Yesterday I went to sleep expecting to get up early and meditate. I set the alarm for 6 o'clock. In the evening, a French yoga teacher and mountain guide told me about the early morning hours in India, that they are the best for meditation - I already knew that they are good for ryas. She told me [...]
I am still at a loss for words. The last few days have been characterized by thoughts about the Vedic scriptures. A companion from another life took me to visit Nishtha Muller, an Aurovillian who has dedicated his life to the Vedic scriptures. He spent almost 2 hours telling us in his very humble abode in the forest that he himself planted [...]
I recently met a young Indian here. He comes from Delhi and for him, South India is also a foreign world, although not as foreign as it is for me. He doesn't speak Tamil and his spirituality is also a bit more serene or enlightened, as you might say. I met him again on the street [...]
In 2017 we were in Varanasi. Varanasi is the spiritual center of Hinduism. Those who are burnt here in the fires that Shiva lit 2500 years ago and which have been burning ever since are freed from the cycle of suffering.
Many films feature grand hotels that are centrally located and serve as meeting places for the political, intellectual, and economic elite. I have always perceived this as something very elitist, colonial, and power-hungry. What I missed in the films, and what was probably rarely discussed there, is the networking that takes place in such locations. […]
My perception changes when I arrive in India. The smell, the sounds, the slowness, the intuition, the acceptance, hope are wonderful things that I see. Others may see stench, noise, inefficiency, irrationality, and resignation, despair. I think it's this other perspective that allows me to feel comfortable in India. So I have completely [...]
Auroville was founded in 1968 by Mirra Alfassa. The architect Roger Anger developed the city plan for it. It is modeled on a cosmic spiral nebula. The land made available to Auroville was a dry plateau. A forest has been planted since the early years. There is a beautiful, slow documentary about it (Ever Slow Green (2020) – S.O.S. […]
On a boulevard in Paris, a cafe and bad music, sun and many people. So many people want to be seen. They present themselves as busy, sexy, cool, knowledgeable, adventurous, athletic, educated, cultured, or indifferent. Many want others to notice them. They see this as who they want to be. Perhaps they live their lives in a certain [...]