KUNDALINK IS GROWING AND GLOWING

This is a picture of me "styling" Ally, our radiant and gorgeous Kundalini women's model, at our photoshoot last weekend. We are putting together a catalogue and new improved online KUNDALINK store for men and women with photographs of all our garments and products so it will be a breeze to shop. We are now set up to offer wholesale discounts to qualifying retail stores and yoga studios. So far, you can purchase some of our products at Yoga West in LA and at Sage Hills Yoga Center in Utah. Ally is wearing our Tantric Blue Sleeveless Dress over our 100% cotton leggings. And I'm wearing whatever.

3 1/2 years ago, when Kundalink was just a thought in my head, it was a Kundabag and two headcoverings. Little by little, it grew into an online destination for all things a Kundalini practitioner couldn't find anywhere else....and a live presence at all the 3HO events where I

hosted a table and personally got to know lots of beautiful individuals. Online sales kept increasing and with our inclusion in the 3HO World Market, started to receive orders from around the globe. Advertising on Yogamint brought new customers and of course happy customers and their word of mouth made us a welcomed member of the Kundalini Yoga community.

NOW I am happy to report, WE ARE THREE KUNDALINI YOGIS who are running things and

with all this energy focused in this direction, we are growing and glowing in all the right places.

Since Los Angeles is where the three of us live and work, we are keeping all our operations LA-centric. For example, we are making our clothing here in LA and have our 100% cotton jersey woven for us here in downtown LA. We do all our own dyeing, piece by piece and hand decorate each individual garment. A lot of love goes into this enterprise and we do everything, and I mean everything, with as much integrity as humanly possible.

WILL YOU BE MINE?

"You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams." -Dr. Seuss

Valentines Day. When my father left this world on February 14, 1992, one of his friends said to me "God loved your father so much, he took him back on Valentines Day". Valentines Day, which I seldom "celebrate" , has had a mixed meaning for me since he died. Since I'm all about loving your loved ones EVERY day of the year, choosing one day to show your love doesn't make much sense to me.

But since everyone else seems to be celebrating it, and there

are giant cellophane-wrapped teddy bears and floral displays at every corner of my

neighborhood, I figure its as good a day as any to at least BLOG about LOVE.

When I was in 6th grade I wrote a poem which I gave out to everyone in the class in the form of a Valentine. Many kids made fun of me, but I always took LOVE very seriously. I still remember it:

Every single February on a special day

Cupid comes around and shoots your cares away

when you feel an arrow that has fallen from above

you know that Cupid shot you just to prove that you're in love.

I have been "in love" less than 5 times in my life.

Besides when I first laid eyes on The Cat in the Hat, (which incidentally has been translated into Yiddish and is available through Amazon) the first time I fell in love was in 2nd grade. I thought Cole was the coolest kid in school. He

was a great artist and used soft pencils. His fingers were always covered with graphite. He had big crooked front teeth. He had dark rings under his eyes. He looked like a member of the Adams Family.

He loved monster movies and I watched them on the weekends so I could come in on Monday and join in on the conversation. I was terrified, but I watched Chiller

Theatre anyway because I thought he'd like me better if I did.The first monster movie I ever saw was "The Creature from the Black Lagoon". I watched it through my fingers because I was so scared.

I knew from an early age that LOVE required some degree of sacrifice and inner fortitude.

I don't know where I came up with this notion, but it has flavored all my relationships since. Well...that is until I fell in love with KUNDALINI YOGA. When you fall in love with Kundalini Yoga, you fall in love with yourself. And when you fall in love with yourself, then the whole world is a big Valentines Day every day.

"If I love somebody then I have no question to ask, no answer to hear. Love is beyond questions and answers, give and take, time and space. Love is Infinity; love is God in itself".- Yogi Bhajan

Check out this "Why do You Love Yoga?" video produced by the people at Yogamint.

These are people who are DEFINATELY IN LOVE. Yoga means UNION of body, mind, and spirit. When you "fall in love" with another person, you are actually having a BODY/MIND/SPIRIT Union with yourself. That is why doing Yoga feels so good and why it is engenders the experience of self love.

I remember when I was in grade school, you were considered "conceited" if you loved yourself. BUT LOVING YOURSELF IS THE KEY INGREDIENT TO HAVING A HAPPY LIFE.

Yogi Bhajan said "The purpose of life is to reach God within you. Try it so you can be happy, rich, and prosperous; beautiful, bountiful and recognizable".

When you reach God within you, you are loving yourself. It's simple. You don't have to go outside of yourself to find happiness. If you are a devotional person, chances are that you may have, at least once in your life, loved someone outside yourself inappropriately. By this I mean, that you may have used that PERSON 'S ATTITUDE TOWARDS YOU as a barometer for how you felt about yourself. Once you cultivate a relationship with God or self-love, you don't need another's approval to approve of yourself. The devotion that you cultivate towards another in a relationship may be a devotion better cultivated toward your higher consciousness.

When you are "in love" you are feeling in sync with your higher self. Like Dr. Seuss said, "reality is finally better than your dreams". How do we cultivate this feeling of being "in love"? And what are you really "in love" with? Could it be the very best of your SELF? The very best of YOU?

