Hasta La Gadget!

Living part of the time in a small village in the forest in India, with a very powerful temple next door isn’t something usual. The experiences I have on a daily basis by doing my spiritual practice there are also not very common. They are more profound on all levels because of my environment and having access to rituals that help elevate the mind to higher consciousness and broader states of meditation.

Sahasra Chandi is one of these rare powerful gatherings that catapult our spiritual consciousness into levels previously unknown — helping the mind to ascend to higher levels of awareness. The ceremony is a combination of using heat and sound, performed through fire rituals and chanting of sacred mantras that create vibrations very conducive to elevating into the inner chamber of the soul where the origin of true knowledge exists. (Atma)

For thousands of years sages have been doing these rituals (Yagnas) to induce a state of consciousness so subtle that man could go beyond his limited mind and break through the sheaths that stand between him and his creator. Holy men perform this ritual to help man open a door that is usually locked within himself and to enable the earth to purify herself from all the pollution she has to endure.

When I am sitting in front of the homam performing Yagnas my body becomes so light and my mind so still that I am seeing the outer world but looking with my inner spiritual eye. There are no words to describe this kind of experience except lightness, mindlessness and spiritual harmony. The result is a feeling of no self-interest, service to all and a view of life as the most natural and beautiful expression of God through this body. In other words fear is non-existent as we are no longer in thought.

When sitting in such an environment with 150 holy men chanting the sacred verses of the Vedas, repeating them continuously thousands of times over 10 days, the energy created goes through all the chakras of the body and arrives at the crown of the head (sahasrara), to the point our gaze turns inwards and a universe beyond our grasp becomes known to us. As the scent of all the sandalwood, ghee and herbal medicines burning together enters our body and the atmosphere around us, an intoxication of the mind takes place and a purification of the land, all the way out into the universe. The vibrations of the sound and smell continue around the globe, bringing with it cleansing and bountiful gifts of healing.

In doing this ritual we are creating positive energy to aid people in their hardships and suffering but to also make an unconscious mind awaken with joy, becoming aware and wanting to be of service to everyone and everything without exclusivity, conflict or limitation. We have the energy of God-Divinity and Higher Power within us but tapping into that energy needs spiritual practices and much discipline which most people can’t commit to or don’t have the training or Guru to do so.

The one thing that stands in the way of peace is our fears. No amount of talking will ever take our fears away. This can only happen through spiritual practice.

Sahasra Chandi performed as a world peace ritual gives everyone the opportunity to join in and be a part of something very powerful and conscious that will only benefit our families, children and all beings without exception. Making the world a more peaceful place begins on a personal and collective level. The more we get involved and support conscious campaigns, together with performing our own spiritual practice, we will keep moving forward closer to our goal of total world peace.

I hope you will join in and make inner and outer peace a priority in your life.

Much love

Yogi Cameron

To support, donate and share please visit http://igg.me/at/WorldPeace2015

“When you grow up, your heart dies.” Allison Reynolds (Ally Sheedy) in The Breakfast Club.

The Breakfast Club captured the teen angst of a generation, delving into themes such as stereotyping, the stigma of mental illness and bullying. At the core of this movie was this central thesis: “When you grow up, your heart dies.” This sentiment has been echoed for generations, from The Who’s “Hope I die before I get old,” to Pearl Jam’s “All that’s sacred comes from youth.”

But as we approach the 30 year anniversary of the movie, we notice that a funny thing happened after we all graduated — we actually learned the lessons of The Breakfast Club and made sure our hearts didn’t die. And we did so by taking the rebellion of youth and trying to tackle the social problems addressed in the movie.

The characters in The Breakfast Club were originally presented as caricatures: a “brain,” (Brian Johnson played by Anthony Michael Hall), an “athlete” (Andrew Clark played by Emilio Estevez), a “basket case” (Allison Reynolds played by Ally Sheedy), a “princess,” (Claire Standish played by Molly Ringwald) and a “criminal” (John Bender played by Judd Nelson). As the characters spend more time together, they realize that they transcend these stereotypes and recognize that they have much in common.

The most obvious problem The Breakfast Club addresses is stereotyping. We’ve begun to understand that “stereotype threat” is harmful to children and adults alike; even seemingly benign stereotyping can be harmful to education and development. For example, one study showed that priming a student to be aware of their identity as an “athlete” actually reduced test score performance. As a result, substantial work is being undertaken to reduce stereotyping based on a range of domains including race, gender, sexuality and gender identity. In fact, Ally Sheedy has been honored for her work addressing discrimination against LGBT people.

The stigma attached to mental illness has also changed since the film came out. In 1999 the U.S. Surgeon General labeled stigma as perhaps the biggest barrier to mental health care. Research suggests that the majority of people hold negative attitudes and stereotypes towards people with mental illness. From a young age, children will refer to others as “crazy” or “weird;” these terms are used commonly throughout adulthood as well.

Often the negative stereotypes involve perceptions that people with mental illness are dangerous. This perception is fueled by media stories that paint violent perpetrators as “mentally ill” without providing the context of the broad spectrum of mental illness. This bias is not limited to people who are either uninformed or disconnected from people with mental illness; in fact, health care providers and even some mental health professionals hold these very same stereotypes. For years now groups such as the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill and the Rosalynn Carter Foundation have fought to reduce stigma. And these efforts have had some success. Recent legislation holds promise that people with mental health issues will receive care comparable to those with physical health issues. For example, The Affordable Care Act of 2013 expanded upon the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, providing more possibility that mental health conditions will be covered on par with physical health conditions.

