From Fortress Europe...

What Yoga Means to Me!

2010-07-29T14:12:00.012+02:00

I have been practicing the art of yoga for about 8 years now. Granted I haven't been a full fledged livicated yogini the whole time; I have gone in and out of it...at the worst case not practicing for almost 8 months..but always coming back to it. Like a lost child finding her way home.

Recently I caught myself telling a few people in conversation that if I had it my way I would make the whole world practice yoga.

I try to not preach; I try to not rant and rave about the absolute beauty of this physical, mental and spiritual art form even though I don't think I could live my life without practicing it anymore.

Yoga is the love of my life.

It is my medicine, my life source.

The deep focus and meditation practiced during yoga carries through everything I do in life. My creativity blossoms and my spirit soars! It gives me the strength to stay true to myself and fight all my battles.

Yoga is a science coming from Ancient India meaning “Union”. Union of the spirit and body. The physical body becoming one with the spirit is the ultimate achievement in yoga.

When I first started practicing yoga I did it primarily to be physically fit. I needed to lose some kilos and other forms of exercise didn't appeal to me. I hate going to the gym; I get totally bored when I have to do some mindless repetitive thing. I have never been good at sports and I despise running. So the only options left for me was dance or yoga. Living in San Francisco at the time, yoga was everywhere. Since it is a big part of my tradition and culture I decided to check it out and see if I would like it.

Amazingly, since the first day; I fell in love with it. I am a fickle minded person generally that gets bored of things and people VERY quickly. I am quick to learn something and very quick to leave it as a thing of the past and move forward. But yoga draws me deeper and deeper into it each day. I realize how little I actually know and my desire to learn more gets stronger.

After 8 years I have now finally realized how basic the “asanas”or postures in yoga are. This is only the doorway, like a child learning how to crawl. I'm not trying to underestimate the power of the asanas. They are extremely difficult and challenging to master. I have spent many many years working on the same postures and still have a hard time with them. Every person's body has certain strengths and weaknesses. Its up to us, through self research in yoga to find out what these are and keep working hard on them.

There are some days when it flows naturally and some days your body just doesn't do what you ask it to. Training your body through repetition is how you make your muscles remember each asana. Still there are some; like the shoulder stand; that I cannot do without support.

But this is only the first step.

The aim of yoga is to purify the body so you can purify the mind. So postures, cleansings, eating a proper diet are the basic steps to developing your yogic mind. Ultimately you create an absolute balance of the body, mind and energy flow.

Asanas should be done with a spiritual realization; chanting mantras to yourself as you go through the pain. My personal one given by my guru is “I am not a body. I am a soul”. This helps me shoulder any burning, hurting and wanting to give up feelings.

Doing the postures this way is the next step to spiritual unity.

And this prepares you for the next step of yoga; “Pranayama” or Breathing.

Pranayama can be broken down into its two root words from Sanskrit; “Prana” meaning the most vital energy that every life force breathes and “Ayama” is the storing and distribution of the energy throughout our body.

Breathing is so natural to us that we don't really think about the power it has. Prana is our life force. It affects our mind, body and spirit.

Pranayama is one of the most important things in Yoga. Without it, there is no yoga. It is the pathway to the final chapter of yoga; “dhyana” or meditation.

There are many different forms of breathing exercises ; “kapalbhatti” which is the ultimate detox, it gets rid of all the excess carbon dioxide in your body when done everyday; “anulombha bilambha” balances your left and right side of the body, it is also a form of meditation through which it is possible to reach “samadhi” or supra consciousness; “vastrika” which stimulates your internal organs, specifically the fire in your belly etc. etc.

As I said before; besides the obvious physical benefits of pranayama; it also leads us to meditation. While I practice it I am so focused on my breath that the whole world ceases to exist. I turn within myself and try to understand what is happening in my body. When I practice Pranayama correctly my mind is quietened. Normally the mind is hard to control and concentration on one thing is extremely difficult.

