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LIGHT • LAKSHMĪ • ABUNDANCE 
Author: R.R. Shakti, PhD. Amāvāsyā is the Sanskrit word for the new moon. At Soul Artist we make the new moon a time for renewal–a time to empty out all the excess to make space for something fresh and, maybe, unexpected. The new moon is a monthly opportunity to embrace creative transformation. The next new moon is one of the most celebrated all year, because it initiates one of the biggest annual Indian holidays: Diwali. More than a billion people celebrate Diwali worldwide. Diwali is called the "Festival of Lights" because it is a celebration of illumination. It honors the light of your awakened consciousness; the radiant kindle of your creative heart fire. It invokes beauty, prosperity, and love–the archetypal attributes of the Indian Goddess, Lakshmī. This lively mystic tradition invites you to realize these attributes as qualities of your own mind. Rituals serve to remind you of your inner power and transform your awareness toward abundance. And, in case you have forgotten, your most powerful expression of abundance is a grateful heart. Diwali festivities begin two days before amāvāsyā and conclude two days after, for a five day party that wakes you up to more joy and more gratitude for a more meaningful life. 10 Practices for Diwali
Access the Diwali SatsangIn Celebration of Light with Sreedevi Bringi.
diwali • light • rituals
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LOVE • INNER POWER • DIWALI 
Author: R.R. Shakti, Phd What don’t I know? You are probably pretty sure about one thing: your own perspective. So many conversations begin with, “Look here,” or “Listen up,” because “This is where I stand.” The whole entire enterprise of human engagement becomes a quest to be understood. But standing in that mentality means staying in the dark—denying that there’s another point of view. So here’s something new: What if you start each encounter with the question, “What don’t I know?” Example: The neighbor’s dog won’t stop barking and it’s making me crazy. What don’t I know? Or: Marty left his dirty laundry in the middle of the floor, again. What don’t I know? I fail at it daily. But when I remember this practice, my life is just better. It’s real world enlightenment. The light shines on another’s perspective and I find out that we weren’t standing so far apart, after all. Today is an Indian holy day: Diwali. It is an opportunity to celebrate the light. The light of awareness. The light of consciousness. The light of your inner power. There has never been a more crucial time for the teachings of Mystic Traditions to make their way into the real world human experience, to make life... just better.  diwali. love. marriage.
Discover more on these topics. DIWALI • LOVE • TANTRA 
Author: R.R. Shakti, PhD My daughter was three years old when I took her to see "Kung Fu Panda 3" at the local movie theatre. Enrapt from start to finish, she was particularly attentive during the great battle scenes between the adorable Dragon Warrior Panda and his scary supernatural nemesis. As we left our seats, she turned to me and said, "Mom, I've noticed something; the good always defeats the bad." (She was always prone to big words and even bigger insights 💗). Happy New Moon & Diwali 🪔!
One of the biggest holidays throughout India and the Eastern world begins this week. Diwali is the festival of lights that celebrates the radiant triumph of virtue over the darkness of confusion. It is a sort-of Good-Defeats-Bad-Day. Mythologies worldwide depict the struggle between dark and light forces: Beowulf and Grendel, Perceval and the Red Knight, Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf. From India, my favorite battle image is of the Goddess Durga kicking butt and taking names of legions of demons in the Devī Mahātmyā. It's an age-old story. The universe is animated by dueling forces, while we all hope desperately for the virtuous to prevail. The question is: Who decides who is virtuous? History has made this grand narrative into an "us vs. them" story. When taken literally, it becomes the foundation for division and alienation. Whomever is on "our side" is virtuous. On the "other" side is evil. Division is the side-product of consciousness. In his amazing book, Creation of Consciousness, Jungian Analyst Edward Edinger explains that consciousness is only possible in the presence of an "other." There cannot be a "knower" without something to be known. Therefore, all human awareness is dependent upon this dichotomy: self and other me and you us and them. But when we project our own shadows onto an outside "other" we set up a never ending war zone. "Us and Them" becomes "Us vs. Them." Pretty soon, all you can see is the enemy in the stranger. Life loses its hope. Compassion goes out the window. With empathy, goes beauty...and joy. It's a problem. The teachings of non-dual Tantra assert that all things are individualized aspects of a single, dynamic pulsation of universal LOVE. ...A LOVE that has no need for warfare. ...A LOVE so pervasive, perfect, and powerful that it encompasses everything, everywhere. So, I explained to my three year old daughter: "Sometimes it doesn't look like it will, but the good always wins in the end...because LOVE is the biggest, most powerful thing in the universe. When people do bad things it's only because they have forgotten LOVE. When you remember that you are LOVE, you become as powerful as a Dragon Warrior." It was a reminder for my own heart. Maybe you needed to hear it too? Diwali accompanies the new moon, a time for introspection and self-examination. It provides a sweet opportunity to turn inward and get real with your Self:
Mystic LOVE is so pervasive it can actually include your fears, sorrows, and confusion without losing a single iota of its infinite brilliance. According to Mystic teachings: YOU ARE THAT LOVE...you superhero shifu, you! |
HOLY- DAYS
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