Categories
Beautiful Places

Tax time …

What does this have to do with Yoga?  It’s about yoga off the mat – read on.

slumpedover

(a woman slumped over resembling me – lol – not so horrible with softwares nowadays- but still.  Photo credit to US News & World Report/Money section dtd 2/23/2016)

Immediately faced with reality upon return from the … forest …Spring Break, ironically in Snow Country (Kawabata-ish? not) – but soooo cleansing to the system.  It was quite dream-like…IMG_2753

Spring time may be about engaging in dietary cleanse and energy renewal but for many, we have to face the more secular realities of filing … taxes.  Rather than dreading the headache, relying on humor to get through – what was it that someone famous said?

In this world nothing can be said to be certain,

except death and taxes.

– Benjamin Franklin

Yes, even for yogis … we cannot escape this deadline.  As a reference, fiscal year end in Japan is March 31st; Tax filing deadline here in US is April 18th …

If this blog was about mind-body-spirit, this is to bring you more peace of “mind” by taking care of these demands so that we can refocus on what brings us joy.

Many families with children all have to think about the most valuable gift we can give our children – that of education and here’s a good site to read up … as thoughts of finances may be in the minds of many when we are forced to face it.

Oddly, this is probably the time to do even more yoga?   Here is a story I heard about this famous spiritual leader, a karma yogi,  we so respect:

During his insanely busy schedule, Gandhi said to a group of his backers, “I need to set aside one hour a day to do meditation.”

One of the influential backers said, “no, you can’t do that ! You are too busy to take time off like that, We need you Gandhi !”

Gandhi said, “Well, then, in that case, I now need to set aside two hours a day to do meditation.”

ohhhhh, no wonder, even a less mortal like me need to yoga and clear my busy mind so I can get though this busywork and real work faster …The postural yoga is done to banish the kinks, tightness, tensions out of your BODY so that you can address the MIND through practice of meditation.  It is hard to sit in stillness for meditation if your body feels the cramps…the soreness … the KNOTS, the pain … and once you start fidgeting, it’s over – your mind is unable to get to the quiet place and back to thinking about …that tax filing due around the corner.  So much for neuroplasticity – rewiring the brain through this kind of a discipline … This is probably when I need a monk to give me a light tap with a stick as in the zazen practice of my home county – there’s a lot of sitting with most traditional rituals – tea ceremony, flower arrangement, incense burning … with beautiful posture and forms held, exercising centering and grounding to bring one back to the present moment.  All without the postural yoga – I don’t know how my grandmother did all that and lived a long fulfilling life.  It’s probably all about focus … one pointed concentration. We need that more than ever … to live this life we were meant to have.

IMG_2749

Categories
Healthy Activities Yoga

Teacher = Student

IMG_2877IMG_2878I was once talking to a Japanese chef about his days-off and when I joked how lucky for his wife that he’s a chef.  Then he said he never cooked at home.  Instead his joy was to eat out at different eateries to sample what other chefs were doing for inspirations.  Then I recalled my late-father used to say if I wanted to write well, I needed to read a lot in that language.  If I wanted to stay bilingual, I needed to read a lot in both languages …. SO… that’s what I did and still do.

On a similar trajectory, whenever we take a vacation, I always find a yoga studio on our trips and take couple of classes. I remain always a student to learn from others.  A small studio – literally a “room” – in Tahoe City did not disappoint.  I am sure if I lived in the neighborhood, I would frequent this place.  The week night restorative yoga had about 12 ladies ranging from 20’s to 60’s.  Again, quite different from a restorative class in Vancouver, Tokyo, New York or San Francisco, E. Bay or S. Bay … each class is completely different even though it’s defined “restorative” –  It’s just a genre, like a category of a book, each book is completely different even if they are all shelved in same “mystery” or “travel” or “fiction” sections for that type of books.  I let go of my tendencies to critique and judge and just took it all in – with an open mind, everything nourishes:)  We all learn from each other and in the end … it’s about holding space for the students and allowing them to find their own inner teacher, the ultimate healer if it’s meant to be.

There’s the notion out there that “advance” means “hard” “tough” or “difficult” and therefore better – kind of the bitter the medicine, the better idea of the era I thought past – whereas if it’s gentle, caring and tender –  it’s not as good for your self-advancement. Really? Such a brainwashed mindset full of ego and rajasic thinking.  It’s not about hard=good or easy=bad, is it ?  Is bitter = potent and effective? ; sweet = Not ? I thought it was about tending to the temple altar within…  In fact, gritting your teeth and striving for perfection can damage your health – let’s lighten up. Challenge ourselves to journey inward, away from the distractions. It might be quite a bit more challenging than getting your toes to touch the whatever body parts of your choice.  If that comes with ease and comfort – our breath is steady and liberating.  Then, yoga works.

 

 

Categories
Beautiful People Beautiful Places Beautiful Things Healthy Activities

The Phoenix Rose

Returning from Lake Tahoe …

IMG_2970IMG_2971

First time ever stopping by Nevada City returning from Lake Tahoe.  While I did not purchase anything, I fell in love with this store – The Phoenix Rose.  Everything there is produced in Bali and so very creative … lots of yoga wear for both men and women. Loved Ash there – she is a beautiful creative soul.  Yoga retreat in Bali?  Another Dream now implanted by this red-headed fire with beautiful green eyes – Have Ash show you some of Forest’s work of art – an artist designer who runs Liquid Fire Mantra temple in Bali.  Isn’t it soooo very strange – here in Northern California there’s a connection to Bali? This world is indeed a village – getting smaller and smaller – we are all inter-woven. Dream-like. Talking to Ash is very therapeutic – rather funny to run into “Ash” for one feeling a bit burned out from the rajasic city/suburbia life and all the stress that goes along with it.

IMG_2969And that’s what birthday weekend vacation get-away is like – a dream.  Back to reality tomorrow.  Yoga Therapy Teacher Training weekend … Share with generosity what you know.  And what my peers and I learned that it’s not about merely dispensing herbs and prescribing asanas and pranayama techniques to strengthen our resilience.  It’s about … you will know when you know yourself better. The world is not a place of competition but a collaborative ventures of ideas by generous souls.  It’s an open book, really.  It’s an exploration for the curious minded.  It’s the mind that’s vast, reflective of the world we live in … isolated in little villages and towns we didn’t even know about … and yet, inter-connected, thanks to these creative artists not afraid to journey to far distant lands.  So strange and so intriguing to feel closer to distant far away, one may even call exotic lands that exists in our dreams – our heads.

As Judith would say, life is short, let’s not squander it.

Yes, we need to get out of our own way, get out of our own head … trudge along many paths only to find out what we were looking for all along was right here – at home.  Happy to be home to resume … where I had left off.  I love being “home”.  Because our loving heart resides in that cozy bare-foot humble home. Humming and doing laundry and puttering around trying to bring back routine and regularity back to the day to day.

IMG_2967

IMG_2968Turkish lamps … I saw in Tokyo … here in … what do you know … Nevada City !?? of all places.   Amazed how these trades take place by the entrepreneurial tradesmen.