Slowly but surely; in good time; with deep focus during pranayama my mind was lifted to a new state of consciousness where I was finally meditative. I am still not capable of being able to meditate without the help of pranayama but I know it will happen. There are many many steps to reach there and I am only crawling right now.

Of course I cannot talk about yoga without talking about the obvious health benefits of it. Yogic practice requires more time and effort than regular medication but the effects are much more permanent and worthwhile. Yoga teaches us to treat our diseases using our own strength and proper food. Health benefits of Yoga works on the principles of harmony and unification with our bodies and with nature. Understanding that we are made up of 5 elements of nature, working on the body as a whole instead of trying to fix a small part of it, balancing the positive and negative energy poles in our bodies(left/right, ida/pingla, yin/yang, male/female, shiva/shakti etc etc) and purifying our bodies is essential to yogic practices.

Yoga today has been commercialized, water-downed, co-opted and turned into a fashion statement. It is like the image of Che Guevara that has been made so common that it loses its revolutionary meaning. It is like my hero; Arundhati Roy being on a list of Forbes magazine's 30 most inspiring women of the year; alongside the likes of those who she stands up against; Condoleeza Rice, Hillary Clinton and the head of Pepsi!!!!!!

In this age of commercial capitalizing of all that is sacred, meaningful and true it is important for people like us to remember and remind others of the roots of it all. The depth of life. The meaning of love and struggle.

The union of mind, body and spirit.

All photos by Martin Travers.

I feel like writing..

2010-07-20T23:46:00.004+02:00

"Its been a while since i wrote and so many things have happened since"..this is always how i start my journal!
I had been writing in my journal with dedication for 4-5 years and this year i have totally slacked. My mind has been busy with millions of things and my time is so much more precious. I dont know what it is. The older i get; the less time i have!
I remember when all i did was hang out and chill. Now, i need to go on vacation and even then i'm working. But as the ADF song says "Done Enuff Chillin; Gotto organize my time"...or something like that!
I've been thinking lately of all my journeys, the people i've been blessed to meet; the places i've been blessed to see. All these experiences and stories i've collected throughout the years.
I've turned into a blend of the East and West.
A living contradiction in this world that promotes separation.
Embodying unity of all people and cultures that exist on our planet.
Hmmm..what else did i want to write...cant remember anymore..just want to post this beautiful photo i took one morning at 5am walking along this beautiful city i live in with a beautiful person who happened to share that space and time with me.

Voices Of Women Media in LOVER

2010-05-01T14:59:00.002+02:00

DAY IN HER LIFE
VOICES OF WOMEN MEDIA
article by Marije Janssen | woensdag 28 april 2010
in LOVER

link to article
(In Dutch)

In 2007 richtten Vivian Wenli Lin en Pooja Pant de stichting Voices of Women op. Afkomstig uit de Verenigde Staten en Nepal zijn ze nu woonachtig in Amsterdam. Beiden zijn al jaren actief op het gebied van mediakunst, feminisme, gender-issues en activisme.

Voices of Women ontstond met als insteek om de stigma’s die uiteenlopende vrouwelijke arbeiders omringen weg te nemen. Het is een organisatie in ontwikkeling. Na hun eerste project ‘Dissillusionment’ in 2007 waarin ze migrantenvrouwen de kans boden zelf te vertellen over hun bestaan en soms extreme werkomstandigheden zijn ze in 2010, met steun van Mama Cash, begonnen aan een uitgebreid en gelaagd nieuw project onder de noemer ‘A day in her life’.

Dit project omvat verschillende elementen. In eerste instantie is het een workshop voor zowel sekswerkers als slachtoffers van mensenhandel, waarin ze vrouwen de vrijheid en mogelijkheid bieden om te praten over hun leven en daarbij op creatieve wijze gebruik te maken van media als radio, video en fotografie. “Het gaat er niet om dat de deelnemers hun ‘ware’ identiteit prijsgeven. Maar we willen hun dagelijks leven, hun dromen en hoop vastleggen.” Omdat juist deze verhalen vaak niet gedocumenteerd worden, niet gehoord worden willen Vivian Wenli Lin en Pooja Pant met hun werk een zo divers mogelijk publiek bereiken.

