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Courtesy of the Huffington Post.
By Marianne Williamson
I hear a lot of people say we have to wake people up… convince them of the urgency of this moment… make them realize that the planet is headed for disaster!
But I don’t see it that way. Anybody who needs to be woken up at this point is so deeply asleep that they’re not the target audience for global activism. We don’t need to wake the sleeping so much as we need to harness the energy of those who are already awake. Enough people know we’re in trouble; what [read more...]
I always value Aadil’s perspective. When we can learn to accept our participation in the problem, we will have the power to change our course.
In Purna Yoga, everything — from the greatest disasters, to personal challenges, to the seeming insignificance of breaking a glass — must be viewed through the yogic perspective of cause and effect, so that we may take personal responsibility for our lives. Purna Yoga teaches us to look at each of our actions, thoughts, and feelings and to take full ownership of our choices and their effect upon the world.
When we break a glass, it may be [read more...]
“Vi” = in a special way
“nyasa” = to place
“krama” = step by step
Change is challenging.
When confronted with change, it’s easy to get swept up in anxiety, discomfort, depression, or panic. We distract ourselves, or seethe as we create a million contingency plans. We cling to our “creature comforts” – those small habits we’ve created that anchor us in an easy ride of familiarity, that soothe us when we get ragged around the edges.
So how can we cope?
While she was going through a particular challenging time, my Mum said to me, “It’s not one day at at time, honey. It’s [read more...]
From the New York Times. Some food for thought: What is yoga? What is your yoga community? Does it reflect what you need? As a side note, Yoga for the People, based on Gumucio’s model, is now here in Vancouver.
ZEN is expensive. The flattering Groove pants, Lululemon’s answer to Spanx, may set Luluheads, the devoted followers of the yoga-apparel brand, back $108. Manduka yoga mats, favored for their slip resistance and thickness, can reach $100 for a limited-edition version. Drop-in classes at yoga studios in New York are edging beyond $20 a session, which quickly adds [read more...]
A great article on caring for your shoulders in yoga class, from Yoga Journal.
Shoulder injuries are common among yogis, but they don’t have to be. Here’s how to care for your shoulders, not tear them down.
Trish Jones knew trouble was brewing when her right shoulder began to throb during her favorite yoga class. The 29-year-old was no stranger to such pain. She had suffered from unstable shoulder joints for years. Her doctors call it “multidirectional instability,” but Jones refers to it as “having loose nuts and bolts.” So loose that in 1995 she had [read more...]
A great article from the New York Times Magazine about the possible benefits that we actually derive from having the blues. Depression may not feel good, but maybe there’s a glimmer of a lining.
The Victorians had many names for depression, and Charles Darwin used them all. There were his “fits” brought on by “excitements,” “flurries” leading to an “uncomfortable palpitation of the heart” and “air fatigues” that triggered his “head symptoms.” In one particularly pitiful letter, written to a specialist in “psychological medicine,” he confessed to “extreme spasmodic daily and nightly flatulence” and “hysterical crying” whenever Emma, his devoted wife, [read more...]
Why is it so hard to let go?
Of habits, relationships (healthy or toxic), of expectations, of dreams? Even when we know we’re hurting ourselves by hanging on, what drives the compulsion to keep gripping?
What do we do when old behavioral patterns no longer serve our life?
First of all, don’t beat yourself up.
In the transition stage between awareness and change lies a really sucky phase of awareness without change. It’s torturous. “Why do I do this?” “Why can’t I change this?” We lament. We tear out our hair. And we still don’t change. But now we’ve spiced up our situation by hating [read more...]
I loved this article from the NY Times Magazine. At some time or another, most of us have experienced a slide out of the comfort of our lives. Whether it’s been through trauma or an internal shift, we’ve experienced a descent that leaves us clutching our habits and stripped to the bone. Dominique’s journey reminds us that transformation does come, and that joy arrives in smaller packages than we might expect.
Losing It, by Dominique Browning, from the NY Times Magazine
For 12 years, I had a job I loved as the editor of House [read more...]
When I went traveling to India this last month with my mom, I packed everything in a small backpack, determined to be a minimalist. It was an experiment to see if I could really get away with traveling light. “Aren’t you impressed,” I asked my boyfriend. “I got everything into here!” I brandished my backpack proudly. He looked at my bag skeptically, “I’ll be impressed,” he said, “if you still think that was a good idea when you get back.”
Well, two weeks later and I’m happy to report that traveling light was an excellent idea. (Although my bag did come back [read more...]
I realized last week that trying too hard to lift my arms.
I was reaching my arms overhead in urdhva hastasana and – I thought – doing a pretty good job. I was straightening the arms, lifting through the sides of the waist, and (for once) not sticking my ribs at. Ah-ha, I thought, I’m DOING it! My teacher comes by and purses her lips at me. “Relax here, stop working so hard. Your collarbones are all tight.” She wiggles my fingers until my collarbones have space to breathe.
Hmmmm, now I seem to be doing much less. And it feels…better.
How many times [read more...]
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