The Mysore Yoga Scene

Here in Mysore, India, we have an interesting array of world class Yoga teachers and schools. From the Western-populated, advanced Shala of the Jois family ("AYRI") to the more Integral and Alignment-minded yoga of "Yoga-India" (see links below) we have both flowing and static styles...Clearly, we have no shortage of hatha and ashtang... Many of these teachers generally teach just one or two hours per day, leaving people free for the rest of their time .... A number of certifications are available now as well...

As a student of "integral" yoga, in the coming time I will continue to research and try to elaborate on what is offered here... however, there is between 200-300 schools around, with some more prominent than others... including:

-http://www.ayri.org - This is the so called "Main Shala" where Patthabhi Jois resides and his family teaches. I could write a lot about this place. Only come here if you are highly experienced in Ashtanga and dont want much instruction... The shala is packed with yogis and it is the most expensive place around.

-Shri Patanajali Yoga Center, BNS Iyengar - BNS does not have a website right now. He is a direct student of Krishnamacharya (along with Deskichar, Indra Devi, BKS Iyengar and Jois, plus maybe one or two others). This makes him highly respected... He teaches at the Patanjali Shala, where Krishnamacharya taught. He focuses on Pranayama and also teaches the Ashtanga Vinyasa series as taught by the Jois family. I hear its nice that students can "ask him anything" and he has a good sense of humor. Perhaps this says something important: the Indians tend to study with him! (At the "main" shala, it is ALL Westerners in the morning classes working like hell while a few Indian students get semi-private instruction for less money in the afternoon and in a calm environment.) There are reports of Iyengar trying to take advantage of women, BEWARE!!! He offers a 30 hour teacher training centered around philosophy. He also offers Pranayama, Mudra, and Asana classes- each is costing RS 5,000. You have to pay up front before trying him out. So, you cant taste what he offers before committing. However, he will give a refund if your not satisfied in a few days - and money is not a real concern for him (so he says). The teacher training covers Kundalini and many topics. He is 81 years old and been taching for 60 years! Overall, he offers some taste of the light and dark sides of yoga... and is a powerfuly energetic presence with his huge belly and glowing face, humor and stories.

-http://www.sthalam8.com - Young teacher, former student of BNS. Offers teacher training.

-http://www.yoga-india.org - Teaching slow, peaceful Iyengar style yoga. I have only heard good things about this Shala. Its a little on the expensive side for Yoga in India, but the quality of instruction from Bharat is said to be quite good by all his students I have spoken with... 2 month teacher training is offered.

-http://mandala.ashtanga.org - Sha Shadri and his son are the main teachers here. I have heard very good things about this teacher. I have also heard mixed things, people saying that his adjustments are not as gentle as could be ideal. People have to let him knoe theyr limits. His center has a cafe and many other offerings.

Other schools:

Pranava Trust - mysoreyoga.com

Teacher was a diplomat and teaches at local university. Seems pretty okay. Yoga Alliance registered teacher training.

And other things to do here:
-Courses with students of AYRI or other shalas who also teach. We are surrounded by many experienced teachers and bodyworkers!
-Venkatesh teacher?
-Indian Music/instrumental teachers
-Indian Philosophy teachers
-Sanskrit and Chanting Classes at AYRI
-Various seminars on Nutrition, Tai Chi Etc. (set up by Int'l body of Yoga Students and Teachers here, versed in wholistic arts)
-Swimming
-Visit Swamis, drink coconuts, socialize, travel, day trips etc.
-Food: for Yoga students we have some nice little, inexpensive (100 RS meal) restaurants: Chakra House, Shakti House, Rishi's, Kate's, Santosha, Anu's here in the Gokulam town of Mysore City.
-housing here is about 3,000-8,ooo RS/Month. A scooter or motor bike can be rented for about 1,500 - ~4,000 RS/month. Many classes are in Lakshmipuram where AYRI used to be based.

Namaste,
Jake

World Congress

The World Congress on Psychology and Spirituality was a great event here in New Delhi India.

Delegates from 40 countries attended to share research and develop networks. I am glad I attended and happy to have come across so many fine people.

Highlights were the: Future of Education Panel, Spirituality and Youth panel, Conflict Resolution panel and the Tantra panel which explored Kundalini Shakti and some Kashmir Shaivism.