We are also listening to The Breakfast Club’s message about bullying. In the movie, we are confronted with several forms of bullying, from John Bender taking Brian Johnson’s lunch to Andrew Clark describing a savage attack on another student for which he receives detention. We further see bullying from teachers as Principal Vernon (played by the late Paul Gleason) threatens physical assault against John Bender and locks him in a closet. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has labeled bullying as a major public health problem. Research on bullying — broadly defined as repeated aggressive acts in which there is an imbalance of power between the perpetrator and victim — demonstrates that victims of bullying experience stress-related physical health issues such as head and stomach aches and long-lasting mental health problems in the form of depression, anxiety and, in the most severe cases, suicide. And we are doing what we can to respond to this crisis, with several innovative prevention programs, outstanding advocacy groups, and anti-bullying laws in almost every state.

One of the most compelling examples of change in societal attitudes towards bullying is how bullying was portrayed in the recent movie 21 Jump Street. Channing Tatum plays a former bully who enjoys the social dominance and high self-esteem associated with bullying. But upon arriving at a new school, his bullying is universally met with scorn and derision. As one reviewer puts it, the movie shows that “being a bully is not a good look.” Similarly, one would assume that in the current environment the bullying behavior of Andrew Clark and Principal Vernon would be met with expulsion and legal action.

To be sure, we are only at the beginning of addressing these issues. We are nowhere near where we need to be on issues such as stereotyping, stigma of mental illness or bullying — much more needs to be done. But we are making progress.

Because thanks in part to The Breakfast Club, no matter how old we get, our hearts are still alive.

Last year, I gave a talk at Golden Gate University School of Law on Cultivating a Joyful Legal Career. When the dean for law career services invited me, I secretly panicked. “What do YOU know about joyful legal practice?” said my inner critic. I felt tremendous amount of pressure to come up with the “right answer.” Oh, and I had 30 minutes to do this.

I shared my dilemma with my friend, Linda Alvarez. In Linda’s typical wisdom, she suggested that I shouldn’t be focusing on giving “the answer” but rather, suggesting questions for the audience to consider. Of course! I thought. That makes perfect sense. Each of us has our own idea and definition of a joyful legal career.

For most lawyers, misery is the default. I was no exception. So, how did I go from misery to joy? It was pain. The pain got to be too great. My body was slowly breaking down. My life felt unbearable. It was this pain that brought me to joy.

My secret to finding joy? I made a conscious choice to cultivate a joyful legal practice. It didn’t happen overnight and it wasn’t easy but what could be more important? Here’s how I found joy in my legal practice.

Five Tips for Cultivating a Joyful Legal Career:

1) Listen.
Earlier in my career, I spent a lot of time chasing other people’s joy thinking it would bring me joy. I was also very strongly driven by a list of things I was “supposed to do.” It was when I paused long enough to listen to myself that I started tuning into my own sense of joy.

In today’s rapid paced life when we’re constantly distracted by external noise, carving out time in your day to pause and listen is critical. When I started listening to myself, I realized all those somatic symptoms — chronic insomnia, headaches and backaches were all messages. It was giving me clues on the parts of my life that wasn’t working.

Keep looking at the bandaged place. That’s where the Light enters you. –Rumi

Listening means to cultivate a sense of acceptance to both positive and negative thoughts, emotions and experiences. Often, it’s the painful experiences that lights the way.

2) Ask.
In my journey to cultivating a joyful legal career, I asked myself the following questions.

How can I be kind to myself?

This was the question Mark Abramson, the instructor for Mindfulness class at Stanford posed. He suggested asking the question then simply allow the question to resonate in your mind — without demanding answers.

Our brain is amazing at solving problems. Oftentimes, we pose questions like “Why am I such a failure?” When you pose such questions, it reinforces the idea that you are in fact a failure. The question “How can I be kind to myself?” gives the brain an opportunity to rewire itself in a positive way.

Why am I here?

You can pose this question narrowly — why am I here at this job? Or more broadly — why am I here on this earth? This question asks us to consider the deeper meaning of our existence.

When do I feel most alive?

This is the ultimate data gathering question. Paying close attention to those moments when you feel most alive can give you a lot of data on what makes you happy or unhappy. When considering this question, look for both positive and negative experiences. Emotions such as anger, frustration, hatred, may be on this list of when you most feel alive.

3) Practice non-doing every day.
With almost constant distraction: email, Twitter, instant messaging, Facebook, Instagram, iPhone, just to name a few, our mind is working overtime continuously. When’s the last time you sat silently and practiced non-doing? It’s interesting to note that in every religion, there’s a practice of sitting silently. When I sit to meditate, it’s a practice in simply being.

4) Practice patience.
This is probably one of the hardest practice for me. There is a natural cycle. Balancing my life so that I have the right amount of work and play requires daily effort. I have found gardening and cooking to be great teachers of patience. You can’t rush the seed that you planted in the ground. In practicing patience, I practice trusting. Trust in myself that I’ll be able to overcome whatever challenges or obstacles lies ahead. Trusting in life’s natural process of unfolding and revealing itself.

5) Finding my tribe
Finally, finding my tribe, others who are also committed to cultivating a joyful life has been absolutely key.

I’d love to hear from you! What tips do you have to offer for cultivating a joyful legal career?

On January 2, 1951, the Rex Morgan, M.D. comic strip featured a New Year’s greeting insisting to readers that time is measured by progress instead of simply by years. And it’s not a bad thought! But looking at the “headlines of the future” from 1951, one can’t help but be a little bummed out.

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The foundation for comfort outdoors, a sleeping bag is probably the most essential item of camping gear. But, they now come in a lot of styles. Mummy, rectangle, quilt, synthetic, down and backed or backless. Which is right for you?

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