You lay on the floor, puddled memories drip from clenched eyes, tear holding softly to cheek. My shadow sneaks up on me.. Memories sneak up on me, like hide and seek.. my anxiety never picks the safe places to hide… I wear my imperfections like tattoos on my face… safe places are for dreamers, I’m someone that lives for a living… which is why I’m poor, but who needs a car when you can walk the line of a razor blade.. balance has never been my strong suit..so , I choose to teach yoga, hoping that in some ancient pretzel I can find nourishment… I stand in the center ring of my circus, dreaming imperfectly beautiful dreams… coloring out of the lines…
The one thing that is truly shared by yogis and pagans is the power to raise our voices to bring in the divine. Last night I got to attend a beautiful Kirtan Festival. Kirtan is a call and response devotional gathering, in many pagan drum circles the same happens invoking different chants to pay homage to the divine.
The beautiful thing about these types of gatherings is the community that is invoked. All the walls come down and we can connect. You do not have to be a professional singer, you do not have to be a skillful drummer, but I am amazed how how in sync everything always is during these sessions. The divine presence becomes tangible. You can feel God Herself moving through our voices. Many get up and dance, clap, and let the energy move through them. We become possessed by the mantra, the chant, by the divine.
There is always a bit of trepidation for many first timers, but those walls quickly come down. There is always a little bit of fear when it comes to letting go. When we start chanting we may feel nervous that we do not know the words. We may feel that people will stare at us. The beautiful thing about these types of events is that as the sacred names or songs of the divine are lifted through our voices, the walls naturally start to come down. There is no need to do anything but be present. The hard part of spirituality is showing up. If you are in the room, you’ve done the big step… anything else beyond that is beautiful.
Chanting and singing is something that is also wonderful to add to your own practice. Find a song, mantra, or chant that calls to your soul… Sing it daily–in the shower, while you are doing yoga, while walking… keep the song moving through your heart and your mind. Anything we offer to the divine is returned in plenty.
Bhakti Witch 