Summer is officially almost here and joyfully we are right at the high points of the long days of light. And strangely, on June 20th-the Summer Solstice, the days will begin to shorten as we hit the swing back toward fall and winter. Fortunately, the pendulum moves slow so we can enjoy some longer summer evenings and rise early in the morning to our glorious Sun.

Michael and I have an early morning sadhana practice that we have been doing consistently for a couple of years now. We rise with the sun, have our morning wellness shot, which is warm water, tumeric, ginger powder, lemon juice, ashwaganda, and honey. Then we have our coffee in bed while we I read aloud our latest scripture study and discuss the content. Next we do about 30 minutes of chanting, and then meditation. Afterward we each draw our tarot cards for the day and write our thoughts in our journals. In all, it takes us about an hour and a half every morning. We get up early to do this, but we aren’t rushing around, we greet the day with our hearts open to spirit.

We are currently reading the works of a great saint, philosopher, and poet of India, named Adi Shankara (686-718 A.D.). From a young age he dedicated his life to God and spent his years teaching people about the idea of non-dualism, called Advaita Vedanta in Sanskrit. This is the belief that we are not separate from God, or Brahman, but in truth we are Brahman.

By the age of 10, Shankara was an academic prodigy, born into an upper caste of the Brahmin, he was fortunate enough to receive an education steeped in all the philosophies and teachings at the time. He was so adept at his studies; he had read and memorized all the spiritual scriptures, and even wrote commentaries on them. And moreover, he became disheartened with the emptiness of his book knowledge, and he noticed that his teachers also were remiss in adhering to the teachings themselves. He felt society had fallen into a form of spiritual decadence. That materialism and pleasure-seeking had taken over the hearts of humanity.

His youthful zealousness pushed him to leave home at a very young age and study with a famous mystic and seer named Govindapada, who initiated and mentored him into the whole practice of yoga and meditation. Very soon after that he felt ready to walk the roads of India to help bring people back to their hearts, and remember the sacredness of themselves and return to their practice of devotion to God and Truth.

He became well-known amongst the great thinkers and philosopher’s of his time as one who had a strong devotion to non-dualism, or that our soul (atman) energy is one consciousness (purusha), divided out into all the different forms that we see in creation (prakriti).

Shankara walked to and fro across the width of India seeking the main influencers who were promoting materialism and pleasure-seeking. He challenged them to a debate. He would make the deal that if he won, they would cease their selfish behavior and return to a life of devotion to Spirit. And if they won, he would stop preaching about the importance of devotion and become a pleasure-seeking householder.

Many took him up on his offer, but no one ever defeated him in the debate. Shankara’s dedication to upholding the true essence of the spiritual teachings and to shepherding society back to a heart-centered devotion influenced many teachers, saints, and gurus after him, who have trickled down the knowledge and practices today, even into this newsletter.

I am so inspired by his devotion to Truth. He could have easily followed the path of his Brahmin caste and led a life of ease and luxury. But inside his innocent ten year old heart, he knew he had to follow his inner knowing, which was not the mainstream pleasure-seeking decadence, but rather a return to living from a place of lovingkindness, truth, compassion and generosity. That these very qualities are the very qualities of Spirit, which is also him. He IS Great Spirit. We are ALL Great Spirit. Everything in creation is God.

I am sharing the story of Shankara because I believe we are also in a time of deep pleasure-seeking decadence. When I look around I see and hear the many people who feel disconnected from themselves, from society, from life. They see themselves as separate and alone in the world-without any relationship to their Spirit. Many of our brothers and sisters feel lost at sea floating aimlessly in the great ocean of life experience. And consequently look outside of themselves for comfort and connection. Sometimes, often times-they turn toward things that are not supportive to their well-being or health. They numb their loneliness or insecurity with drugs, alcohol, food, porn, shopping, scrolling, etc…or in their desperation for connection, they associate with people or places that degrade them or bring them to an even lower place of self-esteem.

I want to give a gentle reminder, particularly at this time of long light from our sacred Sun, that we are all very much connected. Just as the Sun has rays of individual light that flare out from it, those rays are not separate from the Sun. They ARE the Sun.

Similarly, each of us are individual rays of light consciousness, that splinter out from our collective central source of consciousness; we are an individual ray of Spirit, but not separate from Spirit.

We don’t have to find solace from outside forces. We have everything we need inside of us. We ARE the Sun-each of us shining brilliantly like a diamond. If we want to find peace in the external world, first we must find peace in our internal world. See your own divine brilliance and your splendor. And let it shine out.

Sit down by the fire of your inner Sun and remember who you truly are:

You are not the body.

You have a body.

You are not your thoughts.

You have thoughts.

You are Divine Love. Let this remembrance warm your heart and fill you with confidence and purpose. The contents of your spirit is Truth, Consciousness, and Bliss-what the yogis call satchitananda -or the purest, highest LOVE.

You my friend, are a ray of the Sun. You are essential to life, and you are not alone. Our hearts are all beating to the same drummer, and beautifully expressing ourselves as our own drum solo. If you are lonely or disconnected from the rhythm, tune into your inner sun and feel the pulse of all creation moving through you. This is called the ritam or the “cosmic flow of life”

(ritam is actually where we get the word rhythm).

In The Upanishads, which is a revered compilation of ancient Indian philosophy, they introduce an important mantra that we can work with to bring our head to our heart, or to bring our sense of separateness into oneness. This mantra is “Tat Tvam Asi”-which means “That Thou Art”. This is a core statement in Indian philosophy. It is emphasizing the interconnectedness and non-duality of our existence. The “That” is the nameless, formless, beginingless supreme consciousness that is within everything…what we call God-Source-Brahman.

And when you repeat the mantra to yourself-you are reminding your little self (ego), that you are actually your Big Self (God). And that God energy is interconnected to everything in Creation. So you are not separate or alone. In fact, alone is really all-One.

Another beautiful and ancient mantra to work with at this time of intense light is the Gayatri mantra. It is often called the “Mother of the Vedas”, and is one of the oldest, continuously chanted mantras in the world. Some date it back 5000 years. It is authorless, and said to be created by Brahman-God-Source itself to help us remember who we truly are.

One of my favorite teachers whom I am studying with at current time is Dr. David Frawley-I have referenced him many times before. This is what he has to say on the Gayatri mantra:

“The Gayatri Mantra to Savita, a powerful form of the Sun God, is the most important of all Vedic mantras, and one of the most commonly used in Yoga practices. The Gayatri Mantra is an important tool for drawing the spiritual energy of the Sun into our minds, hearts and bodies. Savita represents the Divine light of awareness hidden within us that Yoga activates to bring about the evolution of our consciousness beyond time and mortality.”

Many believe that by chanting these mantras we help to restore, nourish and enliven the cosmic fields through their vibrations. And since we are also a part of the cosmic unified field, it will also help restore, nourish and enliven each of us as well.

Happy chanting. Happy Summer. Happy plugging back into the Light of supreme consciousness. And shine on you crazy diamonds!

I leave you with the Gayatri mantra:

Oṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ

Tat savitur vareṇyaṃ

Bhargo devasya dhīmahi

Dhiyo yo naḥ pracodayāt

“We meditate upon the supreme light of the Divine transforming Sun (Savita) that it may stimulate our intelligence.”

-Rigveda 3.62.10/ Translated by Dr. Frawley

Much love and sunshine,

Katrina Marie