For years now, no matter what my week is like, I have made my yoga practice a priority. Each week, I find time to attend a yoga class or two at one of my favorite local studios, and I practice yoga one or two more times on my own in my home studio (pictured below). The … [Read more…]
Paramahansa Yogananda, whose life is chronicled in the yoga classic Autobiography of a Yogi, said, “To be fit for self-realization, man must be fearless.” Yoga can make you fearless. It can also give you personal power. Fearlessness often comes up in yoga, particularly when students are learning challenging poses. But what does it mean to be … [Read more…]
You cannot be anyone you want to be. I read that sentence recently in a book about finding your dharma and it surprised me. The Great Work of Your Life, by Stephen Cope begins with an inspiring pep talk for anyone not quite sure what he or she is meant to do in this life. It’s also … [Read more…]
I had an interesting though unsettling experience recently. I posted a question online asking yoga teachers and practitioners to help me tease out the difference between the sixth and seventh limbs of yoga. One of the teachers who responded led me to think in more depth about yoga in the West. If you’re not familiar … [Read more…]
In an early-morning yoga class, our teacher asked which poses we students love to do. This, of course, led to a discussion of which poses we hate. (For the record, I love warrior poses and twists.) The consensus: among the more dreaded poses is utkatasana, “awkward chair” in English. You probably know this pose. (If not, … [Read more…]
I was recently reminded of the importance and power of non-attachment in yoga philosophy. I did something for a friend and expected her to do something specific in return. Of course, as a yogi, I should have known better. After a few days, I realized the outcome I wanted hadn’t happened. And I noticed I was … [Read more…]
I had to smile when a friend thanked me for my attention to detail recently. I’d mentioned he could track a package he was waiting for with the FedEx tracking number so he’d know when to expect it. It seemed obvious to me, but he hadn’t considered this even though he had an email with a tracking number. My friend’s … [Read more…]
At a yoga class I recently attended, we focused on the theme of connecting mind and heart or how yoga affects the emotional brain. This is one of the central reasons for practicing yoga. By yoga, I don’t mean just the physical postures (asanas), but the whole practice. As my teacher said, we are always practicing yoga … [Read more…]
