Pranayama

Have a moment while listening to a mix recorded from The Next Level last Sunday on Glitch.Fm & transferring files to write a blog entry about Pranayama.

I know it has been talked about before for thousands of years, and its importance expounded by more recent mystics and masters in our current new age of spiritual enlightenment, but let me just emphasize again, how important it is.

Pranyama connects us with the light. It brings us to the place of flowing peace that is undisturbed by any storm. It should be practiced before any magickal ceremony, worship, meditation, or healing. Through the practice of Pranyama, one may connect with the knowledge that we receive all we need for life directly, through experience. It allows us, if we allow it, to calm any fears or thoughts not in the present. If we let go, and follow the breath in and watch as it turns to breath out, and flow with it out, feel gratitude to the omniverse, it is a chance to give thanks. It removes all doubt, and worry, and calms, centers, and connects the mind with higher vibrational states and frequencies of consciousness. Crowley recommended its use at least thirty minutes every day. I would highly recommend this practice as well. I recommend using an alarm clock to prevent oneself from looking at a clock every 30 seconds or minute to seen if it is time to stop, as time goes VERY slowly while practicing. It is as if it is through concentrated awareness we can slow the flow of time, make it denser. Achieve more peace in less time. Even just 23 full ins and out breaths is so effective at calming the mind in times of anxiety.

Pranayama is something that should really be shown to you, by a master, in order to avoid misunderstandings in language. But I will attempt as best as I can to explain what need be done

Very simply, take your hand and bend your index finger and bend it halfway. Then using your middle finger and your thumb you will be blocking or releasing each nostril in turn. It doesnt really matter which nostril you start on (although some argue it does), as the amount the nostril is open or closed will even out during practice. If you plug one nostril and breath in through your nose, then switch nostrils and breath out through the other nostril, you will notice one nostril is more open than the other one. Your body actually switches which nostril is dominant all by itself in thirty minute intervals. The Hindus noted this long ago, and ascribed many theoretical reasons to this phenomena, most interestingly, they said it had to do with different types of Prana, or life force, we take in during the cycle of the day. I digress however.

To perform Pranayama, block one nostril with your thumb or middle finger and breath in or out completely. when breathing in, yogically breath. Breath completely into your lower lung first, then your middle lung, then upper, in a slow, complete, manner. A good breath in relies on an appropriate breath out, when breathing out, empty your lungs completely, most people in western society have forgotten how to breathe, and do not exhale completely when the awaken, and run around all day with stale air in their lungs, not using their lungs to their capacity.

So breath out - or in - doesnt matter, through your nose, mouth closed, with one nostril blocked by either the thumb or middle finger depending on the side and the hand used. Then, if it was a breath in, switch nostrils and breath out, if a breath out, breath out completely until your lungs are empty, feel the breath turn from out to in for a moment, then breath back in through the same nostril, feel it turn from in to out, and switch nostrils again.

repeat until the breath in and out are the same length, and there is a rolling pause from in to out and in to out of the same length.

ideally the breath flows in one nostril, feel it turn from in to out (small pause) switch nostrils, let the breath flow out completely, feel it switch from out to in on the same nostril, feel it switch from in to out and switch nostrils again.

you should breath in this fashion until breathing is flowing and circular, without straining or effort, and the thoughts flow calmly through your mind with no attachment.

observe the thought flow, but do not go into them or be attached to them, like leaves on a tranquil stream - or some equate it to ocean waves rolling in or out

try it for 10 full breaths (1 in and out = 1)

then try it 23 full breaths

then set an alarm and try it for 5 minutes

then try 10 minutes

then try to get to 30 minutes once a day.

and see how your life and perspective changes.

Thats all i have time for today

Light & Love

Namaste

The Avatara VII23

What is an "Avatara" anyway?

lets visit wiki on the subject first.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar

"In Hinduism, Avatar or Avatāra (Devanagari अवतार, Sanskrit for "descent" [viz., from heaven to earth]) refers to a deliberate descent of a deity from heaven to earth, and is mostly translated into English as "incarnation", but more accurately as "appearance" or "manifestation".^[1]"

or even better

Etymology and meaning

Further information: Incarnation

The Sanskrit noun avatāra is derived from the verbal root tṝ "to cross over", joined with the prefix ava "off , away , down". The word doesn't occur in the Vedas, but is recorded in Pāṇini (3.3.120). Avatāra was initially used to describe different deities, then around the 6th century CE it began to be used primarily to describe the manifestations of Vishnu.^[6] While earlier texts mention deities taking on different forms, the Bhagavad Gita (4.5-9) is the first text to discuss the doctrine associated with the term even though the word avatāra itself is not mentioned.^[7]

The common translation "incarnation" due to its christological implications is somewhat misleading as the concept of avatar corresponds more closely to the view of Docetism in Christian theology, as distinct from the idea of God 'in the flesh' in mainstream Christology.^[8][9]

Related to the concept of avatar is that of vibhūti, that is, the idea of manifestations of the divine in various aspects of human life and the natural world.^[10]

So this definition, in the sanskrit meaning of the word, in combination with my call letters, handle, numerological determination, or whatever you would like to call it VII23 or taken apart, VII - the roman numeral 7, and 23, the number of synchronicity.

