Whumptober 2002 day 5

Blood Loss | Running Out of Air | Hyperthermia

Good lord a bare draft of FAR too many words because I have no time to edit, was enjoying writing ashram weirdness and Jerott flapping, and will certainly be coming back to edit this and incorporate it into a current WIP anyway... Mainly, I spent the day researching aquifers in Nevada just to check the plausibility of the context and I’m not a geologist so screw it. This fic ties into various others I’ve posted already around Jerott’s wrist injury trying to escape the ashram and leading up to the Zuara equivalent (timeline is a little different in the AU, but still. Zuara!). Don’t you love how ExtraTM Pawn in Frankincense is? I know I do...

So warnings are really just about the build-up - dangerous roads, sink-holes, storms, tunnels, blood, flooding etc...

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Since they'd begun the journey back into the mountains the weather had only worsened. Gilles was a competent driver, but he was angry, and there was no passenger side seat-belt - Jerott sat tense with terror, every hair on his arms and neck standing on end, as the truck's gears screamed up gravel tracks, its tyres fighting against the rainwater that was beginning to pour down from the peaks along roads and arroyos. In his arms, he clutched Dasypus the armadillo, trying not to squeeze the animal's leathery carapace too hard even as Dasypus' long claws scrabbled at him in protest.

The rain was so heavy up at the ashram headquarters that they didn't see the damage until Gilles had to slam the brakes to avoid hitting a crowd of sodden Rajneeshees in pinks and reds.

Regardless of the solid rain, they were gathered around a pile of dark rubble where half of Swami Geetesh's compound used to stand, some holding shovels, some gesturing angrily, all looking lost.

Jerott bolted from the truck, shoving Dasypus into Gilles' arms and ignoring his alarmed questions.

He grabbed the soaking wet shoulder of a former colleague, who didn't recognise him at first.

"Swami! It's me, Vadan! What the fuck happened?"

The other man peered at Jerott, at his short, scruffy black beard and over-sized clothes - none of which were in sannyasin colours. Still, whoever he supposed Jerott was, he offered the explanation Jerott needed: "A sinkhole, beneath Swami Geetesh's house...we can't see what the damage is, but it looks like there were tunnels, or a cellar beneath it. Ma Daso was inside when this happened."

"Ma -?" Jerott felt his stomach flip and his temperature drop. He looked about him in a panic. "What happened? Is she ok?"

"She's over there..."

Jerott squinted in the direction indicated and saw some of the Rajneeshees clustering around a figure seated on an upturned bucket. He slapped the other man gratefully on the shoulder and ignored the query that trailed after him: "Swami Vadan? What happened to your arm?"

The woman who had been rescued from the building looked small and folorn from a distance, but when he approached her, Jerott saw the fire in her green eyes.

Oonagh O'Dwyer held one pale, thin hand to her bloodied brow, but the other was clenched into a fist in her lap. She studied Jerott with a frown, her thick black brows fierce and her mouth a grim line, and he didn't expect her to recognise him - they had only met the once, several weeks earlier, when Geetesh had been occupied with tormenting Jerott in the room that now gaped open on the edge of the sinkhole.

"Ma Daso?" he said carefully, glancing at the others who had been fussing over her. "Ms...Ms O'Dwyer?"

Her eyes widened, though her expression remained suspicious. She nodded minutely. "You were here before..."

Jerott nodded and crouched down beside her bucket. Oonagh O'Dwyer shooed the others who had been helping her away and bent towards Jerott. She was thin, her skin barely more substantial than the clouds sitting low all about them, but even so, Jerott felt the power of her presence, the heat of her spirit and all that Francis Crawford must have found compelling about the ex-model.

"I thought he'd kill you," Oonagh hissed.

To Jerott's surprise, something like a memory popped into his mind: Swami Geetesh looking down at him, contempt and pleasure all mixed together in his expression. In Jerott's vision, he imagined a pressure on his throat and the taste of blood on his lip. He shuddered and shook his head. "No. Just sent me away. What happened? Was he in there?"

"He found Francis," Oonagh's words, low and urgent, struck Jerott with a piercing horror. "He was keeping him in the tunnels. Please for the love of God, tell me you knew about the tunnels? None of these precious fools did..." she rolled her eyes at the Rajneeshees standing around the sink hole, some of whom were now looking pathetically at their unresponsive pagers.

Jerott shook his own head, and felt despair clutch at his chest. There had been so much going on here he hadn't known about, so much Geetesh had been involved in that he should have recognised, should have stopped.

Oonagh swore in Irish and, he realised through the rain, blinked back tears as she gazed up at the sky. "He's in there with him. Can you imagine that?"

"What did he want with Francis? Why the tunnels?" Jerott asked, mortified to have let her down, to be letting Francis down, to find himself - yet again - just another of Geetesh's useful idiots.

Oonagh blinked and shook her head, her lower lip projecting miserably. "Music? I suppose? He was always whistling when he came back...singing..."

"Oh!" Jerott leapt to his feet. "There was the store beneath the studio! We started expanding it before I left, but I never knew why. Maybe it linked up?"

Oonagh looked up at him incredulously. "The studio's miles away!"

"By track, yeah, but if he went under the mountain it's just down there," Jerott gestured vaguely to the trees on his left.

"So they might not have been anywhere near the sinkhole..." Fear settled over Oonagh's body once more.

Jerott hesistated to put a reassuring hand on her shoulder - her wet hair hung over thin, clingy linen, and she seemed too exposed already, raw like a seam of precious metal. "I'll take the truck and go."

"Wait - " Oonagh stopped him, her voice a desperate whip-crack. "Wait, what's your name? Be careful. If Geetesh is..."

"I know," Jerott nodded tightly. "I know who he is. There's a shotgun in the truck."

Oonagh swallowed and took a breath. She didn't look as perturbed by the mention of the gun as most people would have. "Vadan, was it?"

"Jerott. Blyth. I knew Francis...ages ago. He probably didn't -"

"He did," Oonagh smiled tightly. "Best go after him, eh? I hear you didn't before."

Jerott reeled away from her, hurrying back towards Gilles and the car, trying not to think about what she'd said.

"Hey, hey! Where you goin'?" Gilles dashed towards Jerott, Dasypus under his arm.

"I need the keys, I need the truck..."

"Non, non, we use it to clear the hole!"

"No, he's not...he's not in there, Pierre. You want to find the land-owner? Reid Malett?"

"We gotta clear it out, get to the tunnels..."

"Arrêtes! Arrêtes, je sais, mais ils ne sont pas la!" Jerott grabbed Gilles' broad shoulders and shook him. He had no idea how clear his French was to someone who spoke a Cajun dialect, but at least it made Gilles understand his seriousness. He explained that he knew another entrance to the tunnels, that a friend was inside and likely in danger. Gilles didn't quite get it, but he'd gathered, through their weeks working together, that Jerott was the kind of maniac he could trust - and so he handed over the keys and told Jerott where the spare gun cartridges were.

Jerott was so used to working with the improvised cast on his left wrist now that it didn't impede him at all as he reversed away from Geetesh's house in a spray of mud and gravel.

Driving that had been terrifying when Gilles had been behind the wheel seemed perfectly sensible when Jerott was the one breaking, steering and then immediately feathering the accelerator as soon as he was on the exit of a bend. He hurtled down familiar roads, the windscreen wipers clattering like the brush hitting the sides of the car. He didn't even think about the last time he'd taken this route and what had happened - if he had done, it might have occurred to him how much more likely another landslip was in this weather.

Down the mountain he went and round its foot, into land that had been cleared for crops, across a plain that was still dry and dusty compared to the land at higher altitude. The road swept round, curving back to the wooded base of the range, where the little black studio building squatted all on its own - Jerott had often thought of it as resembling the Kaaba in Mecca.

The windscreen was covered in mud and dust that clung to the wet glass and Jerott had to switch the wipers off. The truck skidded in wet dust as he came to a halt and he leapt out, Gilles' old snake-scaring shotgun in one hand, a handful of cartridges in the other that he stuffed into the wet pocket of his jeans.

He sprinted for the studio and ran inside without stopping to consider what he'd do if Geetesh and Francis were there.

It was empty, luckily, and Jerott wove his way between chairs and equipment to the door at the back and the dark steps to the basement. He was beginning to think it had been a foolish thought, anyway - how on earth could Geetesh have constructed so many tunnels and bunkers without anyone's knowledge? He wasn't coming down here himself with a shovel every night...he had probably taken Francis far, far away. Oonagh must have been mistaken about the tunnels at the main building...

But there was a door in the basement there hadn't been before. Jerott fumbled around on the shelves and found a torch, and then he tried the handle.

No dice: the door was metal, and it was locked. Everything smelled damp and rusty, and there seemed to be a breeze from the other side and Jerott paused, leaned his head against the surface, and tried to hear anything beyond his own ragged breath.

