julie southwell's magic carpet ride

2010-11-22T06:11:00.000-08:00

"Only to the extent that we expose ourselves over and over to annihilation can that which is indestructible in us be found"

Pema Chodron

Winter's quiet wisdom coming in, soft light snow on the ground and i wake in darkness to teach yoga. Travels commencing again soon here.. love and joy to everyone..

2010-07-14T23:56:00.000-07:00

new chapter july 2010...

the view from roanoke ave.

& the tiny new music house

fresh mind, body and soaring spirit

launching out into the broader world musically

come fly with me.

aho blessings.

love dogs

2010-04-26T07:35:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF4_KZfIfVI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YGrz23nNOA

spring is here at last.

music thrives from the federal st. yurt and flys out into the world.

love.

i have moved!

2010-02-28T07:22:00.000-08:00

i made the leap and historical move after almost 12 years on federal st.! it is a joyful letting go of an epic run of wonderful family and friends, and experiences. last night was the first night in the yurt as the federal house family expands to a more communal level. Kat, Nate and Coco (and Matt) arrive to the house and the community garden begins...see http://thetinyfarms.org/ . memorable about the first day/night in residence at the yurt was a nice indian meal with friends after a thorough sage clearing/blessing ceremony by Erika and Lucius and the full moon's movements through the skylight, as well as the unseasonably 'warm' night in late feb. I'm feeling closer to the sounds, smells and energy of nature out here next to the garden and feeling much gratitude for a rich life. music awaits...om.

Purple Lotus

2009-12-17T07:12:00.000-08:00

Purple Lotus Solstice Tea Party release

live music in the Atrium between Thump and Curiosity Shoppe downtown Bend

Sunday Dec. 20th noon to four (with a little help from my friends).

Celebrating the return of the light.

The long awaited (just over the gestation length of an elephant- 22 months) completion of the solo project with some great guests. Global feel east-meets-west album with flavors of India, Brazil, Latin America, Ireland, Scotland, and the U.S. (blues, bluegrass). Recorded half on Federal St. in Bend Oregon and half in India. There are pianos, guitars, bass guitars, mandolin, Indian percussion instruments including the mridangam & morsing, other wonderful percussive additions, cajone, didgeridoo, and a tambura drone.

Inspired by life, love, family, Mysore Gurus, the Divine muse and playing music with friends.

Blessings to all.

young deer

2009-11-20T08:28:00.000-08:00

This morning i woke with a new sensation. It was an energy that i couldn't trace as to its source. It was a solitude, slightly sad but when i checked over all the possible situations causing it in my life, nothing made sense..it wasn't friends that were distant or any current situations of transition (including my yoga practice and teaching). My life is thriving, healing and well as of late. Just finished a successful weekend with Manju Jois, my dear friend & Yoga Guru form Encinitis (& India), have new loving and energetic musical endeavors..kirtans with Phil and our "celestial songbird group", Vasudeva, the Yoga ensemble with visions of "taking it on the road" and honoring the space between the notes.. see http://vasudevayogaband.wordpress.com/, gypsy jazz with Pat E. and Kevin W., fiddle students, finally the completion of Purple Lotus my solo album recorded partly in India, new "intentional urban communities"--Mandala Yoga Community (we eat potluck breakfast every saturday together as well as other gatherings), the Experience Community Project Sanctuary on Jefferson..food co-ops, meditations, sound healing, community space & support, and my beautiful circle of family and friends far and wide...

So where did this feeling arise from? the deeper layers no doubt..and i settled into a feeling of compassion for those deeper layers within me and rested. At moments like these, i transcend the day to day details of life and sink into a much broader place of ALL the births, deaths and movements of life and beyond life to another matrix like level. Resting in this feeling of "all" is not pleasant nor unpleasant but very very FULL.

Then i realized what actually could be happening in my energetic field...i rose, turned on the Breveille Hot water pot for coffee and glanced into my backyard. Like may other days this week and before, deer were there....however today was different. Before it had always been groups or lately a Mother and its child hanging sometimes all day and into the next day. Not this morning, a solo deer was there. My Yard is a combo of wild and groomed and there are nooks and crannies behind the garden beds, yurt and lilac bush for the deer to eat and be comfortable amidst the domestic city life. However, today something odd ..the baby deer is alone resting quietly beside one of the eight g. beds that make a wheel. He or she is not eating but has a empty look in its eyes. Tears come to me and i wonder if that means that Mom has been injured or hit by traffic in its wanderings through urban westside Bend.
Those tears were for a real situation yet remind me of crying during a movie..the situation in front of our eyes reminding us of the things that we have experienced in life as loss, sorrow.
And yet, these tears are also freeing since life and death are equal players in reality and its the acceptance that brings more light to life. Anyone have any ideas about whether i should try to feed this creature or not?

jasmine

2009-10-29T07:42:00.000-07:00

"Our perfect companions never have fewer than four feet."

Jas the cat.

Always knows what to do with human emotions. Purr endlessly.

A couple of nights ago i woke from a bad dream with him jumping on me squarely and then plopping down on my belly to purr loudly, as if to say.."there Mom i pounced on the monster in your dream for you, you are all set now". Cats know things.

Vasudeva live on the radio

2009-10-23T10:33:00.000-07:00

Vasudeva, our improvisational Yoga Music Ensemble will be supporting Bend's local radio :

hear us and get out your yoga mat at home, or just breathe.

Tonight after 8:30pm PST on kpov 106.7 www.kpov.org for steaming online.

red sky in morning...sailor take warning

2009-10-17T07:39:00.000-07:00

urban wilds...for the last few weeks a family of deer (up to 6) have been sleeping in the backyard in order to munch on the remaining greens from the garden, lilac leaves and their favorite...sunflower heads. this morning the sky was amazing pinks combined with fall early morning light, with the golds/reds of the changing leaves mixed in. the effect was LIGHT and soul-filling (thank goodness the fall color palette has finally arrived, i thought we were going to go straight from green to dead winter, see snowy picture from oct. 4th- the earlist snowfall of that depth i can remember with many tree limbs broken and fallen). my dear friend and massage Guru Tarika used to say that the brilliant fall colors serve to ground us for winter, it's true. i'm soaking them up where i can find them, in town and the wild aspen stands, in contrast to the pine tree/black lava oregon landscape. fall is one of my favorite seasons, i think it is an old memory of the excitement and preparation of the ski season ahead.

