Reality and Ideology

There is an intense clash happening, mostly between members of the transgender community and some feminists, lesbians and midwifes.

2018 was the year, when the word and category “women” started to disappear from public places, and women found themselves in the peculiar position of being called “menstruators, cervix- or uterus-havers" and "pregnant individuals" by newspapers and official institutions. The Green Party in England refers to women as ‘non-men’ in order to be more inclusive, although the category ‘man’ remains unaffected.

In a truly stunning development across the western world, the word woman, described in the Webster Dictionary as an “adult, female person" has become synonymous with hate speech and is becoming an increasingly unmentionable word.

And yet, many people haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary.

A new ideology, which is fueled by a small fraction of trans activists and their allies, supported by third wave feminists, postmodernists and progressives, (which has become popularized within Gender Studies classroom in the West) have decided to center its feminism around the needs and rights of transgender people, rather than marginalized women and girls. 

The debate involves the question whether transgender women are women and as such, should have full access to all things women.

While it is a difficult and complex issue, and there are no easy answers, I think we will need new approaches on how to solve this to the benefit of all concerned.

The trans feminist manifesto by Emi Koyama makes many important points that I agree with.

It also states:

“Transfeminism holds that sex and gender are both socially constructed.”

This is where I disagree. While I do believe that gender is a social construct I do not believe that sex is. In my opinion, biology does define the physical reality of being a woman.

This is not a sexist statement, but the felt experience that women have the world over. Women are (mostly) discriminated against or raped because of their biology.

This may fail to address the reality of trans experiences, in which physical sex is felt more artificial and changeable than the inner sense of who they are. I acknowledge this but think the reality of biology is nevertheless true for most women. To hold the belief, that sex is a social construct, is to discount evolutionary and biological science.

That said, I don’t believe that the biological reality of being female is the only reality that counts in making you a woman. I have known both men and transgender women, who were more female in appearance and characteristics than I ever will be.

Transgender people exist, and they are real.

There are people, who, for many reasons, do not easily fit into categories. I do not doubt that some people have suffered because they were assigned the wrong sex at birth or feel they have been born in the wrong body. We need to support anyone’s right to do whatever it takes to be happy (as long as it doesn’t hurt others). Full bodily autonomy such as transitioning from male to female or vice versa, making alterations to your body in any way shape or form, and choosing an abortion are important rights of people in a free society.

We also urgently need to create more protections, spaces and healthcare for transgender and gender fluid people.

And, there are potential conflicts that arise around women’ s rights, which need to be discussed freely; democracy, free speech, and the ability to respectfully agree to disagree, MUST be taken seriously.

Discussion on the ramifications on changing laws that may weaken protection of women and children should not be silenced and considered “hate speech”.

When ideologies seek to enforce rules blindly, and put laws in place without examination of the potential consequences they may unintentionally (or intentionally) have on others, they become tyrannical in nature. These new rules are being installed all over the world as we speak.

Women, this is not a drill.

We find ourselves in a situation, where discussion around this issue, especially in public places, has become impossible.

Almost any person who raises a concern is immediately cast into TERF’S (Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminist) territory and called transphobic. They are being compared to Nazis and there are whole websites and social media pages devoted to hating them (punch a TERF).

People (mostly women) have been attacked, hated on, intimidated, fired from their jobs, silenced, de-platformed and threatened with rape and death, because they spoke up.

While the transgender activists who are behind this trend may be a small minority, they are nevertheless very loud, well funded and have essentially hijacked the conversation, influencing policies at universities, schools, academia, psychology and the tech world. Any objection is aggressively quelled by labeling it hate speech. The ideology has branded itself as a civil rights movement, which makes any discussion about it almost impossible.

What is new, is that this particular civil rights movement is lead by an oppressed minority of people, who are trying to take over the identity of another oppressed group of people.

Women have been trying for hundreds of years to establish their own worth in relationship to the dominating class of males - not as the same in attributes, but as equal in worth.

African American people did the same and as an example, rejected the beauty standards set by the dominant culture, and defined and embraced their own.

And so did gay people. They claimed who they are and made society see that to be gay is actually cool.

I think we need a new category: the transgender category.

Transgender women are transgender women, just as the name suggests.

I am not sure why we thought we could just absorb transgender women into the category of biological women, when they clearly are not the same. While there may be many similarities and some overlapping issues, there are also many differences, especially around biology and health.

I think it would be wise to create a new category all together, which transgender people can claim all the way for themselves.

It was kind of like that back in the 90’s in NYC, where I lived and worked alongside trans sexual women (how they called themselves back then). Most of them didn’t want much to do with actual women but they were pretty happy in their own culture and they knew quite well that they were popular and among the trend setters in the coolest city on earth.

I honestly don’t know what happened since then and why this whole thing has taken such a wrong turn and we are now pitted against each other.

The fractioning in our (left) community could not come at a worse moment in time when we want to present a unified front against the patriarchy and the right-wing ideologies that pose a threat to all women and marginalized communities.

After a new category has been created, trans women can and will become part of the umbrella term of women - what that exactly looks like in the particulars, will need to be discussed and negotiated until agreements are reached (preferable before any more rules are being written into law).

Women have worked incredibly hard for decades to ensure certain rights. Some of the rules that have been recently installed all over the world, may be endangering, or even eroding some of those hard fought rights.

Such as:

1) Changes to the Recognition Act of 2004, in order to adopt sex self-identification

I am concerned that a law, that allows any male bodied person to declare they are a woman without a history of identifying as a woman, poses an imminent danger to women and girls. I have a problem with this, not because I think that trans women are a threat to biological women, but because of the potential of abuse that exists within this policy.

This law will and does eliminate the two-year-rule where men who express the wish to transition don’t have to live as a female for a period of time anymore to prove they are serious about being a woman, they can simply declare they are a woman and it is so.

I heard from a couple of transgender women who actually thought that the self ID policy should get tougher, not weaker. They fear that if this trend continues, the eventual back lash will be swift and severe.

Here I want to insert: I believe that most men are good people. Of course they are - look around and you will see them everywhere. It must be really hard to be a man these days. They try to accommodate women and do the right thing, which is unfortunately not always clear, even to women. Women want their men to be heroic and manly, and at the same time soft and able to cry. Men are often unsure how to interact and wonder what it is that women want. They walk a constant mine field - for example if they open the door for the woman, will she be delighted or offended?

That said, we all know that there are creeps, pedophiles and predators out there, waiting for an opportunity to gain access to vulnerable women and children.

It is not realistic to expect, that they would not take advantage of a door wide open.

2) Language, which centers around the biological reality of a woman, is starting to be banned in schools, universities and even midwife associations.

For example, the Midwifes Association of North America and the British Medical Association have rewritten their manifestos to suggest the erasure of all mention of motherhood or pregnant women. In a very short time, trans activists have managed to rewrite the language that is used to discuss birth and in essence erase women from it. We now have birthing people, people with uteruses and chest feeding.

It is woman-exclusionary to say birthing individual. 51% of the population are women, the overwhelming majority of whom have the capacity to give birth and breastfeed – whether they choose to or not. According to statistics on trans-people, around 0.6% of the population are trans. Let’s assume that around half of those have the capacity to give birth (only trans men can potentially give birth).

Proclaiming that the use of biological, scientific words are bigoted and exclusionary, actually, is bigoted and exclusionary in its own way.

Nevertheless, I applaud these institution’s effort to become more inclusionary, and would welcome something like “pregnant women & birthing people” (which would include trans men and non-binary folks).

Then there is a trend of dropping plays, such as the Eve Ensler’s Vagina Monologues in schools and universities.

Again, I would welcome the addition of plays and monologues that center or include transgender issues (Eve Ensler actually did create a whole play that was trans inclusive), instead of just dropping the Vagina Monologue. It doesn’t feel inclusive to me when there is still a large segment of the population that has vaginas.

3) I’d like to have more discussion (and actual scientific studies) about transgender women competing in the women’s category in sports.

I can’t help but feel that it is unfair to let trans women compete with biological women. It is not that long ago where women did not even have their own category, which was finally created, recognizing the difference between male and female physical abilities. There are only a few trans women competing in women’s categories today. But what is remarkable, is that they are winning and taking home the trophy across disciplines, making the fact, that there is an advantage, very visible.

Besides trans women athletes, we have an increasing amount of other titles that are won by trans women, which might rightfully belong to female born women. I am looking forward to the day, when transgender women and men proudly claim their own titles.

One woman trans supporter suggested to me that I might be secretly jealous, because trans women may simply be superior to female born women.

The underlying misogyny of this statement left me speechless.

We will most likely begin to see more examples, where the ideology clashes with people’s reality.

I wish that trans activists could see women, who are pointing out some of these early indications of emerging problems, as allies, instead of labeling them as TERFs and transphobic, so we can find mutually satisfying solutions.

4) And lastly, I am very concerned about the push in favor of transitioning children.

As far as I’m concerned, a child should be whatever he/she wants to be, which I think is perfectly natural. In German language, for example, children are an “it”, which itself points to the inherent ambiguity during the time of childhood.

It is true that the rigid reinforcement of stereotypical gender (blue for boys, pink for girls as an example) is hurting children who are naturally curious and want and should be able to explore freely. The stereo-typical beliefs about gender should be questioned frequently.

