out loud released a lot of burden from my shoulders...because it's a true statement.  I definitely can disappoint you...but unless you've communicated it to me, perhaps that's your problem.

   

November Forecast

Watch the video for November's numerology forecast by Nam Hari.  It's action-packed!

Would you like to know more?  Nam Hari can do a personal reading for you, either in person or over the phone.  Hidden away in the numbers of your birth date are the secrets to your life's happiness and true potential.  Information is power, and real solutions are given in each session for that "breakthrough" effect in your life.  Nam Hari specializes in the area of relationships, and all your questions on love, money, and destiny fulfillment are answered.

Please contact Nam Hari at (575) 305-0017, email her at: akara@cybermesa.com, or subscribe to this blog for future updates!

   

A Good Recipe for Women: Stir-Fried Eggplant with Ginger Plum Sauce

One of my great loves is food.  I invited my fellow yogi, Charleen Gosling, is passionate about nutrition with regards to women's menopausal health.  A personal trainer by profession, she shares one of her favorite recipes here (below video).

Stir-Fried Eggplant with Ginger Plum Sauce

NOTES:

• No need to peel the eggplant if the skin is shiny and tight.
• The eggplant will want to stick a bit to the pan, even with a nice coating of oil, so use a flexible spatula when stirring and be sure to scrape the bottom of the pan often.
• Yields: 3-4 servings

1/3 cupe plum jam (leaving the largest chunks of plum in the jar for another use)

2 tsp Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp very finely grated fresh ginger

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

2 large eggplants (about 3 pounds)

2 Tsp oil (coconut is recommended)

1/2 tsp salt

Red pepper flakes, to taste (optional)

1. In a small bowl, combine the plum jam, mustard, and ginger, and stir until well combined.  Season to taste with a dash of salt and some freshly ground black pepper, and set aside.
2. Cut the eggplant lengthwise into 1/2"-thick slices, then crosswise into 1/2"-thick sticks.
3. Place a large, deep skillet or wok over medium heat.  After about a minute, add the oil and swirl to coat the pan.  Add the eggplant and salt, and cook, stirring continuously and scraping the bottom of the pan often, for 10-15 minutes, or until the eggplant is golden brown, very tender, and has collapsed in volume by about half.  (If the eggplant seems to be browning more quickly than it is becoming tender, reduce the heat to medium-low and/or add a splash of water.)
4. Remove from the heat, add the plum sauce, and stir to combine.  Season to taste with additional salt, if needed, and some freshly ground black pepper.  Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature, topped with red pepper flakes, if desired. 

I taste-tested (of course) Charleen's cooking, and the eggplant was divine -- perfectly cooked.  I never knew eggplant could taste so good and fresh!  The plum sauce made it really sweet, and refreshing, and it could almost be eaten like a dessert!

Find more great recipes here:

How I Teach Pre-Natal Yoga

Here's my thoughts when I teach my pre-natal yoga class:

FYI: I teach Saturdays at 10:30am at The Awareness Center in Pasadena -- see you there!

    

The Benefits of Frog Pose -- Yowza!

The simplest yoga posture can really kick your ass, and make a difference in your posture.  It can even take you to bliss.  Here's me talking about Frog Pose:

Here's how to do the Frog Pose:

Hey Highland Park peeps: Kundalini yoga is taught every weekday at 1st Defense -- they're on Fig & 56th!  The yoga kriya that included the Frog Pose, was from "Awakening The Ten Bodies", which is found in this book:

Pilates and Yoga

Watch this short video, as my friend Barbara Wintroub of RetroFit Pilates, advises on alignment, alignment, alignment (especially good advice for yoga teachers and students alike!):

Barbara has trained world-class and Olympian athletes.  She can be found at:

Retrofit Pilates Rx®

1821 Wilshire Blvd. #540 Santa Monica, CA 90403

Phone: 310 913-3333

  

Simrit Kaur in Concert

Oh boy, I'm so lucky: got to see Simrit Kaur at Golden Bridge Yoga last Friday night.  See photo below:

Simrit's going for that note!

Have you ever been to a concert where all the musicians are sitting down?  And so are you, on a yoga mat?  It's a different experience...very tranquil.

She hit all my favs: Ardas Bhaee, Tithai Too Samarath, and finished with Hey Gobind Hey Gopal (which seemed to last forever, and we wanted it to go on, but all good things must end -- boohoo!).  By the end of it, I was in a trance of bliss.  That woman's voice is amazing!!

Best of all, she and her band came back the next morning at 3:30am, and were part of the Guru Ram Das Birthday Celebration sadhana!!  OMG!  That was something else.  She and Harijiwan read the Japji, and they  played Dhan Dhan Guru Ram Das -- AWESOME.

