I just heard one of my roommates say there are no rules in yoga and the other one say, oh yes, if you don't do it the way the ole bugger says, it will all go to hell.
So, just made me think. While within certain systems there are many rules, kundalini kriyas are a set thing, Anusara alignment principles are set, ashtanga sequencing is set ... so on and so forth, yoga is really about your connection right? Yoga=union, or union with the divine.
What is the divine? To me its different to each and every one of us on this planet. Even within a religion or spiritual practice, there is always your own opinion of what should happen, or whats going on, right? So you create your own belief system and its yours and even though someone else, outside yourself (is anything really outside of us?!?) agrees with what you're saying, they may vehemently oppose another of your ideas.
Its not like we all have doctrines written down to follow, most of us evolve which each new thing learned, and adjust our thinking and beliefs to accomodate said thing. Even as I am now a baptised Sikh, or amritdhari Sikh, I still haven't learned all the things they believe yet. But I know that all of the other Sikhs I know are open and allowing of your own personal ideas of almost everything, not closed off to your interpretation of it.
It makes me think of a story Abraham, as being channeled by Esther Hicks, told on a dvd I was watching. Some skeptical lady called in to talk to them saying how the bible was her guidance system, Abraham teaches your emotions were given to you to be your guidance system, and Abraham asked how the bible came to be and she said its the word of God and Abraham said, who wrote it down, interpreted it? She had never thought of that. Abraham, or the spirits known as Abraham, are Source and Esther is interpreting what they are putting in her head and speaking out loud, or writing down in a book. Abraham propones that the same thing happened back then, Source (or God if you're a fundamentalist and needs to hear that word)spoke to these beings and then they wrote it down. SO who is to say that it stopped happening way back then? And then each book received for each faith system on the planet, all being written the same way, and we all thinking ours is right.
Every one of them is right, or was right to the being who interpreted the voice or feelings they were getting and then wrote them down. Same can be said of any creative venture, novel, painting, everything!
The same is in yoga, you take classes in asana or pranayama, or Body Electric techniques, or Feldenkrais, or Zen meditation or kundalini yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan, or whatever! And you process what worked for you in that class, maybe you try some of it at home. Maybe you go to another class and try something else and then see what connected you that time. Maybe even trying the exact same thing again with a totally different result. And you feel your way through what works and what doesn't work, FOR YOU. Not for anyone else.
Everything on this planet and can create a connection to Source for one being or another, create a yoga in other words. So lets all just chill out, and let my system work for me, yours for you and his for him or hers for her and let every be! Let it be, right?!? Live and let live!
Find your own peace, or your own yoga within your heart and let everyone else find theirs too, in their own way, in their own time, with their own feelings, not yours! I know its hard when they just lay on the couch watching tv, but they too are working their way toward Source, just in their own way. Love them anyway, the world needs more love, or rather has tons of it, but needs more beings to be conscious of the love that lives in their hearts. So lets love one another for what we are, sound good?
Sat Nam ji's, love, peace, happiness and unending joy to you all!
Sat Inder
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Summer Solstice...the actuality of it
I keep getting emails from folks, "I expected you'd have a blog up about your experiences by now"! Well, I don't think I'm ready yet, not even now as I type it!
So here it is.
I had a wonderful drive with my friend Pavan Deep, singing, talking, sharing, not-talking/just riding along. She is a very easy travel companion, doesn't even snore. Then we got there, to Espanola and spent the night with her teacher Pritpal Kaur. Very good experience, even woke up super early for sadhana at the ashram. Wasted a bit of time walking around town after breakfast, saw Yogi Bhajans property, his ostriches and peacocks and horses, illegally I may add, but it all turned out okay. Then we decided to head up the mountain to Ram Das Puri at about noon, which was way too early but we didn't know that then.
Got up there and put up our tents and ate dinner and I was having issues about being in the tent. I was already having them, but now the reality of it had manifested, and it as a borrowed tent and the zippr was not working so well, hmmm. So went to bed, no biggie, heard coyotes much of the night, and their babies, still no biggie.
