Vision Magazine March 2012 "We Are Human" by Vision magazine

inside Catalyst for Conscious Living

1281 University Avenue, Suite G San Diego, California 92103 www.visionmagazine.com Voice 619.294.2393 866.804.8444 Fax 619.296.1910 www.visionmagazine.com e-mail: comments@visionmagazine.com Executive Editor & Publisher Sydney L. Murray sydney@visionmagazine.com editor@visionmagazine.com Editor at Large Kennedy Carr Copy Editor Shannon Nies Graphic Design Sloan Gomez Intern Erin Tagan Contributing Writers Adrienne Abeyta, Dr. Toni Galardi, Niánn Emerson Chase, Brennan Lagasse, Alisha Olivier, Sydney L. Murray, Jessie Schiewe, Barbara Schiffman, Pamela Desvernine Susan Derby, Lauren Landress, Michael Raysses, Shannon Nies, Rebekka Lien, Cosibella Cristenas, Nikki Lyn Pugh, Debra Rosen Sales sales@visionmagazine.com Sydney L. Murray, Trevor Watson, Terry Nielsen, Ann Weir, Sloan Gomez, Katie Gallanti, Kennedy Carr Listings: Online & Print Sales sales@visionmagazine.com Vision Magazine® is a ® registered trademark of Vision Global, Inc. published on a monthly basis and distributed free of charge. Subscriptions are available for $27 for 12 issues (one year). All rights reserved. Advanced written permission must be obtained from Vision Magazine for partial or complete reproduction of any part or whole of Vision Magazine, including advertising material contained in its pages. Opinions expressed in Vision Magazine do not necessarily represent those of Vision Global, Inc., its employees or representatives. Vision Magazine disclaims any responsibility for claims made by its advertisers. Artwork, fiction, letters to the Editor, and manuscripts are welcome, however, unsolicited manuscripts without SASE will not be returned. Copyright © 2012 Vision Magazine

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Viewpoint Living on Earth from My Soul’s Point of View

7-8

Holistic Living Soft Winds Spiritual Learning Center

Greek To Me To Give + To Give = Forgive?

Ask The Lifequaketm Doctor Advice About Life Transitions

11-15 Mindstates Spring into Shakti Immersion in Love The Humanity in an Elusive Peace 16-19 Culture Remembering Paramahansa Yogananda Relax, We’re Human 26 Are You Ready for Tranquility 18

Astrology

20-21 Culture Music Makes Us Human 22-23

Healing Arts Reconnecting with the Power

24-27

Features A Conversation with Patricia Bragg A Tribute to David Simon

Community Resource

34-39

Vision Café Change is Our Only Consistency How Do You Choose To Occupy This World? A Quest for Freedom of Thought San Diego Women’s Week

Calendar

Visionary Artist Cola Smith

On the Cover

Dr. Patricia Bragg, Health Crusader

March 2012 Theme: We Are Human

Next Month, April 2012 Theme: Green Potential: Fair and Foul

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VIEWPOINT

Living on Earth from My Soul’s Point of View by Barbara Schiffman, ARCT, CHT

“W

e are not human beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a human experience,” said French philosopher-scientist and Jesuit priest Teilhard de Chardin. This simple yet profound concept has been quoted by inspirational authors from Stephen Covey to Wayne Dyer. But as we move into 2012—widely predicted as a year of shifts and Barbara Schiffman hopefully of conscious evolution for humanity—we still seem to be tribal warriors conquering coveted geologic, ideologic, sociologic, relational, and spiritual territories by sheer force. To me, humans as “spiritual beings” implies aligning with Trust, Peace, Love, and Unity, and taking actions accordingly in our daily lives. These positive traits are not always easy to see in the world today, however, especially in our national and global interactions. Our highly sensitive and very human “emotional buttons” inevitably get pushed by words and actions we consider “negative” or “wrong.” So we strike back to soothe our bruised egos by expressing our “correct” points of view online, in our blogs, on TV, or in print—or at least in the silent privacy of our thoughts. De Chardin’s insights come to mind whenever my emotional buttons get pushed or I react out of frustration. I’m glad this occurs less often as I get older and hopefully wiser as a result of consciously “working on myself.” But as I open up to bigger and bolder opportunities, Life doesn’t seem to get easier. In fact, as new challenges arise, new “buttons” seem to get pushed. I’ve always been spiritual and regularly participate in ceremonial, meditation, and prayer-oriented practices to stay centered, empowered, and energized. But lately I’ve found myself drawing inward as a protective reaction to the increasingly crowded Internet and media airwaves where everything always seems urgent and important even when it’s not. As access to the increasing number of options and opinions throughout our planet increases exponentially, going inward also keeps me from getting “info-whelmed.” Sometimes it feels like I’m a fragile flower sending deeper roots into the Earth to stay grounded while I reach upward towards the sun. As humans, we’re designed to learn through experiences—the good, the bad, and even the ugly. We also seem to evolve further and faster at the Soul-level by overcoming challenges. I’ve come to appreciate that humans learn the most (if not the most easily) through relationships—to our work and creative projects, to other humans who interact with us as lovers, partners, teachers, opponents, and/or allies, to our animal companions who teach and amuse us, as well as to the electronic devices that link our lives together around the planet. Life on Earth in 2012 is a web of relationships interlaced with each other. I think of this energy-archive of our collective Souls’ experiences throughout all lifetimes as Humanity’s Global Soul. Karl Jung called this our Collective Consciousness, Edgar Cayce viewed it as the Akashic Records, and quantum physicists currently define it as the Unified Field. As a Life & Soul Coach and Reader-Teacher of the Akashic Records, I’m often asked by clients and students about when and how they will find their Soul mates. While they hope this Cinderella-style quest will provide a quick fi x for loneliness or low self-esteem, relationships actually provide Life’s most challenging lessons. I’ve been married for over 33 years to Glenn Schiffman, whom I consider a brilliant

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spiritual teacher-writer even though my buttons often get pushed by what he does (or doesn’t do) in his role as my beloved husband. Thus, our relationship forces me to discover and accept new facets of my own human-ness every day. I appreciate how Glenn defined himself as an “Earth Man” in his 2/25/08 blog post at www.rootsandwingsfoundation.blogspot.com: “The word ‘humus’ means the organic composition of soil, and is also the root word of ‘human.’ I know my human being-ness is in the land, not in an ideology. My Soul was born from the Earth; the Earth is the Mother of my Being… I am an Earth Man. I am not alone; my tribe is vast, there are Earth People everywhere. We find our spiritual revelations in Nature…” I also see reflections of human qualities in nature, but I self-define, like de Chardin, as “a Soul having a human experience.” This has become even clearer to me from working actively in my Akashic Records. Through tuning into my unique thread of what I consider the “tapestry” of Humanity’s Collective Consciousness, I strive to live from the perspective of my Soul which is being expressed via my human personality. This is not easy but it is deeply empowering. I find comfort in the Soul-view of all humans—even those we don’t approve of or like—as “whole, complete and good” according to my Akashic Records teacher/mentor, Linda Howe, author of “Healing Through the Akashic Records.” From the Records’ multi-lifetime perspective, we’re all living this Life perfectly. We’re not doing it wrong or missing out on anything, and there’s actually no rush to achieve specific goals before we die. The good news is that we’re alive to enjoy life on Earth and evolve individually and collectively while striving toward the tipping point where all humans will be more open to viewing Life from the Global Soul’s perspective. To help us in this mission, our bodies are organic vehicles designed to help our Souls enjoy Life, our relationships are sacred mirrors and learning grounds, and our thoughts help us envision what can be and analyze what already exists so we can make better choices and take empowering actions. Fortunately, our Soul-level guidance system keeps us centered and grounded as we surf life’s emotions and gather experiences. I believe that when we stop fighting with each other and live from the Global Soul’s perspective, we will finally see all humans and also ourselves as Spiritual Beings and truly begin, as philosopher-poet John Lennon sagely imagined, to “live as one.” Barbara Schiffman is a Life & Soul Coach, Akashic Records Advanced Practitioner and Certified Teacher, and author/speaker specializing in life balance and personal evolution. She helps people enjoy their lives and evolve their Souls. Find out about her workshops, private Akashic Readings (in person and by phone), guided meditation CDs, books, and more at 818.415.3479, AkashicLA@gmail.com, http:// YourLifeandSoul.com, or http://Meetup.com/AkashicLA.

H O L I S T I C H E A LT H

Soft Winds Spiritual Learning Center A Conversation with Tessa Cason by Sydney L. Murray

oft Winds Spiritual Center is a unique new center in San Diego that had its grand opening this January. With a mission to “add value to an individual’s life by providing a fun and safe environment to learn and refine new skills,” Soft Winds brings balance into the lives of all who visit the center. Vision Magazine was fortunate to be able to speak with Tessa Cason, Life Coach, EFT Practitioner, Intuitive Counselor, and the director of Soft Winds. Vision Magazine: What is your background, and what led you to create Soft Winds Spiritual Learning Center? Tessa Cason: I have both my bachelor’s and master’s in Phys. Ed. I taught at San Diego State and Grossmont Community College. I’ve been spiritual all my life, and over the years, I’ve learned a number of different things that now I can apply to my EFT [Emotional Freedom Technique] practice into what I do, into teaching classes. So I wanted to be able to create a safe place that people could come to and learn about a lot of the new things that they maybe have not been exposed to before. VM: What are the services you offer? TC: We have classes for EFT, Developing Your Intuition, and Muscle Testing. Some of the other students have asked that I expand on that, so next month we’re going to be offering classes on EFT for Weight loss and EFT for Abundance. The EFT class that we have now is Saturday morning, and there are some people that can’t make Saturday morning, so we will probably have an evening class. I’ve been asked to do a Pendulum class, so we’ll do a Pendulum class. I’m also an EFT practitioner and life coach, so I do sessions with clients as well. VM: So it’s both a healing space as well as a teaching space. TC: True. I have a machine called a Biopulsar. It measures 45 different energetic systems in the body. It projects [onto a] computer screen, your aura. It gives percentages at which each of the chakras are functioning. Depending upon where the colors are located, what percentage of the chakras respond, I pretty much know what’s going on with somebody—physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. VM: How does that work? TC: It’s a reflexology machine, so it has 45 points that you put your hand on, and it will read the energy surge reflexology in your hand. Then it translates that into a color. VM: How did you come up with your name for your center? TC: You’re familiar with the elements and what the elements mean? VM: Yes. TC: So air, which is wind, represents our thoughts. Water represents our emotions. Fire represents our passionate energy. Earth represents our stability and our grounding. So if we have too much air, then it blows out the fire, creates hurricanes with our water and tornadoes with the earth. If we don’t have enough air, then fire can’t burn, nor can life be sustained, because we need to have oxygen to live. So we need to have some of it; we don’t want to be stagnant. We want it to be a gentle moment in our life. That’s how I came up with Soft

Winds. VM: For our March issue, our theme is “We Are Human.” What does that mean to you? TC: What I’m finding in the Center, particularly when I put people on the aura side, is that there’s a lot of violet, there’s a lot of purple, which are spiritual colors. A lot of the people that come to the Center understand that they are spiritual beings having an earthly experience. We understand that we’re here to learn various lessons, and we can translate the things that happen in our life to make us better people. VM: Do you think EFT can help physical Tessa Cason ailments as well as emotional? TC: Let me give you an example. In November 2005, I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. I started doing some research, and what I found out was that 20 years after being exposed to natural gas, you will have thyroid issues. In 1985, I moved into a brand new townhouse. When it was constructed, they severed a gas pipe—therefore 850 days not knowing that I was breathing natural gas. Twenty years ago, almost to the month, I started having health issues. I had some ultrasounds done, [which showed] that I had these nodules in my left thyroid. The doctors wanted a biopsy, so they did a biopsy. Then I went to a surgeon, and the surgeon said, okay I want my lab to look at the biopsy. They sent it to his lab, and they also came back with thyroid cancer. From the time that I was diagnosed until the time that I actually had surgery was about six to seven weeks. I did my EFT and I looked at all the emotional issues connected with the thyroid. Now, I didn’t create the gas leak, nor did I create the thyroid cancer, yet I believe that when something happens in the body,

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H O L I S T I C H E A LT H we can take a look at the emotions that are going on. So in the recovery room, the doctor walks in and he says, “Well, that was very interesting.” I said, “Did you find cancer?” And he said, “No.” I said, “Really? So those symptoms and things…going on with me—were those common symptoms for whatever this thing that you’re telling me I have?’ He said, “No. That’s what’s so puzzling.” I know that I changed the energy of that cancer, so it ended up not being cancer. VM: If there was one thing that each one of us can do each day to change the world, what would it be? TC: Kindness. Smile. I’ve seen it over and over again when people get together. Once somebody smiles and they start a conversation, all of the fear goes away. So, I think smiling, and appreciation. Both of those will also bring us into present time, which I think is very important. VM: And if there was one practice that you do every day that has really helped you through the journey that you’re on, what would it be? TC: Exercise. I’m 62 years old, and when I was 7 years old I decided to be a P.E. teacher. Even to this day, I’ve never had any tobacco, coffee, cigarettes, or street drugs. I believe I had to be a model of what I taught. VM: In 2012, what is on the horizon for the Soft Winds Center and for yourself? TC: For the Center, I plan on growing it, offering more classes that I will teach, bringing in other instructors. I want it to be a place where people can come and hang out. We have classes on the second, third, and fourth Saturday, and after we finish the class on a fourth Saturday, [clients] say, “Are you coming in next Saturday?” I say, “There’s no class.” And they’re like, “Oh.” Because I put people on the Aura Star and it’s like a freebee day. I will give them readings and work on whatever they want to work on. It’s also a great learning experience because other people will sit in and listen as I’m telling them, this is what this organ means, this is what this color means with that organ, this is what the chakras mean.

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VM: If you had a teacher when you were young that was you, how do you think your life would change with that kind of early awareness? TC: It would have made a huge difference, because as a child, I got in trouble for being intuitive. [Because of this], I turned my intuition off. It would have been nice to have had somebody that would have allowed me to explore that. VM: You found the opportunity, at least, to shape minds through your P.E. education, because even though it wasn’t overt, I’m sure you affected people. TC: Yes. And I think I have a very diverse background. Even though I had both my bachelor’s and master’s in Phys. Ed., after that I started a greeting card company. One time, I decided I wanted to know why some of my cards sold or some of them didn’t, so I put them out—best-sellers on one side, slow-sellers on the other side. And I realized that it had to do with color. So I started to learn all about colors. When I would do trade shows, my reps knew how to sell my products, so I ended up reading people’s palms, which ended up being intuitive readings. For seven years, it [doing readings] gave me this opportunity to be able to pull information when ever I needed it. Then when I was in Mexico (after the gas leak) I ran a clinic for three years. It gave me the opportunity to talk to people that had physical illnesses and [see] what was going on with their emotions. I am a life coach that wants to help people with what they’re creating in their life, but I don’t tell them what’s wrong. I’ll ask questions and lead them in the direction that they need to go to try to figure it out for themselves. It’s just so much more fun when you get the “a-ha” yourself. To learn more about Tessa Cason and Soft Winds Spiritual Learning Center, please visit www.softwindscenter.com or call 619.752.6582.