There was a kind of rushing noise, like the sound of the sea in a shell, and Jerott shook his head in frustration and stood back from the door.

With a shrug, he readied the gun and pointed it at the lock, and gave up any pretence of subtlety.

There was a flash and a loud, metallic clang, and the lock broke open beneath the gun's bark, and Jerott shouldered his way into the dark tunnel beyond.

He trotted onwards into the depths of the earth, increasingly troubled by the coolness of the air and the damp floor. Rainstorm or not, they were in the desert - there shouldn't have been this much standing water beneath his feet.

Sooner than he expected, the tunnel widened into a chamber, and inside, beneath the wavering light of his torch, he was met with a scene of carnage.

The floor was covered by two inches of dirty water. In it various examples of detritus floated: clothes; plates; scraps of paper; a ukulele. Against one wall there was a table covered with papers, stationary, a broken lamp... Opposite it lay a narrow metal bedframe with a thin mattress on it, and on that bed a body was awkwardly sprawled.

Jerott caught his breath - there was blood all over the mattress: a dark, shining pool of it that spread from the leg of the man lying there. He wore rose pink linens, and he lay face-down against a pillow, his hair shining golden beneath the wavering light of Jerott's torch. Everything was wet, the blood on the mattress thinned at its edges like tie-dye, and the golden hair was matted with the same filty water that covered the floor.

Jerott stepped down into the room and moved his light around again so he wouldn't notice his hand shaking. As he did, he caught sight of the other body, which had been swept up against the table legs and lay half-submerged.

Jerott glanced once more at the body on the bed, wanting to be certain that it wouldn't move, and then he put the gun and the torch down on the table and dove down to check for signs of life.

"Francis!" He hissed, casting another nervous look at the bed as he touched the wet, cold skin of his friend's neck.

He wasn't breathing, but Jerott had had first aid training and didn't hesitate to haul him to the dry tunnel and turn his head to the side. He pinched Francis' fine-boned nose between his thumb and forefinger and covered his long lips with his own, filling his lungs with warm air and then forcing it into Francis' body with all the power he would usually put into singing the lyrics Francis wrote. Jerott's mind was on the amount of oxygen he could push into Francis' body and nothing more - he repeated the breaths until, beneath him, Francis flinched and retched, and Jerott had to sit back quickly as rancid water sputtered up from his lungs.

Francis coughed and coughed and Jerott helped him to sit up, and eyed the dim lit room with Geetesh's body inside.

He hadn't moved.

The boy who had almost gone to medical school hesitated, supposing that he should do the same for the other man. But Francis was leaning into him now, still coughing, his eyes screwed shut, his body struggling against the new availability of air.

The first thing he asked, when he was able to, and had cast a perplexed look at Jerott's bearded face, was: "Is he dead?"

Jerott froze and then nodded. Geetesh hadn't moved. The bed was covered in blood. There was so much blood.

"Yeah. Yeah he's gone."

Francis closed his eyes and bowed his head. Beneath Jerott's steadying hand his body shuddered and winced. The words he murmured sent chills up Jerott's spine: "O mill...o mill what hast thou ground..."

7th Lord in All Houses [ Spouse/Marriage, Partnerships & Public ]

Part 3 .. { Vedic Astrology }

🔘To Check Your Placement

📌 Refer to My Part 1 > Click Here

7th Lord in 8th House

When the seventh lord enters the eighth house, it can naturally pose challenges. The eighth house, similar to the sixth and twelfth houses, represents distant and challenging circumstances. The most significant indication here is the transformative nature of relationships and partnerships, as they have the power to completely change you from the core.

The eighth house is known as the house of crisis, indicating that there are deep karmic lessons to be learned. It is possible to meet a potential spouse during a major crisis or turning point in your life. Alternatively, you may also meet a spouse while working in crisis-related fields such as medicine, emergency services, counseling, or psychotherapy, where you are helping others in their time of need.

With this placement, it can be challenging to connect with your spouse on a deep level. Your spouse may have their own psychological issues and difficulties, making it even more difficult to relate to them. Early experiences may have also caused psychological problems when dealing with people in general.Trust issues and difficulty being vulnerable to others may arise. You may find yourself in chaotic love affairs or short-term relationships that don't seem to lead anywhere.

However, when you do find a potential long-term spouse, having a strong network of friends can help sustain the relationship. This placement is intense and sometimes challenging in terms of relationships, but having friends around can alleviate some of the weight and help smooth things out. Your elder sibling or your spouse's elder sibling may also be very supportive of your relationship.

In a relationship, safety and financial security are often top priorities. However, marrying solely for these reasons can lead to challenges, especially when it comes to communication. Walking on eggshells and facing misunderstandings with your partner can strain the relationship. Additionally, dealing with a spouse's health issues can add another layer of difficulty.

Balancing the demands of the relationship with personal goals can be draining. It's important to maintain honesty and avoid any shady dealings. While partnerships may face obstacles, venturing into self-employment or starting a business can bring great benefits, including wealth and success.

7th Lord in 9th House

This is an incredibly fortunate placement as it resides in the house of dharma, bringing blessings to your life through marriage. You possess a liberal and open-minded nature, attracting many people and being attracted to many in return. Typically, individuals with this placement have the opportunity for multiple relationships, but you strive to maintain a righteous and dharmic attitude within them. Interestingly, you are likely to meet your spouse in a foreign land while traveling for higher education or even in religious settings.

Your deepest desire is to become an entrepreneur, yearning for the freedom to pursue your own path in life and establish your own business. Therefore, this position is exceptionally auspicious for business people or those seeking business success. True wealth and triumph can be achieved when the seventh lord resides in the ninth house, and your spouse takes immense pride in your accomplishments. The foundation of your relationship thrives on frequent intimacy, such as sharing a bed, embarking on spiritual pilgrimages, visiting ashrams, or seeking spiritual wisdom together. However, be cautious of potential challenges arising from your or your spouse's home. At times, the relationship may face opposition from your mother or your partner's mother.

When purchasing property together, careful consideration is necessary to avoid potential issues. It is crucial to prioritize being together rather than being apart. If you have separate properties or anything that creates distance within your home, it may strain the relationship. Additionally, be mindful of childhood friends who could pose a threat to the stability of your relationship. Stay vigilant and protect what you hold dear.

7th Lord in 10th House

The placement of the 7th lord in the tenth house can be quite challenging, but it doesn't mean that long-lasting relationships are impossible. In fact, with hard work and dedication, you can make your relationship thrive. You are attracted to a partner who is ambitious and has a high status or the potential to achieve it.

Together, you both support and uplift each other in your careers. However, it's important to maintain a healthy balance in your relationship. Working in the same field or even meeting at work can create conflicts, so it's crucial to give each other the freedom to pursue your own paths. Avoid meddling in each other's careers and focus on nurturing your individual growth. While you can be business partners, it's essential to prioritize creative freedom and personal space to ensure the survival of your relationship.

When the seventh lord is in the tenth house, taking control of your marriage becomes vital. Put in a hundred percent effort to make it work, especially as your status and success in life increase. This will serve as a protective factor for your marriage.Your ultimate desire is to have a beautiful and comfortable home, filled with all the luxuries and comforts of life. You also have a strong attachment to your early home environment and your country of origin. It's important for your relationship to be a part of this, as it brings you a sense of belonging and fulfillment.

One potential threat to your marriage could be an old lover from either you or your spouse. This can create turmoil, but on a positive note, your children have the potential for excellent success in life. However, they may not always be subservient to you, and there may be disagreements with your spouse regarding their upbringing. In such cases, compromise will be necessary to maintain harmony within the family.

7th Lord in 11th House

You may experience financial benefits through marriage, it's that straightforward. The 11th house pertains to society in general, so having similar perspectives on society, politics, and social morals is crucial for this relationship. Your main aspiration will be to start a family and have children as soon as possible. Being a creative individual, sharing creative hobbies or work with your spouse can greatly enhance your marriage. However, just like the seventh lord in the tenth house, your children will be happy and successful individuals but may not always be submissive to you, posing a challenge.

With this placement, you are more likely to have daughters than sons. You are most likely to meet your potential spouse within your social, political, or professional circles. A colleague at work could potentially become your spouse, introduced by friends, elder siblings, or relatives. Communication is key to maintaining this marriage - frequent and open conversations are essential. Engaging in activities like cooking together and sharing meals can strengthen your bond.

The main risk to this relationship comes from subordinates or individuals you have conflicts with, who may pose a threat to your marriage. Despite this, the position is favorable for business, with new opportunities constantly presenting themselves.

7th Lord in 12th House

It seems like the universe has some challenging karmic lessons in store for you when it comes to your spouse. Interestingly, you are most likely to meet your potential partner when you are in foreign lands or traveling. The twelfth house, which represents internet connections, also plays a significant role in bringing you together with your spouse. It's quite common for your partner to have some foreign cultural influence, either because they are from a different country or belong to a different culture than yours.

