Little Mahakala retreat

This material is copyrighted by Kirby Moore.  Reproduction without permission is prohibited.  To support my business and blogging efforts, please visit my website. More recently, I have begun teaching Astrology classes on Trauma-Informed Astrology, see http://www.traumainformedastrology.com for more! Thank you for visiting!

Friday’s agenda: pick up friends truck, filled with meditation cushions for the center; drop off children’s books that a client left in my healing space – on top of Afton mountain at Swannanoa; drive to Maryland, Lama House and Tibetan Meditation Center; talk with Lama – questions about upcoming year

Saturday’s agenda: sit, eat, rest, chant mantras

Sunday’s agenda: see above; give bodywork treatments to monks

Monday’s agenda: rest, discuss Drikung texts that need translating

Actual events…

Arrive at friend’s house, discover the entire back of his truck is full of meditation cushions. His truck is older, so the rear hatch gate on his truck cap is gone. Instead, there was bubblewrap, packing tape keeping it securely in place. Truck is musty, moldy. It is also extremely foggy on Afton mountain… Throw my stuff in the cab… whoa not much room for me…

Starting off, I quickly realize I may be in way over my head. I gun the truck by accident and it sounds like I have never driven a stick before. My friend told me about how the truck struggles to go into reverse… yep, I eventually grind it into place… Ugh! No power steering fluid! OMG! I begin to realize I might be driving a death-trap…

Attempting to navigate the narrow roads around Swannanoa in dense fog, getting lost. Keep in mind the truck bed is full of cushions, and I can neither see through them nor the bubble wrap… Attempting to keep this truck on thin driveway tire tracks as I get stuck in a dead end which I can’t turn around in… Driving in reverse is a nightmare.

I give up and then head up to Maryland. Thankfully there is very little need to stop on interstates, which also means I don’t realize how sluggish the brakes are compared to my car… Hmmm, luckily I did not hit anyone, but did come close later… And they wonder why my kidneys and adrenals are shot? Oh, did I mention the fact that this old truck had limited windshield wiper capacity? Yikes!

Luckily I get the clunker to the Lama House where Khenpo Chophel and Lama Gyaltsen have just returned from doing a sand mandala at a private school – that was a great story in and of itself. The translator is there, so I get to ask her some questions about Tibetan and I eventually help her with some textual phonetics fixes. My main teacher, Drupon Thinley Ningpo is out doing shopping for the upcoming retreat.

I eat dinner with the lamas then head up to the center to welcome any late comers for the retreat weekend. No one shows up for a couple hours, so I unload the truck bed by myself, get a little scraped up but somehow manhandle the huge, bulky boxes of cushions into the foyer of the TMC. Later another fellow arrives and he helps to move them downstairs – thank goodness! Else I might have tried to either carry or roll the boxes down the stairs… Kirby – not smart! Practice self care please 🙂

Sleep well. Saturday: Wake up early, still foggy – it was somehow foggy for 48 – 60 hours straight, strange weather weekend. Trudge down the mountain to the lama house, eat breakfast and start the retreat. Very enjoyable retreat.

Morning session: long meditation on four thoughts that turn the mind toward enlightenment, Mahakala sadhana and mantras, tea break and more mantras. Afternoon session: same sadhana, then Achi protector practice to finish around 4:30 pm. Evening session: Tea offering ceremony to all the many Kagyu protectors.

Sunday: slept downstairs in the TMC basement (bookstore). Pretty certain something was in the other room chewing on stiff cardboard. When I got up with my flashlight to make certain there wasn’t a large rodent nearby, the chewing stopped. But then I lie back down and it resumed. C’est la vie! I think my sleep is affected but oh well. Note to self – next time sleep with other people in the room so there are strength in numbers.

Similar schedule for Sunday except we end around 4 pm so people can get home and start their week. There were seven people total, so a very intimate experience and it seemed like we got personal teachings on tea offering and sang ceremonies.

Lama Gyaltsen does incredible work behind the scenes, always cheerful and modest. I stick around, intending to give bodywork treatments to the lamas, so I help him clean up. I do not realize how much work he does, even for a PDL retreat. But this time he was the cook, the clean up man and he set up the tea station. Plus he vacuumed everything. Whoa! He also entertains me with stories about how he used to practice driving up and down their road, I laugh for at least ten minutes straight as he tells me about strange idioms mechanics and tow truck drivers used to say to him about his beaten practice car.

