Dedicating the merits of your practice

This one goes out to all the yogis and wannabe yogis and folks who feel ridiculously blessed (or challenged which is also a form of blessing) and simply don't know what to do with themselves.  There is a practice in many 21st century American yoga studios of "dedicating the merits of your practice."  You can dedicate merits to someone, a cause, an affirmation, even a Deity.  As best I can tell, this idea comes out of the Hindu practice of asceticism (and it was picked up by Buddhists later in a very similar manner).  Ascetics--usually of the Brahmin class but not necessarily so--were individuals who dedicated themselves to doing tasks of great difficulty.  Often these tasks were physical in nature, for instance, the Goddess Uma seduced and captivated Lord Shiva by standing on one toe and surviving on nothing but dried leaves for over a year--how's that for unconditional devotion?!  Occasionally the tasks were more specific and intellectual or spiritual in nature--chastity for eons was another popular form of ascetic practice.

Behind these traditions lie two powerful principles: the first is that the physical body and the sensations it experiences are largely illusory and the second is that through an understanding of the first principle an individual can pierce through the veil of the unreal and discover powers within him or herself that have the ability to manifest real change in the physical realm.  Now, on some level if you have ever exercised in your life to lose weight, increase muscle tone, or repair an injury you already believe these things because your physical self imposed some kind of limitation (impossible weight gain or an injury), you agreed that through effort and work you could positively impact that limitation, pierce through it and go beyond it, and once successful you discovered that your efforts did indeed cause physical change.  In traditional Hindu parlance the act of effort is known as karma--yes, karma comes from the sanskrit root kr which means to "act or do" and it is where we get such words as create, and what is generated by this effort is tapas or heat.  Again, physical exercise is a really great place to look at this because it is grounded and we have all experienced it--what happens when you make a physical effort?  You get hot and sweaty.  Well, as it turns out most major religions believe that a similar phenomena happens on a spiritual/energetic/soul level when you engage in certain ascetic or devotional practices.  This tapas in turn creates a kind of merit--in our words today it says that you give a damn about something greater than yourself, and this merit in turn carries a kind of power.  And, as a favorite comic book hero was told, Power can be used for good or evil.

So…back to dedicating the merits of your practice.  Now in today's world most of us are not standing on one toe and eating dried leaves BUT I talk to people all day who are willing to follow the example of the Hanged Man tarot card and make efforts to secure what they want/need/desire.  Not spending money can be an effort, not eating the cookie can be an effort, being nice to your brother when he is super difficult can be an effort.  Yoga teachers talk about dedicating the merit of your practice because yoga is an effort--on multiple levels at the same time.  If you are feeling blessed, loved and illuminated by the universe then give back--to your family and friends, to your favorite charity, to strangers you have never met. Blessings are meant to be shared, not clutched close to your vest in miserly desperation.  If you are feeling stuck or challenged ask yourself: am I making an effort here?  Be honest.  Can you make more of an effort?  Be honest.   What is your practice around the people, situations, and life areas that cause you the most difficulty, pain, anger, and stress?  What might a sustainable practice that could improve these feelings look like? And then, don't make the effort with the expectation of the reward.  Make the effort because you care about more than your own situation--dedicate the merits of your efforts to someone or something that really needs it.  All I can say is that you'll be surprised at the results and it worked for child birth--but that's another story.

Why I use the word "ritual"

There are spells and then there are rituals.  What's the difference?  Using the word spell is highly descriptive and straightforward, ritual has a more mysterious quality to it, but it also implies more in the way of the sacred.  Some people perform magical workings without any religious or spiritual framework--I have spoken to atheists interested in learning the basics of candle magic on many occasions. But for me and the type of work that I do--every component is heavily based upon my understanding of the Sacred.  Ritual does not have to be fancy or formal--the act of simply lighting a stick of incense or arranging flowers can be imbued with a sense of ritual, but there is a discernment, precision, and impeccability captured by the word ritual that spell just does not articulate.  I have described the ritual work that I do on many occasions as being a form of moving prayer or prayer with props.  My understand of the nature of the work that I am honored to perform on behalf of others is that of the petitioner.  I petition a higher power for aid, assistance, and succor in a specific individual's life usually for a specific situation.  The connection with the Source is the most crucial aspect of what I do, the herbs, oils, roots, incense, baths, washes, and curios that I work with during this moving prayer are also essential but they are absolutely secondary to that connection.  Furthermore, all of my working have a beginning (invocation), middle, and end.  They are performed in sacred space and time with a heart full of devotion and a mind fixed on what is eternal, unchanging, absolute, and divine in each of us.  To me, this describes a ritual mind set and goes beyond the scope imagined by the word spell.

Loss of a loved one

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to let you all know that we found out my grandfather passed away this morning.  I was very close to him and though we knew it was coming, it is still a shock.  I will be rescheduling some readings so that I can help my family in funeral arrangements--thank you all for understanding.  Prayers and good wishes are as always appreciated.

Fabulous new altar material

Picked up some chalk cloth for the altars today, it is cloth that you can write on:

Drawing signs and symbols on the altar space before commencing with work has a very, very long tradition in various spiritual practices.  And if you have ever purchased a spell kit from lucky mojo you know that its one of the things we do in Hoodoo.  This cloth makes it really easy (and fun!)

Crystal Silence League and the Power of Prayer

It is a common thing for a professional worker to tell a client "I'll pray for you."  And I often tell my clients, "I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers."  Well, have any of you ever wondered what exactly that means?  For me the answer is two-fold.  I practice daily devotionals at my personal altar every morning and part of that devotional is to remember in prayer each and every client and case that I am working at the moment as well as any individuals clients or not, who have asked me to pray for them.  This is part of my personal practice and prayer has always been an active discipline in my life ever since I was a little girl.  I have witnessed first hand what heartfelt prayer can accomplish and I am a believer!  And a common question that I get from clients through email and phone calls is "how do I pray?"  No one can tell you how to pray but for those who did not grow up in a family with some religious observance the thought of prayer may be daunting and paralyzing and you may be left feeling like you don't even know where to start.  Fortunately, there are people who have dealt with this issue before, one such individual was a man named C. Alexander and he wrote a book about this issue called The Crystal Silence League.  When I first learned about this from friend and colleague cat yrwonwode I thought it sounded like a guild of super heroes!  But the Crystal Silence League is really a group of individuals all over the world who dedicate a few moments each morning to sending love, well wishes, and blessings to their friends, neighbors, and complete strangers dwelling to the West of them, following the arc of the sun. For folks who want to give prayer a more active role in their lives or for people who have never engaged in any type of prayerful practice before and want to start doing so, I highly recommend the Crystal Silence League.  My church SOUL is an affiliate of it, and joining is very easy.  Check it out and find out what the power of prayer can do in your life!