The culmination of our tour in Las Vegas was the gift to each other for tickets to see the world-reknowned Cirque du Soleil show “O“, in permanent residence at the Bellagio Hotel since October 1998 (grossing over a billion dollars since it began!). I concur with the Los Angeles Times synopsis: “‘O’ is liquid magic …”….
It’s always kind of interesting to receive digital salutations expressing the ‘Happiest of Birthday’. I prefer a person-to-person connection, but regardless of the forum, I always appreciate the love shown me when people remember and honour this date in history, including the many of my online wishes. Here is a favourite email felicitation that brings a smile…
‘Going Deeper’ is a focused Meditation Retreat at the Mount Madonna Center that begins for us today. Officially it began on Friday night but we were uprooted from the full experience by full paying customers who registered last minute. I was quite disappointed, but am grateful to at least experience part of the process. What…
All of us, children and adults, are beautiful flowers. Our eyelids are exactly like rose petals, especially when our eyes are closed. Our ears are like morning glories listening to the sound of birds. Our lips form a beautiful flower every time we smile. And our two hands are a lotus flower with five petals….
It’s been a few days since breaking my cleanse. And as my friend Paul has quoted, “As much as fasting [and cleansing] can be a spiritual practice, so can eating.” I am finding myself so incredibly ravenous, trying to make up for lost time, it seems! It’s not that I limited myself on how much kitchari I could…
I was curious about the Sanskrit Translation for Hara Hara Mahadev, as it was commonly used around Shivaratri and in literature about the event. Hara Hara Hara Mahadev Om Namah Shivaya Namah Shivaya An approximate translation would be: Two of the names of Lord Shiva, which invoke His energy as the great God and destroyer of darkness….
Maha Shivratri (Sanskrit: महाशिवरात्रि),is a Hindu festival celebrated every year in reverence of the Hindu deity Lord Shiva who represents the Pure Conscious Principle. Shivaratri literally means the great night of Shiva or the night of Shiva; Shiva literally means “auspicious” and as Shankara, he is the giver of happiness and the god who destroys evil. This year, Shivaratri will…
Up until today, working in the kitchen and eating meals within the community has been a valuable test of my will and austerity. For example, witnessing and smelling the decadence of a creamy chocolate cake being prepared and decorated was the ultimate in divine temptation. But I have remained true to my cleanse, only consuming…
I’m finding myself in a unique situation right now. I have been successfully diligent and fastidious in determination on and commitment to this 9 day cleanse. Today is Day 8 and tomorrow we are supposed to break our cleanse gently by consuming kitchari with vegetables. However, with this being Shiva Ratri at Mount Madonna, in…
For the first time in 3 weeks, we left the Mount Madonna retreat to go in to town. What a revelation! Life all of a sudden became hectic, and the beauty of nature discovered in the Redwoods felt extremely distant. However, acclimatizing myself to life off the mountain is good thing. I thoroughly enjoyed our…