Monday went well except almost ran out of gas as I discover my debit card has expired… several weeks early? Strange! All in all, a quality, resourceful weekend. Had nice, relaxing time hanging out with and making offerings to the lamas. Somehow they treat me like I am an honored guest – but nothing special about me, rather it is Tibetan hospitality to treat guests like royalty. Wow!

Spring resting down, recovery

I just read in a Craniosacral Biodynamics book that one of the author’s mentors enjoyed lying on the couch, despite being 33 years old. When the author confronted his mentor about this activity, the lounger responded, [paraphrasing] “I have frazzled every wire, exhausted every sinew and burnt out every fuse. There is nothing else to do.” Whoa! Finally someone is on the same page as me.

Really there is not much more to say… So I’m getting ready for graduation, throwing a little shindig and then prepping for Spring Retreat at the Tibetan Meditation Center (yes, this is turning into quite the tradition – this is my sixth year in a row). Nubpa Rinpoche, a recognized master from Drikung Til in Tibet is teaching and giving some rare blessing ceremonies (empowerments). Plus the resident lamas are teaching, so it is a time of great virtue and merit. Generally I do a little volunteering, attend most of the teachings and enjoy a peaceful time. Here’s hoping it stays that way! 🙂

This summer I am intending to study more Tibetan (language) and slowly learn more about literary (Classical) Tibetan – the textual tradition.

Within all of this, I intend to rest down much further than ever, to see clients and to practice speaking Tibetan. And that is it [period]. Time to recover – these circuits are fried, these bones are tired. My aspiration is to rest down until effort is easy and effortless. So if you know me, don’t be too surprised if I say no right off the bat – “No! Gotta rest, maybe next time.” Hooray!

meditative progression

A post about Kirby Moore’s personal reflections on his attempts at meditating and how the process is shifting.

In speaking with one of my heart teachers recently, it is clear that my awareness and sensitivity regarding meditation sessions have shifted. This concept is reinforced by my weekly conversations with the I Ching, which, when I work with a quality interpretation of the “Book of Changes” (I Ching), reveals humorous, informative and occasionally poetic observations.

So what has changed? Or maybe a better question is what has not changed? Heh.

First, in my conversation with Julie Henderson (Ph.D, founder of Zapchen Somatics, a recognized Khandroma – meaning a woman teacher of Tibetan Buddhism or in her case, the word Yogini seems to be a better fit), I was reminded that of course my relationship with meditation is changing. That is normal and the way of things. If it was not changing, that might be a problem!

Julie pointed out that most people need years [anywhere from 3 to 20] of initial sitting – we gotta get our butts on the cushion! But then we internalize some form of the practice and we start to progress along the path. At first, we carry all our neuroses with us to our meditation sessions, but eventually, we can truly rest the mind when we sit. This next sentence is a bit of a joke: It’s really quite simple – we are moving toward resting the mind in a light, easy natural state; simply relax the mind. Ah, if it was only that easy.

Okay, so what is changing? In the past, I had a tendency to push. I wanted to force my way to enlightenment – push my way through any and all obstacles I encountered! No prisoners… Ugh! Well that has given way to being consciously gentle and kind, on a moment-to-moment basis.

As Julie says, and please keep in mind this takes years of practice, “first, free your breath [using techniques I and others have taught you], next return to alignment [this would be emotional, physical and motivational alignment – again using techniques from Zapchen, Dharma and other modalities] and then soften your eyes [this last suggestion is the hardest by far in our Western culture, and it also takes years of letting go to arrive at a point where we can notice (energetic) eye strain].” It really does not get any more difficult than this. Of course, there are practices which I have agreed to practice, but other than those, there is no longer any need to push, no need to force anything, and especially no need to insist on my way being right. Doh!

So what else is changing? Well I am no longer able to sit for such long periods of time. Actually, I suspect I have never been able to sit for long periods while resting in easy alignment. But that is another change – recognizing easy alignment, recognizing messages from my body/mind and honoring what I hear. What do I do if I’m not able to sit for long periods? Well for one, I can do shorter sessions and more of them if I like. So instead of trying to rock out hundreds of prostrations at a time (which the I Ching continually tells me causes me to get “tangled” and “exhausted”), I can do a dozen or more, over several sessions in a day.

