Mission Statement:
We aspire to live the teachings of Haidakhan Baba, to hold this Ashram as
His home, to serve humanity, and to be stewards and caretakers of this land.

June, 2006

Dear Friends of the Ashram

It is a magnificent time of year here at the Ashram with all the wild roses blooming along the creek and the fresh aspen leaves glowing in the sunshine. I am taking as many opportunities as possible to hike up to our beautiful water shed.

In between these moments, we have been very full with lots of wonderful events and plenty of gracious helpers and visitors, as you will read about in the newsletter.

We are gearing up for a busy Fourth of July weekend followed by Guru Purnima on Monday, July 10. I will be traveling to the beautiful Babaji Ashram in Cisternino, Italy for an international gathering of devotees over Guru Purnima. I will take plenty of photos to share with you in the next newsletter. Read on for more information about the event.

Remember that our daily schedule includes morning and evening aarati (chanting) at 7am and 7pm and a large fire ceremony on new moon (Sunday, June 25) and full-moon (Monday, July 10) at 10am followed by a bhandara. If you would like to sponsor a fire ceremony ($108) or bhandara (feast) ($108) you may make the donation on line by just clicking here or call at 719-256-4108 or e-mail the Ashram at info@BabajiAshram.org

In truth and love, Ramloti

Guru Purnima
Monday, July 10

Guru Purnima, the full moon in July on which you honor your guru or teacher is on Monday, July 10. Traditionally we begin with a Paduka Puja, which is the washing of Babaji's Padukas or sandals as in the photo. The ceremony will begin at 10am. This will be followed by a fire ceremony and a feast. We hope you can attend this special day. If you would like to sponsor this fire ceremony or bhandara or find out more about the celebration, please call the Ashram at 719-256-4108 or e-mail us at info@babajiashram.org

As mentioned above, Ramloti will be attending the International Guru Purnima Celebration at the Babaji Ashram in Cisternino which is located in southern Italy. For those that may be interested in attending, you can find out all the details on their web site at www.BholeBaba.org. Click on the celebration button and then on the English flag to read it in English. The dates of the celebration are July 9 - 12. It is definitely a very special and exhilarating experience to chant and be in ceremony with so many Babaji devotees. Many of you remember how high the energy was last year when we all danced around the kirtan hall on the last day of the dedication. Here is a photo of that joyous occasion.

Kirtan Workshop with Emam
July 24 through July 28

Join us for our Kirtan Workshop led by Emam accompanied by his wife Yashoda. Both are long-time devotees of Babaji and have been leading kirtan for many years. Emam has had years of training in tablas and classical Indian music. He has many albums, several are carried in our shop. You can find out more about Emam at http://emam.us/

Together they have developed the Kirtan Mala which literally means "Garland of Chants". Here is what they say on their web site, http://kirtanmala.com/. ”Our intention is to bring traditional and original "KIRTAN" and other forms of Sacred Music to the people all around the world. We learned our Kirtan at Babaji's Ashram in the foothills of the Himalayas. There is a slight difference in the way we do kirtan and that is: we all sing together. There is no call and response.“

We hope that you can join us for this joyful week of music and satsang. We are asking a donation of $108 for the workshop. There are some scholarships available. No experience is necessary, just a desire to sing praises to the Divine. There will also be separate afternoon harmonium and tabla classes if there is enough interest. Please call the Ashram at 719-256-4108 for more information and reservations or e-mail us at info@babajiashram.org.

Family Week is almost here and we are excited to say that Jen Baldwin will lead the younger children's group as she did last year. Here she is pictured holding Angela and Jason's little boy, Matias. Jen was not sure she would be available this year as she is getting married in August and will begin teaching at the Crestone Charter School in late August. We are so happy that she has decided to lead the Kids' Camp.