Jazz

2009-10-14T06:43:00.000-07:00

Music Sweet Music...a healing tonic.

Gypsy~French jazz immersion right now inspired by Grappelli/Django tunes and others for our "French jazz trio" in November with Kevin W and Pat E. Feeling the hot club swing..

And on the opposite spectrum my other new project VasuDeva, the "Yoga Band" as some call us...mostly improvisational India-inspired double drummers, trumpet, voice, guitar, crystal bowls, violin, rattles, clarinet and people doing yoga. We have our first out of town gig...Oct. 2010 at the Sacred Thread Festival in Cali.

And finally a recording project with Joe S. and ongoing Masala Mostest with Mark, Pat and Shireen. Feeling the fulltime music here in rainy/snowy days.

But thinking largely of my original music inspiration... my Dad and sending thoughts of ease to his health.

duex

2009-10-07T09:57:00.000-07:00

everything changes. through all our human fits of ups and downs, having and losing we end up coming back to the same thing, the melodious call from the well-spring of love and joy within, regardless of the outside circumstances.

sadness may just be a sign of believing a stressful thought that isn't actually true.

with the fullest acceptance that i can muster up for reality as it is, and loving the truth just as it is right now oct. 7th 2009... i surrender and become relaxed, expansive and open in heart and mind ...because we have loved deeply and that doesn't go away.

contentment on your path.

love,

juliebird

quiet, humbled and still loving despite rough edges

2009-10-01T08:36:00.000-07:00

"There is great happiness in not wanting, in not being something, in not going somewhere."

"It is truth that frees, not your effort to be free"

both by J. Krishnamurti

joy and sadness

2009-09-30T16:35:00.000-07:00

lingering thoughts on a living fully wednesday afternoon .
may we affirm to each other only the joy we have shared if we die. may we affirm it while we are still alive. if i die, be only joyful for our time together. if i live, be only joyful for our time (all of it) together and i will too.

the Goddess
within

forgiveness

2009-09-22T07:13:00.000-07:00

Autumn Equinox...half day and half night. Forgiveness inward and out, there is love here.

Navaratri 09

2009-09-21T23:26:00.000-07:00

Fasts by day, Goddess fires and chants by night...pulling out all the stops, feathers catching the wind, we're riding elephants up Chaumundi Hill and dipping the live Goddess herself in the river, head under water.

summer travels

2009-08-23T21:06:00.000-07:00

Sri Ganapathi Sachidananda Swamiji on Mt Shasta for 123456789 (7th day of the 8th month of the 9th year of the millenium at 12:34:56. We chanted OM for Peace and Protection along with his sacred singing bowl..

Colorado Music Tour with the Mostest: Telluride Bluegrass and other Rocky Mtn. vision quest spots

Mt.Theilson

Santa Fe/Taos to Moab music and wisdom tour with Anastacia

if you don't ask, the answer is "no".

right here, right now in this moment, there is more to be grateful for than to fix.

barns burnt down---now i can see the moon -Masahide

2009-06-04T09:25:00.000-07:00

I've been "grounded" for several months now in bend's unusually lush spring (except a trip to laramie, brietenbush & eugene). This staying put is not the normal for me, but i am settling into a nice mellow & sustainable routine. The seeds went into the garden on a "seed day" in the astrological and moon cycles last weekend and then it proceeded to rain everyday after to coddle and feed them into tiny spoutlings.

What prompted this entry this morning was an epiphany stepping out of the Yoga building in "eastside" bend. The view west from my daily habit locale is the majestic Sisters and Bachelor mountains. This morning the foothills were visable through mist and rain as dark bodies stark against steel grey sky. And there nestled into them was a very wide rainbow, the largest breadth of rainbow i've ever seen.

The realization was more an appreciation for the "little things" in life. Nature's changes & her sensual nurturing, the comings, goings & sharing of life with family and friends...

Here at home the back rose bush tucked behind the yurt is starting to burst out with endless yellow blooms, see picture.

There hasn't been a lot of "drama" in my life for weeks...almost too mellow if I reflected on my life of Olympic ski training travel, yoga studios, numerous "bands" and musical endeavors, extensive India travel and depth of Indian cultural immersion, huge weddings, and spontaneous travel..etc. But i am realizing at this age of 40yrs that mellow is good and the subtle small pleasures are lasting and satisfying. Like cooking a meal for friends, smelling the fresh rain first thing in the morning, the wake up call of a warm cat purring in my face, seeing the beauty & potential in others and myself, and the drifting off to sleep at night knowing i've lived and loved well that day.

The cup is more than half full.

May Day

2009-05-01T07:18:00.000-07:00

april showers bring may flowers...
woke, went outside and put my hands in the strawberry patch to pick up some morning dew to rub softly on my face. a gaelic ritual for this first day of may.
the welcoming of a fertile year and may day.
see this interesting link about beltane, the pagan version and symbolic meaning of May 1st:
http://www.geocities.com/cecylyna/beltane2.html

i like the "Beltane is also about being naked. Not necessarily nakedness of the body, but nakedness of the soul, of removing the veils we put up between the world and our true self: even of removing the veils we put up to hide our true desires from ourselves"

may your day be filled with joyful abandon

nature

2009-03-16T10:21:00.000-07:00

Quotations, however eloquent or inspiring, cannot compare to a day spent free amidst the wonders of wild nature.
passed on by a friend.

hot stoves

2009-03-12T23:17:00.000-07:00

jet lag is great for computer productivity!

but don't sit too close to hot fire stoves or your clothes will melt and smell terrible.

have gone quote crazy recently...2 from uncle bruce:

But if you do not find an intelligent companion, a wise and well-behaved person going the same way as yourself, then go on your way alone, like a king abandoning a conquered kingdom, or like a great elephant in the deep forest. - Buddha...

