Quote #5

"Music is the elixir that keeps me alive."  
               -- Bhakti Brophy 
                C. 2010 All Rights Reserved

JODI ARIAS VERDICT: GUILTY

Friends,

Jodi Arias was found guilty of First-Degree Murder in the death of Travis Alexander. "Five jurors found Pre-meditated; zero jurors found Felony Murder; seven jurors found Pre-meditated and Felony Murder." 

I took interest in this case a month ago, when I saw an interview with Arias from 2008, who was pontificating about God and her "faith" while lying through her teeth about the murder of Alexander. The heinous crime and the defendant's distorted view of "faith" are, obviously, diametrically opposed. It pleases me that the defendant was not successful in raking Alexander, the Mormon faith, nor faith and spirituality in general, over the proverbial coals.

 I do not believe in the death penalty for the simple reason that Arias' blood will then be on someone else's hand-- someone who's job it is to administer the lethal injection. No one deserves that karma for someone else's deed. I do believe she deserves to be imprisoned for life, without a possibility of parole. 

This case is a perfect example of someone being blind, not having the "eye to see", and I will write more on that topic, a topic that has interested me since I was a child, at a later time. I do not know if this is even a possibility for someone so callous and cold, but it is my sincere wish that Arias crack that shell around her Heart and find God, the Truth within and without.

For now, my sincere condolences and love go to Travis Alexander's family. He is merged in the glorious Love of God.

The truth prevailed.

Peace to all.

Bhakti

BHAKTI BROPHY QUOTE: #12

Friends--

I keep finding the following quote around the net, used on various platforms as a definition of Bhakti Yoga.  It's important to note that I wrote these words in response to a Hatha Yoga teacher who was using the terms Seva  and Bhakti Yoga interchangeably.  These words are in no way the definitive last word on Bhakti Yoga, however, since the quote is showing up on teaching websites around the net, I shall share it with you all on Jai Bhakti:

BHAKTI YOGA QUOTE

"Bhakti Yoga is Love and Devotion; closely related to intense longing for Union. Offering one's work and deeds as an offering is called Seva (self-less service) which would be more along the lines of Kriya (action) Yoga. BHAKTI is an intense longing: an innate pull of intense devotion and Love for one's true Self-- both the Inner and Outer God, or whatever name one uses in naming their higher Self."           
                                
-- c. 2012 Bhakti Brophy

      

SADHANA BOOKLIST SHARING PART 1 (2013)

Friends,

Below, I am sharing book titles that certainly helped me on my spiritual journey over the years. The list is not at all complete; there are some books that are too personal to my practice or at least must be studied in conjunction with a spiritual guide/teacher, and have, therefore, been omitted. At best, this is an introduction.

Please feel free to leave a comment by clicking on the "Happy Thoughts" link at the end of the post.

HINDUISM , VEDANTA, KASHMIR SHAIVISM,  TANTRA

• The Play of Consciousness  by Swami Muktananda

• From the Finite to the Infinite  by Swami Muktananda

•  The Yoga Sutras of Pantanjali

• The Bhagavad Gita  Translated by Eknath Easwaran

• Jnaneshwar's Gita (Jnaneshwar Maharaj's Rendering of the Bhagavad Gita)  by Swami Kripananda

• The Crest Jewel of Discrimination (Viveka Chudamini)  Shankaracharya  Translated by Christopher Isherwood and Swami Prabhavananda

• The Upanishads   Translated by Eknath Easwaran

•  Talks With Ramana Maharshi

• The Heart of Meditation  by Swami Durgananda (Sallly Kempton)

•  Awakening Shakti  by Sally Kempton

• Vasishta's Yoga   Translated by Venkatesananda

• Courage and Contentment  by  Swami Chidvilasananda

• The Yoga of Discipline  by Swami Chidvilasananda

• Kundalini: The Arousal of the Inner Energy  by Ajit Mookerjee

• The Sacred Power  by Swami Kripananda

• In Woods of God Realization Volumes 1--   by Swami Rama Tirtha Pratishthan

• The Book of Secrets  by Osho (formerly Bhagavan Shree Rajneesh)  * some of the practices in this book should only be done with a spiritual guide available to answer questions that may arise. This book is on the list because of its Tantric value, and because the stories of Nasrudin are classic!

• The Aphorisms of Shiva: The Shiva Sutra with Bhaskara's Commentary, the Vartika    Translated by Mark S.G. Dyczkowski

• Nothing Exists That is Not Shiva   by Swami Muktananda

• I Am That: (The Science of Hamsa from Vijnana Bhairava no. 24)  by Swami Muktananda  (Note: I HIGHLY recommend every book written by Swami Muktananda. There are a slue of books published in the early 1970's that only exist as first editions. I implore you to search for these books online!)

