Category: Blog

A disappointing week in Mumbai, with record rainfall and flooding due to rising sea levels. And Lama D’s US visa application rejected in a 10-second interview, no reason given. So I’m coming to Santa Fe alone, and he is staying in Asia. I’m here until November 6th. My USA number for this period is 505-930-2745. We dressed for breakfast on my departure day in our Bhutanese dress. We are both fine. Mumbai recorded “extremely heavy” rain this monsoon, when over 200mm of downpour lashed the city within a 24-hour span and disrupted daily life. The numbers are worthy of Swedish…

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I am seeking a publisher for six book products. The proposals are in three pdf links below. Thank you for your consideration. Srijana /Jane Barthelemy Website: FiveSeasonsMedicine.com Email: jane@fiveseasonsmedicine.com Faceboook: Sri Jana srijana1080 Bhutan: 975-1796-7830 USA: 505-930-2745 Buddha Speaks, Channeled Conversations with the Master. 36 chapters of advice from the Buddha. Buddha Speaks, Illustrated Quotes for Children and Adults. 36 quotes direct from ancient writings, with images. Buddha Speaks, Oracle cards. 54 colorful cards with authentic quotes to uplift and guide Buddhists and non-Buddhists. Buddha Speaks, Weekly Oracle Planner. 52 weeks of inspiring quotes, with Srijana’s original art images. Heal…

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Lama D and I are relaxing for a few days in Ganeshpuri, India at the beautiful Fire Mountain Retreat Center. I’m doing my best to keep up the weekly blog, however internet is spotty here, so please be patient. Ganeshpuri is the city of Ganesh, and home of my root guru, Swami Bhagawan Nityananda. This very unusual sadguru (enlightened saint) wandered in India and the Himalayas, eventually settling in a jungle hot springs of Ganeshpuri until his passing in 1961. This beautiful video shows the history and beauty of Fire Mountain Retreat Center where we are staying. Everywhere he went,…

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Called the ‘Mountain Smoke Offering’. Lama Dungtsho does the Puja for Riwo Sangchöd. Riwo Sangchöd means ‘An unceasing offering to the mountain gods’, but it is much more than that. It is a ceremony, a puja or practice of generosity and offering that frees your heart and inspires generosity to others. It is a practice of prosperity that also brings confidence. It is a practice of healing through which we repay all our karmic debts and heal our relationships. Riwo Sangchöd is also a practice of purification in which all our obscurations are purified and burned away in the sweet…

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For years I planned to write a memoir of my life. Maybe it would be interesting for others to read. Now I see it’s impossible. Life moves too fast. Living every moment with awareness and appreciation makes our lives full of amazing wonders and miracles. How can we begin to understand, let alone alone write them down? Lama D and I are in Mumbai working on his visa to the US. By a stoke of luck we found a cyber cafe at the US embassy staffed by brilliant Indians who teamed up to help us complete the complex application form…

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Hi everybody, I didn’t want to miss the blog this week. But I’m not sure what to say. I am fine, that is sure. I am in an undisclosed location, working on an undisclosed project. All pieces are in the air. Maybe they’re permanently in orbit, I’m not sure. Details will follow. Please don’t worry. My temporary mental shift is indicated by the images below as best I can explain. I repeat – I am quite fine. I send you my warmest regards, and promise to be in touch when the moving pieces come to rest in somewhat recognizable positions.…

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Hi everyone. We are planning a trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico in mid October and November. Stay tuned for more details. Yes, we will be looking for a place to stay, and we will need a car. But first, we need to get Lama D’s visa approved. There are piles and piles of paperwork required for a Bhutanese, and we’re almost finished! Everything looks good for a short-term visa. Lama D and I are here with a friend in his jewelry store. Lunch on the front steps of our house today is curried vegetables. Yummy! The view of Paro…

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This is an excerpt from my book proposal “Footprints of the Enlightened Ones”. Sending warm greetings. All is well here. I’m grateful for lovely summer weather in the forests of Paro. There are secrets in the mountains of Bhutan. And deep memories in flesh and blood. Not sure where to begin my story. But before I can tell you about the Tshechu dancers, we have to go back to the 8th century to meet the famous Guru Rinpoche. Even his name conjures a link between Indian “Guru” and Tibetan “Rinpoche” traditions. Yes, he was both. Padmasambhava traveled far and wide, meditating…

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Well, today I finally finished ALL my book proposals. The last proposal was for the Bhutan Travel Cookbook, which I decided to call “Footprints of the Enlightened Ones”. This one was a challenge, including sample chapters and 75 MB of 90 pages in Word. I believe it will be a lovely book, like a multi-media portal into the Soul of Bhutan through memoir, stories, photos, and food flavors. All is well and I’m feeling a bit tired. Now I’m actively looking for an agent and publisher. All my book proposals are online here.  Buddha Speaks, Channeled Conversations with the Master.…

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Who is Padmasambhava? The energy of Padmasambhava is very strong in Bhutan. His special vibration is one of the main reasons I’m here, since he’s been present in my meditations for a long time. Padmasambhava is said to have been born about 700 years after Christ in the NW Indian province of Oḍḍiyāna. He traveled and studied with many great Indian masters, and was able to purify negative obstacles in Tibet and Bhutan to make way for the great tantric schools of Tibetan Buddhism. This was part of a shift away from Bön Buddhism that lasted many centuries. Statues of Padmasambhava can…

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