The body is a wondrous thing, and a great reminder of both limits and possibilities. I have been practicing yoga with some regularity for a while now and am amazed at my capacity to do things with my body that I thought I would never be able to, but I am also reminded, with pretty much the same consistency, that many things still remain out of reach. Some things come easy, such as Wheel pose, which for some people is quite challenging, but has never been too tough for me, and other stuff is just a continual struggle. Inversions--handstands, headstands are tough, I try too hard and then it is even more difficult--there is a lesson about life there I think! When I was in Canada earlier in the week one of the talks I gave was about not trying too hard when it comes to religion--learning to be and be present, reclaiming the world an inch at a time as Joan Chittister says it.
On the topic of yoga, sort of, is this album I came across. Turn On!! Music for the hip at heart was released by the Christian Yoga Church(?) in 1967, it's essentially a single track lasting almost an hour with all kinds of music, coughing, talking etc. I think you can probably gather from the cover art that this is not not typical 'christian church' and hallucinogenics might have played a role. And on the subject of hallucinogens, a new copy of The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross has been released to celebrate the 40th anniversary of it's publication. The book seeks a connection between mushrooms and the early Christian communities...well, it's a theory.
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