Het uiteindelijke resultaat verwerken ze tot een videoinstallatie waarin de verhalen van de vrouwen te zien en te horen zijn. Bezoekers kunnen kijken en luisteren naar de ervaringen en levens die gedeeld worden. Verder richten ze een fototentoonstelling in, met foto’s van alle vrouwen. Door zowel vrijwillig werkende vrouwen als slachtoffers van mensenhandel aan het woord te laten, ontstaat er een rijkheid aan stemmen die laten zien dat dit werk niet eenduidig te interpreteren is.

Vivian en Pooja willen ruimte maken voor de menselijke aspecten van het werk dat deze vrouwen doen. Dat vrouwen die vrijwillig werken het recht hebben te beslissen wat ze met hun lichaam doen, die keuzevrijheid is essentieel. En dat vrouwen die slachtoffer zijn geweest, meer zijn dan alleen dat, slachtoffer.

Voices of Women wil vrouwen zelf letterlijk de middelen bieden om hun eigen verhaal te vertellen en zodoende zichzelf te versterken en hun eigenwaarde te vergroten.

Het werk van Voices of Women is op dit moment nog in ontwikkeling. Tijdens het LOVER-debat over de rechten van sekswerkers, op 23 juni in Utrecht, zal een deel van het werk te zien en te horen zijn. Meer informatie over het debat volgt

May Day 2010

2010-05-01T12:12:00.014+02:00

A few days ago, I was in the supermarket with Martin and Jan and matter-of-factly said, "I always carry my own bag when I go grocery shopping. The thought of having to buy a plastic bag is my worst nightmare." Martin, replied (of course) before I could finish my next breath, "Wow, you live a very luxurious life. If that's your worst nightmare." Which really forced me to think about what I said and to thank the creator that it was true. My personal life has recently been relatively comfortable and happy. My work is heading in the right direction - my creativity is on fire with inspiration all around me. A lot of good people surround me in my life and it's springtime in Amsterdam. There is nothing more I could ask for.
Later that night, I was reading the news after a long time and heard of the latest developments from Nepal.For those of you who may be unaware, there has been a long and intense struggle against the feudal elites in Nepal. In 1996 the Maoist rebels;under the leadership of Prachanda(the fierce one); officially started a revolution from the countryside of Nepal called the "People's War(Jana Yuddha)".
Until then Nepal was a kingdom which people proudly called it "the only Hindu kingdom"! Such is the power of propoganda. Being opressed and ruled by one family is thought to be a national pride that unites the people!Not only that but Nepali people worshiped the king as a form of Vishnu; one of the main Gods of the Hindu tradition; He who preserves and nourishes!
10 years of long and bloody war finally achieved the dream of many oppressed and brave Nepali people; they managed to overthrow their 240 year old regime and establish a "People's Republic Of Nepal". The Peace Process was signed and the Maoists were working together with the other other political parties in Nepal. From 2006 until now the country has been going through the birth pains of building a completely new system! Nepal being a very traditional, superstitious and religious country had a lot of changes that needed to be made; both socially and politically. This is no easy job! During the historic elections finally in 2008; the Maoists won 220 out of 575 seats in the new government, making it the largest party in the Constituent Assembly and Prachanda was elected the new Prime Minister.
Today is May Day 2010. A day for the workers of the world. A day we celebrate the rights that were fought for us by our older generation so we can work 8 hours/day.
However living in Amsterdam though;today is the day after Queens Day! A day of rest from all the non stop partying, boozing, and drugs for the past 2 days. It is a celebration of the Queen Mother's birthday and is supposed to be a day of national unity.
For someone who comes from a country where the people managed to overthrow their queens and kings it is a crazy concept that in the so called "democratic" west; the people still celebrate their oppressor's birthday!!
Meanwhile in Nepal right now there are MAJOR protests going on. The coalition government of Nepal is not really working out; Prachanda resigned from the government about a year ago as the President of Nepal reinstated an army chief who was sacked by Prachanda. The new constitution of Nepal is not yet completed. The fragile peace accord is on the verge of collapse.
Hundreds of thousands of people are now gathered in Kathmandu from all over Nepal to celebrate May Day and also to launch "people's revolt". The May Day demonstrators have a list of demands.
Maoist leaders have said that if the government does not immediately adhere to the people's demands then street protests will continue indefinitely.
I sit here in the comfort of my home in Amsterdam, contemplating if i should step out to enjoy the sun or stay in and work; while my mother; back home in Nepal is not only dealing with the above issues, there is also no electricity for 16 hours a day everyday. Now she also has to make sure she has enough rice, dal and vegetables to eat.
.

