In the ancient traditions, it is said that whatever life offers us is a tremendous opportunity for practice. Let's start with what we have at hand: daily work, relationship with money and our intimate life. That means to cast light upon our inner mechanisms and our relationship with life. Because life is sacred and living up to this level of truth requires effort, understanding, openness and courage.

Having the source of inspiration the books "Jump into Life" written by Arnaud Desjardins and "Getting Real" by Lee Lozowick, our special guests offer us an introspection into different aspects of real life, seen from a spiritual perspective.

Veronique and Rose spent three decades in the close company of two spiritual masters that built western communities and schools on the basis of spiritual teachings of Advaita Vedanta and Baul tradition with roots in ancient lineages from India, offering real support to those who dare to open up to an authentic way of living.

About our guests:

VERONIQUE DESJARDINS

Veronique is a writer and she ran the collection "Les Chemins de Sagesse" at the French publisher Editions de la Table Ronde. She is the wife and disciple of the spiritual master Arnaud Desjardins, renowned French director, one of the first spiritual masters who brought the teachings of Advaita Vedanta from India to Europe. Veronique joined from the beginning the community he created in the '70s and worked closely with him until 2011 when he passed away. Currently she lives in France, near Hauteville, the ashram estabilished by Arnauld Desjardins and travels around the world to give lectures and seminars on spirituality. Her way of presenting Vedanta teaching is simple and clear, rooted in the ancestral truth offered by the spiritual master Swami Prajnanpad from Bengal, India. Because it's her way of living life, she manages to open the hearts of listeners, revealing the possibilities that we have to be in complete acceptance of reality as it is. She is co-author, along with Arnaud Desjardins, of several books, including: "The Formulae / Teachings of Swami Prajnanpad", "The Spiritual Friend", "The Venture of Life".

For more details about her master, Arnaud Desjardins, go to:

http://www.amis-hauteville.fr/activites.htm

Asked about her encounter with Arnaud Desjardins and the path that she chose, Veronique Desjardins says:

”At that young age, I was entertaining dreams regarding my future. Impressed by what I had perceived from my father, I wanted to become an actress and a famous writer. However, it seems that it is not our personality which decides our destiny, but rather our essence, because none of this came true.

I had no idea whatsoever that my whole life would be devoted to Arnaud Desjardins and that I would live most of my life on an ashram. When my relationship changed after 13 years and Arnaud entered into my life in a more personal way, it was the beginning of enormous turmoil for me, which lasted for years. I had already done a lot of work on the unconscious, but suddenly deeply buried emotions came up to the surface and I was devastated, one crisis after another. There was a long period of purification which gave me plenty of opportunities to experience the answer to the question that I had asked Arnaud regarding his ability to guide me.

It took time before I could really feel the blessing which underlies everything and guides us through the vicissitudes of our lives.”

ROSE VOLCKHAUSEN

Working for almost 30 years on the spiritual path of Western Bauls, under the close guidance of the spiritual master Lee Lozowick, Rose lives in the spiritual community Hohm Sahaj Mandir in Arizona, USA. Along with other community members, she is responsible for preserving and transmitting her master’s teaching and the Western Baul tradition worldwide. She was present in Romania in 2012, when she offered with Mirabai Lodro, Mary Young and Sharana Lhaksham the seminar on Conscious Parenting "Real Wisdom for Real Life". She offers lectures and seminars on how to integrate the principles of a conscious life, according to each person’s spiritual life, in all aspects of our daily life. She wrote the book "Journey", which traces her journey from political activism to a spiritual path and her work on the path with her teacher. She has been previously published in magazines and journals, including Country Women and Harper’s Weekly. She is a graduate of Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana, and was awarded membership in Phi Beta Kappa in 1971. After earning her M.A. in Counseling, she worked as a psychotherapist and taught as an adjunct professor in counseling psychology at a private college.

For more details on her master, Lee Lozowick, go to:

http://www.goodcompany.ro/eng/article/120/remembering-lee-lozowick