Tag: Best Yoga Articles
The Samkhya school of classical yoga philosophy describes the universe and all its qualities using three main humors, called gunas. These are Rajas, Tamas, Sattva. Everything in the Universe from seasons to personalities demonstrates some combination of these gunas. Understanding the ancient but basic principle of the gunas can help you live a life that […]
Guilty I found myself guilty of a serious offense. I didn’t understand the seriousness of this offense until I saw others doing it. There I was. In Paris. In the Louvre, arguably the finest art museum in the entire world. I stepped into the room where the legendary Mona Lisa is enshrined on her own […]
The Refiner’s Fire The refiner’s fire comes in many forms. Sometimes you choose the fire and other times the fire chooses you. The fire could be a yoga class, a journey, a ceremony, an illness, a divorce, a new job, a birth, or a death. I can almost guarantee that over the course of your […]
The Yoga of Sleep I absolutely love Yoga Nidra! Yoga Nidra is the transformation so-called “yoga of sleep,” a very approachable yet effective way of experiencing the Oneness of your being through the process of a relaxing journey through deepening layers of Awareness. Yoga Nidra acts kind of like a guided meditation, where practitioners lie […]
Avery simple but effective way to practice mediation is to focus on your breath. In fact, breath is a very common anchor to meditation throughout many different styles and disciplines of meditation. In part this is because your breath is such a fundamental part of your energy, vitality, and life. It’s also because your breath […]
A Time to Come Inside So close to the Winter Solstice, the day that the sun stands still on the horizon, where the days are the shortest and the nights are the longest, it only makes sense to consider going inside. This means spending more time indoors but also spending more time in our […]
Turning Inward When it turns cold outside it’s time to come inside. The Medicine Wheel in Native American spirituality uses the direction north and the season of the winter to invite us to hibernate, draw inward, and reflect on our deeper and true wisdom. One way to think of this true wisdom is the instinctual […]
Why do we love tragedies? Why do we love a good cry? Why do we subject ourselves to it? I mean, really?! Why do we do it to ourselves? Why do we like things that aren’t all roses and laughs? Maybe it’s because what is most satisfying in life isn’t being happy. That’s what […]
“Ring the bells that still can ring. Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.” ~Leonard Cohen Brilliant. Like the grain of sand that makes becomes the oyster so too is the illness, the imperfection, or the improbable life-circumstances that beset us and therefore makes […]
Power of Intentions Intentions are powerful. Salkalpa is the Sanskrit word for our intention and could be compared to planting a seed. Just like a seed, we must be aware of what we are planting and nourish that seed to see that intention manifest in our world. Setting intentions has everything to do with what […]
My teacher once said, “When you understand something all the way down to its core, you understand everything else.” This is one of those time-lapsed lessons, like a photo of the night sky, taken over several hours that shows you in one shot what actually takes a long time to occur. The Gayatri mantra […]
Ayurveda is the fascinating and practical science that studies the world and how we can best come into harmony with this world. It is the sister-science of yoga and is a practical observational science that puts you into the driver’s seat of your own wellness. What I love about Ayurveda is that while it […]
For those who have not heard of this perfect Italian dessert, let me explain: An affogato is espresso—aromatic, rich, and earthy—in a cup large enough to accompany a dollop of delicious, sweet, and creamy gelato. Delizioso!
In the same way I’d align my body in #yoga practice, I align all the members of my kitchen. I boil the carrots before the squash to get the texture right. I cut and cook before I clean. At the end, this knife goes here, this plate there. I stretch and reach to put away the tall glasses in the top of the cupboard. I squat to put away the heavy pot in the drawer beneath the stove. My body knows what to do next, accustomed to this ritual.
“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” And so he did. This was Muhammad Ali’s mantra. Perhaps yoga and mindfulness isn’t often associated with Muhammad Ali, yoga’s first principle of non-harming and all that, but he was someone who was particularly adroit in his use of the yogic principle of mantra and visualization. His […]
