Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Welcome, welcome.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Very excited for today's… Pilgrimage in Puja, lighting a candle for each of us.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And sending you some beautiful lights, and… Healing and nourishing energy.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): We'll get started in just a moment.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And I'd love to invite folks to drop
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): two words in the chat, and I will… And pull a little… Prompt…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I'm gonna orient us, and then we'll drop into a little practice. But two words, and you can kind of be letting them gather within you. One thing you're ready to release, and one thing you're ready to reclaim.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Today is a very, very powerful day. It is Ganesh Chaturthi, which is a sacred kind of crossroads, right? Ganesh is, like.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): both the remover of obstacles, but also the placer of needful obstacles. Y'all hear, like, in yoga space, like, oh, yes, I… I wore my Ganesh shirt, or whatever, to remove obstacles. It doesn't actually work like that. Ganesh…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): will place obstacles that are the needed obstacles for us to grow. And I don't know about you.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): folks here, but I definitely feel like this time…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): this season, this year, has been a lot of that. A lot of, like, placing of obstacles that I guess I'm growing through. So, just naming… naming that it's a sacred crossroads and a powerful time, and I'll share a little bit more about Ganesh in a moment.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I also want to name, there's a lot of new folks in the space.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And welcome. We're beginning the Yoga Social Justice
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): trauma-informed yoga social justice training, which is a combination of… and we'll go way in depth on this tomorrow, so for folks who are in that, don't worry, like, we got you. But I think… let me put my…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): candle down. I think I'm just going to show you, because I think the majority of you are in this training, and if you're not, and you're just in YCC Yoga Class Curator, let us know, because you get, a discount. Like, it's like…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): a break for you. So let me, if you're currently in it, I'm gonna just do this logistical thing first, so y'all…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Can see it.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So, if you're in…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): the Trauma Informed Yoga social justice training, you got an email this morning, and if you didn't, let me just say this first, if you did not get an email, you can email us at hello at ignitebewell.com.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): To ask. Check your spam, check your, you know, all-mail, green light, hello at, maybe add to your contacts, because that's where most of our emails will come from. And Juliana, who's here to support us, plus me, are in that inbox.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so, just so you know what you got, because some of us like to be super organized, is a whole program calendar.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): every single call, like, we're in August, that's, …
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Today, and the link is there, plus future calls. And we're working on… we don't have it in there yet, but we're working on a Google Calendar where you can click it, and it'll just all populate to whatever calendar you use.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Also sent you a portal.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So you've got, this portal that has everything you need to know, and for folks who are in Yoga Class Curator, just a reminder, Yoga Class Curator is sort of like our practice space, and so, …
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): it's a separate portal, because it is, so beautiful, and, like, nourishing, and, remember, you can always, if you forget your password, right? So you can go there.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): To… to practice. And just a reminder for folks who are in Yoga Class Curator, you have introductory course, you have monthly issues, and the way you can use these… I have all of them, because I have… I'm, like, an alumni.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): But…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): starting with, say, Ahimsa, and if you're in YCC and you're like, oh, I've done, I've done it, right? Remembering there's a Dharma talk there for you. There's a practice.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): like, a mudra, a meditation, and an asana class there for you, right? So just a reminder of what you have.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And for folks who are just starting, don't worry if it's all like, wow, there's a lot going on. We'll… we'll guide you through it in a supportive way. But I did just want to let you know, we got you, we'll go through the logistics tomorrow. You should have all that in your inboxes.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): …
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Also, because sometimes it's so helpful to, like, know for our nervous systems that we're supported, right? So we can just kind of lean, lean in. And I want to just check in for folks who came in. I invited you to drop two words, one thing you're releasing, and one thing you're reclaiming.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Naomi, releasing frustration, reclaiming ease. Heather, releasing expectations. My feet on the ground. Hannah, attachments, releasing, reclaiming inner power. And you can keep
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Sharing, Erica, releasing self-doubt, trust in my path.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Ready to release anger, Emma, ready to reclaim joy.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I don't know who that is, because your name is Sysadmin, but hi! You're releasing angst and reclaiming confidence.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Amy is releasing self-doubt, reclaiming intuition, Tani Sinan, releasing anything that no longer serves me, reclaiming my freedom.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Louise, releasing fears, reclaiming my voice. Joanna, releasing fear.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Reclaiming authenticity. Karen, releasing anxiety. Reclaiming hope. Yes.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And you can keep them coming. Welcome, Lori. Let me see you. So you're welcome to have your cameras on if you would like. You also can have them off, just kind of titrate to what supports you. And if you have a candle.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And water near you, maybe drinking some water. We're gonna be moving some energy in our practice today. You can also just receive the energy of this candle, right, the light, the insight of…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Wisdom of yoga coming to each of us.