The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga – Sally Kempton

• August 3, 2013
• NW_Admin
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If you’ve been seeking new inspiration for your hatha yoga practice, or looking to start a meditation practice, you’ll be as excited as we are about who’s doing our next program at NalandaWest in September. Especially if you’ve ever been interested in exploring the energy of the Hindu goddesses.

Sally Kempton will be teaching at NalandaWest the weekend of September 6-8. An accomplished teacher in the yogic tradition and author of the new book, Awakening Shakti, Sally brings together myth, mantras, meditations, and cutting-edge insights that empower us to discover the inner and outer gifts of Shakti–the feminine face of spirit. 

Here’s what Sally said recently about her teachings on the transformative power of the divine feminine: 

Shakti is the hidden power that creates change and transformation. That power comes with different flavors and faces. These are the goddesses of the yogic traditions; Durga and Kali, Lakshmi and Lalita, Saraswati and Bhuvaneshwari and their sisters. As you learn to recognize and invoke their presence and power within your body and psyche, these shaktis become the source of the most radical blessings a human being can receive. The stories and practices of the goddesses are literally vehicles for awakening these blessings. That’s why, for centuries, practitioners have invoked these goddess images and meditated with their mantras.

If you’re reading this, you are likely practicing meditation, yoga, or some other path of inner growth. Some of you have been practicing for years. Others are just discovering how life-changing an inner practice can be. All of you have probably realized how challenging it is to maintain a practice and deepen it.

The truth is, none of us can do this journey without help. We need the help of teachings and teachers. We need the help of our friends. But more than that, we need the help of that subtle power of blessing called shakti. In this time of immense global change, our connection with the wisdom of the sacred feminine is more important than it has ever been.

That’s where the goddesses come in. The goddesses cannot only inspire our meditation. They can give us the power to take effective action in every sphere of life. Whatever path you follow, connecting to the wisdom of these sacred feminine energies can transform your experience of yourself. In fact, it is said that on the path of Shakti, both worldly success and spiritual liberation come and sit in the palm of your hand!

The goddesses have crucial–even life-changing–empowerments to offer women. But goddess practice is just as significant for men–which is why, for centuries, male practitioners have often been at the center of the goddess tradition. My new book, Awakening Shakti, is a users manual for uncovering the wisdom and power of these goddesses–the sweet and the fierce, the deeply mystical and the givers of worldly boons.

— Sally Kempton

Join us for Sally Kempton’s program on the three Hindu goddesses Lakshmi, Kali, and Saraswati! Register now