Laughter is the closest distance between two people. - Victor Borge

home nest

2009-03-10T22:57:00.001-07:00

landed home to wonderful bend and all goodness .

reflecting on the trip i learned something. people go to india to become "enlightened", and i say they might come back not magically changed but rather knowing more about enlightenment. that's what i feel...

enlightenment is seeing things light.

it is also devoting oneself to the art and skillset of loving better in this lifetime...

and as a dear soulfriend says it is realizing that we have a choice...that is between acting from fear or from love. its all about awareness, and turning up the lamp...

next gypsy journey...nearby places like brietenbush and silver lake hotsprings for some ease of climate change and then ...ಲವ್

goodbye india

2009-03-05T19:52:00.000-08:00

the ganges alternated between ice green and blue color, holy waters off the himalayan glaciers. (left, and Varanasi sacred offerings above)
found my way back "home" to the south in mysore for one more day of goodbyes to dear India friends and family, a concert, sandelwood shop, incense and last tastes of Indian delicacies...
i am sore from a 10 hour trek out of Rishikesh to a glorious Goddess temple to Durga, high above steppe rice farms and foothills... and a view of the really big mountains far off, to be continued on another trip.

see you in bend.
love and blessings,
j bird

path by the river Ganges

2009-03-01T18:49:00.000-08:00

"A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving." ~Lao Tzu

"Wandering re-establishes the original harmony which once existed between man and the universe." ~Anatole France

Rishikesh...where the Beatles came to be with their Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Feb of '68...they were supposed to have composed around 48 songs while staying at the ashram here... many of which are on the White Album.

My journey has brought me up the Ganges from the Holy city of Varanasi to Haridwar and now to Rishikesh. I must admit the River is pulling me further and further towards the giant Himalaya range but i have only a few more days so will go as far as possible this trip.

Being a "traveller" is a far cry from the comforts, friends and routine of wonderful Mysore but the wandering path feels right for my transition home. i woke early in the Ganapathi Ashram with a mind full of thought and a craving for chai. so out i went at 5:30 am, had tea and washed my face and hands in the crystal clean Ganges across from the Ashram, and stopped by a small Hanuman (monkey God) shrine where a priest was doing morning prayers and puja (flowers and chants). Then a quick auto rickshaw ride brought me to a suspension foot bridge to cross the river. These travel days i have had the unstoppable desire to WALK...through the towns , up to the temples on the hills, into the mountains, along the river Ganges...and this morning was no exception. The sun had not quite come up as i started out on a winding "river trail" (with hat, scarf etc. it is chilly here in in the morning). there is something calm and deeply soul- satisfying about walking along a river for me. it dawned on me that i have come thousands of miles and three and a half months to realize that i am most at home walking by a river somewhere near the mountains, and here i am.

"No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow". ~Lin Yutang

As my hike brought me up the hill behind Rishikesh on a switchback road, then a trail, I flashed back to the entire trip to India and wondered what i had to show for this time. Of course that was an entirely western point of view to look for tangible results or accomplishments... or to have expectations/ desires in the first place. what did i do here? get closer to enlightenment, grow 4 months older in a magical place...?
yes & some some wisdom nuggets:

1. Walk yer own path: contentment = living according to ones own unique way and blueprint...not by any others or what any others say is right for you. (with grace)

2. Believe in yourself and others and the connection between the two.

3. Take naps

4. Travel light

5. Make decisions slow but be bold too

6. Learn music by ear and develop your listening skills

7. Pay attention

8. Bow to the feet of those you love as teachers/Gurus especially the challenging ones

9. Stick with your Guru (s) for life

9. Always shine the light back on yourself if things appear to be going wrong

10. be quiet

11. drink tea

12. Recognize your impending death and live accordingly . live without worry or fear

13. tap into your own unique spirituality...whether thats Krishna or art or being outdoors. worship and devote yourself to spending time with the divine thing every day. find your "Yoga"

14. pay attention

15. trust in the journey

16. if you feel nervous or have stage fright, imagine everyone in their underwear.

17. make fun of/with each other Indian style

USA 6 days and counting...
j

Shivaratri and beyond...

2009-02-25T22:27:00.000-08:00

Writing from Varanasi, India just blocks from the Ganges river .

The last few weeks have been very interesting and important. I shall recap...

From here back I arrived last night via plane and then car and then finally bicyle rickshaw to the Mishras Music acadamy. From the airport the driver pointed out Ravi Shankars old house...historical in the history of India Music.

The Mishras have 6-7 students staying at the moment..US, Italy and Brazil represented. Lessons, practice and comfortable living while doing all that are provided here..a sanctuary from the rather harsh Varanasi outside world (and hot too!). I ended the evening with an incredible jam with beautiful Max from Italy on the Tablas. Wow, nice to put all the India learning time into playing with others.

Varanasi is old and different from any place i have ever been. The streets are narrow and brick/dirt and much of transport in the inner city is by bicyle/animal or scooter. The specialty is the bicycle rickshaw...a 2-3 person carriage and driver who pedals hard on the rough roads.

Walked to the Ganges this morning to check out the profound nature of this place and greet the sun rising...it's suppose to be the holiest river in the world, and the special place for Hindus to come to die, be creamated and deposit their ashes. Early morning at the burning Ghats was quiet for me...only bathing and other human activities for the poor that don't have bathrooms or running water going on and some pilgrams getting the bathing blessings of the divine river. Biologists have studied the unique compostion of the water and have found a strange lack of hearty micro-organisms despite the in-pour of the substances mentioned above. The waters have a mysterious property of not supporting life to grow for any length of time (almost antibacterial qualities) and is therefore deemed more "pure and clean" than other rivers. Well, whether it be Divine intervention or just a unique biological pheonomema i am going to opt out of dipping into this section of the river and will wait to dangle my feet until the next stage of my trip to the foothills of the Himalayas and souce of the Ganges. It runs crystal clear there.