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And we're going to move into a practice in a moment, but I do want to just check, are there any questions? Just again, because so many folks are kind of new or coming back in. Any questions? Anything, like, on your heart or mind before we begin? And you can drop it in the chat or ask out loud.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Hmm… Nice, alright.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): You can always ask, you know, like, drop it in there if it arises.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And… if… meaning, if any questions arise.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Okay.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So, it is a very profound day, this day. It's a day of…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Celebrating and commemorating a depth of practice.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Right? Remembering, kind of, our natural rhythms in our world, we get really disconnected from those natural rhythms.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And colonization also disrupts, like…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): capitalism, you know? All of these things that we're like, oh, I have to work, I have to be productive, you know, I can't, like, listen to myself, my body, right? Yoga invites us back into relationship with that.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so our guiding question…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And I also just want to say, like, I don't know if anyone else is feeling this, but I, especially yesterday and today.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I feel like something is happening, like, quantum leaping of… and people, like, in different worlds talk about, kind of, quantum leaping, or, like, a deepening. I feel like…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): my understanding and my experience is, like, gone to some other level. And a big part of it
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Is… reflecting on… this question that one of my mentors, who just recently passed, his name is Larry Ward.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And I don't want you to answer this
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): yet in the chat. We're gonna explore this, but his question, and he is, wonderful… …
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Well, I'll tell the story of how I know him in a second, but he asked the question, what is my seat?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): At the table of transformation and healing.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): is my seat at the table of transformation and healing. And I'm gonna spotlight myself, but you can always go to, gallery view, so you can see everyone just for the…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): For the recording.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So I met Larry at a meditation sit about 20 years ago, and he was the only person of color in the room, Black man. I walked into the rooms.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): a lot of white folks in this meditation sit. I was probably, like, in my 20s, early 20s, right? And he looked at me, and he said, hey, you!
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Come sit right here. Come sit next to me.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): it was so… nourishing. It was like he had my back, right? He understood. For me, as a young woman of color, walking into that space, decades younger than most people there, and definitely having had a different experience, he was like, I got you.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I got you, right? Larry was someone who truly understood his seat.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): at the table of transformation and Healing. And he wrote the book, I should look the name, I think it's, …
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): America's Racial Karma.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And… He passed a week ago.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): he helped change the direction of my life, and helped me understand my seat at the table of transformation and healing, and I think we always can be reflecting on that question. What is my seat? What am I here to do? Right? Yoga uses the language of dharma, our unique role.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Our right action. And then there's Rutta, and I'll put these in the… in the chat.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Dharma…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): is like… it's many things, but for the purposes of what we're gonna talk about today, it's like our… our purpose, our why, it's like a deep sankalp, a deep, intentional…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): relationship, right? Our unique role, but we're not just here sort of navel-gazing and not thinking about the whole, right? So, it's…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Dharma is… each individual Dharma is deeply connected to Ritta, which is the greater flow of life.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Oops, it, auto-corrected.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Let me see… yeah, RITTA, RTA, RITTA.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So Dharma is deeply and intimately connected with Ritta, the idea of, like, that intersection of
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Your why, your purpose, your reason for being, perhaps the obstacles, those deep obstacles that may have shown up in your early life, in your life now, that can sometimes be the guide for the purpose and the gifts that you share in the world.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And then the world, right? What the world needs, and how your unique role and experience also continues to help that flow, the greater flow of life and evolution towards wholeness, oneness.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): That's what's inside, for me, that question, and I'm offering to you that question of what is your seat at the table of transformation and healing? What is your destiny? Might be another way of putting it, right? Dharma and destiny.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so we'll do a little bit of a practice.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): But I want to, again, give context for Ganesh, …
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): all over India today and through the next week.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): folks will be welcoming Ganesh into their homes, creating small altars with flowers, with water, maybe with a candle or fire, offering sweets, offering flowers, offering prayers. And some, you know, many yogis just do this in their mind's eye, in their… in their… they…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): part of what yoga is, is an internalization of ritual, right? And we all have…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): The ability to relate to
