Learn to tap the source, dive deep within!

I'm so excited that fall, my favorite season, is almost officially here. I am looking forward to the warm days, cool night breezes, harvest moons, and changing colors of the leaves. And the overall sense of a time of change...

A link to a great article on the Six Elements meditation, from Tricycle magazine.

Even more reason to help fight global warming and love our Mother Earth, a study shows that the outlook is poor for the Great Barrier Reef. :(

Olive Leaf, traditional to ancient Egypt and hailed by Hippocrates.
Seasonal foods: winter squash, apples, pears
A recipe I want to try: Vegan Spinach Artichoke Dip

Water Filter: Too much of the world lacks access to clean drinking water. Engineer Michael Pritchard did something about it -- inventing the portable Lifesaver filter, which can make the most revolting water drinkable in seconds. An amazing demo from TEDGlobal 2009.

The Virginia Wine Festival is this weekend in Centerville! Also, the Fall Festival Guide from the Washingtonian.

Quote of the day:

In meditation we seem to be sitting by ourselves, but we do not sit just for ourselves. By focusing our attention on the breath, the body, thoughts, feelings, and sensations, or any other facet of our experience in meditation, we become more mindful—not mindless—through the transformative power of moment-to-moment alertness and presence of mind. Instead of absentmindedly stumbling through life like sleepwalkers, we can use contemplative practice to achieve extraordinary insight into ourselves and the world in which we live; to inhabit and appreciate more fully the here and now; to free our minds and open our hearts, and to relax into our natural state. The cultivation of mindfulness helps us wake up to things as they are rather than as we would like them to be. And as we wake up to truth, to reality, we become a force for universal awakening, working with what actually is, not delusive fictions.

–Lama Surya Das

Don't worry

I hope this blog post gives you a moment of clarity and peace, along with some insightful knowledge. Breathe easy!

http://www.350.org/ : An international day of climate action, a global movement to solve the climate crisis, on my birthday this year! :)

CarbonFreeDC Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover: Home Improvement Volunteer Form Click the link if you're interested in helping volunteer in either Shaw or Deanwood for a weekend in September working with deserving families by installing energy efficient and planet-friendly products! You can indicate your availability to volunteer to install equipment at the homes.

Deep Green Autunm Retreat: The Journey Inward: Accessing Inner Wisdom through Yoga and Plant Medicines. I am planning to attend this retreat October 16-18, which looks to be in an absolutely lovely setting and promises to be transformative. Click on the link to visit the Deep Green Wellness page for a link to their retreats.

Idealist.org grad fair in DC, September 21st, at the Washington Convention Center 801 Mount Vernon Place NW DC

Currently listening to: Issamu's new mix. Legit. Also check out the link to his blog on my favorite links, Third Eye Buisness.

The summer night sky is filled with a multitude of the Milky Way's stars, hundreds of billions of stars making up its flowing river of soft light.

Seasonal recipe: Garden fresh pasta salad, I'd probably add some summer squash too, or maybe tofu.

Listen with your heart. Heart-centered listening, including how the heart communicates with the body and brain, can be used to create greater peace and love not just in your life, but in the world. You can help to gather the information to listen to in your heart by doing an anahata (heart chakra) kundalini meditation. Sitting comfortably on the floor in your meditation posture, place your left hand in front of your heart chakra face down and hold your right arm up, extended in the air at a 60 degree angle from the floor. The right had is collecting the information from the universe, while the left collects information from you lower chakras, and brings it all to the heart.

Thoughts on meditation via the Tricycle weekly newsletter:

Everything changes and all will wither away. There is no permanent and abiding "self." And to top it all off, life is suffering.

Wow, Buddhism can be a real buzz-kill. Sometimes, anyway. But there are many doors to joy. According to Vipassana teacher James Baraz, it's just a question of opening them:

Methods for opening the mind to joy and happiness are found throughout the Buddha’s teachings. One sure way is through skillful practice of meditation. Through seeing clearly, we can free the mind of grasping, aversion, and ignorance, allowing our natural joy to manifest. In fact, research has amply demonstrated that meditation increases activity in areas of the brain associated with positive emotions.

Quotes of the day: "There is great power in patience because it cuts through arrogance and ingratitude. It is the path that lets us move from resistance to acceptance and spontaneous presence. Holding on to our judgments about others and ourselves is a major cause of impatience. Repeating softly to ourselves, “May I be happy just as I am” and “May I be peaceful with whatever is happening” helps us accept our vulnerabilities, imperfections, and losses: everything from chronic physical and emotional pain, to the death of loved ones, the end of a job or relationship—even nightmare traffic jams."