I enjoyed chanting through the chakras and meeting many thoughtful individuals who I look forward to networking with further as we evolve with the Peaceful Revolution and further the integration of Spirit with Psyche.

Research Shows How to END ALL Prison Gang Violence - Thus Effectively Helping To Rehabilitate and Heal

Yet another important application for "The Healing Dance"...

CNN Reports From Cebu, Philippines:

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/09/04/dancing.prisoners/

Peace and Justice Studies, Peace Education and Education for Liberation in the 21st Century - Pointing the Way to Liberation and Partnership

A Curriculum Towards Universal Healing:

-Marshall Rosenberg - NVC (Audio/Video and audio course highly recommended)
-Ring of Power Documentary (5 hours) - http://www.redicecreations.com/article.php?id=1969
-Yoga Unveiled
-Entheo-Genesis
-Qigong - Ancient Chinese Healing for the 21st Century
-Inner Journey - the Path of Mysticism (pub by Films for the Arts and Humanities)
-This is not a dvd, but: the music of Immortal Technique and mixes of Shiva Rea...much other music...
-Anything by artist Alex Grey - dvds, art, etc...post in environment
-Audio book Light on Life by BKS Iyengar
-Audio of the Bhagivat Gita by Juan Mascaro
-The Pharmacratic Inquisition (free online)
-The Fire Baptism and the Lost Sacraments - dvd
-Any video/s, lectures by Joseph Campbell and Manly P Hall
and other various stuff: work of Riane Eisler, Montessori comes to mind, and Karinna Kittles (Tantra), Mantak Chia, Lama Somananda Tantrapa, Thomas Berry, Marianne Williamson, David Korten - campaigns for a Department of Peace.
-Conscious Media Network Interviews with Cathy O'Brien and Mark Phillips

Mind Control, Character Education and the Path of Freedom

Govern-ment means "control" (govern) of the "mind" (ment, mental).

What is the proper function of government? For the welfare of the people, in a word it is: PEACE.

In reality, who or whom dominates (by status quo) the "mainstream mind" that is "controlled"? Mystics with spiritual technology and knowledge about the body and heart. These mystics are often secret, they hold ancient, indigenous wisdom that is esoteric (few have the experience or worth to understand it, having gone through an intense initiation or descent into the "underworld").

Why do many people fail to see the whole picture of reality, living in ignorance? People are asleep because the mystical, spiritual technology is used by the elites and connected with ancient lineages. Their wisdom is not yet accessible to all. Thus, minds are compartmentalized and the supposed "care takers" of Earth maintain a more whole perspective about the past and future while others live "in the dark." The elite's concept is highly related to the "philosopher king" concept of Plato. Non-philosopher kings, or elite, are people who are, often, "slaves to their mind" having not experienced the underworld or higher worlds - let alone intelligence of the true middle world - its pitfalls, potentials and truth.

Especially in the West where practical spirituality is not nearly as common as "religion", this lack of access to the three worlds is a result of spiritual ignorance. People get indirect access to this though established religion e.g. "the trinity" and other formal religious concepts and structures for the mainstream mind. These structures are largely un-conscious however - in that they are rarely contempalted or experienced by "religion" followers.

How might one help fix the lack of peace in mind control? accessing the True Nature of Mind and Human Potential? Further the integration of spirit, philosophy and science through practical wisdom and compassionate, often ancient coupled with modern teaching and experience related to global, empowering natural laws and personal experiences that awaken peace on physical, mental and spiritual levels.

Create a culture of sustainable peace through organizing with a global campaign for departments and ministries of peace. Work with the bio-sophical institute.

At the same time, take mysticism and peace-inducing practices that are being used by the elite into a new context that makes the peace strong, mainstream and growing upon itself and others. Make the esoteric roots, the reality of original religion into the exoteric (mainstream) conventional wisdom, common sense and experience of all beings.

Work on a grass roots (small roots) and "redwoords roots" (the deepest roots) and mycilium (the largest roots, spanning miles) level to spread non violent communication, consciousness and embodiment. This movement will mushroom upon the access to deep roots that feed short roots. Youth need wisdom and our compassion, the wise need youth to awaken and lead us into peace.

Converge with the mission of the biosophical institute and promote NVC and practical practices that enable mental liberation, whole consciousness and character education at all levels of development.

Work and play towards realizing friendship among individuals, within "the [autonomous or liberated through the experience of true and deep inner peace] selves" that get empowerment, work with nature, culture, between governments and play among the most powerful forces on the planet.