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): these energies, like… for some, they're like actual beings, right? Like a grandmother, a grandfather, like a loving being that's outside. And for many, they're like energies, right? They're different faces of different manifestations of that whole that we all have access to.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And that makes all of us up.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And Ganesh helps us On our journey, especially when we're at a kind of crossroads.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): In yoga, crossroads are not times to fear, right? They're times, they're like sacred thresholds.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so, in Sanskrit, there's this word, sandhya. Sandhya, which refers to sort of this in-between space, like, in between dawn and dusk.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): the solstice, the equinox, right? Clarity can come in. If we pause.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): to become aware of that… that transition, right? These cycles.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And our bodies remember. The Earth is always there, kind of, like, communicating with us. And yoga, when we return to its roots, invites us to remember, too.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I'm just looking to see if there's anything. Yeah, okay, we're gonna move a little bit into… into our practice. I'll invite the bell.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So for the practice, you can have your notebook or a journal if you'd like, but you can also just, you know, sit.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Stand, lie down, any way that feels easeful and supportive.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And allow yourself to move or find stillness as… comes to you.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): We'll invite the bell. Three times.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Listen, listen… This beautiful sound.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Guides me back.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): To my true home.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Home within.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Invitation to lengthen your spine.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And as you do, take a slow breath in, a long breath out.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): With each inhale, feel your body becoming more awake, more alive.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And with each exhale… Feel yourself softening and receiving.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): We'll start by gently circling our spine on our torsos. So if you're seated on the earth, wonderful. You can have your legs crossed or out in front of you if you're on a chair.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Circling your spine in one direction, and this circle can be as large or as small as you need. Maybe really getting into your shoulders, and…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Hips.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Moving with your breath.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And then circling the other way.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): When you go to… a temple…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Ganesh is one of the first that we Commemorate, that we acknowledge.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So just feeling the flow.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): of your body, of the energy moving in your body, and also that focus, right? Like, makes sense that as we begin any journey, that we honor the part of us
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): The quality of clearing the way.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Of moving through obstacles with a bit more ease.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And one more circle.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I'll continue to… Open up our spines, so exhaling, and…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Tilting your chin down, rounding your back behind you, or if you're on the floor, up towards the sky, and then inhale, opening your chest forward.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Face comes up towards the sky.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Rounding into Marjoryasana and Bhittalasana, cat and cow, with your breath.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Continuing to move, and if you'd like.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Maybe beginning to bring a little fluidity into… this…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): This motion, so, like, spiraling or circling around…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And then releasing… That movement, coming back to center.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Inhale, reaching your arms up towards the sky. And exhale, gently pulling, maybe grasping one hand.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Around the wrist of the other…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And stretching through your side body, allowing there to be a little bit of softness, maybe a bounce, or maybe that fluid motion here.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And you can play, does it feel good to lean forward, to lean back, maybe even to release the arms and see what it's like to let them flow in space.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Inhale… And exhale.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Releasing any stuckness, inviting in clarity.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And then slowly flowing to the other side, maybe formal stretching.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Through your side body.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Flowing intuitively.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And then, on your next exhale…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Arms come up towards the sky and twist to one side, so now doing a formal twist from your belly, chest, chin, eyes twist around last.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Breathing deeply here.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): We're moving… Obstacles… Just creating space alongside your ribs.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): For your breath.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Inhale… Coming up, exhale.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Twisting to the other side… From your belly, chest, chin, and eyes twist around the…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Back to center, and when you find your way to center, inhale, lengthening, maybe arms come up, exhale, hands come down, and allow yourself to lift up one of your legs, any amount, right? So.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Bringing your leg towards your body, just kind of cradling it, maybe cradling your hand under your knee, and then…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): This down so you can see, and then circling that leg.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): If you'd like, you can stay right here. If you're on your… on a chair, you can place your leg on top of the other knee, and just gently lean forward for stand at your seated figure 4, rocking back and forth. If you are on the ground, you can…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Lay down, do Figure 4 on the earth.