Interestingly, no matter how hard you try to meet someone similar to yourself in your local environment, fate seems to have other plans. You often find yourself drawn to individuals who are far away, with different perspectives on life and diverse cultural backgrounds. Long-distance relationships are also quite common for you.However, being together can be quite challenging.

It could be a situation where one of you is working abroad while the other is working elsewhere and traveling back home. These difficulties and separations can even occur in a committed, long-term relationship. It's important for you to have open and honest conversations about finances and how you both handle them.

It is crucial to prioritize honesty and openness in any relationship, as keeping secrets or manipulating others can have negative consequences. When the 7th lord is positioned in the 12th house, financial matters become a significant aspect of the relationship. Initially, you may be quite generous towards your spouse, but over time, you may become more frugal with your resources. This change in behavior is often triggered by your spouse's extravagant spending habits, which can create fear and insecurity within you.

Disagreements regarding finances can pose significant challenges, and in the worst-case scenario, it may lead to actual financial losses. You may find yourself spending excessively just to maintain the relationship, such as traveling long distances to be with your spouse, which can further strain your finances.

Additionally, your spouse may experience health issues or illnesses, adding to the financial strain and overall difficulties in the relationship. Similar to the influence of the seventh lord in the eighth house, it is crucial to avoid excessive secrecy in order to maintain a healthy dynamic.However,I have seen many couples tend to enjoy frequent travel or holidays together, which can positively contribute to the relationship.

Exercising, engaging in activities, and going for long walks are all factors that contribute to a stronger bond between you and your partner. These shared experiences bring you closer together and create a sense of connection. Additionally, the support of your partner's siblings can also play a positive role in your relationship. However, it is important to be cautious about relying too heavily on sexuality to maintain your bond. While physical intimacy is important, it should not be the sole foundation of your relationship. It is crucial to cultivate emotional depth and connection as well.

Sometimes, individuals may choose not to marry if their seventh lord is positioned in the eighth or twelfth house. They may come to the realization that marriage is not the right path for them after having already been married. It is important to honor your own desires and make choices that align with your true self.

Your ultimate desire in this lifetime is to purify yourself spiritually, which will bring you happiness and fulfillment. As you embark on this journey of self-purification, you may find that a more suitable spouse enters your life. Your affinity for animals is also significant, as they bring you comfort and joy. Having pets in your relationship can strengthen your bond and bring you closer together.

However, there may be challenges in your relationship when the seventh lord is in the twelfth house. Your partner may hold a significant amount of power and control, leading to frequent breakups and feelings of insecurity. It is important to address these issues and communicate openly about your dissatisfaction.

While this placement may not be favorable for business partnerships, it is excellent for working as an entrepreneur in foreign lands or dealing with foreign companies. Profit can be gained through these ventures. Additionally, businesses related to fashion or those that address people's distress through psychotherapy, counseling, or life coaching can also be highly successful for you.

Let me know your placement below !

Remember This is a General Analysis , Whole Chart is to be consider for Accurate Personalized Predictions.

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As the 19th century gave way to the 20th, the caricature of the enemy shifted more decisively from the West to the Muslim. As the desire to homogenise the Hindu community took hold, Hindu Right organisations began engaging with Bengal’s marginalised castes in a way the Left did not even contemplate doing till the late-20th century. The slow incorporation of lower castes within the Hindu fold went hand-in-hand with the steady expulsion of Muslims from the national body.

Organisations like the Bharat Sevashram Sangha and Hindu Mahasabha played a crucial role in both processes, often providing what we can call intellectual justifications for such strategies. If Mukherji propagated demographic fears, the Mahasabha and the Sangha worked on the ideological mission of keeping the Hindu community together. This required preventing restless and assertive lower caste communities from breaking away from the dominance of the upper caste bhadralok.

Founded by Swami Pranabananda in 1917, one of the Sangha’s primary missions was urging Hindus to fortify themselves as an unbreachable, unified community. Such a mission called for an end to caste discrimination and the practice of untouchability. To achieve its ideological ends, Hindu organisations identified tribals and Dalits as their primary target groups. [...] The campaigns, aimed at reorganising the village economy, carried out social work in backward areas. [...]

By 1926, the Sangha ran more than a dozen ashrams in areas of eastern and southern Bengal dominated by marginalised caste communities. The organisation founded Hindu Milan Mandirs, conceptualised on the lines of mosque gatherings, apart from launching Rakshi Dals comprising armed volunteers to defend Hindus against enemies. This movement for the assimilation of Hindus (Hindu Samanvyay Andolan) worked on multiple registers. The Hindu Milan Mandir provided spaces to hold prayers, conduct rituals and festivals, and deliberate on issues related to Hindu society. The young were taught history, the elderly given an education in the Shastras. There were libraries with books on Hinduism and the Hindu way of life. Schools of martial arts training were set up for self-defence.

Through the 1930s and 1940s, both the Mahasabha and the Sangha worked in tandem to fortify the Hindu community as one. Even as the BSS urged upper castes to end untouchability, it also asked lower castes to integrate themselves with the larger Hindu community by giving up their “hatred” of upper castes. These organisations wanted to direct Dalit anger at Muslims, representing them as the primary other and threat to Hindus. The Sangha’s spaces of Hindu congregation, Pranabananda believed, would facilitate organising as a homogenous, non-porous community. They served, or at least attempted to serve, the purpose of subsuming smaller oppositional caste-based identities into a sweeping fold of Hindu identity. Such a ubiquitous Hindu identity, proponents hoped, would steer groups away from caste antagonism and towards building a Hindu Dharma Rashtra. In some ways, the scale and operations of this intricate organisational network resembled the structure of the RSS, founded in 1925. During riots and famines, Hindu Milan Mandir volunteers would rush to the aid of Hindus, collecting monthly subscriptions and food from each member.

Something to remember while worldbuilding fantasy races, especially for urban fantasy, is that you can combine multiple mythical creatures into the same species, or multiple subfactions of one species.

An example from my own work is how the harpies from my urban fantasy setting aren't just harpies, but are almost every winged humanoid in various cultures. So creatures like tengu in Japan or angels in ashramic religions are just different cultures of harpies interacting with diffrent groups of people.

In this example it expands their scope a bit more, and also adds some interesting flavoring (such as their war machines being the more Lovecraftian type of angel). As well as cementing their role in ancient history as being servents of the gods.

So if your taking from mythology for your worldbuilding, it's always a cool idea to take from multiple sources as a way to make your species more complex.

THE GREAT SPIRITUAL BYPASS

The Buddhist teacher and psychotherapist John Welwood coined the wonderful phrase “spiritual bypassing”, which means, in his own words, “trying to rise above the raw and messy side of our humanness before we have fully faced and made peace with it.”

I so agree with John Welwood. I think one of the biggest shadow sides of spirituality in general is that it can make us lose touch with our humanity. We dream of the heavens and forget the earth. Which is ironic, since our deep humanity IS the source of our most profound spirituality, so we’re kind of shooting ourselves in the foot there.

In the name of peace, we go to war with ourselves. In the name of being non-violent, or at least seeing ourselves as non-violent, we repress, suppress, deny and hide aspects of ourselves that don’t conform to that ideal, that image. We bury our anger, our grief, our fear. We swallow words we need to speak, say yes when we mean no, avoid setting boundaries in order to be “compassionate” and “kind” and “unconditionally loving”, and not hurt others’ feelings. We stifle our passions, our creativity, our sensuality, our deep, raw, intense, messy humanity, in order to appear to be “still” and “silent” and “calm” and “non-reactive”. We smile when really we’re breaking apart inside, stay quiet and still when we feel like screaming. In other words, we ignore our buried trauma. We push away those painful, inconvenient, shameful and embarrassing parts of ourselves. We avoid the darkness and try to reach the light, and then call ourselves… “spiritual”!

But whatever we suppress and repress in ourselves doesn’t go away. However enlightened or peaceful or “deeply rooted in Pure Awareness” we pretend to be, those un-met, unprocessed, unseen and unenlightened energies stay rooted in our bodies, in our nervous systems, in our muscles, manifesting in our dreams and nightmares. The monster inside us doesn’t go away by singing mantras, contorting ourselves into yoga postures, praying to the guru or visiting ashrams. The monster only goes away once it’s met in a really embodied way. And to meet it we’re going to have to be brave and stop pretending. We’re going to have to stop being perfect and spiritual and unconditionally loving and wise and good and calm and neutral, and tell the truth of our actual human experience. We’re going to have to really meet our inner child. Feel the grief, the anger, the terror that’s lurking inside. Feel it and process it and validate it and give it expression in a healthy way. And then, and only then, the darkness inside us may turn out to be our greatest light-source. Our wounds may give us an insane amount of wisdom and courage. Our pains may help us find our passions. But we can’t skip over the trauma. We can’t skip to en-lightenment without en-lightening ALL our parts. Without making room for the sorrow, the joy, the tears and the laughter, the anger and the awe.