Yet another Shiva festival was being commenced and there were some beautiful & tranquil sanskrit chants and songs wafting in the air as i sat and had some chai on the steps of the sacred river.

Speaking of Shiva festivals...Shivaratri just happened three nights ago in Mysore. One of the highlight events of my life. Putting it into words is like a wedding without photographs, but i will try. The Ganapathi Ashram in Mysore had 3, 500 people attending the functions. It is a Tapas or cleansing festival and many fast or just have fruit in order to stay up all night and get closer to Shiva, the God of destruction and Yoga. There were all sorts of rituals and ceremonies including the pouring of sacred substances , Milk, ghee etc. over a giant "Shiva lingam" the form of the God that represents the Male/Female divine connection and is suppose to be Shivas form he took when his wife was caught in a family controversy and was sacrificed as a result (she wanted to marry wild Shiva, who hung in graveyards and danced with ashes and had matted hair, while father thought otherwise. She went around his wishes, married him and as a result he threw her in the fire and cut her to pieces when she tried to show up at a family function. Shiva was outraged and shook the world with his anger, threatening total destruction but finally calming down and becoming the "lingam" interlocked with his wifes Yoni part fell to the ground.

Hundreds of people made their way round the Shiva Lingam while the Swamiji sat covered in Vibunti Ash blessing the whole thing. Numerous priests were there chanting the Vedic Verses and Sanskrit prayers to Shiva constantly.

Meanwhile concerts were going on within view of all that, and at 1am the Swamiji himself got onstage w/ keyboard with 20 musicians for Bhajans...I was one of them and had to pinch myself at the oppurtunity to be sitting there for that night.

Anyway, songs would stop frequently while we all followed him diligently. He would stop to give discourses in Telegu language and others while an English head set was available for foriegners. He was in full Bhakti, Joyful spirit and told many fun jokes and stories as well as "wake up don't sleep, live every moment in love and BE AWAKE!"

Kids walked through the crowds and squirted those that nodded off. by 5am many were dancing all were swaying with an inner and outer happiness as just before sunrise the Swamiji and his next in line Bala~Swamy commenced the final Pooja blessing, showering another giant Golden Shiva head statue with acres of gorgeous flowers and other auspicious things.

Home to sunrise and final packing in Mysore. Finish off with 108 Gayatri Mantras (chant for light and Divine Intelligence) at my friend James's house & final goodbye lunch with Manju and Nagaraj before jumping into a taxi to Bangalore with David.

As i left behind Beloved Mysore and all of the experiences there, i had a new spark and glow as well as the exciting in-my-skin pull to the the upcoming travels and HOME.

I have the "travel bug", and have all my life. I think it comes from my Grandfather who also had the affinity to travel. Me, i am happy as a clam in this spot...bags packed, moving along in a car, train, plane to the next spot...setting up in a room, someone's house or in a tent somewhere in the world i have never been, and setting out to explore the place in my own unique way. In fact at times i prefer to travel alone and meet people & friends/family along the way...so i can be in my own rhythms of coming and going.

Next stop...Hardiwar and Rishikesh via overnight train. The foothills of the Giant Himalayas.

Meet you then,

j~bird

awareness

2009-02-14T03:27:00.001-08:00

a yogi is supposed to be in bliss constantly as the ideal state...no thing or fluctuation can waver the mind from the enlightened state.
usually what we see as "issues" in others is just a reflection of something we are not looking at in ourselves. sometimes i get riled up when people don't tell me the truth or they withhold things or apear disloyal, but what i realize is i myself can honor my own truth and be loyal to myself more fully. or when someone has an issue with not enough freedom...are they really controlling themselves & others too much and putting "space" restrictions on themselves?

too deep for this warm afternoon just off the Ashram grounds. I have found a magical place in this world..the Ganapathi Music Ashram.. www.dattapeetham.com
a combination of gardens, temples and Music, music music...at the base of Chaumundi Hill, outskirts of the Mysore city/ nature line.
ahhhh.
home soon, more blog too.
love on feb.14th
j

day 7...

2009-02-01T06:00:00.001-08:00

the warm rice gruel soup after the fast put a whole new meaning to the words "comfort food". here are some shots from round town including the first house i lived in and my new Royal Endfield "Bullet" motorcycle a very sweet ride into the Indian sunset, no not really just dreaming.

did i say eat?

2009-01-30T01:29:00.000-08:00

The life which is not examined is not worth living.

Plato

Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment.

Jalal Ud-Din Rumi

It is day five at Dr. Kumar's ayurvedic clinic...i am doing a 7-day cycle of panchakarma , a system of natural health treatments and cleansing . This is not going to sound too fun, so i'll keep the graphic descriptions to a min. However...I must admit the experience is bringing up and then clearing some "stuff" at all levels, and i am feeling quite good now.

First 3 days, a lovely breakfast of a cup of herbal medicated ghee, yes- that's clarified butter to be exact! Then let it settle in and drink lots of warm water to help it take its effect, treatments include warm oil/herbs being poured in a relaxing pendulm on my forehead...then 2nd 3 days is light simple foods, oil body massages, by two therapists at once, and then a sit in a wooden box for steaming...not quite brietenbush but a personal retreat of some variety. I am playing music and catching up on sleep...no caffiene allowed ,although i must admit i snuck in a few tea bags of mate' so i can keep alert to practice.

"Slippery" is the key word for all this...with oil inside and out to let the toxins slide out of the system gently. (for those of you ambitious readers who are looking up "panchkarma" on google, don't worry i am not doing the "blood letting or the " Varama" oral purge to put it nicely. this one is fairly tame since i was already healthy.

