Is it just me or do a lot of you also feel the frustration of dealing with the controlling powers and organizations in our world that either don’t seem to know what they are doing or have an agenda that doesn’t include our best interests? When you stop and think about it, almost all of our institutions are failing to do what they were created to do. The question is, why? Why is it that our society seems to be breaking down and failing us on all fronts? Well, at the risk of exposing myself as a child of the ’60s I would like to give my humble opinion.

            I remember reading Alice in Wonderland and to paraphrase, she asked the Cheshire Cat, “Which way do I go from here?” The Cat replied, “Where do you want to get to?” Alice said, “I don’t much care.” The Cat then said, “Then it doesn’t matter which way you go.” I think our situation is similar; we not only lost our way in this world, we forgot or never knew where we are going.

            We have built whole industries around the consumption of resources as if they would never end, and well, they are ending. We have millions of well-intentioned people trying to help others but who are stuck in a health system built around making a profit, and they do make a profit. We have corporations whose sole purpose is to maintain high dividends no matter what the environmental costs are, but they are showing signs of diminishing dividends because we are intrinsically connected with the environment. We have world governments that are entirely built around imperialistic and defensive or offensive ideals; this system too is showing signs of collapsing. We have global climate change melting away our glaciers while a handful of government scientists keep us bogged down in making any progress to counter it by censoring scientific papers. We pay huge subsidies to food producers to import cheap food from other countries that ends up being very expensive because we subsidize their transportation costs (the average food travels 1,500 miles now). Our children are getting lead poisoning from cheap toys from China. I could go on like this page after page until we are all ready to scream, “Enough!” Which brings me to my point . . . enough is enough.

            So, the question becomes, “Where do we go from here?” To figure this out we must all agree on one thing—wherever it is, we must all go together. The days of ignoring the suffering of others is over so anything that relieves our suffering, and others’ suffering, is a good place to start. As far as where we are going, maybe it’s not some place down the road; maybe it’s a state of mind, a new level of consciousness combined with real compassion for others. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Can we do it? Not in a million years, at least not with the old dysfunctional thinking that created this situation in the first place.

            This is why it’s important to start listening to some of our visionaries, our artists, and people who are thinking out of the box. This takes courage on our part because to do this we must question our beliefs about who we are and why we are here. As I write this there is a mountain of archaeological evidence that will rewrite our human history, but the gap between those academic scholars who know of it and the general public is growing ever so large because the general public is more interested in Paris Hilton and who is going to become the next American Idol. We could also look at alternative energy as an example. We are so controlled by the media that are owned and operated by fossil-fueled governments and corporations that we seldom hear about some of the most amazing alternative-energy systems that are available if we would put money into them.

            The time has come to take action, and that action is not the great actions of one person; it’s the almost insignificant actions of many people taking personal responsibility for their lives. This means self-education about our world, the food we eat, our consumption of goods, and the overall footprint we leave behind us. This is possible only with a new awareness that allows for the idea of oneness. My actions affect everyone to some extent; I know this to the degree that I can experience it.

            Now comes the challenge, which is to be honest with oneself. So, I will start with me; am I doing everything I can do to “be the change I’m talking about”? No, but I acknowledge that and I am working every day to become that change. We posted a Blog Page where you can go and leave your thoughts, ideas, and/or questions. It would be nice to hear your comments and ideas so go to www.LotusGuide.com, click on the Blog Directory, and then click on Sustainability Blog and we or someone will get back to you.

One of the biggest challenges for a child born with cerebral palsy, autism, global brain damage, and other similar conditions is to develop fine and gross motor skills for optimal functionality. Children often go through many therapies such as physical, occupational, speech, and others that attempt to address this. However, many parents have found there are limitations and that their child develops slowly.

            One approach to functional development is based on a method originated by physicist Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais. The foundation of the method is based on how we learn to move as babies and beyond. If there are gaps in that learning, we can fill in the functional pieces to help children become more independent in their movements.