I have learnt this the hard way. I used to run from feelings. I used to be scared of them, judge others for having them. Now, feelings are my dearest friends and companions, and sources of joy and creativity. I used to believe enlightenment was a transcendent state, free from sadness, free from anger, free from doubt. But that was my mind telling me that. That was my spiritual ego, the part of me that wanted to be special, that wanted to escape, that wanted to be superior and safe. I came to realise that enlightenment, if there is any such thing, is a deeply vibrantly alive ocean, filled with beautiful waves of anger and sorrow and fear and doubt and joy and bliss, filled with all of humanity, filled with deep feeling, and no feeling is pushed away, and all feelings can be felt and can move through and can be expressed in a truthful and authentic way. I don’t need to pretend to be free, or pretend to be peaceful, or pretend to be wise, or pretend to be neutral, or pretend to be more evolved than anyone else, or pretend to be anything at all. Just being alive is enough – alive, and open, and curious, and playful, and deeply human, and committed to this path of ever-deepening adventure in the Unknown.

We cannot bypass our trauma because then we are bypassing life itself, and life won’t let us bypass it anyway. Our trauma, when faced, will heal us, break us open to more life, make us more compassionate, more authentic. When not faced, it will drain us, make us act out unconsciously, it will hurt us and the ones we love, it will make us addicted, it will make us sick, it will destroy relationships and make us false beings. So we can’t bypass our hurt and angry places in the name of spirituality, because we want to be true, real, authentic. We want to heal, and be Whole. True spirituality calls us to face everything. Everything inside of us that needs to be faced. It calls us to face our hot, sticky, dark, embarrassing, angry, scared, shaky and sexy and fiery places. It calls us to speak up, even if we are terrified and feel like we want to vomit. It calls us to finally express what’s inside us, even if we lose all our friends. It calls us to be deeply human as much as we are Pure Awareness, deeply humble as much as we are divine, earthy and messy and imperfect as much as we are absolute and transcendent.

We don’t get to be perfect, but we get to be real… and that is the greatest prize of all.

- Jeff Foster

BY REQUEST--SUNDAY MATINEE MUSIC VIDEO: “All I Ever Need Is Love”—Rishikesh is a small city in India, set in the Himalayan foothills and known for temples, schools, and scenic views of the Ganges River*. On the edge of town sits the former ashram where, in 1968, the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi famously met with The Beatles, Donovan, Mike Love, and other notables to learn about meditation. Fast forward to 2016 for our month-long India tour. We had a few days in Rishikesh—a lovely city—walking around, getting my ears cleaned (a story unto itself), singing songs, and becoming the first Western musicians to perform live in one of the prestigious temples (an auspicious occasion). Later we found the Yogi’s former ashram (now a tiger reserve). Back in the USA a few years later, this song came to me—a George Harrison-inspired playback of our adventure in Rishikesh, with allusions to “white album” songs, the landscape, the tour bus, and the Fab 4. This was recorded by Uma Robin Mackey in our backyard in San Francisco. The silk shirt I’m wearing was custom made in Varanasi (a gift from Uma)…

*Which reminded me of creeks and rivers where I grew up in Pennsylvania.

#Rishikesh #India #Beatles #GeorgeHarrison #Liverpool #meditation #ashram #yoga #Donovan #temple #Ganges #MikeLove #tiger #whitealbum #johnnyjblair #singeratlarge #Varanasi #silkshirt

The Life of The Prophet Muhammad(pbuh): Before His Birth, His Birth and His Childhood

The Event of the Elephant

It was soon before the birth of the Sun of the Universe (PBUH). People were flooding into the Kaba during Hajj season from all over the region.

The fact that the Kaba was filled with plenty of people disturbed some people. One of those resenting it was Abraha Ashram, the governor of Yemen of the Abyssinian ruler at the time.

In order to prevent the rush of people into the Kaba, Abraha had a church built called Qulleys in the city of San’a with the aid of Byzantium emperor. He went to all the expense of decorating inside with gold and silver. The outer side of it was decked out with extremely precious jewels that he had brought from various places. It was so much so that the church he had built had no match anywhere else!

Abraha was planning to attract people’s attention into here with all this ornament and embellishment. So, in the end, he was thinking of breaking the favor people hugely had with Kaba.

After the building of the church was completed, Abraha wrote a letter to the Abyssinian ruler to gain his approval further. In the letter, he wrote:

“I have had a church built for you such that neither Arabs nor Farsis have ever made something alike. I shall never halt unless I make here a place for Arabs’ pilgrimage.” 

However, all the expenses and efforts of Abraha came to nothing. Many people came to see the unique embellishment and gorgeous structure of the church. They came but only to see its beauty. The number of people visiting the Kaba did not diminish but increased.

The Fouling of Qulleys and Abraha’s Decision

That Abraha had a magnificent church built to alienate people from the Kaba was heard by the Arabs as well. In the meanwhile, someone named Nawfal from the Qinana tribe had made up his mind to foil this church. At one midnight, he went to the church foiling inside and outside of it and then turning back where he came from.

This incident exasperated Abraha further, who already flew into a rage with the fact that people still favored the Kaba. On learning that the one who foiled the church was an Arab, he swore with fury by saying; “Arabs did it since I made some of them turn away from their Kaba. So I shall raze it to the ground.” Then he prepared to advance towards Mecca with the intention of tearing the Kaba down. He asked the Negus of Abyssinia for the famous elephant, Mahmoud, to be given to him. The Negus met the demand of the Negus and sent him the elephant, which was then matchless in terms of size and power in the world. 

Abraha prepared his army and set off toward Makkah.

He started to proceed to Makkah with the elephant called Mahmud in front of the army.

Meanwhile some Arab tribes opposed that big army but they could not succeed in stopping them; they were defeated by Abraha.

When Abraha came somewhere named Mogammish near Mecca, he sent a group of cavalry to spearhead the attack.

Cavalrymen made their way into Mecca and extorted the herds of the Quraishians and Tikhamese, including two hundred camels of Abdulmuttalib, the grandfather of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). 

At that time Abdulmuttalib was the head of the Quraish tribe.

Abraha and Abdulmuttalib

Abraha sent an envoy to the Quraishians to deliver his message:

“I am not here to fight you, but to tear the Kaba down. If you do not resist me, I shall not shed your blood. Let the chief of the Quraish tribe come to me if he does not want me to fight against him.” 

Abdulmuttalib’s answer to the envoy was as follows:

“We swear by God that we do not want to fight him. We are not capable of that anyway. The Kaba is not ours but it is God Almighty’s. Only God Almighty can protect it from being ruined. If He shall not protect His holy home, we have no power to dissuade Abraha from his attack.” 

After this talk, Abdulmuttalib and the envoy went to Abraha.

Abdulmuttalib had an imposing appearance. Abraha felt an involuntary respect toward him. He treated him as an honorable guest and asked him what his wish was.

Abdulmuttalib stated his wish: “Your men took my two hundred camels. My wish is that they be returned to me.”

Abraha did not like it and spoke mockingly; “When I saw you, I thought you of being an important man; I soon realized that you are not so when you started to speak! I am here to demolish the Kaba which is your and your forefathers’ temple. You are not talking about that but you are thinking of your two hundred camels.”

Abdulmuttalib spoke recklessly; “I possess my own camels; the Kaba has its owner and protector. He is sure to protect it.”

“Nobody can protect it!” Abraha shouted.

Abdulmuttalib replied calmly; “I am not interested in that; this is between you and Him!” 

After this conversation, Abraha gave Abdulmuttalib’s camels back. Later on Abdulmuttalib left there and came back home in Mecca and told the Quraishians all about what had happened. Besides, he put on a mark on his two hundred camels to be sacrificed to God.

Mecca is evacuated

Abdulmuttalib recommended the folks to evacuate Mecca to protect themselves from the cruelty and oppression of Abraha and his army. He went to the Kaba with a couple of people with himself. He clung on to the door handle of the Kaba and prayed; “O my Lord! Even your servants protect their homes. You protect your own home too so that this army may not come out victorious.” 

Mecca was evacuated. The natives began to take shelter on mountain hills and solitary places and to wait what Abraha and his army will do.

Everyone was worried about what was going to happen.

The Army is Ready, But…

It was the morning of the following day.

All the preparations were completed in the army of Abraha that was about to destroy the Kaba. The army was waiting for the order of “March!”

The year was 571, seventeenth of the month of Muharram, on Sunday.

