I was reading an article in Hinduism Today about Varanasi, which is a place where people say if you die there you gain liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth. They spoke to someone there who is a worker at a hospice care center there and she said that she sees many people come to Varanasi to die but most still have attachments and will be reborn. Very few are really ready for liberation. No surprise, since enlightenment is... Read more
I don’t buy cookbooks anymore because Pinterest has so many recipes and you can look up any kind of diet restriction there. However, when I got this book out of the library I knew that I had to own it. It’s called But I Could Never Go Vegan. This is a great cookbook for people like me who have a moral desire to eat vegetarian or vegan but who are used to and still crave classic American food. That may... Read more
We are doing a scripture study together: reading along through some scriptures and discussing the passages. From the Winthrop Sargeant translation of The Gita… 70. Like the ocean, which becomes filled yet remains unmoved and stands still As the waters enter it, He whom all desires enter and who remains unmoved attains peace; not so the man who is full of desire. 71. The man who abandons all desires Acts free from longing. Indifferent to possessions, free from egoticism, He attains... Read more
Anyone will tell you that the modern world moves very fast. There is a frantic pace of life where no matter how much you do it is never enough. This isn’t as new as we tend to think. I suspect it’s been this way at least since the Industrial Revolution. We actually have more chance to relax now than we did then since now we have the concept of a weekend, we have days off. The bedrock of American culture... Read more
For my other life I happened to be at this huge book conference in NYC last week: Book Expo America. I was not there as Ambaa and yet I kept stumbling across things of interest to me as a Hindu. I got some free books that I’m excited to review and share with you. The most exciting to me is this lovely children’s book about Karna: Karna: The Greatest Archer In The World The author has a whole series of... Read more
My dance teacher posted a message on her Facebook page for new graduates and I thought it was the most perfect message they could get so I’m going to repeat it! For all the new graduates out there, remember what Arjuna said to his teacher, Drona. “I can only see the eye of the bird.” It’s that tremendous focus that leads to success. And for those who don’t know this story, this is part of The Mahabharata. At one point... Read more
We are doing a scripture study together: reading along through some scriptures and discussing the passages. From the Winthrop Sargeant translation of The Gita... 66. There is no wisdom in him who is uncontrolled, And there is likewise no concentration in him who is uncontrolled, And in him who does not concentrate, there is no peace. How can there be happiness for him who is not peaceful? 67. When the mind runs After the wandering senses, Then it carries away one’s... Read more
Sometimes it feels weird to wear my bindi when I’m doing really not very religious things. As you know, I wear my bindi at all times as an outward symbol of my faith and I’ve been practicing not removing it for convenience or to fit in somewhere better because I don’t believe that it is right that I can pass for non-Hindu if it seems useful. And most aspects of my life are part of my religion. Being at work... Read more
You know how I was talking about trying to use Hindi with customers at the grocery store? I had an experience a couple weeks ago that put me in their shoes and it was…weird. I was at the mall with a friend and, as usual, wearing my little red bindi. (I’ve spoken before about how important that practice is to me and since that post I’ve been wearing a bindi full time whether it is inconvenient or not). Anyway, we passed... Read more
We are doing a scripture study together: reading along through some scriptures and discussing the passages. From the Winthrop Sargeant translation of The Gita… 62. For a man dwelling on the objects of the senses, An attachment to them is born; From attachment, desire is born; From desire, anger is born. 63. From anger arises delusion; From delusion, loss of the memory; From loss of the memory, destruction of discrimination; From destruction of discrimination one is lost. 64. With the elimination... Read more
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