​Yoga students and teachers around the world recognize the importance and impact of studying with a renowned and esteemed teacher such as Pandit Rajmani Tigunait.  He is the successor to Swami Rama, spiritual head of the Himalayan Institute, and well-educated author of numerous books including his most recent Vishoka Meditation: The Yoga of Inner Radiance. 

Hosting Pandit Rajmani Tigunait is one of the greatest honors to the festival organizers.  His rare appearance here, outside of the Himalayan Institute, coincides with his initiative at the Himalayan Institute -  the Year Long Meditation - and accumulating 1,000,008 meditation hours from participants worldwide.  His presence reinvigorates the events dedication to awakening, living in oneness, and creating a compassionate world for all. Not surprisingly, though, it has a few of our heads spinning a bit, asking “how on earth did that happen?” 

Credit to the two festival founders, Scott and Julia Theisen, owners of Body & Soul Wellness and Spa/Salon, and Inspire Café.  The intention of the festival has always been to unite like-minded individuals, in yoga and other holistic modalities, in the spirit of oneness, to promote world peace, and raise awareness of unity-consciousness. 

​What an honor, what a blessing, and what a surprise that Panditji took them up on their request to speak at the 2019 5th Annual Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival.  How did it come about? Or, as Julia recently described it, how were they “bold enough to invite him?” 

The pair had heard much about Pandit Rajmani Tigunait and his teachings.   “There were points of connection with Panditji via his students who were having an impact in this area.”  One of the points of connection is Jeff Masters, student of Panditji and co-teacher of the 300hr Yoga Teacher Training with the Theisen’s at Body & Soul.  Masters is a presenter at the Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival (’17,’18 and now ’19) and has also taught workshops at Body & Soul over the past several years.   

Another connection is long-time student of Panditji and senior faculty member at HI, Luke Ketterhagen.  Luke presented last year at the festival and taught a weekend workshop at Body & Soul.  It was during this workshop that Julia read about the opportunity to attend Rudra Yaga: Ardha Kumbha Mela, a pilgrimage to India with Pandit Rajmani Tigunait through the Himalayan Institute offered in February 2019.  “There was no question in my mind that I had to go," she said, "something was really pulling me.”  After a chat with Ketterhagen, Scott decided to attend as well.

(Shari Friedrichsen, also of the Himalayan Institute and student of Panditji will teach at this year's festival and speak at the FREE "Inspiring People Series" at Inspire Cafe on Thursday evening, November 14th, before the festival - 7-8:30pm.)

​The Theisens met Panditji at the HI campus in Allahabad during the Ardha Kumbha Mela.  As Julia describes it, “It was said to be an auspicious time in terms of the timing of the event and the practices that we were there to undertake, and when I met him it was kind of mesmerizing because he carries so much light...This is a man that’s been practicing for more than 40 years, three to four hours a day, so being in the presence of unconditional love with such a teacher...It’s very palpable and he’s so approachable.”    ​

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​It was during the pilgrimage that the idea “sort of dropped in” to Julia’s head.  “I said, ‘what if Panditji came to the festival?’ and people were doubtful because he has rarely made an appearance outside of the Himalayan Institute.” 
 
Soon Julia made the call, spoke to Shelly, his assistant, about the festival.  “I guess what happened was that when she explained it to him he looked at the website and said, ‘Yes, I’ll do it.’”  We had no idea what that was going to look like, but we knew it was a complete blessing.”

Scott Theisen agrees that Panditji radiates tremendous light and he looks forward to what Scott referred to as a “super-charged” event this year.  “The festival is about bringing more light to the participants and ultimately to the world, for the expansion of oneness.  So, to have a living luminary like Panditji come at the same time that the Himalayan Institute has launched the Year Long Meditation to create more peace and harmony in the world, it’s a great way to infuse the festival with that brilliant light and intention of oneness, of creating a better world for all of us.” 

“We know it’s not us” Julia explains.  We’re just like these ‘portals’ and everything aligned for it to happen!” 

We are so glad it did.  Don’t miss this rare opportunity to experience the teaching of this living master, author, visionary on Saturday, November 16. 
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​Shari Friedrichsen is a well-known teacher and key facilitator at the Himalayan Institute’s Teacher Training & Professional Certification programs.  Most attendees at the festival will likely recognize Shari from one of her many yoga videos and articles contributed through Yoga International and at HI, one of the foremost institutions of yoga wisdom in the country. 

She’s studied with notable teachers such as BKS Iyengar, Angela Farmer, Rolf Sovik, and Pandit Ragmani Tigunait, to name a few.  She has a compassionate, unpretentious, “down to earth” way of relating which is a true testament to the authenticity of her teaching and over 40 years of experience. 

You’ll have the opportunity to meet and study with Shari during the 2019 Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival.  As a bonus, Shari is also the featured speaker at the Inspiring People Series, a FREE event (open to all) at Inspire Café on Thursday evening, 7-8:30pm, before the festival.  Recently I spoke with her about her background, her teaching, and what we can expect from her workshop sessions. 

Shari’s yoga path began in the 70’s in Portland after a friend suggested that they try a yoga class together.  The friend never returned to yoga and Shari never left!  She taught in Portland and later Connecticut where she was invited to teach at HI, just a three hour’s drive. 

