I cry for my second home “namida ga afuremasu….” I really can’t believe it. The earthquake is devastating enough but the tsunami and now possibly the power plants is beyond comprehension. I was in Maui when I heard the news…as the tsunami struck Sendai, tsunami warnings started going off across the Pacific- including Maui. I thought of the fact that on any normal week I would be in Japan and I felt the fear of all of those who I love on those suddenly vulnerable islands so far away. I am blessed to know my friends and yoga kula are all safe but there are so many who are lost that it is a quiet celebration.
As we watched the news clips on the laptop the young girls in the home where I am staying asked ” Is God mad at Japan?” As I watched the clips I thought that nature does not pick a country or a person- the earth decides to shake and the water is pushed into movement and where it chooses to go is just nature- it does not pick and choose. I told the girls that what God wants us to know out of this act of nature is that we need to care about each other, take care of each other… love each other. As the world shrinks from technology it should never desensitize us to the fact that we are all here together- manifested forms of one consciousness that needs reminding that we are all connected.
I thought of the beautiful story of the Kannon, or Guan Yin. The Kannon struggled so hard to see all those that were suffering that her head split in half. The Amidha Buddha blessed her with eight heads to see better those she wanted to help. Out of her expanded vision she reached her two arms with compassion to end suffering and they split into two. Once again the Amida buddha took pity on her and grew her a thousand arms to better offer compassion.
I feel my head want to split- I feel my arms want to grow. There is so much suffering. I only have one head- I only have two hands…but with my one head and two hands I can write to a thousand of you..and we can become the Kannon. Reach out your arms with compassion for we are all one…. namu amidha butsu
Thousand Armed Kannon
Wa Yo Yogi 
