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NEWSLETTERS:
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AWAKENING
SELF NEWSLETTER — Nov 2004
1)
Announcements
2) Yoga
of the Seasons: Dark and Spooky
3) Class,
Workshop, and Retreat Schedule
4) This
month's article - "Warmth, Thanks, and Kindness"
by Connie Habash
5) Spiritual
Quotes
Having a new baby is absolutely amazing - and time consuming.
So, I've given myself another break this month and am sharing
with you an encore and update of the article I wrote for
Thanksgiving in 2002: "Warmth, Thanks, and Kindness". May
it spark the gratitude that the holiday is meant to bring all of us.
Look for new articles starting next month!
SPECIAL THANKSGIVING MORNING CLASS:
"Yoga for Good Digestion - and Gratitude" from 9:30-11:30 at YIY in Mountian View on Thursday, November 25th.
$14 to drop-in, or part of your regular YIY series. Come prepare yourself in body & mind for the great Thanksgiving meal and celebration. :)INTRO TO YOGA WORKSHOP returns! Wanting to get back
into your yoga practice, or know someone who'd like to start?
I'll be offering my Introduction to Yoga workshop again in January,
on 2 Saturdays, 1/15 and 1/22 from 2-4:30pm at YIY in Mountain
View. $50 if registered by 1/8; $60 thereafter.
UPDATES TO WEBSITE
The photos of my new baby Meera are up on the site!
http://www.awakeningself.com/meera.html
Also, I am in the process of adding articles from past newsletters that have now been revised and are easily accessible in the Articles section:
http://www.awakeningself.com/articles.html
Check out new photos in the Photo Gallery, from the last two years of the Women's Spring Renewal retreat and the recent Sanskrit Intensive!
http://www.awakeningself.com/photo.html
Enjoy while I am on maternity leave.
Next 108 SURYA NAMASKARS coming Tuesday, DECEMBER 21st for the Winter Solstice from 7-9am at YIY in Mountain View. Come early or late, do 1 or 108, meditate, chant, just come celebrate! I chant the 12 mantras to the Sun 108 times, while the Ashtanga yogis lead the Surya
Namskars. By donation.
YOGA MAMMAS! I have started a new discussion group (in addition to Namaste Yoga Circle) on Yahoo for all mothers of babies, young children, and expectant mothers who wish to share community, spirituality, and information on yoga and natural health and well-being for our families. We will begin with online discussion, and will soon we having gatherings at my home in Menlo Park! If you would like to join this group, please click on this link to find out more:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Yoga_Mammas/
INFANT MASSAGE CLASS: To kick off the Yoga Mammas group, Elisa Song, MD, is offering an Infant Massage class here at my home in Menlo Park. Learn to give your baby a nurturing, healing, and loving touch, easing tension, releasing discomfort, and developing a special communication with your baby through your hands. This will be offered over 3 Saturdays.
Both parents are encouraged to attend. By donation, and class size is limited to 5 babies, so sign up early!
3 Saturdays: December 11, 18, and January 8, 3-4:30pm in Menlo Park
Call or email Connie for registration and info! (650) 996-2649 connie@awakeningself.com
2) Yoga of the Seasons: Dark and Spooky
You may still
have pumpkins out on your porch, skeletons hanging by
your front door, and some leftover candy hanging around
the house. Halloween has just passed, celebrating all
that's spooky, goulish, and creepy as well as being able
to
pretend we're something we're NOT for a night!
This holiday, which has
its roots in age-old traditions of the last Autumn harvest,
as well as other cultural celebrations of the dead, such
as Mexico's Day of the Dead, is our annual opportunity
to look at the things that scare us. For most of us,
there's nothing more frightening than our own death. And
here, on this non-religious holiday, we can look at death
with humor and playfulness. Skulls lit up from within,
eating "bone" candy, putting fake blood on our
face and hands - these rituals of dressing ourselves,
our homes, and playing games around the theme of the dead
helps youngsters integrate the reality of our temporal
lives in a light-hearted way. Which is a good idea for
all of us! After all, we will need to face our own death
someday, and why not recogize that this body is temporary,
but our spirit is everlasting, by dressing up in fun as
a ghost or a mummy.
We can take this a step
further, though. Halloween allows us to look at any of
our fears with more humor and playfulness. This holiday
takes some imagination: from the telling of scary stories
to imagining the most frightening costume, Halloween is
largely about what we think is scary in our minds. And
that's the nature of almost all our fears.