My next post will include books on Bhakti Yoga, Ecstatic Poetry, intro to Buddhism, and Mystical Christianity.

It's great to be back in the blogoshpere!

Enjoy.

Sadgurunath Maharaj ki Jay!

Bhakti 


  * Disclaimer: Meditation, tantra, pranayama, etc., should not be undertook without first gaining consent from a medical doctor. This suggested reading is list based on my 25 years of sadhana under the guide of master teachers.

When Someone Tries to Crush Your Spirit...Always Remember:

"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds."

--Albert Einstein 

BHAKTI BROPHY SAYS...

Stop ... Relax ... Listen ... Let go


The above mantra is a Trademark of D.L. Bhakti Brophy and may not be reproduced without permission.

There is a Light...

Your Light is always on.
Fear is real.
Fear is not real.
Anger is real.
Anger is not real.
Love is real.
Love is...
Love is.
Your Light is always on.
Leave your ego beside the threshold
of the door...
And Shine!
I beg you...
Bow down.
Put your Heart above your mind--
Experience THAT!
That which sustains you;
nourishes you;
breathes you;
and Loves you!
It is all I ask of you.
Find your Self
and your work here is done.

--Bhakti Brophy 10/21/10

Hello friends!
It has been a long time since my last post: I have missed the Blogosphere, to be sure. Unfortunately, the past two years have been rather hell-ish. I do loathe using the word "hell"; here I am using it to mean I was going through the most trying of trials--physical pain beyond belief, and I also was bedridden about 85-95% of the time. This messed with my body in a way that it never had before: being unable to walk around--well, you know the phrase, use it or lose it.

This past July 4th weekend I had experienced the worst physical pain in my entire life (and you all know how much I have endured already). I had a migraine headache that lasted about 4 days. I had my head covered to block any light from my eyes, and I spent the days using earplugs to drown out any noises. I had had enough. At first I wasn't depressed because I knew that I would make it through, once the migraine passed. But the migraine didn't pass the way it used to. It parked itself right in my left eye socket. At one point I picked up my cell phone and emailed everyone who was able to help me in the past, either by sending me strong energy (Dr. Kam Yuen); doing Reiki on me and sending me strong healing energy (my friend Bobby); or by sending me tsunami strength prayers (my dear friend Sally Kempton).

Bobby got in touch with me and was able to alleviate the migraine. I spent the next two weeks reading Dr. Yuen's books regarding working with and deleting pain from your body and mind. What a lesson! I started talking to Dr. Yuen on the phone. I learned his "method" by taking teleseminars and by talking to him on the phone and by reading his books over and over. My friend Bobby kept in touch and kept my level of energy up.

By the end of July I was walking around WITHOUT MY NECK BRACE ON for the first time in...almost a year. I started making myself walk to the end of the driveway and back (about two car lengths). Finally, I made myself walk around the block (about 1/5 mile). Of course, being me, I did too much too fast and ended back in bed with the pain on the rise.

People often make comments such as, "Why do you do that to yourself? You start feeling a little bit better and then you make yourself worse by doing things."

Personally, I have never understood how anyone could ask that question . I don't think anyone could truly understand WHY I do what I do unless they were in my position. If you live with severe chronic pain--you know what I'm talking about. (Let me give you a gauge on what I mean by "severe" chronic pain. After being hit by a car in 1997, I flew straight up in the air, flipped over in a fetal position, and landed on the lower left side of my lumbar spine. The sciatica I had from that accident was the worst pain I had ever felt, and I thought it was probably "severe" chronic pain. But compared to the pain I live with now, from the crushed nerve roots in my spine, the sciatica is about a 3 on my pain scale, and my pain is relatively an 8-9.)

So, why do I do things when I start to feel a little better?
A) Because I don't want to lose the use of my legs and body.
B) Although I try to make the best of it, by reading and learning and keeping my mind sharp, I cannot stand being in bed anymore.
C) I am an extremely creative person. I wish to be able to go outside and see nature. I love to look at the sky. I find much strength and rejuvenation by going outside and staring at the moon--oh, and it's especially cool when the moon is out during the day!
D) What is the point of having good days if I don't embrace them and make the most out of them?
E) The truth is, from a psychological point of view, when you live with a chronic condition and you are bedridden most of the time, getting a "good" day is such a gift--there is the feeling that one must not squander it; but there is also the fear that "this may be the last 'good' day I am blessed with, so I am going to do everything I can with the time I have!" This is the main reason why so many people who live in severe chronic pain, or any other chronic condition, tend to push themselves too far when we have good days. We're not masochistic...and we're not doing anything wrong by taking advantage of the blessing a good day brings.