I was a classic tomboy. For more than 10 years, I wanted nothing to do with being a girl. Luckily enough, nobody thought it strange that I was running around with my male cousins and their friends, and pretended to be a boy for most of my childhood. Despite this, I eventually embraced my biology as a woman wholeheartedly, and am happy I did.

I do have concerns about putting children on hormones, which may interfere with the healthy development of their bodies, or permanent surgical alterations before they have a chance to find out who they really are.

I wish we could go back in time and learn more from the native peoples who had a different way of living with gender fluidity. While some of their wisdom is alive today, the term “two spirit” was coined in the 1990s from queer Native American scholars who were tired of using the derogatory European words and descriptions of the gender fluid people they wrote about when encountering Native American tribes for the first time. There are historical accounts from over 150 tribes including these types of people, living as "normal" people amongst them. Some of them had celebrated or special roles as gate and wisdom keepers, some didn’t. Each tribe had their own word for gender fluid people, many of which have been lost. It was an accepted way of life (thank you Marca Cassity).

I hope that at some point we will create a world where the spectrum of gender fluidity is recognized, where everyone is invited to express themselves on the gender spectrum however they want, without fear of discrimination.

I am asking everyone to join the conversation now. Don’t wait until things escalate any more!

Have it and remind each other that we are all fighting for the same things - human rights, dignity, safety, expression, and freedom, and encourage each other to really listen with respect (which is the basis of all yoga).

Respect is the foundation for Love. Love thrives on respect. I believe that only love can solve this problem.

So let us start with respect and find solutions that benefit us all.

Thank you for listening.

I wish you a meaningful 2019

Katchie Ananda

Realität und Ideologie

Es ist ein erbitterter Streit im Gange, hauptsächlich zwischen Angehörigen der Transgender Community und einigen Feministinnen, Lesbierinnen und Hebammen.

2018 war das Jahr, in dem das Wort und die Kategorie „Frauen“ begann, von öffentlichen Orten zu verschwinden und sich Frauen in der eigentümlichen Position befanden, von Zeitungen und öffentlichen Institutionen „Menstruierende, Cervix- oder Gebärmutter-Habende und Schwangere Leute“ bezeichnet zu werden. Die “Green Party” in England bezieht sich auf ihre Frauen als ‘non-men’, um Transgender Frauen mit einzuschliessen. Merkwürdigerweise wird die Kategorie “Mann” davon nicht betroffen.

In einer wirklich verblüffenden Entwicklung quer durch die westliche Welt ist das Wort „Frau = erwachsener weiblicher Mensch“, wie es im Webster Dictionary umschrieben wird, zur Hetzrede und zu einem unaussprechlichen Wort geworden und der Trend dazu wächst weiterhin.

Viele Leute haben nicht einmal bemerkt, dass etwas im Gange ist.

Es ist eine neue Ideologie, von einer kleinen Fraktion von Trans Aktivisten geführt, unterstützt von der dritten Welle des Feminismus, Postmodernisten und Progressiven (im Westen in Klassen von Gender-Studien populär gemacht,) die sich entschlossen haben, die Bedürfnisse und Rechte von Transgender Leute vor marginalisierte Frauen und Mädchen zu stellen.

Die Debatte involviert die Frage, ob Transgender-Frauen eigentliche Frauen sind und als solche vollen Zugang zu allen Frauensachen haben sollen.

Es ist ein schwieriger und komplexer Streitpunkt, und es gibt keine einfachen Antworten. Aber ganz sicher brauchen wir mehr Ansätze um eine befriedigende Lösung für alle zu finden.

Das „Trans Feminist Manifesto“ von Emi Koyama hebt viele wichtige Punkte hervor, bei denen ich gleicher Meinung bin.

Es stellt unter anderem fest:

“Transfeminismus behauptet, dass Geschlecht und Gender beide gesellschaftlich konstruiert sind.”

Hier bin ich anderer Meinung. Obwohl ich glaube, dass Gender ein gesellschaftliches Konstrukt ist, glaube ich nicht, dass dies beim Geschlecht ebenso ist. Meiner Meinung nach definiert die Biologie die körperliche Realität, eine Frau zu sein.

Dies ist kein sexistisches Statement, sondern die gefühlte Erfahrung, die Frauen überall auf der Welt haben. Frauen werden (grösstenteils) diskriminiert oder vergewaltigt wegen ihrer Biologie.

Dies mag eventuell auf die Realität von Trans-Erfahrungen nicht zutreffen, wenn sich bei ihnen das körperliche Geschlecht unechter und veränderbarer anfühlt als die innere Wahrnehmung, wer sie sind. Ich würdige das und denke, die Realität der Biologie ist für die meisten Frauen dennoch wahr. Am Glauben festzuhalten, dass das biologische Geschlecht ein soziales Konstrukt sei, bedeutet, die Wissenschaft der Entwicklung und Biologie unberücksichtigt zu lassen.

Abgesehen davon glaube ich nicht, dass die biologische Realität, eine Frau zu sein, die einzig wichtige Realität ist, die ausmacht, dass du eine Frau bist. Ich habe sowohl Männer als auch Transgender-Frauen kennengelernt, die im Erscheinungsbild und in Charakteristika weiblicher waren als ich es je sein werde.

Es gibt Leute, die aus vielerlei Gründen nicht einfach in Kategorien passen. Ich zweifle nicht daran, dass es Leute gibt, die gelitten haben, weil ihnen bei der Geburt das falsche Geschlecht zugeschrieben wurde oder die fühlen, dass sie im falschen Körper geboren wurden. Wir müssen allen das Recht zugestehen, dass sie alles machen können, was es braucht, glücklich zu sein (solange es andere nicht verletzt). Volle Autonomie in Bezug auf den Körper, wie z.B. eine Umwandlung von männlich zu weiblich oder umgekehrt, in irgend einer Art oder Form Änderungen vorzunehmen oder eine Abtreibung zu machen, sind wichtige Rechte in einer freien Gesellschaft.

Wir müssen auch dringend mehr Schutz, Raum und gesundheitliche Fürsorge schaffen für Transgender-Leute und für Personen mit unklarem Geschlecht.

Und ausserdem gibt es natürlich Konflikte im Zusammenhang mit Frauenrechten, die in Freiheit diskutiert werden müssen. Demokratie, freie Rede und die Fähigkeit, mit Respekt gleicher oder anderer Meinung zu sein, MÜSSEN ernst genommen werden.

Eine Diskussion über die Auswirkungen von Gesetzesänderungen, die den Schutz von Frauen und Kindern schwächen können, sollte nicht augenblicklich abgewürgt und als „Hassrede“ bezeichnet werden.

Wenn Weltanschauungen versuchen, blindlings Regeln durchzusetzen und Gesetze einzuführen, ohne zu prüfen, welche eventuell unbeabsichtigten (oder beabsichtigten) Konsequenzen sie haben könnten, werden sie naturgemäss tyrannisch. Und trotzdem werden diese Regeln jetzt überall eingeführt.

Wir befinden uns jetzt in einer Situation, in der die Diskussion über diesen Punkt unmöglich geworden ist, speziell in öffentlichen Räumen.

Fast jede Person, die einen Einwurf macht, wird sofort ins TERF’s (in Deutsch: Trans-Ausschliessende Radikale Feministin) Gebiet ausgegrenzt und als „transphob“ bezeichnet. So jemand wird mit den Nazis verglichen, und es gibt ganze Webseiten und Seiten in den Social Media, die dem Hass gegenüber so jemandem gewidmet sind.

Leute (hauptsächlich Frauen) sind angegriffen, angefeindet und eingeschüchtert worden und haben ihre Jobs verloren, sind von Plattformen verstossen und mundtot gemacht worden, mit Vergewaltigung und Tod bedroht worden, nur weil sie den Mund aufgemacht hatten.

Obwohl die Transgender-Aktivisten, die hinter diesem Trend stehen, eine kleine Minderheit sein mögen, sind sie trotzdem sehr laut, haben Geld und haben den Diskurs im Wesentlichen gekapert. Sie beeinflussen die Politik in Universitäten, Schulen, Akademien, in der Psychologie und in der Welt der Technik. Jeder Einwand wird aggressiv niedergeschlagen, indem er als „Hassrede“ bezeichnet wird. Die Ideologie hat sich selbst als Bürgerrechtsbewegung gekennzeichnet, was jede Diskussion darüber fast unmöglich macht.

Was neu ist, ist die Tatsache, dass diese spezielle Bürgerrechtsbewegung von einer unterdrückten Minderheit von Leuten angeführt wird, die versuchen, die Identität einer anderen unterdrückten Gruppe von Leuten zu übernehmen.

Frauen hatten während Jahrhunderten versucht, ihren eigenen Wert in Bezug auf die dominierende Klasse von Männern zu beweisen – nicht als gleich in Eigenschaften, aber als gleich im Wert.

Amerikaner mit afrikanischem Ursprung machten das Gleiche. Zum Beispiel lehnten sie schliesslich die Schönheits-Standards ab, die von der dominierenden (weissen) Kultur gesetzt worden waren und definierten und akzeptierten ihre eigenen.

Und so machten es auch die Schwulen. Sie erhoben Anspruch darauf, wer sie waren und liessen die Gesellschaft sehen, dass schwul zu sein tatsächlich cool ist.