Most of what we fear is
a product of our imaginations. We tend to fear what might,
could, or will happen, rather than what is actually occuring.
Although these fears are usually more conceptual, or reality-based
(such as, I'm afraid I'll lose my job, or afraid I'll
get hit by a car) than the scary monsters of Halloween,
this time of year is a good time to look at our fears
and how we create them in our minds.
We can learn to laugh about
being scared, just as we may if we go through a haunted
house created just for this holiday. What creativity our
mind has! If you watch it carefully, you can see how our
thoughts create very elaborate things to be scared of,
most of which never happen. You've got your own spooky
movie! Attempt to see this play of our imagination as
just that, rather than take it seriously, just as you
are amused by the fantastic costumes that show up at your
door for trick-or-treating.
This time of year also reminds
us that Winter is approaching, as night falls sooner (especially
after going back to Standard time in most of the United
States), and we have more time in the dark. The dark represents
not only the unknown and what we fear outside ourselves,
but what we don't want to look at within. Any
issues that haven't been dealt with, resentments that
haven't been resolved, fears we haven't faced - these
may emerge from the dark during the Fall and Winter.
Time to clean the skeletons
out of the closet! Journal writing, observing your dreams,
doing artwork to express feelings, going to counseling,
or taking a personal growth workshop are all excellent
for bringing more light to those dark places. This kind
of self-exploration can really take the charge out of
things we
fear or tend to avoid. This empowers us by relieving the
pressure that is created by pushing away these issues,
and lightening the load of what we're carrying around
in our psyches. Just as our eyes adjust and we can see
more clearly after a few minutes with the lights off,
the things we've been avoiding won't seem so scary or
overwhelming once we allow ourselves to see and understand
them more clearly.
Imagine feeling as free
and light as the leaves floating down from the trees at
this time of year, as we remove the heaviness of that
inner darkness. Enjoy the longer nights by candlelight
and a warm fire. This time of year encourages us to find
the inner light during the dark night, and to live our
lives with faith, courage,
and joy, rather than fear.
copyright 2004 by Constance L. Habash
3) Class, Workshop, and Retreat Schedule: Fall/Winter 2004 and Winter/Spring 2005
RETREATS:
WOMEN'S SPRING RENEWAL RETREAT returns!
Mark your calendars for: APRIL 22-24, 2005
Mt. Madonna Center, Watsonville
A special time to empower yourself, explore the feminine
within, and connect with other women in community.
More details next month...
WORKSHOPS:
Special THANKSGIVING MORNING CLASS coming in November: "Yoga for Good Digestion (and gratitude!)" at YIY 9:30-11:30am
$14 to drop-in, or on your regular series at YIY
INFANT MASSAGE with Elisa Song, MD
3 Saturdays: 12/11, 12/18, and 1/8, 3-4:30pm
by donation, in Menlo Park
Register early - limited to 5 babies!
INTRODUCTION TO YOGA! Never tried yoga before? Want to brush up on basics, or get back into a regular practice? Think you'll get lost in a regular class? This workshop is for you!
Two Saturdays: 1/15 and 1/22, 2-4:30pm
$50 if registered by 1/8: $60 thereafter at Yoga is Youthfulness, Mountain View
CLASS SCHEDULE (PENINSULA & SOUTH BAY):Continuing Yoga Classes:
No regular classes until I'm back from maternity leave -
check out the great teachers subbing for me.
TUESDAYS
9:30 - 11am — Beginning Iyengar & Vinyas
Lynn-Marie Murphy substitues until end of December
YIY, Mountain View
THURSDAYS
9:15 - 10:45am — All Levels Vinyasa & Iyengar
Nicole Perkins takes over the class on 9/9
Devi Yoga, Menlo Park
FRIDAYS
9:30 - 11am — All levels Iyengar & Vinyasa
Setareh Moafi substitutes until end of December
YIY, Mountain View
4)
This month's article: "Warmth, Thanks, and Kindness"
By Connie Habash
While we're
dealing with the cooler weather and the need to keep our
bodies warm, there's something stirring inside us that
is activated by the Autumn season. Our hearts become nostalgic,
and sometimes sad or lonely. Perhaps it's seeing the leaves
turn and fall from the trees, reminding us of the impermanence
of everything in life, that brings up this melancholy.
Often, our
hearts are needing extra soothing and caring as we deepen
into the Fall season. And while we recognize this need
within our own souls, we can
acknowledge that others, too, are needing this tender
care. There is no better time than now to consider how
we can cultivate warmth in our hearts and also share
that caring with others.