"I Hate Yoga"

Here's an honest video conversation between my good friend, Gili Wolf, and I about yoga.  I want this blog to be open.  Yoga is not for everyone.  And in a place like LA, where yoga has saturated it like sunshine, it can be hard to express that you don't actually get what yoga's about, or even connect to it.

Thank you Gili for being bravely honest!  Happy Birthday and congratulations on your move to Boulder, CO!  I miss you already.

  

Japji Meditation: The 1st Pauree

"On the first pauree of Japji, my true love gave to me...!" Haha, I'm just joking around.

 Continuing on my quest to learn the 38 paurees of the Japji, watch this video of HarSimran demonstrating the 1st Pauree meditation -- said to lift you from deepest depression, insecurity, nightmares, and loss:

Instructions:

1. Tune-in (Ong Namo, Guru Dev Namo x 3).
2. Recite 1st Pauree x 11. Here's the transliteration.  
3. Close: (Long Time Sunshine, Sat Nam).
4. Do the meditation for 40 days.

Beside being one of the most deeply caring persons I've ever met, HarSimran excels at coaching.  Click here for more information about her Essential Focus Coaching.  Or reach her at (310) 553-7334, email: harsimrank@sbcglobal.net .

Pronouncing Gurmukhi: A Video Introduction

Join me in my quest to learn JapJi Sahib by following my friend HarSimran Khalsa's video's as she introduces Gurmukhi, based on the transliteration by

Khalsa Yogoji, Siri Singh Sahib Bhai Sahib Harbhajan Singh, and Khalsa Bhai Sardani Sahiba Bibiji Inderjit  Kaur. Psyche of the Soul: the Nit Naym Banis, with additional Shabads and prayers, and their effects. Tucson: Hand Made Books, 1993.

An explanation of Gurmukhi vowels:

Watch here and learn the Retroflex Consonants:

Check out Aspirated Consonants in this short video:

OK, watch examples of  the different aspirated consonants (you can learn with a candle too!)...

"D, DH"

"T, TH"

"G, GH"


"J, JH"


"K, KH"


"CH, CHH"


"B, BH"


Retroflex DH:


Retroflex T'H:


And finally, a word about "H":

  

Numerology Forecast: October 2010

Watch this video for guest contributor, Master Numerologist Nam Hari Khalsa's October Forecast:

Would you like to know more?  Nam Hari can do a personal reading for you, either in person or over the phone.  Hidden away in the numbers of your birth date are the secrets to your life's happiness and true potential.  Information is power, and real solutions are given in each session for that "breakthrough" effect in your life.  Nam Hari specializes in the area of relationships, and all your questions on love, money, and destiny fulfillment are answered.

Please contact Nam Hari at (575) 305-0017 or email her at: akara@cybermesa.com

Ma Yoga

Yesterday, I was part of Ma Yoga's opening!  OK, so I don't have any photos because I was giving free taster Thai Yoga massages the whole time (totally booked solid from 2-5pm!), but I just wanted to comment that it was fantastic to be in such a shakti (primal, feminine, creative power) community.

My friend and doula, Carmen Bornn-Gilman always says, "Women need another womb in the room," when in labor.  I would say that we need each other always.  If we can get past the judgement and cattiness, then there is real wonderment at the power of women coming together.

In Kundalini Yoga, we believe that women are 16 times greater than men.  Sixteen...!  Let's no underestimate ourselves, nor sell ourselves short...

Being part of the Ma Yoga community reminded me how much I need to be around women, and how wonderful it is to give.

     

One of My Favorite Quotes

It's just like story-time!  Watch the short video, as I read you one of my favorite passages from Granta:

In case your video player doesn't work, here's the transcription:

Autumn 2001 issue of Granta, "Everything Is Different in Your House" by Adam Mars-Jones 

"He [the guru] said that the unenlightened soul was like a man on a train clutching his suitcase in his hands. It's safe to put down your baggage. He didn't say, throw it out the window, like most religious teachers, let alone throw yourself out, as a few do. Just put your baggage down. That's all. You don't need to carry your bags, the train is carrying them anyways, if you only knew. Everything is coming with you already. Everything is on its way."

  

Prana & My Vacation @ Lake Tahoe

What was the BEST thing I found, while in vacation in Tahoe??? Watch this short video to find out:

My view of Lake Tahoe from the hotel balcony.  Great place to do yoga every morning!

Even if you're too busy, you can breathe -- try following this article.

  

Numerology Forecast: September 2010

Watch this video for guest contributor, Master Numerologist Nam Hari Khalsa, and her September forecast:

Nam Hari recommends this Adi Shakti mantra CD by Guru Dass.  Click here for the Adi Shakti mantra translation.