Wir brauchen unbedingt eine neue Kategorie: Die Transgender Kategorie.

Transgender-Frauen sind Transgender-Frauen, wie der Name schon verrät.

Ich bin mir nicht sicher, wir wir darauf gekommen sind, dass wir Transgender Frauen einfach in die biologische Kategorie von Frauen aufnehmen könnten, wenn es doch klar ist, dass sie nicht gleich sind. Natürlich gibt es viele Gemeinsamkeiten aber auch viele Unterschiede, vor allem biologische und gesundheitliche.

Es wäre sicher weise, eine neue Kategorie zu erstellen, die Transgender Leute ganz für sich alleine beanspruchen können.

So war es nämlich in den 90ern in New York, wo ich neben transsexuellen Frauen (wie sie sich damals nannten) wohnte und arbeitete. Ich bewunderte viele von ihnen für ihre unendliche Kreativität und liebte einige von ihnen, obwohl die meisten von ihnen mit eigentlichen Frauen nicht viel zu tun haben wollten. Sie waren recht glücklich in ihrer eigenen Kultur und wussten genau, dass sie bewundert wurden und zu den Trendsettern in der coolsten Stadt der Welt gehörten.

Ich weiss wirklich nicht, was seither passiert ist und warum die ganze Sache so eine falsche Wendung genommen hat.

Die Spaltung in unserer (linken) Gemeinschaft hätte nicht zu einem schlechteren Moment kommen können, zu einer Zeit nämlich, in der wir eine vereinte Front bilden wollen gegen das Patriarchat und die rechtsgerichteten Ideologien, die alle Frauen und Randgruppen bedrohen.

Frauen haben während Jahrzehnten unglaublich hart gearbeitet, um gewisse Rechte zu erlangen. Einige Gesetze, die in letzter Zeit überall in der Welt eingeführt worden sind, können bedrohlich sein oder sogar einige der hart erkämpften Rechte zunichtemachen.

Zum Beispiel:

1) Änderungen bei der Recognition Act von 2004, um geschlechtliche Selbstidentifikation zu wählen (GRA)

Ich bin besorgt darüber, dass ein Gesetz, das jeder Person mit männlichem Körper erlaubt zu deklarieren, sie sei eine Frau, ohne eine Vergangenheit, die sie als Frau identifiziert, schädliche Folgen für die Frauen haben kann. Damit habe ich ein Problem, nicht weil ich denke, dass Trans-Frauen für biologische Frauen eine Gefahr darstellen, sondern wegen dem Missbrauchs-Potential, das in dieser Politik steckt.

Dieses Gesetz wird – und tut es jetzt schon - die 2-Jahres-Regel eliminieren, nach der Männer, die den Wunsch nach einer Umwandlung ausdrücken, eine gewisse Zeit als Frau leben müssen um zu überprüfen, dass es ihnen ernst ist damit, eine Frau sein zu wollen. Sie können einfach erklären, sie seien eine Frau, und dann ist es so.

Ich habe von einem Paar von Transgender-Frauen gehört, das eigentlich denkt, dass die Selbst-ID-Politik strenger und nicht milder werden sollte. Sie fürchten, dass wenn dieser Trend weitergeht, der Rückschlag prompt und hart werden wird und möglicherweise Transgender-Rechte zurückwerfen wird.

Hier möchte ich noch hinzufügen: Ich glaube das die meisten Männer gut sind. Aber sicher - schau dich doch um, und du siehst sie überall. Ausserdem ist es sicher nicht einfach ein Mann zu sein, in der heutigen Welt. Sie versuchen es den Frauen recht zu machen, was leider nicht immer klar ist, da sogar die Frauen oft nicht wissen was sie wollen. Frauen wollen ihre Männer heldenhaft aber auch weich. Männer sind sich oft nicht im klaren wie sie sich den Frauen gegenüber verhalten sollen - sollen sie der Frau die Tür aufmachen oder nicht?

Trotzdem wissen wir das es auch viele Vergewaltiger, Lüstlinge und Pedophile gibt, die nur auf eine günstige Gelegenheit warten um sich Einlass zu Frauen und Kinder zu gewähren. Es ist unrealistisch zu glauben, dass Selbstidentifikation nicht von ihnen missbraucht werden wird.

2) Es wird damit begonnen, Sprache, die im Zentrum der biologischen Realität einer Frau steht, in Schulen, Universitäten und sogar in Hebammen-Vereinigungen zu verbannen.

Die Hebammen-Vereinigung von Nordamerika zum Beispiel und die British Medical Association haben ihre Programme umgeschrieben und vorgeschlagen, dass jede Erwähnung von Mutterschaft oder schwangeren Frauen gestrichen wird. In sehr kurzer Zeit haben es Trans­-Aktivisten geschafft, die Sprache umzuschreiben, die gebraucht wird, um eine Geburt zu beschreiben und in der Essenz, die Frauen in diesem Zusammenhang ausradiert. Wir haben jetzt Geburts-Leute und Leute mit Uterus.

Man schliesst Frauen aus, wenn man den Ausdruck „gebärendes Individuum“ gebraucht. 51% der Bevölkerung sind Frauen und die überwältigende Mehrheit davon hat die Fähigkeit zu gebären und zu stillen – ob sie wollen oder nicht. Gemäss Statistiken über Transleute sind etwa 0,6% der Bevölkerung transsexuell. Nehmen wir an, dass etwa die Hälfte von ihnen die Fähigkeit hat zu gebären (nur Trans-Männer können möglicherweise gebären). Zu verkünden, dass der Gebrauch von biologischen und wissenschaftlichem Vokabular bigott und ausschliessend sei, ist auf die gleiche Art bigott und ausschliessend.

Dennoch applaudiere ich für die Anstrengung dieser Institutionen, einschliessender zu werden, und ich würde etwas wie „schwangere Frauen und gebärende Leute“ befürworten.

Denn es gibt einen Trend, Theaterstücke fallen zu lassen, wie zum Beispiel die Vagina-Monologe von Eve Ensler in Schulen und Universitäten.

Wiederum würde ich das Hinzufügen von Theaterstücken und Monologen begrüssen, die Transgender-Fragen im Zentrum haben oder diese einschliessen (Eve Ensler hat nämlich ein ganzes Stück gemacht, das trans-einschliessend war), anstatt nur den Vagina Monolog fallen zu lassen. Es fühlt sich für mich nicht einschliesslich an, wenn doch ein grosser Teil der Bevölkerung Vaginas hat.

3) Ich hätte gerne mehr Diskussion (und eigentliche wissenschaftliche Studien) über Transgender-Frauen, die sich in Frauenkategorien im Sport messen.

Ich kann mir nicht helfen, aber ich habe das Gefühl, dass es unfair ist, wenn sich Transfrauen mit biologischen Frauen messen. Es ist noch nicht sehr lange her, dass Frauen keine eigene Kategorie hatten. Diese wurde schliesslich geschaffen und erkannt, dass es zwischen männlichen und weiblichen physischen Fähigkeiten einen Unterschied gibt. Es gibt heute nur einige wenige Transfrauen, die sich in Frauenkategorien messen. Aber was bemerkenswert ist, ist die Tatsache, dass sie in allen Disziplinen gewinnen und die Trophäen heimbringen, was die Tatsache, dass sie im Vorteil sein, sehr sichtbar macht.

Neben Transfrauen-Athleten haben wir eine zunehmende Zahl von anderen Titeln, die von Transfrauen gewonnen werden und richtigerweise weiblich geborenen Frauen zustehen würden.

Eine Unterstützerin von Transfrauen unterstellte mir, dass ich vielleicht heimlich eifersüchtig sein könnte, weil Transfrauen einfach den weiblich geborenen Frauen überlegen sein könnten.

Die tieferliegende Frauenfeindlichkeit dieses Statements hat mich sprachlos gemacht.

Wir werden wohl bald mehr Beispiele sehen, wo die Ideologie mit der Realität der Leute zusammenstösst.

Ich wünsche mir, dass Transaktivisten diejenigen Frauen, die auf diese frühen Anzeichen von auftauchenden Problemen hinweisen, als Verbündete sehen können, anstatt sie als TERFs und transphobisch abzuwerten.

Vielleicht könnten wir dann tatsächlich eine Diskussion haben und Lösungen finden, die zum Wohl von beiden, weiblich geborenen und Transgender-Frauen beitragen würden.

4) Und zum Schluss: ich mache mir grosse Sorgen um den Druck, Kinder in Richtung Umwandlung zu fördern.

Was mich betrifft denke ich, dass ein Kind sein sollte, was auch immer es sein will, weil ich der Ansicht bin, dass es total natürlich ist. In der deutschen Sprache zum Beispiel sind Kinder ein „es“, was an und für sich schon auf die der Kindheit innewohnende Ambivalenz hinweist.

Es ist wahr, dass das starre Verstärken des stereotypen Geschlechts (blau für Jungen, rosa für Mädchen als Beispiel) Kinder verletzt, die natürlicherweise neugierig sind, und die die Möglichkeit haben sollten, frei auszuprobieren. Die stereotypen Glaubenssätze über Geschlechterrollen sollten möglichst oft hinterfragt werden.

