July: Beauty – Wisdom – Alchemy

BEAUTY

When:             Saturday, September 7, 2024     9:00am – noon

Where:           Community Congregational Church  –  145 Rock Hill Drive  –  Tiburon, CA  94920

Cost:               General Public $45.00  –  CCC Members $27.00

Details & Registration:  LINK HERE      Register early as space is limited.

WISDOM
Before the monumental events of July 21, with President Biden stepping back, I heard this wisdom from Asha Nayaswami, a disciple of Yogananda, who said, “The karma of the leader does not create the karma of the country. The karma of the country determines what leader it gets.”  Think about that for a minute…and how rapidly things can shift and change. Thank you, President Biden, for your lifetime of public service.

In the weeks before that announcement, clients, colleagues and friends were asking me how I remain calm and grounded in the face of the chaos of the world. I shared that I remind myself that everything changes, moment by moment. That there is a lot of time between now and the November election. A lot can happen in any one of those moments, and it can happen with the speed of light. And so it has… and so it will… The only thing we have control over is how we individually show up in any of those given moments.

And just look how we’re showing up!  I am loving the many Kamala memes popping up on the internet from youngsters among us. And the cool t-shirts!! Make America Laugh Again (MALA).  Lotus for Potus. Kamala is BRAT  B = bold, R = real, A = audacious, T = trendsetting… and so many more. We need to ride this wave for the next 100 days, and beyond! Check out Michael Moore’s July 29 website post HERE. 

The announcement of President Biden’s stepping back from re-election and propelling Kamala Devi Harris up through the murky political waters to potentially become Madam President, came on the most auspicious and holy day of Guru Purnima: July 21, the July full moon, when spiritual gurus, teachers (and our own higher consciousness) are honored around the globe. I was at Sonoma Ashram that day celebrating one of my teachers, HariHar Ram Babaji, and when I heard the news, I had this overwhelming sense that universal energy was asserting her power. Praise be to Divine Feminine energy.

Kamala means lotus.  Devi means goddess.  In Hindu cosmology—Kamala is one of the female offspring from Mahālakṣmī. Mahālakṣmī is one of the three primary forms of Devī, the other two being Mahākālī and Mahāsarasvatī, each representing the three gunas of universal energy (rajas, tamas, and saatva). In the sacred Hindu text, the Devī Māhātmya (In Praise of the Goddess), written in 5th Century Sanskrit, the goddess takes many forms and is worshipped both as a kind goddess and a fierce one. The goddess in her many forms, including Durga, is called into battle. Durga is usually depicted as riding a tiger and wielding all the appropriate weapons to slay the many demons. Many battles between the goddesses and the demons occur in the story, with the goddesses prevailing, always. The demons represent our vices, our ignorance, our shadows. The goddesses represent our highest spiritual Self and Truth.  Capital S, capital T.

May Kamala receive divine guidance on the path ahead. May she and we all, stay safe and strong.  And as Babaji reminded us in a recent Sunday Satsang, may we all see the goodness in everyone, even/especially when we disagree. May the Devi energy prevail, and may the coming months and years begin to heal the deep wounds that currently divide this country.

ALCHEMY
Upcoming workshops and events: 
August 3-4  I’ll be sharing Beauty-as-Medicine and Divine Sight offerings with the Lichen Health core team of healers, community leaders and funders, at the Lichen Health Summit on Bainbridge Island. Watch for pics from that experience and a download of what Lichen Health, The Holistic Healing Network is all about in my August blog.

Grant us habits of sacred pause. Let us marvel not just at the grand or majestic, but Beauty’s name etched into every ordinary moment. Let the mundane swell with a mystery that makes us breathe deeper still. And by this, may we be sustained and kept from despair. – Cole Arthur Riley – from Black Liturgies

August 11 – @Sonoma Ashram, after Babaji’s Sunday Satsang, I’ll be facilitating our first monthly Death Café gathering, where we take the initiative to enter into brave and intimate conversations about death and dying.

August 25 – and the 4th Sunday of every month @1pm PT/4pm ET –  join me and my colleague, Rev. Katrina Leathers, for our East-West Death Café online. We’ve been cohosting this gathering for 18 months so far. Feel free to drop me a message if you’d like more information.

September 7, 9am-noon @Community Congregational Church – Tiburon, CA.
For a taste of Beauty-as-Medicine watch the recording of three visual meditations I led for the Marin Interfaith Council (MIC) July 10.  The first meditation runs about 8 minutes starting at minute 10 and ending at minute 18.  https://youtu.be/WX99Gu3Z-Uw

Thanks to everyone who signed up this past month to receive my blog! I’d love to hear from you!

Peace, love and blessings,

Rev. Lisa
Spiritual Companion/Guide
Contemplative Photographer
Interfaith Chaplain/Eco-Minister
Free Photos at Pexels
Spirit-Infused Healing Photography Books at Blurb
Photography is my love language. Teaching people to see Beauty-as-Medicine is my ministry. – Rev. Lisa

Beauty calls us beyond ourselves and encourages us to engage the dream that dwells in the soul. –John O’Donohue