Current Events...  July 29, 2009
go August is Bring-a-Friend Month 
go July-August Theme:  "Blossom in Contentment!"
go Bon Voyage to Meherbani Kaur (Chelsea Schwarz) 
go Healing Power of Triple Gong and Mantra
go Check-out KYL's New Website
go The Business of Yoga Tele-Class   new dates
go Devi Scholarship--Chicago Teacher Training Course
go The Impact of the Devi Scholarship
go Three Teacher Training Courses with KYL in 2009!
go Important Dates... 
go ‘What is Kundalini Yoga?’ by Gurucharan Singh Khalsa
go Vitality & Stress with Gurucharan Singh
go 21-Day Detox Melon Fast
News & Notes...
go Yoga Class Schedule
go Yogi Bhajan Quote
go Moon Watch
Bring-a-Friend in August

August 1 to 31

Our "Yoga Stimulus" Plan
When you bring someone new with you to class for the first time at KYL during the month of August, both of you get in for the price of one! That's right! Bring someone who's never been to class at KYL for the first time during the month of August and both of you pay just half price!

So, the cost of class is no longer an acceptable excuse for your friends, colleagues or relatives who say they would like to meditate and try yoga, but ....! We hope to see you and your guest(s) often during these last weeks of summer.
July-August Theme:  "Blossom in Contentment!"

"Without contentment, no one is satisfied."
(Guru Arjan, Siri Guru Granth Sahib, p. 279)*

‘Yoga for Contentment’ is KYL’s July-August theme.  The dictionary defines ‘contentment’ as a feeling of calm satisfaction; a feeling of happiness, pleasure and ease. 

Are you content?  There is no substitute for contentment.  There is no amount of money which can buy contentment.  If you are content you sit as royalty and everything comes to you.  When you sit with discontent everything will go away from you! 

Come to KYL during the months of July and August for yoga and meditation especially designed to help you de-stress, to release any inner conflicts and to reach your innate ability to be content – no matter what the circumstance.  Just as the summer’s fruits and flowers come to their peak of growth, you have the right to blossom in contentment and to bring that feeling of calm satisfaction to all whom you know.

*Guru Arjan is the fifth of the ten Sikh Gurus.  The Siri Guru Granth Sahib is a highly sophisticated experience of mantra.  It is 1430 pages of the spoken words of seven of the ten Sikh Gurus along with those of other enlightened people of many faiths.  By chanting its words you recapture the consciousness achieved by the great souls whose words have been codified and passed down through the ages.
 
Bon Voyage to Meherbani Kaur (Chelsea Schwarz)

! Lucky Portugal !
We are grateful to have had the grace and energy of Meherbani Kaur as one of our many outstanding teachers at KYL. Sad for us, but happy for her, Meherbani Kaur is leaving us this month to move to … get ready for this … Portugal!

If you have ever attended White Tantric Yoga (WTY) in Chicago you have experienced some of Meherbani Kaur’s vision by the lovely flowing decor on the teaching platform for the past three years. If you have spent time with her in class we know that you will miss her presence as a teacher at KYL very much. If you have purchased any of her beautiful clothing and head wraps, don’t worry, because we will have a new shipment arriving at KYL in just a few weeks!

Shakta vividly remembers Meherbani Kaur walking into her first lunchtime class at KYL: “After class, Meherbani Kaur… Chelsea at that time… chatted with me about her disappointment that a yoga teacher training program she had previously signed up for had been cancelled. I looked at her and knew in that instant that she was supposed to be in KYL’s Teacher Training course. I suggested she take home one of our brochures to consider our course. No one wanders into a Kundalini Yoga class by accident … and this was definitely one of those times!”

We know that Meherbani Kaur is going to be successful no matter what she does and no matter where she does it! We wish her nothing but the best as she moves into this next phase of her life. "Sat Nam," Meherbani Kaur. May God and Guru continue to bless you.
Healing Power of Triple Gong and Mantra
with Shakta Kaur, Sanjam Singh, and Hari Dev Singh
Friday, Aug 14
6:30 pm to 7:45 pm
($15 in advance)

Join us on Friday night, August 14 (also September 11 & October 16), for our monthly session of the ‘Healing Power of Gong and Mantra.’  Each month 40+ beautiful souls gather at KYL to celebrate this once-per-month experience that was recently described as ‘exquisite.’