PS: All images are borrowed. First photo is "Naya Bihana" by Martin Travers, second photo is by Li Onesto and the third one is from some news site somewhere!

Nooit Meer De Pijp Uit!

2010-04-23T13:38:00.005+02:00

BLOCK PARTY!!!!
This past year visual artists Martin Travers and Jan H. DeHartog painted a series of 10 canvases based on stories of people in the neighbourhood of 2de Van der helststraat, in the pijp. The ending of the project is being celebrated as a block party where they will showcase their art pieces. It brings together the art, local music, performances and businesses in the neighbourhood that have been very supportive of putting this event together. Everyone that is part of the project is doing it out of the love of thier heart and no financial gain! Give special thanks to the musicians!!!
I am very blessed to be organising this event and to live in this multicultural, diverse and lovely neighborhood in Amsterdam.
I hope you will honor us with your presence {if u live in amsterdam :)} and enjoy this fun and important day with the folks of the pijp! :)

R.I.P GURU!!!!

2010-04-21T15:26:00.002+02:00

Ohh!! What a loss to the hip hop music culture..Guru was a pioneer, leader and one of the awesomest MC!!! R.I.P Guru. U will be missed!!

De Schoenmaaker!!

2010-04-07T23:06:00.001+02:00

De Schoenmaaker!!
Originally uploaded by kalishakti

My first attempt at kinda experimental, abstract photography!! An old shoemaker has been in the neighborhood since 1969. Cigarette stains, old glue, leather, dust and just age gives the place an amazing ancientness that unfortunately is disappearing fast from the western world. I was there in Martin's absence with his work-partner Jan to help interview the man; whom then they would paint in their collection of people from the neighborhood. Took this great opportunity to take loads of photos of this wonderful place and incredible character of a man; such a representative of provos Amsterdam.

The eyes...closeup!

2010-04-05T12:59:00.001+02:00

The eyes...closeup!
Originally uploaded by kalishakti

One of my favorite photos taken during my last trip back home to Nepal. This young boy's eyes is the strength of people going thru intense struggle..

King Shiloh Soundsystem

2010-04-03T17:11:00.002+02:00

Hi All,
In between VOW project and helping Martin organize the blockparty for his art project "Nooit Meer De Pijp Uit" i finally managed to put my year old Shiloh piece online. This was shown on Local Amsterdam TV about a year ago..but i changed a couple of things and here it is...
Hope you enjoy!
One!

King Shiloh Soundsystem from KaliShakti on Vimeo.

A Dance journey...

2009-12-23T21:42:00.002+01:00

I was in NYC for a week dealing with some personal stuff and a good freind of mine got me a ticket to see a dance performance in a high school in Manhatten. Since i didnt have my video camera with me i decided to just take photos and make a video out of it later...so this is my first attempt at stop motion video!
Check it!

A Dance journey.... from KaliShakti on Vimeo.