“To err is human; to forgive, divine.” —Alexander Pope “There’s nothing heavier than a grudge. But if you’re going to carry one, don’t forget to use your legs.” —My Uncle Tasso

his month’s theme, “We are human,” is, as simple declarations go, deceptively unremarkable. You may read the word ‘we’ to refer to you, the magazine’s readership, the collective out there that are sitting in a café somewhere, reading this very column, thinking that ‘we’ refers to them. And you might be right. But maybe the ‘we’ the theme refers to is the editorial staff here who feels remiss for offering up a theme as open-ended as that, so that “We are human” isn’t so much a theme as it is an apology for not being more creative. Maybe ‘we’ refers to all mankind, including that guy a few tables over who is Skyping on his laptop in a voice so loud and annoying that surely he isn’t human. He’s a hologram with a faulty sense of decorum who taxes your sense of forgiveness so heavily that you’re on your way to becoming a deity right now, even as your smoldering stare burns a hole in the back of his empty head. I’m not deceived by the ontological booby trap concealed in the scant shadow cast by these three seemingly simple words. It’s a bait-and-switch; if I focus on the meaning of ‘we’ I miss the crux of the matter, which is the word ‘human.’ What does it mean to be human human?? (My italics.) As questions go, it’s a red herring stuffed into a hot potato wedged into a can of worms deeply lodged within Pandora’s Box. Aha!—suddenly I see the method behind the magazine’s madness… Because in this day and age, the issue of what it means to be human is as up for grabs as you can imagine. (Anyone watching the recent Republican presidential debate can attest to as much.) The obvious controversy in this regard would be the topic of abortion. Or corporate personhood. Or some combination of the two: When does life begin for a corporation? At conception, when the idea for the enterprise is formed? When the corporation is chartered? Or perhaps not until said company has evolved to the point where it is “viable,” i.e., it can anonymously donate millions of dollars to the political candidate of its choice? That strikes me as an idea that could indeed leave the citizens united. But let’s look at an even more pointed example: stem cell research. Stem cell research has been relegated to society’s back burner. That’s because it’s arguably too sophisticated an issue to be glommed onto by demagogues who would rather erect Tea Party scarecrows to banish the black crows of meaningful discourse on issues we thought we settled long ago. Stem cell research depends on the use of human blastocysts, fertilized human eggs whose state of development is so nascent that they are incapable of being detected by pregnancy tests. That’s because they’ve yet to negotiate their way through the fallopian tube and be implanted in the womb. For the last 30 years, blastocysts have been used to shed light on and possibly cure human diseases as varied as spinal cord injuries, Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, oh, and if this issue lacks irony, infertility. That’s right: this method, which has been vilified by the radical Christian UnLeft (there’s nothing ‘right’ about them), has been used to cure infertility. (Paging Mr. Kafka! Mr. Franz Kafka!) Lately, stem cell research has been especially hard hit by what has become known as the Personhood Movement, an attempt by pro-lifers to define ‘life’ as beginning at conception. As in at that moment when the sperm and egg meet, shake hands and proceed, arm in arm. That conception. (Once again, my italics.) The same conception that results in a fertilized egg. Which is used in stem cell

GREEK TO ME research. To cure diseases. For people who are unquestionably alive and suffering right now. now. (I have no idea whose italics those are, but those are definitely my underlines.) It makes “We are human” harder to swallow because once we get past the biological considerations of our DNA, don’t we as humans have a responsibility to something Michael Raysses and Bou Meng on the grounds of the S-21 camp in Cambodia where Mr. Meng beyond sheer science? To meet was tortured in the mid and late-1970s the promise of our humanity by fulfilling our moral obligation to those who exist right now, those who suffer and those whose very lives are at stake? I say we do. We are an odd bunch, humans. We act in ways that defy logic and demean our loftiest ideals by inflicting unimaginable horror on one another in the name of national interest, corporate profit, or just because it’s what we’ve always done, historically speaking. I just don’t know how to get through my day-to-day differences to achieve the hallowed ground of forgiveness that deities walk on. Occasionally, though, I become aware of someone whose life points me in what I feel is the right direction. One such person is Bou Meng. I met Mr. Meng when I was in Cambodia. He is one of the few survivors of the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime. A painter, his life was spared when he was given the job of drawing portraits of the depraved leader, Pol Pot. Mr. Meng fully embodies the phrase “we are human.” Though he was brutalized by humans, he was able to capture their images to a degree that saved his life. He survived the loss of his wife and family, and lived to testify in open court against his torturer. He wrote a book about his tragic life, something he sells from a table on the same grounds where he suffered unspeakably for four years. If this man who was systemically brutalized can find it within himself to occupy the very site where he was savaged and sell his story to those who pass through, how can I not find a way to more humanely confront those with whom I disagree? I hope his example provides the missing element in the equation that has left me feeling less than charitable when it comes to my opponents. I am human; they are too. Claiming my humanity, at least initially, has little to do with them. I must start by forgiving myself for my shortcomings, which is definitely Greek to me. Michael Raysses is a writer/NPR commentator who lives in Malibu, California. E-mail him at MichaelRaysses@hotmail.co MichaelRaysses@hotmail.com m.

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LIFE QUAKE ™

Ask the

Dear Reader: Dreams can give us very prescient information. We know now that there is no such thing as linear time—past, present, and future. When we are asleep, our mind is able to step out of this present reality and step into what we think of as the future. In my practice as a change strategy coach, I have my clients begin from the first session keeping a pad of paper next to their beds to record their dreams. You are fortunate. Most people do not remember their dreams until they learn how to

LifeQuake™ Doctor Dr. Toni Galardi

pring is coming, and with it will come some interesting astrological transits. We haven’t seen this kind of lineup from the stars since the tumultuous era of major social movements in the 1960s. It has been suggested by many futurists that we will see war again. I urge you all to clean house internally of your own self—limiting beliefs that put you at war with yourself. What happens on a global level occurs within each of us first, and that is the good news. We can change the world from within! Dear Dr. Toni: I have been an entertainment executive for 10 years. I need to keep the details a bit obtuse. I have to be very discrete. I have been very successful at what I do, I know a lot of famous people, and I feel dead inside. I feel like I am phoning it in. I know I need to leave my job. I even know what I want to do. I want to be a writer. Lately I’ve been having dreams in which I’m flying and have wings on my back. I see this light above me and it is calling me, and then I look down and I see the world in its suffering and I find myself starting to fall. I’ve also had a recurring dream about earthquakes. What is this about? What should I do? I picked up this magazine while having coffee on impulse because I’m not a new-agey person and haven’t been religious for a long time. So, my question is, should I quit my job? I have money to live on for a year, but then what? Confused, Wannabe Scribe

stimulate dream recall. So, let’s look at this dream: You are flying with wings on your back. This may be symbolic of transcendence. As you look up, you see the light and it is CALLING YOU. When you look down, you start to fall as you see the part of the world that is suffering. If this were my dream, I would say that I am being called by my soul to express that in me which lifts me up, expresses my passion, makes me lighter. Looking down is a metaphor for a perception of reality that focuses on the world’s lack. There are many blessings in this world, and when you are expressing your full potential self, you can see them. You don’t say how old you are, but life is short. Pursue your dream and trust that you will be in the right place with the right people and right opportunities within a year. I would also suggest that this dream is saying that you are being called to develop the spiritual side of yourself. This is a dream about you evolving, transcending the negative ego that is telling you to hold onto false security. Now, about your earthquake dreams. In my book, “The LifeQuake Phenomenon,” I share that earthquakes are a metaphor for us. We came from Mother Earth and just like her, we also have layers around our core. These layers are made up of our false programming. When the soul decides to emerge in a more authentic form, it puts pressure on these layers through the fault lines, just like in earthquakes, and a crisis shows up in our lives that forces us to wake up. My sense is that your unconscious is warning you: If you do not take action and follow what you are being called to do next, you will bring in a crisis to assist your soul in its path. Picking up this magazine was indeed a divine coincidence. I hope you pick it up again and read my response! I want to add one more thing, and this is for all of us. Many people are having earthquake and tsunami dreams these days. I do think we will see more earthquakes and that the East Coast will experience them again as well. However, I think it is our mass consciousness that is in upheaval as we go through this next evolutionary transition, and it is our consciousness that may affect earth changes. Remember, what we know from quantum physics is that there is no separation between organisms; we are all one. When we make brave choices that express our authentic selves, the world thrives. Dr. Toni will be speaking on The Wealth for Women Global Summit along with 17 powerful New Thought Leaders, including Marci Shimoff and John Gray. Just by signing up you will have access to $500 in free gifts and 90 percent off all the services of these amazing speakers. Go to www.wealthforwomensummit. com. Dr. Toni’s interview will air Tuesday, March 27 at 1:00 p.m. PST. Dr. Toni Galardi is a licensed psychotherapist, life transitions strategist, and author and is available for consult by phone or SKYPE. You can reach her through her Web site, http://www.lifequake.net, DrToni@LifeQuake.net, or 310.890.6832.

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Spring into Shakti by Cosibella Cristenas

hakti Fest is a celebration of life, of creation, of the Divine Feminine that dwells within each one of us. It is a more intimate version of Bhakti Fest, which has been held in September for the past three years. Thousands have come to be part of a rapidly expanding community of people devoted to following the path of the heart through yoga, kirtan, and spontaneous expressions of love, joy, and well-being! In the stark beauty of the desert of Joshua Tree, California, we will come together to honor the Goddess though prayer, chanting, movement, meditation, ceremonies, and play. We will create a sacred space in which we can expand our hearts and minds, unite our voices and visions, and luxuriate in the sweet embrace of Sacred Feminine. The three-day festival, which will include Mother’s Day, will be a profound opportunity to move more deeply into our relationship with the Earth, each other, and ourselves, and to express gratitude for the abundance and grace that we receive each day. Two Yoga halls will offer classes suitable for all ages and ability levels. Inspirational teachers such as Saul David Raye, Shiva Rea, Sara Ivanhoe, Govindas and Radha, Kia Miller and Tommy Rosen, Hemalayaa, Micheline

M I N D S TAT E S Berry, Bhava Ram and Laura Plumb, Kristin Olson, Peter Guinosso, and Cristi Christenson will take your practice to another level. Sublime, passionate, and transcendental, devotional music and chanting are also heart medicine. Kirtan artists sharing this at Shakti Fest will include Donna De Lory, Wah!, Jai Uttal, C.C. White, Durga Das (David Newman) and Mira, Sean Johnson and The Wild Lotus Band, Girish, Larisa Stow and Shakti Tribe, Mayapuris, Govindas and Radha, Joey Lugassy, and Arjun continued on page 46

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M I N D S TAT E S

Immersion in Love An Interview with Tom and Trisha Kelly by Sydney L. Murray

he Soul Center Foundation for Spiritual Awakening in Encinitas will be the host of an exciting upcoming retreat called Immersion in Love. From Wednesday, March 14 through Sunday, March 18, Soul Center founders Tom and Trisha Kelly will “offer the best of both worlds [East and West] for guiding awakening souls in the New Aquarian Age.” Attendees will have the unique opportunity to “journey into absolute knowing of your oneness with Spirit through the magical healing powers of our sweet Mother and her five elements.” Here is what Tom and Trisha shared with Vision about their upcoming retreat and how we as humans can all immerse ourselves in love: Vision Magazine: How can we live from the heart? Tom and Trisha Kelly: We can truly live from the heart when our lives are given over completely and unconditionally to Source—in thought, word, action, and desires. It also means being fearless, not allowing fear, which is an unconscious reaction to an anticipated outcome, to determine one’s response. Fearlessness in this context does not mean doing rash things; rather, it is the ability to redirect emotions triggered by prior circumstances, conscious or unconscious, to more positive expression. Living from the heart supports the soul to trust life and the perfection of the Divine Plan. VM: Is that always a good idea? TTK: The extreme experiences of a Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, or Viktor

Frankl show us that not only is it always a good idea, but that it is a necessity to truly conquer one’s lower, human nature and discover peace and harmony within. All of the people we consider to be saints, sages, avatars, or great souls have this one thing in common: the ability to unconditionally live from the heart. By doing this, we connect with the love aspect of Source. When we don’t achieve this, we shut the divine feminine aspect off and operate primarily from the head. You can see the result of this imbalance in the world today. VM: How would you differentiate between human nature and divine nature? TTK: Human nature, or ego-consciousness, consists of the lower instincts of the body, mind, and emotions such as sex, anger, greed, protection, and survival. Its focus is the continuation of physical life for a limited time on earth. Divine nature is the aspect of Spirit existing as the Soul expressing itself as peace, harmony, love, joy, and wisdom. It is the immortal experience of a consciousness that never ends. We have a saying: Divine nature is pure sunlight; human nature

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M I N D S TAT E S is like a dense, foggy day. VM: How can one integrate their spiritual life into their everyday life? TTK: By cultivating a personal relationship with God and then practice by seeing the Divine in everyone and everything, we can begin to consider all of life to be spiritual. The truth is that there is no such thing as a material life and a spiritual life; it is all spiritual. If you look at life from the big picture of wisdom, it is an opportunity for the soul to evolve in greater consciousness until it masters the physical realm. On a practical level, integration can begin by correcting bad habits and avoiding negative environments. This is often an unpopular idea, as many of our worst environments come into our lives through our own habits of recreation such as movies, television, books, and the company we keep. The mind is like a computer, and whatever we put into it stays and is very hard to erase. Programs that are repeated over and over again go deep into the subconscious and become crystallized. These crystallized habits of thinking and being come up and exert their influence without being invited. So it is cultivating a high spiritual culture within that the tastes of the soul begin to replace the gross appetite of the personality self in one’s outward life. VM: What is the most important practice of your day? TTK: Cultivating God-awareness in meditation and then carrying its after effects throughout the day is the most important practice. Secondarily is the habit of introspection and journaling. These give us the opportunity to reflect on our relationship with the Divine and how our higher nature is doing on a day-to-day basis. It also helps us to communicate through our Higher Selves with the Holy Ones guiding our lives. VM: What do you see on the horizon for 2012? TTK: 2012 provides a great opportunity for humanity to grow up spiritually. We seem to have two obvious choices on the planet right now: either use the opportunities we are given through global circumstances to understand yoga—the oneness of all life—and uplift our consciousness, or be more miserable than ever before. The former will give us the ability to solve the world’s problems using conscious collaboration. VM: How can each one us make a difference in the lives of those around us? TTK: Through the realization that what we see “out there” in the world is, in reality, a projection of the relationships we have created in our mind. So it comes back to the basic tenant; work on the way you see things, and what you see changes. There is no way around it; to serve our loved ones and cultivate greater relationships, we need to do our inner work and just be the love, peace, and harmony we want to see in the world. What most people don’t realize in Gandhi’s famous saying is that the energy of change is carried around us in our auric field. Everyone we pass benefits from this and is uplifted according to the receptivity they have cultivated. That is probably why a great soul like Ammaji travels the world hugging people, so she can share with them the great light and energy of her being. No words need to be said; the power is transferred just by being in her presence. That is the change we can build on a daily basis and, like a spiritual Johnny Appleseed, create gardens of light wherever we go. VM: What has been your greatest life lesson? TTK: There have been a few, the greatest being the practice of putting Godrealization first and allowing the rest of life to revolve around it, rather than trying continued on page 38 W W W.VI S I O N M AG A Z I N E .C O M • M A R C H 2 012 • VI S I O N M AG A Z I N E

M I N D S TAT E S

The Humanity in an Elusive Peace A Conversation with Doug Noll by Sydney L. Murray

Sat., 31 March: Darshan: 7:30 p.m. All are welcome to come and receive a personal blessing from Louix, and to be enchanted by the world devotional music of Pranam, who will be performing live. Seaside Center for Spiritual Living, 1613 Lake Drive, Encinitas, CA

Fri., 6 April: Darshan: 7:30 p.m. Receive darshan from Louix in celebration of Good Friday. Prema Drala Ashram, 25742 La Serra, Laguna Hills, CA

Sat., 21 April: One-Day Retreat: 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Immerse yourself in this spiritual Master’s wisdom, grace, love, and humor as you receive His personal guidance to move you into deeper levels of self-mastery. Cost: $150.00 (includes vegan lunch) Center for Spiritual Living, 25782 Obrero Drive, Mission Viejo, CA To join Louix for live videoconferences on the first and third Thursday of each month, please visit: www.LouixLIVE.org * All events, except the retreat and videoconferences, are by donation *

