A visit from your Jewish grandmotha'

*The following is a letter I wrote in December to some friends of mine.*
Note: the offer still stands.

Yo kidz!  motha a-Leesh in the house.  after this intro anything i say
will pale in comparison but i'll try to be a transparent medium of some
sort, though very much unqualified.

"The serene sky, limitlessly expansive, is compared to the Absolute Truth.
The living entities are truths manifested in relation with the modes of
material nature.  The deep-bluish cloud covers only an insignificant
portion of the limitless sky, and this fractional covering is compared
to the quality of ignorance, or forgetfulness of the real nature of the
living being.  The living entity is as pure as the limitless sky.  He
becomes covered by the cloud of forgetfulness, however, in his tendency
for enjoying the material world.  Because of this quality, called tamas
(ignorance), he considers himself different from the Absolute Whole and
forgets his purity, which is like that of the clear sky.  This
forgetfulness gives rise to separatism in false ego.  Thus the forgetful
living entities, individually and collectively, make sounds like
thundering clouds: 'I am this,' 'It is ours,' or 'It is mine.'  This mood
of false separation is called the quality of rajas, and it gives rise to
a creative force for separate lordship over the mode of tamas.  The flash
of lightning is the only beam of hope that can lead one to the path of
knowledge, and therefore it is compared to the mode of sattva, or
goodness.
The limitless sky, or the all-pervading Absolute Truth (Brahman), is
nondifferent from the covered portion of the sky, but simultaneously the
whole sky is different from the fractional portion that is liable to be
covered by the dark cloud.  The cloud, accompanied by thunder and
lightning, cannot possibly cover the limitless sky.  Therefore the
Absolute Truth, which is compared to the whole sky, is simultaneously
one with the manifested living being and different from him.  The living
being is only a sample of the Absolute Truth and is prone to be covered
by the circumstantial cloud of ignorance.
There are two parties of philosophers, generally known as the monists and
the dualists.  The monist believes in the oneness of the Absolute Truth
and the living entity, but the dualist believes in the oneness of the
separate identities of the living being and the Absolute Truth.  Above
these two classes of philosophers is the philosophy of the truth of
simultaneous oneness and difference.  A sincere seeker of the Absolute
Truth is called a Vedantist.  Veda means 'knowledge'.  Any department
of knowledge is called a part of Vedic knowledge, and vedanta means the
ultimate conclusion of all branches of knowledge.  As philiosophy is
called the science of all sciences, Vedanta is the ultimate philosophy
of all philosophical speculations."
- His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada


awesome, huh?  let me start with a shout out to Seattle, one to Portland,
East Coast stragglers, the random southern crusaders and an international
here or there.  much luv, for sure.  apologizes for the lack of
communication but ol' Maya had me so covered up i didn't even know there
was time for transcendental communication, much less keeping in touch with
the kidz.  but, alas, that is the duty of the material world, keeping the
human race in the clutches of passion and ignorance, sprinkled now and
again with some goodness if we're lucky.  on the advent of the ol' holiday
season, anyone feeling like intimacy just isn't that good anymore, or the
hangover wasn't worth it this time, or the weak MC was a waste of your
time last night, or that false ego has overtaken the world, or that it's
all useless, any attempt to do some good or god-forbid create something
rather than use and destroy, pointless? -(enter Gandhi quote here)- or
maybe just the opposite.  anyone feeling totally content with the
material world, decent job, satisfying partner, good eats with close
friends, fulfilling aikido classes, money in the bank?

