What Nobody Tells You About Yoga by Laura Stumpf

When people tell their friends to try yoga, they always say, “You’ll feel so good! I’m always so relaxed after yoga.”

What they don’t tell you is that sometimes, yoga makes you feel like shit.

Some yogis say that emotions are stored in the body, that memories linger on in cells stored deep in our muscles. When we go into a yoga pose and open a part of the body that has been mostly left alone until then, we stretch and release muscles that have gone unnoticed for years. We release tension, and in the process release memories and emotions that were stored in childhood, and have quietly slept deep in our bones ever since.

So one minute you may be lying on your back, enjoying happy baby, and the next minute you are flooded with rage and want to punch a baby in the face. You have no idea what triggered it, there is no reason to be feeling this emotion now, but it’s here and it’s real and it has to be worked through.

I’m not sure if I think emotions are stored in our muscles, but it makes perfect sense to me that yoga brings up emotions. In our practice, we learn to control our breath, to calm our minds, to help our bodies unwind. At first, this is great—we sleep better at night, we’re less stressed, and we feel great having released the tension from our shoulders. We learn to cope with our day-to-day stress, to release the muscles we have tensed up with our daily activities.

On the surface, everything is going great. But we are multidimensional beings, with long emotional histories. We have been sad and scared and lonely in the past, and we have suppressed old scars and defeats and humiliations just to be able to function in our everyday lives.

As we learn to connect to our breath, yoga starts working more efficiently.

Stress, anxiety, tension—wiped out! So it starts working on the backlog, trying to sort through some of that old mess, so you can finally unclutter your innermost being. Things you haven’t thought about in years suddenly rise up in Warrior II, and you can’t stop crying in Savasana because you’re infinitely sad and have no idea why.

It’s easy to feel like a lunatic when one of these emotional tidal waves strikes in the middle of yoga class. Nobody warned me about this phenomenon, and the first time I experienced it I was worrying about what other people thought of the tears running down my face instead of being present and feeling.

In Savasana, I lay on the floor, looking up at my teacher with teary eyes, pleading for an explanation. She just smiled and whispered, “It feels good to let it out.” Once she had given me permission to give in to the experience, my muscles immediately relaxed. I closed my eyes and felt the tears running down my face, and I felt all the sadness emptying out of my body. I felt so deeply relieved and peaceful.

I will always be grateful to that yoga instructor. She gave me a place where it was safe to feel all of the stress that had been accumulating in my life, to surrender, and to let it go.

It’s a cathartic process.

In the moment, it sucks. It sucks to feel sad, to feel angry, to feel pain. But at the same time, it feels really good to finally, fully feel. If you can create a safe space for yourself, in your body—to experience these emotions without judging, just accepting whatever comes up, and riding the wave—you, my friend, are really doing yoga. Your practice is far more advanced than the man who can put his feet behind his head.

The more we release our pasts, the more we are able to be present and enjoy everything that this moment has to offer.

So don’t try to hold back your tears, and don’t tell yourself that you’re being ridiculous the next time pigeon pose makes you want to bawl your eyes out. Remember, if yoga makes you feel like shit, that just means it’s working

Only Love

There are four questions of value in life.  What is sacred?

Of what is Spirit made?  What is worth living for and what is worth dying for?  

The answer to all of them is the same. 

 Only love.

Johnny Depp

New Year New Goal

It’s that time of the year again.

Year’s Resolutions are being made. You’re anticipating all sorts of good changes and improvements. You’ve got your goals all mapped out and you’re feeling amped to watch the magic unfold.
But hold on there ambitious one. If you’re gonna play your cards right, there’s one thing you absolutely MUST understand. And that is…
 The difference between goal setting and goal GETTING.
My guess is the latter is what you’re after.  I mean, sure, it’s fun to set an intention or make a bold declaration, but when it’s all said and done, you want to enjoy the unfolding, the adventure of the journey, and of course the results that conscious creation and clear intentions can bring you, yes?  Good.
Okay, so let’s say that you’re “pre-paving” a year down the road.

• You’re anticipating that you’ll be more joyful and clear minded in your relationships.
• You’re anticipating radiant health and a stronger body.
• You’re anticipating more ease with your finances.