To register for the retreat or for more information, please contact Samantha: phone: (888) 288-3735 • e-mail: samantha@Louix.org To register online, go to: www.LouixOC.org All attending these events consent to having their names, voices, images, and likenesses recorded and used for commercial purposes. All proceeds from these events will be used to support the Louix Dor Dempriey Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational organization.

oug Noll has graciously agreed to be present for a very important discussion on March 17 presented by Vision Magazine on the topic of his new book, “Elusive Peace.” This brilliant and humble man can offer you more insight in his words than I can offer in his introduction. He is truly amazing. Vision Magazine: Could you please tell us a little bit about your background? Doug Noll: I’m a lawyer, though I don’t practice law anymore. Today my professional work is peacemaking, mediation, and arbitration. I also do a lot of training and workshops in various places around the United States and around the world, teaching my processes and theories to people who are interested in learning about how to really work with conflict in an effective way. I have a radio show, and I’m a blogger and a speaker. VM: I know that you talk about bringing spirituality into modern mediation. How would that work? DN: Whether you’re in conflict with yourself or with another human being, or you’re acting as a mediator or peacemaker, the first thing you have to do is to find your own center. You have to be in a place of complete equipoise—nonjudgmental, nonreactive, not critical. Really the only way to get there is through contemplative practice, whether it’s through meditation, tai chi, yoga, or any other of the many types of contemplative practices that are out there. Developing your own spiritual self is, in my mind, an essential aspect of being an effective peacemaker. A lot of spiritual practices ask you to touch the oneness within, and when you can work and ground yourself from the oneness within (in conflict), you draw on that power that, at many different levels, makes it quite a substantial difference in the outcomes you get when you’re working with people in conflict. VM: Tell us about your new book, “Elusive Peace.” DN: Imagine what it would be like to mediate or create peace between the Syrians, between the rebel forces in Homs of the al-Assad, Alawite regime. How would you even go about bringing these parties to a table—if you could get them to a table—and have them sit down and talk to each other and try to figure out how to peacefully resolve their differences? It turns out that the people that we would normally rely on to do this sort of work—international diplomats, politicians UN officials—don’t have a clue about how to do it. My book was written to explain why it is that people that we expect to be able to do this work can’t do it, won’t do it, don’t do it, and what really needs to happen in order to bring modern peacemaking and mediation techniques to international conflicts, or even internal civil wars like Libya and Syria. If we really want peace in this world, we have to push our leaders much, much harder than we have been. VM: Why do you believe current diplomatic intervention often fails? DN: There are a lot of different factors that go into it. One, these conflicts are very complex, extremely emotional, and violent. Then you lay onto that, that the people who are doing the work really don’t have the skill—that’s not to say they aren’t intelligent or well-intentioned—that it takes to manage and work with a deep intractable violent conflict. There’s a science behind this. And most of the people have assumptions and they have a worldview that is completely unsupportable by the modern science of mediation

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M I N D S TAT E S and neuroscience and how we know how people make decisions and how they emotionally respond in these kinds of situations. And third, just plain lack of experience. For example, a year ago, the Ivory Coast in Africa was suffering through a huge election dispute. The incumbent got ousted and he didn’t want to give up power. So who does the African Union send to try to mediate this thing, a guy named Raila Odinga; he is the prime minister of Kenya. The only mediation he has ever done in his entire life is the mediation that I talk about in “Elusive Peace.” It was a complete disaster initiated by Doug Noll Kofi Annan, who’s not a very good mediator either. VM: Our theme for our March issue is “We Are Human.” How do you believe our humanness plays both into a positive outcome in mediation and also a negative outcome in mediation? DN: Everything that we do comes to our brains, and we have two very interesting, different capacities. We have a capacity for extreme violence [and] extreme self-protection; it’s automatic, it’s pre-conscious, and it’s outside of our control, and that’s what gets us into trouble. But at the same time, we have an enormous capacity for love and for bonding with other people, and for community, and an enormous capacity for collaboration and cooperation. What it means to be human is to embrace all of this and figure out how to manage [these different capacities] in a conscious, creative way. A peacemaker helps people do that, because oftentimes people can’t do that for themselves. When people get reactive and triggered and they’re in deep conflict, there’s no way they’re thinking about peace. Part of my job is to remind people of their ability to connect within themselves and to connect with the people around them. And over a period of hours, if not days, people do reconnect. VM: Can you tell us about Mediators Beyond Borders? DN: This is an organization that has been around for four or five years. It is comprised of people who are mediators—and people who are interested in mediation and are aligned in this professional work—who are going into areas that are not served by the other NGOs in the world, building peacemaking capacity and mediation capacity so people can solve their own problems on the ground. It works very quietly behind the scenes to help people to not necessarily to engage in the actually mediation work themselves, but teach people how to do the work; they can do it internally. VM: If there was one person who has most inspired you in your mediation work, who would that be? DN: I went back to school and got my master’s degree in Peacemaking and Conflict Studies, and one of the courses I took was on historical peacemakers. In that group of peacemakers that I studied—we did Tolstoy, Freud (interestingly), Gandhi, Martin Luther King, and Dorothy Day—I was probably most impressed with Dorothy Day. She was the founder of the Catholic Workers Movement, working during the Depression, just showing what happens when one person can go out and—without really thinking about making a difference—[do] stuff and [make] things happen. I think [that is] when I first got the inkling that you don’t have to be a great man to do great work; you can be anybody. And the proof of that is in the prison project. I don’t know if you know about that… VM: I do. That’s my next question. The Prison of Peace project [in Chowchilla, CA]? DN: We were invited into a prison by an inmate and said, this looks really interesting, let’s do this, maybe we can help these women. And it’s turned out to get this international notoriety, and we’re winning all these awards. Not

that that’s important. But what’s important is that you can do work like that, go to places where you wouldn’t think you could possibly make peace, and train people and be effective. VM: How can each one of us affect a more peaceful existence in our personal relationships? DN: Become more conscious. Become more conscious and self-aware of our own emotional experiences, and then try and become more conscious and aware of our partner’s emotional experiences. From there, you can find a place of compassion. Try not to be judgmental, try not to be critical, try not to be reactive. There are exercises and tools for doing all of this; learn how to act and create a deep, empathic connection. It takes a lot of practice, but once you get it, it’s an amazing gift that you can give to people. VM: Given all your work and experience, do you have hope for the world? DN: I do. Look at where we are today compared to where we were 50 or 60 years ago. There are still conflicts in the world; 50 years ago, they would have been treated as sort of non-events by the media. Today, because of the Internet and because of the instantaneous communications, the conflicts that really don’t pose a national threat to the United States still make a lot of news because we have this amazing ability to communicate. Yes, there are going to be places that have violence. We have a lot of problems we’re still sorting through from post-European imperialism and colonialism. I think we can accelerate the process of peace by using the tools that we’ve developed in the last 15 years in a more conscious, deliberative way. Even if we don’t use the tools, I think eventually we will evolve towards more peace, more cooperation, and more international collaboration. Douglas Noll is a professional mediator/peacemaker committed to teaching the principles of achieving peace through nonviolent or adversarial methods. He is the author of several books, including his most recent, Elusive Peace: How Modern Diplomatic Strategies Could Better Resolve World Conflicts. Visit www. lawyertopeacemaker.com and www.elusivepeace.com.

Spring Renewal Retreat April 6-8 2012

Begins 6pm Friday to 2pm Sunday Joshua Tree Retreat Center • www.jtrcc.org Together we will: • Clear the mental & emotional clutter! • Have FUN and RESTORE! • Spring forward forwa AND UPWARD into pure Spirit! Spiritual spring cleaning and renewal! Clear the mental clutter, the emotional baggage, restore and have fun together with like-minded souls. Relaxing into our hearts, and rising in Love we begin again!

Clear your inner clutter! Renew, Restore, Refresh

Run Away with me to Joshua Tree!

Contact jennifer@jenniferhadley.com (209) 647-1682 Discount for Vision Readers

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C U LT U R E

60 Years Later:

Remembering Paramahansa Yogananda and His Devotion to Peace and Harmony by Susan Derby and Lauren Landress

ixty years ago, on March 7, 1952, Paramahansa Yogananda, one of the preeminent spiritual figures of our time, entered mahasamadhi, a yogi’s final conscious exit from the body at the time of physical death. Yet the spiritual legacy of the author of the landmark classic, “Autobiography of a Yogi,” and founder of the Self-Realization Fellowship, continues to flourish today, drawing more and more seekers to the sacred principles and spiritual practices of Yoga. The extraordinary circumstances surrounding Sri Yogananda’s passing extended after death as well. The director of Forest Lawn Memorial-Park testified that “no physical disintegration was visible in [Yogananda’s] body even twenty days after death…” Defying all scientific expectations, Yogananda’s body was in a state of immutability. Born in 1893 in India, Paramahansa Yogananda arrived in America in 1920, marking the beginning of an escalation of interest in Eastern spiritual traditions in the Western world. That same year, he founded his international nonprofit society, Self-Realization Fellowship. In his decades of service in the United States and abroad, this “father of Yoga in the West,” as he came to be known, made an enduring mark on the spiritual landscape of the world through his inspirational books, teachings, and public lectures. Sri Yogananda devoted himself to fostering a greater harmony and cooperation among all religions, races, and nationalities, and to helping people realize and express more fully in their lives the beauty, nobility, and divinity of the human spirit. He brought knowledge of Yoga, meditation, and guidance on the art of

Spiritual Counseling Your Inner Journey Getting To Know Your Self And God You will learn to...

balanced spiritual living to millions of men and women. His passing in 1952 occurred in Los Angeles, following his delivery of a speech at a banquet honoring Dr. Binay R. Sen, India’s Ambassador to the United States. His speech concluded with several lines from his poem, “My India”: “Where Ganges, woods, Himalayan caves, and men dream God—I am hallowed; my body touched that sod.” And then, following these words, he fell to the floor. As so much of Paramahansa Yogananda’s life work focused upon fostering world harmony, on this 60th anniversary of his mahasamadhi, Self-Realization Fellowship offers the following excerpts from his teachings on bringing more harmony into one’s life (and thus, in the world) from an essay published in Sri Yogananda’s “Journey to Self-Realization: Collected Talks and Essays on Realizing God in Daily Life, Vol. III” (copyright ©1997, Self-Realization Fellowship, Los Angeles. All rights reserved). Divine Harmony by Paramahansa Yogananda This world is not the same to all people. Each one lives in his own little domain… Peace and harmony may reign in one person’s world; strife and war in another’s. But whatever be the circumstances of one’s environment, it consists of both an inner world and an outer world. The outside world is the one in which your life engages in action and interaction. The world inside of you determines your happiness or unhappiness, and also your fitness or unfitness, expressed in the world outside. The hand of the One who made these worlds tuned them to harmonize with each other. Harmony is their inherent nature… *** Consider everything that happens as a note in the symphony of the Cosmic Conductor. Individual notes seem meaningless until heard in relation to the whole composition. In the Creator’s cosmic magnum opus, which has been playing throughout all time, everything—storm, death, love, life—has its part in the medley. All unite in a universal rhythm of harmony, which is heard only when the soul is attuned to God in meditation… *** We do not always see the things that are nearest to us. We pass by riches that lie close at hand and chase after rainbows… Quiet the outgoing mental restlessness and turn the mind within. Harmonize your thoughts and desires with the all-fulfilling realities you already possess in your soul. Then you will see the underlying harmony in your life and in all nature. If you harmonize your hopes and expectations with this inherent harmony, you will float through life on buoyant wings of peace. The beauty and depth of yoga lies in its bestowal of this invariable tranquility.

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C U LT U R E

Relax,

We’re Human by Brennan Lagasse

t’s okay. We’re humans. We’re not perfect, and really, there’s no such thing as “perfection.” Feel better? You should, as it takes a lot of pressure off to realize that, as human beings, we all make mistakes. In fact, the mentality that points one towards attaining a false sense of perfection might be one of the most detrimental paths a human can follow. That said, one of the greatest gifts in being human is in recognizing that not only are we not perfect, but it’s actually okay to make mistakes. It’s human. Taking that one step further, it’s beyond acceptable to make mistakes, because when you learn from your mistakes, that’s when you’re actually able to attain your own unique sense of “perfection.” The idea of “perfection” is about as loaded a term as possible in this day and age. At some point someone decided that perfection was an attainable attribute that would be the highest calling of humanity. That’s a whole other piece. For now we’ll stay with our own sense of humanity. History has shown that as times change, humans, and the culture and society they have created, change with it. In 2012 it’s still easy to see financial affluence as an indicator of happiness, which somehow then translates out to an indicator of perfection. Actual translation: if you have money, you have happiness, so then your life must be perfect. It’s not an easy thing to analyze others people’s lives so intimately, but then again it’s not so easy to really know what goes on behind closed doors either. Are people who have enough money to live luxuriously really that much happier than you? Does financial exuberance really get humans that much closer to a state of perfection? Just because someone is wealthy in terms of finances does not mean that all their other ducks are in a row. Some people are very well off financially and some are not. The thing is, everyone seems to be striving for a sense of perfection by their own accord no matter what their financial status is, but no one ever seems to actually attain what they’re striving for if they’re always trying to be “perfect.” Interestingly, those without much means to financial well-being, who are struggling to achieve a more sustainable or lucrative existence in terms of monetary status, usually locate money as the one thing that would make things easier. Sometimes, to be as transparent as possible, I can fully understand that from both a theoretical and personal standpoint. But on the flip side, many people who have that item checked off—the ones who seem “perfect” in the eyes of those without such financial stability—are almost always the ones searching for something else. The life they wished they were living but can’t because of their attachment to financial gain. The relationships that have failed or don’t really exist except on a superficial level because their other orientation to life has eroded a sense of humility to connect

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with others outside of their class. Moreover, the connections to people within their class are as superficial as the ones outside of their class. Personally, what I find most profound— something I know I personally need to continue to work on always—is that in shedding this weight of attaining perfection, recognizing our own flaws in simply being human, and respecting that living one’s life with autonomy in the sense of life by personal design, is a pinnacle of human existence. As a human I will offer but one “rule” that, to me, sums up the misconception of attaining perfection, looking down upon the path of others, and lusting over aspects of another’s life that isn’t so close to home: What you do must not interfere with the ability for another to design their own life and attain well-being by their own definition. Now, that thought has many cruxes, I know. I know of the many contradictions that are constantly illuminated in the struggle to be a human on this planet and promote good for not only yourself, but also all the life force energies around you. But in recognizing that we are all at the mercy of powers and systems that impact our lives every day, there is still the gift in the ultimate being that is human that allows us as a species to differentiate. It’s first saying, okay, I’m not perfect. Sure, it sucks, but you have to relax. You have to. You must take a deep breath and realize that you have opportunities every day to contribute to the betterment of your species and what makes up life as we know it. Every day you are faced with challenges as a human—in your job, social life, and family. Perhaps it’s because of an absence of a job, social life, and family. However, the one thing about humans that separates us from anything is our mental capacity. We may have something in there that tells us one thing, but deep down we can always recognize if that one thing brings harm to another. Whether in terms of any form of mental, physical, sexual, or spiritual aggression, we know. That’s part of the capacity of humans that separates us as uniquely human beings. In recognizing that we aren’t perfect and casting aside what looks to be perfect, we should honor our own selves, identities, and the world we’ve created for ourselves. If we want to change it, we will. If we want to be perfect, well, we can, so long as we recognize we’ll make mistakes along the way, we have to relax, and that “we” might not always mean “we” to everyone. But it’s these mistakes that will become a part of the path as honoring our capacity as humans to understand that our flaws also illuminate our glorious potential. In putting our collective best foot forward to achieve our potential—not just a false idea of perfection—that will be what’s best for our true self and every other human around us. Brennan Lagasse is a writer, teacher, and mountain guide living in Lake Tahoe, CA. Brennan can be reached at brennanlagasse@hotmail.com.

