by Kara-Leah Grant Life has been rich with opportunities to practice deep acceptance lately. Samuel is now 17 months old, generally awake from 7am to 7pm, and active, even measured by toddler standards. It's impossible to work around him anymore, or write morning pages, or meditate, or practice asana. These things were the mainstay of my waking hours - if I wasn't on the computer, I was doing some form of yoga or writing. In the last month, I've had to accept that this is just not … [Read more...]
On the Magic of Yoga Practice to Bring You Back to Presence
by Kara-Leah Grant I've had a rough few weeks, since moving into my new house with my three wonderful flatmates. First I caught a 12 hour vomiting bug that saw me curled up on my sister-in-law's bathroom for seven hours in child's pose, just moving to lift my head and vomit. Then I caught the flu and a nasty cough and was bed-ridden for over a week. Just as I was beginning to feel well, almost two weeks after first getting sick, I woke up with red welts all over my body and swollen … [Read more...]
Confession time people. I’ve been dodging a heart truth
I have a huge confession to make. I don't want the responsibility for The Yoga Lunchbox anymore, and I don't know what to do about this. Because even though I don't want responsibility for the website anymore... the website isn't just about me. It's a community website, and it's taken input from the community to create such an amazing resource for the yoga community. There's been all kinds of people who've contributed to The Yoga Lunchbox - regular writers like Alys and Jessica, … [Read more...]
Tantra: A system for mind expansion
by guest author Swami Muktidharma There is a huge misunderstanding about the great science of Tantra, especially in our western society. Some confuse it with witchery or black magic and a lot more think that Tantra is only related to sexual practices. As with many things imported from the East to the West, this is a gross misrepresentation of Tantra and a very limited way to understand an ancient and deep science. Tantra relates to each and every aspect of our lives, and therefore must … [Read more...]
Why I wouldn’t offer donation-style yoga classes again
Back when I first started this website, I was teaching Prana Flow Yoga classes where students paid whatever they thought the class was worth. This was an interesting experiment which generated a series of articles on how much a yoga class is worth. Recently I received an email from a teacher in Namibia who'd found these articles via Google and was excited about doing the same thing with her yoga classes. I've been thinking of switching to a donation based class and... I want the students … [Read more...]
Breaking away from asana and exploring the other limbs of yoga
We have just moved house, my partner and I. In the midst of trying to insure we have all our things in spaces that make sense, I’ve been eyeing the large deck and huge lounge floor. This house is made for practicing Yoga. Which I haven’t done in I don’t know how long. Not specifically the sort that everyone thinks of when they hear the word ‘yoga’, anyway. That is to say: my life has had no asana practice for a couple weeks. Since asana is only one of eight – 1 of 8! – limbs of Yoga, … [Read more...]
Making peace with feeling guilty ‘cos I’m a single mum on the DPB
I'm now living in my new home, and it’s every bit as super-duper wonderful as I suspected it might be. The house is beautiful, my flatmates are wonderful, and it feels fantastic to be living in a real home with other people on the spiritual path. Yet in the midst of this heartfelt warmth and delight at moving into a wonderful home with fantastic people… I’ve noticed a lingering anxiety at the heart level. This anxiety is manifesting as a desire to rush through things. Must get the … [Read more...]
Suggestions on What to do if You’ve had a Kundalini Awakening
WIN a copy of Kara-Leah's new book 'Field Notes from Kundalini Awakening', publishing in 2018. Guaranteed to take you on an intimate journey into the depths of the Kundalini experience. Click here to sign up for the book launch list and go into the draw to win one of THREE print copies. By Kara-Leah Grant It can be scary, disorientating, dislocating and downright awful when Kundalini awakens. Sometimes a Kundalini Awakening will look like mental illness, physical illness or emotional … [Read more...]
It’s ok to be happy you know?
I'm so excited right now. And really happy. There's joy spilling from my fingertips. I've had Massive Attack blasting in the morning as I dance my way through making breakfast and Madonna getting in to the groove when I get ready to go out... Not only have I found an awesome house to live in city-side, but I've also got three super-duper roomies moving in. Plus I'm building up my one-on-one yoga clientale, and LOVING teaching my students. I'm doing writers coaching via Skype … [Read more...]
How to adjust your yoga practice for autumn
Take a big breath – air is all around us...... Autumn is a transformation beyond just the season. There are the obvious tell-tale signs that autumn is upon us in a change in the weather and changes in nature. The days become shorter, the rhythm shifts, the light and heat of summer subside. We move towards something more mellow and soft, which encourages us to look within and reflect. As you slow down, find the time to ponder an Ayurvedic approach to autumn. Ayurveda is a sister … [Read more...]