Calais, France

2009-09-24T17:40:00.002+02:00

I was in Calais, France for a few days this week at the invitation of Nouri who is an Afghan migrant and a survivor of the Schiphol Fire that burnt down a refugee detention center in Holland 3 years ago killing 11 migrants.
He took me there to show the situation of migrants that try to get to the UK from Europe. Mostly of Arab, Eritrean, Sudanese, Afghan and Kurdish descent; these migrants are fleeing a devastated life in the hope for a better one and in the process many end up shredded to pieces or frozen to death!
Calais, France is the port of departure in France where the trucks, cars and buses get on the ferries to cross to Dover, UK. It is also the place where the Euro-rail goes inside the Channel Tunnel. The Channel is a 50 km undersea rail tunnel linking UK to France for those who dont know!! This gives the migrants 2 different ways to get to the UK. Jump on top of the train before it gets inside the tunnel or hide inside or under the trucks which then gets ferried across!! The truck journeys are longer (some last 12-15 hours) and more dangerous but the train is much more harder to get into.
I met a lot of people; all men; living in filthy make shift tents by the port or in plastic tents in the bushes around the highway right before the ferry crossing. Around the highways live mostly Afghan and Kurdish refugees inside bushes and brambles that they call "the jungle". It is strewn with litter; bottles filled with urine, dirty clothes and mudstreaked shoes all over the place.
Nouri had lived in the refugee camp Sangatte in Calais for 9 months; 7 years ago; and tried to cross the border many times. He finally succeded to cross once but the UK police in Dover found him; put him in jail for 6 months in Birmingham and sent him back to France who then sent him back to Holland which is where he had initially applied for asylum.
We used this story to get into the jungle and the ports. The migrants all wanted to know why the hell we were there; and why was i there with a camera!!! They told me they were allergic to journalists because; "first come the journalists and second the police". Twice they told me to put the camera away and later apologised after speaking with Nouri since i was his guest there and it was rude and unhospitable for them to speak to me like that. After they realised i wasnt a journalist they asked me to come back again soon if i wanted..
The camps were divided up into various nationalities and races but they all came together during meal times. 2 times/day a French organisation would bring food by the ports and all the men came out from the jungles to eat. It was quite a sight.
A lot of young people; many were 15-18. We got talking to a young Afghan boy who told us in a non chalant way how he had sat inside a freezer truck that morning for 6 hours. "The oxygen in the truck finished and i was choking", he said "when some freinds opened the door by chance and when they saw me all blue they rushed me to the hospital where i was given electric shock"..."now i am fine again, i will eat, sleep a little and try to find a safer way" he said laughing!!
I was in the jungle sitting around the fire with some Afghans when another young boy walked up. He said something in Pashto and everyone burst out laughing. Someone translated "He just walked 100 kms. Some crazy truck driver told him he would take him to the UK and took him to Belgium instead; so he had to walk back from Belgium". They all cracked up laughing again. The young boy had a packet of biscuit and looked at me; "I am so tired, i am going to sleep. The bastard truck driver must have thought it was funny or something", he said as he waved goodnight!!!
2 Eritrean men i spoke to told me that had walked through Sudan and Libya; got on the ferry to Italy and then proceeded to walk to Calais. They had tried to get to UK 3 times but had gotten caught all 3 times.
Everyone was living outdoors. It was freezing cold and they all huddled by the fire which burnt all day and night. Sleeping in my hotel room at night with the smell of the fire in my hair was a constant reminder of the privilage i had! A warm room!!!
The men were asking me if i knew how to get to the UK. I told them that it was horrible in the UK and maybe they should stay right there in France instead and try to build thier lives slowly but they all said the same thing. "Noone gives us work here in France. Noone wants us here. Atleast in the UK we have a big group of our people; our communities; they help us with work and find a place a live. And none of us speak French."
I met a Palestinian man and an English woman there. They were engaged to be married but since the Palestinian man had no documents, birth certificate, passports etc.. there was no way she could take him to the UK. He had tried 5 times in 2 weeks to get to the UK but got caught all 5 times. As they finished talking to us; they walked away with thier suitcases to try one more time that day. The Palestinian man gave me a packet of tissue as a gift before he walked away!!!! "Our people dont let guests leave without a gift" he said while i was trying to convince him that i didnt need anything!!
I managed to film about 40 mins and take some photos when i thought it was ok..since it was my first time there i couldnt impose with the camera. But the people made me promise that i would come back soon and stay with them in the camp if they were still there. "We have a clean and special tent for you since you are a woman" they told me.
The French government does nothing for the migrants. They had a refugee camp nearby in Sangatte which they closed down about 5 years ago. When the police catch them they just bring them back and let them free in the streets again. There were a total of about 800-1000 refugees in Calais when i was there. All with no clean clothes, no home, no warmth, no money and desparate.
"I know what we do is dangerous,"said a man as he described how he hangs on underneath the trucks for hours,"a lot of people die. But what can we do? We have no choice".