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MARCH 2012 FORECAST By Adrienne Abeyta

Adrienne Abeyta presents a unique forecast blending the tarot with astrology. A gifted reader of intuitive arts, she offers private consultations and psychic entertainment for parties and events. AdrienneAbeyta.com. To set up an appointment, she can be reached at 619.917.0998 or Adrienne@AdrienneAbeyta.com.

Aries: Hierophant (9 of Pentacles) 3/21 – 4/19 Your need for social acceptance can distract you from honoring your truth, and in an attempt to fit in, you may adopt erroneous beliefs. A viewpoint based upon your own life experiences is more effective than one based on another’s. It’s when you are feeling most satisfied with yourself that this becomes apparent. Even in times of trouble, look to your own wisdom and recognize your abilities. Search for answers, discover your own path, and take responsibility for all of it. When you establish your own philosophy, you become your own divine law, no longer dependent upon group thought or approval.

Libra: Strength (6 of Pentacles) 9/23 – 10/23 A requested compromise may feel beyond your ability and proves to be quite challenging. By now you should know life isn’t always fair and neither are people, at least not by your standards. A situation you have been donating much of your time and resources to will suddenly take a detour. This might be a good stopping point. Although your goodwill may go unnoticed, there is a greater lesson for you in all this. Be honest about what you were getting out of it rather than playing the victim. If you really feel taken advantage of, stop giving and stop complaining!

Taurus: Fool (King of Swords) 4/20 – 5/21 The adventure of life is a perpetual journey into unknown spaces of time and thought, and as you maneuver around one experience, you are introduced to three more. Your mind is like a sword carving a path for you to follow, using the many beliefs you’ve created and cutting away those that don’t serve you. You will experience a powerful epiphany outside your everyday thinking. There’s great opportunity available as long as you don’t overthink it too much. Instead, use your mind to project the results you desire while honoring the intuitive spark that motivates you.

Scorpio: Star (6 of Wands) 10/24 – 11/22 Sometimes all you need is a little positive attention, yet more recently this may feel hard to come by. It’s scary to put yourself out there and show vulnerability because you don’t know how you will be received. However, not revealing all of yourself means that only one layer of your ego is accepted—the rest of you remains a stranger. Relationships are founded upon connection; the stronger the connection, the more stable the relationship. You must trust that who you are is enough and worthy of acceptance. Artists, all eyes and smiles are on you this month, so strut your stuff!

Gemini: Hanged Man (5 of Wands) 5/22 – 6/21 In an attempt to control situations, you inadvertently sabotage yourself and then claim that life is challenging. The challenge is simply to face your limitations. It is commonly taught that “where there’s a will there’s a way,” but the “way” can also be learning to relinquish your will to a higher power. You may find yourself in what seems like a precarious situation. Here’s your chance to let go and allow the natural flow to direct you. Life is a paradox: you must counteract an influence by engaging its opposite. If you can emotionally disengage, you may gain greater perspective and awareness.

Sagittarius: Justice (7 of Cups) 11/23 – 12/21 There is a vague line between what is considered true and false. This becomes confusing when you accept prevailing social standards without questioning what is right and real for you. There is an issue that you are taking way too seriously. Instead of weighing the pros and cons over and over again, admit that you’re worried about making the wrong choice and that you’re avoiding the decision. However you couch it, your inaction is giving you a false sense of security; doing nothing is still a choice. Move confidently in a direction and be willing to accept responsibility for what happens.

Cancer: Wheel of Fortune (10 of Wands) 6/22 – 7/22 Like the seasons, life is made up of cycles. One minute you can be on top, and the next, at the bottom. You are the choreographer of this eternal dance; when your intentions are consciously expressed, you begin to see how each step sets the next one into motion. A heavy load will lighten and spin you in another direction. Use this change to create new momentum. There’s no need to abandon your goals; rather, reframe your intentions and be sure the two are congruent. If you’ve been shouldering more than your own responsibility, speak up and ask for help.

Capricorn: Chariot (Ace of Cups) 12/22 – 1/20 This is a time for action, a period to follow the dictates of your heart and move in the direction of your feelings. You must be brave enough to look at your relationships and admit what you are feeling. Emotions may run deep and feel tumultuous, but they will not drown you as long as you choose how to interact with them. You will be challenged to face an unknown side of yourself. If you acquiesce in favor of harmony, it will be at your expense. Be prepared to hear some unflattering critiques and remember that no one is perfect.

Leo: Death (Queen of Pentacles) 7/23 – 8/23 Stripping away all that is superfluous is what makes space for new growth. In your attachment to what you’re losing, you may overlook all that you’ve gained. If you hold too tightly to something or someone, you will inevitably lose either that object or your self-respect. You must trust that you’re capable of managing under any circumstance. Instead of forcing your way, be patient and observe. This month promises a natural experience of transition, and as your environment changes, so does your philosophy. This is the magic of self-renewal: within every ending is an opportunity for starting over.

Aquarius: Judgment (5 of Pentacles) 1/21 – 2/18 Unfortunately, the speed bumps ahead may cause physical discomfort. Material limitations are likely to provoke feelings of powerlessness, but how you experience this fear will prove most important. Pay attention to your “crisis default.” Do you crumble to pieces, charge ahead, blame others, or run away when the going gets tough? As you explore this, you will notice new ways of dealing with challenges. The first step in reclaiming your power is to acknowledge how you contributed to the problem in the first place. When you confront your issues, you have more choices about how to manage them.

Virgo: Temperance (Ace of Pentacles) 8/24 – 9/22 Before you rush into a situation, be sure to take a moment and ponder the bigger picture. Your excitement could easily push you farther than you are prepared to go. In relationships, passion, like fire, will heat things up, but it will also burn out. There are more stable elements to sustain a grounded affair, like trust and respect. A project started last winter will yield profits after the 21st. This would be a great time for investing your creative energy into a new project. Maybe start a new hobby or breathe new life into a current one.

Pisces: Tower (Knight of Cups) 2/19 – 3/20 There’s nothing worse than a treasured hope crashing down without reason. Your devotion to a certain relationship has carried you on cloud nine for some time now. However, as reality collides with fantasy, you are left rummaging through the pieces for an explanation. Do not withdraw—there is something profoundly spiritual in this experience. If you can sit through the embarrassment, you’ll see how you abandoned your intuition. For those involved in clandestine affairs, the truth will reveal itself in a very ugly way. While your heart and ego may feel bruised, you are better off living in integrity.

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Are You Ready for Tranquility The Place to Fulfill Your Life’s Purpose by Alisha Olivier

uring the July 2006 heat wave, I was beginning my three-month maternity leave from the Chopra Center. I walked into Deepak’s office to say goodbye. “See you in three months,” I said. “I don’t think you’ll be coming back,” he said with a smile. “Of course I am,” I replied, giving him a big hug. It wasn’t until I held my daughter, Stella, in my arms that I knew the truth of Deepak’s words. Up until this point, my work as a teacher at the Chopra Center had been the main focus of my life. Now I could not imagine missing one precious moment with my daughter. Over the next few weeks, I reflected on how I could honor my love for my daughter and for my life’s work as a teacher and healer. Through meditation and journaling, I realized I didn’t have to sacrifice anything—I could have both. This was the birth of Tranquility, a company that allowed me to make my own schedule so that I could be with my daughter and continue to share ancient wisdom and healing. Tranquility has blossomed over the years and is now an integrative healing center and school nestled in a beautiful garden setting off the Pacific Coast Highway, next door to Pannikin Coffee & Tea in Encinitas. With its sweet healing cottages, babbling brook, koi pond, and brilliant flowers and trees, this amazing center provides a sacred and peaceful environment for rejuvenation and healing. At Tranquility, our mission is to help people connect to their life’s purpose and undergo the healing, transformation, and empowerment that will lead to the fulfillment of that purpose. Tranquility offers a unique approach through individual healing sessions that include life coaching, Reiki, Raindrop Technique, craniosacral therapy, massage, cleanses, and much more. In addition, we offer transformational group workshops and retreats. Our next retreat, “The Secrets of Ayurveda and Alchemy,” is in May on the beautiful island of Maui. I have the pleasure of co-teaching this transformational retreat with davidji-Vedic, Master and Dean of Chopra Center University. In 2009, Tranquility expanded to include the Olivier School of Integrative Healing, which now provides training in integrative healing through personal transformation combined with Reiki, crystals, sound, light, essential oils, and Yinki® (the blend

of Yin Yoga and Reiki). The Olivier School of Integrative Healing is founded on the wisdom gained from my own journey: In order to authentically share with and serve others, I had to walk the talk myself, meaning I had to engage in my own healing process that would teach me how to truly show up for and love myself before I could guide others to do the same. As I have worked with people over the years, I’ve noticed that those who are drawn to this type of healing either come into it to help others and realize how their own personal healing can be supported, or as they go through their own personal healing, they feel inspired to be trained to work with others. That was true for the four Alisha Olivier other Tranquility healers—Kelowna Giuliano, Mary Kitaji, Adrienne Hodges, and Tracy Moran. Kelowna, who spent 10 years in competitive gymnastics, six years working in physical therapy, and 15 years as a massage therapist, says she was “familiar with physical aspects of healing.” “During my personal transformation with Alisha and the Olivier School of Integrative Healing,” she adds, “I have experienced profound spiritual and emotional healing. I now have the ability and confidence to facilitate others in their healing processes with a new level of awareness and understanding.” Mary became a Reiki Master after her father passed away in 2006 from a disease. She left the corporate world and finished massage school. She is now a full-time healer and wishes to give the gift of healing to others. “Going through the personal transformation work with Alisha has helped me heal my own fears and thought patterns,” Mary says. “I did this life-changing work so I can be of better service to others in my community by doing what I love the most—providing massage and Reiki.” continued on page 41

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Music Makes Us Human Refugee Women Find Healing and Unity Through Drumming in El Cajon by Nikki Lyn Pugh, MFA

n a large room in El Cajon, 43 women sit in a circle. Many smile and nod as they listen to the petite woman who is speaking in the center. The speaker is Christine Stevens, founder of Upbeat Drum Circles, one of the facilitators of the event that day. Christine holds a large drum in her hands as she addresses the women around her. On the skin of the drum is an image of a woman. Her delicately painted face is framed in a thin, light blue scarf. “If you have a heartbeat, then you are a drummer. Does everybody have a heartbeat?” Laughter erupts. A group of young women in the corner of the room look at each other and giggle. For them and many others, today marks their first participation in a drum circle. “All of us learned the drum from our mother’s heartbeat. Women were the first drummers. This is our history as women—drumming together.” A moment of silence follows as the women take in what Stevens has said. Then she goes on to explain that for the day’s event, there are two goals: personal empowerment and collective unity. “You all come from different groups and you don’t know each other yet,” she continues. “Take a minute now and look around the circle. At the end of the day, I am going to ask you to do this same thing and let’s see if you feel different. Music brings us together.”

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Healing the Women and the Community The Wellness and Leadership Training for Refugee Women program, organized by Upbeat Drum Circles, Musical Missions of Peace, and the El Cajon-based refugee organization, License to Freedom, is about creating cultural union for its diverse participants. It is also about personal healing on an emotional, spiritual, and even physical level. The majority of the women present at the January 16 inaugural event come from Iraq. Some fled the country to seek refuge in the United States in the 1990s, as a result of Saddam Hussein’s bombing of Kurdistan as well as the First and Second Gulf Wars. Another major wave of immigrants came to East County San Diego in 2007, as a result of the sectarian violence that had increased in Iraq— especially in urban centers such as Baghdad—since US occupation in 2003. There are currently about 50,000 Iraqi refugees living in El Cajon alone. Iraq is not the only culture represented at the workshop on this day, however. Present are women from Iran, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Indonesia, and Nicaragua. They are of Muslim, Christian, and Bahá’í faiths, just to name a few, and they speak a myriad of languages. The event provides a vehicle for these women to share the traditions of their home countries through the universal language of music. It also gives them a chance to bond together through their common experience as immigrants and as women. All of the workshop participants come from situations of war and unrest in their home countries. And all of them, along with their families, are going through a new kind of stress as they learn to function in a culture that is vastly different from their own. “I see the unity here. Everybody is starting to build networks, relationships, and trust,” says event organizer Dilkhwaz Ahmed, MS, executive director of License to Freedom, who came to the United States as a refugee herself in 2002. She has been drumming for a year and facilitates small drumming circles of both men and women through her organization. She has seen the difference the circles have made for her members, and also for herself. “When I drum, I feel that my immune system is very strong. I feel better. My digestive system works better. I feel like I am valuable person and am doing something for me.” “If we can heal ourselves first, then we can help heal our families and our

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“Present are women from Iran,

Lebanon, Afghanistan, Indonesia, and Nicaragua. They are of Muslim, Christian, and Bahá’í faiths, just to name a few, and they speak a myriad of languages.”

communities,” says Kristina Sophia, a musician, singer, and sound healer who, along with her husband, Cameron Powers, is the founder of Musical Missions of Peace, an organization aimed at creating peace worldwide through music. “When we are sad,” she says, addressing the circle, “we can take the emotion inside us and sing it out and drum it out so it cleanses our souls!” And that is just what the women aim to do next. As the large circle breaks up into five smaller ones, everyone is given a drum and some basic instruction. Drumbeats, singing, laughing, and the sound of stomping feet penetrate the hall, suddenly transporting it into not just a workshop, but a celebration. Drumming Helps the Body, Mind, and Spirit “Our philosophy is that the stress goes down when the music comes up,” says Christine Stevens, whose pioneering new book on the subject, “Music Medicine,” will be released this June from Sounds True. “There is scientific research that says our bodies change and our immune system gets stronger when we play music together. That scientific change does not happen when just listening to music.” Indeed, according to well-known neurologist, medical pioneer, author, and speaker Dr. Barry Bittman of the Pennsylvania-based Mind-Body Wellness Center, music-making, including drumming, can affect us on a biological as well as psychosocial level and can help to reduce stress, even on the DNA level. In a recent study, he discovered that there was a correlation between drumming and an increased activity of so-called natural killer cells, “specialized white blood cells that seek out and destroy cancer cells and virally-infected cells” (Alternative Therapies, Jan. 2001). These days, drumming is becoming an accepted healing modality for cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease patients, as well as people who have conditions such as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Delene is a vibrant 26-year-old college student in Social Work at SDSU. Not long after she came to the United States, she was diagnosed with PTSD. This is her first experience in a drum circle. “I found out that I have PTSD at a young age,” she says. “It affects my personal life, my work, and my school. I have memory loss, but sometimes memories come back. It does affect me. I am so emotional and sensitive.” During the bombing of Kurdistan by the Hussein government in the early 1990s, Delene and her family fled to the mountains surrounding the area where they lived. In the ensuing chaos, her mother was injured and suffered a miscarriage. Then one of her brothers died of starvation as the family hid in the mountains. After the crisis was over, the family returned to Kurdistan only to flee again four years later. Her father worked as a security guard in Kurdistan for the US Army, and the family was seen as a threat. In 1996, they came to the United States.

As the deep sound of a bass drum resonates from the inside of the hall, Delene talks about what this day of drumming has meant to her.\ “While we were drumming, I was thinking of my mom. I was telling my friend that I wish our moms were here to drum, too. It is a wonderful opportunity to come together… It is just different cultures laughing, eating, and sharing. It is true— music does bring people together.” The Wellness and Leadership Training for Refugee Women program would like to hold more events and they need your help! Just one $50 donation can purchase drums for two women. The next Women’s Healing Circle will be held on March 3, 2012 in El Cajon. For more information and to donate to these efforts, please contact Musical Missions of Peace at 303.618.6404 or visit www.musicalmissionsofpeace.org. Nikki Lyn Pugh, MFA was a 2011 Peace Writer with the USD Joan B. Kroc Institute of Peace and Justice. Her narrative on the life and work of Dr. Rashad Zaydan of Iraq will be available online for free through the IPJ in the coming months. She is also a former editor of Vision Magazine. Visit www.playfulpenwriting.com.