We begin each ‘Healing Power of Gong and Mantra’ evening with light Kundalini Yoga and then move into deep relaxation with not one, not two, but three Paiste symphonic gongs.  (Your mind will have no defense to the gong after 90 seconds!)  After the gong we use primal sounds (mantra) to remind us that the entire universe was built on sound, on vibration.  We tune into a particular combination of sounds in mantra to tune into and achieve a different level of consciousness.

Come heal yourself and others at KYL’s ‘Healing Power of Gong and Mantra.’  Click here to register.
 
Check-out KYL's New Website
Hari Dev gave our website a make-over!
 
We are pleased to unveil a new and sleeker looking website for our guests, students and visitors to Kundalini Yoga in the Loop (KYL).  Whether you visit KYL for regular classes or simply visit us on-line for events or other information, we hope you enjoy the new look, the number of upgrades and other improvements lovingly crafted by Hari Dev Singh.*  These include:
  • 124 Kundalini Yoga Kriyas
  • 160 Meditations
  • Moon Phase calendar
  • Link to Yogi Bhajan’s Lectures
  • Link to Yogi Bhajan Memorial
  • Archived KYL E-Newsletters
  • Yogic Lifestyle and Vegetarian Recipes
  • A Picture of Hari Dev surfing
  • Plus, much, much more!

Let us know what you think about the re-design.  Hari Dev always likes to receive unsolicited praise.  And feel free to suggest new items to post on our site. 

*Hari Dev Singh creates websites, email marketing, brochures, registration forms for many Kundalini Yogis.  He can do the same for you, too; fees range from hourly to fixed price.  Call Hari Dev at 312-922-4699 for more details.

“Love your website re-make.  I will link to it as a resource for my students.   You added a link to Yogi Bhajan's lectures in your Kriyas and Meditations section (great job organizing those, by the way!).  As far as I know you're the only one to do this, so, congratulations!  All this web stuff has a way of taking far longer than one thinks it will.   So, a tip of the cap to Hari Dev Singh for all his great work!” 
--Duke Doudna, San Diego, California
The Business of Yoga Tele-Class   New Dates

with Shakta Kaur and GuruMeher Singh
 
"You know how to teach, do you know how to reach, those who need you?"
 
Five Wednesdays - 4:30 pm Pacific / 5:30 pm Mountain /
6:30 pm Central / 7:30 pm Eastern
September 9, 16, 23, 30, October 7, 2009
This is the fourth time that Shakta and GuruMeher have offered their ‘Business of Yoga’ tele-class series.  And, now, it is a new and improved version, expanded from the original four classes to five classes in order to better integrate all of the material offered.

In five, 75-minute phone workshops, Shakta (Chicago) and GuruMeher (Los Angeles) will guide you to:
    • Know your unique identity, your students, and how to reach them. 
    • How to bring yoga to the corporate client. 
    • Immediately expand how much you teach and earn. 
    • Create a personal strategy for your yoga teaching business. 
    • Clear limiting prosperity beliefs.
 
You'll Receive:

    • Five 75-minute conference calls. 
    • An essential checklist to plan, start, and build your yoga classes. 
    • Ideas worth $1,000's that will help your yoga business. 
    • And you'll leave with your own business plan!
 
Prior students have said this about the course:
 
“This experience was so valuable for me as I am just beginning to teach and all of this information was barely covered in my Teacher Training course.  This will help greatly to accelerate the growth towards my vision!”  TJ

“This is a wonderful, rich, inspiring course with a lot of practical suggestions.  It is inspiring me to get going towards my vision of Kundalini Yoga, Ayurveda and Community Building with the very first class I teach!”  DG Kaur

“Your class was very inspiring and offered many practical tips for jump-starting a yoga business.  Thank you very much for a lively, enjoyable presentation!”  D Singh

“I learned very practical, logical and easy-to-implement ideas for expanding my business.  I also gained a better idea of where we are headed as a world community of yogis.  Thank you!”  P Kaur

“This was, simply, grounded direction … affirming what works.  Brilliant!”  LM

“I learned concrete action steps to help me improve my yoga business.  I gained the confidence to complete those steps in the next 90 days (or less!).  It doesn’t get much better than that."  V Kaur
 
Click here to download flyer. 
 
Devi Scholarship - Chicago Teacher Training Course
“Sunia Sidh Peer Sur Naath”
Japji, Pauri 8

‘By hearing God’s Name the mortal becomes a perfect person,
 religious guide, spiritual hero and a great yogi.’

Application due on September 1.

These words from Japji** are what started it all.  They were the inspiration behind the creation of a special scholarship fund—the Devi Scholarship—available to applicants of Chicago’s Kundalini Yoga in the Loop (KYL) Level One Teacher Training course.
 