Let me unpack a few of these concepts – what is resting in easy alignment? I define this as being aware of our needs – on physical, mental, emotional and psycho-spiritual levels. If we need to rest, as in lie down, there is no point in our trying to push through a half-hour meditation session. That is definitely not easy alignment – if our neck, or shoulders, or head, or jaw (or something else) starts to contract and tighten up, then listen to what your body is communicating! Rest down or deal with the emotional component of the body’s request if need be. And in case you are unaware, prostrations are a form of bowing, which in Tibetan Buddhism is one of the preliminary practices, and they are associated with going for refuge (in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha or enlightened community).

Julie mentioned that some of her advanced students sit for only three to four minutes per hour. Huh? When I heard this, my mind was unable to process the information at first. That did not seem to compute. But now, upon reflection, it makes complete sense. (Oh – I also realized I am definitely not one of her advanced students!!!) If we dedicate our lives to being more kind and compassionate towards ourselves (because this is how we translate these vital traits onto others), then our practice should soften and refine itself in response.

So my life is changing as a result. Instead of pushing to do an hour plus practice each morning, I do a little, check in, maybe eat breakfast, then do a little more, then go about my day. If I need to rest, I do that first and foremost! Imagine that, liberation upon napping… In the afternoon and evening, if I have the energy to do more practice, then I do a little more. I try to constantly check to see if / where I am contracting and what that might mean. Softening, sensitizing, mindfulness is becoming easier. Good good.

But I still have much work to do. The I Ching pokes fun at me from time to time, saying things like, “your response to stagnation is shameful,” or “you are surrounded by abundance, that would be the abundance of obscuration [delusion].” Ouch! But the truth hurts, and as one of the characteristics of enlightenment is clarity, and one aspect of clarity is a willingness to know the truth (no matter what we discover!), then I am slowly and painstakingly making progress. I’d rather know how I can improve than to wallow in my normal affliction-filled patterns. 🙂

Very grateful for my experience at UVa

In thinking back to where I was when I started the University… oh, goodness! I’ve come a long way! I am very grateful for where I am presently. Of course, as the rest of my blog attests, I have been busy with extracurricular personal growth work. But back to UVa!

The Grounds are by far some of the most beautiful in the country, having lived in and around Charlottesville for most of my life, unfortunately I take the rolling hills, pristine gardens, dogwoods and the Greco-Roman / Southern architecture for granted. Wandering toward the Darden School of Business will make the viewer think they had somehow transported to a beautiful school in the deep South, while the stoic and reserved Law School speaks volumes with its practical, functional architecture. And the new South Lawn walkway and commons are just an extraordinary phenomena – sitting in that plush, deep grass, you forget you are sitting above a busy road below (until an ambulance happens by).

Being someone who started out very alternative and had difficulty fitting in to the mainstream-seeming crowd of students, it has been a social education of sorts as well, which I guess is to be expected. But I have also made strides in this regard – personally, I feel that the empirical push of psychology did the most good for me in this area.

And then I remember I am graduating in less than a month… bittersweet to be sure. New beginnings and necessary completions, what life is all about. I am ready though. This is the right time.

While the timing is perfect, I will still miss some of the temporary friends I have made here, and once I start my life… I will miss Charlottesville as well. Yep – I’m graduating, but I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up. Seriously – I have narrowed it down to be sure. So, I will keep you updated.

Four Years at UVA, I learned…

This post is a comical rendition of the next post, which could be taken seriously. All of the information below is either false or greatly exaggerated.

Four years… wow… well actually I’m not going to admit how long it took me to finish my community college work and then I took a year off from UVa… Oh my word! Well back to the story… Metaphorically speaking, what did I learn in my “four years” at the University of Virginia?

First and foremost, I learned not to feed the groundhogs… I have heard horror stories about the squirrel problem at William & Mary (where my sister graduated)… but here at UVa, some of our groundhogs are larger than small dogs, stand on their hind legs and have learned to beg. But do not be mistaken! These are not beavers – do not feed them. Because… I’m tearing up, good golly, I’m gonna change the subject!

