Tag: Best Yoga Articles
Let’s face it—arm balances are some of the hardest poses in a yoga class. If you’re like many yoga practitioners who aren’t mad about arm balances, you’re not alone. But once we understand that we are practicing principles in the form of poses, we can let go of trying to make perfect postures and actually […]
There’s a distinction between meditation and mindfulness. I’d qualify mindfulness as the act of being present with whatever task is at hand. Indeed meditation is an acute form of mindfulness but usually constitutes a more rigorous form of concentration or awareness. Regular meditation practice causes us to live in a very mindful way, doing regular […]
Practicing Pratyahara is a wonderful way to go deeper into your meditation and yoga practice. Here, I explain what Pratyahara is and some easy ways to practice with a breathing exercise and meditation technique so you too can expand your yoga experience. #yogabreathing
Mantra derives from the words Manis, meaning mind, and Tra, which is the beginning of the word to transcend. So, literally through your mind, you may transcend into deeper layers of knowing. Mantra #meditation brings extreme focus by repeating a word or phrase over and over again. Something magical happens when you engage your soul in this way. Here are my favorite #mantras.
What if our soul is, as poet Mary Oliver says, “pure light that shines where no one is”? In her poem (conveniently titled Poem), Mary Oliver speaks to the notion of the soul like this: “Airy and shapeless thing,/ it needs/ the metaphor of the body. . . to be understood/ to be more than […]
We’ve all heard about the benefits of #meditation. but did you know that meditation can actually make you more healthy and wealthy? Read on…
It’s Christmas, the celebration of Jesus Christ’s birth. Are there any connections between eastern thought and the story of Jesus’ birth? There are many ways to interpret the Bible regarding the teachings of and about Jesus and I to some degree or other, I subscribe to all of them. I believe that there is […]
Almost everybody talks to their pets, but it takes a special person to hear what their pets say in return. Maiccu Kostiainen lives in Finland and is an animal communicator and medium. That means that she intuitively communicates with animals, living and past, by understanding their thoughts, emotions, and energy. Maiccu’s unique gifts allow her […]
A simple but effective way of practicing Vidya, clear seeing, is by doing a simple form of meditation that I learned from my teachers and which I call the “There Is” Practice. You can do this anywhere and while doing anything. #meditation #mindfulness
The Yoga Sutras is a book written by an ancient yoga scholar, Patanjali, (200 CE) which outlines much of the philosophy of the practice of yoga. A major principle in the Yoga Sutras is the principle of Avidya, or misapprehension. In Sanskrit, the word Vidya means to see clearly. Avidya is the opposite of clear seeing. Unfortunately our human experience is rife with Avidya, this unclear seeing. I believe that one of our major lessons in this earthly existence is to learn to recognize our Avidya and enlighten ourselves by learning to see clearly.
Entering Sacred Space Something unique happens when we come to the yoga studio or sit on our meditation cushions. We close the door behind us, shutting the noisy world outside. We remove the dirt and insulation of our well-worn shoes, forgetting for a moment the path we have trodden to arrive. We take off our […]
One thing I’ve learned from life and from sages is that on the journey toward illumination, we must inevitably experience darkness, grief, and loss to some degree or other. Joy Larger than Joy Happiness Part of our understanding is to see the entire Universe, not only the parts which we translate as peachy. As we […]
Like everyone else, I try to make meaning of the relatively small time I enjoy walking on top of this earth instead of being buried beneath it. The poet Maria Tsvetaeva speaks to this perfectly when she says in her poem, I Know The Truth: I know the truth – give up all other truths! […]
I climb out of the car after 6 hours of freeway driving, fun traveling and an amazing change of scenery, and jump into a different landscape, a dark, cool, autumn evening. Summed up: short sleeves, short shorts, short run. The fragrant autumn air! I climb the hill near my house and run by past East […]
The crossroads is a magical place. It’s the place where the ethereal, spiritual, and philosophical meets the physical, real, and practical. Where these two roads intersect is the holy ground of transformation, it’s the place where we have to drop our one-track thinking and see the many roads. Practicing yoga means to be at the […]