I think people who are able to get up everyday and do the things they love (or do things they don't love, but have the ability to get up in the morning) forget what a gift it is. I don't mean this as a judgment. I mean it sincerely. If you spent two years unable to do the things you truly loved, wouldn't you spend every last ounce of energy you had doing something if your body actually decided to function the way it is meant to?

It takes strength to endure. It surely does. And people have called me courageous and inspirational, but the truth is...the Truth is what sustains me. Knowledge of my inner Self. Of course, my Mother and Father--wow, was I blessed with great parents! It is true that my Father had an extremely difficult time dealing with my disability the first two years I was 100% disabled--most likely due to the fact that he watched me build up a photography business and career in NYC and then watched as I lost it after my accident. Then I got back on the horse and got a teaching job four years later, and I lost that due to the Sept. 11th attacks...I think my father was taking his anger out on me. His anger over all of my losses and trials. But I must tell you--I feel it is my duty to tell you--WE HAVE SO MUCH MORE STRENGTH AND COURAGE AND POWER WITHIN OURSELVES THAN YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE! I know this from experience.

I was fortunate enough to have been born innately "spiritual"; by this I mean I have always--since the age of three--been asking questions like, "Who is God?", "Why are we here?", "Who made us?" These questions used to freak my Mom out when I was a youngster!

The Truth is...there IS an answer. And you must find it yourself. No one can give it to you. No one can take it away. It is always present.

As I was stating above, I was fortunate enough to experience this before becoming totally disabled, and this knowledge has served me well. I can go through a day of hell-ish pain and then start reading The Upanishads, or Jesus's words, or I can start to simply focus my attention on my Heart Center. The joy is always there...ALWAYS present underneath the fear, anger, guilt, sadness, happiness, etc.. The joy is ever present--just like the sun.

It always struck me as funny that we say, "The sun is rising," and "The sun is going down." No it's not. We are spinning, not the sun. The sun is ever-present, as seen by it's reflection on the moon.

Your Light is ever-present, too. You have to find it. lt is always on--for as long as you are alive, your Light is shining...and when you die, it will merge with the Greatest Light Of All, like a river merges with the ocean...and you will shine on in Eternity.

You are That.

Much love
and Warm Regards,
Bhakti

Howard Zinn 1922-2010

My love and respect go out to the family of Howard Zinn--perhaps the greatest thinker of the Twentieth Century. My words could never do his life's work justice, so I ask that you read his books and essays, watch the archived video and print interviews (on Youtube and howardzinn.org, respectively), and see if you are not moved by his passion for equality among all human beings. Following in Thoreau's footsteps, Zinn reminded us all that the greatest form of patriotism is holding your government accountable for its actions.

Zinn never subscribed to violence--not in his actions, nor in his speech. He often smiled while lecturing, never expecting the listener to take his words at face value, but asked that we, as citizens of the United States, educate ourselves, for an ignorant people is a government's wet dream. He believed civil-disobedience to be the greatest way to wake up a government that won't answer to its constituents; the keyword here being 'civil'.

Howard Zinn was one of the greatest patriots of the United States of America. God Bless him, and may he rest in peace, knowing that by taking immediate action against race discrimination, the Vietnam War, and womens' rights, he helped start movements that paved the way for lasting change to take place. He was a pioneer who demanded that his government live up to the ideals set forth in the Constitution, and own up to the rights of all citizens mandated in the Bill of Rights because even though these rights were written by the rich and powerful, they were written for all citizens of the United States of America.

DISSONANCE IS THE HIGHEST FORM OF PATRIOTISM
             -- Howard Zinn

photos credits:
http://www.semnap.org/Images/howard-zinn.png

METTA PRAYER

May all beings be peaceful.

May all beings be happy.

May all beings be safe.

May all beings awaken to

the light of their true nature.

May all beings be free.

May it be so,
Bhakti

GUITAR WORLD Letter to the Editor

GUITAR WORLD was cool enough to publish my 'Letter to the Editor' in which I thanked them for honoring the great STEVE VAI on the May 2009 cover as well as printing an article on the great JASON BECKER in the same issue.

Check out the July 2009 issue of Guitar World to read all about it.

Thanks Brad Tolinski!