Diwali, Darkness And Light (From The UYD Archives)

As most of you know, I moved to Nashville two months ago. What you might NOT know – unless you follow Urban Yoga Den on Facebook – is that, indeed, the last eight weeks have been the toughest challenge of my life so far. Darkness…oh yes, darkness. And that ever-present tug back into the light…

Holly Go Lightly

“There is a light and it never goes out.”  ~ Morrissey *  *  * There’s some drilling or sanding or sawing going on in one of the apartments beneath me; and it’s piercing enough to make my skull feel like there’s a dentist office in its core. I’m using all of my yoga tools to…

My Heart Exploded

The night before the world would end, my heart exploded. I’d been asleep for about an hour, when my eyes gently opened.  I was lying on my back, with my hands resting on my chest.  Suddenly, in the core of my heart center, I sensed a feeling that is hard to describe.  At once heavy…

Diwali’s Balance of Darkness with Light

“What is important for a movie?  Both – light to make it; darkness to show it.  The minute you learn to respect and see both sides of the coin as equally good, you can enjoy both.  It is only a matter of understanding and acceptance.  Let us have that light of understanding.  Accept things as…

Abundance: Season of Light

A friend recently mentioned Jesus as “the reason for the season;” but these days, I see December in a whole new light. Yes, Christmas is obviously the most widely observed, celebrated and marketed holiday of the month. But as a yogini who thrives on the concept of unity, I choose to set my sights on…

Gratitude, Pt. 2: Shiva and the Darkness

I recently found myself apologizing to god. It was the umpteenth time that I’d broken out in sobs while singing along with Jai Uttal’s “Om Namah Shivaya.”  To be exact, it was Monday, October 24th.  I was driving to rehearse with The Shaktis, an all-female Kirtan group with whom I play percussion.  Two days before,…

Focus: Abundance – Love & Light

I have long believed that people are beautiful beings, inside and out. Our humanness, our perfect imperfection, our state of constant growth gives me faith in the beauty of life as a whole. Tonight a street drunk and I watched a meteor fireball together. I was walking to yoga class when a huge white comet-looking…