This winter, Chameli and I went on a pilgrimage to an ancient Yogini Temple, a stone circle of 64 Yoginis from the 10th century secluded in a forest in Eastern India. Each of the Yoginis mirrors to us aspects of the Goddess and her creative powers, and at the center of this splendorous circle we find MahaMaya, the Hidden Goddess within and beneath all appearances.
“There are so many aspects of her. You can flow like a river, be a fierce warrior, be a mother with a child at your breast. You can be anything and you’re exuding her essence. There is not just one way to reach her. You can be at home cooking, you can be in the army, you can be a musician. She lives through you, transforming the world. It is in the body of a woman, one woman at a time we are bringing that change. We are her army, her hands, and her eyes.”
~ Sukhvinder Sircar
That same afternoon, we visited the Shri Gauranga Ashram and I found myself sitting on the floor of one of the bedrooms, listening in on an exquisitely potent conversation between Sukhvinder and Chameli. A very tangible quality of grace was in the air; the field between them was electric as they were weaving the depths of their spiritual practice into the challenges and potential of social justice and shadow work.
Thinking of you and the circle, I reached for my phone and filmed this spontaneous conversation to share with all of you.
Some of the themes that emerged were:
- how facing patriarchy, colonialism and white supremacy is deep spiritual work
- about the courage to rise and speak up despite fears and judgment
- the importance of the container of your own presence and embodiment in these challenging times
- the medicine of humility, practice and patience; not pretending or skipping the steps
Om MahaMaya Namaha,
Dominique