I am missing Gokulam's yoga influence, but self-practic is perfect for right now. In fact i am exploring and enjoying the alone yoga time rather than in a huge room of sweaty yogis for awhile, had a rich realization of the lineage of Ashtanga yoga today...my mind flashed to the image of Pattabhi Jois himself as a young man learning and teaching yoga just a few kilometers from where i was standing on my mat in Saraswatipuram...and then all the places nearby that Manju, his son showed me from his youth and his Yoga stories...like all the different houses they lived in when he was growing up with dad-Guruji, etc. All within walking distance practically to where i am staying right now.

Finally, spent the afternoon yesterday "relaxing" at All India Radio Radio Station where Nagaraj is the Violinist in residence...he and his brother Manjunath (my Gurus 2) played there with Percussionists for a broadcast. Like getting a private concert in a wonderfully cool (its heating up in Mysore as of the other day from "winter" to summer temps.. 70's 80's to 90's) place.

What i will do when i get out of the treatment on monday? Probably go have breakfast at the Green Hotel ...pancakes with syrup!!! and try to stay off the coffee we'll just have to see, it's too good...

cheers,

EAT, pray, love

2009-01-24T05:41:00.000-08:00

Yes, if you have read the book you know Liz Gilbert titles each of her 3 part travel chronicle with a theme...eat, pray, & love...and if i were to label mine i just went full on in my own "eat" phase having just moved to a family friend of my Violin Gurus to stay, Shivani's house. She and I are cooking up a storm, me mostly watching all the minute details of Indian cooking in a real live Indian woman's kitchen! Yum, heaven.

But next week a different sort of diversion...an 8 day "panchakarma cleanse" at an ayervedic health clinic nearby, bringing body/mind/emotions to balance the traditional natural Indian way...more on that next week.

The name of the neighborhood i moved to is KuvempuNagar kind of reminds me of the name of the city where Amy B is right now KualaLumpur, funny coincidence. Wonder how the Indian food compares!

Anyway, words of wisdom..keep practicing whatever it is you want to get better at...as P.Jois says."Do your practice and All is coming"

love and Bisslebellebath with riata
juliebird

recording muses

2009-01-19T15:57:00.000-08:00

It is day two of recording studio time in mysore. A chronicle of my music journey and the amazing people i've shared music with, including material recorded last year in bend as well as new written tracks here. There were some magic moments and some hard work too at a beautiful studio near chaumundi hill. The recording process is a deep immersion in sound and boost/learning experience for any musician.

Meanwhile i am making plans for my move from Gokulam wednesday. see photo above of the yoga shala/house "gaurd" Prakash and I. This is right across the street from where i've been staying, and i see him every time i come and go from my house. All the hundreds of Yoga students also gather outside my house each morning for fresh coconuts after practice. It's a bit like communal living. I am moving to a home stay for a bit now, then a serene ayervedic clinic for 7 days of " panchkarma" or health cleanse treatment including special diet and massages/trreatments and finally a beautiful ashram near Chaumundi Hill, of the healing music Swamiji Sachidananda Ganapathi before heading north for a week into the foothills of the Himalayas and a visit to the Mishra's school of music.

Last month here will be filled with Yoga, and deep focus on Indian Music learning including some visits to my Violin Gurus' Manju and Nagaraj's house to listen and absorb the family practices and more amazing concert travel with them.

blessings from mother India!

understandings

2009-01-15T14:51:00.000-08:00

om!

being immersed in a different culture has its joys and snags both. it makes me realize the significance of exposing ourselves to what seems "different" than our own way as a path to learn depths of love and understanding between any two people.

the indian culture has an wonderful way of avoiding the word "no". seems there is always some way to make each other happy by "nodding" yes, even if the meaning is some other thing. ultimately we are far less separate than we appear and this knowing softens the edges of any mis-understanding.

one positive through the lessons and experiences here is that the overall "relating to others" is enhanced by coming up against cultural differences, sometimes struggling with, and then learning to relate and communicate through them. in some ways cultural differences are just another form of personality differences between people but on a larger scale. even relating to your closest friend and family can seem like being in a foriegn country at times. what to do? try on anothers shoes, for at least a moment. look to the "yes" in all situations, or in eastern thought the power of the "now".

more concerts (TN Krishnan 84 yrs old! and N. Rajam, two violin legends South/ North India played together in Mysore last night --history) Manju has asked me to do a lecture demonstration on western music sat....I'll recruit Udaya Kiran, a brilliant blind Musician and friend here to play jazz and classical piano/keyboard (he also knows western chords so we have some fun collaborating) and David guitar vocals and Aerck from Olympia to play didg.

yoga journey...have not spoke much about it, but my daily practice here continues and is a given as part of my life enhancers. Saraswati moved me swiftly to Kapotansana, a back-bend/breaking second series pose (postures are given in sequence in Ashtanga Yoga, one could stay in the same series for years or quicker before progressing) and it is pushes my challenge buttons daily. My full practice is almost two hrs long but Luckily the music endeavors and time of my practice (8-9am start..late!) force me to include more rest days than usual here in Mysore, otherwise I would be lounging half the day in bed recovering form Yoga practice ! Of course it does get easier with consistant practice but never complacent. I was thinking that somehow my latest rhythms in the physical portion of my Yoga practice (I also practice chanting, breathing and meditation daily which are all Yoga, and even Music can be Yoga) are following the tried and true principles i used to follow in XC skiing. Two days hard training, one day easy cycles to allow the muscles to recover.
Its all interesting and very individual. But i always like to connect all things...I bet Guruji would enjoy some of the amazing concerts i am attending...he loves music and so does his son Manju Jois.

peace to all at home,
j

happy new year

2009-01-13T18:19:00.000-08:00

really my 2009 resolution was not to avoid computers...it just turned out that way so far!

