Stroking the Uvula

I had a most hilarious conversation with someone on tribe.net the other day...

I can't remember the initial inquiry - but it was something to do with Tantra and sex and all that (I believe sparked by the fact that I share a last name with an old Tantric Sage...

So in order to shatter his lustful illusions, I had to reply! Here follows...

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Ariana Saraha wrote:

"Forsaking bliss the fool roams abroad,
Hoping for mundane pleasure;
Your mouth is full of honey now,
Swallow it while you may!"
...
"Obsessed with the joys of sexual embrace
The fool believes he knows ultimate truth;
He is like someone who stands at his door
And, flirting, talks about sex."
...
"Like a brahmin taking rice and butter
Offering sacrifice to the flame,
He who visualises material things as celestial ambrosia
Deludes himself that a dream is ultimate reality."
...
"He labels his peak experience sahaja:
He is clinging to a reflection mistaken for the mirror."
...
etc...

In my view, the Saraha Doha is both a treatise and a challenge to the practice of yoga - reminiscent-of, and yet thoroughly laughing- at/with, traditional sources such as Patanjali's Yoga Sutras...

While I enjoy and honor the sensual world, I still call it what it is... A beautifully silly and unspeakably sacred maya...

blissprincess.blogspot.com/2007/05/namesake.html (bwah haha ;-)

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Ariana,

"Like a brahmin taking rice and butter
Offering sacrifice to the flame,
He who visualises material things as celestial ambrosia
Deludes himself that a dream is ultimate reality.

Enlightening the House of Brahma in the fontanelle
Stroking the uvala in wanton delight,
Confused, believing binding pleasure to be spiritual release,
The vain fools calls himself a yogin"

I believe that spirituality encompasses the whole person- body, mind and soul. And I agree that sex is only a token in that equation. That is why I view tantra as having valuable techniques that can enhance that part of our lives, not as my pathway to spirituality. The union between two souls only mirrors the union between a person and the divine.

I'm still learning though...
blessings,

Jim

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Ariana Saraha wrote:

Ah, beautiful - I totally agree, and honor you.

Just always doing my part to inquire deeper and make sure people are thinking as fully as possible (and not using so-called "tantra" to pander to their addictions... :-)

This line cracks me up: "Stroking the uvala in wanton delight" - because it alludes to an absurd practice (you can read about it in the "Hatha Yoga Pradipika") in which a yogi, bit-by-bit, shaves off the little connecting tissue under the tongue so he/she is able to more fully turn the tongue backwards to supposedly drink the nectar dripping down from the pineal gland - hahahahaha!!! So you can see why I said he's poking-fun-at...

Thanks for the little dialogue, it's been delightful :-)

Blessings ~ A

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Ha! Hilarious.... thanks for informing me about "stroking the uvala"... I honor you too... You're not only beautiful but intelligent, thoughtful and poetic, a joy to get to know...

blessings,

Jim

Risking it All!...

I'm ready. I've decided it is time to put all my eggs in one basket, so to speak - to make music [finally!] my full time profession. As a preliminary step, I will be taking the summer off from all other engagements in order to study, perform, and record an album (the first of many...). In my deep, intuitive heart, I know I am finally ready, and so I am taking a leap...

As my father's daughter, of course I consult the I Ching. It replies with the third line of 17, "Following," which reads as such...

"If one clings to the strong man,
One loses the little boy.
Through following one finds what one seeks.
It furthers one to remain persevering."

"When the right connection with distinguished people has been found, a certain loss naturally ensues. A man must part company with the inferior and superficial. But in his heart he will feel satisfied, because he seeks and needs for the development of his personality. The important thing is to remain firm. He must know what he wants and not be led astray by momentary inclinations."

My experience with the I Ching is that it is relentlessly honest. Many times I have had wild and inspired schemes, but it has always shown when my ego is deluded. Here and now, however, I see there is no delusion. It's a wild and inspired scheme, to be sure, but one in line with my dharma - my righteous path on Earth.

The first CD (after the 'vocal warmups' one, of course!) will be called "Musings," and is an assortment of mostly Sanskrit prayers set to a trance tanpura landscape. It will be lush and intricate at the same time as being spacious and even a bit sparse - honoring the crystalline purity of these ancient prayers. It will be perfect for yoga and massage.

The CD after that will feature my full band and danceable rhythms... More on that soon! In the meantime, catch me "musing" at the Kirtan Summit, and "grooving" on April 18th at the Laughing Goat.

Mad Kingdom!

...the animal kingdom, that is...

Some years ago, I had a funny experience where one of those ubiquitous and adorable little boxelder bugs poked its proboscis into my skin ("ouch!").

Since then, however, I've made my peace with them - they zip around my little cottage all winter long... I let them out the windows on sunny days... I often think of how Richard Freeman refers to "bugs" as an everyday opportunity for communion (mystical union?)...

But alas, the cuteness illusion was shattered yet again today. I sat down to meditate and noticed two of 'em next to me on a log. One looked dead, or nearly so. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that one had its proboscis speared into the others' head! What?!! Go figure, I had to poke it to see what was happening - both were alive, but one barely...

After awhile the destroyer scurried off and left an empty shell of his brother... what?!!

The animal kingdom is mad I tell ya!!!

Is it any wonder that we humans have a hard time at it? Yet look at the blessing of reflection and compassion that we also have - that we need not be entirely determined by the body/fear sheath. Intrigued to see how we continue to evolve...

Hahaha - Happy Springtime!

Renewed

This monthly cycle of being a woman...

...is such a blessing. An opportunity, each time, for re-birth. Somehow I always feel I can shed whatever habits and ickies might have accumulated, and to start fresh. With fresh inspiration, new hope, more clarity... It helps that I give myself down-time in this cycle: time to reflect, be still, be silly, let it go... Then the putting-back-on of my everyday rhythms is a gift, not a chore.

May we shed the conditioning that we should always be busy and frazzled. May we remember the in-between times. May we remember gentleness - with ourselves, with each other, with the earth. May we all be blessed, men and women, with periods of down-time in order to refresh our energies and start anew...