            Since his work was introduced in the United States in the early 1970s, scientific studies have found that optimal brain development occurs when children learn to move their bodies with increasing complexity. We cannot separate brain development from how we move; they are part of an integrated whole. In fact, as movement becomes more complex the brain processes information in a more organized and logical manner. The result is that children develop better concentration and a more sophisticated ability to think critically.

            The method does not use any kind of force, constraint, or device to teach children; instead the skeleton is moved in ways that send a clear message to the brain on how to reorganize for optimal movement. When the learning is this profound, children will initiate movements on their own and integrate what they learn extremely quickly. Even children with paralysis or permanent nerve damage can learn to move in ways that create better functionality for them.

            Incorporating movement education into any special-needs program greatly increases the possibility of children’s becoming more independent later in life.

Benny

Benny is an active five-year-old with mild cerebral palsy but no other brain damage. He walked on his toes rather than using the whole foot, fell a lot, and was crouched over and stiff in his torso.

            Benny came to Jackie to learn how to walk with his whole foot meeting the floor. She observed that Benny was using his neck and upper torso to stay upright for walking. She showed Benny how to move his pelvis forward as he was taking a step in order to lower his heels to the ground. How Benny balanced himself with his neck and torso is switching to balance from his pelvis so that he is not working so hard to stay upright.

            “After his first session with Jackie, Benny had erect posture,” recalls Elaine, his grandmother and legal guardian. “After his second session, his neck extended off his shoulders, making him significantly taller. After session four, his heels came down, and he was unable to go back to walking on his toes, even when he tried.”

            Elaine recently took him to the doctor and when they measured his height they were astounded to see that he had grown five inches in two months! Elaine attributes his growth spurt to Jackie’s work that has freed up his neck and torso so that he moves with greater flexibility, fluidity, and ease.

Additionally, Elaine says, “He rarely falls now and his concentration levels have improved dramatically. This is not just my noticing; his teachers at school and at his Aikido studio have all commented on remarkable changes in Benny, physically and mentally.”

For more information call (530) 478-9547

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Website: www.movementforlife.info

Chico, October 10–12, 2008

What is the connection of contemplative practice with responding to the needs of our communities and our world? If we have been using meditation especially as a place of refuge and healing, how do we take steps toward compassionate action? How do we bring our practices of mindfulness, lovingkindness, and wisdom into our actions? And for those of us who are already involved in service or social change, how can the resources of inner work help strengthen and sustain us?

            Through talks, silent meditation practice, interactive exercises, group discussion, and creative process, we will explore these questions, providing principles to guide us and practices to take home, as we deepen our understanding of the interplay between transforming ourselves and transforming the world.

            On Friday evening, as an introduction to the weekend, Donald Rothberg will give a talk, “The Engaged Spiritual Life: Connecting Inner and Outer Transformation,” pointing to how we might, despite strong tendencies to separate the inner and outer, connect the two, and how they deeply require one another, if we are to respond to the challenges of our times.

            On Saturday, the theme is “The Roots of Compassionate Action.” We will focus particularly on ways of developing compassion, exploring the parallels between individual practices and compassionate responses to community and global concerns. On Sunday, the theme is “Equanimity and Committed Action.” On the basis of our cultivation of compassion, we will then work especially with ways to develop and express wisdom, equanimity, balance, and skillful action, again linking individual practices with interpersonal relationships and action in the world.

            We very much recommend that participants attend the entire weekend, but it is also possible to attend each day’s event separately. The evening and two daylong sessions will be presented as a sequence.

Donald Rothberg, a member of the Spirit Rock Teachers Council and the executive faculty at Saybrook Graduate School, writes and teaches classes, groups, and retreats on meditation, daily life practice, and socially engaged Buddhism. He has engaged in insight and lovingkindness practice since 1976 and has been a longtime organizer, teacher, and board member for the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. He directs “The Path of Engagement,” a two-year Spirit Rock training program connecting inner and outer transformation, and he has also directed a two-year interfaith program, “Socially Engaged Spirituality.” Donald is the author of The Engaged Spiritual Life: A Buddhist Approach to Transforming Ourselves and the World.

As I travel and teach Anusara yoga workshops in the United States, Canada, Central America, Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, and New Zealand, it becomes apparent to me that people everywhere are ready for a shift in consciousness and yoga students and teachers are enthusiastically doing their part to help the world make this shift.