At the moment the army was to move, a man named Nufail Bin Habib, who then acted as a guide to Abraha, bent down to whisper into the ears of the great elephant Mahmoud:

“Mahmoud! Kneel down! Turn back where you come from without being hurt. You are in a place where God Almighty deems holy.” 

After he whispered those words into the ears of Mahmoud, he ran away to take shelter in a mountain.

After Nufail’s words, the huge elephant suddenly knelt down.

They resorted to any ways to make it get up, but all was in vain. When they directed it to Yemen, to Damascus, or to the eastern side, he was running; but when they direct it to Mecca, it kept kneeling down as if it had no power to run. 

At the moment when everybody was astonished at this sight, God Almighty sent the birds against the Abraha army called Ababel (goatsucker) from the other side of the sea.

Each of those birds was leaving from above three small stones as big as chickpea to the army. Every soldier to whom those stones hit immediately was severely wounded and died. 

The soldiers who met with the bombardment of stones were petrified with fear. The area was filled with men and animals lying around dead or wounded. Those who were hit with no stones started to flee around. Abraha was among them. But he, too, soon died because of a wound made to his body by a stone. 

Mahmoud, the elephant, survived due to its refusal to march into Mecca.

Having perished the army of Abraha with stone-carrying birds, God Almighty cleaned the area with rain, which later dragged the bodies into the sea. 

God Almighty informs of this event in the Holy Qur’an.

“Have you considered how your Lord dealt with the people of the Elephant? Did He not bring their evil scheme to nothing? He sent down upon them flocks of birds (unknown in the land), Shooting them with bullet-like stones of baked clay (an emblem of the punishment due to them), And so He rendered them like a field of grain devoured and trampled.” (Al-Fil Surah, 105:1-5) 

This event was a proof to Muhammad’s (PBUH) prophethood. Because, God Almighty saved his future homeland and the place he was to turn his face towards from Abraha’s army before he was born.

The mercy and wisdom of God Almighty would not and did not let the Abraha’s army destroy this honorable place out of His love to His Beloved Prophet (PBUH).

Discover the historic #Beatles #Ashram in Rishikesh during our retreat, where music, mindfulness, and nature converge in a tranquil setting along the Ganges River. #yogaretreat #rishikesh https://hareramainstitute.com

A Summary of the Story of the People of the Elephant

This is the story of the people of the Elephant, in brief, and summarized.

Tasfir of Sahih Ibn-Kathir

It has already been mentioned in the story of the People of the Ditch that Dhu Nuas, the last king of Himyar, a polytheist -- was the one who ordered killing the People of the Ditch. They were Christians and their number was approximately twenty thousand. None of them except a man named Daws Dhu Thalaban escaped. He fled to Ash-Sham where he sought protection from Caesar, the emperor of Ash-Sham, who was also a Christian.

Caesar wrote to An-Najashi, the king of Ethiopia (Abyssinia), who was closer to the home of the man. An-Najashi sent two governors with him: Aryat and Abrahah bin As-Sabah Abu Yaksum, along with a great army. The army entered Yemen and began searching the houses and looting in search of the king of Himyar (Dhu Nuwas). Dhu Nuwas was eventually killed by drowning in the sea.

Thus, the Ethiopians were free to rule Yemen, with Aryat and Abrahah as its governors. However, they continually disagreed about matters, attacked each other, fought each other and warred against each other, until one of them said to the other,

"There is no need for our two armies to fight. Instead let us fight each other (in a duel) and the one who kills the other will be the ruler of Yemen.''

So the other accepted the challenge and they held a duel. Behind each man was a channel of water (to keep either from fleeing). Aryat gained the upper hand and struck Abrahah with his sword, splitting his nose and mouth, and slashing his face. But Atawdah, Abrahah's guard, attacked Aryat and killed him. Thus, Abrahah returned wounded to Yemen where he was treated for his injuries and recovered. He thus became the commander of the Abyssinian army in Yemen.

Then the king of Abyssinia, An-Najashi wrote to him, blaming him for what had happened (between him and Aryat) and threatened him, saying that he swore to tread on the soil of Yemen and cut off his forelock. Therefore, Abrahah sent a messenger with gifts and precious objects to An-Najashi to appease him and flatter him, and a sack containing soil from Yemen and a piece of hair cut from his forelock. He said in his letter to the king,

"Let the king walk upon this soil and thus fulfill his oath, and this is my forelock hair that I send to you.''

When An-Najashi received this, he was pleased with Abrahah and gave him his approval.

Then Abrahah wrote to An-Najashi saying that he would build a church for him in Yemen the like of which had never been built before. Thus, he began to build a huge church in San`a', tall and beautifully crafted and decorated on all sides. The Arabs called it Al-Qullays because of its great height, and because if one looked at it, his cap would be in danger of falling off as he tilted his head back.

Then Abrahah Al-Ashram decided to force the Arabs to make their pilgrimage to this magnificent church, just as they had performed pilgrimage to the Ka`bah in Makkah. He announced this in his kingdom (Yemen), but it was rejected by the Arab tribes of Adnan and Qahtan.

The Quraysh were infuriated by it, so much so that one of them journeyed to the church and entered it one night. He then relieved himself in the church and ran away (escaping the people). When its custodians saw what he had done, they reported it to their king, Abrahah, saying;

"One of the Quraysh has done this in anger over their House in whose place you have appointed this church.''

Upon hearing this, Abrahah swore to march to the House of Makkah (the Ka`bah) and destroy it stone by stone.

Muqatil bin Sulayman mentioned that a group of young men from the Quraysh entered the church and started a fire in it on an extremely windy day. So the church caught on fire and collapsed to the ground. Due to this Abrahah prepared himself and set out with a huge and powerful army so that none might prevent him from carrying out his mission.

He took along a great, powerful elephant that had a huge body the like of which had never been seen before. This elephant was called Mahmud and it was sent to Abrahah from An-Najashi, the king of Abyssinia, particularly for this expedition.

It has also been said that he had eight other elephants with him; their number was also reported to be twelve, plus the large one, Mahmud -- and Allah knows best.

Their intention was to use this big elephant to demolish the Ka`bah. They planned to do this by fastening chains to the pillars of the Ka`bah and placing the other ends around the neck of the elephant. Then they would make the elephant pull on them in order to tear down the walls of the Ka`bah all at one time.

When the Arabs heard of Abrahah's expedition, they considered it an extremely grave matter. They held it to be an obligation upon them to defend the Sacred House and repel whoever intended a plot against it. Thus, the noblest man of the people of Yemen and the greatest of their chiefs set out to face him (Abrahah). His name was Dhu Nafr.

He called his people, and whoever would respond to his call among the Arabs, to go to war against Abrahah and fight in defense of the Sacred House. He called the people to stop Abrahah's plan to demolish and tear down the Ka`bah. So the people responded to him and they entered into battle with Abrahah, but he defeated them.

This was due to Allah's will and His intent to honor and venerate the Ka`bah.

The army continued on its way until it came to the land of Khatham where it was confronted by Nufayl bin Habib Al-Kath`ami along with his people, the Shahran and Nahis tribes. They fought Abrahah but he defeated them and captured Nufayl bin Habib. Initially he wanted to kill him, but he forgave him and took him as his guide to show him the way to Al-Hijaz.

When they approached the area of At-Ta'if, its people -- the people of Thaqif -- went out to Abrahah. They wanted to appease him because they were fearful for their place of worship, which they called Al-Lat. Abrahah was kind to them and they sent a man named Abu Righal with him as a guide.

When they reached a place known as Al-Mughammas, which is near Makkah, they settled there. Then he sent his troops on a foray to capture the camels and other grazing animals of the Makkans, which they did, including about two hundred camels belonging to Abdul-Muttalib. The leader of this particular expedition was a man named Al-Aswad bin Mafsud.

According to what Ibn Ishaq mentioned, some of the Arabs used to satirize him (because of the part he played in this historical incident). Then Abrahah sent an emissary named Hanatah Al-Himyari to enter Makkah, commanding him to bring the head of the Quraysh to him. He also commanded him to inform him that the king will not fight the people of Makkah unless they try to prevent him from the destruction of the Ka`bah.

Hanatah went to the city and he was directed to Abdul-Muttalib bin Hashim, to whom he relayed Abrahah's message. Abdul-Muttalib replied,

"By Allah! We have no wish to fight him, nor are we in any position to do so. This is the Sacred House of Allah, and the house of His Khalil, Ibrahim, and if He wishes to prevent him (Abrahah) from (destroying) it, it is His House and His Sacred Place (to do so). And if He lets him approach it, by Allah, We have no means to defend it from him.''

So Hanatah told him, "Come with me to him (Abrahah).'' And so Abdul-Muttalib went with him.

When Abrahah saw him, he was impressed by him, because Abdul-Muttalib was a large and handsome man. So Abrahah descended from his seat and sat with him on a carpet on the ground. Then he asked his translator to say to him, "What do you need''

Abdul-Muttalib replied to the translator, "I want the king to return my camels which he has taken from me which are two hundred in number.''

