Enlightenment is available to us in every moment – right here, right now

We wake up right where we are, off the mat

Never more am I reminded that every moment is an opportunity to wake up than during a morning with a crying baby. We came home last night from a week in the mountains to a cold, damp, empty house and discovered the fridge had been accidentally switched off and the kitchen was rank with defrosted fish bait. It's been cold enough in Dunedin that most of the contents of the fridge are salvageable but the freezer's a write-off. No worries... open some windows, light some incense, get the fire … [Read more...]

Equaniminity and the dying mouse

Living with an open heart

by guest author Alys Titchener, author of blog Squashed Mosquito. Below is a story I wrote about being open. Why? Because I found that when I shared this story at a meditation workshop earlier this year, there was a lot of empathy for the situation. And a real life story can start to build up a picture as to what it actually means to live with an open heart. In this workshop, nicely called Refuge and run by meditation teacher Peter Fernando, we found ourselves asking; What is being … [Read more...]

Gaura Yoga Bhakti Centre introduces a vinyasa flow class with musicians and kirtan

Live music accompanies the vinyasa flow and kirtan

If you've been reading The Yoga Lunchbox for awhile, you'll know that I'm a huge fan of Kirtan, or call and response chanting. Kirtan is a practice of the Bhakti Yoga path, the path of devotion, and as a heart opening practice it's awesome for challenges we face in the 21st century. We all need to be doing it! So I was super excited when I heard from Gaura Yoga Bhakti Centre in Wellington that they're introduced a regular Thursday night vinyasa class that adds in music and kirtan. What an … [Read more...]

Learning to soften

Learning to soften

by guest blogger Lia Aprile of Shanti-Town If you've got your own website and would like to write a guest article for The Yoga Lunchbox on anything related to yoga or meditation, get in touch. I have recently started a meditation practice.  Again. I am several weeks in at this point, and things have been going pretty well so far, but the last week of this new-found practice has coincided with a particularly rigorous yoga schedule (there's some ass-kicking virus going around, … [Read more...]

Confessions of a shiny new yoga teacher

Freelance writer and yogi Seka Ojdrovic at Paekakariki Beach

by guest author Seka Ojdrovic-Phillips. Seka reflects on teaching her first yoga class. You can catch one of her Yoga Sangha classes at Yoga Unlimited in Wellington. Plus you can check out Seka's writing website and blog here. I never planned on this happening but, in the immortal lyrics of John Lennon: Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans. Now I find myself standing in front of a class full of eager yogis and yoginis, all eying me in … [Read more...]

How a non-certified yoga teacher with no guru ended up teaching (and should she be?)

Kara-Leah playing in asana

This is a question I have contemplated many times since teaching was first thrust upon me. And it's also one this website has explored extensively in recent weeks. After reading all of the responses from other teachers, I began to wonder... how on earth can I call myself a yoga teacher? I have no qualifications. I've never attended a teacher training of any real length. I've never studied under a guru, nor a teacher for any length of time. I'm a long way from mastering asana to any … [Read more...]