Alchemical Prayers

As we know, the work of yoga is an alchemical work. We cultivate our Shakti in order to dissolve the gross substance of our mind and ego into the nectar of blissful consciousness. For the most part, I enjoy sticking close to the teachings of the eastern yogis, and meditate on their approach to this process, and contemplate their metaphors. Occasionally, I come a little closer to home, and explore what the western occultists, and Hermetic Alchemists have to say. Usually, I find some Jewels.
I would first like to introduce you to the term 'Hermetic', in case you are not familiar with it already. Hermetic refers to a school that traces its lineage to a great master, The Great Master, named Hermes Trismegistus. (Trismegistus = Thrice Blessed, or SHRI SHRI SHRI!) Hermes, as most of us know, was the Scribe of the Gods. He is considered to be the God of Language, Writing, Wisdom, and Alchemy. Many legends place him all over Greece, Egypt, and surrounding areas, and he is said to have instructed the Great Patriarch, Abraham. From then until now, countless practitioners have poured over his teachings and put them into practice in their lives. These mystics refer to themselves, and their lineage, as Hermetic.

Recently, it was my karma to come across a text, outlining the seven major hermetic principles. It is called "The Kybalion", and it is only 8 bucks, and if you like, you can order it here: The Kybalion. The first of these principles, is that there is a Universal 'ALL'. This all is considered to be Universal Living Mind. This All, of course, is in All, right? Universal Mind permeates all reality, and all the contents of reality, all the laws of reality, and every cell of our body. Here is a neat quote:

"While All is in THE ALL, it is equally true that THE ALL is in All. To one who truly understands this has come great knowledge."-The Kybalion

Although, i wouldn't say that this is an exact parallel of the Vedic ideas of Brahman (universal soul) and Atman (Individual soul), it calls them to mind. It brings forth the memory of our connection to something great, and that indeed, universes reside within us. To sit and feel both; that I exist within a great universal consciousness, and that a great universal consciousness is available within me, this creates a great sense of peace, happiness, and clarity. I recommend it, highly.

Digging around the internet produced a beautiful treasure, "The Secret Song of Hermes Trimegistus". This song, illustrates this idea, and also empowers us to feel our own divine qualities (Atman) while praising these divine qualities in THE ALL(Brahman). I'll post a short quote from it, but perhaps read the entire thing: here The Secret Song sit with it for a time, and let it reveal itself to you.

"O all ye Powers that are in me, praise the One, and All.

Sing together with my Will, all you Powers that are in me.

O Holy knowledge, being enlightened by thee, I magnify the intelligible Light, and rejoice in the joy of the Mind."

Please Enjoy Responsibly.

Timothy Leary's Tao Te Ching

I am reading a fantastic book.

They recently republished Timothy Leary's version of the Tao Te Ching, "Psychedelic Prayers". (Psychedelic Prayers: And Other Meditations (Leary, Timothy)
) I had an old version once, but I gave it to Paulie Zink. I was without one for a while, because I didn't feel like spending $50 on a old tattered printing from the 60's. But It's back again, and I found one on ebay for 8 bucks. it has some extra stuff in the back that is wonderful too.
Tim wrote his version while in india, studying with a Buddhist Lama and a Vaishnava Monk. He had nine different english translations, and carefully crafted his version based on his readings and 'meditations' (wink, wink). He writes it as a guidebook for a psychedelic experience, and gives it a clear beginning, middle, and end. The result is an elegant and transformational text, one suitable for any voyager of consciousness. any one who "floats through the universe of the body, without getting lost". It works really well as a guide through yoga or meditation practice as well.

Here is a verse, it focuses on impermanence. I've been really into impermanence lately. Its a good thing to get a handle on. nothing fancy, its simplicity holds it beauty.

I - 5

All Things Pass


All things pass

A sunrise does not last all morning

All things pass

A cloudburst does not last all day

All things pass

Nor a sunset all night

All things pass

What always changes?

Earth...Sky...thunder...
Mountain...water...
wind...fire lake...

These change

And if these do not last

Do man's vision's last?
Do man's illusions?

During the session
Take things as they come

All things pass

****

and this one has been my favorite for a very, very long time.

VI - 17

Walk Carefully When You Are Among


"holy men" and
"righteous" deeds
Distract from the internal

"Learned men"
Distract from
Natural wisdom

Professional know-how
Addicts people to the contrived
And the external

Be respectful and compassionate
But walk carefully when you are among-
learned men
holy men
doctors
government officials
reporters
publishers
professors
religious leaders
psychologists
rich men
social scientists
women with beautiful faces
artists and writers
men who
charge fees
city men
movie makers
men who want to help you
men who want you to help them
Christians and Jews


For such as these
However well meaning
Place you on their chessboard
Addict you to their externals
Distract you from the
TAO within

The lesson of the TAO is more likely to be found among-
gardeners
hermits
mountain men
smiling eccentrics
men who build their own homes
children
parents who learn from their children
loafers
amateur musicians
serene Psychotics
animals
men who look at sunsets
men who walk in the woods
beautiful women
cooks
men who sit by the fire
wanderers
men who make bread
couples who have been in love for years
unemployed men
smiling men with bad reputations

Psychedelic Prayers: And Other Meditations (Leary, Timothy)


turn off your mind, relax and float down stream.....