The next day we worked set up crew a little bit, not much, but a bit and then it was time for bed again. The zipper broke completely, then there was a windstorm. I was having an emotional breakdown because of all this and then had the still moment. The aha moment that let me let go and completely surrender to the process and booom! The wind stopped and I fell asleep, got up the next morning too late for sadhana but early enough to drive into town and buy a new tent, come back and put it up and move my shit over. It was my first transformational experience of the 12 day/11 night time period spent in this dry, very dry, dirt infested, cold water shower taking, did I say dry?!? place.
Then the luggage crew experience started, its lovely. Lots of hard work but majorly great because of the amount of folks you meet and create relationships with, both on the crew and the people you are serving as well. So mostly the rest of that week went that way, I went to sadhana only a few times but had deeper ones than ever and enjoyed Mirabai Ceiba, Snatam Kaur, Sat Purkh Kaur, Dev Suroop Kaur and many others voices performing the prescribed mantras each morning. Even in my tent or the shower I would sing along with them, since you could hear them all over the camp. I did take one awesome class with Mahan Rishi Singh Khalsa, an amazing guy and had a block around my heart space move during that one!
The actual solstice, the 21st, a Monday, was the day big things happened for me. I awakened to take a sat kriya class which has been changing my life lately, and we did it for 31 minutes along with a talk and warm-ups. Then at 10:30 class with Gurmukh, the lady who got me into all this wonderful stuff. A class mind you that both tore me up physically and cracked open my heart spiritually. It was amazing and there were about 1100 people in the class with me, crazy amounts of energy! Lots of blocked energy got cleared out that day, especially after that and then the four hour Sat Nam Rasayan class I took next. Its a subtle energywork built around healing and cleared me out completely. Not going to elaborate too much on that art, you can google it to find out more if you like.
Then the three days of white tantric yoga began. I started the first day with Penny as my partner but it was too much for me. I felt so clear from the day before that I don't think I needed it. So I left at noon and went and watched the luggage tent for a while and had a few things to move for people. Then the second day I monitored, so I sat in line for someone when they needed a break, bathroom or otherwise. Very odd experience. But I did the third day and partnered with Dev Suroop Kaur, a lovely songstress amongst other things in the Sikh/kundalini community.
Friday was back to business as usual doing luggage and eating and all that. Then that night was the last night celebrations, ransabi (all night kirtan) and the amrit ceremony at 3am. I was lined up to take amrit, but couldn't sleep much, so much energy bouncing around the mountainside. So was up at 1:14, taking a cold shower, and getting dressed for the ceremony. My choli on, my kirpan on, turban to be opened up on top and on I went.
The ceremony itself will be described another time, it was lets just say, intense, long and transformational and I shared it with 29 others for a record of 30 people tkaing it at once. It lasted 4 hours and 40 minutes and then we were out and celebrities of a sort. Many greeted up with Wahe Guru Ji Ka Khalsa, Wahe Guru Ji Ki Fateh (the typical Khalsa greeting when they meet another amritdhari Sikh), which was great to be able to say and actually be a Khalsa! Very good stuff.
Then the leaving, the drive to Colorado SPrings for the frst night of the trip home where we got to see Garden of the Gods, Pavan Deep had never seen it. Then drove to Omaha to stay at my aunts for the night and then home on the 28th of June, having left the 13th. Gone 15 days total and still processing all the stuff that went on.
That, very perfunctorily, is what happened. Now the stuff that is going on inside will take another time to come out, or maybe even more than that. Its still in there purcolating, pumping around,figuring out where it goes and to what purpose its being used. And may not be able to be typed out or verbalized for a while.
Its all good though, just good stuff. Okay, off here for a while. Soon.
Sat Nam
So here it is.
I had a wonderful drive with my friend Pavan Deep, singing, talking, sharing, not-talking/just riding along. She is a very easy travel companion, doesn't even snore. Then we got there, to Espanola and spent the night with her teacher Pritpal Kaur. Very good experience, even woke up super early for sadhana at the ashram. Wasted a bit of time walking around town after breakfast, saw Yogi Bhajans property, his ostriches and peacocks and horses, illegally I may add, but it all turned out okay. Then we decided to head up the mountain to Ram Das Puri at about noon, which was way too early but we didn't know that then.
