| I love my yoga practice! I love the bliss that washes | | | | Brought forth the world as play. |
| over me during meditation, the practical wisdom of | | | | He takes the role of Witness |
| yogic philosophy, feeling the heat and other amazing | | | | Out of love of watching Her. |
| sensations within my body during asana practice, not | | | | Yes, yes! I know that to be true! One night, as I was |
| to mention sensual vibrations of the rising prana! My | | | | watching the lake lightened by the stars, the stars |
| guru is the famous Yogi Amrit Desai. His esoteric, | | | | dancing in the waves, I dissolved and became that |
| mystical lineage, going back through Swami | | | | beauty, so blissful. I was Shakti and I was witnessing |
| Kripalvanandji to Lord Shiva himself, is carried by male | | | | my own beauty. I was Shiva and Shakti! Energy and |
| teachers, none of whom ever had a menstruation! In | | | | Witness. |
| addition, all the ancient yogic texts that I know of | | | | Later that day, the adorable, kind looking old guru did |
| were written by males. Hmmm... What do they know | | | | come through for me as I was listening to the |
| about my female body, my psyche, my emotions, or | | | | internet radio program from one of my favorite yoga |
| my lunar cycles? Why is there such a domination of | | | | teachers, Zaporozhtsev. He explained that females |
| male gurus in yoga? These were the thoughts | | | | are much more powerful in yoga and that yoga was |
| running through my head tortured by debilitating | | | | created by females and for females, yet, most of |
| menstrual headache that made me skip the Saturday | | | | gurus are males and most of scriptures were written |
| morning yoga class and Amrit Dasai's satsang which I | | | | by males. He said that the male would do anything in |
| was so looking forward to attending. When finally, | | | | his power to awaken the goddess within every |
| the headache was gone, the questions remained. | | | | female for in return, through her love, she could pull |
| Few days later, after an amazing ashtanga yoga class | | | | him out of any bad karma. |
| at Adi Shakti Yoga, led by Tara Rawson, while in a | | | | And then I came across another Jnanadev's poem: |
| deep state of relaxation during yoga nidra with no | | | | This absolute Knowledge is like |
| thoughts in my head, I saw an ancient yogi guru | | | | The intrinsic fullness of the moon, |
| staring at me with kindness in my mind's eye. Being | | | | Which is unaffected |
| the practical, selfish, and earthly creature that I am, I | | | | By its apparent waxing and waning. |
| immediately tried to ask him for help and turn it into | | | | Likewise, that which is Consciousness Itself |
| some kind of profit for myself. With all the strength I | | | | Does not possess the quality of being conscious, |
| could gather, I collected the slow thoughts around in | | | | And is, therefore, not conscious of Itself. |
| my brain, and did ask my ancient yogi guru for | | | | I, female, could not meet the Goddess, or know the |
| something, only to forget at once most of my own | | | | Goddess. I am the Goddess. As the Goddess, I AM |
| requests except one. I wanted him to help me meet | | | | every nanosecond of my existence in this form. A |
| a Goddess. After all, she appeared to Yogananda as | | | | male, the witness, can perceive me, write about me, |
| well as to other saints. | | | | or teach about me. Without him, would I know |
| Indian sage, Jnanadev, wrote: | | | | myself? Every woman is a pure existence, the |
| In unity there is little to behold; | | | | Goddess, regardless of her own realization of her |
| So She, the mother of abundance, | | | | nature or lack of it. |