On marriage

You were born together, and together you shall be for evermore.

You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days.

Aye, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.

But let there be spaces in your togetherness.

And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.


Love one another, but make not a bond of love:

Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.

Fill each other's cup but drink not from one cup.

Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf.

Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,

Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.


Give your hearts, but not into each other's keeping.

For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.

And stand together but not too near together:

For the pillars of the temple stand apart,

And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow.




The Prophet, Kahlil Gibran

"The bond of unconditional love offers a field of protection that is unbreakable once it is fully realised. When you are no longer attempting to force the love into conditions. When you love them whether they are with you or not, whether they are choosing you or not, whether they are across distances or not, whether they are married to you or not, whether they co-create your children or another's, when you love them regardless of circumstance, then you have come to inhabit unconditional love."

Flooding our connection with unconditional love

Be authentic

I wrote a post back in February 2012 called 'Being Authentic,' and I still believe it's so important to be who we really are without shame. In this video, Ryan Kurczak emphasises how important it is to be true to ourselves and not be pretentious when we are looking to advance spiritually. He does acknowledge how hard it can be to do this when we are around certain people or in some situations. But it is a work in progress and as we develop spiritually, we release our fears of rejection and abandonment for not 'fitting in' and being who others expect us to be. He says that we can accelerate our spiritual development by practicing truthfulness and by being authentic.

A terrible path for the ego.

Kriya Yoga Pranayama Initiation Techniques

My grandmother gave me 'Autobiography of a Yogi' by Paramahansa Yogananda many years ago. I was surprised that she gave it to me as I hadn't really spoken to her about my interest in spirituality. We weren't particularly close but I visited her in her little cottage towards the end of her life, and we connected in a way we hadn't until then. I read the book during my twenties and found it really interesting but I wasn't ready to begin any kind of spiritual practice at that time. But the other day, I was watching an interview with someone who mentioned Yogananda and Kriya yoga. It made me jump up and run to get my book. Then I wondered if there was a teacher on YouTube and found this man, Ryan Kurczak. He explains the meditation techniques and the principles on which they are founded very clearly and he has a calm aura that resonates with me. He clearly loves what he does and, although he has some books and courses, he also has a lot of information on video for free which makes a nice change from some other YouTubers I've listened to. I really feel like I can learn a lot from this man and I believe he is someone who has genuinely mastered the theory and practice of Kriya yoga.

In this video, he explains the three techniques for meditation. I decided to post this video because I had to listen to a few videos before I found this one that actually explains the method. But, as he explains, a person needs to be in the right frame of mind and to have the correct attitude to practice this meditation.I'm just a beginner but I'm excited to have finally decided on a practice that feels right for me. The three techniques are the life force arousal technique, kriya pranayama technique and jyoti mudra or yoni mudra technique. The third is new for me but the first and second ones, life force arousal and kriya pranayama, I have done before although the techniques are slightly different because they are from the Egyptian rather than the Indian tradition. The Yoga Sutras, from where this form of yoga comes, are thought to have first been written in 400 CE but the actual techniques and philosophy are much, much older and perhaps may even have come from Egypt originally.