Second, while UVa might have one of the best (less-well-known) psychology programs in the country, and despite the fact that the UVa psychology program has the most undergraduates of any College majors… it’s building, Gilmer Hall, is a nightmarish maze of corridors and dead ends! That would be the psychology / biology building for those of you lucky enough to avoid wandering around in a stupor, wondering how you walked in circles passing the same landmark dozens of times. Yes, that’s right! Gilmer Hall must have been added on to by six different architects, who all had varying styles, (you might say who had two left hands) and who all could not decide on a rational system of completion. I am about to graduate and I still have not found my advisor’s office… (I happened to stumble blindly into his lab though and he helped me tremendously from there) I highly recommend printing out a map of this building if you are in the psychology program – you’re gonna need it!

Speaking of confusing buildings on Grounds… in addition to Gilmer, I would also recommend printing a map of Clark Hall – the entire Clark Hall that is; unfortunately finding a map with the new addition on it was nigh impossible. Therefore, when my Climatology professor said that if we could find his office, then we could probably pass his course… he was NOT joking! And speaking of walking in circles, once you do discover how to get into the new sections of Clark, there is a very good chance you will become quite discombobulated. But after the sixth or seventh time of wandering the halls, wondering how the numbers jumped from 346 to 396, despite the fact that you are looking for Suite 376, you may get the hang of it. If not, find someone old who looks like they work there and ask them.

And while we are on this subject, might as well mention Alderman. I’m confident there are some wizened students, bearded and bespectacled, who, having given up on getting out of the mammoth library, have decided to make a career out of reading ancient, rare texts. I’ve seen them! It has to be so! Once you go down and back, venturing up tiny, claustrophobic metal staircases, or out-dated elevators… you are putting your time-management skills on the line. You might escape and discover that cars are flying by and that the excellent UVA bus system has been replaced by high-speed trains on monorails.

Seriously though, I will mention that you must read the next post, because my experience and time at the University were special, marvelous and very edifying. The Grounds are some of the most beautiful in the world and the architecture will blow your mind if you stop to consider it (from the outside).

Frequency Based Astrology

This is a post about the type of astrology that M. Kirby Moore practices and teaches. It also explains a bit about karmic astrology and the diverse manifestations of aspects depending on individuals’ unique frequencies.

This material is copyrighted by Kirby Moore.  Reproduction without permission is prohibited.  To support my business and blogging efforts, please visit my website. More recently, I have begun teaching Astrology classes on Trauma-Informed Astrology, see http://www.traumainformedastrology.com for more! Thank you for visiting!

Recently I was speaking with a colleague who claimed he had been studying astrology for a number of years, yet he seemed to have little understanding of this concept (see the title). So the theory goes: astrology charts have about 24 primary components (10 planets, 12 houses, 2 Nodes to keep it as simple as possible) and if you consider the major aspects, maybe there are several thousand combinations (keep in mind that everyone’s chart is uniquely different, but what I am saying is that our charts are not that different overall – we all have Scorpio and every other sign somewhere in our charts, guaranteed).

Therefore, when we see two charts that are fairly similar (for instance, maybe both people have Leo Rising, Sun in the Eighth House, Neptune in the 5th, Uranus in the 4th plus several other strong similarities), how is it that these people – say they are both men – why do these men lead such different and varied lifestyles? Maybe one is a comtemplative, introverted Buddhist Monk and the other is a passionate, extroverted drama professor? My answer to this question is that we are all at varying frequencies: our individual karma, the choices we make, our conduct each go into determining how our astrology manifests. To explain further…

Our karma is definitely unique, manifesting and ripening according to windows which can be viewed through the lens of an astrology chart. And of course, there is conditional karma – even if our astrology chart looks as golden and auspicious as possible, if we go rock climbing without a rope, there is a good chance something terrible could happen. And at the same time, even if our chart looks incredibly burdensome and challenging, changing our habits and improving our conduct, being of service can lead to a rewarding and beautiful life nonetheless! The choices we make determine our present and future frequency, you could say that the choices we make and the habits that we feed determine how intensely our positive and negative karma ripen. If someone is in a three-year retreat, isolated and only have contact with highly realized retreat-masters, do you think that “nasty” Pluto / Mars / Saturn conjunction is going to manifest in a physical way? Perhaps. More likely though, the person might go through a few weeks of headaches and other minor aches and pains rather than something really serious. They may have signs that they are purifying something intense as their dreams or meditation may change significantly during that time. But what do I know? Having never done a 3 year retreat…

