Blog
A Visionary Way Forward for Abuse & Sexual Harassment Claims
Aren't we all so very tired of hearing about the latest guru gone down? The latest abuse or sex scandal in spiritual communities? As an act towards peace, I seek to present a visionary way forward:
How a Leader & Community Can Handle Claims of Abuse & Sexual Harassment
NOTE: This post goes with the Code of Conduct for Spiritual and Yoga Festivals, which I was inspired to develop as a contribution to the International Yoga Festival in Rishikesh. (A team of Heart of Sound volunteers runs the Sacred Sound Stage which I started in 2017.) It takes up where the...
Code of Conduct for Spiritual and Yoga Festivals
Inspired by #metoo in the yoga and spiritual community... This is not a debate post, but an action-oriented solution post.
I have been working on developing a Code of Conduct for participants and presenters at yoga festivals and spiritual conferences. It includes bullet points of specific red flag behaviors and some sample narratives to be aware of when allegations of abuse are made public.
This is NOT my area of expertise, but I see a need for it and no one in my circle stepped up to volunteer for it, so I took a stab at a draft. Dozens of people have commented...
Healthy Airplane + Voice Care Travel Hacks
My healthy airplane travel / travel voice care routine includes:
- Wearing a mask at all times on the flight not only keeps viruses and germs away, it keeps the air I breathe more moist. Great for immunity + vocal care!
- A drop of Thieves (or Doterra OnGuard) oil inside the mask and under my nostrils
- A drop of sesame oil or ghee inside each nostril periodically throughout the flight, whenever my nose gets dry
- Drinking LOTS OF WATER with EmergenC (500 ml for every hour in the air, ideally)
- Walking around the airplane and stretching regulary. (I book an aisle...
Tantra and Sound
Tantra as we practice it in the Heart of Sound community can be summed up like this:
Total Embrace of Life
The penetrating vibrations of sound-based practices help us uncover our hidden patterning that has kept us locked in a dualistic fight with life. If we have subscribed to the very common cultural beliefs that heaven is separate from earth, or that spirit is superior to the body, opening ourselves up to an all-embracing Tantrik view can be radically healing and transformative.
Our approach to sound-based practice arises from a core Tantrik belief:
Life (and ALL of...
Mantras for Peace: A Wisdom Gathering Online
The Mantras for Peace project is one of our main service projects at the Heart of Sound.*
This year, we've gathered 20 inspiring talks from global thought leaders dedicated to a vibrant future through both ancient and innovative subtle activism practices. Their words will melt your heart. Their visions will inspire you. Their practices will empower you.
If you want a straight shot of inspiration, hope, goodness, peace, connection and practical, powerful strategies for loving the world into wholeness through sound, don’t miss Mantras for Peace: A Wisdom...
What is the yoga of sound? Interview with Anandra
Sound is the yoga of the sages!
"What is man craving for? For ultimate peace, from God, from friends, from relatives, from world leaders, from saints and their sayings, from everything. When he ultimately finds within himself the answer to that craving, he understands the rÄga"
-Pandit Amarnath (Anandra's music Guru's Guruji)
By learning the details of the yoga of sound precisely: body mechanics, voice production, Sanskrit letters, and the deep philosophical underpinnings of the yoga of sound, we can help others consistently find peace within themselves and empower...
Dung Beetles: Rolling Shit with Excellence
I was heading down from a majestic spot, having finally recovered the ability to walk after an extended state of expanded awareness. It happens spontaneously sometimes... I become so in love with life that my awareness absorbs and contains it. I weep in awe and wonder at every tiny thing. Each breath is an infinity. Moving slowly is the...
Why is Sanskrit Pronunciation important?
From Yearning to Fullness…
It’s a big claim, but it’s entirely possible that adjusting the way you chant could help you cross over from yearning for connection — tasting a tantalizing drop of it in your kÄ«rtan or mantra practice — to accessing the Source of Sound anytime, anywhere.
Learning precise Sanskrit is not so you can be the pronunciation police or only kid on the block who pronounces “chakra” instead of the common mispronouciation of “shakra.” (Please excuse the phonetic spelling – in the course we...
Bhakti Yoga: Keep Practicing Until Your Knee-jerk Reaction is LOVE
What is the practical end result of sustained sound-based yoga?
Sustained, embodied LOVE.
The great masters have always said that there is nothing wrong with the world. The only problem is with our perception. When we are pure, we see everything and everyone as pure.
That state is not far-fetched, it’s tantalizingly close!
I could beat around the bush, but in truth, the methods of sound-based yoga as we teach them in the Heart of Sound training bring us swiftly to the empowerment of that choice. And that is the real reason we developed the training.
We want...
