Category: Yoga

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Beautiful People Beautiful Rituals Yoga

Smokin’ Yoga Therapy

Apparently like many of us, woke up very early with a violent headache – could it be a carry-over from my concussion injury in the Sierras – or is it the fact that our eyes are tired and strained beyond limit from being glued to the screens. Or is it that now, with such poor air quality, we cannot see the sunrise, the sky so murky grey… gone are the outlines of redwood trees few houses down … We are engulfed in thin smoke … Closing our windows and avoiding the outdoors, head pain and stiffness of the body worsens as every cell of our body craves fresh delicious air, our 5th chakra so impacted. This is when I am grateful for all that I know and share from yoga therapy advance practice – individualized home practice. It’s working. My headache is gone. I would love to share one of MANY techniques or lifestyle choices with you ! If any resonates with you, please, incorporate in your toolbox of ways to cope.

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It seems like common sense but with children, it may not be ingrained in them yet. If so, please teach and practice Yogic Breathing. On the inhale – Nostril – only Nostril.

Yoga to the Rescue; Yoga for Resiliancy

***inhale count of 3; hold count of 2; exhale count of 6; then work up to 4:2:8 sit quietly follow the flow of breath… any time if you feel your breathing pattern strain in any way, stop.

Reciting together in spirit – may there be healing… cooling of the fires; cooling of the burns and ashes:

Om Asato Maa Sad-Gamaya

Tamaso Maa Jyoti-Gamaya

Mrtyor- Maa Amartam Gamaya

Om Shantih Shantih Shantih

Lead me from the unreal to the real 
Lead from the darkness to the light
Lead me from death to immortality
Let there be peace, peace, peace

Let the sound of MMMMMMMM reberbrate in every cells of your brain, and flush out the body of the unwanted impurities and heat. Repeat.

Next … a protocol of movements that flow to get us into that ZONE. That zone of unwavering resiliancy. That zone where we celebrate being … of lightness. That zone of …

Grace.

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Beautiful People Healthy Activities Yoga

Iron Lion

I think I have every piece of music Bob Marley ever made.

Kamala Harris
This was created by French artists Octave Marsal and Theo De Gueltzl to commemerate the 40th anniversay of this song & tribute towards the 75th Birthday celebration of life of Bob Marley who died age 36 of cancer back in 1981. It was a short life but … messages left behind so powerful.

As far as YOGA, I would be happy to go over Lion’s Pose & Lion’s Breath. Roaring softens the facial muscles, unravel tight knots – Roaring is not only fun but eases muscle tensions, relieves headaches and … brings about fresh clarity. It’s a King of a breath and pose.

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Yoga

Rock Pose?

Yes, there is a Rock Pose in the Kundalini yoga tradition. Basically it’s Zazen, Japanese traditional sitting. It’s a day-to-day regular sitting in the traditional Japanese living style on tatami. There were no chairs until introduced by the West so imagine how we would sit if we did not have chairs – easy. All traditional tea ceremonies and of course, meditation practices are in … zazen.

There is an old Japanese proverb:

“Be prepared to sit on a rock/stone for 3 years ”

Figuratively it means, if you expect to achieve success, achieve excellence or mastery in anything, we need to spend a very long time. The proverb expresses how one needs to have the tenacity and risiliance to not give up easily … but to keep at it, stay with it. Many people start something new – yoga – pilates – gym – some exercise – but tend to drop out and drop off the path. While it’s probably better than never starting, but you have to keep practicing; keep showing up. The proverb reminds us that if we stick with it, long enough that even initially a cold slab of stone will become warm with your heat, your tenacity and passion.

Rock pose, so named after apparently because the pose is so good for digestion, it is said, you can even digest rocks – true or not – I have another theory. It’s more by sitting in zazen, we are able to DIGEST all that is so difficult to digest in a psychic, emotional level. Negative emotions of resentment, humiliation, indignation, anger, and fear are digested and what needs to be eliminated leaves you, what we need to sustain ourselves with stays – positive emotions of love, pride, humility, compassion and … gratitude. Always coming back to your inner rock.

Our “thinking” body and mind are amazing – let’s find “your” yoga to reap in all the benefits of this tried-tested and true practice.