What I am trying to get across however is simply that each major or minor aspect of Western astrology has numerous manifestations. Sometimes people feel the slightest of perturbations involving their progressed Moons where as nearly everyone is going to notice a combination like I mention above (Pluto, Mars, Saturn) especially if the conjunction falls on a 90 degree midpoint – indicating a Hard Aspect is occurring with a natal planet.

So when I say I practice frequency-based, choice-centered astrology, it means I must get to know someone a bit to see where they are on several “spectrums of evolution.” What I mean by this is: how emotionally intelligent are they? (how well do they know themselves emotionally?) does the person meditate? If so, what is their practice – TM, Zen, Hindu, Tibetan, etc? Are they married? Do they have a kind heart? These questions are vitally important to answer before you try to interpret someone’s birth chart. Because Adolf Hitler had some really trying aspects in his chart and we know what he did with them, while Gandhi had one of the most trying aspects of all – the fixed grand cross – and yet in spite of this, he is one of the most well-known peace-builders of this era… So you must know someone’s frequency before you can try to interpret their chart. For this reason, the type-in-your-birth-info-web-sites fail. This is why fortune-tellers are scorned and why the “horoscope” in the newspaper gives astrology such a bad name.

What I would recommend instead is to see someone who is mentally agile enough to think on the fly, dynamic enough to take into consideration everything I mentioned above. To answer questions based on what the client is going through rather than a 2 plus 2 HAS TO equal 4 kind of philosophy (e.g. Uranus transiting Sun has to equal BLANK). Make sure the astrologer resonates with dynamic predictions or frequency-based astrology. If they try to give you a black and white version – it means they are either amateurs or they have not learned about frequencies or that they don’t have the capacity to do so yet.

So get your run-of-the-mill predictions if you want, but don’t expect everything to be accurate or specific or incorporating psycho-spiritual possibilities. Of course it is good to support up-and-coming-astrologers don’t get me wrong! But do be aware that there are professionals out there who have done significant personal-growth work on themselves, have seen many varying frequencies (manifestations) of life and who blend numerous modalities and understandings to approach many different types of clients in a skillful, practical manner.

Body / Mind considerations – Neurotic about diet?

I am writing this post for all those people who feel strongly that they need to be hyper vigilant about what they put in their bodies. I think it is important to practice mindfulness about our diet and lifestyle, and of course it is better to choose healthy options… but to be so concerned with it that it affects your mental peace, that’s when it may border of OCD. Why do I suggest this? Because I used to be in that “camp!”

I used to be someone who was extremely careful about what I ate. In the past, I would tell people I had food sensitivities to soy, sugar, wheat, corn, processed foods, night shades, pasteurized dairy… you name it and I might have been avoiding it at some point. Friends of mine would comment that they could not keep track of the changes in my diet (as in they would change that frequently). Although wheat, soy and sugar have stuck around (I completely avoid soy and try to eat as little processed wheat and sugar as possible – but I do go for other sweeteners occasionally and sprouted wheat), I am now of a different opinion.

As a meditation practitioner, I now feel that more important than my diet, is the disposition of my mind. If I am diligent about maintaining daily, devoted spiritual practice (meditation or other practices recommended by my heart teachers), then my digestion pretty much does fine with a few new or “restricted” items. However, if I am busy with work or other distractions and I fail to do daily practice, then my digestion can knot up in a jiff.

My root lama, who is a Tibetan monk and a retreat master – basically the equivalent of someone possessing a Ph.D. in Buddhist philosophy (and having years of experience under his belt) – recommended that I ease dairy products into my diet. By the way, he is not a nutritionist or medical practitioner of any sort. He probably just recommended this because we are starting to know each other better. Anyway… This was three years ago, and I slowly started doing so. And sure enough, adding a little butter here and there, or having some yogurt most mornings with my oatmeal has now become the norm. I still avoid most cheeses and definitely avoid pasteurized milk, but I am doing much better with slight amounts of dairy, and even much better with a few cookies or snack foods here and there. Moderation is the key!