Eventually, Shari and her husband moved back to the west coast to serve as primary caretakers for Shari’s parents, and then, after their passing, the couple devoted a year to themselves with the intention to regroup and nourish.  Ultimately, the pair became full-time residents at the Himalayan Institute somewhat unintentionally when what they thought would be a year at HI ended up becoming permanent.  They never left, and each now serves in their own way as an integral part of the Himalayan Institute and Yoga International team.
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​Shari’s influences in terms of teaching style began with her time as a student of Mr. Iyengar in 1983.  She travelled to Europe to study with Angela Farmer and then studied with her in the U.S.  During that time, she says, she became more interested in the mind and heart rather than the body.  She wanted to see how that related.  She spent a number of years studying and practicing meditation with teachers from India and going back and forth for retreats. 

There were turning points that had a big impact.  One, in 1985 while teaching in Europe.  She  came to the end of a workshop and realized that she had reached a level in her own practice where she didn’t care any more about the asana.  “It seemed shallow...My mind was chaotic.  I wasn’t getting what I needed from my practice.  I needed to find a way to do yoga in its wholeness--not separating out pieces of it.  So, I spent a lot of time on my mat.  I needed to figure this out.”

She recognized that yoga could affect the mind the way it effects the body - that it could heal old emotional traumas if we had the right approach.  Shari began to read the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.  She studied for a number of years with her teacher from India whom she credits as the one who taught her how to open up to a greater sense of the divine, which she  wanted to explore further.” 

​She delved into the Yoga Sutras even more, the Bhagavad Gita, and the Devi Mahatmyam.  As she did that, more teachers came in and started “taking me to the next step, and the next step, and so on.”  Then she met Pandit Rajmani Tigunait.   
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​​In 1999, Pandit Rajmani Tigunait - ‘Panditj’ - was on tour with his new book, Tantra Unveiled.  “It’s then that I learned that consciousness is about vibration.  How do I get that in the cells, in my heart, in my mind?  How do I get that to heal the mind using what I know about asana, pranayama and meditation - to begin to open to the consciousness that already is within but is so layered with opinions, and ideas and doubt and shame?” 

That experience and learning has shaped so much of what she describes as her focus as a teacher with the concepts of abhyasa and vairagya.

“Abhyasa”, she says, “is typically translated as ‘practice’ but what it really means is art and effort to retain the peaceful inward flow of mind.”  Vairagya, often translated as “non-attachment’ is more active than that, according to Shari.  “It’s the act of detaching oneself from the scars, the samskaras, the pain that colors your vision of the world and ourselves.”
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“My focus on the two, abhyasa and vairagya, is about how to use both the effort to retain a peaceful flow of mind.  But when you get in there, there’s so much stuff from experiences, opinions, judgements.   How do you begin to undo and soften those painful experiences, so they are not coloring the view of your own self or your life?  That’s how I teach.”
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​​Throughout the weekend Shari will hold workshops each day, including an all-day intensive on Friday,  Yoga for Transformation, in which participants will explore these concepts more experientially and delve into how we transform pain so that we can loosen the grip of that pain and begin to see who we really are.  

According to Shari, that’s what yoga does.  She explains that we can do it through asana practice, through pranayama, and meditation.  “Access, and then increase pranic flow, and you can do that using all the things you already know but changing the focus. That’s abhyasa. Then vairagya, detaching, and seeing where you hold pain, whether it’s in the tissues, organs or part of the mind or in some part of the heart, and using what the Sutras tell us.  The words are right there.”

“The Sutras say to use compassion when you’re in a bad space, use kindness when you’re in a good space, use joy when you’ve done something virtuous or kindly, practice equanimity when you do something that’s not so virtuous, but certainly non-judgment.”

Saturday’s workshops, Asana, Pranayama and Meditation, will address how to use asana and pranayama to deepen your meditation practice.  “You’ve increased prana in the body, loosened the grip of pain in the body.  Maybe only momentarily, but the next day you can do it again, and the next day do it again and it will have a cumulative effect.  Once you’ve really got some stability in your body, through your asana practice and increased prana in the mind from your pranayama we look to meditation. 

​“Prana is light, and you can use that to go to the deeper source of light that is already inside of you whether it’s in your mind your heart or your body. Rest there and be nourished by the place.  Not just simply doing a practice but be nourished by being in the practice, whether it’s 2, 5 or 20 minutes.  Nourish your heart and nourish your mind so it grows and develops and becomes more intuitive and wise.  Then you’ve got that wisdom shining through all your life.”

In Sunday’s session, Chakras: Beauty Unbound, explore the chakras, the points where nadis, or ‘rivers of energy’, converge.  “If those rivers of energy are dammed by shame, fear, or doubt, for example, then the flow into that convergent area is lessened. We can address where we’ve dammed the river of energy of life and beauty.  These rivers have specific qualities.  There are waves of beauty, waves of joy, waves of power, waves of intention, and waves of the sublime – all of them always moving within us.  Where we dam them is where we feel shame and doubt and fear, hatred and violence.   We can go back to the Yoga Sutras and determine how we can undam the river. 

There are two ways.  The first is to increase the pranic flow to the river to break the dam. The second is the undo the dam to increase the flow.  The chakras are not part of the physical body but have a powerful effect on the nadis in the body. We can unblock the things that bind the flow of beauty inside of each of us by working on it at this subtle level. 
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Shari will be the guest speaker for the Inspiring People Series at Inspire Café in Dubuque on Thursday, November 14 at 7-8:30 pm.  This event is FREE and open to the public.    
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“What inspires me?  I’ve realized it’s not so much what inspires me because I can be inspired by a lot, a good book, a good poem, a sunset can inspire me.  But what MOTIVATES me?   I can be inspired by things, but are they going to motivate me to open up to the world?  To be more of myself?  To be more courageous?  What inspires me to do that, and then, what motivates me to do that?” 

