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 afternoon of contemplative practices
with Rick Roberts and Lindel Hart
Hart Yoga
1 ashfield street | shelburne falls, ma
Sunday, May 8
12-3pm |
 Breath in. Now, as you slowly breath out, allow the corners of your mouth to turn up ever so slightly, as if you were smiling to yourself. What just happened? Was this the first time you smiled today? Don't let it be the last! With the arrival of May and of warm days it seems like Spring has finally found New England. I always look forward to the 2nd Sunday with a smile on the exhale, not always knowing what to expect, but that's the beauty of it...something unexpected always happens. Looking back over the year, we've explored many different paths of contemplative practice and each time together has been precious and unique. Sadly, this Sunday will be our last Exploring the Inner Landscape...but only for the season. We're taking a break through the Summer months. But I'm also excited because this Sunday we'll be exploring the connection between kirtan call and response chanting and ecstatic Sufi chanting with the help of Shaykh Kevin Germain of the Qadiri-Rifai Tariqa playing oud, yayli tanbur and percussion. In February (if you remember) Kevin and his Sufi musical group Burhan played for us and with us and so it began. I hope you can join us on Sunday 12-3pm for 3-hrs of music, chanting, Yoga and meditation at Hart Yoga in Shelburne Falls.As Rumi writes: There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground. Most people reading this email have had some exposure to Sanskrit, either in a Yoga class or a kirtan chanting experience. To become fluent in Sanskrit is a lot of work, but you don't need to be a scholar to get started having fun. So why would anyone want to study Sanskrit? For years I was too overwhelmed by the threat of yet another life-long undertaking to even begin, but then I was introduced to Sanskrit in a way that made it enjoyable to take small steps and so I began. That small beginning opened pathways to learning for me and provided unanticipated opportunities for expression. For instance, I hadn't realized that studying Sanskrit would involve calligraphy, singing and exploring sensations in the body, and would also provide a deeper access to Sanskrit texts like the Yoga Sutras. I love to share this with anyone that's willing to listen so I'm including a little something in the Sanskrit Primer below... my way of inviting you in!
let it be love, Rick How precious our time together here truly is!
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  Sanskrit Primer
for your reading pleasure
Why do I write this column? Two reasons. Most importantly I hope to ignite your interest in studying Sanskrit, but it also helps clarify my own understanding to write it down.
This month and next I want to show how, armed with a few grammar rules and a couple Sanskrit dictionaries, one can study and gain a deeper understanding of a short Sanskrit verse. I imagine that if you're on my mailing list you've read or at least heard of the Yoga Sutras of Patañjali. For this example I'm choosing sutra 13 from chapter 1.
Translating a sutra is a two step process. First you have to "unpack" the sutra into words you can look up in a dictionary, then you can look the words up in a dictionary. This month we'll look at some dictionary meanings for the words in the sutra and next month I'll show you how to "unpack" the sutra into words.
First let's look at four different translations for sutra 1.13 which defines the first of the two wings of Yoga, namely abhyāsa:
1.13 - From these, practice is the effort to be fixed in concentrating the mind.
1.13 - Practice is the steadfast effort to still these fluctuations.
1.13 - Of the two (mentioned in the previous sutra) 'to be established in the endeavor' is abhyāsa.
1.13 - Practice is the sustained effort to rest in that stillness.
To really understand this sutra you have to know that in the previous sutra (1.12) the author indicated that the stilling of the fluctuations of the mind occurs by abhyāsa and vairāgya...often referred to as the two wings of Yoga. This sutra (1.13) is important because it defines abhyāsa, the first of the two wings of Yoga.
Yoga Sutra 1.13:
तत्र स्थितौ यत्नोऽभ्यासः (Devanāgarī)
tatra sthitau yatno 'bhyāsaḥ (transliteration)
Next month I'll explain how to unpack this sutra into words that can be looked up in a dictionary, but for now I'll just give you the words along with several definitions from two sources: A Sanskrit-English Dictionary (Monier-Williams) and The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary (Apte)
tatra - In that place, there.
sthitiḥ - standing, remaining, staying, abiding, living, remaining.
yatnaḥ - An effort, exertion, attempt, endeavor. Diligence, assiduity, perseverance. Care, zeal, watchfulness, vigilance. Activity of will, volition, aspiring after.
abhyāsaḥ - Repetition in general. Repeated practice or exercise, continued practice or use.
To make better sense of what's written we read the words in reverse order, from right to left and fill in the missing words (is, in) implied by the grammar:
abhyāsaḥ is yatnaḥ in sthitiḥ tatra
(repetition, repeated practice) is (an effort, perseverance, vigilance) in (standing, remaining, abiding) (there, in that place)
Or simply: Practice is vigilance in remaining there.
("there" is defined in sutra 1.3 as "I, the seer abiding in my own nature")
If you've read this far and are intrigued then we should talk!
Namaste.
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 Inspirational Corner Rumi
Today,
like every other day,
we wake up empty and frightened.
Don't open the door
to the study and begin reading.
Take down a musical instrument.
Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways
to kneel
and kiss the ground.
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Exploring the Inner Landscape
with Rick Roberts and Lindel Hart
Every 2nd Sunday
 ...an afternoon that promotes self exploration through yoga postures, chanting and meditation. Join us for this mindful retreat from an overactive world to reconnect with your natural state of balance, harmony and peace.
This event is FREE supported in part by grants from the Conway and Greenfield Cultural Councils, local agencies which are supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency. |
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