Saturday, October 15, 2016 - Sunday, October 16, 2016
10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Without him, I exist not; without me he is unmanifest.
-The Mother of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram
In the Indian tradition, the masculine and feminine, the Shiva and the Shakti are understood as different faces of the One Divine.
In the Western Abrahamic tradition of Judaism, Christianity and Islam the female principle is present in many forms but is not obvious and primary except in the devotion to the Virgin Mary seen in various festivals primarily in southern Europe and Latin America.
Prof. Neela Saxena has explored this theme in her recent book Absent Mother God of the West. Written from a Hindu/Buddhist Tantric perspective, and as a travelogue, the book describes its author’s encounters with the Black Madonna in Europe and Shekhinah in Jewish mysticism. It is also a scholarly account of how the Mother God was erased from the western consciousness leading to a spiritually patriarchal monotheism. Copies will be available at a special discounted price.
Dr. Andrew Cort has written extensively on the Western Esoteric tradition and specifically on the women of the Bible in his book, The Sacred Chalice, where he explores the psychological and spiritual meaning of their stories.
The weekend will be complimented with experiential workshops in yoga with Wendy Lines, guided meditations with Miriam Belov, Dialogue with Jennifer Mehlich and healing energy with Marianne DiPalma Buchele.
Please write or call with your interest in attending.
$40 per day, $70 weekend, $15 per session
No one will be refused for lack of funds.
info@matagiri.org or 845-679-8322.
SCHEDULE
CELEBRATING THE SACRED FEMININE
A Weekend Celebration at Matagiri, in Mt. Tremper, NY
October 15-16, 2016
Suggested Donation: $70 for the Weekend, $40 for one day, $15 per session
SATURDAY SCHEDULE:
10:00 – 10:30 Registration
10:30 – 10:35 Welcome from Wendy Lines, on behalf of Matagiri
10:35 – 12:00 Absent Mother God of the West: A Kali Lover’s Journey into Christianity and Judaism
with Neela Saxena
Neela’s new book by this name is about the missing Divine Feminine in Christianity and Judaism. It chronicles the personal quest of an Indian woman who grew up with Kali. Written from a Hindu/Buddhist Tantric perspective, and as a travelogue, the book describes its author’s encounters with the Black Madonna in Europe and Shekhinah in Jewish mysticism. It is also a scholarly account of how the Mother God was erased from the western consciousness leading to a spiritually patriarchal monotheism.
12:00 – 12:10 Sacred Feminine Slide Show
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch (bring your own or $12 donation)
1:00 – 2:30 The Women of the Bible: The Inner Spiritual and Psychological Meaning of Their Stories
with Dr. Andrew Cort
In the Kabbalah, the Sacred Feminine is described as the ‘Vessel’ that accepts and protects the ‘Seed’, the Sacred Masculine, like a chalice filled with wine. When the Bible is read as a symbolic parable of the soul’s journey of enlightenment (not a literal description of people walking from one place to another), we see that at every step along the path there is a necessary Feminine Principle as well as a Masculine Principle: e.g., Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, Jesus and Mary, etc. Contrary to its sexist reputation, when read as myth and allegory the Bible shows us that without the Sacred Feminine, all spiritual evolution is impossible! Join us to hear some new and perhaps even shocking ideas.
2:30 – 4:00 Balancing the Sacred Feminine & Sacred Masculine: Meditation, Movement, and Discussion Circle
with Jennifer Mehlich
It’s not a zero sum game – the rise of the Feminine does not require the eclipse of the Masculine. In fact, both have to evolve together, and both have to find out what they really even are (what society calls ‘masculinity’ is not ‘sacred masculinity’). There can be no wholeness or completeness – in individuals, in relationships, in civilizations – without honoring, correcting, and balancing together both these poles of Life. The circle will explore and discover their individual and collective connection to how the Divine reveals itself though each polarity using meditation, movement, sacred geometry, and group reflection.
4 pm Book Signing and Tea
SUNDAY SCHEDULE:
9:30 – 10:30 Wendy’s Yoga Class
(all workshop participants are welcome)
with Wendy Lines
11:00 – 12:30 Experience Wholeness via a greater experience of The Feminine
with Maryanne DiPalma Buchele
Wholeness Energetics is a system of energy medicine that facilitates expansion of awareness which is based on the understanding that each of us is whole, complete and perfect. When we can more fully experience this, we can open to the magnificence and power of our true selves. Its aim is to assist us in removing barriers to the awareness of the power of our true nature and to reclaim our natural state of joy, flow and abundance.