Integral Education Flow Essay

As I was making an Integral Education facebook group, I got carried away and wrote a few pages. =) Here is the rest of my writings:

Simply, this group is made for keeping connected and getting MORE connected through Facebook.

Members are encouraged to increasingly look "East" and "West" as they survey the future and past, seeking a new paradigm of education that serves and awakens authenticity, wholeness, critical consciousness, and heart-centering through the personal experience and understanding of potentials and pitfalls of life. As opposed to indoctrination about reality, we prefer an experiencial, wholistic model of reality that integrates all human knowledge. High or low, we avoid fear of the depths of human suffering by nourishing solutions to the root causes of sad issues.

We realize the history being taught in schools is often baloney... remarkably, in that it is written "about wars" and worse, by those who have "won" them. Education has been infiltrated by economic forces who are loosing power to the age of information... the system of dominating and compartmentalizing human beings cannot stand in the new age of information and integral education. Thanks to the internet, the world is now "flat" which enables us to keep connecting on higher levels. My brother now hangs our with his friends through video conference all the time.

History taught (at least in America), often, is xenophobic or purely ignores foreign cultures. The choices of languages taught in schools today are also, often, chosen in a racist manner. Such is the opposite of integral education. Integral education considers ethics on deep levels, and thus the deep reality of human services and rights, no matter how difficult and how downtrodden the economic and historical forces of evil have enslaved races, can be considered. "Economic history" indoctrination as it may be found to be dominated at King's College, Harvard and MIT by one "Emma Rothschild" should to be addressed in an open and nonviolent, productive dialog. The Rothschild family men should be exposed for their control and immense power.

Brain washing, domination, control of humanity and economic history is not acceptable behavior in the eyes of integral education. The ideas of empire and royalty are not positive to the extent that they encourage domination. Partnership and the True wealth of nations as described by Riane Eisler is a higher philosophy for economic and social, historical and political activism.

Integral education is positive and solutions-based. Though it, we flee oppression and educate for Liberation, Heart and Wisdom. Compassion and Peace are central, like freedom of the mind. We flee brain-washing, indoctrination, mind-control, and secrecy. We embrace dialog, subtle energies or body-consciousness and health practices, the sacred, world religions and cultures, statistics that help us understand the global condition of humanity. We realize that we can die any moment, and so we live each day and moment as if it is maybe the last. In this manner, we realize immortality now. When we have matured to this level of consciousness, we realize a deeper level of peace. In this, we are not afraid to speak our mind but instead empower with words. Lives of "Quiet Desperation" do not work with integral education.

Indeed, integral education is often concerned with the overlap of health and heart as opposed to the status quo of spiritless, sickness-centered health education. We support preventative and integrative health care. We detest ignorance in education while supporting socialized health care that is economical through PI (prevention and cross cultural integration of ancient and modern practices from tantra to prayer, yoga, tai chi and mediation). Health, spirituality, sexuality, mind-expansion, coaching and therapy can be interconnected in helping us develop to higher levels of consciousness and development.

We embrace a psychology that is spirited, wholistic and experiential less than a psychology that is xenophobic or in-doctrinal.

We embrace the scientific method as it, when applied to the true integral education model, can help prove efficacy of our studies which, ideally, unite science and ethics as all science should and must.

We do not argue because we KNOW the efficacy of integral education - nobody can argue with the truth. Despite the competitive, "standardized-mind" status quo of education, dynamic and INDIVIDUALIZED truth, objectivity and non-competition (cooperation, peace, harmony, organization, working together) are at the heart of what we seek within and through integral education. Conscious cooperation, wisdom and peace are hallmarks of our approach to life. We hold a high standard for humanity and do not accept the idea that ignorance is bliss. Though many have lost hope in life, we do not give up on them. Instead, we help to show them "the way" to happiness, truth, peace and spiritedness in whatever manner we can.

We oppose literal "running around in circles" during "physical education" courses in place of learning why people do this practice and what options are right for individuals to nurture their healthy heart and physical health and fluid happiness.

In I-edu we seek to make stellar theories flow into practice, serving others and ourselves until the world knows a deeper realization of true peace and justice that prophets, sages, saints and innocent children see as our birthright.