Ich war ein klassischer Wildfang. Während mehr als 10 Jahren wollte ich mit dem Mädchen-Sein nichts zu tun haben. Zum Glück fand es niemand komisch, dass ich mit meinen Cousins und ihren Freunden herumstreifte und die meiste Zeit während meiner Kindheit vorgab, ein Junge zu sein. Trotzdem akzeptierte ich irgendwann meine Biologie als Frau von ganzem Herzen, und ich bin froh darüber.

Ich mache mir wirklich Sorgen, wenn man Kindern Hormone gibt, die Auswirkungen auf die gesunde Entwicklung ihrer Körper haben, oder über bleibende chirurgische Umwandlungen, bevor die Kinder eine Chance haben herauszufinden, wer sie wirklich sind.

Ich wünschte mir, wir könnten die Zeit zurückdrehen und mehr von den Ureinwohnern lernen, die eine andere Art von Umgang mit Geschlechts-Fluidität hatten. Während etwas von ihrer Weisheit heute noch lebendig ist, wurde der Begriff „Zweigeist“ in den 1990ern von Gender-Fluid Ureinwohner erfunden, die es satt hatten, die verächtlichen europäischen Wörter und Bezeichnungen für Gender-Fluid-Leute zu gebrauchen, wenn sie über die Stämme von Ureinwohnern schrieben, die sie das erste Mal trafen. Es gibt historische Reporte von über 150 Stämmen, die diese Art von Leuten einschlossen, die mitten unter ihnen als „normale“ Leute lebten. Einige von ihnen hatten wichtige oder spezielle Rollen als Tor- und Weisheitshüter, andere nicht. Jeder Stamm hatte seine eigene Bezeichnung für Gender-Fluid-Leute, viele davon sind verloren. Es war eine allgemein akzeptierte Lebensart (Dank an Marca Cassity).

Ich wünsche mir auch, wir würden in einer Welt leben, in der das Spektrum von Gender-Fluidity anerkannt wäre, wo jeder eingeladen wäre, sich auf dem Gender-Spektrum so auszudrücken, wie er es will, ohne Angst vor Diskriminierung haben zu müssen.

Ich bitte alle, jetzt am Austausch teilzunehmen. Bitte wartet nicht, bis die Dinge eskalieren!

Raus damit und erinnert euch gegenseitig daran, dass wir alle für die gleiche Sache kämpfen: Menschenrechte, Würde, Sicherheit, Ausdruck und Freiheit, und ermutigt euch gegenseitig, euch wirklich mit Respekt zuzuhören (was die Basis von allem Yoga ist).

Respekt ist das Fundament von Liebe. Liebe gedeiht auf Respekt. Ich glaube daran, dass nur Liebe dieses Problem lösen kann.

Also lasst uns mit Respekt anfangen und Lösungen finden, von denen alle Betroffenen profitieren.

Danke fürs Zuhören.

Ich wünsche dir ein sinnhaftes 2019.

Katchie Ananda

Dealing with a Poisonous Situation

There are 3 ways of dealing with a poisonous situation when it occurs. All three are valuable in varying degrees of skill and elegance.

Say you find a tree with poisonous fruit in your back yard. What will you do?

• You can cut the tree down and be assured that nobody will die as a result of eating the fruit
• You can put a fence around the tree and put up a warning sign
• You respect and utilize the tree and fruit and make a medicinal potion that cures certain illnesses

The first strategy can be appropriate when we try to let go of an unwanted addiction or behavior. To cut it down and conquer it may be a necessary step on our evolving path to living wisely.

It is also how cancer and other illnesses are frequently treated, especially if they defy our understanding. We simply try to eradicate them out of existence. While this approach may work sometimes, it often does not.

In some ways, it is a rather blunt way to dealing with the problem.

Also, the problem may persist, meaning that out of the seeds of that tree, a new poisonous tree might grow.

The second level is considered more refined and more compassionate. Instead of killing the problem, we acknowledge the danger, and will warn anyone approaching the tree that there is danger - including to remind ourselves. We approach with respect, what we do not understand.

The third way is the way of the shaman or the yogi. Not only do we respect the poisonous tree and seek to understand it, but furthermore we will be able to transform the poison into medicine.

It takes a courageous heart to transform the poison - thus the need for spiritual practices.

I encourage you to look at your experiences - what would you need, to move towards the yogi's way?

To find your Dharma - Learning how to Thrive

Dharma has many meanings, among them: to see things just as they are; duty; reality; our essential nature; the law or destiny; and it is also simply referred to as “the way.” Dharma means we finally understand, through direct experience, the nature of life, consciousness, and love.

All of the paths of yoga are concerned with dharma. As the Bhagavad Gita mentions in 3:33, “It is better to live our own life, even if poorly, than to imitate someone else’s path.” Human beings, through the gift (and sometimes burden) of choice, are the only species confused about who we are and what our purpose is. Even the tiniest of flowers will bloom in the spring without apology and say, “here I am, I am yellow, and I smell lovely, and this is who I am and all this is my gift to you.”

Dharma is an expression of both our deepest longings as well as what we receive from our circumstances. It is our duty to find our dharma, our path with heart. The practices are meant to help us find it. It is said that there is no amount of money, fame, or success that can make us happy. The only path to happiness is to live our life with authenticity and to give our gifts to the world without sabotaging ourselves constantly.

What comes to mind is the idea of “living out loud.”

Many students experience confusion with regard to finding one’s purpose, or dharma. Somehow, finding one’s purpose has become mixed up with the New Age philosophy of “following your bliss and all else will follow.” Unfortunately, this approach does not work. Even when you are deeply ensconced in your dharma, your work will sometimes be hard, tedious, boring, and filled with obstacles of all kind. It is not always bliss. But underneath all of it is a faith, a commitment, and a dedication that will guide you through all of the obstacles. At the end of the day, we know it is all worth it.

There was a time when doing my yoga practice really hurt my body. People suggested that I stop practicing. But I knew that I could not quit! I knew that there was more to it, and that I had chosen the right path for me but not yet the skillful approach. This deep faith eventually led me to the right teachers, who could really help me.

Two clues to finding dharma

There are two important clues that can help you to find your dharma.

The first clue is to pay attention to your natural talents and all the things that are easy and effortless for you to do. You are naturally drawn to those things and when you are engaged with them, time passes fast. Initially, you may not value this trait. If you are not sure about your natural talents, you can ask your friends about them, as they may be aware of the gifts you have. For example, if you are a good listener you may not think that this is special, but there are plenty of jobs where being a good listener serves as the foundation of doing a good job, such as being a therapist.

The second clue is the exact opposite of what is easy for you. To identify this, you must look deeply into your core wounds.

I was sick as a child and struggled for survival for many years. Being incarnated in a body and being healthy is obviously a theme of struggle for me. Working through this challenge led me to yoga and to my dharma.

Another example of how your core wound can help you find your dharma is illustrated by this story from a fellow yoga teacher:

Many years ago this teacher had the desire to give back to society and began to teach at a local women’s shelter. She was excited about offering her service to girls and women who had been abused and she expected her weekly class to be fun and easy. What she did not expect was how difficult this task turned out to be; the young women would challenge her on every level and resist her in every way; but she did not give up. Eventually, this work forced her to face the abuse she suffered earlier in her life.

Eventually her teachings began to help the women and girls and in doing so, she also helped herself. Today, she is one of the most prominent and outspoken yogi/activists of our time.

We could call this evolved state of being “the wounded healer.”

(Excerpt from Yoga & Dharma Manual, soon to be released)

Insight Meditation

Training the mind is a necessity because, as I have mentioned before, the mind makes a poor master but a great servant. We are training the mind so it doesn’t wander all over the place, and so we can focus on what really matters.

Everything thrives on attention. With attention we can uncover deep, habitual patterns in the mind and body, and by bringing everything into the light of consciousness, we can examine and understand them. Without this training we get caught in our fears, delusion, and greed, an endless, repetitive loop, which is also called the wheel of suffering, or samsara.

By training the mind, we not only discover much about ourselves, but also find that we can make conscious what usually is on automatic pilot.

It is said that every human being will be given 10,000 joys and 10,000 sorrows during their lifetime. No amount of practice or magic pill will alter that amount. We all experience some joy and some suffering. The problem is when we create more suffering than is necessary.

Over time, our mindfulness practice creates that pause, the moment where we get to examine our reaction and choose how to proceed.

This is the promise and power of the practice.

I took to vipassana like a fish takes to water. Up until then I had been trained to focus the mind by using a mantra. And while this is a beautiful practice and I still use it at times, it didn’t work for me as a basic training. I always felt like I was covering something up by putting a nice, exotic mantra on top. The whole exercise felt more like an escape from my reality, which didn’t feel right to me. With vipassana practice, any presentation of the body/mind becomes the sacred mantra. We patiently, and with great interest, look at whatever occupies our heart and mind. I loved giving myself this kind of careful attention and respect, because I have always believed that the answer lies within.

Mindfulness is a loving and non-judging awareness. We soon realize that most of the times we react to what is happening in three different ways:

• When we like what is happening we instinctively try to get more. This is called grasping, or, in its basic form, greed.
• When we don’t like what is happening, we push it away immediately. This is called aversion.
• When our experience is neither pleasant nor unpleasant, we simply ignore it. This is called delusion.

