Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish Newsletter December 2007 / January 200

[Guest guest]

Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish Newsletter December 2007 /

January 2008

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in this issue

 

What Each Sign Looks Forward to About Christmas

The Twelve Signs At Christmas

Westerners Taking " A Chants "

Book on Guru Dev Available Online, No Charge

 

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Happy Winter Solstice. Yuletide Greetings. Happy Chanukah. Happy

Kwanza, Merry Christmas,

Happy New Year! I wish you great blessings and fulfillment in 2008.

 

I offer you this newsletter to enhance and deepen your experience of

Vedic Astrology.

In these newsletters, expect to find a combination of helpful

articles, book reviews,

Jyotish links and more. The purpose of this newsletter is to educate

and titillate

the Jyotish-loving public. The opinions given within are solely those

of the author.

 

In this issue, find out what each sign looks forward to about

Christmas. Allison

Nielsen lists how the Twelve Signs act at Christmastime. Take

our " Affordable Gifts

for the Discerning Lover of Vedic Studies " guide to the store when

you go shopping.

Learn about kirtan chanting in America from our new contributing

author, Andrea

Pflaumer. (Andrea has been a professional writer for over 10 years

and lives in

the San Francisco Bay area. To reach her, email michael

[michael].)

And read a new translation of Guru Dev's words online.

 

Please visit my website, Jyotish.ws, at your convenience. The best

articles I have written in

these newsletters are archived on this site. I offer access to an

excellent yagya program.

 

- Michael Laughrin (michael)

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What Each Sign Looks Forward to About Christmas

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By Michael Laughrin (michael)

 

 

Aries - Sledding, skiing, ice skating and climbing a few small

mountains for fun

during the Christmas break from work.

 

Taurus - Cookies, fruitcake, eggnog, turkey, stuffing, and more! And

this is just

the week before Christmas.

 

 

Gemini- Parties, shopping, gabbing, and text-messaging all my friends.

 

 

Cancer - Going to Mother's house, and enjoying her special recipes

such as Fried

Bologna Wonderbake and Noodle Pie. Also just being with family and

friends from

early childhood.

 

 

Leo - " I " can finally get some of the things that " I " have always

wanted and deserved.

I can be the star of the Christmas party and the golden one at the

New Year's party.

 

Virgo - Wrapping each present perfectly and oh-so-thoughtfully

picking out just

the right thing for just the right person.

 

Libra - Schmoozing, relating to friends, and being the one who

balances everyone's

feelings at holiday gatherings.

 

Scorpio - Weighing up how each Christmas interaction can benefit me

in business

during the next calendar year. Calculating how much " bang for the

buck " each present

will give.

 

Sagittarius - Organizing and leading outdoor Christmas caroling

followed by a midnight

outdoor party in the park.

 

Capricorn - Figuring out how to spend the least amount of money and

still have people

like me (or tolerate me) for the next year.

 

Aquarius - New computer software, new computer hardware and more

gadgets, gadgets,

gadgets!

 

Pisces - Losing oneself in the glorious feelings of giving,

receiving, and sharing-

a sort of Mystical Shopping Experience.

 

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The Twelve Signs At Christmas

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By Alison Nielsen (premavratini)

 

Aries - Decides to get dressed up in fire engine red and play Santa.

Showing off

for the eager little kids, he climbs on the roof, takes a tumble and

spends Christmas

in a neck brace.

 

Taurus - Visions of sugarplums. And sugar cookies and gingerbread and

fruitcake

and eggnog and Christmas ham.

 

Gemini - Should I go skiing in St. Moritz or surfing at Waikiki?

 

Cancer - Decorates a beautiful tree, puts up lights in the yard,

hangs the stockings

and sits by the fire waiting for the kids to come home.

 

Leo - I wonder what Santa is bringing me for Christmas this year? I

hope he read

my letter carefully. Last year was really unacceptable-I mean,

really, K-mart?

Everyone knows I only wear designer brands.

 

Virgo - Works 60 hours getting Christmas ready at her favorite

charity. Collapses

and spends Christmas at home in bed.

 

Libra - Sets up an online business selling post-season Christmas

items at a discount.

 

Scorpio - Visits Transylvania, obtains a genealogical certificate to

prove matrilineal

descent from Count Dracula.

 

Sagittarius - Wins the lottery and shops and shops and shops for

friends and family,

presenting each with a stocking the size of a car.

 

Capricorn - Spends Christmas at the North Pole helping Santa decide

who was good

and who was bad and deciding who gets how much.

 

Aquarius - Writes a book on the historical origins of Christmas.

 

Pisces - Dresses up as Santa, goes to a bad part of town and starts

passing out

presents to poor children. Gets mugged and peacefully hands over

wallet. Spends

Christmas calling credit card companies.