 This is all really really good.
Why?  Because something magical happens when you project into your future experience like this - you launch a rocket of desire that the Universe actualizes around.
To put it another way: YOU, as a powerful creator, here living your life, will (over the next year) undoubtedly experience all sorts of variety and contrast and give birth to all kinds of new preferences, hopes and dreams.
And when you do (and when you allow yourself to ride that current of desire and feel good  while anticipating your success in this new endeavor) the energy that creates worlds, that living “star-stuff” that makes up the Universe, will indeed take the shape of, become, and deliver to you, an exact match to that desire.
 It’s kind of a big deal.
So I encourage you to be incredibly DELIBERATE about this whole Resolution business. After all, what you have here, laid out before you, is a fresh clean slate. This is your opportunity to align with the energy of your boldest, purest desires, to turn up the passion and unleash your creative potential like never before.
But, as I mentioned, we Conscious Creators know that there’s a major distinction between “goal setting” and “goal getting” - and it is crucial to recognize the difference between the two and how they MUST work in tandem if they’re going to work at all. The first method is:
 Traditional Goal Setting
Think back. Did you set goals for this past year? If so, how many of them came to fruition?
This practice of sitting down to map out your goals and intentions for the new year does offer many benefits, for in the process of setting your goals you:

1. gain clarity about what you want,
2. focus energy in that direction, and
3. let go of old baggage or outdated intentions previously set into motion so that you can create space for future outcomes.

 From an energetic or vibrational perspective, however, this method has its drawbacks.

• For one, it’s incomplete. If the achievement of your goal relies too heavily on action steps (versus energetic alignment as the MAIN factor), it is likely that you’ll expend way too much energy and wear yourself out early on in the game - after all, you’ll be missing out on the leverage that aligned thoughts would’ve otherwise awarded you and you’ll have to “work” 10 times as hard to achieve 1/10th of the results. And since like attracts like and what you focus on expands, this heavy, draining energy tends to be self-reinforcing and can lead you to abandon your goals before February even begins.
• On top of that, in traditional goal setting we’re often encouraged to be overly specific, especially on the HOW TO part. Unfortunately, when we narrow our focus to such a specific strategy or outcome, we don’t leave any room for positive surprises or for the highest good to come to us in a slightly different package.
• Most significantly, in traditional goal setting when we make lists of our new goals, we’re typically doing so while focused upon our current “problems” or areas of lack. This focus actually reinforces our experience of a gap between where we are and where we desire to be, which may push the goal even farther away.

According to Universal Law, this happens because if we are not in vibrational harmony with our goals, no amount of efforting, struggling or striving will draw them to us.
Therefore, traditional goal setting on its own won’t get you where you want to go (at least NOT in the most joyful and efficient way). But couple it with the second method - which we’ll cover next - and you’ve got a winning combination.
 Goal Getting
In a nutshell, it basically consists of spending a fair amount of time achieving energetic alignment with the things, people, opportunities and experiences that you would most like to attract into your life - and you do this before your goal setting session, during the action-step process, and essentially anytime you want to FEEL GOOD and increase your chances of success.
To break this “energetic alignment” thing down even further, you might think of it as a 3-step Intentional Creation process:

1. Ask for what you want in the most powerful way (FOCUS ON WHY YOU WANT IT, NOT HOW YOU’RE GOING TO GET IT)
2. Move into an energy state that is a match to what you want to receive (FEEL GOOD WHILE YOU ANTICIPATE IT)
3. Maintain that high vibration so that what you want can find its way to you. (THINK, SAY & DO THINGS THAT WILL KEEP YOU FEELING GOOD AND ANTICIPATING IT)

 Happy New Year! Om Shannnnti!

Affirmations for 2013

In Yoga class we usually start by setting a Samkalpa...an intention for our practice.  As the new year rings in it's a time to set longer intentions,  goals or affirmations.  Here's some tips to help your affirmations be more effective.  

Happy New Year!

Think about things in your life you want to improve. The best way to create affirmations is to consider areas of your life that you would like to improve.  Would you like to practice more yoga ?  Do you want to have a closer relationship with your mother, brother or sister?  Would you like to feel better about your self image?  Spend some time thinking about areas of improvement and jot them down.  Be clear about your goals and this will help in making them a reality.

Keep your affirmations focused and believable. Based on the list that you have written, choose what you want now.  Be clear with yourself.  It is even more important to keep your affirmation believable… don’t set yourself up for failure.  So, instead of saying “I want to lose 10, 20, 30lbs.,” you are better off saying “I am on my way to a more healthy body by losing weight and exercising regularly.”  Essentially, it is important to draw a line between your wants and your feelings.  You want to lose a certain amount of weight, but this want stems from the desire to feel better about yourself.  The feeling is the focus.