These are the typical automatic responses of an untrained mind to experiences we have. If we look at the state of affairs in the world, we see that these three types of reactions are huge forces operating everywhere, among all peoples.

Not everything that seems unpleasant is bad for us, and not everything that is pleasant turns out to be good.

I like to use the example of ice cream. For most people eating ice cream is an intensely pleasurable experience. If we are on automatic pilot, we might eat the entire pint of ice cream. It tastes good, but later we will probably regret it. If we eat with awareness, not only do we actually enjoy each spoon, but we also get to stop before it’s too much.

Mindfulness is like a wrench thrown into the automatic response of grasping. And the benefit is that mindfulness actually turns greed and grasping into gratitude instead.

With unpleasant experiences we can use the example of "swallowing the bitter pill." We all know we have to take it sometimes in order to get well again. Even though we want to push away the bitter remedy, we take it, knowing it is for our own good.

Mindfulness is like a wrench thrown into the automatic response of aversion. The benefit is that mindfulness turns aversion into compassion.

When our experience is neither pleasant nor unpleasant, we tend to ignore it and so miss out on many beautiful moments. Many of us are addicted to drama, and if we don’t feel something intensely, we think it is not valid. When we learn to rest in the quiet moments without the intensity we can once again appreciate contentment. The benefit is that mindfulness turns delusion into contentment and spaciousness.

Welcome to Planet Earth

Dearest Sangha,

My friend Don Ricardo told me an old Native American story the other day. It tells of beings of immense beauty and power that lived on the earth a long time ago. Then, one day, when humans prepared to come live on Planet Earth too, the beings were worried that they would scare the fragile and impressionable humans with their beauty and power. So they cloaked themselves and became the shapes and forms of our natural world. Into trees they hid, and mountains, and all kinds of plants. They cloaked themselves in the shapes of animals so they could display their gifts without frightening the humans to death.

We get hints of that power when we look at an animal in its natural environment, or understand the healing power of a plant. Or, when we are outside and still, and feel the beauty and serenity present in nature. I love this story; it rings true to me on so many levels.

Lately, I have been pondering the statement that “man is the crown of creation.” I don’t really see much evidence of that, unfortunately. Nor do I agree with the idea that we have a divine-given right to treat animals and our world the way we have and do.

Over the years, I have heard theories that our planet is the “lowest” of all the planets or realms; or that those who come here are sentenced to some kind of prison camp.

But what if it is actually the other way around, and this planet is actually the “highest” planet there is?

It is the highest place because this is where you can learn about the true power of love.

Imagine that you have worked hard to deserve to come here. It is all the more challenging because you can so easily forget who you really are. The ante is high and you agreed to the challenge.

All the beings you encounter are there to remind you that you are really a Buddha in disguise. According to my teacher Jack Kornfield: All the beings are doing exactly what they are supposed to do in order to awaken us. Everything and everyone is already enlightened, except of course ourselves!

But because most of us have forgotten who we are, we have gone a bit crazy out of the pain of that forgetfulness.

To this I say: Congratulations! You have graduated and earned the opportunity to come to this planet and remember. This is your chance to pass the highest test on how to love.

And in passing the test, we can finally become the custodians of this beautiful world that we were meant to be. We are the Ones we have been waiting for.

I wish you a blessed and rich summer.

With love

From Poison to Medicine

A week or so ago, Joshua was shaving in our bathroom. All of a sudden he felt an electric shock in his foot, as if someone had inserted an electric needle. When he looked down, he saw a six-seven inch, giant centipede that had just bitten him on the toe. It was still attached when he literally catapulted himself five feet back. It hurt like a son of a b....ch. We treated it with soap and water and he took a pain killer. But even so he had little electric shocks surging through his body all day long and his heart was pumping hard. We could see how the poisonous creatures could give an older person a heart attack or kill a dog. The strangest thing was that Joshua called me later from work, saying that he felt great; better than he had in a while.

That night, we looked up mythologies about centipedes and it was very enlightening. The centipede was treated in many cultures with great respect. In Egypt there was even a god named after it because of its power to eat and chase away all nasty insects. In a native story, the centipede had been flattened and lost his ability to walk. So it went to a Medicine Woman and got its legs sewn back on. A hundred of them to make sure it could move efficiently!

Fascinating.

From our research we concluded that Joshua had gotten a shot of medicine from this strange creature. Ever since, Joshua has been moving around on "many little legs," and setting up his own business as we speak. While he might have consciously chosen a different totem animal, say an eagle, the centipede is what he got and he is researching tattoos to help him embody the gift this creature gave him.

Radiant Woman

By Milena Moser (translated from German to English by Katchie Ananda)

You can read the original German version here.

Katchie extraordinaire

Together they do seminars on yoga and writing and they inspire each other. Writer Milena Moser and yoga teacher Katchie Ananda. And when the writer tells the story about her girlfriend the yoga teacher, we get the iridescent portrait of a woman who not only has her own style, but guides her students with love and understanding.

Katchie Ananda doesn’t need to be introduced, not in Switzerland or elsewhere. She is one of the most important and charismatic representative of western yoga. So much is clear. But the best part: She is not aware of it. “I still see myself primarily as a yoga student” she told the German Magazin Yoga Aktuell in an interview.

My first yoga class with Katchie happened 10 or 11 years ago. At that time I lived in San Francisco and because I heard about this special yoga teacher, I drove over the bridge to Berkeley just to take her class. Two things stood out to me: She singled me out in shoulderstand in the middle of a big size class because she recognized my (very slight) scoliosis and gave me an easier variation to perform. This had never happened to me before. And, as she performed a spectacular pose, she told the students “yeah, yeah, I can do this because I don’t have a life outside my yoga practice” as she dissolved the pose with a big smile. She said that there was no need for them to perform such a pose, no advantage. That too was new to me. That a yoga teacher would question the motive of performing difficult poses as the ultimate goal.

Friends because of "Schlampenyoga"

Hmmm, I thought, she is good! And then I promptly forgot her and went on with my life. One or two years later the phone rang at my house in San Francisco. It was Katchie. In broad, slightly out of style “Berndeutsch” a dialect from Bern in Switzerland, she explained to me that she had just red my book “Schlampenyoga” and she was emphatic that her classes would be just right for me. I didn’t tell her then that I had already been to her class once and immediately booked a class with her the next Saturday. At that point, she taught out of her own studio, in the trendy mission district, that she later sold.

In the meantime her class size had exploded, but still, she greeted all the students with her radiant smile, which is her trademark. Nobody has a bigger smile then Katchie. It fills the whole space and still touches each person personally. In the same way, her teachings touches each student personally. I noticed this right away. She would remember names, exam dates, vacation plans. Students would bring their mothers who were visiting and attended class in their stockings. They fit in to her class just as well as the Gumby-like students that were in training to become teachers.

A Nibble of chocolate

She had recently come back from Switzerland, and had stocked up on Swiss chocolate. Sitting in lotus seat in front of her harmonium, she nibbled on her chocolate without any self-consciousness. An attitude that might be perfectly normal in Switzerland, but is frowned upon in an almost fanatically health conscious Northern California. It was almost as if she had smoked a cigarette before class. And indeed I saw some students looking shocked. But Katchie didn’t mind. “I need chocolate”, she said happily. “It’s in my genes!” For the same reason, she had painted the ceiling of her studio a chocolate brown. When we laid on our backs during class, we saw the sky as a gigantic chocolate bar. I resonated with that very much. Here, I was at home, both physically as well as spiritually.

No Time for Small talk

She is good, I thought again, and this time I didn’t forget. After class, we went for a coffee across the street and promptly forgot the time. 4 hours later the phone rang “where are you?” This was the beginning of a very special friendship, which, because of my impending return to Switzerland, took on an urgent quality. After every yoga class, we went for coffee and 2 hours went by without either of us noticing. There were parking tickets on the windshield of the car, cellphones squeaking reproachfully. We became the kind of friends that do not have time for small talk. When we get together, it is always about the heart of the matter. It didn’t’ take long for us to realize that we had very similar approaches in our very different professions. We don’t believe it’s about being perfect, or striving towards an ideal. What matters to both of us, and what we teach, is to find our unique and authentic expression, on the mat as well as on paper. With this insight we created the yoga and writing workshops, and with a wink, we call them “chilli and chocolate”. We also made a special pact: I would help Katchie to write her book, and she promised to help remove my fear of handstands…..more about that later.

Katchie was raised near Bern and was educated at a Rudolf Steiner School. Their special teaching style deeply informed her as did the wisdom and love of her late mother. Katchie even dedicated her first training manual to her. Katchie was a physically weak child who fought for survival during her early years. I suspect that this sharpened her incomparable instincts as to the processes in her body. “I am dependent to listen to my body” she says, “I simply can’t afford to ignore it”. When she was 20 years old, Katchie left the tiny country of Switzerland and lived in Brazil and then in the US. Even though she practiced Shivananda yoga in Switzerland, the trained dancer had her first serious encounter with yoga in New York City. She studied Jivamukti yoga with Sharon Gannon and David Life, Ashtanga yoga with Richard Freeman in Boulder and Anusara yoga with John Friend. She was an influential representative in each of these different schools, in some she was even treated as a potential heir – before she moved on and turned towards something else. In her first training manual she thanks all her teachers for disappointing her at some point. “In the beginning I had a hard time accepting the fact that my teachers are people like you and me, and are not perfect. And without the disappointment, I would have never claimed the essence of the teachings for myself”.

