Back From India!
| The image you see above was taken of me in a boat on the Ganga in Varanasi, the world's oldest continuously inhabited city. I was attending the nightly aarti (prayer service) where we pay homage to and bid goodnight to the Ganga. The Ganga (Ganges River) is worshiped as a goddess, an incarnation of the Divine Mother. Varanasi is one of Hinduism's holiest cities, sacred to Lord Shiva. It's most known for 2 things: exceptionally high-quality silk brocades and cremation of 200-300 bodies a day on the banks of the Ganga. Sarnath, one of Buddhism's holiest sites, is only 15 minutes away. It's a hotbed of intensity and very high vibration.
I was in India for 2 weeks of whirlwind sightseeing. I was in Delhi, Varanasi, Agra, Jaipur, Udaipur and Mumbai. I went with an old college friend (a tobacco-company executive who lives on coffee, cigarettes and Diet Coke, go figure.) and we had a ball. We saw so much and learned so much that I'm still processing. The museums, the temples, the people, the jewelry, the food, the shopping...all so fantastic.
Yes, India's all the things you hear about it: dirty, poor, heart-wrenching, Dickensian. It's also magical, culturally dense, spiritually rich and full of love. India's spiritual wealth is outrageously high. In fact, by comparison, many "wealthy" societies should be embarrassed...something you can't miss, if your eyes and heart are open.
Click here to see a small fraction of the insane amount of pictures taken on my trip. I apologize in advance. I had some sorting difficulties while using Picasa, however, they shouldn't diminish your experience.
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OPEN HOUSE!
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Stop by this Sunday, February 20, from 1 pm to 3 pm 40 E. Oak St., #1002 to say hi, have some tulsi tea, see more of my pictures and perhaps purchase a scarf, earrings, a beaded bag or a mala from India.
I'll also have my skincare and ayurvedic products ready for testing and purchase!
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Upcoming Workshops I Recommend
| Dr. Claudia Welch was one of my most favorite instructors at The Ayurvedic Institute. She's brilliant, funny and inspirational...and brilliant. She's coming to Chicago to do a weekend workshop at Tejas Yoga supporting her about-to-be-published book: Balance Your Hormones, Balance Your Life.
Even though Claudia's a Doctor of Oriental Medicine and an ayurvedic practitioner, this workshop is designed to be accessible to all women and anyone interested in women's health issues. No previous knowledge of ayurveda or Chinese medicine is required.
On Friday, April 15, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., she'll give a free lecture and sign copies of her book. The rest of the workshop, "Breath, Mind and Hormones", will take place on Saturday the 16th and Sunday the 17th.
I strongly urge you to sign up for this. You will not be disappointed!
While you're signing up for "Breath, Mind and Hormones," be sure to check out all the workshops Tejas has listed on their site for 2011. They're about to start their first teacher training program and we're the beneficiaries. Many of the teacher training workshops will be open to the public and there are some great ones!
In fact, if you can't attend all of Claudia's workshop, be sure to attend Elesa Commerse's Meditation: The Art and Practice of Being Present for Your Life on Saturday, April 16. Elesa is an esteemed meditation teacher in Chicago with many years of experience. I feel blessed to know her and to continue to be taught by her. Her Sacred Chanting workshop in July is not to be missed!
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An Excellent Book
| This morning, I started reading Marianne Williamson's A Course In Weight Loss: 21 Spiritual Lessons For Surrendering Your Weight Forever. This isn't a diet or an eating plan. This book endeavors to get to the bottom of what's "eating away at you" spiritually. It asks some hard questions and gives some beautiful answers.
I've only read the forward by Dr. Dean Ornish, the introduction by Marianne Williamson and her first lesson and I was blown away. In fact, I need to re-read them this evening and tomorrow. The few minutes I spent this morning with this book has given me direction in re-tooling my daily spiritual practice. It's really, really good and highly recommended.
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 Love,
Karen Klutznick
312.445.8532
KK AYURVEDA
KK@KKAyurveda.com
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