things have really escalated and gotten rich and full here in Mysore and I shall catch you up in a series of blogs...

first, some pics from the most amazing night 1.11.09...a full moon concert at a beautiful outdoor sacred ampitheatre (above is the "before" shot), i had the incredible honor to play in the prelude to my Violin Guru Manju's fusion concert...a first for me and here we are (that's my new friend Tobias from Cali who is a brilliant Cajone player and percussionist who is living here for a year to study the violin! ) We played a Brazilian Jazz Choro piece called Desvairada with a few original sections both planned and "improvised" on the spot.

wow

do one thing at least each day that totally scares you! playing for hundreds (something like 900 people there with tons waiting outside that didn't get in) right before some most amazing world famous Indian Musicians...that's good enough for a whole week of courage mustered up! All went well.

love from Mysore

more soon,

Julie Bird

2008-12-30T06:21:00.000-08:00

nothing a walk to the coconut stand won't cure...

i have been a bit homesick and had a head cold today after the incredible 5 days in Madras (Chennai) India for the music festival. But its like the feeling after a large event, exhausted yet richer in experience. Highlight: temple concert last night (day after Hanuman Monkey Gods birthday) and in there was a 4 story high Black stone Hanuman statue...wow.

so i just wrote two blogs since i was out of internet zone for awhile. its almost 2009. excuses aside..i have been enraptured in my little world here of South Indian Music and Guru time.

doesn't mean i havn't thought of home and all of you fondly through the holidays.

2009 resolution...liberation from too much seriousness, PLAYFUL radiant lover Julie freed up.

love to all,

j bird

the Light returns...

2008-12-22T23:31:00.000-08:00

Namaste!
I promised pictures but the camera had to take a trip to the sony service repair...timing is key in promises, make them but allow the natural flow of time to unfold...this lesson is always at the surface here in India. Culturally, the we have different sense of time ranging from dinnertime (here 8-9pm), to when things are right to undertake. Westerners here soon drop the "want it now" attitude if they want peace of mind.

Well, news around here is a very small xmas buzz, i mean wee...some children outside my window at noon strolled by singing jingle bells today (the 23rd) and a man in a shop wished me happy xmas when i bought some decorations to give to friends. For me, Xmas has always meant extra special connection to family and friends more than the occiasion itself--- i do miss that, but otherwise...laying on my roof under the coconut trees for 40 min. after a morning of violin practice and an early lake walk, and speeding around on my scooter in sleeveless to pick up a package from home has so far been a grand pre xmas-eve day.
Most of the westerners are gone from Gokulam (Yoga students that is) as the Yoga Shala has a two week break. Kind of like the "off-season" since come Jan. this place will be teeming with foriegners...that's when i will shift my set-up to Saraswatipuram neigborhood and dig into the music even deeper. David G. and I have a new Years performance planned- a kirtan, celebratory participation singing with a local Tabla friend, and we go 3-4 nights a week to do this Kirtan thing at various Westerners and Indian places.

My plans for xmas are to fly to Chennai tomorrow for 5 days to attend the biggest South Indian Music Festival in the world...entire month of Dec. is devoted to concerts, 150 venues thousands of concerts. Nagaraj and Manjunath are playing every day somewhere and I shall dive in. Each venue trys to outdo the next with free food specialties and glam treatment of Artists and audience. Indian Musicians are a joyful, fun lot...more soon.

I've been doing some "inner work" here and one thing has been the interesting process of "The Artists Way" by Julia Cameron. It's core work is morning writing everyday longhand to process and connect with the inner Artist. Week 7 has some great insights: That are especially poignant as I move toward a recording project of a few tracks of my own arrangments with some Local top Indian musicians:
"Do not fear mistakes, there are none" Miles Davis
Drop perfectionism in all things it is a refusal to let yourself move ahead.
Perfectionism is not a quest for the best in ourselves, its the part that tells us that nothing we do will ever be good enough- instead move ahead into action to ...RISK most of us talk ourselves out of risk.
We can not escape fear. we can only transform it into a companion that accompanies us on all our exciting adventures.

the small things...

2008-12-12T16:27:00.000-08:00

Seeking occurs in time,and follows a path out of the present moment
into an imagined future.
Discovery is grounded in the present moment,
centered here and now.

Seeking focuses on a distant goal.
Discovery focuses on immediate Reality.

Seeking is fueled by restlessness and longing.
Discovery is delighted, fulfilled and satisfied.

Seeking is predicated on lack and grasping,-- and a sense of something missing.
Discovery is completely open and receptive-- accepting and embracing Reality,exactly as it is.

Good friends Phil and Grace in Bend mentioned they liked India "in the cracks". Perhaps they mean the small meaningful happenings like...

~walking 2 blocks to sit under a canopy a drink fresh cocnut "water" with a straw, whenever thirsty
~or sipping a wee 3 rupee "chai" tea at same walla, several times a day of course.

~walking just one block more to a small tin hut where a man irons clothes with a coal -fired piece in the heat of the day with a huge smile. laundry is an overnight journey out to the rocks where it is "slapped" clean and then sun dried.
~the special the moments of visiting an Indian family or individual where as the guest treatment is royal.
~asking directions in India...you'll likely get 4 different answers and versions in the same crowd and go somewhere entirely not where you thought (which turns out where you needed to be anyway).