i found myself in the former camp around this time last year, so i gave
up all my possessions and went to Mexico for my annual fix.  the desert
did a good job, she's full of tough lessons, the monarch wintering grounds
do a good number as well, and the street theater festivals, always an
upper, but i still felt a sense of loss of direction and purpose in my life. 
i came back to the states and moved to new mexico.  thus, i entered into
the latter camp.  good times with the Haskos and Lauren Angel-we all got
something to learn from that lady that is fo' sure.  but, that nagging
feeling came back just when i allowed myself to be sober enough to feel
it.  so 3 months ago i decided to do something different.
I met a Hare Krsna devotee at a national rainbow 2 years ago.  the first
thing i noticed about him were his eyes.  within their glance, i
encountered a profound sense of humility and respect that i had never seen
before.  because of his mercy, we stayed in touch and became good
friends.  at this summer's gathering, when he told me about a women's
retreat at the west virginia temple in early october, i thought it would
be a great excuse to visit and have an opportunity to ask many questions
and celebrate GOD with decent folks.  I quit both waitressing jobs, packed
up my house, had a few blowout grafitti parties, made black bean
enchiladas for the kids and headed back east.  the first few weeks at the
temple were tough.  i cried a lot.  ontheotherhand, i would catch myself
singing really loudly to myself, even laughing sometimes.  something
interesting was happening. 
temple life begins at 4am in the morn', shower, dress, in the temple
by 5, kirtan, chanting, more Vedic rock & rock, more dancing, then
class at 8.  class consists of reading a verse in sanskrit from the 
Srimad Bhagavatam, a portion of the Vedas (ancient scripture written
over 5,000 yrs ago).  the verse is translated, a purport or explanation
is read, the lecturer gives an expanded personalized interpretation
then Q & A.  i asked a lot of questions.  i thought i was quite
spiritually advanced and pretty smart, too, for my age.  well, 5,000-
year-old scripture has a way of humbling arrogance real fast, and,
3 months later, i'm still in the temple and still asking
questions.

when i cruised north for a Buffalo thanksgiving, i had no idea
how much my heart had been purified.  sober and celibate, no meat,
no eggs, no intoxication, chanting the maha mantra for 2-3 hours
everyday, i have new eyes, sharper ears, a discerning tongue, and
genuine, focused, directional guidelines for the rest of my life. 
on halloween, i asked my friend Balaram to tell me a Vedic demon
story and he said, "Balaram chants Hare Krishna."  this is coming
from a former punk living in Tuscon, BMX rider, born into a Native
American body, who has been a Krishna devotee and celibate student
for over 6 years. OK, how about...Alysia chants Hare Krishna. 
let's see...funky b-gyrl, Albuquerque, hip-hop cowgyrrl, pig farmer,
herbalist, mambo enthusiast, Greek body, 3 months.  BOO!

in the spirit of Christmas and my newly renewed spiritual life, i would
like to offer to all of yous a once in this lifetime opportunity.  now
remember, i too have criticized the "Hare Krishnas" as religious
freaks and hypocrites and now look who's talking.  we gotta remember that
the purity of religion will always be distorted and abused by its
practitioners.  yet, we must not allow this reality to hinder us from the
pursuit of Absolute Truth and spiritual journeys.  the fact is that we are
all eternal souls living in temporary, material bodies, trapped in the
endless cycle of birth & death.  if we have eternal souls then we must
have an eternal occupation, right?  will we merge into the blurry light,
the great infinite, the impersonal Brahman, maybe ascend into Heaven,
streets paved in gold, old friends and relatives with white hair, praying
very nicely, maybe we just melt into the earth and are nothing more than
fodder for the worms and carnivorous centipedes.  what do YOU think?
hint: consult 5,000 yr. old scripture

ok folks, you heard it here, the offer stands, i
will personally mail you a conveniently packaged, paperback edition of the
one and only Bhagavad Gita- As It Is, provided that in return, you mail me
your equivalent, "This book is the best thing that ever happened to me and
is the source of all spiritual knowledge and provides detailed
explanations on the meaning of life" and/or, but preferably AND, your
all-time favorite funk or hip-hop album that attempts to do the same.
Check it- this book is described as the owner's manual for human existence
and is considered the summarized essence of the entire body of literature
known as the Vedas.  Nothing to lose here folks except your false ego.
please give your mother the opportunity to send a nice care package and,
if you're good, she might even send, for no additional cost, some Krisna
conscious hip-hop for kicks.  Note:  the KRS in KRS-ONE stands for KRSNA!

at the very least, drop a line and call me a freak.  no cell phone
reception in west virginy, sorry for the unanswered calls.  throw out
some questions.  pray for me.  invest in your spiritual lives.  luv you
like crazy and look forward to hearing from ya'll.

your affecionate jewish mother,
mz. a-Leesh