Got up there and put up our tents and ate dinner and I was having issues about being in the tent. I was already having them, but now the reality of it had manifested, and it as a borrowed tent and the zippr was not working so well, hmmm. So went to bed, no biggie, heard coyotes much of the night, and their babies, still no biggie.
The next day we worked set up crew a little bit, not much, but a bit and then it was time for bed again. The zipper broke completely, then there was a windstorm. I was having an emotional breakdown because of all this and then had the still moment. The aha moment that let me let go and completely surrender to the process and booom! The wind stopped and I fell asleep, got up the next morning too late for sadhana but early enough to drive into town and buy a new tent, come back and put it up and move my shit over. It was my first transformational experience of the 12 day/11 night time period spent in this dry, very dry, dirt infested, cold water shower taking, did I say dry?!? place.
Then the luggage crew experience started, its lovely. Lots of hard work but majorly great because of the amount of folks you meet and create relationships with, both on the crew and the people you are serving as well. So mostly the rest of that week went that way, I went to sadhana only a few times but had deeper ones than ever and enjoyed Mirabai Ceiba, Snatam Kaur, Sat Purkh Kaur, Dev Suroop Kaur and many others voices performing the prescribed mantras each morning. Even in my tent or the shower I would sing along with them, since you could hear them all over the camp. I did take one awesome class with Mahan Rishi Singh Khalsa, an amazing guy and had a block around my heart space move during that one!
The actual solstice, the 21st, a Monday, was the day big things happened for me. I awakened to take a sat kriya class which has been changing my life lately, and we did it for 31 minutes along with a talk and warm-ups. Then at 10:30 class with Gurmukh, the lady who got me into all this wonderful stuff. A class mind you that both tore me up physically and cracked open my heart spiritually. It was amazing and there were about 1100 people in the class with me, crazy amounts of energy! Lots of blocked energy got cleared out that day, especially after that and then the four hour Sat Nam Rasayan class I took next. Its a subtle energywork built around healing and cleared me out completely. Not going to elaborate too much on that art, you can google it to find out more if you like.
Then the three days of white tantric yoga began. I started the first day with Penny as my partner but it was too much for me. I felt so clear from the day before that I don't think I needed it. So I left at noon and went and watched the luggage tent for a while and had a few things to move for people. Then the second day I monitored, so I sat in line for someone when they needed a break, bathroom or otherwise. Very odd experience. But I did the third day and partnered with Dev Suroop Kaur, a lovely songstress amongst other things in the Sikh/kundalini community.
Friday was back to business as usual doing luggage and eating and all that. Then that night was the last night celebrations, ransabi (all night kirtan) and the amrit ceremony at 3am. I was lined up to take amrit, but couldn't sleep much, so much energy bouncing around the mountainside. So was up at 1:14, taking a cold shower, and getting dressed for the ceremony. My choli on, my kirpan on, turban to be opened up on top and on I went.
The ceremony itself will be described another time, it was lets just say, intense, long and transformational and I shared it with 29 others for a record of 30 people tkaing it at once. It lasted 4 hours and 40 minutes and then we were out and celebrities of a sort. Many greeted up with Wahe Guru Ji Ka Khalsa, Wahe Guru Ji Ki Fateh (the typical Khalsa greeting when they meet another amritdhari Sikh), which was great to be able to say and actually be a Khalsa! Very good stuff.
Then the leaving, the drive to Colorado SPrings for the frst night of the trip home where we got to see Garden of the Gods, Pavan Deep had never seen it. Then drove to Omaha to stay at my aunts for the night and then home on the 28th of June, having left the 13th. Gone 15 days total and still processing all the stuff that went on.
That, very perfunctorily, is what happened. Now the stuff that is going on inside will take another time to come out, or maybe even more than that. Its still in there purcolating, pumping around,figuring out where it goes and to what purpose its being used. And may not be able to be typed out or verbalized for a while.
Its all good though, just good stuff. Okay, off here for a while. Soon.
Sat Nam
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Summer solstice ... part 2
As I sit here, I should be packing, but the anxiety of the trip is keeping me from it. I was nervous about going, staying in a tent and having another intense experience, but now I've surrendered to it and am so excited!
I will get to see people I haven't seen since winter solstice, make new friends with others and have a nice road trip to boot!