I was there for only 3 days this time. It has been a life changing experience for me. I hope to go back there soon and hopefully record these stories as much as i can.

In Struggle!!

Pooja
PS: More photos at my flickr... CALAIS FLICKR SET!!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kalishakti/sets/72157617963389879/

Fortress Europe

2009-09-24T17:19:00.002+02:00

This has been quite a week. Fortress Europe indeed.
Ahmed Issa was deported on the 17th of September. He was the scapegoat for starting the terrible fire at Schiphol Oost detention center 4 years ago now. Ahmed suffered from 2nd degree burns himself and was in a coma, as soon as he came out of his coma he was questioned, detained and isolated by the Dutch state!! He was then in prison for 3 years while his case was going on. Recently at the Palace of Justice (some photos if you follow link) he was given a guilty verdict for having started the fire and sentenced to 18 months (which he had already done) but he wasnt blamed for the death of the people. Ahmed was then arrested that same evening by the immigration police for being illegal and about 10 days later sent back to Libya. A final "shut all mouths" by the Dutch goverment.
A little history for those who dont know:
There was a fire in the immigration detention centre at Schiphol airport near Amsterdam on the night of 26 /27 October 2005, killing 11 people and injuring 15. Approximatly 298 people were locked up in the cell complex. They had done nothing wrong. Thier only crime was to have no valid residence papers. An independent investigation was launched as authorities were accused of failing to follow fire regulations in the prison complex which concluded that the Ministry of Justice was responsible for the failings,which finally lead to the resignation of two ministers.
Despite the investigation the courts decided that a victim of the fire, Ahmed Isa was sentenced to 3 years prison for having thrown a cigarette bud on the ground which apparently was the cause of the fire. According to Ahmed, he smoked a cigarette while he was falling asleep and flicked it off on the floor ( didnt remember if it was out or still burning). He woke up to his feet on fire and ran trying to ring the alarm and get security. They were not there. All systems failed and finally when the guards did manage to get him out of his room they left the door open thus spreading the raging fire throughout the cell. They then proceeded to open the doors from the wrong side of the hall. While people in rooms closer to the fire were suffocating and burning. All the victims then died of Carbon Monoxide poisoning. Locked up in their rooms. With no way out. The fire service arrived after 25 minutes because the fire alarm did not work properly. The staff in the detention center were not trained to deal with a situation like this. The traumatised victims of the fire were then handcuffed and locked up in the infamous prison boat in Rotterdam for more than a month.

Imagine being charged as someone who started a fire that killed 11 people and then deported after almost 4 years of suffering.
And your only crime was that you had tried to escape a bad situation and wanted to make a better life for you and your family.

I have been documenting images and videos of this case for more than a year. About a year and half ago while vising the Schiphol Oost Detention Center for the first time i was recording with my camera when the guards came and tried to take my video and tape away. I hadnt recorded much but just the fact that the people talked to us from the cage was enough for them. Fortunatly i was with a long time activist and journalist who knew our rights and did not allow the police to touch my camera.
Here is the short clip i recorded.

The "jungle" in Calais was cleared out yesterday.
While the media focuses all its attention at Calais, people escaping the brutality of war and poverty elsewhere still have nothing.
This video was made in a deportation center in Lesvos, Greece .
There exist thousands more places like this in modern day Europe.

In Unity.
Pooja