“What you love is a sign from your higher self of what you are to do.” -Sanaya Roman Here’s a fun exercise: Set a timer for 15 minutes. Take out a sheet of paper and a pen. Write down all of the things that give you joy, until the timer stops. Try not to think too much – just write
“Surrender to Grace. The ocean cares for each wave until it reaches the shore. You are given more help than you will ever know.” -Rumi The inopportune events that happen in our lives are there to teach us, care for us, mature us. They are not there to hold us back. They are there to re-direct us to a better
“If not now, when?” -Eckhart Tolle There are a million things in life that we put off. Some are obvious choices – boring chores, returning a call to someone you don’t really want to talk to (admit it, you’ve been there!) – but others are things we actually want to do, but we justify delaying them for some reason or another. We may
“You are the silence I turn to when everything else gets too loud. You are my moon in the middle of the day.” -Pavana What do you do to recharge, to get away, to come back to stability when life gets messy? Do you have a special room in your house that you’ve decorated with calming colors and warm lighting?
Here at last! Today we are exploring the last of the 8 limbs of yoga – samadhi, or oneness with the absolute. To put samadhi into context, let’s revisit Limb 7 – dhyana, or meditation. Dhyana allows us to maintain continuous focus on an object, mantra, action, etc. – without interruption from unrelated thoughts or outside influences. Eventually, as dhyana continues, we reach a state of
Almost to the end of the 8 limbs! Today we will discuss Limb 7 – dhyana, or meditation. This limb may be a little more familiar to those interested in yoga. You almost can’t go a day anymore without hearing about the benefits of meditation! Dhyana occurs when we have focused our concentration on something – an action, object, mantra, the present
Today we will talk about Limb 6 – dharana, or concentration. Recall that the last limb discussed (Limb 5) was pratyahara, or withdrawing the senses from the outside world and bringing them toward the internal world. In a way, Limb 5 marks the transition from the physical world to the inner spiritual world. Limb 6 continues that path toward inner stillness. Once
Onward to Limb 5 – pratyahara! Pratyahara is the practice of withdrawing the senses from the outside world. So…what in the world does that mean? To get our bearings, let’s revisit the previous 4 limbs. Recall Limb 1 – the yamas, which represent the ethical rules by which we live our lives. Limb 2 is the niyamas, or the spiritual observances that guide
The fourth limb of yoga is pranayama, or control of breath. Why is breath control important to mind-body balance? We all know the feeling – when we feel anxious or panicked, all we can think about is the stressful situation. Our heart rate goes up, our muscles become tense, and in most cases, our breathing speeds up. In essence, our stressful