We're leaving in the morning and it will be nerve racking until we get away from the St Louis area I'm sure, it always is to me. The first leg of any journey to me is the hardest, maybe because you're still close to home and you could turn around and head back, maybe other reasons that I'm unsure of, who knows.
WOW, I took a beginners trapeze class today and my hands hurt so bad that the typing is hard! lol. I can do a handstand in the middle of the room, hold my arms in the air for an hour while chanting and breathing in a pattern or put my leg behind my head and yet there are almost raw spots on my hands from pulling my own body weight up onto a metal bar!
So this is going to be a very short blog entry, see you all soon, or rather type to you all again after I get back from solstice and process a little bit of the work I'll have done there.
Sat Nam, Peace and Love to all!
I will get to see people I haven't seen since winter solstice, make new friends with others and have a nice road trip to boot!
We're leaving in the morning and it will be nerve racking until we get away from the St Louis area I'm sure, it always is to me. The first leg of any journey to me is the hardest, maybe because you're still close to home and you could turn around and head back, maybe other reasons that I'm unsure of, who knows.
WOW, I took a beginners trapeze class today and my hands hurt so bad that the typing is hard! lol. I can do a handstand in the middle of the room, hold my arms in the air for an hour while chanting and breathing in a pattern or put my leg behind my head and yet there are almost raw spots on my hands from pulling my own body weight up onto a metal bar!
So this is going to be a very short blog entry, see you all soon, or rather type to you all again after I get back from solstice and process a little bit of the work I'll have done there.
Sat Nam, Peace and Love to all!
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Summer Solstice
I am heading out Sunday to the celebration put on by the 3HO organization with the above name. Its based around said time of year but involves a 3 day course of white tantric yoga (wow!), yes 3 days. I did one at winter solstice and it was intense.
This being the year that the organization is celebrating fire I can only imagine how intense this experience will be. Going deliberately into the fire! Yes I am. In the middle of the desert none the less!
So each year there is a meditation based around the elemental theme and so I just checked on it and its a biggie. Of course, you're just sitting there but your arms are floating with the elbows at shoulder height and the fingers intricately wound up and an intense mantra chanted four times one one breath. I am going to try it in a few minutes for the first time to see the effect it has on me.
I'm curious about this draw to keep going into the fire; the fire of practice, the fire of intense introspection, the fire of life! Its a metaphor of course, but also not. Its intensity is just that for a reason, to pull forth the things that have been buried and are needed to work on to get them gone for good.
But this is my path, to go into those things with intention and draw them out, and allow them their space (sometimes, most times the hardest part of the process) and then let them go through processing. Hmmm, off to do that meditation. Lets see what it brings up and what direction I head in with what comes up!
Sat Nam
This being the year that the organization is celebrating fire I can only imagine how intense this experience will be. Going deliberately into the fire! Yes I am. In the middle of the desert none the less!
So each year there is a meditation based around the elemental theme and so I just checked on it and its a biggie. Of course, you're just sitting there but your arms are floating with the elbows at shoulder height and the fingers intricately wound up and an intense mantra chanted four times one one breath. I am going to try it in a few minutes for the first time to see the effect it has on me.
I'm curious about this draw to keep going into the fire; the fire of practice, the fire of intense introspection, the fire of life! Its a metaphor of course, but also not. Its intensity is just that for a reason, to pull forth the things that have been buried and are needed to work on to get them gone for good.
But this is my path, to go into those things with intention and draw them out, and allow them their space (sometimes, most times the hardest part of the process) and then let them go through processing. Hmmm, off to do that meditation. Lets see what it brings up and what direction I head in with what comes up!
Sat Nam
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
White tantric yoga
Sounds kinky yes? Well according to Yogi Bhajan there is black tantric, which is voodoo or black magic, red tantric, which is the sexual energy kind and white tantric, which is the pure movement of energy stuff.