Always state your affirmations in the present tense. Tell your mind that your desire is actually already the reality.  If you use words like “I will” or “I am going to,” then what you are really doing is postponing the attainment of your goal.  If your affirmation is your reality, well then, you are already accomplishing it!  “I have a loving relationship with my mother” is much more positive for your mind than to say you will have this type of a relationship with mom.  By saying you will, you give yourself the opportunity to postpone that difficult first step with her.  Tell yourself you already have this positive relationship with mom, and you are already halfway there to achieving it.  Our minds are incredible gifts that have the power to make our goals a reality.

Always keep your affirmations brief and simple. Formulate your affirmations in your own language, speak to yourself the way you speak all the time.  Don’t use long sentences or big words because this only counteracts the ability to remember them… and repeat them.

Repeat them daily and say them out loud. Preferably in front of the mirror.  You will be shocked at how awkward you feel when doing this the first few times… but DO IT!  It forces you to believe in yourself! And it's worth a giggle or two ;-)

Write them down. And refer to them often.  It’s also a great idea to keep them in a visible place… in your office, or taped on the bathroom mirror or your closet door.

Remember you can never make an affirmation for another person. As much as we might want to make positive statements about another person in the hopes of changing them to fit our expectations, we must learn, immediately, that we can never change another human being.  We only have control to change ourselves.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, Let go of your expectations. ...of yourself and others.  Life can get in the way of life…it can get in the way of our affirmations.  Trying to control everything that happens in your lives will not bring us closer to attaining our goals or affirmations any sooner.  In fact, it might actually hinder you.  If you are constantly focused on a particular obstacle or occurrence that goes against your affirmations, you will surely lose focus.  Stay open, be free and accept what life brings to us, even its’ challenges.  This way you are able to continue to focus on what IS positive in your life.  And affirmations are ALWAYS positive!

The Article That Will Never Die...

Six Reasons To Ignore The 'New York Times' Yoga Article

By Sarah Miller | January 11, 2012

That New York Times Magazine's article on the dangers of yoga has made a lot of people mad. It didn’t really make me mad—I do too much yoga to get mad, though I do still sniff disdainfully—but I did want to address why many of the arguments in it are totally lame.

1. The Times' health coverage often gives way to local news-flavored hysteria. You can’t expect the Sort of People Who Tend to Read The Times to freak out about Amber Alerts and Child Molesters. The readership simply isn’t concerned with anything that has no direct effect on them, unless that thing is cool (design), epic in scale (Nicholas Kristof) or risible (Tom Friedman). About the only thing that will get upper-middle-class coast dwellers into a frenzy is the idea—the word 'fact' is so black and white, n’est-ce pas?—that Some Day They Are Going To Fucking Die. Like to exercise a lot? That might MAKE YOU DIE. Do you just like to walk leisurely? Is that what you enjoy? Too bad for you, because if you don’t get your heart rate to 96 percent capacity, fourteen minutes a day, eight times in a 15-day cycle, YOU ARE GOING TO DIE. Guess what else? If you don’t have hot sex enough with someone who also loves you and pays your bills and who has the same values as you (good luck with that one!), your brain will stop secreting a certain hormone and you WILL DIE. If you do not make this beet green pasta dish like Mark Bittman made and get this special trace mineral found in beet greens that’s the only thing that feeds your liver oxygen, YOU ARE ALSO GOING TO DIE. This yoga article—actually, an excerpt from a book by Times reporter William J. Broad—is in this tradition. It finds subjects with genuine, perfectly reasonable things to say and a few suspect anecdotes and by the time a little Science (said in Thomas Dolby voice) is thrown in (some of this science is from 1972!) everyone has run away screaming at the top of their lungs: "Yoga, noooo! I’d be better off smoking crack and turning tricks outside Benito’s."