Distinctive Yoga style

Elements from all those different schools are present in her very personable and unmistakable style of teaching. The biggest impact on her evolution was perhaps the well-known Buddhist teacher Jack Kornfield with whom she studied vipassana, or mindfulness mediation for many years.

Katchie’s method, which I call simply “the Katchie-method”, combines elements of yoga and dharma. On her home page, she introduces herself as a yoga and dharma teacher. If you are familiar with Metta, or loving kindness practice, in Katchie’s class you will recognize immediately that she rains loving kindness onto her students, until each and every cell is saturated. “Yoga is a tool for every day, not some new age philosophy, or a striving towards an ideal”. Yoga with Katchie is metta-in-motion.

Her own yoga practice influences her teaching style. She reacts to changes and pain because even a super yogini like Katchie experiences back aches, or is getting older. She shares her experience generously with her students. She is an example on the journey, a journey that doesn’t lead to conquering the poor body, or to a fleeting perfection, but to a more lenient and kinder treatment of ourselves. Katchie knows that the most difficult exercise for many students, is to love themselves. More difficult than standing on your hands, or crossing your feet behind your neck. Sometimes she starts a class by rubbing her hands over her (admittedly not exactly bulging) stomach and smile her irresistible smile. “Yuuuummmmm” she says, and it sounds exactly as if she just stumbled onto a box of Spruengli truffle chocolates. “Come on, everybody, yuuuummmm!” A little while ago, in one of her workshops in Zurich, she found out that there was a fair amount of new people in attendance. “Oh, wow” she cried. “I’m not sure if I should congratulate you or feel sorry for you! Forget everything you think you know about yoga – welcome on the journey!” And like with every class I’ve ever taken from Katchie, I felt personally addressed and taken care of. Yuummm.

Hold on instead of letting go

With every year, Katchie becomes more radical and direct. Her concern and commitment to animals and the environment takes up more and more space in her life. “The concept of letting go is having way too much weight in spiritual teachings” she says. “It is dangerous and leads to easy replacements of people, animals and even things, when they no longer server our immediate needs. I say it’s the opposite, hold on and hang in there – with all your love. Only this way we truly evolve as people.” She immediately specifies – “of course there are situations and relationships where we need to let go – it could be fatal otherwise.” But once again, she inspires with a fresh and unusual take and gives students food for thought. So how does this attitude show in your daily life, I ask? “When I go for a walk in the Santa Fe river bed with my dog Leelou, I pick up trash. I like doing this because it feels like this river in front of my house is my river and my responsibility to take care of.” Again, she laughs loudly. After many years in the San Francisco Bay Area, she moved, with husband and dog, to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The move has made her life more stable and calmer. She teaches less and writes more. Her first manual is almost done. Her “autobiography of a yognini” is sorted in colorful cards on the wall in her practice room and is waiting to be typed into the computer. And the handstand we will manage as well…….

The Practice of Forgiveness

An extract from the first draft of my new Yoga & Dharma manual which I'm using in my trainings...

The Practice of Forgiveness

“Hatred never ceases by hatred, but by love alone is healed. This is the ancient and eternal law.” - The Buddha

If you want to see the brave, look to those who can forgive.

Forgiveness means giving up all hope for a better past.

All human beings experience betrayal, conflict, loss, and pain during their lifetime. When we consider forgiveness practices we are finally willing to let go of carrying a heavy burden for the rest of our lives.

While we all vaguely know that forgiveness is an important spiritual practice, it can be important to realize that forgiveness for others is also done for ourselves, not necessarily for the person that hurt us. Most of us do not realize how much energy goes into carrying a grudge. Truthfully, we need all the energy we have for our own transformation; carrying resentment uses up a lot of energy. This insight can provide additional motivation to undertake the task of forgiveness.

There are some important thoughts around forgiveness that need to be considered.

Forgiveness comes from a place of strength, not weakness. When we forgive it doesn’t mean that we condone what happened to us or others in any way, shape, or form. We may do whatever it takes to make sure it never happens again. In fact, the first step may be to make sure that the trespass cannot be repeated.

We may have to leave a situation or create proper boundaries. We may never forgive the action, but we are contemplating to forgive the person, since we realize that we too have done things that need forgiveness.

As forgiveness is such a difficult practice, we tend to avoid it and shove it to the back of our consciousness. Of course, if it were so easy everyone would do it right away. It is a good thing that even the contemplation of forgiveness will start the process.

Forgiveness doesn’t happen all at once. We can’t achieve forgiveness by covering up our genuine hurt. We may have to fully experience feelings of grief, rage, despair, and pain before a sense of forgiveness can even begin to happen. We may need to seek and pursue justice, but can still be willing to engage in the practice of forgiveness.

We truly need all the energy for our own transformation – that is why forgiveness practices are often done before any other formal practice. We don’t want part of our energy trapped in the past.

When practicing forgiveness, sometimes we will notice that we feel genuine forgiveness. Sometimes we will feel all the resentment we are still holding. Remember that it is a practice, and we just continue on doing it for the time being until it starts to work and we feel the release. It is the process that matters. Tears will wash away our bitterness and bring healing.

Sabbaticals and Façades

I’m sending love and blessings to you from Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Summer Sabbatical

For the first time since I started teaching 25 years ago, I took a six week hiatus, simply resting and enjoying the beautiful summer here in the land of enchantment. Not that it was easy – just like everyone else in our society, I am plagued by the constant drive to be productive and busy. I had to battle doubts and whispers like, “see, now you have retreated you will be cast off and placed on the sidelines and no one will remember you.” I bravely stood up to these voices and rested nevertheless, did some writing for my book, and took care of my garden.

Over Labor Day weekend I taught what will become an annual retreat (for all those of you who want an alternative to Burning Man!) and it was incredibly rewarding and successful on all levels.

During the retreat I got a confirmation of just how important and long overdue this sabbatical was. In a private interview a student gave me the greatest gift when she said, “Katchie, you’ve always delivered the goods as a teacher, I’ve always been enriched and satisfied from all of your programs I’ve taken, but this is the first time I feel that you are not squeezed and actually really enjoyed being with us and you are just positively glowing.”

It struck me how right she was. I love my job, I do, but it has been a process of constant and complete giving in various forms for 25 years. I needed a break, and when I came back I was coming from plenty. I made a vow to take my sabbatical and rest seriously!

Teaching without a Façade

Over the last few years, instead of presenting a perfect façade, I’ve made it my business to be real and vulnerable; not only in class, but also in my newsletters and other formats where I openly admit to the struggles we all face as a human family. I find it much more helpful as a teacher to do that; suggesting strategies on how to overcome those struggles. So I’m truly struck by how many teachers still try to portray their lives as flawless. I wonder – who does it serve in the end?

I see incredible websites filled with pictures of fantastic poses, shot in exotic locations, in bikinis on the beach, with romantic partners – the image of the ultimately unattainable perfect life. Those types of “suggestions” vaguely work on me too, causing me to temporarily question my own life – bringing up the feeling that somehow I missed out, and perhaps I am not talented or beautiful enough.

That plaguing “enough” question is so prevalent in our culture; actually, it’s something of a tactic, too – many of these seemingly perfect teachers will draw you into their circle offering the opportunity for you, too, to have what they have. I say, beware of them! You will probably never have quite those (fucking) backbends, or their beauty, fame or whatever it is, and neither will you ultimately want to.

I happen to know that many of them struggle with just the same things we do, they just choose a policy of non-disclosure on those less-than-glamorous aspects of their lives. They teach from their strength only, not from their vulnerable sides. Ultimately, this is alienating to students; you may gain some helpful tips on how to get into a pose, or hear about some great theory, but for the most part you will continue to pine away at the life they have and actually miss the one that is right in front of you, waiting to be lived fully and authentically.

To transform the heart of the student a teacher needs to have the courage to show themselves naked, so to speak. To me, the role of a good teacher is to meet students at the same human level – showing them that we are all dealing with the same difficulties. With experience and practice, the teacher illuminates the varied paths to overcome these shared obstacles to each unique student.

I hope to see you at one of my many offerings around the world this fall, and look forward to sharing some simple techniques on how to be an authentic and badass human being.

Dreaming the World

I just got back from my tour in Europe. It was fun to bring the Dharma to all these different communities; sometimes I feel like a hummingbird, collecting nectar and spreading it around. As I have always loved hummingbirds, this feels like a good use of my inherent potential!

I love being back home in Santa Fe. I don’t know what it is about this enchanted place, but it makes my heart sing and my soul breathe like no other place I’ve ever been to.

Some thoughts for your contemplation:

Just like the tiniest grain of sand has a particular mass, a mass that remains attached to the big mass called Earth, every thought has a mass too. Some science, like quantum physics, verifies this and confirms that even random thoughts may have consequences because of the mass they possess. When many people focus their thoughts on the same thing, the mass increases and so does the outcome.

As we grow up, we often forget our dreams. This is an unfortunate outcome of “growing up”, as it is our very dreams that help us realize our full potential. When we forget to dream, we may get stuck in habits – good or bad. In order to change habits, we need to be fully aware of them to see how best to proceed.