I was just in Chicago and finished my sixth one. It was one of the easiest ones physically, but most moving of all of them. I partnered with someone I've know for years, which added to the experience of course, but I'm also more cleaned out now from not drinking or being in smoky bars, so apparently my energy channels are freer flowing. I felt every bit of movement of energy and the blocks I've held onto for years were swept away, well, some of them anyway! lol
You sit in rows of men facing women on opposite side of the line and with the balance of energy that way (masculine/feminine) and the amount of people there (166 this time) it builds a big amount of energy and moves through you for 40 days, helping to cleanse the crap out of your subconscious, sometimes abruptly! So one must watch what comes out of ones mouth at times, usually for the whole 40 days.
I have had some emotional release yesterday and today but am good with it. The first one I did last year in Chicago made me feel full of peace and love and happiness, then the one in Knoxville made me more melancholy and the one at winter solstice, which is 3 days was the intense one, cleaning a lot of stuff out of my closet, and then I felt amazing after and even chose to change my name and become a Sikh! This one feels more balanced, I don't feel bad and like I want to slap people, just like I'm working through some things and letting go of them but all the while feeling happy and balanced. Good stuff!!!
Just a quick, short post, but wanted to put it out there. Love to you all! Sat nam
I was just in Chicago and finished my sixth one. It was one of the easiest ones physically, but most moving of all of them. I partnered with someone I've know for years, which added to the experience of course, but I'm also more cleaned out now from not drinking or being in smoky bars, so apparently my energy channels are freer flowing. I felt every bit of movement of energy and the blocks I've held onto for years were swept away, well, some of them anyway! lol
You sit in rows of men facing women on opposite side of the line and with the balance of energy that way (masculine/feminine) and the amount of people there (166 this time) it builds a big amount of energy and moves through you for 40 days, helping to cleanse the crap out of your subconscious, sometimes abruptly! So one must watch what comes out of ones mouth at times, usually for the whole 40 days.
I have had some emotional release yesterday and today but am good with it. The first one I did last year in Chicago made me feel full of peace and love and happiness, then the one in Knoxville made me more melancholy and the one at winter solstice, which is 3 days was the intense one, cleaning a lot of stuff out of my closet, and then I felt amazing after and even chose to change my name and become a Sikh! This one feels more balanced, I don't feel bad and like I want to slap people, just like I'm working through some things and letting go of them but all the while feeling happy and balanced. Good stuff!!!
Just a quick, short post, but wanted to put it out there. Love to you all! Sat nam
Saturday, May 8, 2010
What to write about?
Not sure, but I feel like I want to write. So here it goes...
Today was the kickoff to the Tower Grove Park Farmers Market and therefor the first yoga class involved with it, that I teach of course. 92 people showed up to listen to me tell them what to do, where to put their feet, when to inhale and exhale, curse (which I do a lot, but it gets funny reactions), talk to them about about the earth around them, the air brushing across their skin and tempt them into hanging out and buying crepes, baked goods, and some of the best locally grown veggies around.
It was a lot of fun, a lot, and then slowly everyone left. Very often its a large group that hangs out and plays frisbee and enjoys one another and long talks, long walks. Today, none of that. Many, many people I consider friends came, but then they all left. It was okay, I just got in my car and came home, then I took a nap. Sometimes being out in nature gives me a rush of energy and today it proved to be too much, my friend was telling me that vata is high right now around here so thats why, who knows. The energetics of being in nature does flow thru me though and even more so now that I'm so clear from all the energy work of kundalini yoga I do, and the hatha yoga too.
So, anyhow, I took a nap which usually helps that dissapate. Not so today, it got worse, so I took my turban off thinking uncapping the bottle would release the pressure, not so again, it just got worse. So I went for a drive, took a walk, then called and got some thai foot reflexology, which is awesome btw,and it cleared out the headache but opened the channels for the energy to flow freely so now I'm feeling loopy! lol
Okay, thats all fine and good, but in the midst of some of that I began feeling lonely. Lonely like, wanting a partner, wanting to cuddle, that type of stuff. Loneliness is not something that visits me often these days, since I feel so connected to source almost all of the time I feel fulfilled all of the time. I did not feel a disconnect today, so why the loneliness? Are we destined to want the company of other corporeal beings? Maybe so. I also think I'm craving to be around a bunch of like-minded beings, and will be next month at summer solstice. I love all of my friends and all of them are so supportive of my lifestyle, maybe not all of the gay friends since they don't understand why I wouldn't want to be out partying and drinking with them all the time like I used to, but would rather stay at home with a rage wrapped around my head meditating! lol, thats their problem, the ones I converse with often are understanding and even supportive, but they aren't in the same belief system so its still different.
