A Night of Kirtan with Gurunater Kaur Khalsa

Meditation doesn't come easily for many people.  Kirtan - one of the oldest sacred music traditions of the world - offers another method.   Kirtan is a call-and-response style of singing sacred chants.   Kirtan carries us effortlessly to a place of quiet, to stillness.  While it is true that we can sing these chants in the solitude of our own homes, there is nothing like the magic of chanting live with musicians and other participants all adding their energies to the experience.

It’s the heart, not the art.   The purpose of Kirtan is to get us out of our heads and into our hearts.

Chants heal. The powerful healing and transformational energies of these ancient chants can help to reconnect us to the Ever-Present and Eternal Being that lies within us all. All the mantras, melodies, and instruments of Kirtan are designed to lead us toward this meditative state.

The beauty of relaxation. Kirtan brings us back to our center. When this happens, beautiful things begin to unfold. Feelings of inspiration, peace, and a sense of connectedness are common experiences.

Come, sing with us.  Friday evening, June 29, 2012, 6:30-8pm, at Radiance, 9 W Grant St, Lancaster, PA, across the cobblestones from Central Market.

Bring a blanket and/or yoga mat to sit on, a pillow if it helps you to sit on the floor with more comfort, and dress in layers.  

 
Cost is $15 in advance, $20 that evening.  Call Radiance, 717-290-1517, or stop in to register. 

Gurunater Kaur has been teaching Kundalini Yoga internationally for 36 years having studied directly under Yogi Bhajan beginning in 1976.  She is a member of the Mid-Atlantic Yoga Association, International Kundalini Yoga Teachers Association, and a Level One Professional Teacher Trainer. Gurunater Kaur is a healer and intuitive doing angelic healings, a reiki master, polarity therapist, and a Sat Nam Rasyan practitioner.  She is a certified hypnotherapist and a past-life regression therapist.  She creates healing gemstone Malas (prayer beads) some of which have belonged to Yogi Bhajan, the Dalai Lama, President and Hillary Clinton and other international dignitaries.

New Shipment of African Market Bastets has Arrived!

Come in to see the new selection!  We've been selling these African Market Baskets since before Radiance opened, nearly six years ago.  We LOVE them!  The colors are always a delight & add to the visual delight you experience in the shop.  Handmade in Ghana, they are a traditional design, and are made by members of a fair trade collective.  And, they are not just beautiful, they are strong.  These baskets are made to be working baskets.  I've been carrying one every day for more than 5 years - yes, the same one... back & forth to work, it holds everything I need, from my calendar to my lunch and knitting, from vegetables I buy at market to herbal reference books.  It's my version of a briefcase.  Because, what would an herbalist look like carrying a briefcase?...

Herbal Fermentations: a workshop at Radiance with Ben Weiss

Herbal Fermentations

A workshop at Radiance with local home-brewer,

Benjamin Weiss.

Saturday, April 28th, 1-5PM

Only within the last few centuries did hops become the main herbal ingredient in beer. From very ancient times until nearly the present, cultures around the world have been making fermented beverages with an incredible variety of herbs, fruits, sugar sources and other ingredients. Fermented beverages can serve as much more than just an enjoyment. These drinks can preserve the nutritional and medicinal properties of their ingredients for up to several years, and can play a key role in ritual and spiritual practice.

Benjamin Weiss, a local organic farmer, permaculture teacher, and poet has been experimenting with herbal fermentations for the past 7 years. Inspired by Stephen Buhner’s book Sacred & Herbal Healing Beers, Ben has learned to craft medicinal fermentations of many kinds using mostly local, organic, and wild ingredients.

This class will be useful for those who have little or no experience with brewing, and as a source of new knowledge for experienced brewers. Students will participate in the creation of an herbal beer as well as a mead (honey wine), and will see fermentations in all of the different stages of the brewing process. Basic techniques and equipment will be explained, as well as medicinal, nutritive, and ritual functions of brews, choosing, harvesting and obtaining ingredients, and pairing appropriate flavors. And an array of Ben’s finished beverages will be available for sampling!

To register, call Radiance, 717-290-1517, or stop in to 9 W Grant St, Lancaster.

Cost of the class: sliding scale of $40-$20.

Last Tarot Readings with Beth Until Next Fall!

Beth, who does tarot readings at Radiance during the winter, is an organic farmer, and has her days filled with growing food when the warm weather arrives.  Her last day for taking appointments until probably November is this coming Tuesday, April 24.  So don't delay, call today to schedule a reading!  

Using the imagery of the Tarot, Beth helps you explore the issues of your life, looking for synchronicities and seeking clarity for how to make strong choices for your future.  Rather than looking at the Tarot as deterministic of a future set in stone, Beth sees the images as pointing to patterns that can be changed and rewoven.  Unpacking the meaning of a reading helps you to focus on the potential choices that you can make to change unhelpful patterns of behaving and thinking or to affirm positive patterns.

