Saturday, June 30, 2012
Friday, June 29, 2012
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Monday, June 25, 2012
A Middle-Class Neo-pagan Finds Home
A Middle-Class Neo-pagan Finds Home
By
I am an educated, middle-class, professional who also happens to believe that I am part of a larger ecosystem of life; that there is a divine spirit that dwells within all things; that there is an equal balance between the feminine and masculine aspects of nature (the Goddess and God); and that the human body, and sexuality for that matter, is not something to be a source of shame or fear, but rather celebrated in its variety of expression.
Several years ago, I discovered that there is a name for people like me: “middle-class Neo-pagan.”
Being a middle-class Neo-pagan in today’s world is kind of like — to paraphrase Charles Dickens — the best of times and the worst of times. On one hand, I don’t have to worry about being burnt at the stake for having reverence for nature, I don’t have to worry about losing my job for wearing a pentacle around my neck, and the huge increase in the number of people who are interested in neo-pagan philosophy and practice means that there are a lot more people like me.
On the other hand, most other people like me do not become involved in the local community in the same way that, say, middle-class Christians tend to do. So, being on this path can feel a bit lonely at times. I have often wondered whether I am a bit of a misfit in the neo-pagan world.
...Read the full article, and others like it at: http://edgemagazine.net/2012/06/neo-pagan/
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Sacred journeys transform, awaken (Part 1)
Sacred journeys transform, awaken
By
First of a two-part series
If someone asks me why I travel, especially to sacred sites such as Machu Picchu in Peru, or the Andes Mountains of Chile, I would have to say that it is my experience that these places of incredible earth energies can change us. They alter our perspective, not only because of an experience of a different culture, but because we look at our life and our personality and recognize much of who we think we are is just societal conditioning and habit.
We are a “domesticated” species, often never knowing our selka nature–the word in the Quechua language of the Andes which means “undomesticated” or wild, or our essential nature. In traveling to another culture, our fears and obligations, our masks that we wear daily, fall away. Stepping away from what we call our everyday reality, we find that our daily distractions are what keep us from really knowing ourselves and our own spiritual truths, as we do not take the time to be human “beings” rather than human “doings.”
It takes courage, that leap of faith, sometimes called the leap of the Jaguar, the shamanic animal totem, or luminous being of Light, that models for us, how to create a new life, with riches of the Spirit not known to those who never attempt to fly. It takes courage to plan and execute a sacred journey, whether that journey is an interior one, such as a vision quest, or one to Machu Picchu, one of the 7 wonders of the world due to its mystical and other-worldly beauty.
...Read the full article, and others like it at: http://edgemagazine.net/2012/06/sacred-journeys/
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Courage
Courage
By
Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from Making the Shift: Field Guide to the Emerging Consciousness, Volume 1
Powerful universal energies are pushing us to the brink of assurance as we encounter the Great Wave of Change that is turning everything topsey turvey. There’s unprecedented uncertainty in the global economy, politics, religions, health — everything. It’s so tempting to hide under the covers and postpone the intense karmic demands of this Shift of the Ages.
Are you brave? Do you courageously meet life’s challenges without batting an eye? Or are you the lion in Wizard of Oz who trembles in fear, longing for the instinct of courage that grants us the heart to face each day.
How do we boldly open to the moment when instinct exclaims: “Run for the hills?” Current transformational forces leave no stone unturned. There’s no place to hide. We need to drum up the gumption to go forward into this vibrational blizzard, face the unknown and stay open to the cosmic line of fire illuminating our soul’s destiny.
We need to ask ourselves, “What areas of life are currently demanding an act of courage?” Preparation time has run out. Now is the moment to evoke the gritty determination to meet these challenges. Postponement only shrinks self-esteem. Courage begets confidence, not the other way around.
...Read the full article, and others like it at: http://edgemagazine.net/2012/06/courage/
Friday, June 22, 2012
The Spiritual Side of Exercise
The Spiritual Side of Exercise
By
The cheer of the crowd falls silent to his ears. The young, brown-eyed man digs deep into every ounce of his being. This is it…all his years of training, all his sacrifice comes down to this very moment. As the crowds jump around him in muted slow motion, a drop of sweat rolls down his face. The beating of his heart echoes through his mind. He is one with everything, yet there is no distraction…just him and a silent sense of knowing. With pure focus and a calm spirit he makes the play. The crowd nervously watches, but he knows he has delivered.
We have all seen this situation played out in the movies. We have listened to athletes as they explain “being in the zone.” We have heard the runner, the swimmer or the cyclist say, “It clears my mind and I feel alive.” But what are they all talking about? What truly is this “being in the zone” all about?
Simply put, it is the spiritual side of exercise.
We all know how physical movement affects our physical body, but have you ever thought how that same movement affects your mental, emotional and spiritual self? Physical movement creates a chemical and emotional shift in our mind-body state, which allows us to clear the clutter of our mind and reconnect deeper to our inner spirit, our true essence.
...Read the full article, and others like it at: http://edgemagazine.net/2012/06/the-spiritual-side-of-exercise/
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Recipe: Salmon Salad
Salmon Salad
By
A Gluten-free, Dairy-free Whole Food Recipe
This recipe makes a quick lunch and provides high-quality protein and omega 3 healthy fats. Some co-ops sell a piece of cooked, smoked salmon which makes this recipe less than 5 minutes to prepare. The quantities noted below are just a guideline; you can be flexible depending on your preference.