Love....

daniel

A big Pile of Books from the Ramakrishna Mission

I suppose I've been a little extra book crazy lately, perhaps its a winter thing. However, I can't help but be reminded of my old friend, Nat. He's probably in Belize right now, or perhaps he's finally made it to Antarctica. Nat was a small fellow, much smaller than average. I think it made clothes shopping difficult. When Nat would have a particularly good day at the thrift shops, he would say, "Somebody died in my size!", and smile real big. It was a bit morbid, and was probably true on at least one occasion. He thought it was hilarious. And it must have stuck with me, because when I walked into the "Last Word Bookstore" (40th and Walnut) today and looked at the 'Hinduism' section, my first thought was, "My God, a Ramakrishna devotee died." There were so many books from the Ramakrishna Mission, that they wouldn't even all fit on the shelves. They overflowed onto the floor. Not the best book Karma, I know, but I wasn't going to get in a fight with the bookstore guy about it. Enough Ramakrishna and Vivekenanda to keep you busy for a long, long time. Of course, there was some other good stuff, some Ramana Maharshi thrown in for good measure, and a few hardbacks from india written by obscure swamis. You could tell it all came from the same guy. I wonder what happened to him. Did he die? Did he become a Christian? Did he move to India? I hope he moved to India.
I was proud of myself, I didn't buy even one. I spent this week's book allowance on those that bag of tantra from craig's list, and it is keeping me plenty busy.
I just thought I should put it out there, in case anyone else in in the market for "The Complete Works of Swami Vivekenanda"($35), or in case anyone feels like making me a present. Hah!
Keep your lamps trimmed and burning...

New Aquisition at the BDLATS

I really enjoy books. I've always accumulated them quite easily, read them voraciously, and collected them doggedly. My library reached a new level several years ago when Bhagavan Das asked me to look after a few boxes of his books. There was some good stuff in there, stuff I may not have come across otherwise, and other things that I was familiar with, but just hadn't got around to accumulating just yet. It was a quantum leap, quite satisfying. I decided to name my library, "The Bhagavan Das Library for Advanced Tantric Studies". I thought it was official and important enough, and got back to the business of reading and collecting.
The BDLATS had another good day, about a year ago, when our dear friend Paul JJ Alix asked us to care for a portion of his collection for a spell. The excitement was lessened only slightly by the arrival of 11 boxes send C.O.D. I realized that this was the way to go. I stopped borrowing books, insisting that now, I only housed collections.
Well, we had a good day today, at the library. Nothing as fantastic as the collections we obtained from Baba or Paul, but still a solid haul. A Craigs List find. Fifteen books for $40. Mostly Chogyam Trungpa. One book by Musician John Cage. I didn't bother haggling, and I almost always haggle. For the sport of it.
It was an easy transaction, the gentleman dropped them off at the yoga school, and said he was happy they were going to a good home. I gave him his money, and thanked him.
I have a few of them already, if can guess which ones, I'll give you one of them as a present. I'll give you a hint, there are three. (No shipping, you have to come and get it)
Here is the inventory:
Dharma Art (Dharma Ocean Series)
The Lion's Roar: An Introduction to Tantra (Dharma Ocean Series)
The Heart of the Buddha (Dharma Ocean Series, 1)
The Tibetan Book of the Dead: The Great Liberation through Hearing in the Bardo (Shambhala Library)
Orderly Chaos: The Mandala Principle (Dharma Ocean Series)
Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism
Secret of the Vajra World: The Tantric Buddhism of Tibet
Dakini's Warm Breath: The Feminine Principle in Tibetan Buddhism
Kundalini: Yoga For The West
Healing with Form, Energy, and Light: The Five Elements in Tibetan Shamanism, Tantra, and Dzogchen
The Masks of God, Vol. 2: Oriental Mythology
The Masks of God, Vol. 3: Occidental Mythology
Silence: Lectures and Writings
Trancending Madness
The Bliss of Inner Fire: Heart Practice of the Six Yogas of Naropa

The rules:
1) The list of books is on my blog, mainlinesutras.com
2) You may enter once, by email, and guess the three duplicate books.
3) Place your first choice book first
4) The person who guesses the three (or the most) correctly, first gets their first choice book.
5) It will trickle down from there.
6) You must come get your book in person.