Abrahah then told his translator to tell him,

"I was impressed by you when I first saw you, but now I withdraw from you after you have spoken to me. You are asking me about two hundred camels which I have taken from you and you leave the matter of a house which is (the foundation of) religion and the religion of your fathers, which I have come to destroy and you do not speak to me about it''

Abdul-Muttalib said to him,

"Verily, I am the lord of the camels. As for the House, it has its Lord Who will defend it.''

Abrahah said, "I cannot be prevented (from destroying it).''

Abdul-Muttalib answered, "Then do so.''

It is said that a number of the chiefs of the Arabs accompanied Abdul-Muttalib and offered Abrahah a third of the wealth of the tribe of Tihamah if he would withdraw from the House, but he refused and returned Abdul-Muttalib's camels to him.

Abdul-Muttalib then returned to his people and ordered them to leave Makkah and seek shelter at the top of the mountains, fearful of the excesses which might be committed by the army against them. Then he took hold of the metal ring of the door of the Ka`bah, and along with a number of Quraysh, he called upon Allah to give them victory over Abrahah and his army.

Abdul-Muttalib said, while hanging on to the ring of the Ka`bah's door,

"There is no matter more important to any man right now than the defense of his livestock and property. So, O my Lord! Defend Your property. Their cross and their cunning will not be victorious over your cunning by the time morning comes.''

According to Ibn Ishaq, then Abdul-Muttalib let go of the metal ring of the door of the Ka`bah, and they left Makkah and ascended to the mountains tops.

Muqatil bin Sulayman mentioned that they left one hundred animals (camels) tied near the Ka`bah hoping that some of the army would take some of them without a right to do so, and thus bring about the vengeance of Allah upon themselves.

When morning came, Abrahah prepared to enter the sacred city of Makkah. He prepared the elephant named Mahmud. He mobilized his army, and they turned the elephant towards the Ka`bah. At that moment Nufayl bin Habib approached it and stood next to it, and taking it by its ear, he said,

"Kneel, Mahmud! Then turn around and return directly to whence you came. For verily, you are in the Sacred City of Allah.''

Then he released the elephant's ear and it knelt, after which Nufayl bin Habib left and hastened to the mountains.

Abrahah's men beat the elephant in an attempt to make it rise, but it refused. They beat it on its head with axes and used hooked staffs to pull it out of its resistance and make it stand, but it refused. So they turned him towards Yemen, and he rose and walked quickly. Then they turned him towards Ash-Sham and he did likewise. Then they turned him towards the east and he did the same thing. Then they turned him towards Makkah and he knelt down again.

Then Allah sent against them the birds from the sea, like swallows and herons. Each bird carried three stones the size of chickpeas and lentils, one in each claw and one in its beak. Everyone who was hit by them was destroyed, though not all of them were hit. They fled in panic along the road asking about the whereabouts of Nufayl that he might point out to them the way home. Nufayl, however, was at the top of the mountain with the Quraysh and the Arabs of the Hijaz observing the wrath which Allah had caused to descend on the people of the elephant. Nufayl then began to say,

"Where will they flee when the One True God is the Pursuer For Al-Ashram is defeated and not the victor."

Ibn Ishaq reported that Nufayl said these lines of poetry at that time,

"Didn't you live with continued support We favored you all with a revolving eye in the morning (i.e., a guide along the way).

If you saw, but you did not see it at the side of the rock covered mountain that which we saw.

Then you will excuse me and praise my affair, and do not grieve over what is lost between us.

I praised Allah when I saw the birds, and I feared that the stones might be thrown down upon us.

So all the people are asking about the whereabouts of Nufayl, as if I have some debt that I owe the Abyssinians.''

Ata' bin Yasar and others have said that all of them were not struck by the torment at this hour of retribution. Rather some of them were destroyed immediately, while others were gradually broken down limb by limb while trying to escape. Abrahah was of those who was broken down limb by limb until he eventually died in the land of Khatham.

Ibn Ishaq said that they left (Makkah) being struck down and destroyed along every path and at every water spring.

Abrahah's body was afflicted by the pestilence of the stones and his army carried him away with them as he was falling apart piece by piece, until they arrived back in San`a'. When they arrived there he was but like the baby chick of a bird. And he did not die until his heart fell out of his chest. So they claim.

Ibn Ishaq said that when Allah sent Muhammad with the Prophethood, among the things that he used to recount to the Quraysh as blessings that Allah had favored them with of His bounties, was His defending them from the attack of the Abyssinians. Due to this they (the Quraysh) were allowed to remain (safely in Makkah) for a period of time. Thus, Allah said,

ألم تر كيف فعل ربك بٲصحاب الفيل

ألم يجعل كيدهم في تضليل

وأرسل عليهم طيرا أبابيل

ترميهم بحجارة من سجيل

فجعلهم كعصف مٲكول

Placements within the 12 Houses 🌹

Gemini in the 4th house

Gemini in the 4th house people are talkative/curious in their home environment. There may be multiple traditions that your family does in regards to ancestry and heritage. May live in multiple homes growing up or in the future may aspire to own mutliple living spaces. People with this placement are interested in learning about their home and roots, ancestry or are great at communicating about it. They feel at home in environments that are mentally stimulating, quick-paced. They grew up in environments where they had to learn to communicate.

Leo in the 10th house

They are publicly known for being courageous, can be generous, and authentic. They can take on more managerial positions or may give off "boss" energy. They can also be in the performing and entertainment business.

Aries in the 7th house

Aries in the 7th house shows that in your long-term partnerships, business partners will have aries characteristics; impulsive, people that lead/take action, are determined. People with this placement will do well with others that are action-oriented and leaders. Long-term partnerships, business partnerships will happen quick but may not last.

Taurus in the 9th house

Taurus in the 9th house has set views when it comes to their world view, politics, ethics, morals, religious/spiritual views. People with this placement may travel long-distance to luxurious places. They have integrity and are grounded. They are drawn to teach/learn topics of finance, business, security.

Moon in the 11th house

People with moon in the 11th house feel emotionally secure with friendships, communities, and social interactions. Intuitive feelings will come through when surrounding yourself with these people. There can also be a lot of fluctuation in this area, since the moon changes signs quickly. The relationship with the mother was that of a friend, close.

Saturn in the 11th house

Saturn in the 11th, there will be delays/restrictions when it comes to social recognition. This person may face challenges within communities or it will take some work before having a solid foundation in this area. There may be issues with social media and the community. They may have a small group of friends that are reliable but are disconnected from larger groups of people.

Uranus in the 2nd house

Uranus in the 2nd house people will experience instability/chaos in their views of money, resources, and self-worth. There can be shake ups with finances and the way you make money. People with this placement need freedom/individuality with their resources and finances, using technology may be important.

Mars in the 6th house

Mars in the 6th house people will be motivated by being of service to others. What brings them energy is helping others, health, nutrition, animals. People with this placement can also get angry with animal cruelty, fad diets, or lack of empathy for others. They may also have conflict in their day to day routines or with coworkers and employees.

Jupiter in the 12th house

Jupiter in the 12th house people may receive psychic downloads in their dreams. They may be prone to being daydreamers or an active imagination. People with this placement will have luck and good fortune in prisons, ashrams, mental institutions ,hospitals. They receive blessings with their subconscious or within spirituality. They expand their world view/morals/ethics in solitude.

Chicago Fest for Beatles Fans 2023

I've always loved connecting with people who share my passions. For me, cons aren't about meeting celebrities or room parties, though those are both fine. For me, it's about meeting people whose eyes don't glaze over after thirty seconds of your special interest. So when I began my deep dive into Beatlemania, I wanted to find people who really wanted to chat. (Some of you have witnessed these efforts here, to varying degrees of success.) So I googled "Beatles conventions" and, on a whim, bought a ticket to the Fest for Beatles Fans in Chicago, partly because I had someone to stay with (over an hour away, but still) and didn't need to shell out for a room.

If my goal was to engineer a feeling like, say, my best one on one convos here, or the Meta the Beatles discord, or old school livejournal, or the K/S cons, it was only marginally successful. Still, I think it was a positive experience and I am considering attempting to afford the next one in February at the utterly stunning remodeled TWA hotel.

The Fest, which used to be called BeatleFest until Apple Corps intervened in 1997, has been ongoing since 1974 when founder Mark Lapidos asked John Lennon if he was cool with the idea of a Beatles convention. You can see various guests over the years here, so clearly it's a known quantity in Beatledom. Many people there this weekend have been attending since the beginning, and it's an annual (or bi-annual) tradition.