These words took hold in the soul of one of our first graduates.  His response was to begin a scholarship fund with his own money.  He named the fund after his mother because it was she who urged him to take his first Kundalini Yoga class.  His intention was that whoever wanted to take the incredible journey that we call Kundalini Yoga Teacher Training as taught by Yogi Bhajan® could do so regardless of financial need.  It was his way of paying back for all that he had received from the course—gurudakshina*** of another sort. 

Graduates from each of our courses have since contributed to the Chicago Devi Scholarship Fund.  The goal is to make our Aquarian Teacher Training course accessible to all regardless of financial ability.  KYL’s Devi Scholarships are granted to those individuals who have either a deep desire to improve their personal yoga and meditation practice and/or who are interested in becoming teachers of Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan® but are unable to pay the entire cost of tuition. 

Interested candidates need to complete both the registration form and Devi Scholarship Application form by September 1, submitting their $500 down payment at the same time.  Candidates will be contacted for a personal interview by KYL’s Devi Scholarship Application Board.  The amount of the Devi scholarships is at the sole discretion of the Application Board.  In the past Devi Scholarships have been awarded between $500 and $2,000.

**Japji—A prayer written by Guru Nanak, the first of the Sikh Guru/Saints which relates the conscious mind to the soul.

***Gurudakshina—The practice of giving back to the source of the teachings for what you have received.  Yogi Bhajan used to say, ‘for what a man gives he shall receive and for what a man receives a gift shall be required of him.’
 
The Impact of the Devi Scholarship

What one of our graduates had to say about receiving an award from KYL’s Devi Scholarship fund …
“It’s always a little sticky to preface any statement with 'it changed my life;' after all, every experience, every glance, every gesture has the possibility of waking us up and radically changing our lives from one moment to the next.  There are, however, pillar moments that tower above the rest.  I would certainly say that my deepening practice of Kundalini Yoga, facilitated by your gracious Devi Scholarship, at Kundalini in the Loop (KYL) with Shakta Kaur and Hari Dev Singh, has been one such pillar.
 
"I came to yoga as I come to many things in life:  eyes alight and aflutter for the possibilities.  The excitement wasn’t necessarily unique, but my ability to ground this excitement and let it mature into something wiser and more real was.   This grounding wasn’t some herculean feat of my own doing; yes there was the aspect of my discipline and commitment, but these were fleshed out by the group consciousness of my classmates, the communal dedication brought to our weekends together, and the thoughtful and attentive awareness of the teachers.   The result of this has been a quiet serenity where before there was all heat and vim.   A basking in the stillness of Being is always a breath away for me, a kriya in the making, a mindful meditation.   Kundalini yoga has allowed me to develop myself as a human being, to be more available in my healing work, and to walk a graceful road to my Highest Destiny.
 
"I’d thought of writing a thank you immediately upon receiving this scholarship, but decided instead to offer up a prayer of gratitude and wait until I could share what the experience meant to me, means to me.   I am awed by the breadth of yoga, by the true reach of consciousness, and the possibilities of yoking yoga with daily living.   Not only do I now have a daily practice—something so grounding and liberating for a staunch vata—but I am now part of a beautiful community of like-minded individuals who share the respect and commitment to consciously becoming conscious of our consciousness.   The weekends of class were intense and yet the reverberations all stronger still.   I have been sent out into the world to share this technology with people and I have already begun to do so.   A client of mine calls it ‘happy yoga’ and I quite agree with her; it makes people feel good, because being ALIVE, being in balance to truly live and share and grow is a very happy thing.  *smile*   Thank you.
 
"Thank you for believing so much in this yoga and that those called to this path, regardless of financial circumstance, must heed the call.   In providing the finances to facilitate an answer to Spirit, you do an incredible service to the world.   You create teachers.   You birth a greater mindfulness.   You go above and beyond to gracefully usher in the footsteps of the Aquarian Age.   I thank you most heartily for this.   I know that many opportunities will come for me to give as you have; I trust that I shall show as much  generosity  and so continue this Golden Chain of offering, of connection, and of evolution.   Thank you."
 
Sat Nam,
Hari Miter Kaur
 
Three Teacher Training Courses with KYL in 2009!
Level 1
Teacher
Training
 
Chicago
Tallahassee
PEI Canada
 
 
"Teacher Training is about technology – the technology of personal change. How to achieve strength, clarity and grace. It is systematic, comprehensive and complete." - Yogi Bhajan
We are pleased to announce that KYL is conducting three Level 1 Teacher Training courses beginning this Fall … and we’re going international!  If you enjoy weekly classes and want to learn the A’s to Z’s of Kundalini Yoga and Meditation as taught by Yogi Bhajan® then one of these Teacher Training courses is sure to be for you!
 