~or how about the man who swings by the house several times a day singing "papayas...etc." delivering fruit and vegies right to the houses.

photo tour of the hood soon,

namaste!

intelligent vegetables

2008-12-06T05:49:00.000-08:00

Life in india takes some delightful turns...
my new house mate brought me out to a farm 20km outside of mysore to an organic/ biodynamic gardening intensive based on Rudolph Stiener's work...www.basilacadamy.in
wow, the academics and details of growing high quality "intelligent" food from rich and fertile soil created from all natural methods including alignment with the moon, sun and constellation rhythms, cow dung composting etc. are fascinating ! cosmic farming on the Cauvery river outside Mysore...a welcome and serene departure from the city bustle. above pic is the layered compost piles we made.. cow dung slurries on a grand scale. And below is the group (a varied crew from Indian to new Zealand, canada and U.S) making the biodynamic soil and planting fertility boosters in cow horns (to be buried for months in either summer or winter depending on the mixture). Met some great characters here. Very interesting to "work" together...cultural differences are subtle and interesting... Indians have a great cooporation-team sense, whereas westerners seem to be more individually minded.

this Goshala Farm is something special (see purple lotus pond below) complete with morning and evening singing and music devotion in the small Krishna temple.
I am planning to go back soon to take a music writing stint and meditation break from city...

Now back in Mysore after this 3day course i am settled into my nest across the street from the Ashtanga yoga Shala of Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, the 93 year old legendary Yoga Guru and my original inspiration. He no longer teaches now (it is his grandson Sharath and daughter Saraswati) but i see him from time to time at his house and it often gives me tears of joy to see the light shining so bright in his eyes...he taught yoga to my Violin Gurus Manjunath and Nagaraj's father way back in the day so we talk of South Indian music.

I think of him when i am practicing music since with windows open sounds carry throughout the neighborhoods here.

Windows are surely open...its been very comfortable temps...70's 80's ...cotton is king.

Just finished a 3 night stint of concerts at Jogomohan Palace with some masters of South Indian Music. Getting around fine on my wonderful rented scooter, Indian traffic is a chaotic flow of horn language and anything goes, timing in the moment is everything...

Met some musicians here for recording projects and collaboration...

More soon, love and spice from India

sunshine again

2008-11-29T20:48:00.000-08:00

the mysore train station...

violin concert in bangalore

Manju, Nagaraj, and friends

Classical Indian Music at its finest

not sleeping much, jet lag still, excitement still

too much chai and wireless internet in my new room. directly across the street from P. Jois's Shala...in the middle of the Yoga world.

everybody knows most everything about everone here, not much autonomy.

here i sit, sing and play the violin.

i go back and forth through various states of total bliss to complete bafflement around here. best is even keel through ups and downs. india is the perfect practice grounds for that. did i mention that the food is unbelievable? very fond of idlis and sambar this trip. cooking class tomorrow.

listened to my voicemail from U.S. (thanks for calls) and felt very warmly missing friends at home.

sun came out again, it rained for a week due to Sri Lanka cyclone coastal storm.

India shakes things up and smoothes out the rough edges.

looking forward to more of that, hanging in the moment for now,

got to get a scooter soon but walking all over the place has been nice.

santosha (contentment) in mysore...

love,

j bird

thanksgiving in india... safe here in the south

2008-11-26T22:37:00.000-08:00

landed smoothly in india and we are tucked way down south in a beautiful "small" city of mysore hopefully off the map of the northern terrorist scares. even so, we are staying clear of downtown and tourist spots for awhile and keeping to the 'burbs where we are staying...within the first hour of wandering in mysore i saw this friendly familiar face by lucky chance (telepathy seems to work here...).

getting settled... more blogging soon. feeling thankful to be here on this adventure...Stacey and i are hiking up Chaumundi Hill to Goddess's temple with the seven golden spires and layers for our thanksgiving (my second time in two days here...!).
love and warmth from india
jbird

my violin and i

2008-11-23T04:46:00.000-08:00

departure day !

gratitude to ALL of my family and tribe...Mom, Dad and you know who you all are, for inspiring and making this journey possible. i am feeling full of joy and blessed this early morning ~ it is brisk and cold.

had the oppurtunity to play music with some close friends the eve of departure for a fundraiser for the couple who were brutally attacked while travelling in
s. america. heartening to see the community turn out for an event like that to transform that awful situation into support and love.
also feels somewhat like a prayer for safety in my own travels, a friend told me recently (Jen P) that when we offer healing for others it opens the same channels in ourselves. so if there is any suffering or confusion in our own world it's useful to go outside ourselves, find a similar circumstance or situation in need of healing, and imagine/offer our help.

now onto this exploration mission of sound and healing..with my very close companion
the violin i've played since i was 10 yrs old! nice to think of all the colorful experiences we've had together, temples, concert halls, bars, nature, yurts, trains, airplanes, porches, gigs, practices, orchestras, bands, living rooms and kitchens too numerous to count, etc. etc. i have played that instrument for nearly all of the people i have known and loved in my life. what an incredible thread. i can sometimes hear the vibrations of that grand picture when my ears are particularly open and near my f-holes & sound box.

soon, india!

Spiritual Exile

2008-11-19T06:25:00.000-08:00

exile. n.
Enforced removal from one's native country.
Self-imposed absence from one's country.
The condition or a period of living away from one's native country.
One who lives away from one's native country, whether because of expulsion or voluntary absence.

I am often asked: why do you go to India time and time again? ...perhaps looking for a tangeable organized answer, for which there isn't. Best answer is just to smile and laugh when asked "why"
(deep sage-like wisdom from two year old Hunter Grace here).
Perhaps another answer to why? is "To find yet more questions of a higher nature that experiences outside our normal ruts, routines & culture provide." Or the answer to satisfy our sense for normalcy..to study Yoga, Indian Music (Violin & Voice),certain types of India Massage to bring back and enhance, heal & teach others here in this culture while otherwise hanging out in a warm, spiritual and expansive environment with yummy food. To visit my dear family friends,The Violin Gurus Manjunath and Nagaraj and their family, (Manjunath says to me that what we Learn and practice in our lifetimes are our closest intimate friends i.e. Indian Music, Yoga, more so than even our loved ones ) or to go away from the U.S. for awhile to return not asking "why" so much!