Would you like to know more about numerology?  Nam Hari can do a personal reading for you, either in person or over the phone.  Hidden away in the numbers of your birth date are the secrets to your life's happiness and true potential.  Information is power, and real solutions are given in each session so you may experience a "breakthrough effect" in your life.  Nam Hari specializes in the area of relationships, and your questions on love, money, and destiny fulfillment are answered.  Call her at (575) 305-0017 or by email: akara@cybermesa.com.  Or check back next month for October's forecast...!

Numerology Forecast: August 2010

Watch this video for the (better late than never) August numerology forecast by master numerologist, Nam Hari Khalsa:

For more information about numerology or numerological counselling, you can reach Nam Hari Khalsa at (575) 305-0017 or akara@cybermesa.com.  Stay tuned for next month's forecast!

Happy Birthday Yogi Bhajan!

Yogi Bhajan

I spent this morning at Golden Bridge Yoga to celebrate Yogi Bhajan's birthday.  2.5hours of Long Ek Ong Kars!  Woah.  Talk about a deep meditative state!  It felt so good to be in this trance-like state, and then realize that the sun is rising, and illuminating all that is around you.  Caught it in the photo below:

Long Ek Ong Kars at Golden Bridge Yoga, Los Angeles, CA.

The celebration went something like this:

Thursday, August 26th

Celebration of a Master: An All-Day Celebration of the Life of Yogi Bhajan 

Sadhana 

2:45 - Doors open

3:00 - Guru Ram Das 

worldwide chant for peace

3:10 - Japji

3:30 - Kundalini Yoga

4:00 - Long Ek Ong Kars 

Cozy breakfast served after sadhana!

I want to wish my friend HarSimran Kaur Khalsa a very happy birthday too!  How fortuitous to be born on the same day as Yogi Bhajan!

Read more about Yogi Bhajan's life here.

      

Krishna Kaur

Yesterday I went to my friend Guru Nischan's Kundalini Yoga Teacher Training Graduation.  She studied under Krishna Kaur.  Here's a short video of Krishna's inspiring keynote speech, about what to do AFTER yoga teacher training...

Krishna Kaur & Guru Nischan Khalsa

Congratulations Guru Nischan!  Having just gone through the process, I was stoked to be able to participate in your graduation.  xx

Check out Krishna's book:

Guru Ram Das Ashram

On Sunday, August 8th, my yogi friends from The Awareness Center, and I attended group sadhana at YogaWest, then 2 kirtan programs at the Guru Ram Das Ashram.  I'd never gone before to attend the Sunday program, and we were there from 3:45am - 2pm -- yes, that's a long time, but we were very happy and blissed out to be there and serving.  Here's some of the stuff we experienced:

My yogi sisters, Sat Tara and Sat Puran, helping prep food for langar.

The Siri Guru Granth Sahib.

How can the food not taste good when you've cooked it in good spirits and blessed it?

The coat of arms on the Khalsa food truck -- watch for it coming soon to streets near you!

Eating langar outside the Ashram.

The Guru skylight inside the Ashram

How I Got Started in Kundalini Yoga

We all arrive at kundalini yoga for different reasons and from different paths.  My first experience with kundalini yoga was via this DVD by Ana Brett and Ravi Singh.  I'd only done ashtanga yoga before, and didn't quite understand all the singing involved, but the DVD gave me a chance to continue in my home practice.

In February 2006, I was in Karlsruhe, Germany, and a friend of a friend asked me if I wanted to go to 4am yoga.  Being fearless, I said yes, and so she came at 3:45am to get me.  I remember sleepily arrived at Surya Zentrum on the back of her bicycle.  I had no idea I was in for 2.5 hours of yoga and meditation, and knew even less about Yogi Bhajan, group sadhana, or the Aquarian Mantras.  But I patiently did everything that I was told, and afterwards, I asked the head person, Hari Har, this question: "Why do you do this?"

She replied: "Because diamonds are created under enormous pressure."

At that time, I had been away from (ashtanga) yoga for several years, burned out, and angry.  I don't know what possessed me to go to that 4am sadhana -- whim?  I returned to Los Angeles in 2008, still upset at yoga, and not believing in it, when my boyfriend, after much coaxing, got me to take a class at Golden Bridge.  I did one class, with Sat Siri teaching, and felt something profound shift in me.  Profound enough to enroll in yoga teacher training.  There are times still where I waver, but I know if I do not keep practicing, it bites me in the ass.

Since 2006, I hold Hari Har's words as my own private mantra, and it's enabled me to get through difficult times. 

Please share below your story of how you got first interested in yoga, and the path it's taken you...!

Lloyd the AAA Guy

I stupidly locked my car keys in my car, after returning home.  AAA sent over someone to help me, and this is the exchange that occurred...