“Often times, I’ve discovered, that it’s pain.  I’m sitting in pain and I don’t want to be anymore. So, I get inspired by other teachers.  But what motivates me is this dullness, or this unsettledness or this pain- whether its physical, emotional or mental”.

She’ll share that wisdom during her Inspiring People Series talk along with her experiences being in India, at the Himalayan Institute, and in the world. 
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“I’ll share how things have motivated me to care more, to be more, to love more.”
 
You won’t want to miss this!  Join her on Thursday at Inspire Café or in workshops on Friday or Saturday, or Sunday throughout the  Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival weekend. 


REGISTRATION | BIO | SCHEDULE | VENDORS*SPONSORS | PRESTENTERS

​The MIDWEST YOGA & ONENESS FESTIVAL, 2019 is just over a month away and we can’t help but share a few things that we’re excited about.  We know that this gathering is unique and here’s why you should check it out SOON!

​4. STUDY WITH REVERED TEACHERS.  Register soon and reserve your spot for the Friday Intensive training with worldwide, and nationally well-known, teachers.  Choose an all-day intensive session with Indu Arora, Shari Fredricksen, Kevin Courtney, Jeff Masters, or Astrologist, Sandy Rueve. 
 
Check out the full list of festival presenters HERE
 
5. SANGHA – SAFE, SUPPORTIVE, LIKE-MINDED COMMUNITY.
Don’t miss the opportunity to belong in the spirit of oneness, peace, and sacred gathering.  Connect with others.  Whether its mingling in the vendor marketplace, sharing space in the on-going meditation vigil, or sharing the collective “OM” in the morning sangha gatherings, all are welcome and encouraged to be with others who share a bond in their practice, their belief in oneness, and their desire to feel at home. 

​Kate Connell Potts is an online international yoga teacher’s teacher and a private yoga teachers’ best friend. She has mentored teachers across the globe,  developed a successful online course, and authored the companion book The Art of Teaching Private Yoga.  Kate joins the 2018 Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival as a presenter for two sessions.  

Weaving her skill as a professional yoga teacher and her experience in digital design, online marketing and program/course development, she will teach yoga instructors- or any wellness practitioner -the business basics of selling-out their private sessions in the ‘high-tech, high-touch age’.  She’ll also present the art of teaching private clients and  help teachers learn the ropes, or what she calls the "before, during and after of teaching." (Register for workshops with Kate Connell Potts: How to Create Sold-Out Sessions, and The Art of 1x1 Client Sessions by clicking HERE.)

Kate began exploring the private instructor niche right after graduating from her teacher training program.  During her training the concept of private instruction was presented as transformative and profitable so there was no hesitation when the studio she managed closed and she needed to pivot quickly and economically into a new role as a yoga instructor.  She positioned herself as an at-home private yoga teacher who helped people establish their personal yoga practice.

While making the transition from group to private instruction may seem easy enough, Kate points out that she learned through her experience establishing herself as a private lesson teacher that one-on-one instruction requires an additional set of tools.  “While everyone can invest in the effort to do this work, everyone may not want to.  One on one work is inherently more intimate and requires deep listening skills, consistent information gathering - through questions, feedback, and observations, -and a high level of intention to maintain a high degree of professionalism" in the field.    

Kate reminds us that the options within the private lessons market are endless, so while the work is niche, the message isn’t and that means that a lot of people can capitalize on the impact of one-on-one work.  One piece of advice she gives is to be “unapologetically you”.  The message she was given in her early years as a yoga professional was to not infuse who you are into the instruction and instead let the yoga be the ‘talent’.  Looking back she sees that this advice is contrary to everything she knows about business and branding.  “I love to include the message of being unapologetically you into my work because it took me a long time to unwind the limiting beliefs that kept me from reaching my ideal yoga audience because I wasn’t listening to my inner teaching voice.”

There are some clear challenges as well as unique benefits of being a private teacher, according to Kate. Teaching private lessons can be a foundation piece of a yoga business and they can deepen (and often fine tune and speed up) the teachings and care that clients receive.  Working individually with clients in long-term engagements and building relationships can be a salve for many teachers who gravitate towards deeper, consistent work, which is an advantage for the right person. Collective energy can be a pro for many teachers and clients alike, and if that’s the case, group dynamics can gain the upper hand.  The only other “con” in her view is commitment.  "It takes time to build up a private teaching practice and to become the master of your craft but it’s absolutely worth it if it’s your dharma to do this work and if you’re curious at all, I say give it a try!"

Currently, Kate is working on another project and, since the birth of her son in 2016, is still piecing together the mama and professional elements of her life.  She’s working on a movement focused on supporting entrepreneurial moms who create in the digital space through online businesses and projects.  She describes the project as still in the infant stages but hopes to launch Create Mama sometime in 2018.  ​

For more information about Kate Connell Potts, visit her website at www.TheArtOfTeachingPrivateYoga.com.

In keeping with the mission of the Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival, to offer learning experiences that celebrate yoga, oneness and awakening, we are happy to include as one of our presenters, Sunny Dawn Johnston, a world-renowned author, inspirational speaker, spiritual teacher and psychic medium. ​ She will offer a Friday intensive as well as several sessions during the festival weekend.  