 

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Westerners Taking " A Chants "

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By Andrea Pflaumer

 

In the not-so-distant past, before Homeland Security measures

rendered airport lobbies

off-limits, the only " orange alerts " to which weary travelers were

subjected were

gatherings of young people in saffron robes handing out tracts and

chanting the

names of Hindu deities: " Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna,

Hare Hare. "

Back in the 1970's, the eponymously named Hare Krishnas raised

ecstatic voices and

" kundalinis " with their intoxicating drumbeats, encouraging all

within earshot to

turn their minds to God. What they were performing was an ancient

devotional practice

from India called " kirtan " --literally " to praise that which is

exalted " --and its

legions of practitioners have recently surged.

 

The practice of kirtan can be as simple as the call-and-response

repetition of the

name of an archetypal Indian deity or recitation of a devotional

Sanskrit phrase

honoring the deity. It is different from the popular " bhajans, "

(devotional lyrical

songs based on scriptural texts and classical music of India)

although some American

kirtan " wallahs " have been known to perform both, blurring the

distinction. For

beginners as well as hard-core fans, kirtan's appeal can be deeply

emotional. The

effect is likely due to kirtan's association with the branch of yoga

called bhakti:

devotion and surrender. The fact that most of the chants are sung in

Sanskrit adds

another dimension of accessibility. " The Sanskrit language was

designed to allow

you to have a spiritual opening and a connection, " explains Clark

Samson, a plumbing

contractor in California and kirtan fan who first learned about the

practice by

listening to a friend's CDs featuring American kirtan artist Krishna

Das. Krishna

Das is one of the world's best-known kirtan wallahs.

 

In spite of the echoes of Indian culture, it is has become

popularized world-wide,

excluding no tradition or religion. Jai Uttal, another well-known

American chant

artist, explains, " Kirtan is designed to heal the heart. When the

heart is in the

process of healing, it naturally becomes connected with universal

spirit, however

we look at it. " Most of kirtan's champions in the US came to the

practice by way

of the Indian saint, Neem Karoli Baba. In 1970 Krishna Das turned

down an offer

to be the lead singer for the rock band Blue Oyster Cult shortly

after Ram Das

introduced him to Maharaj-ji, as Baba was known. Though the guru did

not teach a

formal practice, his charge was simple: " Meditate like Christ. " When

asked what

that was, he replied, emotionally, " He lost himself in love. "

Maharaji also encouraged

a channel for devotional practice that resonated with his musical

devotees: " go

and sing. "

 

During its infancy in the US, kirtan was simply one of several items

on a menu of

practices offered at ashrams or spiritual retreat centers. Over the

past twenty

years, kirtan has ventured into the secular world, becoming a popular

public event

at yoga studios, which are a ready-made circuit for touring kirtan

artists. As a

result, the practice began attracting audiences looking for a

spiritual experience

as well as an artistic one. The most recent expansion of interest in

chanting is

largely due to a number of western musicians who have molded the

form to their

own artistic leanings and spiritual insights.

 

Although many American kirtan wallahs come with lengthy credentials

from the rock,

jazz and traditional music worlds, what sets their chanting events

apart from other

music concerts is the uncharacteristic humility one senses from the

performers.

There is also a relative lack of idol worship of these artists, even

by die-hard

fans. Those phenomena are due in part to the requisite audience

participation.

Another significant factor is that for many Western kirtan

performers, chanting

is the very public expression of their very private spiritual

practice. Today, kirtan

events can be found on every continent, performed by artists and

chanters embracing

almost every musical style imaginable, from blues and Celtic, to

Latin and jazz.

 

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Book on Guru Dev Available Online, No Charge

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Swami Brahmanand Saraswati, also known as Guru Dev,

was the master of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. He was a life-long celibate

and spent many

years as the Shankaracharya of Jyotir Math, the northern-most seat of

the Shankaracharyas

of India. Paul Mason recently finished a first draft of his

translation of the 108

satsangs/sermons of Guru Dev, and it is available online at no cost:

108 Discourses

of Guru Dev. Visit http://www.paulmason.info/gurudev/upadesh.htm

 

 

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Contact Information

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Michael Laughrin's North American Jyotish Newsletter

 

 

Website: Jyotish.ws

Michael Laughrin, Michael, business phone:

(440) 582-9848; cell phone: (440) 263-2159

 

 

To , send an email to: jyotish_ws-

 

Articles from past issues of this newsletter are archived at the

jyotish.ws website

on the Wisdom page.

 

Please feel free to share the newsletter with anyone for whom you

think it may be

appropriate. You can also post it to appropriate email lists or

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email message

to jyotish_ws-

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