BJ's HERE; THE RIDE BEGINS

A 'shakti-filled' beginning to the workshop. Not a ton of people, but those that are attending will have a great ride -- I can already tell.  Big smiles as our first 2 hours ended last night. Old acquaintances renewed, new friendships made, camaraderie of the kula reinforced -- LOVE IT !!!

Our first night focused on therapeutics -- Utah has it's share of wrecked shoulders, and tight quads/hips, so BJ had plenty to work with. She reminded me of our history together, as each time she asked a student to do something, she'd look over at me and either say "remember this, Les?" or give me that "you know this one" look. Good and bad.  The bad - I didn't always remember. The good - what I'd forgotten will be new material to work with.

Today's work? Morning - standing poses and backbends. Afternoon - forward folds, twists, pranayama. Many of the same people will attend, plus we'll see some different faces. Looking forward to it.

Over dinner, we talked a bit about blog writing. Now that BJ has begun to blog, there's pressure from her audience to continue. For me, I didn't have that pressure. I just wrote to write and to share, not thinking about the audience, because I hoped over time - if I did o.k. with it, it would grow; otherwise, it (the blog) might fade like the sunset. BJ has so many followers and friends already, that the audience is sitting there panting -- the pressure is on.

Who listened to John's conference call yesterday? I did. Any expansion on the topic of our philosophy is not to be missed. I especially enjoyed the expansion on the origin and history of Kashmir Shaivism. I had never heard it explained that way - that the name 'Kashmir Shaivism' was coined by scholar J. C. Chatterjee in the 1800's, as he studied the many tantric schools. This name, John explained, is a bit misleading in that not all the tantric scriptures referenced by Chatterjee arise from Shiva and not all are from Kashmir; but the name stuck and has become a well-known reference point for tantra studies.

As John's studies continued over the years, it became apparent to him that the Kashmir Shaivism 'label' was not exactly what he had in mind; so he began to explore new names for the Anusara® philosophy.  Hence "Shiva-Shakti Tantra" - an inclusive vision that is broad, including all the 'god and goddess schools', not excluding any school of tantra.

John spent about 20 minutes talking, then the call was opened to questions. If we had a question, we were to press 1 on the phone (like raising our hand). The final question, was one I had (but was hesitant to ask --- remember a post a bit back about questions). "How can we succinctly tell our students about this philosophy - one clear sentence?" Response: "Anusara is a hatha system, with a triadic organization. The three elements being the UPA's, the kula or community, and the Shiva-Shakti tantric philosophy of intrinsic goodness (we look at everything and find goodness)."

My summary -- there is no change in what we have come to know as Anusara® philosophy; just a more accurate name for it. Shiva-Shakti are Sanskrit terms that come from the same place as hatha yoga, and recognize the two forces of balancing and reconciling.

I am sure there are other translations of what was discussed yesterday. It was good for me to hear him speak this way. No distraction. I could simply sit and listen, totally focused on the voice and the message.

Wish me good energy for this backbending morning!

Enjoy your weekend,