The following article by Sunny Dawn Johnston introduces you to her message and is a great example of her teaching.  It is posted from her website with permission. 
(Link:  SDJ http://sunnydawnjohnston.com/blog/vibrational-levels-spirit-world-sunny-dawn-johnston/)

The Vibrational Levels of the Spirit World
Some time ago, I was on the hilariously funny Jenny McCarthy Radio show. It was a blast. Something she asked me, that I get asked a lot is, what is the difference between an Angel and a Spirit Guide? Because that is such a popular question, I thought I would explain it here again for those of you still wondering… It is all about Vibration:)

Everything created is energy, and energy vibrates at different levels. Just as a singer has a vocal range of notes she can sing, human beings have a vibrational range. In other words, you move up and down a vibrational scale. The more you work on loving yourself, the higher your vibration rises, and the easier it is to connect with the higher vibrational beings that I refer to as spiritual helpers. These helpers are also known as deceased loved ones, spirit guides, ascended masters, angels, and archangels. While we may be born on different places on the vibrational scale, we all possess the ability to reach the highest level through appreciation, forgiveness, joy, mediation, and love. If you wish to connect to higher vibrational beings, then you simply raise your own personal vibration.

You might be wondering why you need to raise your vibration. The universal Law of Attraction states that like energy attracts like energy; and because the beings in the spiritual realm will not lower their vibration, you must raise yours to connect with them. The more you stay in a higher, lighter, clearer vibration, the more you will connect with the spiritual realm. I have included a diagram of the energetic vibrational scale below. This will give you an idea of the vibrational ranges of spiritual helpers as I have come to experience and understand them. Each level is not good or bad; it just simply is.

Let’s begin with where we are, at the lowest level of vibration. Physical beings are you and me and everyone you see with a body and a heartbeat. While we are able to raise our vibration temporarily in order to communicate with those on the higher planes, we aren’t able to sustain this permanently and must come back down after a while. The only way to ascend to a permanently higher vibration is through death.

Deceased loved ones are family, friends, coworkers, and loved ones who have passed. They have released the dense energy of their physical bodies and have automatically moved up the vibrational scale. In my experience, there is often an amount of divine time, not measured time, where deceased loved ones can “prepare” to become spirit guides if they so choose. This is not typically an instantaneous move up the vibrational scale.

Spirit guides once inhabited a physical form, and had the same journey or purpose as the physical beings they are now guiding. Upon leaving their physical bodies, spirit guides choose to become teachers or guides to those of us still in the physical realm. They offer guidance, comfort, and, at times, warnings and protection. Spirit guides are often the spiritual essence of deceased loved ones. They can guide multiple people, but they do not become angels. Humans that have transitioned can become only guardians or a spirit guide. Angels are a high vibrational being that doesn’t incarnate into a physical body; and a physical body doesn’t become an angel. However, all humans already have guardian angels that guide and support them throughout their evolution.
Spirit guides can even visit multiple people all at the same time. I have had that happen in my own family. Three different people, in different states, saw signs of my grandfather after he passed at almost the same time. Remember, they don’t have a body any longer, so they are not limited to being in one place at a time. They are energy and can be everywhere and anywhere, all at once.

Moving further up the scale, the ascended masters are divine beings that lived earthly lives as great teachers, healers, or way-showers of ascension, such as Buddha and Jesus. Ascended masters come from all cultures, modern and ancient, and are often spoken of and remembered in religious context. They released all their fears and grew and raised their vibrations in order to ascend, and they bring light and love to everyone regardless of their religious beliefs or feelings of worthiness. They teach that we are all worthy of love and guidance.

Angels, guardian angels, and archangels are higher vibrational beings who exist only in the spiritual realm and do not incarnate into physical form as humans and animals do. Angels help, guide, comfort, and assist us in our earthly journey by uplifting and protecting us. Each physical being is supported by one guardian angel throughout his/her entire physical life, from birth to death. A guardian angel’s job is to unconditionally love and protect us. Archangels are the powerful overseers of the angelic realm. Call on the archangels anytime for anything, and they will be there immediately.

Throughout my life, angelic beings have presented themselves in all sorts of shapes, sizes, and forms, often determined by what I was feeling, seeing, or knowing in the moment. Their forms have changed and evolved over time as I’ve grown spiritually. Therefore, the definition or visual representation of angels can be as different as seashells on a beach. Each individual will experience angels based upon his or her own perceptions. I believe that all impressions of the angelic realm are valid. Angels show themselves in a way that you are able to perceive and understand and are often gentle and comforting in their approach.
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The Divine is the God of your understanding. My understanding of God does not come from religious beliefs or scripture but rather from my own journey inward. When I reached a point in my life where I recognized I had to take responsibility for myself and that I had no control over anything or anyone but myself, I came to understand that God was in everyone and everything. I realized that God is Love. I am God, you are God, and we are God, as are the wind, the trees, the oceans, the animals, the clouds, the rainbows, and the sun. The God of my understanding is everywhere, in everything, and is simply Love.
SDJ♥
Sunny Dawn Johnston
www.sunnydawnjohnston.com

To learn more about the sessions that Sunny will present follow this link: SDJ-Presenter.  Join Sunny for any of her sessions during the 2018 Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival by following this link: REGISTRATION 

Grand Master Charles Kim and Jennifer Kim, his wife and co-collaborator of the Peace School of Chicago, will join the Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival as presenters.  The two continue the mission, begun by Master Kim's father, to provide tools for people to practice peace in their lives and will share their teachings with us in three sessions during the weekend.  The Kims were available for an interview recently to shed light on their mission and why it is critical for us to learn their techniques.