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HEALING ARTS

Reconnecting with the Power to Heal Eric Pearl Shares His Extraordinary Gift by Jessie Schiewe

hen Eric Pearl is asked to describe his most dramatic healing, he always has a different answer. “It’s not something I put over the mantelpiece to dust off, bring down, and present,” he says. “It doesn’t work that way.” Instead, he’ll tell you about his most recent healing; when we spoke, it was a 5-year-old boy’s heartwarming, instantaneous recovery from cerebral palsy. Another day it might be the time he cured a woman’s cancer, helped a young man straighten his deformed arm, or assisted a stroke victim in regaining the use of his body’s left side. Logic-defying, mind-boggling, and scientifically impossible, yes, and yet these stories Eric Pearl are not fiction. They are occurring on a continual basis as Pearl travels the world spreading the teachings and beautiful simplicity of this skill he calls Reconnective Healing. Twelve years ago, Pearl was not an internationally renowned healer. He was not the author of a book that has been translated into 36 languages. And he most certainly had not been a teacher for tens of thousands of people. He was simply a chiropractor working in West LA. But then, in the span of a day, his life changed. There were no warning signs or gradual indications that Pearl was acquiring a new “skill.” It just happened. By the dozens, Pearl’s patients started reporting that they felt his hands on them—working their muscles, easing their strains—when in fact he wasn’t making any physical contact. Merely holding his hands above their bodies was eliciting the sensation and involuntary physical responses (muscle flexes, eye twitches) that such touching would produce. Soon patients were calling to tell him that not only had their pains and illnesses vanished, but so, too, had those of their loved ones. It was then that Pearl realized his gift of healing was not just instantaneous and applicable to most ailments, but also transferable. “The thing is, this is timeless to the universe. But it’s new to us here,” explains Pearl, who credits this form of healing to a broader spectrum of energy, light, and information that recently became available to us due to a shift in consciousness on our planet. The healings are (generally) instantaneous and (most often) long-lasting, he says, but what’s most

“We keep buying into fear-based healing techniques and I think it’s part of divine design that we ﬁnally got to a point where we have don’t have to do that anymore,”

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HEALING ARTS important is that people can heal themselves and no longer need to search for a “cure” elsewhere. “We keep buying into fear-based healing techniques and I think it’s part of divine design that we finally got to a point where we have don’t have to do that anymore,” explains Pearl. “In other words, the gift of this work is that it allows us to completely transcend those approaches and facilitate something much more comprehensive, instantaneous, and lifelong.” So does everyone who attends a seminar learn how to heal? Yes and no. “Every single one is able to bring about physical movement and response [in the people they practice on],” he says. And while many are able to heal others during the seminar, some don’t discover their ability to heal until they’ve been practicing for a few weeks. “It’s like taking aspirin,” he quips. “One person’s headache will go away, one person’s stomach will bleed, and one person won’t feel anything at all.” The point of Reconnective Healing seminars, Pearl says, is so people can understand the philosophy and science behind Reconnective Healing and related practices. “[The ability to heal] happens in the interaction,” he explains. “When I’m at a seminar what really happens is that we’re like teabags—we soak in it and become changed. I’m really just teaching the familiarity with it, the consciousness, the light and the philosophy of the work.” “These are working seminars,” promises Pearl, “not a tent healing. I tell everyone, Don’t come if you think we’re just going to sit around, hold hands, chant ‘om’ and sing ‘Kumbaya,’ because it’s not going to happen.” Get Reconnected! For more information about Eric Pearl, Reconnective Healing, and The Reconnection, visit www.TheReconnection.com, call 323.960.0012, or read, The Reconnection: Heal Others, Heal Yourself, by Eric Pearl.

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F E AT U R E

One Hundred Years of Health Crusading

Julie Newmar

A Conversation with Patricia Bragg, ND, PhD. by Shannon Nies

t is always such a treat to speak with Dr. Patricia Bragg. Not only am I amazed by the difference she has made to the health of millions worldwide, but I am also struck by her strength and vitality. She speaks clearly, intentionally, and with so much enthusiasm. Her passion for health and for life is astounding. She recently told me, “I am thrilled and pleased to be Patricia Bragg, Health Crusader to the world! I love it, live it, and preach it—health! And it’s super-health—super health!” And she has every reason to be thrilled, being part of the 100-year legacy of the Bragg Health Crusades. Patricia, with the help of her father, Paul C. Bragg, has inspired people of all walks of life to attain health and happiness. One of my personal favorite inspirational quotes from Patricia: “You are a miracle, each one of you, a miracle. And I want you to value your human body machine. It is the most precious possession you’ll ever have. The more you treasure it and take care of it, the better it performs for you. Think about that. Yes, yes, I want each one of you to realize that you have a gift, this present day, in your hands: your life, your soul, your heart, your brain, which is your human computer. It’s a miracle.” Bragg Healthy Lifestyle Inspires All Walks of Life According to Patricia Bragg, Dr. C. Everett Koop, retired Surgeon General of the United States, said that Paul Bragg did more for the health of America than any one person he knew. That’s quite a lofty statement. But when you think about it, it makes sense. Bragg made quite the impact on people’s lives. He helped open the first health food stores in the United States, became nutritionist to five US presidents, and helped people add active, healthy years to their life. Now the Bragg Healthy Lifestyle is followed by millions worldwide, including athletes, movie and TV stars, and political figures. Some of these famous Bragg followers didn’t start out as healthy, strong humans, however. Former fitness TV show host and Bragg Health Crusader, Jack LaLanne, was a sickly 15-year-old with a weak back and spine. Having been out of school for a year and half, with no help from any doctor, Jack had essentially given up on the possibility of being healthy and happy. Then one night, a neighbor took Jack and his mother to listen to Paul Bragg’s lecture in Oakland, CA.

Jack was mesmerized by Bragg’s words. Patricia exclaims, “Dad pounded on the table, [saying], ‘Down with garbage—white sugar, white flour, all the dead, devitalized, sickening food! Killers! Killers!’ Jack LaLanne looked at his mother. He said, ‘My mother’s been killing me. She gives me all these candies ,white sugar candies and white flour cakes and cookies. That’s why I’m so sick.’” Jack LaLanne was so empowered by Bragg’s lecture that he went on to become a Bragg Health Crusader. He became “a tower of strength,” having his own physical fitness TV show for 35 years, leading millions to health and fitness. “Jack went on to 97 and a half years,” Patricia says. “He was active. I was with him on his last birthday. He was amazing, absolutely amazing.” Jack LaLanne is just one example. Another is J.I. Rodale. He was an inventor, making a great deal of money, yet he was bored. After listening to just one lecture by Paul Bragg in Pennsylvania, Rodale was inspired. After they spoke, Bragg taught Rodale organic gardening. Later, Rodale would create Organic Gardening Magazine and Prevention Magazine. Current Bragg followers today include Katy Perry, George Clooney, Cloris Leachman, Clint Eastwood, Reverend Billy Graham, and Kathy Smith.

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F E AT U R E The Bragg Lifestyle “The Bragg Healthy Lifestyle is so simple,” says Patricia. “You are what you eat, what you drink, what you breathe, what you think, what you say, what you do!” The Bragg Healthy Lifestyle is based on the concept that the food we put into our mouth—our “fuel tank”—walks and talks tomorrow. “Mothers and homemakers, what you prepare in your kitchen makes a difference to your family’s health,” says Patricia. “Because remember, what you eat and drink is fuel for the body. If you put sickly, devitalized, pesticide, chemical fertilizers, all the embalming fluids that are in so many foods—commercial foods—[into your body], wow, look what you’re getting! Cancer’s number one in America, and heart trouble. The heavy fats, the grease, the lard—they’re plugging up the Americans’ arteries!” Patricia, like her father, Paul Bragg, stresses the importance of staying away from “sickly, devitalized” foods, and instead, eating live, organic foods for strength and vitality. “The reason my dad named the company ‘Live Food Products,’” Patricia says, is because, “live foods make live people!” Patricia is certainly alive and living! In fact, the last time we spoke—for just over an hour—Patricia kept her body moving during our entire conversation, putting all of her body’s 640 muscles to good use. (If you live in Hawaii, you can join Patricia in a free exercise class, six days a week, at Waikiki Beach on Fort DeRussy Lawn! Go to www.bragghawaiiexercise.com.) “Now, water is the key to all body functions,” Patricia adds. “Dad and I wrote a book, ‘Water: The Shocking Truth That Can Save Your Life.’ I believe in no fluorides. Fluoride is a killer; it’s used in rat poisoning. Water is the key to all body functions—the heart, circulation, digestion, your bones and your joints, your muscles, your metabolism, assimilation (wow!), sex, glands, nerves, energy, and the most important, your elimination.” So drink your 8-9 glasses of purified water every day! Included in the Bragg Healthy Lifestyle is the famous Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar. Over the years, the Bragg company has added to its list of products, including organic dressings/marinades and flavored apple cider vinegar drinks. (I highly recommended the Bragg Organic Hawaiian Dressing & Marinade—delicious!) “I have the Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar drink three times a day,” says Patricia. “It keeps my brain clear, my body functioning great; it’s a miracle. Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine, used apple cider vinegar in 400 B.C. because it detoxes, cleanses, and heals the body.”

“You are a miracle, each one of you, a miracle. And I want you to value your human body machine. It is the most precious possession you’ll ever have.”

100-Year Legacy How does Patricia Bragg feel about reaching 100 years of Bragg Live Foods? “I’m excited,” she says. “We’re going to have our big celebration in Anaheim. But every day is a celebration; life is a celebration. Just like Valentine’s Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day. You can celebrate every day; that’s why they call it the present day—it’s a present to you! So, I say to each one of you, plan, plot, and follow through with your life, so you’re going to have a beautiful, golden, happy, healthy life for long years—happy years, fulfilled years. And what I would like for each one of you to know, that each night when I put my head on the pillow, I pray for each one of you to be healthy, and happy, and fulfilled in your life, and that we bring peace to the world, we clean up the environment—water, air, soil—clean up our governments, businesses, so to be continued on page 46

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F E AT U R E

We Are Human A Tribute to David Simon, M.D. of the Chopra Center, Both an Amazing Human Being and Teacher

by Sydney L. Murray

avid Simon, M.D. was one of those rare human beings who brought great knowledge and great compassion to his work. He was a man that I believe most people who met him felt as if they could trust him completely. He was a teacher, a father, a husband, and a physician. But most of all, he was a man who believed that our time here on earth should be one of happiness. He would ask, “Are you happy? How can you bring more happiness into your life and of those around you? That is why you are here.” His teachings and his spirit will live on, but we have lost one of the most amazing mentors of our time. His legacy is one of joy, hope, and most of all, the belief in the human spirit. Comments from Deepak Chopra, M.D.: “David has been my friend, partner, teacher, trusted colleague, and younger brother for more than twenty years. He has touched my heart, influenced the way I think, and expanded my spirit. David approached life from a place of pure potentiality and unlimited possibilities. His wisdom, courage, and love will continue to inspire all of us for decades to come.” “As a talented physician and author, loving father, husband, and dear friend, David shared his unique gifts with the world. Through his dedication and authenticity, he helped so many people go beyond their limited perspective of themselves and reconnect to the love, joy, and peace of their true selves.” “I have felt privileged to work closely with David for many years, and I am grateful that we have had the opportunity to develop seminars, retreats, and programs on mind-body healing and spirituality. The gifts that he gave so freely during his life will continue to benefit and inspire everyone he touched through his words, wisdom, and heart.” A Conversation with Deepak Chopra, M.D.: Vision Magazine: What do you think Dr. Simon would ask his legacy to be? Deepak Chopra, M.D: To be remembered as a man whose life work transformed the lives of so many people throughout the world via the practice of meditation, yoga, Ayurveda, and mind-body medicine. VM: How did Dr. Simon handle his difficult diagnosis? DC: He was very courageous, optimistic, and committed to continuing to live the fullest life possible with his family, friends, and the many communities that he served and shared his vision for health and wellness with. VM: What will you miss most about Dr. Simon? DC: I will deeply miss this extraordinary teacher and dear friend whose work and presence transformed the lives of so many people throughout the world. VM: How has your life changed since I first met you way back at Sharp Hospital when David was there with you? What has been your journey with him? DC: We worked side by side and built the Chopra Center for Wellbeing together. It has been an amazing journey. VM: When do you believe he first experienced his inspiration to live his life as he did? DC: More than three decades ago as an anthropology student exploring

humanity’s earliest communities and cultures, he was drawn to the understanding that the role of the doctor was much more than a disease technician; a true healer had to be a diagnostician, medicine man, psychotherapist, and priest—an expert navigator of the mind and spirit, as well as the physical body. VM: What was he like as a friend? DC: David has been my friend, partner, teacher, trusted colleague, and younger brother for more than twenty years. He has touched my heart, influenced the way I think, and expanded my spirit. His wisdom, courage, and love will continue to inspire all of us for decades to come. VM: What was Dr. Simon’s David Simon greatest love? DC: His family. VM: What was Dr. Simon’s greatest gift? DC: His brilliant mind and his ability to inspire others to make great lifechanging shifts in their own lives. A Conversation with Sara Harvey, COO of Chopra Center Vision Magazine: How do you think Dr. Simon handled his difficult diagnosis? Sara Harvey: Whenever he had a difficult diagnosis (his own or others’), he always approached it with compassion. When he diagnosed people with serious health challenges, he would spend almost more time finding out about who they were at the level of their mind, body, and spirit then he would discussing the outcroppings of the illness, the symptoms, or the diagnosis; Because that is what Ayurvedic teaches, that we are more than what we see, we are made up of a bunch of different layers. Once all of those layers are fulfilled at a healthy vibrant level, then we are at a state of health. David had a quote that he always said, “The best use of a physician’s time is to teach people how to heal themselves,” through self-care, living a balanced life style, and making conscious choices to bring more love and happiness into their lives. He would give them the time to explore any root toxicity in their life. Some of those are emotional, some are physical, and some are spiritual. They need guidance to shift their behavior to help create an improved state of wellbeing, or at least to better manage a difficult illness. VM: What will you miss most about Dr. Simon? SH: He was my boss and I was able to connect with him on a regular basis. He was also my guide and I could seek his wisdom and advice at any time. I don’t have that privilege anymore, so I miss that. We still feel his presence a lot at the Chopra Center. I don’t anticipate that is going to go away. But it’s now incumbent upon the Chopra Center staff to continue to expand and share all of the knowledge that he graciously shared with us regarding meditation, yoga, and Ayurveda. Our mission is to be the global source for those that want to learn and practice the teachings of meditation, yoga and Ayurveda. We now carry this big responsibility to fulfill his legacy and proliferate our mission. It is very clear to us that the teachings of the Chopra Center are not about any personality; they are about the ancient wisdoms that will still be there after the current staff has moved on and gone on to the next thing, and it is our job now to pass that on. We miss him a lot, but as he taught us, it is not about him—it’s about the