Sarah Power's New Book, 'Insight Yoga'

I haven't read it yet, because it just came out, but I am very excited to curl up with some tea and delve into Sarah's written word. I having spent many hours at Sarah's feet. I find myself consistently astonished and amazed me by Her lucidity. Her ability to describe the spectrum of human experience and the profound importance of simple spiritual practice inspire me greatly. When sitting with her, however, I am able to hear everything she says only once, she invairably goes on to another idea soon enough. It may be one of her ways of teaching impermanance. Im my stubbornness, and my desire to stay with the truths she shares a little bit longer, I have no doubt that I will cling to my copy of 'Insight Yoga', and read it again and again and again. I feel very comfortable recommending that you do the same.

July's Theme of the Month

I spent last weekend in Marin County, visiting some friends who I haven’t seen in a while. They are having a baby soon, and I thought It would be a nice time to visit, during the calm before the storm. While I was there, we went to a vegan restaurant called “Cafe Gratitude”. This place was fabulous from top to bottom. The decor was bright and cheerful, with murals of dancing children, affirmations, and penetrating questions “Can you surrender to how beautiful you are?”.
The food was fabulous, I had the “I am Celebrating” ( Raw Chile Relleno with cashew cheese) and the “I am Thriving” (Lentil Soup), and my friend had “I am Plenty Great” (Granola and fruit with cocnut Yogurt) and “I am Wonderful” (watermelon smoothie). Now, I can’t seem to get the hang of ordering at Starbucks, I’m only able to order smalls, mediums, and larges, but at this place, ordering by affirmation seemed totally natural and really, really fun.

The spirit of fun, and adventure was present not only in the design, and the menu (that’s the easy part) it was also alive in the staff. These beautiful people played their part so well, engaging us with joy and humor. They had a question of the week, “what are you proud of?”, and and were thrilled by our answers. That was the tip of the iceberg. I was so blown away, I asked to see the employee training manual (i love training manuals).

They claimed not to have one, and said that simply they just ‘play the game’ and that they have different themes, and different weekly questions, and other practices that keep them really dedicated to showingup for each customer. They also handed me a book, written by the owners, called Sacred Commerce: Business as a Path of Awakening.
I read it the entire way home, and I think it’s brilliant. I was very inspired by it.

It is time that the studio had a theme of the month. I would like us to have a clear focus, i would like us to travel on a shared journey. Imagine having a monthly topic that you could work with, struggle with, and with which you ultimately find clarity, certainty, and peace. Imagine being surrounded by a community that is meditating on the very same thing. Even though our yoga practice is ultimately an inner, personal journey, it will be beautiful to have a central group theme that we can share about, riff off of, and explore together.
I will attempt to make sure that each monthly theme is universal enough so that they will work for everybody, and also that they relate pretty clearly to traditional yoga teachings. I will also offer the theme from two different angles. The first Angle will be broad, sweeping, grandiose, and abstract. It will speak to universal truth, love, and beingness. Some people really relate to this sort of Angle very well. The second Angle will be specific, concrete, and quantitative. It will offer a practice (either on or off mat) that is measurable. One will be able to look back over their day and ask themselves “Did I smile at everyone I met today” (or whatever). There will be another population that this Angle will speak to more. More angles may emerge, but this is good for now.

This Month’s theme will be “Being Open To All That Comes”. We (if you will join me) will practice equanimity, and remaining heart centered in the face of all of the many events and phenomena that arise in the course of our day. We will consider the possibility that all things that arise have the possibility of guiding us towards a more full spiritual experience. We will be more aware of the places where we shut down and check out in the face of our experience. Where are we avoidant? Where do we shut down and simply endure a moment that we have decided is not good enough? Where do we play the martyr, or the victim? Can we be open to the idea that the hand of God is in everything, at all times? Can we surrender to the idea that our life provides us with what we need to go the the next level? And, what feelings come up when we tackle these ideas? This is the grandiose Angle. If you are curious about some traditional precedent for this theme, I would like to point you towards the
Bhagavad Gita.

“When a Man has mastered himself
he is perfectly at ease in cold,
in heat, in pleasure or pain,
in honor or disgrace.”
This is what I hold for you! Perfect Ease!



Our Practical Angle: NO COMPLAINING! We are going to take the month off of complaining. This makes sense right? if we are complaining, certainly we couldn’t be continually opening to the beauty and grace of each moment. This is a chance for us to become more impeccable with our speech, and our intentions. By observing our words, and our patterns of speech, we can start to find ways to create more upliftment, openness, and spacious love on a practical level. This is something that you can inventory, at the end of the day, and get honest with yourself about how you did. This has been a fun practice for Sally and I, catching each other when we slip up. We would be happy to keep an eye out for you too!
Good Luck with all this, and good Sadhana!

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