Four and a half more days to go...
Was blessed to "sit-in" for Jai Uttal, the famous luminous kirtan singer who got the flu in Bend. Wonderful Lolo from Hood River lead the kirtan, i played violin. We were both in awe of the amazing and brilliant Daniel Paul on the Tablas (Jai's drummer) sitting next to us and also the full Old Stone Church audience who decided to stay put and sing despite the missing lead character.
Kirtan, as Jai puts it is "The Lifeboat of the Soul"...and it just FEELS good to sing together that way, kind of like everyone in the audience gets to experience the joyful "emptying of what we come full of" to a musical performance that us Musicians get to feel each time.
Many things to be grateful of...
and now the "letting go" pains of leaving beautiful Bend and the circles of family friends, which i seem to be particularly sensitive to this time around !

A sequence of connected musical notes

2008-11-15T17:48:00.000-08:00

...my life is like a (says gaurdian angel Kay O.). At the moment i am in the "bridge" of my life's symphony. And speaking of metaphors I have been contemplating a few in this interesting limbo time with the help of some friends.

1. The Burning Ship and the Island: (Thanks to Cass and embellished by me)...A change of Life's situations, (somewhat tumultuous). After a storm on the sea, a ship gets struck by lightning and burns! (The circumstance we have to give up or transform in ) No choice but to abandon ship (way of thinking, circumstance etc.), hop in a row boat and row towards an Island for safety. Be careful though, the bright flames are intoxicating and might make you spin around and look back and ponder the disaster, get blinded by the fire or even get drawn back into a sinking ship! rather--- spin around and row bit by bit towards the shore of the island ...so by facing the right direction your path can be illuminated by the burning mess behind you. that is, IF you keep your eyes open, chin up and stay alert to the lighted path out of the storm . The sacred rowboat of change is usually a solo journey but if those that you love were on the ship too, have them hop in or wish them well in their own rowboat.

2. The Scales: Again thanks Cass Estes...Again related to transformation or for example putting energy/time towards some aim...Like putting small increments of scale weight on the side of the scale you are after...eventually there is enough weight there so that the scale tips in the right direction.

3. The Favorite Old Tattered Jeans: As a symbol of an important Relationship that changes. (thought of by me on a hike beside the river this summer)...perhaps the favorite jeans start to unravel at the knee and cuffs. The more they go through the wash, the more the threads separate once the hole is started. The cuffs scrape ground and become frayed, but the jeans are soft, comfortable on the skin and very dear to the wearer having gone through all those experiences together. So, one attempts to "patch" the hole in the knee when it gets out of hand.
One could throw a patch on, try a different look & bring in outside materials for help ... just forget the frays and hole underneath for the moment... but that will eventually unravel its stitches too and once again fall apart. Perhaps the underlayers of the fabric can be carefully woven back together and then covered with a colorful well-intended patch on the knee for therapy, and the edges of the cuff can be trimmed, what's not needed is discarded...Well, those are some character-filled yet intact jeans!
OR, one could just give up the whole process somewhere in the mending and throw the jeans out and get some new ones. OR, perhaps (cass's idea here, she's a seamstress) one could cut off the jeans into shorts! and just retain the best parts of the favorite jeans. And finally i thought perhaps the jeans could become a homage to their original form through ART. Stitch a jean pillow and use it to cushion your behind, to sit on and act as a muse to create...music, poetry, a letter, a painting, an idea and...
finally, the jeans could be put into part of a beautiful patchwork quilt of life's joys, trials, & rides, with all the love and experiences... curl up with this quilt and sleep soundly knowing the fabric of life is interesting and eventually healed at some point. 8 days for liftoff to India...
shout out to genius music man Neil Young tonight from portland cafe' xxoo j bird

2.

The Music lures me to Seattle...

2008-11-07T10:29:00.000-08:00

Good morning from rainy Seattle ,

the road feels like it has begun so i start my entries here. after an 11 hour train ride over the Oregon mountains (covered with the first snow of the year! mixed with still brilliant yellow fall leaves--- a very sensual experience), Chemult to Seattle the slow way...where i read most of a Hafiz poetry book, journaled, napped and played some violin down in the cafe car. We saw THE most deeply rich full triple rainbow i have ever seen out the east window near Eugene, and the new friend sitting near me took a picture~ he said "hold up your hand like it is coming out of it", i did and a split second later it vanished! He said it appeared to go right into my hand...a good omen for the future? and sure enough, as i stepped off the train there was a phone call from Tor, my Tabla-percussion friend in Seattle that we indeed have collectively shifted our countries Hope for the future with our new president. I could feel the web of excitement in the atoms of the air i was breathing. I believe that thoughts, energy and words are very powerful and can indeed effect each other "through the air".
here are a couple of soul-awakening poems from the visionary Hafiz:

THIS SKY
This
Sky
Where we live
Is no place to lose your wings
So love, love,
Love.

A GREAT NEED
Out
Of a great need
We are all holding hands
And climbing.
Not loving is a letting go.
Listen,
The terrain around here
Is
Far too
Dangerous
For
That.

THE AMBIENCE OF LOVE
We all
Sit in His orchestra,
Some play their
Fiddles,

Some wield their
Clubs.

Tonight is worthy of music.

Let's get loose
with
Compassion,

Let's drown in the delicious
Ambience of
Love.

This blog will be some "writing home with the latest travel adventures" but mostly a sharing of the wisdom along the way.
Tor taught me "Nam Myoho Renge Kyo" a buddhist chant that when repeated diligently daily, is said to transform anything we want, sky's the limit...the Unlimited power of sound and vibration is my main mission for the days to come...
Sat in on a practice with Debi Prasad Chatterjee from Calcutta, India... Tor Dietrichson played Tabla... and a jazz saxophonist from Seattle Neal together weaved the improvisational magic of Indian Raga based music. I joined them towards the end and learned a few things about Hindustani or North Indian music. Then recorded a few songs on my good friend David Garrigues new album at Greg Gilmore's cool basement studio. Followed by a warm and joyful kirtan at 8 Limbs on Pike st. with David and Tor.

Countdown to lift off to Mysore, India...16 days!