12:30 – 1:30 Lunch (bring your own or $12 donation)
1:30 – 2:30 Manifesting the Sacred Feminine in Yourself: Wisdom, Strength, Beauty, Perfection
with Miriam Belov
These attributes are described in detail by Sri Aurobindo in his book, “The Mother”. We shall use his teaching as we explore these qualities, relate to them and ultimately manifest them. Meditation, visualization, energy healing and movement will be incorporated in this experiential workshop. As you go deeply into your own life, you relate to the divinity that lies within. Focusing on each trait, you will see how it expresses itself through your unique journey. Once integrated, the sacred goddess shines through in the here and now. Conscious of this unity, you are filled with gratitude and surrender. Your psychic being can then lead you onward into your illumined future.
2:30 – 4:00 Experiencing the Sacred Feminine Through the Expressive Arts
with Lucy Barbera
Experiencing the Divine Feminine within us can and does occur throughout our lives naturally. Yet, sometimes having a dedicated time to consciously invite the grace of the sacred feminine is welcome. The Expressive Arts provide powerful tools to identify, invite, explore, and give form to the sacred feminine within us. The Expressive Arts can assist women (and men) in symbolically accessing their inner energies and uniting them in praise of the sacred feminine. To this end, participants will be guided, using clay and creative writing, to explore their inner polarities and give outer form to the scared feminine within them. No previous artistic experience is required to participate!
About our Presenters:
Dr. Neela Bhattacharya Saxena is Professor of English and Women’s Studies at Nassau Community College, NY. She has published two books, Absent Mother God of the West: A Kali Lover’s Journey into Christianity and Judaism and In the Beginning IS Desire: Tracing Kali’s Footprints in Indian Literature. Some of her other publications include, “Mystery, Wonder and Knowledge in the Triadic Figure of Mahavidya Chinnamasta”, “Shekhinah on the ‘Plane of Immanence’: An Intimation of the Indic Great Mother in the Hebraic Wholly Other”, “Gaia Mandala: An Eco-Thealogical Vision of the Indic Shakti Tradition”, “Color of God: Resplendent Clay of Hinduism as the Glow of the Ineffable” and “Gynocentric Thealogy of Tantric Hinduism: A Meditation upon the Devi”. A recent essay “AI as Awakened Intelligence: Buddha, Kurzweil and the Film Her” is scheduled to appear in Religious Transhumanism and Its Critics. She writes a blog called “Stand Under the Mother Principle.” More information can be accessed at her website: www.neelabhattacharyasaxena.
Dr. Andrew Cort is an eclectic mixture of Author, Speaker, Teacher, Attorney, Doctor of Chiropractic (which he practices in Woodstock, NY), and Interfaith Minister.He is also the Joseph Campbell Scholar with the Center for Symbolic Studies in New Paltz, NY. His many books, including The Sacred Chalice: Women of the Bible (on which his talk today is based), Love, Wisdom, and God, and The Beauty and Nobility of Life, are about peace, open-mindedness, well-being, and spiritual growth, and they celebrate the underlying decency and spiritual unity of all our traditions and peoples. You can find out more about Dr. Cort on his website: www.andrewcort.com
Jennifer Mehlich is the founder of Heart Child Yoga. As a Yoga for the Special Child Practitioner and Radiant Child (Kundalini) trained professional, Jennifer has studied with children’s yoga gurus Sonia Sumnar and Shakta Kaur Kalsa. She has an MA in Science degree in both Special Education and General Education, taught as a Special Ed teacher for 14 years in NYC, and trained closely with a Yogini Dance and Movement Therapist for her degree in Psychology. Jennifer has had success using yoga, movement and sound with children with autism, PTSD, sensory abilities, Down Syndrome, ADHD, brain injuries, and other challenges. She has been studying dance in various forms for over 40 years, and yoga for 18. Naturally, the two combined and showed her how to organically connect to the Kundalini movement that more traditional forms of meditation led her to. Her overarching interest is to consciously support and serve the New Children of the Earth, and to encourage peace on this beautiful blue globe. As her work with children progressed, it has become apparent that supporting the Divine Masculine and Divine Feminine in a way that also promotes an easeful entry into the Golden Age is key. This focus was birthed from working with incredible children of both sexes, connection with Mother Earth and Father Sky, as well as raising her own incredible son. You can find out more about Jennifer and her work on her website: www.heartchildyoga.com
Wendy Lines became a disciple of the Mother of Sri Aurobindo Ashram in 1970 and lived at the Ashram, in Pondicherry, India, for 7 years, studying hatha yoga and yogic philosophy. She also spent 6 years in an Ashram in France where she taught hatha yoga and has continued her teaching to the present. Her approach is a gentle flow of traditional yoga asanas synchronized with the breath and modified to suit the needs of each student. A renewed sense of energy, balance, health and well-being are the benefits of practicing with this sacred intention and aspiration. Wendy and her husband Julian have been on the board of Matagiri center for the past 20 years and are the stewards of the center. They travel yearly to the Sri Aurobindo Ashram and the city of Auroville in Pondicherry, India – an international community based on Sri Aurobindo’s Integral Yoga creating a link between East and West. Wendy and Julian have a beautiful shop in Woodstock, NY (called ‘Pondicherry’) that reflects the creative aspiration of Auroville.
