Anita Grace Brown - Kamikaze Yogi: Christ, Yoga, and the Courage to Emerge

PRAISE FOR KAMIKAZE YOGI

What a delightful fusion of Yoga and Christianity! Fresh and funny, irreverently reverent, wise and empowering. Kamikaze Yogi is an accessible guide to reclaiming our inherent divinity and saying a fullbodied yes to life.

MIRABAI STARR , AUTHOR OF GOD OF LOVE AND WILD MERCY

This book, named in honor of a loved one lost too early to cancer, is written for those who yearn to befriend their true Self, which exists below ego. Leaning into Christian mysticism while drawing from Judaism, Hindu and Buddhist traditions, this book is simultaneously an interactive workbook and a memoir/spiritual journey. Perhaps it is better to say that Anitas spiritual journey, expressed with brutal honesty and tender vulnerability, is translated into a roadmap for others to follow, if they so choose. Readers are taken on a meandering, boundary-breaking pilgrimage, best traveled when presumptions and preconceived notions are checked at the door. Choose the sacred, when so many are scared; the repositioning of one letter, the reading of this book, may result in a profound, life-giving, shift.

REBECCA BRYAN , CONSULTANT AND NURSE

This book is an invitation that beckons healing. As a pastor and chaplain, I know we all need this comfy chair. Anita writes to the reader as though we are sitting in her home office or yoga studio doing this healing work. She asks deep, meaningful questions, while sharing her own vulnerable places and healing. She takes us on a voyage of the particularities of mind/body yokinghow we can honor the places in us that cannot be divided; the ones Jesus refers to. I found the following sentence almost musical, Though every cell has incredible intelligence, the heart is the center of our physical and spiritual life, an organ of ethereal perception. I will think of and hear my church organ differently. How beautiful a global congregation is that joins virtually with hearts and minds. Read this book! It is a gift during such a trying time. Breathe and unclench those jaws and drop your shoulders!

MONICA BANKS

Reading Kamikaze Yogi feels like a long, restorative chat with a trusted, straight-talking friend who loves you too much to let you stay imprisoned within the confines of your own closed mind. What a gift this book is! Anita Grace Brown empowers us to leave behind the grave clothes of our preconceptions about God, mysticism, our fellow humans, and even ourselves. Dont miss this book! There is life and light for every single one of us in these pages.

JASON ELAM , HOST, THE MESSY SPIRITUALITY PODCAST

Kamikaze Yogi is a provocative invitation to an embodied, East-meets- West path to awakening that focuses on redemption. Her own story of healing gives hope through an informative look at the chakra systems and a tutorial to everything yoga. This delightful book will take you on a journey of transformation that is helpful.

KAR L FOREHAN D , AUTHOR OF APPARENT FAITH AND THE TEA SHO P, AND CREATOR OF THE DESERT SANCTUARY

Riveting and heartfelt, Anita invites all on a journey of self-discoverya spiritual one in which Jesus is indeed the way, the truth, and the life; where yoga and mindfulness are pathways to experiencing the fullness of the abundant life God promises to every believer. In this masterpiece, Anitas captivating stories liberate the mind while inviting spirit to dance along and engage in activities that bring healing to the heart. Your inner child will thank you (this is the incarnation!) as peace saturates your soul and warmly embraces you in the here and now. Come, with open hearts, to receive, as Anita challenges each of us to embrace the sacred-body, soul, and spirit unified and steeped in divine love.

SIO WEDDERBURN , URBAN PROMISE INTERNATIONAL

I can feel the genuine,warm place in the authors heart. Kamikaze Yogi is a great, insightful read...graceful!

DONTE MOORE , PASTOR / FOUNDER BREAKTHROUGH MINISTRIES

Kamikaze Yogi

Christ, Yoga, and the Courage to Emerge

Anita Grace Brown

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Permission for wider usage of this material can be obtained through Shaia-Sophia House b

Copyright 2020 by Anita Grace Brown.

First Edition

Cover design and layout by Rafael Polendo (polendo.net)

Cover image courtesy of GraphicStock.com

ISBN 978-1-7348234-4-8

Published by Shaia-Sophia House

An imprint of Quoir

San Antonio, Texas, USA

www.ShaiaSophiaHouse.com

Dedicated to the fragile child within

and the warrior who liberates her.

I saw the angel in the marble

and carved until I set him free.

MICHEL ANGELO

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

It takes a village to raise a child. Its the same for a book. My sincere gratitude to all those who have tutored me in every aspect of life, without your influence, this work would never have started, let alone received its final punctuation mark.

wholly thankful, Jesus

your aliveness compels the journey

profound love for my husband, Bob

you steadfastly hold the key to my kite; together we create electricity

tremendous pride for my son, Luke

wisdom beyond your years: you challenge me to dreaming and, oh joy!

how you help me remember to have fun

glorious wonderment over my daughter, Rebecca

fiercely, sincerely, + wholeheartedly independent, you influence me to be the best version of myself

dearest Mom

you dreamed me into this place + space

precious Oma,

every breeze on my cheek reminds me of the love which you gave as a second mom+ a sister

the miracles of twelve babies I nannied

blissfully sharing your wide-eyed innocence

magnanimous pastor Ben, and the holy COH family

as prayer warriors, your capacity of divine witnesses to the waves of rising + falling is a living truth

dedicated friends: Liz, Renata, Heather, Cris, Mary Rita, Anne M,

Shikera

for walks + talks, texts + dreamsyou pace my heart

spectacularly recognized and remembered, Kyle Teschko you are the true meaning of kamikaze: divine wind

Sierra

my first soul beast, you are truly golden

Ryan K

you wisely told me the world needs me to bleed truth

Steve T & Mary L

my personal non-therapist therapists

Tippy

mentor extraordinaire, soulful sage

Bec

the gifter of Wild Goose Spirit

reaching out to the anonymous

thank you to the pastor who tried to exorcise my sexuality for without Jesus redeeming of this violation,

I would not enjoy the wholeness of womanhood

literary blessings, Marie

the yang to my yin, lightly landing my words on earth

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PROLOGUE

Its a late May day

fierce winds as if March

no sign of the sun

Im at my in-laws beach house

to finish what God started

over two years ago:

this book

Last week

our 22-year-old daughter

graduated with high honors

on a full scholarship from Syracuse University

because of the pandemic