2. Yes, you can get injured doing yoga; you can also get injured walking across the street. People tell you all kinds of crazy shit about how they hurt themselves. "I was taking out the trash," "I was raking leaves," "I was vacuuming with a vacuum cleaner I don’t normally use.” The cures are often even more ridiculous than the causes. “I got a new pillow filled with millet." "I got a dog leash with a wider strap," "I did a watermelon basil enema—and it’s gone. No, not my entire asshole, dummy, my hip pain!" Who in this world has not been flat on their back and suddenly gotten a check for 5k or a promising phone call from someone hot and leapt up, miraculously cured, ready for shopping and hand jobs? Which is not to say that no one ever gets hurt in yoga. Of course they do. I have pulled a groin muscle, a shoulder muscle, a pectoral muscle. (I once got a nasty sore throat yelling at Jivamukti’s assistant manager when she let someone else take my vintage Pucci tights out of the lost and found.) But seriously. What is life but a series of mundane moments, punctuated by hazards? Someone once told me he ruptured a cervical disc reaching out to pick a piece of lint off a friend. The Times headline for this would have been “When Sweaters Are Not Just Warm.” And yes, this person was gay. I’m certain the gesture could have been a bit less operatic.

3. Let's let this one speak for itself. “In one case, a male college student, after more than a year of doing yoga, decided to intensify his practice. He would sit upright on his heels in a kneeling position known as vajrasana for hours a day, chanting for world peace. Soon he was experiencing difficulty walking, running and climbing stairs.” Oh my god. That is so weird! I can’t believe someone would sit for hours a day, days on end, in one position and get hurt. That reminds me of the time I sat around in my house eating Twinkies for hours and hours, chanting for world peace. Soon I was experiencing being really fat.

4. Did yoga really cause that stroke/aneurysm? One example in the article comes from 1972. A woman went into wheel pose, in which she rested on her head, and then had a stroke. Another guy did headstand every day and had a stroke. Well, a lot of people suffer heart attacks having sex or running, but isn’t this because their hearts are already fucked and they have sex or go running and their heart’s like, Okay, here we are, it’s go time? Isn’t it very likely that the moment that these people were doing these things was the moment that they had a stroke, and if not, well, why aren’t classes just full of people having strokes? I’d also like to add that my aunt died of a stroke too, and no one wrote an article about how eating Stouffer’s creamed chip beef and being married to a drunk asshole with orange hair causes strokes. Sometimes people just have strokes. My sound medical opinion on this is, “Better you than me.” And you know, if these people did get strokes from yoga, they were putting extreme amounts of weight on their head. There is an easy way to avoid this. Do kundalini yoga, which is headstand-free. Or merely do not do headstand. You will miss about .001 percent of what goes on in the average yoga class.

5. This article is actually more about how no one should go to a bad yoga teacher, but, you know, who would want to read an article about that? This article focuses on Glenn Black, a yoga teacher whose own injuries forced him to evaluate both the teaching and practice of yoga. He mentions “teachers jumping on people, pushing and pulling and saying, 'You should be able to do this by now.'” Well. I don’t want to go to class with any of these people either, but the existence of bad yoga teachers comes neither as a surprise to me nor some sort of proof that the practice itself is flawed. I have never been shocked to come across bad teachers, bad policemen, bad psychologists (are there any good ones? Please let me know), bad dry cleaners or bad restaurants. I’d rather go to a bad yoga class than a bad restaurant. At least you can take a nap. There’s a way to avoid doing stuff you don’t want to do in class, and it’s called 'having boundaries.' If your yoga teacher looks like they might jump on you—and whimsical hair style, body odor and overuse of the word "magic" would all be danger signs—approach them before class and ask which side of the room is for people who dislike being jumped on.

6. What’s wrong with yoga is not yoga. According to Paramahansa Yogananda, author of the yoga classic and all-around great read Autobiography of a Yogi, Kriya Yoga was well-known in ancient India, but was eventually lost, due to "priestly secrecy and man’s indifference." If we lose yoga it will also be a one-two punch, from different forces. One will be because we let the idea that we don’t really know our limitations—this is a core idea of yoga—translate into fantasies about how we can do a backbend even though we’re fifty and kind of fat, because hey, to believe it is to be it, etc. Combine this misuse of yogic philosophy with our capacity for senseless competitiveness and fear of being old, or ugly, or anything but the best, and yes, you’ve got a good recipe for injury. But if you think of yoga as a great way to breathe more, well, you’re not going to get hurt.