Lloyd did much more than help me retrieve my car keys.  He showed me that you don't have to look like a yogi to be a yogi.  You don't need to meditate for 2.5 hours every day (although kudos to those that can and do!).  Through his personal experience, he learned to align himself and his life, just with one simple statement: "Today is going to be a good day."  When he shared that, it made me happy that he took the time to do this tiny thing for himself.

And remember, "Life is beautiful...you just have to get past all the bullsh!t to see it."

Turban Follow-Up: The Real Reason...

OK, here's the real reason why I wear my head-wrap during yoga & meditation...

I feel guilty telling you all -- like I'm bad-mouthing a fellow yoga teacher (man, is her heavy Breath of Fire into the microphone annoying!) -- but it's my truth, my Sat Nam, and if it helps you in your yoga practice, so be it.

Best of all, you don't realize how much noise we take in on a daily basis: it's OK to block out all that din, and just have the luxury of listening...to...yourself...!!!  I'm a big music lover, but think about it: we are so conditioned NOT to listen to ourselves, that we do all sorts of things to avoid and distract ourselves.  And then we wonder why others are not listening to us either...!

On a side note, check out a history of head coverings -- it might not convince you to try it, but at least you understand the roots.

Peace,
Erica

Tying a Headwrap/Turban

Before I took kundalini yoga, I didn't understand the importance of covering your head.  Well, actually, that's a lie: I wore a beret all the time when I lived in London, England, because I'd heard somewhere that we lose 80% of our body heat out the top of our heads -- and boy is London too cold for me to not keep myself warm!

Anyways, I bought my headwrap from Kundalink (check out her blog).  The material is easy-to-use, and washable.  In yoga we have reasons (other than cold weather) for covering your head -- use non-static, natural cloth (i.e., cotton) and keep your hair up.  A head cover contains your energy, and protects you; it protects your Crown Chakra, as you practice raising your kundalini energy.  Here's another "why" about covering and hair, according to Yogi Bhajan:

The hair regulates the inflow of sun energy into the body system.  To let the solar energy flow without obstruction, let the hair grow to its full natural length, and take good care of it.  If this is done, the amount of energy that goes downward from the Seventh Chakra increases tremendously.  The kundalini energy is activated by the radiant force of the solar plexus and moves upward in response to the solar energy coming down.  This balances the body energy and maintains the total equilibrium.

Don't take it from me: try it yourself.  Try kriyas (yoga sets) and/or meditations with/without a head cover and check out any differences.  I notice that when I chant, covering my ears as well, gives me that extra meditative edge!

p.s. my personal stylist friend told me turbans are trendy now!  Check 'em out at H&M.

       

Kundalini Yoga Teacher Training Graduation 2010

KYTT Graduation Class of 2010, Awareness Center

What do yogis do once they've finished a tough & rewarding 8 month-long teacher's training program?  CELEBRATE!

Last night was my graduation at the Awareness Center, Pasadena, CA. Here are some photos of the lovely and touching ceremony.  We enjoyed a really funny "Groundhog's Day Sadhana" skit by one of my classmates, Charleen Gosling...will upload that video in another post about the trials and tribulations of practicing sadhana!

Some of my favorite people: Nimrita, Sat Tara, & Baba Singh

Surjeet Kaur, me, &Hari Avtar Kaur: classmates & spiritual bff's!

How To: Introduction to Learning the JapJi (Part 2) -- Mul Mantra

Continuing with the JapJi, the first meditation is the Mul Mantra (or Root Mantra).  Meditate on this mantra 11 x day, for 40 days.  Sit in a cross-legged position (or in a chair, feet flat on the floor), hands in Gian Mudra (thumb and index finger touching), eyes closed and rolled up to the 3rd eye point.


Watch HarSimran perform this meditation, and feel free to chant along.  Here is the transliteration.

To contact HarSimran at Essential Focus Coaching, click here.

For more information about the JapJi, check out this book:

How To: Introduction to Learning the JapJi (Part 1)

Forget all those personal development workshops and listen to HarSimran's simple instructions to begin learning how to meditate to the ancient JapJi: the Poem of the Soul.
After the brief video, you're ready to go onto the Mul Mantra.


We are basing this project on a book that Yogi Bhajan co-wrote, that is, unfortunately no longer in print.  However, here is the complete MLA citation:
Khalsa Yogoji, Siri Singh Sahib Bhai Sahib Harbhajan Singh, and Khalsa Bhai Sardani Sahiba Bibiji Inderjit Kaur. Psyche of the Soul: the Nit Naym Banis, with additional Shabads and prayers, and their effects. Tucson: Hand Made Books, 1993.