1/29/17

Burning Down the House: politics-yoga-spirituality



Talking Heads, "Burning Down the House" 
(full lyrics below)

Hold tight wait till the party's over
Hold tight we're in for nasty weather
There has got to be a way
Burning down the house


House as metaphor for ego.... and politics. What a mess. Heartbreaking and frightening (for me) just one week after inauguration and the women's march in DC.

So - Adyashanti has a story. It goes something like this. In the early days of his teaching he held retreats at a location where the early morning was graced by the sunrise, bird song, and peacefulness. Later, local residents blasted Led Zeppelin and others at full volume out on the streets. As Adya says:
It is easy to stay conscious to the birds, to the pleasantness, to the beautiful manifestation of the Divine, to your own true self...until the first power chord... And there it is. There's the invitation. 
 Well the political powers are shrieking at me right now. I see how easy it was to stay in a state of peaceful awareness of self, others, etc during Obama's presidency. Now I am put to the test:

  • Can I maintain equanimity and awareness now that the "sweet sounds" have ended?
  • Can I keep an open heart while at the same time feeling outrage and heartbreak? 
  • Can I engage in a way that is positive, pro-active? 
  • Can I refrain from reacting in-kind to energy that feels negative or bad?
  • Have I closed my heart to some as a result of pre-conceived ideas about certain people with whom I disagree? 
  • And if so, am I not doing something essentially similar to what the head of the US government today wants to do to Muslims? 
  • Can I view the US president as "bad" in a neutral, matter of fact way? That is, without the added injection of hate and anger?
  • What can I DO that promotes inclusion and peace on both an individual and governmental level?
I'm watching, looking for answers. I will say for certain that being open to "those" people FEELS much better than shutting down as I learned in DC after the march.  Two women got on the trolley we were riding. One carried an anti-choice sign and the other, roses. We muttered among ourselves about them, and then chatted joyfully with some other pussy-hatted women, all the time eyeing the two. (And I, sending them some evil-eye.) When we got off, I did something I can only attribute to my (unconscious) higher self. I smiled at them from the heart and smelled their roses.

The result of good energy from march, meditation, and yoga practices?

Don't know, but yoga practice in particular seems vital to clarity, equilibrium, and equanimity for me—particularly since resuming regular practice after dealing with shoulder injury/pain.


And here I should interject what I've learned since Andrew Hillam's workshop in India about the integration of bhandas and breath. Amazing! Breathe right and your bandhas will be there; if your bandhas are present, you will be breathing correctly. Aaaah, the breath. Everything said about it is true!


And to also interject—have learned about everything since injuring my shoulder. One down to earth thing: at Duke they will do arthroscopic surgery AND stem cell treatment at the same time. Amazing! So excited by that I signed up and scheduled immediately. (But at this moment with shoulder so much improved wondering if it wouldn't eventually resolve for the better on it own. To be decided after consult this week.)


Questions! Answers! Some say questions are far more important than THE answers.


METTA

May prosperity be glorified. 
May administrators rule the world with law and justice. 
May all things that are sacred be protected. 
And may the people of the world be happy and prosperous.

(Ashtanga closing mantra)




Talking Heads – Burning Down The House Lyrics 

Watch out you might get what you're after
Cool baby strange but not a stranger
I'm an ordinary guy
Burning down the house

Hold tight wait till the party's over

Hold tight we're in for nasty weather
There has got to be a way
Burning down the house

Here's your ticket pack your bag: time for jumpin' overboard

Transportation is here
Close enough but not too far,
Maybe you know where you are
Fightin' fire with fire

All wet hey you might need a raincoat

Shakedown dreams walking in broad daylight
Three hun-dred six-ty five de-grees
Burning down the house

It was once upon a place sometimes I listen to myself

Gonna come in first place
People on their way to work baby what did you expect
Gonna burst into flame
Burning down the house

My house's out of the ordinary

That's might don't want to hurt nobody
Some things sure can sweep me off my feet
Burning down the house

No visible means of support and you have not seen nuthin' yet

Everything's stuck together
I don't know what you expect staring into the TV set
Fighting fire with fire

Songwriters: BYRNE, DAVID / WEYMOUTH, TINA / FRANTZ, CHRIS / HARRISON, JERRY
Burning Down The House lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.