It differs from other fan cons I've been to in that the focus is largely on music itself. This is natural, but what I mean is, there is constantly at least one musical act playing Beatles music in some form. On the main stage and breakout rooms you also have guests: Pattie Boyd, Gregg Bissonette (Ringo's current drummer), Billy J Kramer, Terry Sylvester (the Hollies), Joey Molland (Badfinger), Jay Bergen (John's lawyer), Allan Kozinn (The McCartney Legacy), Bruce Spizer (various books about the recordings), Kenneth Womack (upcoming Mal Evans book!), Susan Ryan (long time Fest fixture and historian), Skylar Moody (Beatles TikTok), Jude Kessler (The John Lennon series), Sara Schmidt (Meet the Beatles for Real), Steve Matteo (Act Naturally: the Beatles on Film). There are dealers with vintage and current merch and memorabilia, a "museum" room with historic merch, old clippings, an "ashram" where you can attend various meditation and yoga sessions, a karaoke room, costume and talent contests, even a Beatles Rock Band setup I failed to attend despite my yearning to one day play it.

Some of the panels were pretty sparsely attended, and there was a strong feeling that a lot of people go to listen to the bands and stay up all night. But what that meant for those of us who were there to talk and make connections was, I got to talk and make a ton of connections. I met Sara Schmidt and her mother and they took me under their wing and introduced me to anyone who was anyone. I had a lovely chat with Ken Womack. Wally Podrazik insisted on taking a photo of my Nerk Twins shirt and demanded I email him. I spoke to Allan Kozinn about how a John boy comes to write the most comprehensive Paul biography ever. I met a lady named Tina who is going to hook me up with info about early slash and RPF fic (because I've heard several of you youngin's declare it's a relatively new phenomenon and I know it isn't!). I danced to a great cover band while looking like Twiggy. I had a lot of comments about my Stamp Out the Beatles shirt. I spoke to Steve Matteo about his book about the Beatles on film, and shared my own film work in which he took an avid interest.

All in all, it never got as in depth as you can with good fandom friends in a quiet setting. I've also heard that attendance and quality have gone down in recent years, and changes have been implemented due to stupid copyright shit (like, no being able to show any of the licensed films or cartoons? Which is a huge bummer.). But I do feel that I made connections and furthermore, felt embraced and included and warmly welcomed. No one questioned the fact I got here via "Get Back," no one challenged me on being new, no one made any attempt to gatekeep or Beatle bro at me. Only ONE person even asked who my favorite Beatle was. They all seemed genuinely delighted to have a new weirdo to share their passion with.

I haven't decided if I'm attending again, but I do already have plans in the works to suggest a few panels more in line with the type of con activity I like to see. Because even if it's not exactly the interactions I've been seeking, there's no substitute for face to face discussion and squee. And now, my photos!

Jay Bergen, Gregg Bissonette, Terry Sylvester, Joey Molland, Billy J Kramer, Pattie Boyd, and moderator Terri Hemmert.

So many shirts! My little outfits, missing my prized Stamp Out the Beatles sweatshirt:

Weirdass vintage Beatles merch:

And finally, what I spent too much money on because everyone I talked to had written a book, GDI. Plus, 1974 era buttons because I like old stuff and they were $10:

Oh and cursed playlist concept. What kind of music does Gabriel put on at the ashram (Pune or Nevada) to decompress from intense group therapy… (from research I’d say overarching - general vibes: happy, maybe danceable; lyrics: English or Hindi probably :P)

aka the desire to be subtle vs the desire to be funny: FIGHT

A Purely Spiritual Love

A band AU playlist for running away from the world aged nineteen and accidentally falling for your cult leader. Or just for chillin' post dynamic meditation, that's cool too.

Nazia Hassan - Aao Naa

ABBA - Me & I

Asha Bhosle - Dum Maro Dum (pt. 2)

The Buggles - Video Killed the Radio Star

Asha Bhosle - Koi Shahri Babu (pt. 1)

The Monkees - I'm a Believer

Kishore Kumar - Ye Jawani Hai Diwani

Talking Heads - Once in a Lifetime

Lata Mangeshkar & Kishore Kumar - Jai Jai Shiv Shankar

Carly Simon - You're So Vain

Kalyanji-Anandji - Dharmatma Theme (pt. 1 - instrumental)

The Human League - Don't You Want Me

Nazia and Zoheb Hassan - Dosti

Don McLean - American Pie

Lata Mangeshkar - Bangle Ke Peechhe

The Beach Boys - Sloop John B

Kishore Kumar, Mahendra Kapoor & Shailendra Singh - Amar Akbar Anthony

The Beatles - All You Need is Love

Usual deal: explanation below the cut. Album cover featuring Joel Kinnaman's chin.

Caveat and apologies that I don't always have a very detailed explanation for why all the Hindi songs are on here because for some I just couldn't find English lyrics/descriptions of the film they're from, they're just here because they're bops. Caveat and apologies that the English songs are really NOT subtle and I had way too much fun picking them.

Nazia Hassan - Aao Naa Not Hindi, but also no great explanation beyond: what a CRACKING album opener!! Jerott's probably got the cassette and has playlist privileges at Nevada.

ABBA - Me & I Frankly ALL of Super Trouper is on the ashram playlist. The Winner Takes It All? GRM approves! But for supreme trolling-through-playlist purposes, get boogie-ing to this disco track about psychoanalysis: Sometimes I have toyed With ideas that I got from good old Dr. Freud Nothing new of course It may seem to you I try to break through open doors Oh no, oh no I just wanna say a lot of that applies to me 'Cause it's an explanation to my split identity 3) Asha Bhosle - Dum Maro Dum (pt. 2) This was an epic hit, from the film Haré Rama Haré Krishna (1971) which involves, ooh, international bigamy, cults, selling off artifacts to rich Westerners, suicide, hippies beating people up, and all sorts of things that people suspicious of Rajneesh's movement would recognise as threats. I think it would tickle Graham Reid Malett to have people dancing to the big song from a film warning about the dangers of his type. 4) The Buggles - Video Killed the Radio Star Cheesy, a bit sad, a bit sinister even, but everyone can dance along and everyone knows it. 5) Asha Bhosle - Koi Shahri Babu (pt. 1) I'll be honest and say that Bollywood thriller plots are somewhat impenetrable when reduced to short Wikipedia summaries, but this is from Loafer (1973) which seems to be about love across rival gangs and spying on one another. The song is about falling coyly for a guy who gives you a gift. And Asha is the queen, so we put as much Asha on the playlist as we need to. 6) The Monkees - I'm a Believer :))) be happy! Your dynamic meditation has finished and you have taken another step towards enlightenment/entrapment by Graham Reid Malett. 7) Kishore Kumar - Ye Jawani Hai Diwani No explanation, couldn't find the lyrics anywhere BUT what a tune!! Kishore and R.D. Burman, more icons. The film it's from (Jawani Diwani, 1972) has people leaving/becoming estranged from their families for love and intergenerational repeats of that so. A bit of a Jerott vibe. 8) Talking Heads - Once in a Lifetime People from well-to-do background suddenly asking themselves 'how did I get here?' and packing it all in to give their money to the ashram…? 9) Lata Mangeshkar & Kishore Kumar - Jai Jai Shiv Shankar Laughter therapy, praising Shiva (god of meditation, among other things, Rajneesh discoursed on him a lot). And from a film (Aap Ki Kasam, 1974) where paranoia and possessiveness ruins relationships. 10) Carly Simon - You're So Vain Do I think I'm funny? Yes. Yes I do. It's about the death of the ego babe, let go of yourself! But genuinely, you could sway along and dance to this when you were exhausted from meditation! And when Carly Simon finally tells us who (else) it was about you mark my words, Graham Reid Malett will be on the list :P You had me several years ago When I was still quite naive Well, you said that we made such a pretty pair And that you would never leave But you gave away the things you loved And one of them was me 11) Kalyanji-Anandji - Dharmatma Theme (pt. 1 - instrumental) The film (Dharmatma, 1975) is apparently based on the Godfather but set in Afghanistan. So absolutely the kind of thing that would appeal to teenage Jerott, who never knew his grandparents who spent time around the (then) India-Afghanistan border. Plus teenage boys love gangster stories. Plus Jerott doesn't realise the similarities between the ashram set up and that of a mob. 12) The Human League - Don't You Want Me A man who feels entitled to another person because he plucked from obscurity and 'made something of them'? Remind you of anyone? I picked you out, I shook you up and turned you around Turned you into someone new Now five years later on you've got the world at your feet Success has been so easy for you But don't forget, it's me who put you where you are now And I can put you back down too I feel like the background story to this song's release is also relevant: the band hated it and thought it was a filler track and didn't want to release it as a single, the record company forced them to, and it was a huge success. Reminiscent of Francis and GRM's interactions in PiF. 13) Nazia and Zoheb Hassan - Dosti Just another of Jerott's cassettes with good Pakistani disco pop on it! :') 14) Don McLean - American Pie It's just….it's such a GRM/Jerott kind of vibe? The disappointment, grief and sense of loss for something you never quite had, the crushing of hope, the nostalgia for something half-remembered as life-changing, but all sounding so beautiful and dreamy and it kind of cheers everyone up to be able to sing along? The idea of the American Dream as an ideal that can never be lived up to as well, kind of like what Jerott is hoping to find from the ashram vs what he gets. Oh, and there we were, all in one place A generation lost in space With no time left to start again So come on, Jack be nimble, Jack be quick Jack Flash sat on a candlestick 'Cause fire is the devil's only friend Oh, and as I watched him on the stage My hands were clenched in fists of rage No angel born in hell Could break that Satan's spell And as the flames climbed high into the night To light the sacrificial rite I saw Satan laughing with delight The day the music died 15) Lata Mangeshkar - Bangle Ke Peechhe Another I couldn't find the lyrics for, but it's R.D. Burman again and was a massive hit. It's from Samadhi (1972). 16) The Beach Boys - Sloop John B Another one that kind of sounds cheery until you listen to the lyrics when it's actually really miserable! Jerott are you ok? The first mate, he got drunk And broke in the captain's trunk The constable had to come and take him away Sheriff John Stone Why don't you leave me alone? Yeah, yeah Well, I feel so broke up I wanna go home 17) Kishore Jumar, Mahendra Kapoor & Shailendra Singh - Amar Akbar Anthony From a 'masala' film of the same title, about three brothers separated and raised as Hindu/Muslim/Christian, so I figure a good ashram vibe for bringing people together in a synthesis of teachings… Also look out Francis. Look out Jerott. <Two are better than one Three are better than two The bride and the groom are not together There's music but not a wedding procession The bride and the groom are not together There's music but not a wedding procession There's nothing to fear This is a night of union and not of sadness Smile my friends, why do you have such a crying face Smile my friends, why do you have such a crying face When the three of us get together in one place> 18) The Beatles - All You Need is Love Can't have a playlist about a rich white guy exploiting an already exploitative Indian cult to make himself powerful without putting some Beatles on it, right? Sure Graham, 'love'. There's nothing you can do that can't be done Nothing you can sing that can't be sung Nothing you can say, but you can learn how to play the game It's easy Nothing you can make that can't be made No one you can save that can't be saved Nothing you can do, but you can learn how to be you in time It's easy