Overall, I’d say my digestion is used to certain foods, so when I go off my “normal” diet, of course there are issues, but I am much less neurotic about what I put in my body. And as I mentioned, much more important now is what is the state of my mind: is it calm? is it peaceful? am I worried about something?

One of my practices is to do several (sometimes a hundred or so) full length – full stretch – prostrations. I try to do them in the morning but good luck with that! But nonetheless, I completely believe that doing some number of daily prostrations, whether 6 or 108 or somewhere in between is very healthy! I would even consider it to be more healthy than any other single activity I could partake in (including attending a spa, receiving colon hydrotherapy, going to India for a significant purification retreat, etc). Here’s why: not only am I stretching my viscera – everything from stomach to colon to liver to kidneys, but I am also cultivating a relationship with the wisdom beings I am prostrating towards. To fully explain the previous sentence would require several posts. But to sum it up, prostrations = physical, mental and psycho-spiritual yoga! Don’t get me wrong though – they are not for everyone and I am certainly not recommending that anyone else attempt this rigorous activity. I am just explaining my process.

With that said, if you or someone you know are neurotic about your diet, you might want to consider building in some form of relaxation techniques or meaningful (and rewarding) spiritual practice. Because there is much more to life than taking care of our physical bodies!

As one of my heart teachers says (Julie Henderson), “more ground, less effort.” What I interpret this to mean is that we need to find behaviors and habits that are wholesome yet easy! It can be easy, yes, really. No need to be so hard on ourselves (or our stomachs). With that – have fun, lighten up and relax!

Birth Trauma and Apocalyptic Undertones

This material is copyrighted by Kirby Moore.  Reproduction without permission is prohibited.  To support my business and blogging efforts, please visit my website. More recently, I have begun teaching Astrology classes on Trauma-Informed Astrology, see http://www.traumainformedastrology.com for more! Thank you for visiting!

How many people do you know who seem to actively seek out information about the world coming to an end? (How does this information benefit anyone anyway?) Sometimes this type is often a loner or isolated in other ways (whether psychologically, socially, emotionally, etc). But when we come across this personality type, what goes through our mind? Can we have compassion for them? Do we wonder what the hell is wrong with them? Are we faced with an internal reality check – is it me or them?

As for me, when I speak with one friend in particular, I need to be a little wary because I’m very sensitive to what I put into my mind. And if I read an innocent seeming article which ends with predictions of the upcoming “vast earth changes, UFO activity, harmful chemicals being spewed into our environment, speculations about why Atlantis fell, financial collapse and hundreds of upcoming nuclear disasters…” Sure, some of this information may be true, (and some of this info might be research-able) and there may be (many) organizations in the world which do not mind or care about the risks associated with their business practices… But to speculate that there are people out there trying to kill off humanity, or that there are entire organizations with this agenda (or that reptilians are doing it – dear god! really?)… Well that is where I draw the line. That sounds certifiably crazy to me!

At the same time however, we must keep in mind that people who actively seek out this info are doing the best they can. There must be some reason that they are so consumed with fearful theories and philosophies which cause their body / mind to contract and tighten up beyond typical self-regulating health. What are these reasons? What provokes someone to spend time combing through material which could inspire fear or dread? I’d like to speculate that one of the primary reasons is due to birth (or early) trauma.

Often times, we hear about trauma, neglect and potential abuse everyday, but it seems so innocent that we might not recognize it. What I’m saying is that birth trauma is much more prevalent than we often know. But what do I mean by innocent-seeming trauma? Ever heard someone say, “Oh yeah… My mom was too busy to hold the bottle for me, so from an early age I had to hold it myself.” Does that sound like trauma or abuse to you? Probably not. But in reality that babies needs are DEFINITELY not being met, and probably more than just one need. And if there is potential neglect happening around feeding (nurturing, feeling un/loved), we can pretty much guess there will be issues elsewhere.

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to point fingers and say, “Hey you! Mother! Get it right!” Nope. That is not what I am trying to do here. But I’m just saying that if you were born with one of many birth difficulties: the umbilical cord around your neck, or if they used interventions like forceps, or if there is something wrong or unusual about the baby – they might yank it away from the mother for a few hours / days to be alone in an ICU (premature babies obviously but there are other cases too), then there is definite birth trauma. However, unless there are gross problems later in life (depression, significant structural alignment issues, etc), it is often times not treated or even recognized!