I'm sure Glenn Black is a great teacher and a great guy. And hey, I’m not about to trash some guy who just had his vertebrae fused. But I do marvel at his account of having put himself through 18 years of painful backbends. How did he do yoga for so long and think that doing a freaking backbend was really so important? If I lost my legs and arms and was being dragged around on a skateboard, I would still do yoga. To quote the Bhagavad Gita (and yes, I got this from Wikipedia), yoga happens when we are "[o]ffering inhaling breath into the outgoing breath, and offering the outgoing breath into the inhaling breath." Whether you hate the word Universe or love it (I have mixed feelings) I assure you it does not give rewards for enduring physical pain. It does, however, seem to give some rewards for learning to recognize yourself as a mere speck in its enormous scope and yet somehow representative of its totality while also seeing the same in others. Which is why it would kind of make me sad if people read this Times article and decided that the elliptical was a better way to unwind after work. Not that I have anything against ellipticals—though I have a sneaking suspicion the Universe may actually frown upon them.

You don’t have to stand on your head to see what’s left of you when everything else is gone, and it's something you should really take time to find out. Just in case The Times is onto something with this whole death thing.




Copyrighting Yoga

I have always thought that Yoga should be available to everyone, and that the privatizing of a particular style or technique was like privatizing the air we breathe. It just doesn't make sense. Seems that the U.S. Justice system agrees. Yoga on everyone!

Yoga Pose Copyright Bid Too Much of a Stretch, U.S. Says in Bikram Battle

By Ellen Rosen - Dec 10, 2011 12:39 AM CT Sat Dec 10 06:39:37 GMT 2011

Yoga poses such as head-to-knee stretches and the sequences of the moves are “exercises” rather than “choreography” and can’t be copyrighted in the U.S., regulators said.

The U.S. Copyright Office previously permitted yoga poses and their sequences to be registered, even if those exercises were in the public domain, Laura Lee Fischer, acting chief of the office’s Performing Arts Division, said in response to an inquiry by an attorney involved in lawsuits the founder of Bikram Yoga filed against three yoga studios.

The office reviewed the legislative history of the copyright law and decided that exercises, including yoga, “do not constitute the subject matter that Congress intended to protect as choreography,” Fischer said in an e-mail. “We will not register such exercises (including yoga movements), whether described as exercises or as selection and ordering of movements.”

The e-mail is contained in a response filed yesterday to Bikram’s Yoga College of India’s complaint against New York- based Yoga to the People. Washington lawyer Elliott Alderman, assisting defense attorney Jordan Susman and Harvard Law School professor William Fisher, sought the determination from the Copyright Office.

Evolation Yoga, with studios in cities including Buffalo and Brooklyn, New York, and Yen Yoga, in Traverse City, Michigan, also were sued. All three lawsuits were filed in federal court in Los Angeles.

Validity Presumption

Robert Gilchrest, a lawyer at Silverman Sclar Shin & Byrne PLLC in Los Angeles who represents Bikram Yoga and its founder, Bikram Choudhury, said the e-mail shouldn’t affect his case because Choudhury already had registered a copyright for a book containing his yoga sequence.

“There is a presumption that when a copyright is issued, it is valid,” Gilchrest said. He said the Copyright Office has issued “hundreds of copyrights for exercise videos, but now they’re saying they’re looking at it again and they’ve changed their mind? It is meaningless to this litigation.”

The Copyright Office decision won’t put an end to the litigation because the suits also claim trademark infringement and violation of the teacher-certification agreements.

Breathing Exercises

Choudhury and his affiliated Bikram Yoga studios teach a strictly regimented type of yoga that lasts for 90 minutes and includes 26 poses, two breathing exercises and a scripted dialogue in a room that is heated to 105 degrees. Yoga to the People founder Greg Gumucio was a former student of Choudhury, as were some of the instructors at Evolation and Yen Yoga.

Choudhury said in his complaint that each studio violated his copyrights and trademarks as well as limitations on how and where his students can teach his method.

Susman and Fisher, who represent Yoga to the People and Gumucio, said yoga sequences and poses can’t be copyrighted. The defendants said the hot yoga they offer differs from Bikram yoga. Each studio offers other types of yoga as well.

Gumucio created a website, www.yogatruth.org, and has almost 8,000 signatures of people who agree yoga shouldn’t “be privatized.”

