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Exploring the Niyamas: How does Ishvara Pranidhana affect our lives?

June 18, 2013 by Kara-Leah Grant 2 Comments

by Kara-Leah Grant Do we dare, do we dare, do we dare surrender to God? Oh boy - the G-word in yoga. Scary stuff indeed. How on earth does God relate to yoga? Let's start by ditching the word God - although that's what Ishvara refers to, instead we can call it the Grand Ordering Design if we like. It's nothing more than the infinite intelligence throughout the Universe that  keeps everything in place - the sun rising, the moon waxing and waning, the tides rising and falling, seeds … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Living Your Yoga, The Foundations Tagged With: adhyshanti, awareness, divine, God, ishvara pranidhana, niyama, surrender

A young man, a desire to meditate, and India circa 1979

June 16, 2013 by Guest Author Leave a Comment

By guest author John Guthrie April 1979, Kundabodha, a Meditation hermitage in Sri Lanka. This young man had been travelling for some time. Having already begun to learn the disciplines of Hatha Yoga, he now had a burning desire to learn meditation. In particular Buddhist meditation had an appeal to him. What drugs could not do, then no doubt meditation would succeed. After all, in much of what he had read in those recent times, the authors wrote that the illusory nature of mind … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Meditation Practices, Practices Tagged With: age, Buddhism, buddhist meditation, drugs, expectations, experience, meditation, retreat, silence, sri lanka, The Yoga Lunchbox, yoga, youth

Sacred Feminine and Yoga: Honouring the forces within. Part 3

June 1, 2013 by Guest Author Leave a Comment

by guest author, Swami Karma Karuna, Anahata Yoga Retreat All cultures of the ancient world worshipped the principles of the Mother, Shakti or Devi. Although it may have been called by different names, the concept of a force which bestows life, nourishes, loves, comforts, supports and transforms has always been present. In Christianity, we know her as Mother Mary. In Japan, she was Amaterasu, the sun-goddess; in Greece, she is Demeter, the corn-goddess, Aphrodite, the goddess of passion and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: The Foundations Tagged With: Anahata, ceremony, feminine, honour, meditation, sacred, shakti, swami karma karuna, yoga

I’m actually quite a spiritual guy. Oh really?

May 22, 2013 by Kara-Leah Grant 11 Comments

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...]

Filed Under: Home Yoga Practice, Home Yoga Practice Video, What's Real Yoga & a Real Yogi? Tagged With: enlightenment, forget, let go, satsang, spiritual, spirituality, surrender, teachings, waking up

Sacred Feminine and Yoga: It’s all about balance. Part 2

May 15, 2013 by Guest Author Leave a Comment

by guest author Swami Karma Karuna, Anahata Yoga Retreat The Tantric view of creation is that there are two forces called Shiva and Shakti representing the male and female aspects of creation, which exist within each and every person. Shiva, also called Purusha, is the masculine force and is pure ‘consciousness'. Shakti or Prakriti is the feminine force that is pure ‘energy’. One cannot exist without the other and both are within each of us. This duality is also described in the word 'Ha' 'Tha' … [Read more...]

Filed Under: The Foundations Tagged With: Anahata, balance, feminine, hatha yoga, relaxation, sacred chanting, sacred feminine, swami karma karuna, women, yoga

The Sacred Feminine and Yoga: What does it mean? Part 1

April 29, 2013 by Guest Author Leave a Comment

by guest author Swami Karma Karuna, Anahata Retreat Centre “A gracious woman respects herself and others. Her inner strength radiates a divine light that transforms and supports everything around her." Writing about the topic of Sacred Feminine inspired me to reevaluate what it means to me and question how others view this subject? And what does this have to do with yoga anyways? I looked up “Sacred Feminine” on the internet as one does in the twenty first century! And much to my … [Read more...]

Filed Under: The Foundations Tagged With: Anahata, ceremony, daughter, girlfriend, mother, nurturing, sacred feminine, shakti, sister, women, yoga

Exploring the Niyamas: How does Svadhyaya affect our lives?

April 25, 2013 by Kara-Leah Grant 4 Comments

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...]

Filed Under: Living Your Yoga, The Foundations Tagged With: belief, ego, idea, identity, niyama, no-self, svadhyaya, thought

Mala Beads for Autumn Yoga and Meditation

April 24, 2013 by Guest Author 1 Comment

by guest author Jacqueline Medalye of Salt Spring Malas and Yoga Jewelry Autumn is a transition time of year. As daylight becomes shorter, days become colder, and we feel like it is time to retreat from the world, our yoga and meditation practice can become a source of strength, vitality, and enthusiasm. Yoga during autumn is critical for maintaining a healthy immune system, keeping the body warm, and helping us maintain an active lifestyle and positive attitude. Meditation is important … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Reviews Tagged With: balance, carnelian, grounding, immune system, mala beads, malas, tiger eye, unikite, vitality, warmth

You’ve got to know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em

April 11, 2013 by Kara-Leah Grant 5 Comments

By Kara-Leah Grant, author Forty Days of Yoga The more I practice yoga the more I realise it's got nothing to do with "flexibility". At least - not in the way that we often think about it, as the stretching of muscles. Rather, yoga often has to do with letting go and releasing our nervous system and the patterns of holding that result from years of activating the fight or flight system. These patterns of behaviour create the shapes of our bodies, as much as our muscles and bones … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Home Yoga Practice Tagged With: body armour, character structure, flexibility, holding, resistance

How to use Mula Bandha (root lock) to strengthen every pose

March 25, 2013 by Guest Author 2 Comments

Wheel pose - contract that anus!

by guest author Carol Lux, The Yoga Life Next time you attempt Wheel Pose (back bend or Urdhva Dhanurasana) tell yourself; “Lock Mula Bandha!” You won’t believe the difference it will make. Like magic your core will strengthen, your chest and pelvis will rise toward the ceiling and your arms will feel light and airy. I hear you asking; “What miracle worker could this Mula Banhda be?” Let me tell you a little story. One day I found myself at an Ashtanga workshop and we were all … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Physical Practices, Practices, The Foundations Tagged With: asana, bridge pose, chakras, flexibility, Mula Bandha, root lock, strength, yoga

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