At this point, we have a waiting list for dorm rooms with a little space left in the yurt and camping areas and possibly devotees' homes in the area. Family week will run from Monday, July 24 through Friday, July 28. It is a great opportunity for families to have an Ashram experience with special kid-friendly activities, karma yoga, and learning. During the morning hours, while the children are involved in the kids' camp, the adults may participate in the Kirtan Workshop (see article above) or join in the karma yoga. A parent or guardian must be on the Ashram premises at all times during the kid's camp. In the afternoons, parents organize field trips to the swimming pool, hiking, horseback riding, or other places for the children. Please call the Ashram at 719-256-4108 for more information and reservations or e-mail us at info@babajiashram.org. as soon as possible. The suggested donation to stay at the Ashram for a week is $135 per adult and includes all meals. Children stay for free. The Children's Camp is a gift from the Ashram, so there is no charge to attend that program.

From Aug. 28 - Sept. 1, the Ashram will sponsor a Raw Food Week. Both the garden and the greenhouse are already abundant with fresh vegetables, fruits, and herbs that we will be using to create delicious raw meals. More and more people are finding it important to increase their intake of raw foods for health and vitality. Many are discouraged because they feel it is too difficult to learn or they think that they will be missing out on variety in their diets and good tastes. We would like to show you how you can eat a lot more raw food and still feel very satisfied and nourished. Some of us at the Ashram have been raw (100% and 90%) for a few years now and have many, many delicious recipes and techniques that we are continually passing on to others. In the photo are Ramloti and Catherine preparing raw nori rolls, salsa, and raw crackers.

In addition to learning about raw food and preparing meals you will also be picking the produce in the greenhouse and garden, learning a bit about organic gardening, making daily juices, and participating in the morning and evening aarati and chanting. We will also have time for plenty of exercise, as that is so important for vibrant health. There will be optional instruction in the Five Rites, easy exercises that really seem to make a difference in your overall well-being.

We are asking a donation of $108 for the workshop. There are some scholarships available. Please call the Ashram at 719-256-4108 for more information and reservations or e-mail us at info@babajiashram.org. The suggested donation to stay at the Ashram for a week is $135 per adult and includes all meals. This is such a great opportunity to take care of yourself and focus some time on your bodily temple in a wonderful atmosphere. Hope to see you there, you deserve it.

The peonies are blooming in the garden and so Mother has been bedecked with them each day. Next we look forward to the lilies blooming. Summer is such a rich time of year.

Unfortunately, sometimes with early summer comes very dry weather and with little snow this past winter, we are under a very strict fire ban until the summer rains begin. We therefore are not able to have a fire for our fire ceremony at this time.

However, we continue to have a ceremony every new and full moon. We prepare every thing except the fire and explain that the offerings we make from our heart actually have the potential to be the most pure because we have much more control over them than we do the offerings you buy from stores.

About sixty-five people attended our last full-moon fireless fire ceremony and many reported that they had even deeper experiences of the fire and the sacrifice that it representss than usual. We then sat around the havan kund and sang as people offered the aarati lamp to Babaji, the Shiva lingam, and the kund.

Following the fire ceremony we had a delicious meal prepared by many people. It was Chris Long's birthday so we put some candles on the pear cobbler and sang happy birthday. Some of the children, including his daughter Uma in the hat, are pictured with him. Chris has been a long time supporter and volunteer at the Ashram. He was so happy that his birthday was on the weekend that we had the Karma Yoga day and the full-moon fire ceremony so he could spend it at the Ashram. Most of Saturday he installed flagstone in front of the kirtan hall and on Sunday, his actual birthday, he attended aarati and then the fire ceremony. He and his wife Andrea are expecting their second child any day now. Please keep them in your prayers.

July 10 - Guru Purnima, the day we honor our teacher, Paduka Puja and Fire Ceremony at 10am
July 23 - Annual American Samaj Meeting
July 24 - Fire Ceremony at 10am followed by bhandara
July 24 - 28 - Family Week and Kirtan Workshop with Emam
Aug. 28 - Sept. 1 - Raw Food Week; work with, eat, and learn about raw foods
Sept. 23 - Oct. 1 - Fall Navratri, nine days honoring the Divine Mother
October 21 - Diwali, festival of lights