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F E AT U R E ancient wisdom traditions that have been passed down for thousands of years, and we are going to continue that mission. We have the opportunity to integrate them into our own lives, into the practice of healthcare practitioners, or into our teachers, and that’s our job now. VM: If he taught you one lesson, what would it be? SH: I don’t know if I could tell you just one lesson, but a couple of lessons. He taught me something called Conscious Communication, and it’s Deepak Chopra, M.D. a four-step technique. For the most part, we are used to reacting or descending, and so to put this little four-step process into place takes some consciousness, awareness, and effort. It’s about getting your needs met, and so learning that technique has served me both personally and professionally. I take care of a lot of staff here, so we practice that when we work with each other, and I am very grateful for that. Because what we learn about communication is whatever our parents gave us. It’s not always the most healthy communication style. The other gift is that he wanted to take these foreign terms or unknown concepts and make them practical, easy to understand, and usable on a daily basis. So that someone like me who came in from the outside world, who wasn’t a yogi—I wasn’t even meditating before I got here—can take the information and have it make sense. That is why I am here. This stuff feels intuitive; it feels easy. VM: Our theme this month is “We Are Human.” What would that term mean to you? SH: Again I go back to David sharing [that] we are spiritual beings temporarily disguised as human beings, and what is eternal and permanent is not our physical body but our soul and our connections with one another or to the cosmos or divine intelligence. We are here on this planet for a short time, and we are all contending with a fear-based ego or with the hopes of being able to express a wide range of emotions that lead us to greater degrees of happiness. David would say the real reason we are on this planet is to increase happiness—our own and that of those around us. VM: What would be Dr. Simon’s greatest strengths? SH: He had an unrelenting focus and passion for bringing these teachings of Ayurveda, yoga, and meditation to the Western world. As a physician he was able to bridge the gap to the medical community, and I think he made a real impact on integrative health care. And as an artful communicator he was able to translate the concepts into tools that could provide a healthy lifestyle that everyone could understand. We always said that Deepak [Chopra] ruled the heavens and David [Simon] brought it down to earth. I believe David thought it was our birthright to be happy and to love and be loved, and sometimes people would come to him with complex issues, emotionally or spiritually, and he would just bring it down to that level—you have the right to be happy, you have the right to be loved. What choices are you making that are helping to facilitate more of that in your life? Those are basic questions, and we can get lost in the rules that we carry. He would almost be able to take all that and set it aside and get down to the heart of the matter. So he combined that

“I will deeply miss this extraordinary teacher and dear friend whose work and presence transformed the lives of so many people throughout the world.”

compassion with clarity, simplicity, and focus. People resonated with that. VM: I was curious if you knew when he first found his passion for medicine or the Ayurvedic traditions. SH: I think he discovered his Dharma or his Life Purpose early on and he started to learn to meditate when he was in medical school in Chicago. Simultaneously he realized something was missing from modern science. He understood Sara Harvey that physicians could really be effective to treat the mind and the spirit as well as the body. He was studying anthropology and people and cultures and how they function. And he studied a variety of healing traditions, not just Ayurveda, and in those healing traditions it was apparent to him that when they talked about health and wellbeing, they also brought in the body-mind-spirit component. He saw value in that. That is where he realized that health is more than just the absence of disease. It is being a healthy, vibrant human on all levels. VM: What was he like as a friend? SH: He was my boss. David was also our doctor, so when we got sick, we would go to David. We treated him like our doctor even if, as my boss, I very much felt open to discussing the personal struggles I had and to seek his counsel and wisdom. I never felt like he passed judgment, and I always felt like he gave me a more elevated viewpoint in looking at something. There was a high level of trust, and I think that went back and forth. I really feel that all of our employees felt that way and they could trust David to support something they were going through, emotionally as well as something physical. VM: What do you think Dr. Simon’s greatest love was? SH: He had a beautiful family, so I know that his number one priority was his family. Number two, I would say, would be the growth and the healthy expansion of the Chopra Center. He invested a lot of his life into the Chopra Center—a lot of his time, his heart, his attention, his efforts. Number three would be his own personal practice of yoga, meditation, and Ayurveda. He wasn’t one of these people just talking the talk; he lived these teachings and it was quite evident. And fourthly, his love and his impact he could have on his guests and his patients to teach or consult. He knew that he was impacting them or transforming them. VM: What do you believe his greatest gift was to the world? SH: I think it was his mix of passion and compassion. He had drive, focus, clarity, and love of what he did. The way in which he did that was love and compassion, so there is really no more beautiful combination than that. You can be passionate about something and plow people over in the process. Or you can be compassionate but really not make too much headway with anything. But when you combine those two, you are really able to see a vision to fruition. You are able to impact humanity. That is what he did. We are doing a few dedications to David this year. We are beginning all of our seminars with two minutes of silence in his honor. We have a brand new yoga space in the Chopra Center, and the space is going to be dedicated to David and honoring him. We initiated a new five-day silent retreat that we are hosting in September 2012, and that retreat is also dedicated to David. So I think this will be a beautiful year of living the teachings and honoring David and expanding consciousness. He is going to come up; I have felt his presence every day. I don’t think that will subside anytime soon. The thing is that his presence is to expand and grow, which was his mission. For more information on Dr. David Simon and the Chopra Center’s dedications to him and his work, please visit www.chopra.com and www.chopra.com/files/ rememberingdavid.html.

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EVENTS

ExpEriEncE thE innEr DirEctions GathErinG “The Paradox of Awakening” gatheRing & beneFit

SHAMANISM

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C h ang e i s Ou r O n ly Co n si sten cy by Rebekka Lien

’m riding back from Northern California with my mom. It will be 20 days until I turn 24. At 24, I expected myself to be self-dependent, financially independent, and, well, already on my way to success. Perhaps I thought I’d have a clear picture of what my life would look

like. This is far from the truth. I have moved out and am an emotionally independent adult, but I definitely don’t have cash on hand and am in a risky business of selling clothes and jewelry. I’m dating a banker for God’s sake. He is attractive, responsible, knows what he wants, and gives me a lot of space—sometimes too much space—but I am learning new things about myself every day. This weekend I experienced the ups and downs of being with family. It included no personal space, yelling, anger, laughter, dancing and singing with my mother and brother, about reminiscing our youth, and talking about our hopes and dreams. Things have really changed. I no longer live in the paradigm of organized religion, rules, set agendas, hardcore work schedules, and a structured way of “doing” relationships. When I used to attend my old church, there was always the “right way” of forming relationships, giving, tithing, conversing with God, working, and living. Having left the organized church three years ago, I can say my paradigm and world has broadened and grown. I have become more open-minded, discovered my own way of communicating with the spirit (dreams, meditation, and visions), stopped judging people on the basis of what they do, and learned organic love and community rather than forced community. What I mean by “forced community” is the mentality that you have to

hang out with people that you don’t like. I understand you should love all people, but during much of my earlier life, I spent an immense amount of time with people who were negative and toxic to my spirit. Today, January 22, 2012, I am writing this on my Blackberry as my mother sits next to me, driving us back to Los Angeles. She has just quit her three months of work, my brother is about to get laid off, and I’m a struggling entrepreneur. None of us are what you call “secure” or “successful,” but who really is? What defines a good life? I think, for me, a good life is a story, a life worth telling. My aunt passed away last week, leaving all of us in grief and disbelief. Even though my mom claims that my aunt never enjoyed her life and had a miserable and tough life, I believe that how you live your life is a choice. It’s your choice. Your life is not defined by your circumstances; you are the one who makes the change. You are the very change-maker many are waiting for, for there are many that do not have the freedom to make the changes needed. I speak choice into my future. I speak positivity, hope, and love. I speak

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“I want to be captivating to the world, someone that people will never forget—a mystery, a goddess, a spirit of joy.” only of possibilities and the mentality that if I set my mind to it, I could do anything. I allow the future me to cry and laugh when I want to. I allow myself to feel pain, to grow, and to be an activator of my dreams. I want to be surrounded by positive people who will help me to grow and become a respectable woman, a woman who is humble, simple, joyful, and gives freely. I want to be a lover in all that I am. I want to have the tenacity and fierceness of a lion, with the beauty and feminine qualities of an undying rose. I want to age with purpose, with passion, with wisdom, but above all, with passionate and focused purpose. I want to be captivating to the world, someone that people will never forget—a mystery, a goddess, a spirit of joy. I want to reach out to the underdogs, the unwanted, the outcastes, the ignored, the one guy who has his head down, face buried in hair, sitting on the floor at a goth club. The four months coming back from Australia I’ve learned that you don’t

need money to achieve your dreams. In fact, because you don’t have money, you are further spurred on to achieve. You don’t need money to touch the hearts of the poor. You give what you have, and that is more meaningful. I encourage everyone who lives in the conventional way of society to jump quickly out of “security”—crawl out if you have to. The risk is change. Change is my best friend; without change, would life be worth living? Every day we encounter something new, but it is how we react to it that counts. Let change be an ugly sister, or let change be your beautiful best friend. Rebekka Lien is a trailblazer, budget traveler, fashion designer (FIDM graduate), business owner, writer, and musician who quit her job to pursue her dreams. She was born in Germany, has lived in Taiwan, and has backpacked solo and volunteered in Europe, Australia, and Asia. She currently resides in Silverlake, California. Subscribe to www.Rebekkalien.com to follow her journey of a life worth living. Her unique jewelry is sold on http://rebekkalien.storenvy. com. (Part of the proceeds sponsors an Ecuadorean boy.) Follow her on Twitter at Rebekka_Lien. Rebekka can be reached at rebekkalien@gmail.com.

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How Do You Choose To Occupy This World? ©

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Good for You Good for the Planet

by Niánn Emerson Chase

www.solarrainwatery.com

have read numerous well-written, thoughtful, educational, and inspiring articles about the Occupy movement in this country by Occupiers and those who identify with the 99% movement. Some of these people are well-known and highly respected academics and award-winning writers, many are highly knowledgeable and intelligent young people who do not want the future that the corporate-controlled rulers of this world have laid out for them. I have also read quite a few diatribes against the Occupy movement, accusing it of being nothing but an unorganized group of washed-out hippies, the homeless, and rebellious young people who don’t even know what they want. And I have met several people who still don’t know much at all about the Occupy movement (and could care less), because they are so wrapped up in just getting by in their own struggles to have a life. What I do know is the Occupy movement is a fast-moving “happening,” in spite of the attempts to diminish its importance by the corporatecontrolled mainstream media and the corporately-directed political strategists who use the police to do their dirty work. I live in a state that has been nationally ranked as one of the top five states who have the most number of poor people living in them (per capita). I live in a county that is counted as one of the three poorest counties in the state. So, when I come across the more financially privileged and politically conservative people in my neck of the woods, (actually desert) who deride me and my associates for counting ourselves as part of the 99%, I scratch my head in puzzlement and frustration at what I consider ignorance and an unwillingness to really look at all of the facts and truth of the state of our nation and world, and here in Arizona, the state of our fellow Arizonians— many who happen to be red (Native American) and brown (Hispanic) and suspected of being “illegal” and “alien.” I grew up on Native American reservations in a very “middle” middle-class family who, more than 50 years ago, recycled everything we could, conserved in our energy and water usage, and spent money carefully and conservatively. We lived a life of considerate compassion and respect for all human beings and had a scientific and spiritual appreciation for the web of life on our planet. (My father was a soil conservationist, a spiritual man, and loved the natural world.) We did not buy new cars and kept the used ones for at least 10 years, even up to 20 years, because my father maintained them so carefully. Like my parents before me, I still purchase most of my clothing, furniture, and other household items in thrift stores and resale shops. I, as well as most of my family, friends, and close associates, have never come near to being one of those crazed shopping-spree enthusiasts who trample people to get into a store to buy the latest item that is faddish on the much-promoted “Black Friday” shopping day after Thanksgiving. So, according to the constant jangle from most economists, I guess we are not doing our part in helping the economy recover. I was blessed to grow up without a television and have continued to resist being brain-stained and tantalized into personally identifying with corporate brand names, labels, and logos that are crammed down our throats through invasive, mass advertising that comes at us from all directions through multiple-media formats. Even while we are pumping gasoline at a gas station we are subjected to inane chatter trying to sell us something from a small video box

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A Quest for Freedom of Thought by Pamela Desvernine

he Celebration of Light Church was established in San Francisco in 2001 by the Reverend Wilma Arnott, CST, and a group of her students and friends who desired a more open and inclusive philosophy which incorporated the world’s religious beliefs and practices. Our logo honors many of these beliefs. With a foundation in Spiritualism, which proves the Continuity of Life, the Church also teaches Universal Principles, Natural Law, and Sacred Wisdom from the world’s religions. Our Church is unique among traditional religions because Credentialed Mediums and Spiritual Healers, as well as aspiring students, serve at every church service. We endeavor through Spirit Communication to demonstrate continuity of the Soul, bring comfort to the grieving, and guidance to the spiritual seeker. Our credentialed and student Healers aspire to serve as channels for God and Spirit to relieve human conditions. Although there is a traditional structure to our services, we provide a relaxed and warm atmosphere where all are welcome, including children and our four-legged mascot, “Chester.” The vision of world peace is prominent in our prayers, and we host an annual World Peace Meditation and Breakfast every year on December 31, joining millions around the globe at noon GMT in alignment towards this goal. Another activity which sets us apart from other churches is the opportunity for individual private mini-readings after the service on the first Sunday of each month. Whether you speak English, Brazilian Portuguese, Spanish, or French, you will feel at home in our church among the warm and spiritually-aware congregation. Special thanks to Vision Magazine for helping us introduce you to the Celebration of Light Church. Please visit us on our Web site, www.celebrationoflightchurch.org, for more information regarding our program schedule and other information.

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M I N D S TAT E S “Soul Center” continued from page 13

to fit the spiritual life into a busy schedule. Also, to learn to humbly, steadily, and dedicatedly follow the teachings of our guru, Paramahansa Yogananda, and apply them in daily life. Another great lesson has been to really trust and know that we are infinitely endowed souls. Each of us has a certain spiritual potential that we can achieve in this lifetime. An important lesson is to get out of our own way and do it! VM: What will be happening at your upcoming retreat at Joshua Tree? TTK: This retreat experience is designed to support the awakening of the soulconsciousness by allowing one to get out of their normal habits and environment. The healing power of nature, daily yoga, still as well as walking meditation, and spiritual community will help us to stop identifying with what is essentially unreal and rest in the arms of divine Presence. As the world relaxes its grip on the consciousness, we expand into a greater sense of oneness with Spirit and each other. To help facilitate this the retreat also includes integration of the 12 Principles of Soulful Living, devotional chanting (kirtan), auric field clearing, communication with the Holy Ones through the Higher Self, fire ceremonies, nightly sacred sound healings, candlelight labyrinth walks, and gourmet vegetarian meals. VM: How have you sustained both a working and personal relationship? TTK: Being in a loving and working partnership can be a bit tricky, but we have developed a few practices to support both relationships over the years. We often have to take our work home with us, but in the evenings, if one is feeling the need to disconnect from work-related conversations, we just say, “It’s past my thinking time,” and the other knows the signal to let it rest until the next day. Our first priority has always been to cultivate the home as a sanctuary of natural peace, beauty, and soul-communion. First thing in the morning, we spend a few minutes enjoying the new day, and then we meditate for one and a half to two hours. Neither of us like television, so in the evenings we meditate, enjoy a meal together, and take time to relax and just be with each other. We also love walks on the beach.

Spring Renewal Weekend April 6-8, 2012

Renew your body, mind and soul with guided meditations, energizing exercises, simple meals, music and good fellowship. Refresh your spirit in the natural beauty and tranquility of Sunburst Sanctuary.

When we find an uplifting book, we’ll take turns reading it before sleep. This is really fun as it provides food for great non-work related conversations. Once a week we have silence and long meditation until noon. As unusual as it may sound, this deepens our bond as we explore the inner worlds of Spirit together. We are also blessed to be the parents and grandparents of wonderful souls, so we have such fun doing simple things with our family. It is such a great way to enjoy life together outside of work. Our working relationship has been honed through the years and is based on the principle of allowing each other to fully express [themselves] in their unique way. I guess you can say the optimal word is respect. We have the same vision for the Soul of Yoga and our non-profit, Soul Center Foundation, so thankfully that is never an issue. The harmonious ways of being have so translated into our workplace that we also share a joyous, creative working and personal relationship with our daughter, Serena, and son-in-law, Ron. VM: Tell us more about the Soul Center. TTK: The Soul Center Foundation for Spiritual Awakening is a 501(c)(3) that we founded in 2009. The vision is to create a loving environment in which people are inspired and empowered to co-create Spirit Awareness on their path of Soul Awakening. It is a spiritual community of like-minded individuals, a place where friends gather to answer the invitation of the Soul to come home to Spirit. At the Soul Center, you will find inspiring and engaging classes and programs that combine the timeless Yogic Teachings of the East with the eternal Light Teachings of the West. All are divinely planned to give you the “Best of Both Worlds” for awakening your soul in the New Aquarian Age. We have melded our life-long spiritual practices into 12 Principles of Soulful Living. These Principles enhance our life experience and expand our physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual energies. Individually, each Principle serves as a step to spiritual recovery and awakening. Together, these Principles guide us into a place of healing, peace, and Oneness with Spirit Light. The Principles are: Cultivate Wisdom: In this moment, I will to accept and embrace what Is. Meditate: In meditative stillness and love, I relax to realize that All is Spirit, All is Light. Surrender into the Soul: In complete faith, I surrender the mind into the Spirit Light within me. Breathe and Remember: I inhale and receive Life Divine. I exhale and merge my soul with Thine. I Cherish the Sacred Fire of Spirit-Love: I tend a burning desire to constantly love everything. Make Life a Love Offering: As I perform every action with love and nonattachment, I become free and happy. Thank You, Beloved: By being grateful for everything at all times, I attract all Good to come to me. Create Radiant Health: I honor and nurture my physical, mental, emotional and spiritual being to its full Divine potential.