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups of cooked, smoked salmon
2 TBS Grapeseed Vegenaise*
1/4 tsp dill
1/2 of a lemon, squeezed
1/8 cup red onions, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
2 TBS Grapeseed Vegenaise*
1/4 tsp dill
1/2 of a lemon, squeezed
1/8 cup red onions, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
...Get the full recipe, and others like it at: http://edgemagazine.net/2012/06/salmon-salad/
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Planting the Seeds of Bliss
Planting the Seeds of Bliss
By
An excerpt from The Bliss Experiment: 28 Days to Personal Transformation
“If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right.” — Henry Ford
Affirmations are positive statements of truth that we aspire to absorb into our lives. They share similarities with practices like awareness, optimism and gratitude, but also at least one essential difference: they penetrate much more deeply, helping us take the next step to bliss.
There are several strategies and techniques for purifying our mental rivers and helping us gain mastery over our conscious minds. These are all effective and essential practices. Nonetheless, by themselves, they are not enough. While they definitely improve, even outright manifest, regular happiness, they can’t directly connect us with pure bliss. This is because “everyday happiness” (as we call it The Happiness Scale) primarily results from cultivating a positive mentaland emotional state.
Bliss exists on a deeper plane. It is a spiritual state far beyond our mind and emotions. Ultimately, bliss is much more than an abundance of happiness. It’s a new category of consciousness that exists on a higher octave of human experience. As indispensable as things like optimism and gratitude are — we wouldn’t have made it this far without them — it takes an entirely new set of tools to help us break through to the next level.
...Read the full article, and others like it at: http://edgemagazine.net/2012/06/planting-the-seeds-of-bliss/
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Yoga Aid Foundation announces 24-hour global yoga challenge
Yoga Aid Foundation announces 24-hour global yoga challenge
By
International nonprofit to host 200 events in 20 countries during 24 hours–donating 100% of money raised
Yoga Aid Foundation, an international nonprofit that raises funds for charities through philanthropic yoga events, recently announced that it will host the first-ever, one day, around-the-world yoga tour benefiting 15 humanitarian-based charities internationally. On September 9, The Yoga Aid World Challenge will unite yogis around the globe in an effort to raise 1 million with 100 percent of the proceeds going directly to the selected charitable organizations.
Starting in Sydney, Australia, the 24-hour yoga relay will travel around the world and end at sundown in Los Angeles. The Yoga Aid challenge will bring together renowned teachers, studios and students in over 20 countries, creating a united community, while focusing on raising money for charity. During these events, yoga participants will embark on a two-hour yoga practice as a way to celebrate the funds they raised for the charity partners.
...Read the full article, and others like it at: http://edgemagazine.net/2012/06/global-yoga-challenge/
Monday, June 18, 2012
Michael Tellinger to speak on evolution of human consciousness
Michael Tellinger to speak on evolution of human consciousness
By
Michael Tellinger, a South African author, scientist and researcher, will return to the Twin Cities for the third consecutive year, appearing at Lake Harriet Spiritual Community from 7-10 p.m. Monday, June 18, as part of his 2012 North American tour.
“My presentation has taken on a whole new slant that blends the harsh lines of separation into a cohesive story of humankind,” Tellinger says, “our physical being connected to our spiritual higher self and how the awakening and understanding of our origins is helping us to free ourselves from the tyranny imposed on our species.”
Tellinger earned international acclaim as an expert on vanished civilizations of southern Africa, in his books, Slave Species of God, Adam’s Calendar, and Temples of the African Gods. Although scholars maintain the first civilizations on Earth emerged in Sumer 6,000 years ago, new archeological and scientific discoveries made by Tellinger and a team of leading scientists show that the Sumerians and even the Egyptians inherited all their knowledge from an earlier civilization that lived at the southern tip of Africa more than 200,000 years ago — mining gold.
“These were also the first people who carved the Horus bird, the first Sphinx, built the first pyramid, and built an accurate stone calendar called Adam’s Calendar,” Tellinger says. “Adam’s Calendar is the flagship among millions of circular stone ruins, ancient roads, agricultural terraces, and thousands of ancient mines left behind by this vanished civilization we now call The First People.”
...Read the full article, and others like it at: http://edgemagazine.net/2012/06/michael-tellinger-to-speak/
Dancing For Birth™ classes come to the Twin Cities
Dancing For Birth™ classes come to the Twin Cities
By
A moratorium has been declared on the forced back-lying position of birthing by Stephanie Larson, founder of Dancing For Birth™, whose vision is for women worldwide to have the enjoyment of dancing their babies into the world.
Larson says women can learn how to harness gravity and move their bodies during labor for more satisfying births.
St. Paul resident Brittany Kubricky, CD(DONA), LCCE, was in attendance at the recent Dancing For Birth ™ Instructor Training workshop offered in Eagan, where she learned how to Energize, Enlighten and Empower ™ women in the childbearing year. She is earning her Dancing For Birth™ Instructor Certification (DFB) and is forming classes for pregnant and postpartum women and their newborns here in the Twin Cities.
Kubricky, a certified doula and Lamaze childbirth educator and co-owner of BabyLove in Eagan, says Dancing For Birth™ classes will be an important addition to BabyLove’s offerings for pregnant and postpartum women.
Dancing For Birth™ prenatal/postpartum classes teach a “language of movement” specifically designed for pregnant women and postpartum women wearing their babies in soft slings or wraps. Though the movements are inspired by ancient dance forms (like Belly dance and African dance) the 90-minute weekly classes, which combine dance fitness with little-known childbirth preparation skills such as optimal fetal positioning, are the wave of the future of birth and resonate with women.
...Read the full article, and others like it at: http://edgemagazine.net/2012/06/dancing-for-birth/
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