Now, I'm a big believer in the fact that everyone has their own religion, because we all formulate our own systems of belief even within a religion or spiritual path, but you get what I'm saying right?
I'm good, really, just letting some of this stuff out which sometimes helps to process it and let it move on its merry way. But we all have thoughts, we all have questions, even when we are strong in our connection to source, strong in our sense of self, right? Or am I the only one? I don't think I am. I think we're all so different and yet so much the same that you get what I'm saying. I hope you in your time of doubt, or questioning, or disconnect have someone to chat to about it or something cathartic like this to let go of it into and allow it to help you through it.
On this the eve of mothers day, I say to you who are mothers, bless you. We really do know that you're doing the best you can with what you've got going on in that head of yours, even if we don't realize it until much later in life. Our ji's or souls know, even if we may never figure it out in the physical form, once we move on, we remember. So happy mothers day to you and yours.
Sat Nam ji's, much love to you all. Many blessings on you too!!!
Today was the kickoff to the Tower Grove Park Farmers Market and therefor the first yoga class involved with it, that I teach of course. 92 people showed up to listen to me tell them what to do, where to put their feet, when to inhale and exhale, curse (which I do a lot, but it gets funny reactions), talk to them about about the earth around them, the air brushing across their skin and tempt them into hanging out and buying crepes, baked goods, and some of the best locally grown veggies around.
It was a lot of fun, a lot, and then slowly everyone left. Very often its a large group that hangs out and plays frisbee and enjoys one another and long talks, long walks. Today, none of that. Many, many people I consider friends came, but then they all left. It was okay, I just got in my car and came home, then I took a nap. Sometimes being out in nature gives me a rush of energy and today it proved to be too much, my friend was telling me that vata is high right now around here so thats why, who knows. The energetics of being in nature does flow thru me though and even more so now that I'm so clear from all the energy work of kundalini yoga I do, and the hatha yoga too.
So, anyhow, I took a nap which usually helps that dissapate. Not so today, it got worse, so I took my turban off thinking uncapping the bottle would release the pressure, not so again, it just got worse. So I went for a drive, took a walk, then called and got some thai foot reflexology, which is awesome btw,and it cleared out the headache but opened the channels for the energy to flow freely so now I'm feeling loopy! lol
Okay, thats all fine and good, but in the midst of some of that I began feeling lonely. Lonely like, wanting a partner, wanting to cuddle, that type of stuff. Loneliness is not something that visits me often these days, since I feel so connected to source almost all of the time I feel fulfilled all of the time. I did not feel a disconnect today, so why the loneliness? Are we destined to want the company of other corporeal beings? Maybe so. I also think I'm craving to be around a bunch of like-minded beings, and will be next month at summer solstice. I love all of my friends and all of them are so supportive of my lifestyle, maybe not all of the gay friends since they don't understand why I wouldn't want to be out partying and drinking with them all the time like I used to, but would rather stay at home with a rage wrapped around my head meditating! lol, thats their problem, the ones I converse with often are understanding and even supportive, but they aren't in the same belief system so its still different.
Now, I'm a big believer in the fact that everyone has their own religion, because we all formulate our own systems of belief even within a religion or spiritual path, but you get what I'm saying right?
I'm good, really, just letting some of this stuff out which sometimes helps to process it and let it move on its merry way. But we all have thoughts, we all have questions, even when we are strong in our connection to source, strong in our sense of self, right? Or am I the only one? I don't think I am. I think we're all so different and yet so much the same that you get what I'm saying. I hope you in your time of doubt, or questioning, or disconnect have someone to chat to about it or something cathartic like this to let go of it into and allow it to help you through it.
On this the eve of mothers day, I say to you who are mothers, bless you. We really do know that you're doing the best you can with what you've got going on in that head of yours, even if we don't realize it until much later in life. Our ji's or souls know, even if we may never figure it out in the physical form, once we move on, we remember. So happy mothers day to you and yours.