Please contact us for more information and donation suggestion. The Sanctuary is located 40 miles north of Santa Barbara, California.

www.SunburstOnline.org Email: ContactUs@SunburstOnline.org (805) 736-6528

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Wellness, Work, Wife, Wardrobe, Workout, Weight Loss, Wisdom, and Wonderful Women’s Week to be Hosted by San Diego North Chamber of Commerce by Debra Rosen

an Diego Women’s Week will offer women (and men) from across Southern California and the nation an opportunity to hear speakers cover topics that focus on mind, body, spirit, and everyday life. Celebrity couturier, Oliver Tolentino, skin care pioneer, Dr. Howard Murad, Emmy-nominated makeup artist, DeeDee Marcelli, and cosmetic innovator, Dr. Donna Richardson will bring “Hollywood” to venues in North San Diego County, March 26-31. Also speaking at the conference will be noted Time Magazine photographer, Dana Gluckstein, Emmy-winning journalist, Jane Mitchell, and Pulitzernominated investigative journalist, Caitlin Rother. Pro golfer, Tina Mickelson will join Olympian, Marilyn King, and distanceswimmer, Lynne Cox, who will speak about their careers in sports and fulfilling their dreams. Entrepreneurs Amilya Antonetti (small business reporter for Fox News) and Ingrid Croce (author and owner of Croce’s Restaurant) will discuss their respective outlooks, as will family financial expert, Ellie Kay. Health and wellness speakers include Dr. Marisa Weiss (founder of Breastcancer. org), Dr. Michael Moreno (“The 17 Day Diet”), Mimi Kirk (author and health expert), and Sam Zien, “The Cooking Guy,” TV chef and creator of healthy recipes. “OCCUPY” continued from page 36

sitting on top of the damn gasoline pump! It seems that most of us have to tramp back into a designated wilderness area to get away from corporate occupation of our lives. Many of my childhood friends didn’t even have running water or electricity in their one- or two-room homes that housed large families, let alone other commodities that most of us in this country today take for granted. In that setting, I guess my family and I were the 1%, but unlike the nation’s 1% referred to in the Occupy Wall Street and 99% movements, my family and I were not taking anything away from our neighbors and friends or living beyond our means at the expense of the majority of our fellow planetary citizens and neighbors. We were where we were to share our knowledge and lives with our friends and neighbors who lived below the poverty level of the times, in order to assist them to become part of the middle class—in their housing, healthcare, education, economics, and lifestyles. Unfortunately, more than 50 years later, not much has really changed for Native Americans when it comes to quality and dignity of life. Though some have more money and material things, the quality of their education and healthcare has not improved much, and neither has the quality of their psychospiritual wellbeing. But the quality of most American’s psychospiritual well-being hasn’t improved either in the last 50 years, regardless of race or economic status. And why is that? Because of the increasing acceptance of toxic materialism as a way of life—a materialism that values money and power over human beings and our lifegiving natural world. Unfortunately, now, the gains in education and healthcare that Americans had acquired in the last 50 years are also being taken away. As those of us involved in the Occupy movement realize, we live in a world that is ruled by corporations who control political policies, practices, and laws, and in an economic system that is dependent upon all of us—who are poor or of the presentlydwindling middle-class or even of the more economically privileged group—to spend as much money as we can, living way beyond our financial means, which is one of

VISION CAFE Coping with stress will be addressed by advocates Tanya Brown, Dr. Ken Druck, Mindy Fletcher, and relationship authors, Pam and Bill Farrel. Mindy Fletcher will speak on balancing career and family. Women’s Week begins on Monday, March 26, with “Women of Influence” at HewlettPackard, featuring Croce, Kay, and Sara Lewis. Wednesday, March 28, features an evening of beauty at “Ladies Night Out” Dr. Mike Moreno and Marilyn King. at Poway’s Bellus Academy, with skincare Just two of the many speakers that will be attending San Diego Women’s Week. tips, mini-facials, brow designs, and hair care and style tips. Marcelli and Drs. Murad and Richardson will be speaking. The California Center for the Arts in Escondido will host conferences on Thursday and Friday. Antonetti, Cox, the Farrel’s, Kay, King, Mitchell, Rother, and Zien will be Thursday’s speakers, while Friday will showcase Brown, Druck, Fletcher, Gluckstein, Mickelson, Moreno, and Weiss. Saturday night, a Red Carpet Fashion Night featuring Hollywood designer, Oliver Tolentino, will be held at The Centre at Lexus Escondido. “The Chamber is thrilled to have a designer of Mr. Tolentino’s stature for our Red Carpet Fashion Night,” says Debra Rosen, President and CEO of San Diego North Chamber of Commerce. “We are expecting guests from all across Southern California for this highlight evening of haute couture and catwalk creations.” Search “San Diego Women’s Week 2012” on the Web for more details and additional speakers to be announced. Follow Twitter @SDWomensWeek and “ like” SD Women’s Week Facebook page on www.facebook.com/SDWomensWeek. Frequent updates can be found on Facebook and at http://sdwomensweek.com. For further information, you can also call 858.487.1767. the factors that has contributed to the plummet into this terrible economic recession. All of us Americans have been occupied by the corporate rhetoric that brain-stains us to buy, buy, buy—whether we need it or not, and without consideration of the cost to other human beings, other cultures, and the natural world that sustains all of our lives. We are intoxicated by the constant barrage of propaganda that comes at us through corporate-controlled media to grab a bigger piece of the pie, use our talents and knowledge for getting more money, prestige, and power. We are constantly being coerced to be selfish, fearful, grasping citizens in order to serve the current economy and the less-than-one percent that is the machine running the materialistic world. We are considered failures and become social outcasts of the mainstream if we choose another value system, one that rejects getting more than we need and questions those who continue to feed the machine that is methodically destroying our beautiful natural world, our diverse cultures, decent values, ethical practices, and the well-being of us humans. I live in a spiritually-based EcoVillage with about one 100 others who have occupied part of the borderlands in Southern Arizona. We have chosen a simpler life that challenges anything and anyone that damages the human soul and psyche, diminishes the higher ideals of a truly sustainable culture and society, and destroys the delicate yet sustaining web of life that makes up the natural world. We have chosen to occupy this planet in a manner that celebrates life, living daily in a manner that constantly strives for a more compassionate, scientific, and spiritualized perspective and lifestyle. We are religionists, environmentalists, educators, organic gardeners and farmers, artists, musicians, writers, parents, healthcare providers, and so on. And we piss comfortable people off, because we have occupied their comfort zones of complacency and greedy grabbing. We are part of the Occupy movement in our daily thinking, doing, and being. We join hundreds of thousands of others in this country and millions across the planet who demand a more sustainable and decent life for all human beings and for all of life. Our EcoVillage and organic gardens, farm, and ranch are a functioning continued on page 41

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“Tranquility” continued from page 19

Adrienne had been working in the corporate world for over a decade when she made the transition to full-time healer. She says, “After working with Alisha and attending the Olivier School of Integrative Healing, I was able to reconnect with my authentic self and thus my own passion for the healing arts. This led to a career change with the inspiration to support and serve others in their quest for healing and happiness. Tranquility provides an atmosphere that is gentle, nurturing, and loving. It’s always a beautiful experience!” Likewise, Tracy resigned from a traditional career path to offer her services as a healer. “Knowing firsthand how overwhelmed many moms become, I wanted to provide a way for them to feel nurtured and centered,” says Tracy. “The personal transformation work I did with Alisha, along with Reiki, Yinki®, and Raindrop Technique, have had a profound impact on my well-being, and I love sharing that with others.” The Tranquility family of healers and teachers is blessed to live their passion and is honored to support you in living yours. If you are interested in going to Tranquility to enjoy one of their unique spa/healing services, or would like more information on workshops, retreats, or the Olivier School of Integrative Healing, please e-mail wisdom@TranquilityRetreats.com or call 760.436.2735. You can also visit Tranquility’s Web site, www.TranquilityRetreats. com. “Yogananda” continued from page 16

Harmony is born of love and wisdom. These, in turn, are offspring of a heart that is pure and outreaching. A pure heart is the result of pure thoughts. Mental purity comes from a selective process by which the mind sorts good thoughts from bad, rejecting the latter and dwelling always on the former. By repetition, and by reinforcement through application to action, discrimination becomes a virtuous habit. When the mental conflict of divergent thoughts ceases, owing to the elimination of wrong thinking, there arises in one’s life an outward as well as an inward harmony… *** There is not a single problem in life you cannot resolve, provided you first solve it in your inner world, its place of origin… Before you act, if you first harmonize the situation with the discriminative wisdom in your mind, the outcome will take care of itself. A harmonized mind produces harmony in this world of seeming discord. *** Inner harmony is a prolific source of power; it breeds strength… Harmony conserves mental energy; disharmony dissipates it. If the mind is a battleground of thoughts fighting against thoughts, without decision, without concord, enough energy is consumed that could instead have rebuilt life ideally… *** Good judgment is a natural expression of wisdom; but it is directly dependent on harmony within, which is poise of mind. When the mind lacks harmony, it has no peace; and without peace it lacks both judgment and wisdom. Life is full of bumps and knocks. In the hours of trials, which demand your keenest judgment, if you preserve your mental equilibrium you will attain victory. Inner harmony is your greatest supporter in bearing the burden of life… *** Love and forbearance are essential to the growth of harmony. Love nurtures all things that grow; it harmonizes and unites. Hatred agitates and separates; and indifference destroys what could have been made good and beneficial. Love is harmony and harmony is love. Hearts that do not love are never visited by angels of harmony. Love is the highest, the grandest, the most inspiring, the most sublime principle in creation. All human souls, the world, the whole universe, are attuned

to the cosmic eternal harmony of love. Disharmony arises from ignorance of this divine unity, which is the heart of God pulsating in everything He has created. He is the love that flows through caring hearts, and the bliss that expresses as joy in all souls. *** …Build your joys on the sure foundation of inner harmony. Cherish no thought that does not harmonize with the love and lawful ideals of God. Thus will your whole life be flooded with the light and bliss of the Divine Harmony. For more information on the Self-Realization Fellowship teachings of Paramahansa Yogananda, visit www.yogananda-srf.org. “OCCUPY” continued from page 39

sustainable model that serves as a prototype and proof that a few good people working in harmony together and for the common good of all can make a real difference in changing the tides of greed, in any pocket of the world. We, like all Occupiers, do this through our talking, our writings, our public events, our educating, our music, our art, and, most importantly, through our own personal changes in consciousness and lifestyle. Regardless of nationality, political creed, racial identity, economical status, religious (or otherwise) affiliation, or ideology, all of us Occupiers across the planet need to continue holding the dream of a much better life for all, and, even more importantly, to actually stand up for and actualize that dream daily in our own personal lives and the lives of our neighbors, as part of a huge planetary movement, a Spiritualution that is unfolding every day. Niánn Emerson Chase is the co-founder of Global Community Communications Alliance and Avalon Organic Gardens and EcoVillage in Tumacácori, Arizona. She co-authored the book, Teachings on Healing From a Spiritual Perspective, and the series, Global Change Teachings for a New Millennium, and has been published in various periodicals including: New Thought Journal; Connecting Link; Communities Magazine; Quantum Thoughts; Inner Word; and the Alternative Voice, of which she is the Co-Executive Director. Visit www.niannemersonchase.org.

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Calendar OF EVENTS

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Each additional word is only .50¢/word. Introductory Offer: Prepay for 3 ads and get the 4th free. Prepay for 6 ads and get a FREE standard 2x2 display ad. Large vertical ads (2 x 3.25) are $159. Standard size (2x2) ads are $135. Discounts for multiple issues. Call today at 866.804.8444 or listings@visionmagazine.com. Visa & MC accepted. Deadline is MARCH 15

MARCH

MARCH 8 Thursday Understanding Lab Assessments & Clinical Health Analysis. Blood chemistries, urine analysis, saliva hormone testing, stool analysis, much more. 6:30 pm. Natural Healing Institute, 760-9438485. MARCH 15-23

MARCH 10 Saturday Vedanta Kirtan Come Sing and Chant With Us! We merge into devotional calland-response Sanskrit/English chants and songs following the lead singers in a spiritual atmosphere with live Eastern and Western sounds. Kirtan is followed by light refreshments. Free parking in the Vedanta Society parking lot. No donation required. Vedanta Society 1946 Vedanta PlacHollywood, CA 90068 vedantakirtan@ yahoo.com

Grow your business for 2012! Call us 1-866-804-8444 MARCH 8 Thursday

MARCH 10 Sat. 3-4:30pm Free Information Session on Natural Hormone Replacement Therapy Get a personalized free Mini-Evaluation Meet Experts in the field. Call now to register! “The Gateway” 2503 S. Barrington Ave., W. Los Angeles 888-752-5665 www.peaklifela.com www. facebook.com/PeakLifeLA

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MARCH 10 & 17 Sat. Deep Tissue Massage & Sports Stretching. Complete deep tissue body massage, body mechanics, specific stetches.Natural Healing Institute, 760943-8485.

Grow your business for 2012! Call us 1-866-804-8444

Transmission Meditation

MARCH 24 Saturday HERBS and ESSENTIAL OILS for MEDITATION, PRAYER & SPIRITUAL PRACTICES. Experiential. Nondenominational. Natural Healing Institute, 760-943-8485

Simple, Powerful, Effective. Concerned about the world and seeking a way to help within the context of your busy life? Transmission Meditation provides an unparalleled opportunity to serve humanity in an easy yet very potent manner. By participating in this unique form of group meditation, you assist Masters of Wisdom in the healing and transformation of the world; accelerating your own spiritual evolution in the process.