There's nothing that warms
the heart more than a little kindness and gratitude. A
kind act can turn a sour day into a sweet one. The giver
and the receiver are
both transformed. Gratitude fills our own hearts with
the fullness of recognizing the many blessings we have.
Gratitude to another affirms their contribution to your
life, and supports them in continuing to give from their
heart and soul.
I believe gratitude is most
powerful when we recognize what we already have. Even
before the Thanksgiving feast, our richness of life is
abundant if we allow ourselves to see it. We don't need
more than what we already have to be grateful. How interesting
that our tradition at this time of year tends to be creating
a huge feast in order to express our gratitude? When we
already see how much we are blessed, even just by the
gift of life itself, then everyday becomes a Thanksgiving
event. This warms the heart even on the coldest of days.
The greater challenge is:
can we be grateful even when we don't receive what we
want? Can we find that warmth in our heart even when the
clerk at the grocery
store is rude, or we lose a five dollar bill? Perhaps
we can be grateful we don't have their stressful job,
or that we even have eyes to see the scowl on their face.
We
could be grateful that someone who really needs that five
might be able to receive it. What an interesting way to
practice gratitude! No situation would be impossible to
find something to be thankful for.
What you may end up discovering
is that the more you practice gratitude, the more abundance
and blessings show up in your life. This isn't suprising
- think about someone you've given something to recently
who seemed truly grateful for it. Didn't it make you want
to continue to give? When something was received with
disappointment or an attitude of expecting more, it's
discouraging. We tend to feel less inclined to give to
that person, or that we can't give them what makes them
happy, which can make us feel distant and pull away from
them. The universe responds similarly - when we're grateful
and appreciative, it's natural to attract more abundance,
and when we're constantly disappointed by what we receive,
we can end up cutting off the natural flow. When we're
full of gratitude, or grate-full, life becomes gratifying
and more satisfying.
Gratitude and kindness
go hand in hand. While gratitude is an attitude of receiving,
kindness is an attitude of giving, that can be giving
to yourself as well as others. Kindness is like having
a cozy, soft blanket wrapped around you when you're shivering.
It's comforting and loving. Maybe that clerk really needed
just one person to act as if what he or she was doing
really mattered. Perhaps your neighbor could use a hand
with their groceries. And maybe you, of all people, need
to go a little easier on yourself. Think of the kind words
you might like to hear, and focus on those instead of
any critical thoughts you might plague yourself with.
Wrap that warm blanket around your own shoulders and cut
yourself some slack.
Kindness is one of the main
practices in all world religions. Kindness brings us in
a closer relationship with the divine. When we are being
kind, we are serving the Divine in the other person, and
ourselves. The Dalia Lama says that his religion is kindness.
It all boils down to that. We don't need to do more -
if we practice kindness, we are practicing love. This
is one of the highest spiritual principles. We become
more of our Divine essence by practicing kind acts. To
quote Eric Hoffer: "Kindness can become its own motive.
We are made kind by being kind."
There are many forms that
kindness can take. It isn't always just being sweet to
someone. Sometimes, the kindest thing is to remove "the
stick that's in your eye". It hurts, but it's a lot
better than leaving the stick there. Sometimes, in order
to be kind to ourselves or another, we have to be strong
and do what we know is for the highest and best, even
if it's hard or unpleasant.
A true practice of kindness
is doing the action that most serves the other, or ourselves,
without attachment to outcome - and without attachment
to whether you or they like it or not. Cleaning your child's
skinned knee may hurt and make them cry, but if it keeps
the wound from getting infected, then we know it's the
most kind
thing to do. We can do these difficult tasks with as much
compassion as possible, embodying both a kind action as
well as a kind attitude.
If you're doing your yoga
practice and exploring a pose that's intense, difficult,
or scary, yet you know it is in some way healing for you
to do, have a kind attitude towards your body and yourself
as you practice it. You'll find that it will bring some
ease to the experience, and you can have gratitude for
being in that experience.
Fall
is a challenging time on the emotions, so it's extra important
to practice kindness and gratitude with others and yourself.
Thanksgiving can be a reminder
of being grateful for all that you already are and have,
and of offering kindness to yourself and others every
day. Autumn may then reveal itself as the warm and rich
season that it is.
Copyright 2002, 2004 by Constance L. Habash
"Take a rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop."
~ Ovid
"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
~ The Dalai Lama"The greatest good you can do for another is not just share your riches, but reveal to them their own."
~ Benjamin Disraeli
Blessings,
Connie