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And after you've rocked a little bit, find an easeful place to be. It doesn't matter how far you come, but you're bringing your face down towards the earth. If you'd like a little more intensity, a little more heat, maybe resting the same elbow on that knee to deepen the stretch there.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And bringing your face down towards the earth.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Releasing… Inhale, and exhale.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So the story goes… that…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Ganesh was one day with his mother and father, and many of you, or some of you, might have heard me tell this. It's always a little bit different, right? All these stories are ones that…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Or passed down, we hear from our teachers, or from our family.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And… He had a brother, An older brother.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And they were rather competitive.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so, Shiva, his father, was like, okay, you know, you each, each of you, the brothers, needs to go and go around the world and find the most beautiful gift to prove to your mother, Parvati, that you love her.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And whoever has the most…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): beautiful gift, the most impressive gift, will be the one that we all worship first, right? So this is that story of…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): sometimes it's, like, deep, and sometimes it's petty, right? Like, why do you get worshipped first?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so there, the brothers looked at each other, and, you know, Ganesh's elephant, head, and… and a nice, like, round, kind of voluptuous human body.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And his brother, Kartike is strong, muscular, light, super fast, a known warrior, and said, okay, you know, it's alright, I'll agree to this battle. One more breath here.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Just thinking about those times where maybe you feel… outmatched, right? Like…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): how can I do this thing, this challenge, this… whatever it might be, like…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): play on this team, this thing at work, this personal goal, this thing in my own life with my family, right? Like, I just feel like I'm not enough, not good enough, or I don't have it, or I just… they have the natural talent, and I don't, right? That feeling.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So, so deep, and so familiar.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And those feelings started to come up for Ganesh. On your next inhale. That was a very long last breath there. That's okay. On your next inhale, as you come up, really taking some time, some care with your body, like circling your leg, maybe stretching it.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Lengthening it out, and as you're ready, placing it back down, and then switching sides.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Lifting up your other leg, cradling it, kind of like you're rocking a baby, right? Like, your own body is that baby that you can care for, that you can nurture and love.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And if you feel like it, placing the opposite ankle and the opposite knee.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Maybe rocking side to side here, forward and back.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Noticing that…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): maybe your sides are not equal, the side of mine is much tighter than the other side, and that's just life, right? We're not…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): symmetrical, we don't live symmetrical lives. We don't have even sides.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And that's okay.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Bringing awareness. And when you're ready, perhaps resting your elbow or your forearm on your knee.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Coming forward any amount towards the earth.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so the two brothers…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): start to get ready. Kartike is doing, like, lunges, and, you know, has his arms behind his back, flexing his muscles.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): kind of gets down in a runner's stance, ready to take off as soon as Shiva gives the word, and Parvati and Shiva are standing in front of the two boys.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And Shiva says, okay, are you ready? And yes, we're ready, both of them say.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And… he says, okay, go.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And Kartikeya.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): It's gone. Flash of… Light and is off.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And Ganesh just sits there.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Legs crossed.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Hands folded, eyes… Half closed.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Deeply breathing, a soft half-smile.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): On his lips.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And Shiva looks at Parvati like, well, what? Did he not understand what… what we're doing here?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What's going on?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Ganesh?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And Ganesh just peacefully sits there, he's like, ugh, Shiva, impatient, competitive, right, in this moment. Okay, I'm gonna go check on your brother, see where he is, what's going on out there.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And he takes off, another flash of light.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): comes back, It says, your brother is already halfway around the universe.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And he has found the most beautiful flowers that only bloom once in a millennia.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): He found an incredible jewelry, like, golden diamond necklace that shines with the light of all civilizations combined.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Ganesh, what are you doing? Why are you just sitting here?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And Ganesh, breathe.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Gentle smile.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Brown's down.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And she was like, ugh, he's useless, I don't know what to do with this guy.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Goes back to check on his other son.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Okay, Kim's back.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Halfway, he's almost back!