Attend a FREE presentation about Transmission Meditation and the work of these spiritual Masters in the world today SATURDAY, MARCH 17 2:30 pm in Scottsdale Vision Quest Books 2225 N. Scottsdale Road & 7pm in Phoenix New Vision Center 18010 N. Tatum Blvd. for event info:

480-558-1683 For more information about Transmission Meditation around the west: Southern California (818) 785-6300 Northern California www.share-ncal.org San Diego county (619) 223-6703 VISIT: meditation.meetup.com/430 www.transmissionmeditation.org www.share-international.us/west

MARCH 25 Sunday Create the NOW you deserve with Isabella Stoloff $25 Well of the Moon 2650 S. Decatur Blvd Ste 2 LV, NV 89102 www.ochealingcenter.com

MARCH 15-23 Thurs-Fri Peru sacred adventure equinox in Machu Picchu. For more information Please visit www.StarEssence.com, call 888-277-4955 or email Bliss@ StarEssence.com

MARCH 30-APRIL 1 Fri-Sun DEVELOP YOUR SOUL HEALING POWER WITH MASTER SHA and Master Ximena Gavino and Master Peggy Warner – Divine Healing Hands Training Program Live in San Francisco and via webcast from India! Unique and Extraordinary Training Program. Experience Divine Healing Hands Blessings Master Sha’s Healing enter 1549 California St. San Francisco, CA 94109 www.MasterShaSoulHealingCenter. com 888.339.6815 www.Dr.Sha.com Facebook.com/ZhiGangSha

MARCH 20 Tuesday Spring Equinox Potluck at the Orange County Healing Center $15 donation 714-603-8624 www. ochealingcenter.com

MARCH 19 Monday PHYSIOLOGY & PATHOLOGY. Fun, deep understanding of body functions, mechanisms of disease, more! 6:30 pm. Natural Healing Institute, 760-943-8485

MARCH 17 Saturday Vision Magazine presents BOOMERANG “A New Monthly Community Cabaret for 2012” at the WorldBeat Cultural Center 2100 Park Blvd. San Diego, CA Sat., March 17th 8PM til Midnight Vision Magazine is presenting a new monthly event at San Diego’s WorldBeat Cultural Center featuring LIVE Visionary Art, Music, Dance and Education with a positive message. Join us at our Spring Activation Party featuring the Bay Area’s HOTTEST Eco-Afro-Latin-Funk Band “AFROLISCIOUS” and Djs. Joining us as our keynote speaker will be internationally renowned Peace Maker and author Doug Noll sharing from his new book “Elusive Peace” a book on the new paradigm of WORLD PEACE. Included in the celebration will be Dr. Bronner’s booth with samples of their latest products. International Cuisine and Beverages will be available. Adm. $12 at door. Call Kennedy for more information 619-294-2393

MARCH 31 Saturday SACRED TEA CEREMONIES. Sacred tea rituals, meditations, ceremonies. Six tea varieties. Experiential. Nondenominational. Natural Healing Institute, 760-943-8485

APRIL

APRIL 6-8 Fri.-Sat. SPRING RENEWAL WEEKEND – Renew your body, mind and soul with guided meditations, energizing exercises, simple meals, music and good fellowship. Refresh your spirit in the natural beauty and tranquility of Sunburst Sanctuary, www.SunburstOnline.org, constactus@ sunburstonline.org or 805.736.6528

GROW YOUR BUSINESS FOR 2012! CALL US 1-866-804-8444

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Calendar continued APRIL 13-14 Fri-Sat Yoga Instructor, Somatics & Movement Therapist (YISMT)™ & Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) ™for Certification, National Registration, personal growth. Natural Healing Institute, 760-943-8485. APRIL 27-29 FRI-SUN AKASHIC RECORDS PRACTITIONER TRAINING with Barbara Schiffman, ARCT. Deepen your Soul-connection to the Akashic Field in 2012. Learn to read the Akashic Records for yourself and others. Includes past life healing tools and certification via Linda Howe’s Center for Akashic Studies. $325, Burbank location. Pre-Registration: 818415-3479, www.YourLifeandSoul.com, AkashicLA@gmail.com

ONGOING

SUNDAYS

Harmony Grove Spiritualist Association

Services

Incorporated and Serving ALL in California Since 1896

SaturdaysHealing 1:00pm Church 2:00pm Sundays Healing 10:00am Church 11:00am

Psychic Fair

1st Sat. of Month, 10:00am-4:00pm

Certification and Personal Growth Classes

• Mediumship • Healing • Ministerial • Ordinations

Private Readings Available Information about Speakers & Directions

760-745-9176

Escondido, CA www.harmonygrovespiritualist.org Sunday Soul Awakening Services Join Tom & Trisha Kelly for all or part of your Sunday practice. 8am Meditation. 9am Sacred Movement Yoga. 11am Yoga Church Not in the Encinitas area? Log on to Soul-TV.com! The Soul Center 627 Encinitas Blvd, Encinitas www.soulofyoga.com 760.943.7685

FENG SHUI MASTER TRAINING CERTIFICATION 4 weekends of January 2012 at The International Feng Shui School with Amanda Collins. Please visit www.AmandaCollins.com for more information 3.11 FREE MEETUP GROUP with SPIRITUAL

SPICA – WAY OF LIGHT INSPIRATIONAL SERVICES 2nd Sunday of the month at 10am, 4th Sunday at 9am. Myztic Isle Bookstore, 8036 La Mesa Blvd, La Mesa, CA. 619.588.6483 for information.

LOOKING FOR A SPIRITUAL COMMUNITY? You are always welcome at the Celebration of Light Church. Visit our website for program. www. CelebrationOfLightChurch.org. Vicente @ 23rd St. – San Francisco.

COACH John Abe. Learn Universal Enlightenment with “I Am Totality.” Build your life to order, do nothing to accomplish everything. Join Meetup.com to learn times and locations of “I Am Totality” Meetup Group. 1-800-584-1640, www.iamtotaltiy.com.

Grow your business for 2012! Call us 1-866-804-8444

THEOSOPHY CLASS IN JULIAN/SAN DIEGO, “What is Theosophy and How Does it Apply to Life?” 760.765.1090 619.283.0142 theosophy@theosconf.org www.theosophysandiego.org Sally & Jim Colbert Meets: 1st & 3rd Sunday Mornings 10:30 a.m. to Noon with cookies CALL FOR DIRECTIONS

SOLAR RAIN WATER – Good for you and Good for the planet. Find out more. www.solarrainwatery.com.

it out at Soul-TV.com! The Soul Center 627 Encinitas Blvd, Encinitas www. soulofyoga.com 760.943.7685

Sunday Soul Services – Combining the Ancient Yogic Teachings of the East with the Eternal Light Teachings of the West Join Tom & Trisha Kelly for all or part of your Sunday practice. 8am Meditation. 9am Soul Yoga. 11am Soul Talk Not in the Encinitas area? Log on to Soul-TV. com! The Soul Center Foundation for Spiritual Awakening 627 Encinitas Blvd, Encinitas www.soulcenterfoundation.org 760.943.7685

2nd Wednesday of every month: FREE Feng Shui Classes. Please visit www.AmandaCollins.com for more information. 3.12

MONDAYS

FREE PSYCHIC READINGS every FIRST Monday 7:30p.m. by students in Vessa’s INTUITIVE INSIGHTS Clairvoyant Program, 4455 Morena Blvd. #108, 858.509.7582 www.MyIntuition.Net Mondays March 5, April 2, May 7, June 4, July 2, August 6, September 3, October 1, November 5, December 3. $8 BEGINNERS YOGA CLASSES Monday @ 6:00p.m. Tuesday @ 5:30 p.m. 2333 Camino del Rio South #240 92108 www.yogawell.com 619.917.0998.

TUESDAYS

CERTIFIED NUTRITIONIST CONSULTANT PROGRAM (CNC) ™. Introductory or Full Certification. Special Discounts. Most comprehensive training from nationally honored Nutritionists. Revised! 7:00-9:55 pm. Natural Healing Institute, 760-943-8485.7:00-9:55 pm. Natural Healing Institute, 760-943-8485. www.naturalhealinginst.com

WEDNESDAYS MIRACLE CIRCLE MEDITATION Connect with your inner divinity through deep meditation, inspirational prayers, and group discussion. 7p.m.-8p.m. Teaching of the Inner Christ 1100 N. Second St. Suite 1114 El Cajon, CA 92021. 619.447.7007. Soul Live! 7pm - Join Tom and Trisha Kelly each Wednesday night ‘Live’ for this new interactive spiritual talk show with an exciting line-up of very special guests. Not in the Encinitas area? Check

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ONGOING WEDNESDAYS CLINICAL MASTER HERBOLOGY CERTIFICATE PROGRAM (CMH)™. Introductory or Full Certification. Special Discounts. Most comprehensive training from nationally honored Master Herbalists. Revised! 7:00-9:55 pm. Natural Healing Institute, 760-943-8485. www.naturalhealinginst.com

THURSDAYS

FREE DETOXIFICATION AND WEIGHT LOSS CLASS 1st Thursday of every month. 6:30p.m. Easy and successful program. Register @ Body Basics Health Center, San Diego. 619.296.7390 11.11 GODDESS Gatherings 3 rd Thursday of every month. Please visit www. AmandaCollins.com for more information 3.12

FRIDAYS

HAPPINESS CLASSES - Based on the life-healing teachings of VERNON HOWARD, Fridays - 8p.m.; Sundays - 10a.m. New Life Foundation, 5779 Westminster Blvd., Westminster, CA. 714.899.9300 Conquer stress, handle difficult people with ease, banish problems. Donation basis. 09.11

2012 Special 6 months of advertising for only $100 CALL TODAY FOR MORE INFO.

1-866-804-8444

(Classified and Calendar Only)

v i s i o n a r y

Cola Smith

a r t i s t

Born on the dark side of the moon, I spent part of my earthly childhood in the southern part of the United States and growing up in the coastal community of San Luis Obispo, California. As a multi-talented individual, I have been creating art in various mediums all my life I received my first paint set at the young age of four and fell instantly in love. I knew I was an artist. Basically, I am a self taught artist. I studied textile design at the Fashion Institute of Design, Los Angeles, California and ceramics at community college. For several years I worked as an embroidery and textile designer for a couture Swiss embroidery company, Jakob Schlapfer, St. Gallen, Switzerland. The art of indigenous people of Mexico, Africa and Australia influence my work. My art is work infused with spiritual imagery and symbols. I am an intuitive painter. I often work with African, Eastern and Western symbols, among them, the Ankh, the Ohm, the Star of David, the Khamsa and feminine symbolism. My work celebrates the feminine, life, birth, womanhood and my love of nature and the importance of being a woman of color. My work has been exhibited at the California African American Museum, Los Angeles, California as part of the 2009 “Inside My Head (Intuitive Artists of African Descent”. I’ve also participated in exhibits at Gallerie Lakaye, West Hollywood, California, Avenue 50 Gallery in Echo Park, California and Twenty Nine Palms Gallery, Pomona, California. I sell my work at various art festivals throughout California and am a member of a women’s art collective called Ten Women Gallery, in Venice Ca. Currently I live in Los Angeles, California selling my paintings, prints, cards, ceramics, and collages to an impressive list of private clients. I also teach art working with young school age children. I am also a gifted henna artist and body painter. I love to travel and experience new places and people. I’ve lived and traveled in Europe, Mexico and Indonesia. The mother of two wonderful adults…Enzo and Salwa. Contact me at www.colasmith.com or http://www.etsy.com/shop/ColasArt or www. tenwomen.org or call 310-922-4231 My motto is “Paint or Die!”

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“Bragg” continued from page 25

environment—water, air, soil—clean up our governments, businesses, so to be honest and good for all mankind.” “That’s a big order!” admits Patricia. “But look what my father, Paul Bragg, accomplished. Single-handedly—and all over America—he put health food stores in business in 24 hours. One after another; he did it from one city to the next. How did he do that? He said, ‘I shared the message with you: health! Now, who wants to open the first health food store in all of Pennsylvania?’ (There were no health food stores in Pennsylvania.) Dad was in Pittsburgh. He said, ‘You have to have some little retail operation.’ And he said, ‘I’ll come there tomorrow with a carpenter, we’ll put some more shelves in if they’re needed, and I’ll let you have the Bragg health products to put on the shelf. Ladies and gentlemen, tomorrow night, on the blackboard will have the address of the first health food store of all Pennsylvania.’” Paul Bragg made good on his word, and the next day he visited five locations before choosing one, Lackzoom Yogurt Shop, to become the first health food store in all of Pennsylvania. Years later, Lackzoom would become General Nutrition Centers (GNC). Bragg continued putting health food stores into business all across the nation, sharing his message of health with everyone he met. Today, Patricia continues to share the same message of health every day, no matter where she is. For instance, she is currently fighting against GMO foods in Hawaii. “I’m going to be a spokesperson and lead the rally here in Honolulu, Hawaii. We’re having a big, big rally—and I’m going to be there and it’s going to be wonderful—this month.” Patricia also played a great role in stopping fluoridation in Hawaii. She started by visiting the mayor, the governor, and the congresspeople, and gave them the Bragg book, “Shocking Truth About Water.” When that didn’t change their minds, Patricia contacted the wives of these politicians. Patricia explains, “I told them, ‘You won’t be able to put your head on a pillow if you allow fluoridation into Hawaii! It’s got to not come in!!!’ And guess what? They didn’t pass it! Isn’t that great?” And Patricia, with her dedicated staff at Bragg Live Food Products and the Bragg Health Institute, plans to continue to make efforts for the health and wellness of humankind. “I’m looking forward to having the BraggHealthInstitute.com and Bragg.com Web sites go on and on and on to eternity…” says Patricia. “And I’ll sign off with saying blessings of health, peace, and love to you, your family and loved ones, and the whole world, from Patricia Bragg, Health Crusader.”

Intensify your experience with pre- and post-festival workshops with Saul David Raye. Align with the Divine. Be a conduit for the bliss, flow, and grace of Divine Mother. Enjoy a vibrant, passionate, and creative community. Cocreate a heart-centered revolution at Shakti Fest. Shakti Fest will be held May 11-13, 2012 at the Joshua Tree Retreat Center. Accommodation options include cabins, camping, and cottages. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to www.bhaktifest.com, call 866.992.4258, or e-mail info@bhaktifest.com. “Soul Center” continued from page 38

Attune to Peace: I cultivate deep peace and inner calmness in tune with the Holy Ones. Live the Light: As a child of the Divine, I choose to express light in all my thoughts, words, and actions. All is One: In Divine Creation, I recognize all relationships as an extension of my true Self. I am you! Return to Spirit: From Spirit I am born. In Spirit I live. Into Spirit I return. The Soul Center Foundation for Spiritual Awakening is offering their four-day “Immersion in Love” spiritual retreat in Joshua Tree, CA, March 14-18, 2012. For more information, or to register for the retreat, call 760.943.7685 or e-mail info@ soulcenterfoundation.org. To learn more about The Soul Center, visit their Web site, www.soulcenterfoundation.org. For those interested in The Soul Center, you can find many of their Soul Talks, classes, and workshops online at www.soul-tv. com.

Patricia Bragg will be speaking at the Health Freedom Expo in Long Beach on March 3, 2012. Visit www.healthfreedomexpo.com. She will also be an exhibitor at Natural Products Expo West at the Anaheim Convention Center on March 10. Join her after the expo, at the Marriot next to the Convention Center, to celebrate Bragg’s 100th anniversary. For more information on Patricia Bragg and Bragg Live Food Products, please visit www.bragg.com and www.bragghealthinstitute.org. “Shakti Fest” continued from page 11

Baba. To ignite our passions, enrich our perspectives, and activate our inherent wisdom, there will be a diverse selection of workshops from which to choose: Tantra; Astrological Wisdom; Ayurveda; Radiance Sutras; BhaktiNova Dance; Meditations; and a Sacred Prayer Circle. Presenters include Shiva Rea, Mirabai Devi, Dawn Cartwright, Lorin Roche, Gina Sala, Durga Das, Christabel Zamor, Divine Harmony, and Laura Plumb. An eco-friendly vendor village will offer delicious, high vibrational raw, vegan, and vegetarian foods and beverages for our nourishment and sustenance. Also to support transformation and evolution, there will be wellness enhancing products, clothing and art vendors, children’s activities, body workers, breath workers, massage therapists, and other unique healing modalities. Find the joy of service by being part of the team that organizes the festival.

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The

GuruGanesha Band

Join GuruGanesha & his all star band – Michelle Hurtado, Hans Christian, Daniel Paul, Sat Kartar Singh, Gurusangat, Russel Green – for a magical evening of joyful chanting, mystical world music and hilarious stories from the spiritual path!

•••••••••• "Don't miss GuruGanesha on tour - you're in for a real treat! He has a great band, great songs, great energy - can't go wrong!! " Deva Premal & Miten

Hans Christian

Michelle Hurtado

Daniel Paul

The GuruGanesha Band Live at Sat Nam Fest 2011

2012 WEST COAST CONCERT TOUR

Tickets & More Information: www.GuruGanesha.com