It is said, while the Buddha made every mistake possible on his path to freedom he never lied to himself about it. Making mistakes, consciously, allows us to actually learn from them. I often invite my students to make new mistakes! Making the same mistakes over and over again seems very depressing to me. To go and make a new mistake is one of my missions in life.

Yogic practices, such as chanting, invite certain archetypes and possibilities into being. For example, Ganesh, the elephant-headed son of Shiva, is not just the master of obstacles. He also represents an invitation to accept our life just as it is, to get grounded in the here and now. It is said, when Ganesh appears we stop wanting to be somewhere else. When this happens we actually show up, fully, to who and where we are in this moment.

One description of enlightenment is exactly that – the moment we stop wanting to be somewhere or someone else. We realize that we are in the right body at the right time, with the right people, on the right planet. We wake up to things as they are, as well as learn to hold a vision about where we are going. From this vantage point we get to work intelligently with the obstacles in the way. Holding this paradox is exactly what yoga is about.

There is an ancient teaching from the Hatha Yoga Pradipika that talks about a link between our mind and our life energy, called Prana (or chi, dao and many other references to describe this life-force in different cultures). The relationship between these two vital forces, although invisible, is one of deep connection. It is often described with the image of two fish swimming in tandem.

The work at hand is to be fully awake to where we are, and to see ourselves and others clearly. We must also cultivate the ability to cast our mind forward, say two years, to get a sense of how we want to feel in a relationship, at our job, or any other place in our life. Our life energy focuses and reorganizes around this possibility, eventually manifesting it into being. At the same time, the honest view of where we are, at the moment, and what might stand in the way, helps us to deal wisely with the obstacles.

On the yoga mat, investigating this link can take a very tangible form. We can focus our mind on the simple reality of sensations in the body while we are moving through the asanas. Instead of practicing to achieve some perfect idea of our body or the pose, we connect with the wholeness of who we are in that moment and simply accept. In that liberating instance of just being with what is, it is possible to perceive everything as sacred. Usually, once we leave the mat after one of those experiences of wholeness we feel supremely, and maybe even sublimely, okay with the way we are, including the fact that there is room for improvement. In essence, our body becomes an ally in the quest for full realization instead of an obstacle to overcome. This is good news!

Dharma, Freedom and Honesty

One of the most straightforward definitions of Dharma is to think thoughts and act in a way that sets you free. I love it! While this definition is, indeed simple, it is obviously not the easiest to do. If it were, you would think more people would actually do it.

In the first place, how do we find out what actually sets us free? For example, I believe in the pleasurable things in life (since life is often hard enough as it is) and I often feel that enjoying them puts me in a good mood and makes me feel grateful and generous towards myself and others. So far, so good. But where is the line between something that has a good effect on me versus something that might actually, in the long term, enslave me, or cause me harm?

For many years I was a pretty “pure” yogi. I rarely drank alcohol, went to bed early each evening, and got up very early each day to practice. I only ate “the right” kinds of food. I only had sex on Friday nights according to the instruction of Pattabhi Jois’ Asthanga bible. (Okay, that’s exaggerated, as I never heeded that particular advice. But, since I didn’t really have a boyfriend at the time, it didn’t matter anyway which is why Sharon Gannon from Jivamukti gave me the nickname “Brahmachari” - celibate). Then, at some point in my 30s, I discovered how much I enjoyed a glass of red wine at night. I loved the ritual of it. It made me feel closer to my family in Switzerland where wine often is a part of long, drawn out evenings at dinner with lively and interesting conversations about God and the world. I firmly believe in the healthy qualities of red wine, that when it is consumed in moderation it actually is a boon to your health in every way. Just as chocolate is – a fact that has been only recently discovered in America but has long since been known in Switzerland.

Recently, a friend made me a good margarita, with organic lime juice, on the rocks, and even taught me how to make one myself. I haven’t had much hard liquor for some time, so I felt the effects pretty quickly and we had a fun evening. I came home and decided I would like to try making my own margaritas.

It didn’t last long. I realized fast that this particular practice did not set me free. On the contrary, being sensitive, I would feel the effects of even one margarita the next day. I don’t think that tequila, the main ingredient used in this particular beverage has any beneficial qualities for my health and, in fact, I worry about my liver since that organ is one of the weak spots in my body. I’m not saying that I will never make a margarita again. I’m sure I will. But, I will not turn this into a practice on a regular basis because I know it won’t set me free.

As I abandon my newly acquired skills of making a bad-ass margarita (I even bought myself a professional shaker and all), I feel a certain regret, I really do.

But my commitment to the Dharma is deeper. I want to be free. It is said that the Buddha made every mistake that one human can make on his journey to being free. But it is often emphasized that he never lied about making those mistakes. The very foundation of the Dharma is this kind of honesty and while it is easy to say that we will do the things that set us free, doing is not as easy and requires an ongoing investigation and a willingness to tell the truth about our experiences at all times.

From this vantage point, I understand the rather strict and moralistic rules that are often set in yoga and Buddhism. The point can be made that it is easier to avoid all alcohol due to the addictive quality and mind-deluding properties. But, just to avoid things in life is not really the Dharma to me. And the request can, and has, at times, felt like a punishment or denial of life itself.

Yes, to actually inquire what is or isn’t setting me free is a lot of work. It is so much easier to just “believe” something or follow a teacher or a system. I do believe that sooner or later we actually all have to do this work and come to our own conclusions based on our own experience. And to me, this is truly worth it.

Viva red wine!

Why I Give A Sh*&%t...

This last weekend, my birthday weekend, we celebrated the conclusion of the teacher training in San Francisco as well as my last public classes until the fall.

After my open class ended, some of the trainees had secretly created a "cheer" and handed out little slips of papers for everyone. The entire class participated, all 70 students cheered loudly:

Give me a:

K	for Kickass/Kaliesque/Karuna/Kidney Loop/Kindness
A	for Activist/Ananda/Amazing Grace/Awesome
T	for Teacher/Transformation/Tenderness/Truth/ Tattvas!!
C	for Compassion/Chanting/Comedy/Chocolate
H	for Harmonium/Hanuman/Heart-Opener/Hip-Opener/ Hot Stuff
I	for Integrity/Intelligence/Illumination/  Imperfect/Incomparable
E	for Eclectic/Extraordinary/Energy/Equality/ EVOLUTE!!!  (what I said in class one day when I forgot the real word, evolve, and made up "evolute" instead.)

I was literally moved to tears, feeling how deeply my students care, and how deeply I care about them.

I have been thinking a lot about the teacher/student relationship lately.

One of my students put it simply "Katchie, you actually give a shit!"

It's true - even to my detriment sometimes. I would love to live up to the enlightened, detached teacher image but that is just not what's happening. I invest in my students. I care. So if someone studies with me in that intense and personal way for some years, and then they just up and leave, which just happened to me recently, I hurt. I feel confusion and pain.

Having had this scenario happen to me more than once, I finally realized that we don't have any decent guidelines in the yoga world at all! No wonder all the confusion and a reinforcement of what Chogyam Trungpa called "Spiritual Materialism." For many people the spiritual teachings are but an endless buffet from which to sample; without making any deeper commitment. It's all so convenient for the modern, Western practitioner.

As a matter of fact, often when we come up against difficulty with the teachings or the teachers, we simply move onto another system and teacher. In some of the ancient stories, this is called "digging a well to look for water." But instead of digging the same well and going deep until we do find water, we end up making many shallow holes - none of which produce water in the end.

So I searched, thinking there has to be some decent guidelines for the student/teacher relationship somewhere. I found it in the Martial Arts world. It is actually quite simple:

• The Student is expected to study with one particular teacher/system for a period of time exclusively (whatever period of time has been determined).
• After that period of time has passed, if the student wants to simultaneously study with another teacher, he/she has to go and ask permission from both teachers. If both say yes, there will be an assumption of more excellence expected by both teachers to their respective systems.
• If the original teacher says no (because he/she doesn't feel that the new systems/teacher are compatible or right for that student) there will be a closing ritual and the student is free to go study with the new teacher (but no longer will study with the original one). 
• If the student wants to leave the original teacher, it's expected from the student to go to the teacher and tell him why he wants to move on so there can be proper closure and blessings for both of them.

If we had these simple guidelines in the yoga world, how much confusion and suffering we could avoid!

As the teacher, here is my commitment to my students - to show up with all that I have to offer. If you are interested, come for teachings and stories, packaged with whimsical humor, some tears, and a bit of uncomfortable truth for all of us to contemplate. That is what I do, and I will ruthlessly use whatever is at my disposal, including my own vulnerability and imperfection, to make a difference.

The Grey Zones

This year is all about integrity for me. All throughout the last year and continuing into the new year, I keep seeing structures and systems crumble due to a lack of integrity within their very foundations. I think our integrity, how we handle ourselves one moment at a time, will be key to our evolution this year. In my head, I have the words of a senior dharma teacher who says: “karma means you don’t get away with nothing!”

I cannot help but notice a lack of integrity in so many places and relationships, and further, how often we keep quiet about it. We fail to address a problem because we lack the trust in ourselves, or the courage to face it. Or, despite an unhealthy dynamic in a particular relationship, we are afraid to upset the status quo.