And a reprieve from that long-windedness, what I am trying to wrap together here is that birth trauma can also lead to hypervigilance, fearful assumptions (glass is half empty would be putting it very lightly!), reactive parts and an overall perception that A) the world is out to get someone (because they have had a hard time from the moment they started their descent down the birth canal) or similarly B) the world is justifiably a frightful, terrifying place. It does not take much to get a young person to adopt a negative belief. And then that negative belief stays buried somewhere deep within their cellular structure, gnawing away at them occasionally.

Luckily there is a way to treat such conditions of birth trauma and buried trauma, but the person has to want to change – they must see that something does not add up and desire to shift. I would recommend birth processing workshops, body-psychotherapy and / or biodynamic craniosacral therapy as good places to start if someone does desire to transform. There is much to be hopeful for – as a practicing Buddhist, I believe we all are blessed with Buddha-nature (an innate goodness which is, was and always will be pure) for one.

In conclusion, if you hear someone talking about the catastrophes coming next year (2012) or about the nasty changes coming after 2012, maybe now you can react with compassion and kindness. Give them some attention, ask critical yet clear and kind questions. Try to get them to explain their theories. Maybe you can plant some seeds – empirical evidence tends to break apart some if not most of their radical ideas. And most importantly, see them as beings who want the best for the world, but who have just had a difficult background getting to this point.

Yay! Then pat yourself on the back and say, “Sadu, sadu, sadu!!!” which means, well done, well done, well done.

Dynamic Weekend at the TMC – March 2011

For a few weeks there, we were all fooled into complacency as we thought Spring had definitely sprung! The sap was rising anyway… Over the weekend, we got a light dusting of snow and freezing temps set in, again…

arriving Friday, congested drive – avoid rush hour if at all possible! Doh!

sleeping in, monastic schedule avoided, freshness of abundant restful mental clarity

meeting Durga the Cat – a friendly, eccentric feline (is there another type?)

much accomplished on the Day of Rebuilding the Bookstore – moving furniture, cleaning, re-arranging. Now the bookstore has bright white walls, overflowing openness, is well-organized and more beautiful than before (actually, coming from dark paneling, dim lighting and old furniture, anything might have been an improvement! Yes, it seems the flooded basement was a blessing in disguise). Some old timers, some new faces, eager to chip in, Yay!

visiting the Lama House, trying on some new Tibetan words, exploring old verbal associations, getting one-on-one time with Khenpo Chophel (precious and rare indeed!), eating Chinese food and drinking Indian Chai, topping the evening off with British comedy on PBS 🙂

[For some reason, watching TV with Tibetan monks is the most relaxing activity, but when I watch with friends (non-Tibetans) or on my own, I swiftly get anxious. A curious phenomena.]

arriving at TMC for Lama Chopa and Tsok, who forgot to turn on the heat? Oh right – Khenpo Tsultrim the resident monk is out of town. Is it 28 degrees in the shrine room? OMG!!! Khenpo Chophel gives Chris and I a last-minute-lightening-quick transmission of how to play the conch shells correctly. [Just giving the conch a long trumphet is not right – rather Khenpo said that first, we need to play a brief note followed by 34 tiny puffs of air (representing the 34 Sanskrit vowels and consonants) and then do the long trumphets. For those though, we needed to start low, build to a crescendo and then finish low.]

Lama Chopa starts, there are about 10 new students there from a local college; am I seeing my breath coming out of the conch shell I am playing… It’s cold in here!

connecting with the locals and then purchasing texts and books for people back in C’ville – driving the Dharma mobile back to Charlottesville (listening to VCU upset Kansas in March Madness – fun fun!)

What is a birth horoscope? (Western astrology)

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So what is the birth chart exactly?