Sat Nam ji's, much love to you all. Many blessings on you too!!!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
The Death of P. Keith Mitchell
Not really, literally, but figuratively.
Today I changed over the last little bit of anything that had to do with that name. Last week after getting a court-certified copy of the name change order in the mail to send in to get a new birth cert (yes, they make you do that!) I realized I had two, so I went to the dmv and got my license and my title changed over to Sat Inder Singh Khalsa, both within 7 minutes, a new record for the dmv, or maybe a sign this is supposed to happen?!? So I went to the social security office and got my new card ordered, supposedly to take 2 weeks but I got it Tuesday of this week, 6 business days later (the title came on Friday of the SAME week I ordered it, signs again?). That part only took another 15 minutes. Two of the most difficult things to deal with both done in the matter of half and hour to 45 minutes including drive time, what?
So I got my bank account switched this week after receiving my ss card and just today got my cell phone switched over as well as my car insurance.
Now I should be excited yes? I am, but a weird feeling crept upon me after the bank account yesterday. Not sure how to describe it, just like a loss maybe, of a friend? Hmmm, not sure.
So last week a friend of ours was in town and staying with us and she asked first thing like it was expected, well, didn't you have a death ritual?!? I'm like no, not really into that. Then thoughts of many things flooded my head that night. In India when you take vows to lead a life a certain way and recieve a new name from your guru (in the Hindu tradition) you actually have your things and burn them as if you had died and the new being with the new name is sprouted forth like Athena and moves on ahead.
Not knowing if this is what Cheri meant it did occur to me, maybe I need that. It could be that the ritual would help with the feeling of loss, or rather help with the incorporation of the old me and the new me, or be symbolic of the transformation I feel I've gone through that made me chose to take the spiritual name as my legal name. Something like that anyway, maybe.
So for now I decided to write this little blog about it and see how I feel. I have changed my name legally and committed myself to this new lifestyle but have not taken the vows of a Khalsa yet, which I plan to do at summer solstice in New Mexico in June. Maybe after that I'll do the ceremony/ritual? Maybe not. I'll see how I feel then, maybe I'll do after I get off this computer, maybe not. What do you think?
Sat Nam, Sat Inder
Today I changed over the last little bit of anything that had to do with that name. Last week after getting a court-certified copy of the name change order in the mail to send in to get a new birth cert (yes, they make you do that!) I realized I had two, so I went to the dmv and got my license and my title changed over to Sat Inder Singh Khalsa, both within 7 minutes, a new record for the dmv, or maybe a sign this is supposed to happen?!? So I went to the social security office and got my new card ordered, supposedly to take 2 weeks but I got it Tuesday of this week, 6 business days later (the title came on Friday of the SAME week I ordered it, signs again?). That part only took another 15 minutes. Two of the most difficult things to deal with both done in the matter of half and hour to 45 minutes including drive time, what?
So I got my bank account switched this week after receiving my ss card and just today got my cell phone switched over as well as my car insurance.
Now I should be excited yes? I am, but a weird feeling crept upon me after the bank account yesterday. Not sure how to describe it, just like a loss maybe, of a friend? Hmmm, not sure.
So last week a friend of ours was in town and staying with us and she asked first thing like it was expected, well, didn't you have a death ritual?!? I'm like no, not really into that. Then thoughts of many things flooded my head that night. In India when you take vows to lead a life a certain way and recieve a new name from your guru (in the Hindu tradition) you actually have your things and burn them as if you had died and the new being with the new name is sprouted forth like Athena and moves on ahead.
Not knowing if this is what Cheri meant it did occur to me, maybe I need that. It could be that the ritual would help with the feeling of loss, or rather help with the incorporation of the old me and the new me, or be symbolic of the transformation I feel I've gone through that made me chose to take the spiritual name as my legal name. Something like that anyway, maybe.
So for now I decided to write this little blog about it and see how I feel. I have changed my name legally and committed myself to this new lifestyle but have not taken the vows of a Khalsa yet, which I plan to do at summer solstice in New Mexico in June. Maybe after that I'll do the ceremony/ritual? Maybe not. I'll see how I feel then, maybe I'll do after I get off this computer, maybe not. What do you think?
Sat Nam, Sat Inder
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