The solution cannot be found in stating beautiful spiritual ideals alone – painting over what we do not wish to see with a big brush. We have to tackle our challenges one step at the time, one relationship at a time, one problem at a time.

We have to excavate into the grey zones, with the full knowledge that there is no quick fix. We have to sit with our situations, intimately, and sometimes painfully, until we can finally see the right path through to the other side of where we are going. My personal tactic is to approach any and all situations with a win/win strategy; fully aware that what needs to be done may be hard at times, for me and/or the other person. But, ultimately, the outcome will benefit all sides.

What else is there to do? We are not going to heal the world with our good intentions alone, they provide us with a moral compass, but the work still has to be done in the grey zones of our lives, one moment at a time.

The New Dawn of Humanity

Here we are, in 2013. I have been reflecting on why it is that there is so much anxiety and fear present in all of us at this time. While there are certainly many reasons for anxiety and fear in our modern hectic world, one reason stands out to me — we have become a throwaway society; everything is and can be replaced.

Only 50 years ago in Switzerland, any object was built to last for a very long time. Today, things are built, purposefully, NOT to last, so they will need to be replaced in a few years. More profit to be made that way. Unfortunately, this same attitude has spread to how we treat people and other beings as well.

Doesn’t work out with your partner? No problem, there are many more lovers out there in the metaphoric green pasture. How about when you encounter difficulty in your chosen spiritual practice or with your teacher? Easy, there are many paths and other teachers right around the corner. And on it goes. Animals are, of course, ever expendable, as seen in the way we treat them before they end up on our dinner plate.

The thought of being replaced so easily is what gnaws on our insides and creates all this anxiety. Fear that we might be replaced, cast out, or exposed as insignificant causes us to overwork, become overly greedy, lash out, get stressed out, and experience a host of other stressful symptoms.

Maybe one of the reasons the tragedy in Connecticut hit us so hard is the reminder that our children are not replaceable. It was a reminder of a deep truth — none of us is replaceable. We are all like snowflakes, unique and one-time expressions of life’s beauty and mystery. We are, in fact, irreplaceable. Some place we know this is true, even though we do not have access to that truth anymore.

By placing detachment so highly on the list of spiritual values, spirituality has not offered much on this conundrum either.

I say — be more attached! You are lucky if you love your partner or a teacher so much that when things get difficult you do not simply replace them. If you love them so deeply then replacement shouldn’t present itself as an option. Of course, it is necessary to be aware of abusive relationships. These are absolutely necessary to sever, and the ability to do so will foster another facet of spiritual growth. But that’s another story for another time.

Otherwise, only because of this love and, yes, attachment, will we get through the discomfort of confronting our own deepest issues and, maybe, finally move through and heal them.

Sometimes that deep love and attachment to a teacher, lover or mentor helps us to realize that I, too, am an absolute unique expression of the divine and that I can learn to love myself for the precious One that I am.

From there we expand and recognize all the incredibly precious and irreplaceable beings and even inanimate objects around us. We realize that every bit of life around us is sacred, and we do everything in our power to protect it.

In acknowledging the preciousness around me, I have taken on a stewardship of a section of the Santa Fe River, just below my house. Every time I go for a walk in the riverbed, I pick up trash and make the immediate environment to my house a more beautiful place. It gives me so much pleasure to restore the riverbed to its natural beauty. Why? Because it is precious and unique, and it is mine to do since I live here now. I love finding projects that remind me to be attached to where I live and work.

The best part of healthy attachments is the beautiful reward. At some point there is a natural letting go. Healthy attachment and love, in my opinion, will lead to unconditional love, which is another manifestation of letting go. The release is akin to the mature fruit that simply lets go of its connection to the stem when it is ready. It’s not prematurely ripped away, causing wounds and scars. Similarly, we can trust that when our attachment and love has fully matured, there will be spacious, luminous, unconditional love and equanimity.

Some fun things to do to decrease anxiety and foster healthy attachments:

• If you get a present that is not the right one for you, instead of going back to the store and replacing it, think of who would be the perfect recipient for this gift and then have fun giving it to the right person.
• Tell your lovers, teachers, children and other loved ones that you are attached to them and that they matter to you. My relationship with my husband took a big turn when I stopped saying things during fights like: I don’t think this will work out, maybe I should leave (incidentally my worst fear is to be abandoned myself).
• Be particular about details, even objects like to be treated with respect.
• Making a gift, something that has your sweat (and maybe tears) in it. Give it away, knowing how unique it is because you put yourself into it.
• Think about other ways to express and celebrate healthy attachments.

By Poet Deena Metzger:

"Give me everything mangled and bruised and I will make a light of it to make you weep. And we will have rain, and we will begin again."

How do you value yourself?

How different my worlds are now – a good thing for gaining perspective. Santa Fe, my primary home, filled with space and light, and Europe, where I am at the moment, coated in blankets of fog and permeated by the rich smell of water and fallen leaves. It teaches me not to take everything quite so seriously. It reminds me that nothing is permanent, to keep welcoming and making changes, and to allow life to flow through me.

What is foremost on my mind these days is the question of value. How do we value ourselves? How does that value translate to others? What are we willing to do in order to feel valued? How much is my input, versus the rewards I get back?

I guess for me, being almost 50, these are legitimate questions. The times where I had unlimited energy and would just charge ahead, are truly over. At this point, investments versus outcome have to be balanced. For example, it’s clear to me that my primary reward – and that continues to be way more important to me than the monetary return, has to do with actually making a difference in people’s lives. I have worked very hard for a very long time to have the insights I do – and it’s important for me to share them. It’s important that they be received. For this reception, a certain framework has to be laid.

I am keenly aware, these days, between the different types of attention in a public class where people come mostly expecting a good workout, and say, a workshop, where students are more inclined to be open and go on a journey.

Under the right circumstances, I can take people on such a journey of transformation and it is increasingly important to me to set those parameters in a way that allows this to happen.

I have earned my livelihood from public classes for 20 years and in some ways it is truly scary to contemplate to let that format of my teaching go. Yet it is clear that this particular format no longer serves my primary objective – which is to help students remember who they really are and what matters most in their lives.

Online Classes in Germany

While in Berlin, I recorded a few online classes that are available from a super cool website, www.yogaraumonline.de

You can check out the website for a free trial and I think that it will be worth your while, especially if you don't have access to high quality teachings. There are many classes by awesome teachers to choose from!

It's a German site, but there is enough English to navigate around and I am mostly teaching in English, even in Germany. Funny how that happens.

Check it out here.

News from the Wild West

Dear Community,

It’s been a wild and nonstop ride since my tour through Europe and my recent move to Santa Fe, New Mexico. But here we are, Joshua and I, slowly getting settled in.

A friend of mine mentioned a parable when both Joshua and I were a bit overwhelmed: “Do you know how the monkey eats the elephant? One bite at a time.” As usual, I got my metaphors mixed up and said to my husband: “Let’s just deal with one elephant at a time.” And that pretty much sums it up.

Life is harsher out here compared to the Bay Area, but also more beautiful and real, and that matters to me at this point in my life. I can’t keep talking about sustainability without actually walking my talk. So here it goes!

There was a rattlesnake on the porch the other day, there are water issues because of the dryness, and I have to keep an eye on the dog at all time so she (or I for that matter) doesn’t end up as a snack to a large predator. I talk to all the beings on the land when I walk by, but also carry a large handmade knife Joshua gave me for my birthday! For me, it is a deep inquiry away from the hustle and bustle, to find out what really matters to me, what fulfills me and what happiness actually looks like, to me.

I love Santa Fe and when I am in town, I get the sense of deep roots and a long history of peoples living in harmony with the land. I am loving the seasons again, the fact that there is a hot summer followed by fall and winter, bringing such rich diversity and perspective to life. I love practicing in the heat, as it feels as though I can go deeper into my practice. The insights come as I move my body according to the breath and nature.

Yesterday I realized that I am removed from all the teachers I have ever had: my time with Anusara and John Friend has come to an end, and I am also very far away now from my primary teacher, Jack Kornfield. And I realized that I no longer require my teachers to be close by at this time. I have been showered with teachings and blessings for the last 3 decades, I have all the tools I need and now is the time to just let it all sink in as I do my practices in solitude. For the time being, I am no longer a seeker but instead have been found!

Tahira, a gifted visionary from Germany, predicted that I will pick up some purely feminine wisdom during my time here. And I realized, with surprise, that I haven’t had a female teacher for a very long time. It’s time.

I will start teaching two classes at Spandarama Yoga in Santa Fe in the beginning of August. I received an incredibly warm and generous welcoming by the community here and I am just so grateful for that. One of those classes will be recorded and offered on my website, so that anyone who so desires can listen in. There will be a donation system set up – similarly to the Dharma offerings at Spirit Rock for folks who wish to contribute. It’s all a big adventure, but as my wise husband said: “It was time to shake it up!”

My teacher training, starting in the fall in San Francisco, is already full. But there is a waiting list as people may still be drop out before it starts. You can contact aud@yogakula.com if you are interested in participating.

In October and November, I will be once again in Europe for workshops and classes – mostly in Zurich and Amsterdam. I will keep you posted as we get closer.

May you all be blessed with the time to inquire what really matters for you in this lifetime.

Wishing you a beautiful summer,

Katchie Ananda