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1.Can you tell me more about the Peace School and it’s purpose.
 
Master Kim: The Peace School is an independent, non-profit educational organization dedicated to helping people of all ages practice peace in everyday life. It is the outgrowth of an organization my late father founded in our native South Korea in the early 1950’s. My father was a Grand Master in Traditional Taekwondo and was the first of his era to bring the disciplines of meditation and yoga into his martial art schools. He spent decades researching the origin of martial art and found an ancient connection between martial art, yoga and meditation, all with the purpose of creating a strong mind and body in order to do something positive for society, toward the ultimate goal of world peace.  In 1972 our family moved to the United States and we opened The Peace School in Chicago.
 
The mission of The Peace School is to build world peace, one person at a time. We believe that inner peace and world peace are intertwined and interdependent. People therefore need tools and techniques to practice peace in everyday life in order for the larger peace to be achieved. We teach classes at our center in Peace Breathing Meditation, Peace Yoga, Traditional Taekwondo, Self-Defense for Women, Massage Instruction and Infant Massage. We have ongoing programs in nursing homes, senior centers, suburban park districts a hospital cancer center, and after school programming in an elementary school. We also offer Stress Reduction and other workshops to corporations, local businesses, community organizations and schools.
 
Jennifer Kim: Our largest outreach program is Peace Day in Chicago which we founded in 1978, three years before the United Nations International Day of Peace (IDP) was established. We organize a large downtown Peace Day event each September celebrating unity and diversity in our city and world with emphasis on the positive side of building peace in ourselves, families, neighborhoods, schools, cities, nations and the entire world. The event includes speakers, cultural performances, live music and the Call to Peace and World Peace Flag Ceremony. Partner organizations include Chicago Public Schools, City Colleges of Chicago, Chicago Consular Corps, Chicago Commission on Human Relations and more. We also provide materials to all Chicago Public Schools encouraging students to take positive action for peace on the IDP. More information on Peace Day at http://www.buildthepeace.org/
 
Master Kim: My father often summed up the Peace School’s philosophy this way: Every person has both the ability and the responsibility to help each other create peace in our world. The Peace School’s mission is to offer accessible tools that people of any age or background can use to help them fulfil humanity’s shared mission of making world peace a reality.
 
 
2. What is Peace Breathing? How did it come to be and how does it impact the world?
 
Master Kim: Peace Breathing was founded by my father in the early 1970’s. He was an extremely disciplined person and was able to maintain daily meditation practice over many decades, regularly sitting in meditation for several hours at a time. He felt certain that if the general population practiced meditation, people’s lives would be much more stable and society as a whole would vastly improve. But he could not expect others to maintain the rigorous schedule of his own meditation practice. Year after year, he searched inwardly while researching breathing, anatomy, brain waves and brain functions, to come up with a simpler form of meditation. What finally came to him was Peace Breathing: inhale thinking “world”, exhale thinking “peace”. At first he thought it was too simple! But as he practiced Peace Breathing, he found he could achieve the same level of high, bright energy as he achieved during his more rigorous meditation sessions. Peace Breathing can be done by anyone, anywhere, anytime. It is at once a form of solitary contemplation and, equally important, becomes “moving meditation” as we incorporate it (eyes open) into our daily activities.
 
Jennifer Kim:  Peace Breathing combines our most vital, fundamental life source – breathing – with the powerful energy of our thoughts. Grand Master Kim explained that we are constantly creating energy (vibration) according to the type of thoughts that we have. These various vibrations are stored in our subconscious mind and are also emitted outward, interacting with our surroundings. Unfortunately in today’s world, the habit of negative thinking is prevalent. By coordinating our breathing with the thought of peace (peace not only for oneself but also for all others) we create a very high vibration that is in balance with nature and in harmony with the movement of the vast universe. Peace Breathing is simple enough for anyone to practice while at the same time, very deep and profound. It brings us in tune with our deeper essence as a human being.
 
Master Kim: As we do Peace Breathing, we are sending out energy that is exceedingly bright and pure. This bright vibration touches our surroundings including plants, animals the earth itself and of course other people. This vibration includes all the beautiful components of true peace such as love, compassion, harmony and gratitude. So as we inhale “world’ and exhale “peace”, each breath becomes the light of love, harmony and peace. Step by step, we are creating the invisible foundation for peace. Once enough of this bright vibration has accumulated, peace will emerge naturally in our world. In my book, Peace Breathing: Lessons on Achieving Peace in Everyday Life, I give a lot of examples about how Peace Breathing impacts ourselves and the world. This is a big topic so let’s talk more about this a bit later in our conversation.
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​3. I’d love to know more about the Divine Spark IN. What exactly is that and how did it come to be?
 
Jennifer Kim: IN (pronounced “een”) is a Japanese word sometimes described as mudra, a blessing, cosmic sign language or sacred meditation in motion. It is a series of hand and arm movements coordinated with special breathing. It is performed to attune ourselves with the universal laws of harmony while emitting powerful, harmonizing energy throughout the world. The Divine Spark IN came to this world mid-2017 through a wonderful spiritual leader in the global peace movement who has devoted her life to peace for humanity and all life on earth. We’ll talk more about her in the workshop. She is someone who can communicate beyond our physical world and received this IN as a gift from the universe to help humanity reconnect with the divine spark that exists within us all.
 