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What are you doing? You haven't even moved!
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And slowly… one more breath here.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Just like we might slowly walk up, an invitation to walk your body up, and gently unfold your leg, cradling it, and then…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Releasing it, maybe stretching it out, down.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And coming back to your mountain pose, your mountain seat lying on the earth or stance.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Standing or lying on the ground, strong, mountain shape.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Ganesh gets up, and if you'd like, you can bring your hands up into Anjali Mudra.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Places his hands at his heart.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Bows.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): To his mother.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And touches her feet.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Brings his hands back to heart center.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And then begins to walk around her mindfully, one foot at a time, slowly, unhurried.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Walks around her once, and bows.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Walks around her again.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Boweth.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Third time.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Shiva's… Wants to tell him to hurry.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): But is struck by the transmission of his presence.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Final time, he bows, Ganesh bows to his mother, Parvati, touches her feet, and out of respect, and says.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): You.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Are the beautiful, most beautiful gift in the world.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): It's you, Mom.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And Parvati starts to cry, she understands.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): There's nothing.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): No… no thing in the world more valuable than this love, the love, pure love, pure connection.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): At that moment, Kartikeya bursts in, oh, I have these gifts, and Parvati's like, oh, no, no, don't even worry. Your brother's already won.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Deep breath in, expanding your spine, arms up over your head. Exhale, forward fold, bowing down towards the earth.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So many… Lessons in this story, right?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Like, not fighting against who we are. Ganesh was never gonna win on speed.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Ganesh was never gonna win. On.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): power.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And he didn't even care about winning.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What he did have is that presence and groundedness to slow down and connect to the truth of his seat.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): At the table of healing and transformation.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Just love.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Connection.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Deep devotion to his own.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Mother.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so where can you… Perhaps take the unexpected route.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Do something differently with those things that are obstacles.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Not necessarily fight the fight, but perhaps love.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Even if it's just loving yourself a little more deeply.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And then one more breath in this forward fold.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): We'll gently come up.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Find our way into a shape where you can do a guided meditation.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I know this has been very meditative asana, but we're gonna do a little bit of a guided journey.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So, if you like to sit, that's wonderful. If you like to lie down, that is also wonderful.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Stand. It doesn't have to be a formal meditation shape.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So we're gonna take an inner pilgrimage.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): An inner journey.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Towards that deepest knowing, that question.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Of your seat at the table.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Finding a shape of stira and Sukha, of effortless ease.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And if your body is not so comfortable allowing the visualization to…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Take you away, and if you prefer not to follow this visualization, just coming back to any practice that's supportive to you.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Inviting you on this inner pilgrimage.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So, in your mind's eye… Imagine yourself walking along a quiet path.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And that might be through a forest…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Desert, or chaparral, along a riverbank, or into the mountains.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And with visualizations, I just want to say, some of us actually see these things in our visual space that often appears behind the eyes, or in front of the face, in front of the forehead.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And for others, it's more of an auditory journey, or like a felt sense. So you're not doing it wrong if you don't actually see things. I, as a meditator, do not see.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Visually.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I just kind of imagine and feel.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So, it's all welcome.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So you're walking along this path, peaceful space.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Wherever you are, The earth beneath you feels steady and alive, like it's holding you up.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And as you walk, you hear the gentle rhythm.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Of your own breath.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Like waves against the shore.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Your heartbeat matches the heartbeat of the earth.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): There's no urgency.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Only an unfolding.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Journey.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): As you move through this space, whether it be forest, or a river, or…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Even it could be your home, right? Eventually, this path opens to a sacred crossroads.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And you see 4 paths now stretching out before you, meeting at a perfect center.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And at the center, there is an altar.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Covered with flowers, stones… And you realize that this altar is a symbol