Discovering Serenity Hotels Near Arunachalam Temple

Nestled amidst the majestic hills of Tamil Nadu, Arunachalam Temple stands as a symbol of spirituality and serenity. Devotees and travelers flock to this sacred site to experience its profound ambiance and seek blessings. While exploring this divine destination, finding the perfect accommodation can enhance your pilgrimage or leisure trip. Here's a guide to hotels near Arunachalam Temple, ensuring a comfortable and memorable stay.

Arunachalam Temple: A Spiritual Haven: Before delving into accommodation options, it's essential to understand the significance of Arunachalam Temple. Dedicated to Lord Shiva, this ancient temple is renowned for its architectural grandeur and spiritual aura. Situated atop the Arunachala Hill in Thiruvannamalai, it attracts devotees, ascetics, and tourists alike, seeking enlightenment and solace.

Proximity to the Temple: Several hotels and guesthouses are conveniently located near Arunachalam Temple, offering easy access to the sacred site. Opting for accommodation within walking distance ensures you can participate in early morning rituals, attend puja ceremonies, and explore the temple complex at your leisure.

Comfort and Amenities: While seeking proximity to the temple, it's crucial to prioritize comfort and amenities during your stay. Many hotels near Arunachalam Temple cater to various budgets and preferences, ranging from simple lodges to luxurious resorts. Look for features such as spacious rooms, clean facilities, Wi-Fi connectivity, and complimentary breakfast to ensure a pleasant experience.

Spiritual Retreats and Ashrams: For those seeking a deeper spiritual immersion, several ashrams and retreat centers near Arunachalam Temple offer accommodation options. These serene retreats provide a tranquil atmosphere, daily satsangs (spiritual discourses), meditation sessions, and vegetarian meals, allowing guests to rejuvenate their mind, body, and soul.

Exploring Thiruvannamalai: Beyond the spiritual allure of Arunachalam Temple, Thiruvannamalai boasts natural beauty, historical landmarks, and cultural richness. While choosing accommodation, consider proximity to other attractions such as Girivalam Path, Sathanur Dam, and Ramana Maharshi Ashram, allowing you to immerse yourself fully in the region's charm.

Booking Tips and Recommendations: To ensure a seamless experience, it's advisable to book accommodation near Arunachalam Temple well in advance, especially during peak pilgrimage seasons and festivals. Online booking platforms, travel agencies, and direct hotel websites offer a range of options to suit your preferences and budget.

Conclusion: As you embark on a journey to Arunachalam Temple, selecting the right accommodation sets the tone for a fulfilling experience. Whether you seek proximity to the sacred site, spiritual solace, or modern comforts, hotels near Arunachalam Temple cater to diverse needs, ensuring a memorable stay amidst the tranquility of this sacred destination.

During their first stint from 1998 to 2004, the BJP-led NDA pushed for introducing degree-courses in astrology, karma-kanda (rituals) and “consciousness studies” of Advaitic variety in colleges and universities.

Thanks to the policies put in place by NDA 1.0, any aspiring astrologer or priest can get a diploma from public or private institutions that have been given the status of universities.

The prestigious Birla Institute of Technology and Science, in collaboration with Bhaktivedanta Institute now offers M.Phil. and Ph.D. degrees in “consciousness studies.” This program sells itself as an “equivalent of a graduate program in ‘cognitive studies’ in any Western university.” But it is hard to imagine any respectable cognitive studies school in the West accepting the fundamental premise that this program operates with: that consciousness is a pre-existing constituent of matter. This is simply Advaita by another name. Bhaktivedanta Institute is the “research” wing of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, aka “Hare Krishnas.”

Certificate programs offered by training centers associated with Aurobindo Ashram are recognized by IGNOU, Indira Gandhi National Open University. I have tried to document how educational institutions set up by prominent religious gurus and sects include a variety of pseudosciences as a legitimate part of their curricula. Many of these institutions have been “deemed” as universities. As “deemed universities” they have been given the authority to set their own curricula and hand out degrees and diplomas. Many receive state support in the form of land-grants and tax-breaks.

From Science in Saffron by Meera Nanda

Yoga on a mat or off the mat… wherever it works, more when you are in the midst of a blessed atmosphere and unspoiled nature! Just feel connected and loved! Looking at the gorgeous green mountain, peaceful flowing river, blue sky, pampering touch of the wind, flying birds, the sun setting down, holy Mother Earth, the sound of chanting mantra ….. everything in one place, Yoga Capital Rishikesh, giving Universal admiration!

An enjoyable Outdoor Yoga with Yoga students, Om Shanti Om Ashram, February - 2024 session…. And definitely a memorable one too!

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Uttarakhand: The Land of the Gods

Uttarakhand, otherwise called "Devbhoomi" or "Place that is known for the Divine beings," is a state in northern India. It is lined by the territories of Himachal Pradesh toward the north, Uttar Pradesh toward the east, and Madhya Pradesh toward the south. The western boundary of Uttarakhand is shaped by the Indo-Nepal line.

Uttarakhand is a place where there is staggering normal magnificence. The state is home to the Himalayas, the world's most elevated mountain range. The Himalayas are home to the absolute most notorious tops on the planet, including Mount Everest, the most noteworthy mountain on the planet.

Uttarakhand is likewise home to various other normal miracles, including rich backwoods, perfectly clear lakes, and thundering cascades. The state is a well known objective for climbing, setting up camp, and other open air exercises.

Notwithstanding its regular excellence, Uttarakhand is likewise home to a rich social legacy. The state is home to different Hindu sanctuaries, cloisters, and other strict destinations. Uttarakhand is likewise home to various ancestral gatherings, each with its own one of a kind culture and customs.

Probably the most famous vacationer locations in Uttarakhand include:

Rishikesh: Rishikesh is known as the "Yoga Capital of the World." The city is home to various yoga ashrams and otherworldly centers. Haridwar is one of the seven holiest urban communities in Hinduism. The city is situated on the banks of the Ganges River. Mussoorie is a famous slope station known for its grand perspectives on the Himalayas. Nainital is a beautiful lake town known for its serene atmosphere.Jim Corbett Public Park: Jim Corbett Public Park is perhaps of the most established public park in India. The recreation area is home to an assortment of untamed life, including tigers, elephants, and panthers.

Uttarakhand is a delightful and different express that offers something for everybody. Whether you are keen on climbing, setting up camp, yoga, or just partaking in the excellence of nature, Uttarakhand is the ideal location for your next get-away.