The case is Bikram’s Yoga College of India L.P. v. Yoga to the People, Inc., 11-cv-07998, U.S. District Court, Central District of California (Los Angeles). The other cases filed are Bikram’s Yoga College of India L.P. v. Raiz, 11-cv-7377, U.S. District Court, Central District of California (Los Angeles) and Bikram’s Yoga College of India L.P. v. Evolation Yoga LLC., 11- cv-05506, U.S. District Court, Central District of California

Live In Joy

Live in Joy, in Love, even among those who hate. Live in Joy, in Health, even among the afflicted. Live in Joy, in Peace, even among the troubled. Look within. Be still. Live free from fear and attachment and know the sweet joy of the way. Buddha

Monthly Closing

Many people have asked for the closing statements that I use in class to be posted so they can copy them. Here is this months...

With every breath I take today...I vow to be awake. And with every step I take today...I vow to take with an open heart. So that I may see with eyes of love into the hearts of all I meet. To ease their burden when I can....and to touch them with a smile of peace.

Author Unknown.

Welcome to Fall

Another summer has come, shared her immense beauty with us, and is now packing her bags. As we enter into the fall season remember that this is a wonderful time to deepen your yoga practice.

The days become shorter, encouraging us to become more introspective. The temperature becomes cooler allowing us to explore our own internal radiant fire with more gusto. The air is crisper and cleaner allowing us to practice our pranayama techniques with new vigor...

Although it is often hard to say goodbye to summer, each season, (yes even winter) brings with it a chance of renewal and excitement. May you find this approaching season filling you with purpose and joy......

"Summer is already better, but the best is autumn.

It is mature, reasonable and serious, it glows

moderately and not frivolously ... It cools down,

clears up, makes you reasonable ...

- Valentin

Look Well To This Day

Many of you have commented on the simple beauty of this and last months closing proverb. I'd like to post it for you so that it is yours whenever you want to refer to it. Enjoy

Look Well To This Day

Look well to this day for it is life

The very life of life

In it's brief course lie all the realities and verities of existence

The bliss of growth

The splendor of action

The glory of power

For yesterday is but a dream

And tomorrow is only a vision,

But today, well lived, makes every yesterday a dream of happiness

And every tomorrow a vision of hope

Look well, therefore, to THIS day

Resolve to Evolve

Give your New Year's resolutions a yogic twist—set an intention and infuse the New Year with positive change. By Catherine Guthrie

A new year's resolution is a noteworthy concept—start off the year with a change for the better. So how did it devolve into a subconscious exercise in self-loathing? Lose 10 pounds! (Message to self: You're fat.) Stop drinking caffeine! (You're unhealthy.) Call Mom and Dad once a week! (You're ungrateful.) Why not celebrate this new year by trading in your tired (and probably familiar) resolutions for a Samkalpa instead?

POSITIVE POWER
A Sanskrit word, Samkalpa means "will, purpose, or determination." To make a Samkalpa is to set an intention—it's like a New Year's resolution with a yogic twist. While a resolution often zeros in on a perceived negative aspect of ourselves (as in, "I want to lose weight, so no more chocolate chip cookies or ice cream or cheese"), a Samkalpa explores what's behind the thought or feeling ("I crave chocolate chip cookies or ice cream or cheese when I'm feeling stressed or sad. I will set an intention to become conscious of this craving and allow my feelings to arise and pass, rather than fill up on fats").

EFFORT COUNTS
A Samkalpa also praises the nobility of the effort rather than focusing on what you are doing wrong. "New Year's resolutions leave me feeling guilty and mad at myself for not keeping them," says Wendy McClellan, a yoga teacher in Louisville, Kentucky. So, last year, in a conscious effort to reject the resolution rut, she taught a special New Year's Eve yoga class and encouraged students to look back and let go. Her intention or Samkalpa? To open her heart to new possibilities. "An intention has much more of a global sense than a resolution," she says. "It helps me be softer with myself." With a Samkalpa, the self-loathing that comes from dwelling on past transgressions can begin to dissolve. In its place is an exercise in effort and surrender—create an intention and open yourself to the universe.

Samkalpa Setting

LOOK INWARD For several days, set aside time to write in a journal and meditate. Mull over your typical resolutions. How do they make you feel? Anxious? Unsettled? Incomplete? Now contemplate how you would like to feel during the coming year. Is there any way you can reframe your results-oriented resolutions into something that will make this year's journey more joyful and worthwhile?
REPHRASE IT Create a short sentence or phrase for your Samkalpa. Be careful not to set limitations based on fear. For example, instead of "May life bring me only happiness and joy this year" consider "May I be happy and open to what life brings me."
BE FIRM BUT FAIR Change doesn't happen overnight. When you stray from the essence of your Samkalpa, don't berate yourself. Instead, gently remind yourself of your intention. But be firm in your resolve—it's a good idea to incorporate your Samkalpa into your daily routine. Use it as a mantra during pranayama or meditation practice; post it on your computer, phone, or mirror; or simply say it to yourself quietly before going to sleep. —C.G

Happy Earth Day...April 22 2010 !

