SOUL: Sisterhood Of Unconditional Love. That was the acronym my friend Anyas had come up with for our fledgling group of five women, who wanted to make a difference by tapping into our inner strengths and energies, and unleashing them in an attempt to make the world a better place. It was Anyas, born and brought up in Lyon, France, an avid tai chi practitioner, who first felt the urge to form such a group.
And it wasn’t long before, even in a place like Fairbanks, Alaska, at the very edge of the last frontier, she came across women with similar aspirations, eager to share their spiritual tools and experiences, setting aside all divisive beliefs and religious dogmas. There was Yulia, robust and lively, who hailed from Ukraine and was a reiki expert; Ju Yung from South Korea was a quiet woman, who taught archery at the local high school; Ida from Romania was an exponent of the Munger school of Yoga, and Rachel, a local Athabascan, was a firm believer in totems.
Then, there was myself, who was hoisted and transported to this magnificently beautiful, brutally cold place from the warm laps of southern India. We met every Sunday at 11 am, the five of us, not only on the mornings of long summer days, but also during the relentless twilight hours of winter, when the mercury would plummet to minus 40 degrees centigrade, or even lower. It wasn’t long before the five of us grew into 12 of us, and at times, even 15. In fact, our Sunday Soul Circle shrunk and expanded, and shrunk again, only to expand again.
It all depended on the weather, on the hunting season, on salmon runs, and on frozen driveways; seekers came and went, as they wished, but the doors were kept open for all who chose to step in and be part of this very unusual circle of women. What we were capable of, we did not know. But, we did recognise the fact that we could empower ourselves by learning, teaching, and sharing with each other whatever little knowledge we had of the spiritual, mystical, and the esoteric. So, while Yulia introduced us to the basics of distant healing, Ju Yung gave us simple instructions on Chakra meditation; Ida the most motherly figure of us all, kept us organised, and punctual as a unit.
Anyas attended a workshop in California on how to form a Merkabah. And subsequently, we built one such in her living room. Merkabah, in ancient Jewish mysticism, refers to the divine light vehicle to connect us with celestial beings, who, in turn, can help us touch the higher realms of consciousness. I, hailing from the country of yantra, mantra and yoga, taught them to chant Aum, and some simple shlokas. I also taught them the abc of pranayama. Rachel, on the other hand, belonging to the ancient tribe of the proud Athabascan people, encouraged us to find our totem, so that we could be guided on this magical journey of self-discovery we had embarked upon.
Our weekend session would routinely begin with a 15-minute meditation, followed, perhaps, by chanting and breathing exercises. Almost always, we would have a crack at automatic/spirit writing, either on a topic one of us would come up with or a self-inspired free-write. Such writing exercises involve a complete surrender of oneself, into the hands of one’s guardian angel, who, we believed hovers just above our crown chakra. (My friend Anyas became such a good instrument, that every morning at 7 am, she was compelled to open her journal and pen down, not so much her own thoughts and musings, but those uttered to her by her guardian angel.
She recently published a book, which is a compilation of messages received by her (over the course of one year). During these seances, not only did we learn to channel our chi; open our chakras; find our totem, and study correct pronunciation of Sanskrit words to help manifest the power of mantras, we also shared healthy recipes and natural cures, danced to celestial music, and had tea with dried apricots. We became friends and comrades in our quest for something new and positive. Even though many of us left Fairbanks to go places, we carried within us the seeds of a new adventure, and the ability to cling on to our inner strength.
In the purple twilight of winter, when almost everything else is hibernating, a few of us had grafted wings, and learnt to fly!
Then, there was myself, who was hoisted and transported to this magnificently beautiful, brutally cold place from the warm laps of southern India. We met every Sunday at 11 am, the five of us, not only on the mornings of long summer days, but also during the relentless twilight hours of winter, when the mercury would plummet to minus 40 degrees centigrade, or even lower. It wasn’t long before the five of us grew into 12 of us, and at times, even 15. In fact, our Sunday Soul Circle shrunk and expanded, and shrunk again, only to expand again.
It all depended on the weather, on the hunting season, on salmon runs, and on frozen driveways; seekers came and went, as they wished, but the doors were kept open for all who chose to step in and be part of this very unusual circle of women. What we were capable of, we did not know. But, we did recognise the fact that we could empower ourselves by learning, teaching, and sharing with each other whatever little knowledge we had of the spiritual, mystical, and the esoteric. So, while Yulia introduced us to the basics of distant healing, Ju Yung gave us simple instructions on Chakra meditation; Ida the most motherly figure of us all, kept us organised, and punctual as a unit.
Anyas attended a workshop in California on how to form a Merkabah. And subsequently, we built one such in her living room. Merkabah, in ancient Jewish mysticism, refers to the divine light vehicle to connect us with celestial beings, who, in turn, can help us touch the higher realms of consciousness. I, hailing from the country of yantra, mantra and yoga, taught them to chant Aum, and some simple shlokas. I also taught them the abc of pranayama. Rachel, on the other hand, belonging to the ancient tribe of the proud Athabascan people, encouraged us to find our totem, so that we could be guided on this magical journey of self-discovery we had embarked upon.
Our weekend session would routinely begin with a 15-minute meditation, followed, perhaps, by chanting and breathing exercises. Almost always, we would have a crack at automatic/spirit writing, either on a topic one of us would come up with or a self-inspired free-write. Such writing exercises involve a complete surrender of oneself, into the hands of one’s guardian angel, who, we believed hovers just above our crown chakra. (My friend Anyas became such a good instrument, that every morning at 7 am, she was compelled to open her journal and pen down, not so much her own thoughts and musings, but those uttered to her by her guardian angel.
She recently published a book, which is a compilation of messages received by her (over the course of one year). During these seances, not only did we learn to channel our chi; open our chakras; find our totem, and study correct pronunciation of Sanskrit words to help manifest the power of mantras, we also shared healthy recipes and natural cures, danced to celestial music, and had tea with dried apricots. We became friends and comrades in our quest for something new and positive. Even though many of us left Fairbanks to go places, we carried within us the seeds of a new adventure, and the ability to cling on to our inner strength.
In the purple twilight of winter, when almost everything else is hibernating, a few of us had grafted wings, and learnt to fly!
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