You don’t need to be thinking about ‘teaching’ yoga publicly to take Teacher Training, and this course is perfect for yoga students and teachers of all traditions.

Click on these links for more information:
     Chicago IL  -      10 Weekends over 9 Months (Oct to June)
     Tallahassee FL - 10 Weekends over 8 Months (Oct to May)
     Prince Edward Island Canada - Two 11-day Residential Sessions, Sep. '09 and May '10 
 
Important Dates...
August 15  40 days prior to KY Teacher Training at Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada
September 1 Devi Scholarship application/deposit Due Date (Chicago only)
September 14 40 days prior to KY Teacher Training at Tallahassee, Florida, USA
September 21 40 days prior to KY Teacher Training at Chicago, Illinois, USA
‘What is Kundalini Yoga?’ by Gurucharan Singh Khalsa

This question is answered by the International Director of Training for Kundalini Yoga as Taught by Yogi Bhajan®.

“Kundalini Yoga is that yoga that says no matter how much breathing and posture you do, you can’t escape the responsibility of awareness.”

“When the Kundalini awakens in you it optimizes your nervous system and your glands so that the consciousness that you sense within your soul can have the necessary projection to enact itself into the world.”

“Kundalini Yoga gives you that power to walk the path of your heart, your individuality and your uniqueness and deliver that into the world smoothly.”

At KYL we answer this question — what is Kundalini Yoga? — all the time.  We thought you might like to hear what the Director of Training, Gurucharan Singh Khalsa, has to say when he is asked the same question. 
 
Click here to see a video of Gurucharan’s 4-minute answer.
 
Vitality & Stress with Gurucharan Singh
Calling all Spiritual Warriors!

Join Director of Training, Gurucharan Singh Khalsa, Ph.D.
as he returns to the Midwest for the experience that is called
‘Vitality & Stress!’
WHEN:  Sept. 18-19-20 and Oct. 9-10-11, 2009 (Friday, Saturday, Sunday).  Course begins at 9 am on Friday and ends at 6:00 pm on Sunday.
WHERE:  The Cenacle Retreat Center, Chicago, Illinois (both shared and private sleeping rooms are available).
MEALS:  Three vegetarian meals served daily (included in your tuition fee).
 
Shakta just took ‘Vitality & Stress’ earlier this month in Espanola, New Mexico, with Gurucharan Singh and other senior teachers.  She was especially impressed with the immediate applicability of the course’s content to both her professional and personal life.  In particular, Shakta just loves the course affirmation … and she thinks you will, too:
“I cultivate my core vitality and honor the opportunities that come with each breath—to receive them as a gift.  I recognize the value of my physical and energetic bodies and take steps to maintain them.  I thrive under stress and challenge; I am a spiritual warrior who delivers leadership, elevation and effective decisions.  I practice a lifestyle that incorporates preventative habits for vitality and victory.  I have the mental and spiritual endurance to cross every crisis and be a beacon to navigate and excel in the Aquarian Age."
 
YOU’LL RECEIVE:   276 page ‘Vitality & Stress’ manual.  80-page Home Study Guide.  Six DVDs of Yogi Bhajan lectures on the topics of ‘Vitality & Stress.’
 
WHY ATTEND?:
  • To cultivate your core vitality.
  • To develop your mental and spiritual endurance.
  • To withstand stress.
  • To live as a spiritual warrior who leads, uplifts and delivers.

Besides, lecture, kriyas and meditations this course uses a variety of other processes to help identify your stress hot-buttons.   You will leave with a tool kit that will help balance and uplift yourself and those around you. 

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

  • Identify your stress personality.
  • Build your core vitality, mental endurance and spiritual clarity.
  • Explore consciousness as a primary tool in building vitality.
  • Explore the process, effects and downsides of too much stress.
  • Experience a de-stressing massage that Yogi Bhajan taught to relax and refresh yourself.
Monthly payment plans are available.   Reserve your place now and prepare for an amazing experience in Chicago this September with Director of Training Gurucharan Singh Khalsa!
 
Click Here for more details.  Call Hari Dev Singh to arrange an easy payment plan (312-922-4699).
21-Day Detox Melon Fast

KYL's Annual Deep Cleanse is Upon Us!
Each year a group of KYL yogis perform a 'spring cleaning' of their body with Yoga Bhajan's detox melon fast.  You can do this fast for 28-, 21-, or 7-days.  Hari Dev likes the 21-day version; Shakta likes the 7-day version.  If you wish to join us this year, please review important information about the process - click here.
 