My favorite quote for Earth Day is simply "Everyday is Earth Day" by an unknown author. Indeed, if we treated Mother Earth in this manner things would be very different today. But as spring flowers are blooming and the trees budding and the chirp of birds returning I find I am still very passionate about the beauty of this Earth, despite the dire situation we've put her in. Passionate enough to try and live everyday as if it were Earth Day. Here are a few more quotes that I love, as well as a few ways to help keep Mother Earth happy.....Have a blessed Earth Day!

"Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed." Mahatma Ghandi, Spiritual Leader 1869-1948

"I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in." John Muir, Preservationist 1838-1914

"To see a world in a grain of sand, And a heaven in a wild flower, Hold infinity in the palm of your hand, And eternity in an hour." William BlakePoet, painter1757-1827

Some "green" tips:

Consider going vegetarian, at least occasionally. There is more toxic waste produced from animal fields, slaughter, processing, and distribution that there is pollution from passenger cars. And besides, going veggie is paramount in the practice of AHIMSA...one of the first rules of yoga..."non harming".

Shop everywhere with re-usable bags. Some stores even offer you a discount if you bring your own bag. And some are now offering to plant a tree if you purchase one of their re-usable bags.

Turn off the water when you brush your teeth, or combine teeth brushing with showering.

Collect the running bath water while you wait for it to heat up for your shower. You can use it on plants, to wash dishes, or the next time you flush the toilet.

Recycle your old yoga mat. They make great sticky strips for drawers, closets, or shoe racks. They provide extra cushioning on a hard chair. You can also cut it into really small pieces and use it for packaging padding. (remember to tell the recipient of your package to re-use it too!)

Don't throw away that junk mail. Much of it can be used for scratch paper!

Wash out freezer baggies and re-use them. I find I can get at least 10 uses out of one bag before it's spent. Saves money too!

Switch to organic, eco friendly products wherever you can. It really makes a big impact. And pretty soon the farmers markets will be open....support them and support sustainability!

Go to Uncommon Ground on Devon Ave and order a "tree-tini". For every '"tree-tini" purchased a tree is planted....and it's yummy too!

However you celebrate Earth Day, I hope you do it with a smile! That too makes the Earth a much better place!

Today

This poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson has a simple but important message. In this time of great uncertainty about the future, this reminds us to not only be here now, but to really enjoy the now. Have a great day!

Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year. He is rich who owns the day. And no-one owns the day who allows it to be invaded with fret and anxiety. Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in. Forget them as soon as you can, tomorrow is a new day. Begin it well and serenely, with too high a spirit to be cumbered with your own nonsense. This new day is too dear, with its hope and invitations, to waste a moment on the yesterdays.

***Ralph Waldo Emerson

'Tis the Season

Once again the busy holiday season approaches and our normal routine is thrown out the window. It is challenging during this time to remember to include the things that make us feel and function our best, like sleep, yoga, proper nutrition and exercise. I invite you to deepen your awareness this year of the things that allow you to fully experience the joys of the holidays without the stresses they often include. As the season brings colder weather it is a great time to deepen or begin a meditation practice. Just a few minutes a day can make a difference. A home yoga practice can also help offset the mood changes that come with changing weather and changing schedules. And of course, the more yoga classes you can attend the more likely you'll stay grounded and focused, as well as open to the joy. This can truly be a special time if we enter into it with a connection to our bodies, minds and spirits. No matter what you celebrate, may it bring you a multitude of love, light and laughter. Namaste, Tracy

The Day That Counts

YESTERDAY: There are two days in every week that should be kept free from fear and worry. One of these days is yesterday; it has passed forever beyond our control. We cannot undo a single act we performed or erase a single word we said. Yesterday is gone beyond recall.
TOMORROW: The other day we should not worry about is tomorrow, with its possible problems or promise. Tomorrow is also beyond our immediate control. Tomorrow will come, but until it does we have no stake in tomorrow; it is not yet a reality.
TODAY: That leaves only one day- Today! Anyone can fight the battles of just one day. It is only when we add the burden of those two awful eternities-yesterday and tomorrow-that we can break down. It is not the experience of today that causes the most anxiety. It is the remorse or bitterness for something which happened yesterday, or the dread of what tomorrow may bring. Thus only one day in the week requires our very best attention and action---the TODAY we live one day at a time.