Master Kim: As we perform the Divine Spark IN, a pillar of light penetrates and purifies our minds and hearts so that we naturally recall the sacred, divine existence of all human beings. My father often talked about the seed of the universe that exists within our minds. The Divine Spark IN awakens this seed so it can grow and flourish within us. Boundaries and barriers that human beings have created naturally melt away as we experience the healing, uplifting and expansive energy of the Divine Spark IN.
 
 
4. You’ve mentioned the “critical moment in earth’s evolution”. Could you speak about the importance of learning these powerful techniques and why it is critical for all of us now?
 
Master Kim: Our planet is entering its 7th age. The number 7 means completion. In this case, completion means it is time for earth to exist in its complete form, to exist as a place of harmony and peace. Throughout history, humanity has deviated from its role of supporting peace on earth and in fact, humanity has done much to bring our planet to the brink of destruction. Throughout history, human beings have allowed war, hatred, discrimination, jealousy, anger, fear, resentment, disregard for the environment and other negative energies to take shape. As we talked about earlier, the thoughts/energies we create are stored in our subconscious mind. Over time we have built up shared global subconscious energy, consisting of energy from each individual. It is here where a huge amount of negativity has accumulated.
 
Because we are entering earth’s 7th age, current negative energy and lingering historical energy has to be cleaned out in order for a peaceful world to emerge. My father explained it this way: A blueprint already exists in the universe for complete peace on earth. However, humanity has created another blueprint in our shared subconscious that is loaded with negativity. Which blueprint will take shape in our physical world? It depends on the energy created by people living on earth at the present moment.
 
Practices such as Peace Breathing, the Divine Spark IN and other methods of generating bright energy are therefore critical. Let us not add more negativity to our accumulated subconscious energy which could lead to disastrous consequences. We can definitely bring down the blueprint of peace if enough people sincerely harmonize with its bright, expansive and open energy. We are therefore delighted to share the remarkable tools of Peace Breathing and the Divine Spark IN so that more people can experience this energy and contribute to the peace of themselves and our planet.
 
 
5. Are there any other projects in the works that you would like people to know about?
 
Jennifer Kim:  A simple way to start the day with peace is by following our daily Call to Peace on social media or through a message in your inbox. Each day we honor one country of the world by sending out energy of peace and love to that country. This builds a sense of community with our global brothers and sisters. More information here:  http://www.buildthepeace.org/call-to-peace/ .
 
Master Kim: This year is the 40th anniversary of Peace Day in Chicago. Our main event will be downtown in Daley Plaza on September 21st when the United Nations International Day of Peace is observed in many parts of the world. If you can’t make it to our event, please observe a Minute of Silence for World Peace at noon that day. If you’d like to create Peace Day activities in your area please get in touch with us. We would be happy to support your efforts in whatever way we can.

To learn more about Master and Jennifer Kim, or the sessions that they will present at the 2018 Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival, follow this link: Kims - Presenters.  To register for the festival, follow this link: REGISTRATION.  

​Click HERE for more information about Amoda Maa Jeevan’s sessions at the 2018 Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival.  For registration information click HERE.

The Midwest Yoga & Oneness Festival is honored to welcome Luke Ketterhagen, senior faculty member at the Himalayan Institute, as one of the premier presenters at the 2018 festival.  The Himalayan Institute is a leading yoga learning facility deeply rooted in the Himalayan Tradition as taught by its founder Swami Rama.  It is where Luke spent seven years in residence under the guidance of Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, PhD, successor of Swami Rama and spiritual head of the Himalayan Institute.    

Luke’s down to earth, accessible manner and genuine kindness could be attributed to his Midwestern roots, but is certainly cultivated with his adherence to the yoga lifestyle that has been a part of his life to some degree from a young age.  As a popular teacher with a full schedule and busy family life raising two teenagers with his wife, he understands the importance of being grounded.   Balance is what he considers a primary goal in the practice of yoga and is his overarching message in his teaching.

Some of you may recognize Luke from the widely popular publication from the Himalayan Institute Press, Yoga: Mastering the Basics by Sandra Anderson and Rolf Sovik.  Published in 2000 it is still considered a valuable staple for teachers and students alike.  Luke had already graduated from a bio-med program with highest honors from Marquette University and had been living at HI for two years when he was one of the models for that publication.
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Recently Luke talked about his roots in the Midwest and his path to senior faculty at HI in Honesdale, PA and a bit more about the roots of the Himalayan Tradition that he teaches in workshops locally, nationally and internationally.
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How does a Midwestern science-educated young man end up living in, and teaching the traditions of Swami Rama at the Himalayan Institute?
It’s interesting to see how his path unfolded starting from childhood.  Luke grew up in an atmosphere of acceptance and diversity. His parents, described by Luke as “ex-hippies’, wanted to move from Milwaukee and open a community center for at-risk youth to get out of the city and spend time in the countryside.   It was in this community setting that 8year-old Luke and his younger sister had much more exposure to many backgrounds and influences from people who came to live or spend time with them: a homeless man, a woman from Japan, a man from Africa, for example.  “Our eyes were opened early in life” to cultures other than the more conservative viewpoint that they had been used to in Milwaukee.

