Kabbalah and Sufi

We just missed an exciting opportunity hosted by Kaaren Engel, Jamina Carder, and Thomas Anderson. For those of you who don't know Thomas Anderson, he's a Nashville adept at sound healing often seen around at the Sylvan Park Farmer's Market. We have yet to meet the other leaders.

I caught a nice flyer about the Sacred Hebrew Workshop and Kirtan (sacred chanting) just a little too late to get involved. A workshop began at 2:00, a dinner was included at 5:30, and chanting began at 7:00 - all for $50.

Sufi brings to mind images of the Whirling Dirvishes which performed about two years ago at TPAC. These practitioners swirled in place with their heads tilted for what seemed like an endless, moving rotational performance. An awe-inspiring performance. The spinning represents the heart of the spiritual universe for Sufi practitioners - the Earth is spinning, our atoms are spinning, everything alive is spinning according to this practice. They bring their rotation practice as a way to honor that truth and connect with the divine.

We're glad to see the vegetarian dinner accompany this Saturday afternoon and evening event. If anyone got the chance to go, let us know and we'll post on it.

For information and possible thoughts on the next event (maybe Fall 2010?) contact kaaren@kaarenengel.com

Dalai Lama Visits Memphis

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama visited the Memphis area recently. Nashville Health had the opportunity to see this event in person. We grabbed tickets for the third row of the Cannon Center and never looked back. By the time we arrived, more armed guards than we had ever seen were present, and the line wrapped around the block just to get in. We sat next to one of the event coordinators, who informed us that the event had been sold out even though it was 1:30 in the afternoon on a Wednesday.

We happened to have been recruited to help organize the comments submitted to the Dalai Lama. We saw comments like: What is the meaning of life? What is the best practice for Americans? Audience questions were eventually taken by the Dalai Lama who spent about an hour addressing the topic of developing compassion. Most poignant was the question that came from this card: "I am nine years old. My daddy died. What should I do?" The Dalai Lama answered in a reassuring way, positing that the person should not worry or fear the future too much, and lead a life that her father would have wanted her to live. It was a touching moment that had an affect on the entire crowd.

The core of the message was that all of us are the same - we have the same hopes and needs, but we exist in different forms. As humans, we should all treat each other with love and compassion. What a striking philosophy.

The ability to see a living master only comes around so often. The take away from an event like this leaves an impression beyond the message of the speech. We'll look forward to enjoying the fruits of the experience for years to come.

Magnolia Village

Nashville Health has learned that Magnolia Village is a welcoming organization and retreat center in Batesville, MS. Our recent retreat with the Zen monks from Thich Nhat Hahn's order was a huge success. This caring Vietnamese community welcomed everyone from Nashville to Arkansas with open arms and provided a first-rate retreat experience. Particularly strong was the food. The staff provided authentic Vietmanese food which made me a newfound fan of the cuisine which doesn't reach the Nashville area that often. For smaller events, the on-site housing can supply space, or visitors can set up a tent on the expansive grounds - within one minute of the main meditation hall. Magnolia Village is hoping to host permanent monastics, so if that becomes a reality, area guests can look forward to instruction from the best.

Magnolia Village is also now a Google group. They can be reached by phone at 622-578-2077 or 662-832-1818.