Thus "The Avatara VII23"

I also like this quote from where avatara.org used to be...

"AVATAR is a word that is commonly heard but rarely understood. In English, the word has come to mean "an embodiment, a bodily manifestation of the Divine." However, the Sanskrit word Avatara means "the descent of God" or simply "incarnation." Here is the definition based on India's ancient Vedas, the oldest and most comprehensive spiritual literature known to man:

The Avatara, or incarnation of Godhead, descends from the kingdom of God for [creating and maintaining the] material manifestation. And the particular form of the Personality of Godhead who so descends is called an incarnation, or Avatara. Such incarnations are situated in the spiritual world, the kingdom of God. When They descend to the material creation, They assume the name Avatara. ( Chaitanya-caritamrita 2.20.263 -264)

An Avatara is a personal form of the Supreme Being and innumerable such divine forms reside in an eternal spiritual realm. When a personal form of God descends from that higher dimensional realm to the material world, He (or She) is known as an incarnation, or Avatara. "

I consider the Avatara part of my stage name to be more like a title, and may change - but the VII23 will not.

Of course - I had this name before the movie, LOL

Although I am very honored and pleased to now to be associated with such beauty.

I am very excited be going to see it in 3-D at an IMAX today with my girl and the boys for my 1st time!

and thats my 1st blog entry - here is some more stuff about me from my myspace page


Affiliated with :: Form B Music :: Glitch.FM :: Omnipresent 23 :: Photonic Trancemission :: Platinum Design :: A Gift of Love Productions :: Guardians of the Underworld :: Synchronistic Events :: New AEon Productions :: Underground Productions ::


Bio = dubstep/glitch/whaumpf/crunk dj / vj / music producer / artist / t-shirt graphics designer / green technologies company owner/co-founder / magick practitioner / healer / lightworker / empath / psychic / futurist / magi / and more!



:: VII23 :: The Avatara VII23 :: A Founder of Form B Music - A green media company :: Host & GraFX Guru For Glitch.FM :: A Member of the Platinum Design crew :: Photonic Trancemission (VJ Company Owner/Operator) :: Kephra (Remixer / Producer) :: Psychic GraFX (Design Firm Owner/Operator) ::



Influences and other interests...


I am influenced by books I read - here is a short list of some important tomes...

Prometheus Rising, The Golden Dawn, Magick (Book 4 parts I-IV), The Illuminati Paperz, Liber Aleph, The Book of Lies, Programming and Metaprogramming in the Human Bio-Computer, Enochian Sex Magick, Advanced Enochian Magick, Enochian Magick, Mantras - Sacred Words of Power, The Magickians Companion, Real Magick, Summoning Spirits, Teachers of Fulfillment, 777, Equinox of the Gods, The Tibetan Book of the Dead, Zen Flesh - Zen Bones, Gems of the Equinox, Zen Mind - Beginners Mind, Practical Sigil Magick, Did I mention The Illuminati Papers? Cosmic Trigger 1 - 2 - 3, Exo-Psychology, The Egyptian Book of the Dead, Exploring The World of Lucid Dreaming, Liber Null, & Psychonaut, The Goetia, The Book of the Law, Qabalistic Tarot, The Secret Temple, Eight Lectures on Yoga, Tao Te Ching, Tantra, A Wizard of Earthsea, The Magickal Record of the Beast 666, Liber Kaos, Basic Magick, True Magick, Sex Magick, The Pathworkings of Aleister Crowley, The Bhagavad Gita, Did I Mention Book 4? ;) Damn that's a good book. Principia Discordia, and more...

A very - very significant influence in my work is the movies I watch - love - and know by heart - I sample them - and I put them in my visualz - and then I weave it together into a story that is all my own - thus - like when I was child - I am a weaver again...