In terms of yoga and Ayurveda, it all started when his 1year-old sister had recurrent earaches. Conventional treatment didn’t help and so his mother sought the help of a natural health practitioner.  One appointment and eight dollars later the earache never returned.  The homeopathic, ayervedic healer became their family physician, and, it turns out, the link to the Himalayan Institute.  This healer had spent time at the Himalayan Institute and introduced Luke’s parents to systematic meditation, yoga, and relaxation techniques that became a part their lifestyle. 

By the time Luke was a Junior in High school he knew that he wanted to go to medical school.  “I wanted to help people and I thought being a physician was the way to do it.”  Luke went to Marquette, earned straight A’s, had excellent references and experience in the field but didn’t score high enough in all four sections of the MCAT.  He scored high marks on all sections except the reading portion.  He was a slow reader and that presented a challenge in the reading portion of the test and kept him from scoring high enough to get interviews for a medical program.

In the summer after graduation, faced with studying for a third attempt at the and wanting some time away, Luke went to the Himalayan Institute with his father who was attending a workshop by the spiritual head of HI, Pandit Rajmani Tigunait. 

“Every person I talked to (at HI) was like a long-lost friend; every bite of food was like nectar. I’m a scientist and this was a bit much.”  Luke had a chance to sit down with Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, who asked Luke to move to the HI.  Motivated by the nurturing atmosphere and thinking it would be a great place to focus Luke moved, studied, took the MCAT for the third time and, remarkably, received the exact same scores as the first two attempts.  Talking to “Pandaji”, the person who would become his teacher and great mentor, he asked Luke “Do you want to be a doctor, someone who helps a hundred people, or do you want to be someone who helps a hundred doctors?”  With that, Luke was put into the training program by Tigunait himself, and, from the desire to want to help as many people as he could, Luke didn’t become a physician but started on the path to learn all he could, become an influential yoga teacher and ultimately become a senior faculty member.

This path may seem as though it unfolded easily for him but “as meant to be” as it was, that doesn’t mean his path and spiritual work was easy. “We all have opportunity and mine was unique to live at the HI under Pandaji’s guidance and tutelage, but it wasn’t easy. Tapas is not the easiest or the most comfortable way, but it’s what brings us spiritual fervor, builds our will and determination.  We have to have good company, ‘sat sangha’, otherwise it’s too easy to stick with the old habits until we hit crisis mode and realize we need to change.”

What is the basis of the Himalayan Tradition?
“It’s a practice based on Raja Yoga.  Its goal is to use all the understanding and practice of yoga, health and well-being – ayurveda and tantra - to create the most accessible path for people to follow to achieve freedom and fulfillment in this life; to live a life of meaning and purpose.  Because there are so many different people, there are many ways, using specific tools and techniques of the philosophical foundation that is supportive of the human.  You can approach from any path and get to this understanding that we are here for a certain reason. We are here for a certain time.  We are here to achieve a certain purpose and dharma.  All of this, I’d say is the Himalayan Tradition.”

What is your goal in teaching the workshops and classes that you teach? 
No matter what the topic, whether it’s foundational work, mula bandha, postures, mediation or mantra, whatever I teach, if there’s one philosophical, overarching goal, that I really shoot to disseminate it is BALANCE.  It’s through this practice we can learn to balance ourselves in our busy lives. Through the practice we can create stability and grounded-ness to be balanced.

Luke will teach a Friday intensive: From Sthira and Sukha to Bhoga and Apavarga (5 CEUs) and several workshops throughout the weekend including Stoking the Light of Compassion and Power: The practices of agni sara, nauli kriya, and surya bhed, Prana Samvedana,: The pranic subtle counterpart of breathing, and Mantra and Meditation for Peace. Visit the registration page here. To see Luke Ketterhagen’s bio, go here.

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​AMODA JEEVAN, JANUARY 19, 2018

In my role as a spiritual teacher, I meet an incredible variety of people who seek truth. Some of these people have been longtime seekers, some have sat with countless spiritual masters, and others are curious newcomers. They are young, old, and everything in between. They are from all walks of life. I have met yoga teachers, therapists, artists, entrepreneurs, firemen, builders, mothers, fathers, grandparents, and many more. Although I teach primarily in the Western world, I also receive numerous emails from people in other parts of the world, such as Africa and the Middle East. What unites this broad spectrum of people is the burning desire to discover that which is deeper than surface reality. What does it mean to awaken in the midst of ordinary life? 

Certain questions come to the forefront of the dialogues in my meetings over and over again. Mostly they are questions about the relationship between awakening and the body, love and intimate relationships, money, work, and creativity, as well as questions and concerns about the suffering of the world. 

Traditional spiritual teachings have all emphasized the cultivation of an inner state of stillness that awakens us to the truth of our being-nature. And they say this is achieved by turning away from worldly activity. While the recognition of our essential nature as this being-ness is indeed the foundation of awakening, what was relevant thousands of years ago is not so relevant today. It seems that a transcendent experience of enlightenment is not enough these days; people need guidance and support in embodying the light of awakened consciousness in every aspect of their lives, as fully functioning human beings in the modern world with all its complexity.

