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July/August 2006 NW Newsmakers
Community News

Igniting Your Personal Power in an Urban World

How can you find balance in the age of the BlackBerry?
We struggle with jobs, bills, health, family pressures and the ever-increasing stresses associated with the age of the always-on mentality, and the omnipresent BlackBerrys and cell phones. Even without these pressures, our many life experiences, whether from an absent parent, a bully on the playground, the bad review we just got at work, or the husband who walked in and asked for a divorce, have left us riddled with self-rejection.

How do we retain our power and confidence in a world that sometimes seems too fast or poised against us?
According to Swami Chetanananda, abbot of the Nityananda Institute and author of many books on spiritual practices drawing on the ancient traditions of Trika Yoga and Tibetan Buddhism, the challenge is to find balance living within today’s world. Swami Chetanananda offers the following simple starting points:

1. Tune into your breathing at least once daily and feel the rise and fall of your breath. Feel your incoming breath as nourishment.
2. Look for the extraordinary aspects of ordinary events and be aware of the creative potential at work in them.
3. When difficult situations arise, remember that the Universe is always attempting to bring you what you need for growth and that you have, inside you, all the resources required to deal with them.

While you cannot control all the circumstances of your life, you can learn how to consciously choose your response to them.

The Nityananda Institute explores these and other topics in its public programs every Monday night. On September 18-24, the Institute will also be hosting 5 days of evening workshops hosted by three master spiritual teachers, culminating in a weekend intensive meditation workshop to help you reconnect with your divine spark. Details at www.the3gurus.com.

Let Your Voice be Heard at International Sound Healing Conference

Experience sound and vibrational healing at the International Sound Healing Conference on November 10-14 in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Join leading-edge researchers, practitioners, scientists, composers, musicians and recording artists in the fascinating and fast-growing fields of sound healing, vibrational medicine, music therapy and body/mind/brain/spirit research.

There is a resurgence of interest in the ancient practices of sound and vibrational healing. Forward-thinking hospitals, clinics, schools, businesses and hospices around the world are integrating these healing practices into their institutions. More than just a conference, this event is a celebration with music, dancing, singing, chanting, experiential workshops and intensive learning sessions.

For details, visit The Message Company at www.bizspirit.com, call (505) 474-0998 or email message@bizspirit.com.

Bringing Yogic Dance from Kathmandu to PCC

Learn a rare form of meditative dance from Nepal in “Buddhist Yogic Movement and Sacred Dance,” a new multi-media class taught by Prajwal Ratna Vajracharya at Portland Community College this summer. Prajwal is a living master of an ancient yogic tradition of Nepal that, until recently, was unknown outside of the circle of initiates who perform it.

Known in Sanskrit as Charya Nritya, or “dance as a spiritual discipline,” this sacred movement has recently gained an appreciative following in the West. Born into a long line of Buddhist priests, Prajwal started his training in Charya Nritya at age eight. With the survival of this rare meditative form threatened by modernization, Prajwal has devoted his life to bringing this ancient tradition to the world, while adhering to its original purpose as a profound spiritual practice.

Prajwal’s classes are designed to introduce this unique form of yogic healing and transformational practice to people of any physical capability or spiritual background. Tuesday classes run from July 11 to August 1 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday classes are offered July 15 to August 5 from 10 a.m. to noon. Classes are held at the Central Campus, Room 205, 1626 SE Water Ave. (near OMSI). To register at PCC, visit www.pcc.edu or call (503) 977-4933. For more details, visit www.dancemandal.com or call Dance Mandal at (503) 233-3703.

Experience an Initiation into Goddess Energy

Women are invited to attend “The Initiation,” a weekend workshop presented by the Divine Feminine Mystery School on August 18-20 at The Still Meadow Community in Portland. The workshop will be led by Caroline Muir, author of Tantra, The Art of Conscious Loving, and Joan Heartfield, director of Divine Feminine.

During the retreat, women are guided into a greater acceptance and understanding of themselves, sexually and spiritually. The workshop helps women heal the many wounds they carry, whether from their own experiences or from inherited cultural mores. Divine Feminine creates a sisterhoodout of strangers and invites women to broaden their reach to bring peace, love and intimacy to all who inhabit Mother Earth.

For more details, visit www.divine-feminine.com. For information and registration, contact Karyn Armstrong at (503) 525-2521 or karyn@harmonicvisions.com.

Vancouver Peace and Justice Fair Seeks Volunteers, Exhibitors, Sponsors

What are you doing for peace? Organizers are looking for volunteers, exhibitors and sponsors for the third annual Vancouver Peace and Justice Fair on Saturday, September 16, in Esther Short Park, Vancouver,WA.

“The first two fairs were a great success for Vancouver’s peace and justice community,” says organizer Kay Ellison. Last year 70 local groups participated in the fair, which was more than double the number from 2004. Exhibitors include human rights, religious and educational groups with social justice missions. All participating groups are asked to identify how they contribute to peace and justice locally or globally.

In addition to dozens of exhibitor booths lining the park’s walkways, visitors will see theatrical and musical performances such as Talisman, Danceability, the Raging Grannies and the Aurora Chorus. There will be crafts and other activities for children.

For details, visit www.vancouverpeaceandjusticefair.org or contact Kay Ellison at (360) 696-4840, ellisonka@yahoo.com.