Beth has been studying and practicing various forms of divination for the past sixteen years, from Tarot to Runes, and African Bones to the I Ching.  She enjoys using divination as a tool for personal transformation and spiritual development, and as a way to become attuned to the cycles of the natural world.  Along with Sarah, she also teaches occasional courses in the Reclaiming Tradition: The Elements of Magic and Rites of Passage.

The cost for a 45-50-minute reading is $45.  Call 717-290-1517 to schedule an appointment.

Readings will be held at Radiance through the winter on the following Tuesdays and Saturdays:

                    November 9, 2011

                    December 10 and 20, 2011

                    January 14 and 24, 2012

                    February 11 and 21, 2012

                    March 10 and 20, 2012

                    April 14 and 24, 2012

Experience the Didjeridu!

Experience the Didjeridu

A workshop at Radiance with local musician,

Benjamin Weiss.

Thursday, April 19th, 6-9PM

The didjeridu is, perhaps, the first instrument crafted by humankind. This traditional Australian instrument is nothing more than hollow cylindrical tube, but its sound is legendary and unmistakable. The drone produced by blowing into the instrument is said to be the sound of the universe.

Benjamin Weiss began teaching himself to play the didj ten years ago, after finding an old instrument stashed in a corner of his aunt and uncle’s home. But the instinct to play was instilled in him before birth when Ben’s mother lived Down Under for 18 months shortly before he was born, and the spirit of the place came back to North America and found a home in the heart of her son.

Ben is also a permaculture teacher, an organic farmer, a writer, and a member of the local musical group, 21^st Century Dreamtime Lions

This workshop is for absolute beginners as well as those with a bit of experieince. The class will be loose and fun, and there will be no serious expectations of the students. Participants will make all manner of bizarre sounds, and will laugh at themselves with each other!

Figuring out how to buzz the lips properly, how to circular breathe, and how to grunt and snarl into the didjeridu is comical. And yet, to play the didj is to embark on a journey of transformation; one that can be humbling, frustrating, gratifying, and transformative.

The history of the instrument will be explored, the healing and spiritual elements of the didj will be discussed, the basic techniques of playing will be taught, and some practical approaches to further practice will be offered.

To register, call Radiance, 717-290-1517, or stop in to 9 W Grant St, Lancaster.

If you have a didjeridu, please bring it to this class. If you do not have a didj, Ben and Radiance have a small number of extra instruments.

Cost of the class: sliding scale of $40-$20.

Kundalini Yoga Classes with Padmani

 The ancient yoga of awareness, Kundalini Yoga combines pranayam (breathwork), mantra (sound), asana (postures), relaxation, and meditation in each class. This yogic technology will create harmony throughout your entire being. Kundalini Yoga can be experienced by all ages and fitness levels.

All classes are ongoing.

Tuesday morning classes: 8:30am to 10am

Wednesday evening classes: 5:30pm to 7pm

Saturday morning classes: 9:30am to 11am

$12.00 per class or $ 60.00 for a 6-class card.  Drop-ins are always welcome!

Classes are held at Radiance, 9 W Grant St, Lancaster (across from Central Market).  Call Radiance, 290-1517, or stop by to register.

Bring to class: a natural fiber blanket or towel and/or a yoga mat; a pillow if it will help you sit with more comfort on the wooden floor. Dress loosely and in layers.

Padmani Kaur (Christine Cappabianca) practiced Hatha Yoga for 10 years & taught for 6 years. The philosophy of tension release, increased energy, & feeling happier motivated her to then study & teach Kundalini Yoga (3 years now). She believes in a gentle approach so that each student can experience the beauty & benefits in the science of Kundalini. Christine is an I.K.Y.T.A. certified teacher as well as a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT200) with the Yoga Alliance.

Open the Door to Spring Possibilities with Blue Calcite!

From our resident Crystal Priestess, Nicki:

We feel the pull to spring into action as the sun shines and the temperature rises. Blue Calcite can help us clear away the last remnants of winter within our bodies and our minds. As we sweep out the dust and the cobwebs, we make room for new ideas, activities, and relationships. We open ourselves to the positive message of the universe, reveling in all of our possibilities.

This gentle stone relaxes its carrier, releasing stress and encouraging a more optimistic and empowered outlook. It is able to clear blockages of the third eye while screening incoming psychic messages, protecting us from those that may be negative or unpleasant. When the Third Eye is clear, we are better able to sense and understand the energies around us. Blue Calcite can be an excellent tool for deep meditation, astral travel, and lucid dreaming. Its intuitive enhancement can suddenly bring the solution of a problem to light, or it may trigger sparks of artistic inspiration and expression.

We can feel the affects Blue Calcite has on our fifth and sixth chakras physically, as it is known to aid in the clearing of lung congestion and to enhance the expansion of the lungs, allowing more oxygen to be taken and utilized productively. Because of this breath-giving ability, Blue Calcite is also useful in the relief of headaches, and it’s vision-clearing qualities apply both psychically and literally, as it can also be helpful in healing non-inflammatory eye conditions, such as cataracts.

Come in to Radiance & select yours...