In my new book Embodied Enlightenment I speak directly to the new paradigm of awakening that is emerging amid challenging times today. What is needed now is not more of the ancient spiritual wisdom passed down through the ages, but a cutting-edge conversation that acknowledges this wisdom as the foundation of awakening and then goes beyond that to include a dialogue about topics traditionally excluded from spiritual teachings. Some of these topics and questions include: What’s the difference in the way awakened consciousness is expressed in men and women? What happens to sex in awakening? Is there such a thing as an enlightened relationship? Does physical well-being matter in awakening? How do we live selflessly in the modern world? How can money and spirituality be friends? This is uncharted territory. What is coming alive in the minds and hearts of those I meet with is an increasing helplessness in the face of escalating world horrors and a desire for personal empowerment and spiritual awareness. There’s an urgency to end the insanity, both within and without, and to find peace in our hearts and on earth at last.

Enlightenment or awakening (I use the terms interchangeably) is no longer a secret reserved for mystics, nor a luxury indulged in by privileged westerners seeking to become “more spiritual.” Awakening is a necessity if we are to survive and thrive in a world gone crazy with ego’s voracious appetite for “me” and “mine”. To rise above this erroneous identification with form (“my body”, “my thoughts”, “my feelings”) and recognize the eternal truth of an inner dimension of formlessness is to evolve out of ego into an enlightened consciousness. But if this enlightenment is to be of any use, it needs to come down from the mountaintop and get its hands dirty in the marketplace of human affairs. It’s in the darkest places — where it hurts, where there is fear, where we are triggered — that we either choose to succumb to the reactive mechanism of ‘fight or flight’ or have the courage to rest deeply in an unbounded openness that brings an end to the war both within ourselves and within the world. It’s right in the midst of political opinions, religious dogma, social rights and wrongs, and in the push and pull of intimate relationship that we are offered the opportunity to awaken out of the dream of separation. 

Many spiritual seekers who experience a glimpse of enlightenment believe the world is an illusion. While this is true at the absolute level of pristine emptiness prior to form, the attempt to transcend the world and its messiness often leads to an “existential numbness” that is mistaken for spiritual liberation. There’s no real peace in this, but a subtle and pernicious war that perpetuates both inner and outer conflict. If awakening is to be more than just a state that comes and goes, if it is to be an ongoing reality with a very real impact on our everyday world, there must an intimate meeting with the depth and breadth of feeling that arises in response to the vicissitudes of our human experience. In other words, the light of awakened consciousness must filter out from the mind into the heart. 

It’s right in the midst of the raw tenderness of the heart — those places where old patterns of withdrawal, closure and self-defense may have a grip on us — that the cloud of denial and avoidance can be transformed into the clarity of unbounded acceptance. It’s right in the midst of revulsion, regret, shame, and horror that we are called to surrender to what is here as the naked truth of our experience. When this surrender happens, over and over again, eventually the heart overflows with the light of awakened consciousness which then pours into the belly and comes to rest in an uncompromising embrace of both the waves of phenomenal existence and the ocean of inner stillness. It’s at this point that enlightenment is embodied. And it’s at this point that a new world can be born. 
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Embodied Enlightenment is an invitation to discover this new world … by devoting yourself to living the truth of your awakening in every aspect of your life. It’s an unending invitation because the embodiment of enlightenment is not static but an ever-deepening intimacy with life itself. If you are willing to wholeheartedly embrace this invitation, then perhaps this book will support you in the fulfillment of a life lived in the infinite openness of awakened consciousness. 



Click HERE to see Amoda's workshop schedule. Amoda's bio can be seen HERE.   For festival registration click HERE.

by Jeff Masters

​"Sadhana [spiritual practice] is important. It will give you a comprehensive knowledge of life with all its currents and crosscurrents...The purpose of sadhana is to be free from the magic wonders of the mind and remain free all the time...To be spiritual means to be aware of the Reality all the time, to be aware of the Absolute Truth all the time, and to be aware of the Lord within you all the time." - Swami Rama
 
I am sharing this post as an offering to those who may be experiencing discomfort or anxiety as a result of the tumult of duality unfolding in the world around us.
 
Whether it’s the condition of the world or perhaps even our own lives, the one place in which we can take refuge from the storms of the outside world or the inner tension of our mind, is within our dedicated practice or sadhana.
 
Our sadhana is a vehicle that, through our humble efforts, it is able to transmute the present and impending darkness into light. It is within the refuge of our sadhana, that we bear witness to the small (and potentially huge) ways in which our practice impacts our lives.
 
In modern times, when the tides of darkness arise in the form of strife or subjugation, many feel hopeless and confused about what to do in order to make a meaningful difference. Fortunately, the ancient Sages have left us with very specific formulas to transmute this darkness and bring about balance. The beauty of this process is that is starts within and ripples outward. First, transforming our own lives and then extending outward – transforming us into nexus points of light, aarti lamps, which then shine their divine light into the world.
 
When joined together in concentrated practice, this collective light feeds and ignites global and universal transformation. Our sadhanas become one.
 
Thank you all for your commitment to your practice, to your journey, for who you are and all you do.
 
I look forward to sitting in sangha and sharing practices with you all!
 
May we work together uniting our strength for the good of humanity.

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Oṁ Sahanā Vavatu
Sahanau Bhunaktu
Sahavīryam Karavāvahai
Tejasvi Nāvadhītamastu
Mā Vidviṣāvahai
Oṁ Śānti Śānti Śāntiḥ
 
"May the Lord protect us together.
May he nourish us together.
May we work together uniting our strength for the good of humanity.
May our learning be luminous and purposeful.
May there never be any animosity amongst us;
May there be peace, peace, perfect peace."