            The traditional definition of yoga is “union” and to me it means this: When we know ourselves in a deeper way, we feel supported inside, united. We feel more complete and self-confident and this leads us to a sense of connection with our divine or eternal nature.

            Without this type of integration, people often live with underlying and perhaps even unnamed fear, anger, sadness, or that ever-present question about life: “Is that all there is?”

            Anusara yoga uses a three-limbed approach to help us empower ourselves to the point that it finally becomes possible to surrender to the divine will and trust that all will be well.

1. Tantric philosophy encourages us to “Say Yes to Life” and embrace it fully. We celebrate the gift of our human bodies and our lives and focus on taking whatever we have been given to higher and higher levels of health, radiance, and peace. When hard times come, we continue to look for even the smallest ray of light and focus our attention there until it grows bigger and brighter.

2. The simple yet powerful universal principles of alignment are “user-friendly” tools that help people understand how they can heal their own bodies and that change is always possible.

3. Anusara yoga encourages us to help, encourage, and support one another in and out of the yoga class. Rather than compare, compete with, or envy each other, we learn to trust that there will always be enough for everyone and that there is as much joy in celebrating the success of another as there is in achieving something of our own.

            We share the joys and divide sorrows. Look for the good and believe in the possibility of transformation. All this from time spent on a yoga mat? Yes, and even more!

            Come and see for yourself.

The Art of “Going with the Flow” and Why Anusara Yoga Is Growing So Rapidly

As I travel around the world teaching Anusara workshops I am privileged to be gaining an eagle’s-eye view of our ever-changing world. In my workshops I often ask students to define the word “yoga.” Most often the answer is “union.” My next question is “union of what?” Most people say “body and mind.” And many are now saying “union with the higher self.”

            “Union of body and mind” was my definition of yoga for a long time in the early years of my practice. Now, after 15 years of studying with John Friend, the founder of Anusara yoga, this definition has been further transformed by my understanding of what I am seeking and my practice has given me a unified body/mind that is strong and flexible, resilient and positive.

            Now when I say yoga is union, I am referring to the uniting of my divine self with my human self. And I see this trend all over the world. People are hungry to know why we are here and why so many people suffer in our world. We want to know how we can reduce suffering and make the world a better place.

            In the past, yoga was taught in a way that made it look as if it required very serious discipline, many hours of practice, and the continued denial of the pleasures of the world. Or it looked like an escape into a world of chanting om and listening to soft music with the sounds of nature in an attempt to soothe our stress. “Going with the flow” appeared to be an appropriate mantra for people with Type B personalities who could live in very modest circumstances and were free of big ambition.

            The newer paradigm of “going with the flow” that Anusara offers seems to me to be a more practical fit with the way the majority of us are living our lives.

The message is Tantric: Say Yes to life. Align with your highest nature and then trust. And don’t just believe it because you hear it, actually feel it and know it, within and without.

Live, love, laugh, and embrace all parts of yourself and your life!

Learn how you can make new habits that will gradually replace the undesirable ones naturally and transform your body and attitude until you honestly feel your alignment with your divinity, regardless of how many hours you spend practicing, no matter what you eat, and what “mistakes” you think you might have made in your life.

            All of our behavior patterns are constantly subject to change and they will continue to evolve naturally. There’s no need to impose rigid rules on people. It’s better to empower them with an understanding of how to physically and emotionally align with the highest self in a simple user-friendly way complete with laughter and lightness. Then all the rest will take care of itself. All we have to do is ask ourselves each day: “What is mine to do in this moment?

            Feel all of your feelings and honor your pain. Then ask the questions and seek to find the answers that lead you back to the wholeness and joy that are your birthright and allow others to do the same for themselves. When your heart opens, fear releases and generosity naturally flows.

            For more information about the healing and strengthening power of Anusara and how it empowers people to align with their highest nature through yoga and meditation, go to www.anusara.com.

Desiree Rumbaugh will be presenting an Anusara workshop October 3-5, 2008, in Paradise. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.