Shivaratri and beyond...

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

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...

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?

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,

j

EAT, pray, love

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

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

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