The Spiral Staircase

My Radio Debut

I had a fun time talking with Steph and Lauren of the Lady Brain Show about women's boxing and made it through the ten minute spot without saying one of the seven words you can't say on TV.  The interview will air on tonight's show, 10PM-midnight California time, streamable here.

The Secret Women's Boxing Team

Sadaf Rahimi, Kabul.  Photo by Sharp Shooter.

"When I started to fight, I felt the pain of my country's women."

Stop by the Afghan Women's Writing Project to read about women's boxing in Afghanistan.

Invoking Shiva

There's still time to get a ticket to see the astonishing Nrityagram at the Joyce.  The opening night was smashing, from the serpentine rhythms of the live drumming to the jingle of the anklets to the flashing eyes of Surupa Sen.  This program featured a guest turn by two Sri Lankan women dancing in the Kandyan tradition, which provided an interesting angular counterpoint to the lush curves of Nrityagram's Odissi. 

Surupa Sen

Everyone I spoke to after the show was awestruck.  I can't remember the last time I saw something this purely enjoyable.

NYT's Alistair Macaulay kvells over his trip to the dancers' utopian compound outside of Bangalore.

From the program notes...

Attributed to Ravana, Sri Lanka's great warrior king, who was a devotee of Shiva, the god of dance and destruction.

Shiva!
From the forest
of your matted locks
descends
the celestial river Ganga.

A mighty serpent
garlands you lovingly,
the glittering gem
in his magical hood
radiates brilliance,
that annoints the faces
of the four-directions
with a delicate hue.

Adorned
only by the sky,
a new-born moon jewels your locks
and your forehead smoulders
with the fire of your third eye.

Your ceaseless drum song
pervades the universe,
as you dance
your fearsome Tandava.

Perfect consort to Himalya's daughter,
you are the ever-compassionate
destroyer of evil.

Opening your third eye
you burnt to ashes
the God of Love
The five-arrowed Kamadeva,
disrupter of your meditation.

You are the Universe.
Equanimous.
Invincible.
Eternal.

On you
I meditate.

Dance
on the funeral pyres
in my heart
and release me
from this universe.

Please Kickstart Me to China for the AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships

Please consider supporting my groovy new Kickstarter campaign to produce daily journalistic coverage as well as a long-form essay about this historic tournament.  Lots of fun rewards!

Take This Class

Cancel your plans tomorrow night and take Steven Cheng's 7PM community yoga class at Yoga Union -- it might be the best workout value in town.  Community classes are pay-what-you-wish (a $10 donaton is suggested), and I applaud the generosity of teachers who offer them.  Sometimes at the Iyengar Center it takes the whole session of restorative yoga to cure me of my sticker shock over the $21 drop-in rate.

Trained in the Dharma Mittra style, Steven offers a vigorous flow that focuses on releasing the energy of the spine.  He began the class by telling us to tailor the practice to our own needs, and he made me feel very comfortable despite my wrist props and weirdo sweating. 

Steven is a creative teacher who is comfortable improvising.  When he heard I had wrist pain, he showed us some excellent forearm strengtheners.  The remainder of the class focused on bound variations of half moon pose.  It had a lovely build and was challenging without being aggressive. 

A sunbeam came through the window and lit me up for the first half of class, which exacerbated my sweating problem but also made me feel beatific.  As we moved deeper into bound balances and deep hamstring work, I found myself able to respect my own limits while I pushed myself.  This is hard for me, being naturally competitive, and is why I generally avoid group classes.  Steven is the rare teacher who can make you feel like you are alone in company. 

Dharma Mittra (via Yoganonymous)

I took classes with the mysterious Dharma Mittra back in the good old days, when he was still in his original studio and when I could still grab my ankles in a backbend.  His soothing voice would lull me into a psychic trance.  Back then, the mark of a Dharma Mittra class was that I would always do something I hadn't done before.  These moments are rare for me in my senescense, but I actually had one in Steven's class: I jumped into bakasana and stuck it.  Fun!

Given the quality of the instruction and the low proce, this class should be packed, but it wasn't.  Spread the word!