Regarding terminology, “birth horoscope” equals “birth chart” equals “natal horoscope” – same same. Every new venture, being, country, project, etc has one – if there is a moment of “birthing,” whether it is an idea, a business, a person or animal, then there is a way to track the heavens at the time of that “birth.” Every four minutes the solar system changes such that it will not be the exact same again for another 26,000 years – hence our birth horoscope is truly unique and individual (at least for the next 26K years). Yes, there may be a few people born in the same hospital at the same time as us, but due to varying karmas, this does not mean they will live the same life (and it would need to be a large city for this to occur realistically). For the most part however, varying latitudes and longitudes, at different birth places, make people born on the same day possess differing natal astrology charts.

So what does the complicated mandala of planets, houses and aspects mean? What is its deeper meaning? What are the deeper rhythms represented by our snapshot of the heavens? In addition to what is traditionally known about the birth chart, I’d like to add the following: it is 1) a reflection of the polarities describing the world in which we live and how we interact with and within these polar forces; 2) for most of us, the birth chart is also a reflection of our egos – we have some stuff to work on when it comes to our habitual behavior and belief structures; finally and tying in with the first two, 3) the birth chart is a description of our grosser karmas. And yes, I will explain.

In this samsaric world in which we find our selves (samsaric coming from the Buddhist concept of samsara – living in this world leads to perpetual dissatisfaction), there are extremes and opposites. For instance, being calm and peaceful is opposite of being restless and aggressive, right? There are hundreds of these polar opposites (black / white; generous / greedy; anger / joy; rich / poor) – hence we also have the polar opposites of male (yang, action, skillful means) and female (yin, reception, wisdom). This concept is also known as duality – there is self and other according to our perception and this leads to mine vs. yours, etc. So the birth chart shows our proclivities toward certain spectrums of these polarities. Someone born with a stellium (three or more planets) in Aries for example would probably tend toward the direct, less-complex, competitive, pioneering (fearless) traits in that area of the chart. This might be opposite or intensely different from someone having a stellium in Libra, or Cancer, or Pisces in that same area of the chart.

I mention that the chart is a dynamic, shifting reflection of our egos because of several items I mentioned above. When we have the mistaken view that there is self and other, then we end up thinking this object is mine, that object is yours. These situations arise: “Oh – now I want your object, it is more satisfying than mine, I’m sure of it!” Then you know where this leads – to conflicts and afflicted emotions (anger, attachment, jealousy, pride, etc). However, we can avert these situations when we start to give our lower selves away, through service and authentic generosity, then as we peel away the layers of our complex ego, the birth chart holds less and less power or sway over us.

Finally, I mention that the birth chart has to do with our gross karmas. I say “gross” meaning less subtle because A) I don’t know much about subtle karmas and B) what little I do know, is that subtle karmas are really only dealt with in dedicated meditation practice and / or retreats. Therefore I doubt most of us have to worry about purifying our subtle karmas for a while. (If you are in a meditation retreat and you are reading this blog, I’d be very surprised). So we each have a subtle consciousness which we “carry” with us from lifetime to lifetime. This subtle consciousness holds within its mind-stream our habits and behavioral tendencies. I might even go so far as to mention that it contains within it the major purification we need (or chose) to do in this present incarnation. Hence we can see when varying flavors of these gross karmas will manifest in the chart.

I want to clarify however that due to our having freedom of choice (choice centered astrology) and also due to the fact that we all have varying capacities and aptitudes, we are at differing frequencies (frequency-based astrology), we cannot make exact predictions about the future. So we must make calculated predictions and once we gain some experience (years) under our belts, we can see how trying aspects previously manifested and get a clue to how they might crop up again in the future. Again, to clarify, I do not practice fortune telling and I do not recommend any astrologer who practices fatalistic interpretation.

In conclusion, the natal horoscope is a beautiful reflection of many things – it is amazing how many levels and layers you can read into a piece of paper with lines, planetary glyphs and house delineations (a birth horoscope). Seriously, there are some people who specialize in doing relationship astrology, others who focus on medical astrology (like me), and yet others who look at location astrology (known as Astro-Cartography) and there is much more to glean from one’s chart. This post is just an introduction to varying possibilities – the birth chart reveals our habitual tendencies toward certain polar extremes, it can indicate where we are in our ego development and the birth chart can reveal the timing of gross karmas – when will events unfold? Who will we be with at that time? How will we feel about it? Many possibilities are indicated and reflected in the heavens – as above, so below. I urge you to get your chart interpreted by a qualified astrologer if you have not done so yet.