"Life is really generous to those who pursue their destiny." Paulo Coelho
my thoughts: I believe this is true, as long as you have realized your destiny through divine listening.

Now is the time to get serious about living your ideals. Once you have determined the spiritual principles you wish to exemplify, abide by these rules as if they were laws, as if it were indeed sinful to compromise them. Don't mind if others don't share your convictions. How long can you afford to put off who you really want to be? Your nobler self cannot wait any longer.

Epictetus (c. 50-120)


We don’t open our heart and mind because we haven’t experienced the benefit of doing that. Once we have experienced the truth, there isn’t even an issue. There is no worry. The whole question of whether we are ready to open our heart and mind to the truth isn’t even a concern.

Summer Solstice this Sunday

I am looking forward to the Solstice on Sunday...at 12:45 am eastern time...how will you celebrate the day?

I hiked Meneka Peak yesterday, in the George Washington National Forest. What a gorgeous day to be outdoors and reconnect with mother Earth! We saw lots of wildlife, including a mouse, a few frogs, and a turtle. Also along the trail was the greatest variety of mushrooms/fungi I've ever seen in my life. The sunlight was just gorgeous shining on us through the trees. The trail was very rocky in parts, as most are in the area, and during a break in the hike I read this quote from my pocket Buddha reader, which I thought was a fitting meditation for the surroundings:

If your mind becomes firm like a rock
And no longer shakes
In a world where everything is shaking,
Your mind will be your greatest friend
And suffering will not come your way.

-Theragatha

More on the solstice later...

Saturday evening was one of the most enjoyable nights I've had in a while filled with good company and great conversation. It was a potluck dinner for our meditation group, and farewell gathering for our dear friend Kourosh who is moving abroad. I made mango spring rolls, recipe below, shared with me by Jen! :)

Ingredients:
Rice paper
Mango
Avocado
Bean Sprouts
Fresh cilantro
Cellophane noodles
Peanut sauce

Directions:
Slice avocado and mango (click here for how to slice a mango). Cook cellophane noodles until transparent. Set up all ingredients, and a bowl of warm water to soften the rice paper, in an assembly line fashion. Soften the rice paper for each roll, then add a bit of noodles, bean sprouts, a slice of mango, a slice of avocado, and some fresh cilantro leaves. Roll up the rice paper and filling (click on link for how-to), and serve with peanut sauce...or any dipping sauce you would like.

Yummy Recipe :)

Did you know that along with its wealth of vitamins and minerals, cauliflower, like the other cruciferous vegetables, contains powerful sulfur compounds that have repeatedly been found to help prevent cancer? These include sulforaphane and isothyiocyanates, two compounds that help the liver to neutralize potentially harmful cancer causing compounds and to suppress tumor cell growth and the movement of cancer to other parts of the body (metastasis).

I like this recipe, via the "World's Healthiest Foods" weekly email.

5-Minute Cauliflower

Enjoy the extra flavor and health benefits from combining cauliflower with turmeric for this easy-to-prepare great tasting side dish that will complement almost any meal. Turmeric has long been recognized as a powerful anti-inflammatory in both Chinese and Indian systems of medicine and modern scientific research continues to reinforce the benefits of this tasty spice. One serving of this dish also provides 181% of the daily value (DV) for vitamin C, 46% DV for vitamin, and 33% DV for folate. Enjoy!

Prep and Cook Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 lb cauliflower
• 5 TBS low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 tsp turmeric
• Mediterranean Dressing
• 1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 2 medium cloves garlic
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Cut cauliflower florets into quarters and let sit for 5 minutes to bring out their hidden health benefits.
2. Press or chop garlic and let for 5 minutes.
3. Heat 5 TBS broth in a stainless steel skillet on medium heat.
4. When broth begins to steam, add cauliflower and turmeric and cover. For al dente cauliflower, cook for no more than 5 minutes.
5. Transfer to a bowl. For more flavor toss cauliflower with the remaining ingredients while it is still hot. (Mediterranean Dressing does not need to be made separately.) Research shows that carotenoids found in foods are best absorbed when consumed with oils.
6. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro.

Serves 2

Healthy Cooking Tips:

To mellow the flavor of garlic, add garlic to cauliflower for the last 2 minutes of sautéing. You may need to add a little more liquid to keep garlic from sticking to the pan.