Maryanne DiPalma Buchele is a Wholeness Energetics practitioner and teacher and is a member of the faculty of the Path of the Healer Apprenticeship. She has been a teacher/counselor in one way or another for more than 40 years, including elementary and special education in public and private schools, as well as teaching yoga, dance, acting, fitness and wellness, speech and communication, business related and other subjects in Pennsylvania, California, Florida, Massachusetts and New York. Counseling school students led to counseling their families and other individuals, couples and groups. She has also been a dancer, choreographer and performing artist since childhood and has participated in or wholly orchestrated the production and direction of a variety of plays and other performing arts projects. Her life-long spiritual path led her to an apprenticeship in Wholeness Energetics and to Deborah Wilson, its founder, with whom an ancient relationship was immediately recognized, making it only natural for her to contribute to the expansion and broader extension of Deborah’s work.
Miriam Belov, MAT, RMT is The “Keep Calm” Mentor. She is a bestselling author, meditative speaker and expert in mind body spirit work, open heartedly sharing the techniques she has pioneered for over 35 years. With a dual Masters from Brown University, she creates programs for organizations, i.e. the MMA and the UN, appears on TV and all media platforms. Most recently she has been asked to be on the advisory team for the WOR iHeart radio show “Change Your Attitude…Change Your Life”, sharing tips on air and writing for its digital magazine. She is a co-creator of WIN: Wellness Inspirations Now and produced the video download, “Relax…Feel Great!”. A Reiki Master, her psychic energy healing work moves clients from dis-ease to integral health as her global wisdom and curated strategies transform lives. Miriam hosted the NYC Study Circle for Sri Aurobindo and The Mother for almost 2 decades and was most recently in Auroville and the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in February, her 5th visit. She is on the board of The Nakashima Foundation for Peace. www.wellnessagenda.com
Lucy Barbera, PhD, is a New York State Licensed Creative Arts Therapist and a member of the faculty of The Humanistic Multicultural Education Graduate Program,at SUNY, New Paltz, where she developed and has been teaching Expressive Arts Therapy and Expressive Arts & Social Justice courses over the last twenty years. Dr. Barbera is the Founder/ Director of The Creative Arts Therapy Certificate Program, for mental health, medical, and educational professionals, sponsored by Ulster BOCES Adult Career Education Center and the Post-Graduate, Interdisciplinary Certificate Program in Creative Arts Therapy at Adelphi University’s Hudson Valley Center. Dr. Barbera’s clinical practice includes working in the medical (SUNY Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital), special education (Astor Day Treatment Center), and school leadership (Special Education Training Coordinator, Ulster County BOCES) settings.
All contraries prepare her harmony;
Towards her our knowledge climbs, our passion gropes;
In her miraculous rapture we shall dwell,
Her clasp shall turn to ecstasy our pain.
Our self shall be one self with all through her.
Towards her our knowledge climbs, our passion gropes;
In her miraculous rapture we shall dwell,
Her clasp shall turn to ecstasy our pain.
Our self shall be one self with all through her.
Location
1218 Wittenberg Road
Mount Tremper, NY 12457