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Of the energy of the guardian of the threshold.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And there might be, if you'd like it to be there, a statue of Ganesha, or just the energy.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And the air here is potent and charged.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): You feel… That you are standing in the sandya.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): The sacred in-between.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): This threshold where clarity is possible.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): If you open to it.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): The energy at the altar shifts, and you realize that a guardian
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Someone who deeply cares for you is there.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): This could be an energy… an ancestor… Teacher.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Your own higher self. Could be Ganesha, if you like to visualize.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Just a felt sense, a sense of love, a sense of… Affirming.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Whoever appears, or whatever appears, trust that they're here to guide you.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What is my seat?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): At the table of transformation and healing.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What are the gifts?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): That are mine.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): My Dharma.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): That flow with Ritta, the sacred flow.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): For all of life.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): My guide now offers… You a gift to symbolize your gifts.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Your sacred seat.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): A word, a phrase, an image, a sensation.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): It might come as a whisper, as a feeling in your body.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): You can trust whatever arrives.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Holding this gift, receiving it.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Knowing that it carries within it the seeds of your sankalpa.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What you're receiving, your intention for this next cycle.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And perhaps… You spontaneously…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Wish to give an offering. And this is your visualization, so you can give whatever you want.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): It can be as simple as a flower.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): A bowl of water, fruit, It can be…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Stacks of gold, or jewelry, anything you wish to give.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): About… Whisper.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Knowing that this guide is always in your corner, always rooting for you.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And you can come back through this visualization to connect with them at any time.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Thao.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And you choose one of the pathways, perhaps the one you came in on, or perhaps one of the other three.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And slowly begin.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Mindful footsteps.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): To leave the altar.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): You touch this place within that already knows.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Honoring what you're releasing.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Reclaiming your gifts.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Your seat.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): When you're ready, you can feel yourself landing back in your body.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Inhale, receiving.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Exhale, softening.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And we'll slowly come back into the space, but keeping a meditative… Quality…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Maybe looking around you, taking in form and color and shape.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And then picking up your journal.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And journaling, anything that came, any ahas or insights, it doesn't have to be written, it could be images, it could be fragments, poems.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): If you'd like a little bit of guiding questions, we'll take…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): About 4 minutes, 4 or 5 minutes.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Put them in the chat.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What is my seat at the table of transformation and healing? And you may not have the full answer, but maybe a little bit.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What gifts are mine to offer? My destiny, right? Like, where is my Dharma calling me now?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And I'll play some music with no words that was specially made for our program.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So we can have some time to journal.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Hmm.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Now, taking a deep breath.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Knowing you can come back to this journaling at any time.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And I wanted to just give a little bit of space to invite in any reflections, any questions, anything that's emerged.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): You know, as we…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): transition, right, from this sort of liminal place into the world again. It's like remembering that your gifts are needed, even those gifts that have come through obstacle.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): …
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And not in that gaslighting way that says, like, oh, you're gonna be so much better for… no, like, but, like.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): When… on your terms, and as you feel, right?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): The challenges through the obstacles, and that your body holds the wisdom. Your own inner knowing holds the wisdom.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Dharma and Ritta are inter… inter-R in yoga. They interconnect, and so your rhythms matter. You matter.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So much.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so just coming out, if anyone would like to unmute and share.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I'm just keeping the awareness of, like.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Yoga-focused, if you're gonna share something that's activating, maybe giving us a little activation, you know?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And… yeah, I'd love to just invite in… Also, knowing, too, that…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): sometimes some things like an aha that's for you, but it's for someone else in the circle as well, because that's the other piece, is we're not doing this alone. We're a sangha of people growing with yoga.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And really valuing yoga and social justice. And so, feeling into that generosity of sharing your experience, your gifts, your challenges.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Circle is open. We probably have time for one, maybe two people to share.