Anonymous

Patanjali's Yoga Sutra

The practice of yoga is an art and science dedicated to creating union between body, mind and spirit. In short it is about creating a balance so we can live in peace, good health and harmony in connection with the greater whole. This art of right living has been practiced in India for thousands of years. The foundations of yoga philosophy were written down in The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali, approximately 200 AD. This ancient text provides an eight-step path for controlling the restlessness of the mind and body and codes to help us enjoy lasting peace. The core of Patanjali's Yoga Sutra is an eight-limbed path that forms the framework for yoga practice. Each is part of a holistic focus which eventually brings completeness to the individual. Because we are all uniquely individual, one can emphasize one branch and then move on to another as they deepen their understanding.

In brief the eight limbs are as follows:

1. Yama : Codes for living peacefully with others
2. Niyama : Codes for living soulfully with ourselves
3. Asanas : Physical postures/exercises
4. Pranayama : Breathing exercises, and control of prana, the vital life force of energy
5. Pratyahara : Control and cultivation of the senses
6. Dharana : Concentration and cultivating deeper inner perceptual awareness
7. Dhyana : Devotion, Meditation on the Divine
8. Samadhi : Union with the Divine

The first two limbs that Patanjali describes are the fundamental ethical precepts called Yamas, and the Niyamas. Yamas and niyamas are the suggestions given on how we should deal with people around us and our attitude toward ourselves. The attitude we have toward things and people outside ourselves is yama, how we relate to ourselves inwardly is niyama. Both are mostly concerned with how we use our energy in relationship to others and to ourselves. The Yamas are broken down into five "wise characteristics." Rather than a list of dos and don'ts, "they tell us that our fundamental nature is compassionate, generous, honest and peaceful."

First, we will focus on the Yamas, and they are:
I. Yamas (Codes for Living Peacefully with Others)

1. Ahimsa - Compassion for all living things
The word ahimsa literally means not to injure or show cruelty to any creature or any person in any way whatsoever. It also means kindness, friendliness, and thoughtful consideration of other people and things. In addition it has to do with our duties and responsibilities. Ahimsa implies that in every situation we should adopt a considerate attitude and do no harm. This includes not physically, verbally or mentally doing harm to ourselves or others.

2. Satya - Commitment to truthfulness
Satya means "to speak and live the truth," yet it is not always desirable to speak the truth on all occasions, for it could hurt someone. We have to be considerate in what we say, how we say it, and in what way it could affect others. In some cases it is better to say nothing. Satya should be ruled by ahimsa, therefore being silent is more appropriate than speaking the truth
IF the truth causes harm. This is based on the understanding that honest communication and action form the base of any healthy relationship; whether it be personal, community, or government, and that deliberate deception, exaggerations, and mistruths harm others.

3. Asteya - Non-stealing
Steya means "to steal"; asteya is the opposite-to take nothing that does not belong to us. This also means that if we are in a situation where someone entrusts something to us or confides in us, we do not take advantage of him or her. The practice of asteya implies not taking anything that has not been freely given, or taking more than what we need, for in effect this is stealing from someone who may need it more. One of the common ways to practice asteya is to be conscious of how we ask for others' time; for demanding another's attention when not freely given is, in effect, stealing.

4. Brahmacharya - Sense control
In the ancient yoga texts brahmacharya is used mostly in the sense of abstinence, particularly in relationship to sexual activity. Brahmacharya does not necessarily imply celibacy. Rather, it means responsible behavior with respect to our relationships and our journey in life. Practicing brahmacharya means that we use our sexual and physical energy to regenerate our connection to our spiritual self. It also means that we don't use this energy in any way that might harm others.

5. Aparigraha - Non-grasping
Aparigraha means to take only what is necessary, and not to take advantage of a situation or act with greed. We should only take what we have earned; if we take more, we could be denying someone else. Perhaps the most challenging aspect of aparigraha is the implication of letting go of our attachments to things and an understanding that impermanence and change are the only constants.

Our next installment in the philosophy corner will cover the Niyamas.