Some movies I like in no particular order would include:

Appleseed, ATHF:MFFT, almost all the Batman movies, Baraka, Chronos, Big Trouble In Little China, Cowboy Bebop The Movie, Donnie Darko, E.T. The Extraterrestrial, Half Baked, Hellboy, Idiocracy, Indiana Jones (all of them), Fist of Legend, Ghost In The Shell, Lost Boys, Pan's Labyrinth, Starship Troopers, The Fountain, The Riddick Trilogy, The Last Starfighter, The Mind's Eye, The Princess Bride, The Crow, The Dark Crystal, Tron, V for Vendetta, Infinity's Child, Beyond The Mind's Eye, Dune, Ice Pirates, Mad Max, Snatch, 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, Sin City, Pulp Fiction, Kundun, Back To The Future, Fight Club, The Neverending Story, Star Wars, StarGate, The Matrix Trilogy, Brazil, Time Bandits, Gattaca, The Goonies, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Legend, Sleeper, LA Story, Eraserhead, Contact, Lawnmowerman, The Lord of the Rings, Beavis and Butthead Do America, Un Chien Andolou, Exterminating Angel, The Golden Age, The Man Who Fell To Earth, Akira, The Animatrix, Bladerunner, The Road Warrior, Orgasmo, Something Wicked This Way Comes, Aliens, Alien, Lifeforce, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, GhostBusters, What the Bleep Do We Know, Poltergeist, Electric Dreams, Aeon Flux, Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, Mulholland Dr, The Meaning of Life, Reservoir Dogs, Scarface, Last Temptation of Christ, Point Break, Office Space, Edward Scissorhands, Ladyhawk, Bram Stoker's Dracula, The Hobbit (Animated), The Return of the King (Animated), The Terminator, T2, Total Recall, Labyrinth, Nausica of The Valley of the Wind, The Doors, Light Years, Natural Born Killers, The Forbidden Kingdom, The Legend of The Drunken Master, Budo: The Art of Killing, and more

My interests influence me - I am interested in Metaphysics, Neuropsychology, Anthropology, Ancient Religions, Comparative Religions, Paleobotany, Geology, Abnormal Psychology, High Magick, Tibet, Buddhism, Taoism, Zen, Cha-an, Quabala, Numerology, Gematria, Occult, Enochian Magick, Secret Languages, Chaos Magick, Semantics, Information Theory, Chaos Theory, Quantum Theory, Quantum Physics, Non-Euclidean Geometry, Sacred Geometry, Astrology, Genetic Memory, The Subconscious, Ancient Egypt, The Toltec, The Maya, Ancient Civilizations, Music, Dancing, Evolution, Genetics, Informatics, Technology, Cosmology, Astrophysics, Psychokinetic Phenomena, Paleontology, Origins of Language, Mathematics, English, Writing, Poetry, Sociology, Altered States of Consciousness, Space Migration, The Future, Movie Making, Music Making, Application Development, Invention, Innovation, Did I Mention Ancient Religions? ;) Mythology, Archetypes, Symbolism, Language, The Origins of Words, The Underground, The Unusual, Surrealist Art, Surrealist Film, Architecture, Sculpture, Digital Art, Sociology, Film Production, Photography, Dreams, Visions, Philosophy, VJing, DJing, Promoting, Producing, Networking, Teching, Dream Yoga, Meditation, Tarot, Runes, Oracles, Development of Psycic Ability, Synchronicity, Centropy, Reincarnation, Past Lives, Tolkien, Information Technology, The Internet, Thelema, The Golden Dawn, Summoning, Invocations, Banishings, Ancient and Modern Calendars, The Movement of the Stars, Time, Space, Faster Than Light Travel and Communication.

And the incarnations / reflections of my soul that I admire influence me - such as

Aleister Crowley, Isis, Horus, Osiris, Sekh-Met, Bastet, Thoth, Nepythys, Ptah, Ra, Hermes, Diana, Tara, Babaji, Robert Anton Wilson, Steven Spielberg, Israel Regardie, Buckminster Fuller, Bart Prince, Paolo Soleri, Santiago Calatrava, JRR Tolkien, Ghandi, The Dalai Lama, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Hadit, Nuit, The Beast, Tut Ankh Amon, Ra-Hoor Khuit, MC Escher and there is more - but you get the idea >_<. Dark glitchy tribal influenced downtempo breaks, dubstep, hard nu skool breaks, and dark DnB I am influenced by the sounds of AnaSia, VibeSquaD, Ooah, Boreta, David Starfire, SubSwara, Dave Seied, Distance and others who push the musical envelope seeking new forms of expression. :: Namaste :: ~ The Avatara VII23 ~ ~The Avatara VII23~ [start standard promotion =P] Please check our webcast if ya got some time =]] The Next Level - Every week on Glitch.FM - Sunday 10-12 CST - Form B Music members + guests, re and live broadcasts from shows, original tracks and production discussions and more! and have you seen our eco, spiritual, dubstep, and edm influenced clothing line yet? Every shirt we sell helps us research renewable energy and non-petroleum based plastics - We just launched our eco friendly line of organics and hemp shirts at http://formbmusic.spreadshirt.com - while we are migrating designs to our nu store, you can still check out more of the designs at either www.redbubble.com/people/vii23 or www.zazzle.com/theavataravii23 Connect with me on twitter! checkout twitter.com/vii23 or twitter.com/formbmusic ;]] [/standard promotion lol]