Karen McMillan: The visual, kinda, I'm like you.
Karen McMillan: The road doesn't have to be straight to be smooth and guide you or direct you to where you're supposed to be.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Thank you, Karen.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So beautiful, and so good to be in circle with you again.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Santa, pure love, pure connection. Life is a journey and a gift.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Hmm… I sometimes so forget that, you know?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): What a blessing. In the Buddhist tradition, Tibetan Buddhism specifically, they really spend a lot of time thinking about the blessing of being in this form, in this human form, and being alive at a time where we have access to the teachings.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Teachings like this. Like, it's no small thing.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Thank you for reconnecting that, and you may have a different experience of what your words evoked, but thank you for sharing.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Anyone else?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Naomi, a realization, my heart is in my hips. I love this. My voice is in my shoulders.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And those parts are so connected, too, right? Like, as we move here, we kind of move, like, the different girdles.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Repeats.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): That feels so beautiful and powerful.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Thank you.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Hmm…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Mmm… and I love how, like.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): ethereal it feels right now. I feel like we're still in that…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): the Sandhya, you know? The in-between worlds.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Hani Sanand, I just want to share the seeds that came up for me during the practice. My seat at the table, connection, community, cultural preservation, love and peacekeeping.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): My guardian angel is my mother, whose presence is with me always.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Thank you.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So we'll close our time. I want to give enough space for the dedication, dedication of merit and dedication of this practice.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Offering it up and beyond us.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So if you would like, particularly
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): with it being Ganesh to Tothi today and through the next few days.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): You know, you can notice the transitions, notice the thresholds as you step outside, as you come back in, right? Like, literal transitions, but also metaphorical ones.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And we'll close with the Ganesh Mantra.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I'm gonna patier… Whoops.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): If you prefer not to chant, you never have to.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Again, like, for some, this may be…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): the essence of that protection, of that, like, self-possessedness, right? That brilliance that Ganesh has to be like, oh yeah, it's me. Like, you are the gift, mom?
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): But also on the gift, right? Like, you saw that. Ganesh was like, yeah, I got this. I know how to do this. I know myself. I trust myself.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): So you could be chanting to that quality, those qualities.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Or a visualization, right? Or however you want to take it. And so…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): I'll chant once you can kind of get the…
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Three times, we'll repeat it 3 times, so it's 9 times.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Deep breath in, full breath out.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And so you can join in, we'll do it 9 times.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Namaha.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Wong gum, ganapatie, namaha.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Gum, ganapati namaha.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Oum Gam, ganapati na ma-ha Warm gum, gana patier, namaha Oum Gum, ganapati na-maha.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Boom, gum, ganapati, namaha.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Warm gum, ganapati na ma-ha
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Thank you so much for your presence. Thank you so much for your practice.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): Wishing easeful and smooth transitions to all.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): And you're welcome to unmute, say goodbye, and I'll see you soon. Many of you, I will see tomorrow for our first call. Let me know now, I'm happy to hang out if anyone has any questions or needs any support.
Susanna Barkataki (She/They): You can unmute and say goodbye.
Louise Brown (She/Her): Bye! Thank you!
Erica Boland, she/her: Aw, thank you.