This avenue is essentially timeless... we achieve this Integral Education through a Life Practice of awakening to the natural lessons offered in each moment of the cosmic Gift we call Life. We also seek advice from those who have gone before us, learning from their lessons while flowing with the currents of change as they arise with all forms of sensory observation, love and conscious awareness.

As raised in the Essene gospels of peace, we realize that humanity is composed of positive and negative forces - evil and good. We do not deny this but instead seek to nourish our virtues and purify or balance the polarities that influence life. To be effective integral education agents, we do not shy away from our responsibility to share our wisdom with others, but instead seek to remain in the "flow state."

Great American Speeches

A Poem on Peace: flowing to the Source

peace in all directions. within, without, peace to the poor and rich, to the dominator's and the karmically wounded. peace to the countries of earth, the united nations and elite rules, peace to my town, this building and room. peace to the universe and my heart, peace to my mind and peace to the earth. peace to the peace keepers and the warmongers. peace to the prophets, kings and commanders, artists, players and punks. peace to the cosmos and chaos. peace to my friends future and past. peace to the galactic palaces, elements, planets and stars. peace to the directions and eye of the storm, calm and unmoving wind. a pool, a pond, with lily's and the sun reflecting on the h20. bubbles rise up from the ground as a frog emerges on the back of a turtle. the peaceful birds are chirping to the melody of the breeze now blowing. moving the sky like we see, a tree bending in the wind. peace to the ocean, peace to the shoreline, peace to the world and earth with the waters and lands, with the humans and souls and spirits of angels, gods demons and magicians. peace to the poets, saints sinners and porn stars. peace to the drug addicts and hippies, shamans and conservative Christians. peace to the newborn and born again. peace to the free and the enslaved mind controlled tortured souls and their spirits. peace to the path of peace and the path of freedom, reality, wisdom and compassion, peace to the media and congress, peace to the psychology of fascism and liberty. peace to the campaign that is really a movement to create departments and ministries of peace. peace to my friends and enemies. peace to your friends and enemies. peace to ours and theirs. peace to the core of peace. peace to the heart of the core of the heart of the color red, green, gold and white, black heart, soul flying like a bird high on peace. on a cloud, looking around, at the sea like a monkey on beach tree. peace to woman and men, peace to sex. peace to spirit and consciousness, bliss. peace to those places within us that most deeply resist peace. peace to our fears and frustrations, blockages and ignorance, our ambitions and secrets, intentions and will, feelings and friends

peace to the sun and moon, peace to the earth, solar system and galaxy. peace to the economic forces that dominate humanity in their lack of peace. and the complexities that we lack understanding of. peace to the sages and saints, rishis, holy men and women. peace to core of the planet, the meridians, the continents and their vibrant energies

peace to king solomon whose name means peace, peace to the prince of peace who is often called jesus the holy christed one, a being annointed with the holy oil of sacramental herbs. many pounds of peace from the earth, trees, winds, holy trinities and psychic powers of mystical beings. peace to the future activities that will make peace and the patience we require to realize that peace. peace to the awakening of WHAT IS PEACE when we have been starved for it, as a conscious and leaning human family or organism on earth aware of the word and concept peace in such complex and globalized ways. peace to you and your breath, your ears, eyes, nose and mouth, the neck teeth, smile and chest. peace to your solar plexus, peace to your lunar plexus too and your spinal cord and all the vertebrates that link the spinal cord. peace to those links and the fluid and nerves in yours and my spinal cords. peace to the thigh bones, skin, blood, tendons and muscles. peace to those broken aspects of us that need healing - peace to our knees and ankles and feet and toes. our pinkie toes. to feeling them. now. aware of the pinkie toes and big toes and all in between. peace back to the to of the head and shotting down through the body while relaxing the shoulders. peace to all the tension in the body and may peace be realized within all cells of all bodies on earth in a timely fashion. may justice prevail on earth and peace radiate to each aspect of the WHOLE. like it is meant to by G-D, reality, bliss and supreme wisdom. may peace be compassion and compassion be peace wholly and endlessly as it is. as it is meant to be. but mostly on earth and among humans driven with the spirit to be peace. to be the change of peace.

Liberty or Sustainable Development

Check google video for the 5 hour video, "Liberty or Sustainable Development" to learn more about the debate over sustainable development.

The new "holistic"... "reality"... of sustainability is a HOT debate now...

Lets keep our consciousness on BOTH SIDES of the debate? I will do my best! and keep you posted as well...