By guest author Nanditha Ram, author of Blissful Mom, Blissful Baby I recently read an article in The New York Times about the dangers of yoga entitled How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body. Let me play devil's advocate for a second and say, "yes, it can". Indeed, anything taken to the extreme, has the seeds of the opposite sown in it. And so it is with yoga too. Too much of a good thing... Still, the very idea that yoga is dangerous is preposterous. That said, the way in which we practice an age … [Read more...]
I’m actually quite a spiritual guy. Oh really?
By Kara-Leah Grant Can we, like, ban the word spirituality already? And spiritual. Like, if someone says, I'm actually quite a spiritual guy, I just want to gag. What the hell does that mean anyway? What does spiritual and spirituality mean? I turned to that font of all modern knowledge to find out. Wikipedia. The term spirituality lacks a definitive definition, although social scientists have defined spirituality as the search for "the sacred," where "the sacred" is … [Read more...]
How Yoga helped me… to see my body in a different light.
by guest author Anna Coventry, Anna Coventry Yoga When you look in the mirror, what do you see? A unique and beautiful person inside and out? Or someone who needs to lose weight, tone up and get some more sleep? A lot of women - and more guys than you would think - suffer from body image issues. It’s unfortunately very common and it is very destructive to a person’s wellbeing and happiness. For a long time I suffered from poor body image that led me to see myself in a distorted and … [Read more...]
I can’t do that. Actually, maybe I can. Hey, I can do it!
by guest author Sara Foley, Smells Good, Feels Good I'm not really sure how to begin this post, except to say: These ideas that you have about what you can and can't do, the things that are too hard or to big to begin - often these ideas are formed in a time of perceived failure. We don't think to ourselves; Oh, right, maybe I am not ready to do that yet, or maybe if I try that a different way it will work, or maybe I need some help to do that, or even let's sleep on that and try again … [Read more...]
Your thoughts do not create your reality. Stupid.
By Kara-Leah Grant Let's get one thing straight. You do not create your own reality. Your thoughts do not create your reality either. All the positive thinking and manifesting and vision boarding and dreaming is not going to get you what you want. What you do create is your experience of your reality. Your thoughts about your reality create your experience of that reality. This distinction is critical, and far too often it's glossed over, ignored or pushed aside in favour of the … [Read more...]
Exploring the Niyamas: How does Svadhyaya affect our lives?
by Kara-Leah Grant I've been pondering the yamas and niyamas for a few years now. Reading about them, thinking about them, writing about them... and of course, living them out. The niyama on my mind right now is Svadhyaya, often translated as study. Seems to sum up my entire approach to yoga really - the study of the practice and the study of the Self. Without that, there is no yoga, just a bunch of fancy moves thrown together on a mat. Svadhyaya is the difference between rotely moving … [Read more...]
I am exactly where I am meant to be
by guest author Swami Karma Karuna, Anahata Retreat Centre Twenty years ago a friend mentioned to me Arunachala, a sacred mountain of Shiva, (a representation of high consciousness in yoga or to devoted Hindus one of the many forms of God). Many know it due to the great Saint Ramana Maharishi who has and still inspires millions in the quest to discover; “Who am I?…not Peter or Jane or this body or this mind, but who am I really?" For some reason, this mountain of Shiva became lodged in my mind … [Read more...]
Exploring the Niyamas: Using tapas to burn through our shit
by Kara-Leah Grant Oh God do I need to cultivate tapas right now. Or I am cultivating it. Or the cultivation of it is serving me. Or something. I'm over-whelmed, emotional, stressed out and just want to get off this damn computer and go sit under a tree. (Notice the shift from Wednesday's post on self-realisation? Welcome to duality people!) It's two days until book launch and I have a mountain of things to do but I'm staying with family and also want to see them and I have a … [Read more...]
Exploring the Niyamas: How do we cultivate Samtosha (contentment) in our life?
by Kara-Leah Grant Of all the yamas and the niyamas I've explored in my life so far, this one made the most sense simply by looking at the word. Contentment. Yip. Know what that means. I didn't need to go and hunt through all my books reading what various yoga teachers and yogic scholars have written about contentment. I didn't need to search on Google to explore the different nuances. I got it. Out of the box. And I need it. Oh do I need it so bad. Wait... is that an oxymoron - to … [Read more...]
How a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis led to daily home yoga practice and teacher training
By guest author Susan Kitson, author of In Search of Health Ed. note: See the bottom of this article for a chance to win a copy of Susan's book. Fifteen years ago I had barely heard of yoga. Eleven years ago I was attending two classes a week in the hopes it would help improve my chances of conception. Now I practice every day. Here's how my yoga journey unfolded: In June ’07 I left Napier with my family for our annual winter break in Fiji. Bliss right? Not so much on this … [Read more...]