This is a perfect fast to do in the Summer.  It is taken from Yogi Bhajan's book, "Foods for Health & Healing," which we carry at Kundalini Yoga in the Loop (KYL).  The Fast is designed to cleanse the liver, kidneys, intestines, renew bodily fluids and strip-off fat. 

Fasting is more than just the absence of food… it is a very powerful tool for healing and strengthening the body.  Dr. Siri Atma Singh Khalsa, M.D. — Yogi Bhajan's personal physician the last four years of his life (and an incredible yogi himself) — recommended we experience this fast.  Dr. Siri Atma thought it would be especially beneficial to Hari Dev for cleansing the last of the toxins from his chemotherapy treatments.

Sticking to the fast is only part of the challenge.  The physical cleansing of a fast is often accompanied by a mental cleansing as well.  Simply begin the process and relax into it; the inner cleansing will happen.  It is all about changing the consciousness, which is what we routinely experience through Kundalini Yoga and Meditation.

Here is the menu for the detox fast:

Days 1-3:  Eat only cantaloupes (warming and laxative, prepares the kidneys to cleanse).
Days 4-6:  Eat only watermelons (cooling, prepares the liver to cleanse).
Days 7-9:  Eat only papayas (works on the intestines and digestion).
Day 10:  Lemon and honey dissolved in water (clears the system of excess mucus).
Day 11:  Plain water (not ice cold).
Day 12:  Lemon and honey dissolved in water.
Days 13-15:  Eat only papayas.
Days 16-18:  Eat only watermelons.
Days 19-21:  Eat only cantaloupes.

We plan to start on July 29 - as that will put the 3 'water days' on a Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, in order to be 'less busy' when no food is being consumed.  You may start at any time that fits your schedule best.

Note:  Eating lots of fresh papaya is a challenge. An alternative is to get natural, dried papaya which has a chewy, sweet taste that you actually want to eat. Here is a good source of organic dried papaya: http://www.nutsonline.com/driedfruit/papaya/organic.html

Moon Watch
CURRENT MOON
New Moon - July 21

11 Days After - August 1

Full Moon - August 5

(Above Dates Adjusted for Central Time Zone)
New Moon
The New Moon is when you are at your lowest...energy-wise. It is a good day to fast on lemon and water. Fast from sun-up until the next morning at breakfast, when you "break" the "fast."

Waxing Moon
... is the time between the New Moon and the day before the Full Moon. During this time the energy of the body moves into your higher centers (chakras). This is the time to bring new things, new people or new relationships into your life or to accelerate the progress of your special projects.

11 Days After New Moon
Yogi Bhajan taught that this is the day when you are in balance. The glandular system readjusts itself on this day. Your metabolism is changing, so if you eat very lightly (green foods) or if you live just on water and lemon today, your health will be perfect. Eat very lightly during the day. Eat only one meal and drink lemon and water the rest of the day.

Full Moon
You are naturally accelerated on a full moon. You are at your highest energy level. The secretions in your body will be at their maximum, so you don't want your energy being used to consume food. Save your energy to reconstruct yourself. Try to drink only liquids on this day. If you feel you must eat, drink only milk. (But, don't drink cold milk right out of the refrigerator. Milk should be brought to a boil. Allow the milk to foam up and then bring the heat down so the milk is on a slow boil for 5-10 minutes. While cooking it, you may add a pinch of ground turmeric, a pinch of black pepper, a cinnamon stick, or a few pinches of ginger to reduce any mucous causing side effect.)

 

Yoga Class Schedule  (view online)
Kundalini Classes
  • Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
12:15-1:00 pm ($11)
6:00-7:00 pm ($13)
  • Wednesday
12:15-1:00 pm ($11)
6:00-7:00 pm ($13)
7:15-8:15 pm ($13)
  • Saturday & Sunday
10:30-Noon ($17)
(After Sunday's class join us for a vegetarian potluck.)
 Hatha Classes
  • Monday - Classical Yoga - 6:30-7:30 pm ($13)
  • Tuesday - Integral Yoga - 7:15-8:15 pm ($13)

 

 

A Thought From Yogi Bhajan
"
Under Thy Will and command within us we live; let our inner voice become stronger and our outer voice silent and may we find peace and tranquility in that great silence. Let us all welcome the Age of Aquarius, the Age of heavens, Age of Self, Age of peace.
"