It's hard to believe that a month has flown past since our site launch ~ and my first entry here! ~ but it has.   In addition to attending to all the holiday activities, I have been busy in that time getting my instruments page up, plus you will note the note (!) on opening the site of the awakening sound of tingshas followed by the sound of my largest jambati singing bowl first rimmed, and then struck...  such rich, juicy sounds!  Special thanks to my dream team, dear friends old and new ~ Annie for taking the photos of the instrument groupings, Gusty for bringing his expertise and incredible musical ear to recording and editing the sound clips, which were soooo much fun to play.  And of course great gratitude to Wendy, my lovely and brilliant webmaster, for putting it all together for the page.   It wouldn't be happening without you, hen!  Since it's possible to play multiple sound clips at once, I've had fun doing just that.   You might, too! 

I had already decided that I was going to write tonite when I got a message today from another dear friend, Norita, who wrote about rubymala, "I was enjoying the lovelyness of it all, and then I saw "... and occasional musings" and cracked up.  There's no occasional with you, we can get musings out of you by just pointing, grinning and asking you to throw the dice.  So, where are the musings?  Do I need to come over and type dictation for you?"  

HA.  Those would be my cosmodice she is referring to, which I do use to answer any manner of question, and yes to your offer of typing dictation!  

I do have a passion for questions, both asking and answering questions.  Further, I am well aware that there are different kinds of questions.  Sometimes someone asks a question because they want to know the answer, of course, but not all questions are this kind of question ~ sometimes there are other reasons the question is asked.  Sometimes someone asks a question that they know the answer to, and want the one asked to think about ~ and sometimes those questions are intended to put that one asked on the spot!  Other questions might be asked because the one asking wants to show how much they know, as revealed by the question.  Sometimes the one asking knows that both they and the one they ask knows the answer, and the asking gives a platform for the one asked to perform or provide information to others.  Then there are those questions that are asked to distract attention ~ kids can be brilliant with these at bedtime! 

And then there are those magical and powerful questions that when asked, open the crack between the worlds, or the way to awakening, healing, and transformation.  Questions like, "Whom does the Grail serve?"  

I came across one of these questions yesterday.  

"What would you do if you knew you couldn't fail?"

 Wow.  What a juicy, tantalizing question!  After rolling around with it for a while, this is what I came to.  I would compose the best music, and thru that music and also my voice, in singing, teaching, speaking, bring thru such clear imagery of light, consciousness, and awakening that all who hear would awaken and activate at the essence level, old conditioning would fall away as if awakening from a dream, and hearts and minds would open to the radiant enlightenment of the Oneness of all that is, with compassion, joy, peace, and Love.  I realized that is what I am working and playing to do, to the best of my capacity.  Em Ah Ho! 

What would you do if you knew you couldn't fail?

love,
janis

hmm, an afterthought here.... this is a pretty good expression of the Buddhist altruistic and compassionate aspiration known as bodhicitta.

"The bodhichitta aspiration is twofold, comprised both of the wish to help others and of the wish to become enlightened so that one's assistance will be supremely effective."

—from Essence of the Heart Sutra: The Dalai Lama's Heart of Wisdom Teachings by H.H. the Dalai Lama