I think back on the times I thought I was "in love" with someone and I have to say, all those times I was in love with how I felt about myself. As soon as I felt uncertain or insecure in the relationship, that feeling of being "in love" went away. But since I've been practicing Kundalini Yoga, I am "in love" all the time...and I'm not even in a relationship with anyone but myself. This is the greatest gift of having a daily practice and living each and every day as though it were Valentines Day.

What are some ways in which you can reach God within you?

1. You must meditate

2. You must cultivate an attitude of gratitude "As many times in life you fall apart, then it becomes your sad story, it becomes permanent depression, it becomes permanent expression, "Oh nobody cares," "Oh I don't care," those kind of statements which I call negativity. And when you start expressing yourself negatively, that only particularly means that you are ungrateful to God. The happiness in life lies in gratitude, and the way to prosperity, to happiness, to life, to love, to all items in life, is in gratitude, not in being great. Doesn't matter how much you try, you can never be great if you do not have an attitude of gratitude, it is basic." - YOGI BHAJAN , 1991

3. YOU MUST CULTIVATE A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR OWN SOUL......

"The most elementary object of human life with all its sensory system is to meet your own soul; mate your own soul, and live with your own soul, that is the sole purpose, and all prosperity and virtue shall come to you." - YOGI BHAJAN, 1984

The human sensory system IS OUR GREATEST ASSET.We can cultivate IT by consciously connecting to our breath, strengthening our nervous system, activating our glandular system, balancing our emotions and channeling our mental energy SO THAT WE ARE MORE INTUITIVE. THE MORE WE CONNECT WITH OURSELVES, THE HAPPIER WE WILL BE. We will sense our own divinity. We will be able to feel calm and contained, content and present. We will no longer feel the need to be validated from outside because we will validate ourselves by going deep inside our own being.

When I think about it in the context of expressing our feelings of gratitude to others and to God, VALENTINES DAY IS A DAY TO CELEBRATE LOVING OURSELVES.

MAKING A LIST AND CHECKING IT TWICE

When I was growing up, my father was my spiritual advisor although he wasn't officially anything but a track coach, educator, and my dad. He was the one who taught me that "God is in your heart, not in the church or temple". He taught me many other valuable lessons like "if you can't say something nice about someone, don't say anything at all" and instead of feeling sorry for yourself, "take out a pencil and make a list of all the things you're grateful for". He was right because by the time I got to the second item on the list, the mood had vanished. This is what I thought about when I read the lastest installment of YOGAMINT , "The Best Present".

It reminded me that not only was a Gratitude List a terrific tool for self-reflection, but that NOW IS THE PERFECT TIME to write one.

Yogamint is an informational newsletter on the surface, but it is REALLY a great excuse of linking like-minded conscious souls and giving them tools and ideas to share with others. These tools are useful, inspirational, and are easily distributed and shared with others via email AND as handouts because they are printed instantly with a click of the mouse! As Yogamint grows, so does its archive of information AND its audience is growing, too. You can become part of that audience by signing up on their mailing NOW.

THE SHORTEST DAY OF THE YEAR WITH THE BIGGEST RETURN

Today is the Winter Solstice and Hari Bhajan Khalsa, the "mother" of Yogamint, has written a little about this subject in one of the installments of Yogamint called "Winter Solstice - This Little Light of Mine.

She writes, "I always find that when I focus on three particular practices in my life - meditation, service and art - I’m able to maintain a healthier balance. Meditation provides that vital internal conversation, service engenders gratitude and connections with others, and writing (which is my art) brings joy and fulfillment. Each demands I stay present, committed, and trust that all is unfolding in a divinely ordered way."

I write, "couldn't have said it better myself."

What does the Winter Solstice mean to YOU?

Aside from being the shortest day of the year, when the sun energy is smallest and our spiritual depth is most accessible...its a wonderful time to revisit the age-old question, "How do I want to live my life?" During the holidays, people are gathering to sit around the hearth, to break bread and be with their friends and family. Celebrating. Going to great expense to entertain, exchange gifts, and prepare lavish feasts. But this time of year is the perfect time to meditate, access your self, and go within. Spend less money and give more of YOURSELF to others. Open Your Heart. Feel Gratitude.

Its the perfect time to "reckon". A DAY OF RECKONING is what I write as my Facebook status a lot these days. What this means to me is that I'm looking at my deeds and misdeeds and checking them twice. Isn't that what Santa Claus meant when he said "I'm making a list, and checking it twice"????? I'm not a believer in Santa Claus, but have you ever considered that "Santa Claus" is just another name for your own higher consciousness doing this winter solstice work for you?

All I know is that I'm trying to figure out where I am, where I'm going. How can I be happier? And Kundalini Yoga is the car I drive to get there.

This is why the gratitude list was so important to me when I read it in Yogamint today. I don't do it ON PAPER every day, but I do it every day in my heart....which, according to my dear departed father, my first teacher, is WHERE GOD DWELLS, anyway.