Om Namah Shivaya

   I had earned a free movie ticket that was going to expire tonight, so my first thought was that I'd use it to see "Step Up 3D," which I've been interested in, if only to hear the new Flo Rida song ("The Club Can't Handle Me" f. David Guetta), but putting off 'cause I've been so busy. Mistake! It is already gone from every theater within 50 miles of home. I checked.
   So the dilemma was, see "Machete" or "Eat Pray Love?" "Machete" is more up my alley, but I've been really curious about the concept of "EPL." Since it is likely to be gone soon I chose the latter.
   The previews were mostly forgettable, but one line from "Secretariat" struck me: "Life is ahead of you. And you run at it." I thought that was a great aspirational statement.
   Unfortunately, "EPL" was just as cloying and over-long as I hoped it wouldn't be. But I gleaned enough from it that it was still worth the time. It had perhaps the simplest & most elegant articulation of religion that I've ever heard: "God lives in you, as you." I like it because I've never felt at home in the formal ceremony of the Catholic church, though I've tested this by returning periodically throughout my life. While some people seem to need that ceremony to feel they've practiced, if it feels forced, I think you're better off doing what comes naturally to you while living the best life you can. That seems to me the most authentic & appropriate tribute to what ever God you choose to follow. And I say it that way because I don't believe that any particular religion is right—or wrong.
   "Om Namah Shivaya" is a mantra used in meditation (including my yoga class) meaning, "I bow to Shiva." Shiva is the supreme reality, the true identity of the inner Self; the name given to consciousness that dwells in all. It's meant to be the pathway to Self-Realization. This was the theme for the film, and I am realizing, the journey that I am currently undertaking for myself.

   "Namaste" is the other phrase heard most often in yoga, to end a session, a Sanskrit word translating to, "I bow to the divine in you.” or "The light within me is connected to & honors the light within you." Namaste is a traditional greeting of respect and thanks. I like that it recognizes the connection between people. Because family (however you choose to define it), as EPL stated, is the thing that is forever.

   And, on a lighter note, my Flo Rida song came up first on my iPod as I was driving home. Here's the video. Big love.