Perfectionism is unforgiving.  The moment we waver or fall, we are besieged with judgments of “not being good enough,” “not trying hard enough,” or really, just sucking. When we practice balancing postures in yoga, we are immediately confronted by our unsteadiness.  We waver, we shift.  And if we’re trying something particularly new or challenging, we [...] [read more...]

America has elected Barak Obama as president. Yesterday, record numbers of voters seized the opportunity to let their voices be heard.  Today we have the first African-American president in our country’s history; a man whose voice rings out for change, sacrifice, and whose presence is a testimony to the potential of the American dream. Most [...] [read more...]

Anahata, the heart chakra, lies at the centre of the chakra system and unites the three base chakras with the three upper chakras.   It is the first chakra to take us into interaction with the rest of the world, our energy moving out and impacting our environment rather than being directed into our identity. The [...] [read more...]

On the first night of the Estes Park Yoga Jounral Conference, John Friend read aloud from the mission statement that he wrote eleven years ago when he first articulated the intention of Anusara Yoga.  The most striking piece of the statement was its emphasis on the community.  As he introduced each Anusara teacher who would [...] [read more...]

Sometimes it’s hard not to be Angelina Jolie. Last week’s cover of Vanity Fair depicts one of our cultural heros in full throttled pout: a decadent and ripe movie star oozing sex appeal and inhuman beauty.  Carousing in the upper echelons of the Hollywood elite, she travels the world, is partnered with an equally godlike [...] [read more...]

We first connect to the earth through our feet. Our balance, sense of self, and our “groundedness” with the big ol’ Earth is usually first transmitted through our feet’s dainty arches.  The more connected and rooted we are to the earth, the more stability and power we can access in our asana practice.  Through activating [...] [read more...]