Posts Tagged ‘yoga for happiness’

Yoga for Happiness – Santosha for Successful Relationships

Thursday, December 25th, 2008

Yoga - Tree PoseBy Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

How can Yoga help someone with establishing and maintaining good relationships? Successful relationships require mutual effort from both sides. Whether a relationship is with someone at work, at home, or with a friend, there is a need to maintain a stable connection. If there is an emotional connection, such as love or romance, this can be complicated, but Santosha can still be applied.

What is Santosha? In the Yoga Sutras, Santosha is one of the listed Niyamas (moral observances). The Niyamas could easily be identified as virtues. Within the Yoga Sutras, Maharishi Patanjali reveals Santosha and its value in daily life.

Santosha is often described as a state of contentment. If you can maintain a state of contentment, you can find happiness, and you can remain happier for longer periods of time. We should be pro-active in our cultivation of contentment, in order to release the mind from the burdens of pain.

Yet, how does this apply toward cultivating successful and healthy relationships? Practice complete acceptance of friends, co-workers, associates, and family members. In other words: Accept each individual for who he, or she, is, without pre-conditions.

Do not hold anyone to your expectations. To accept people for who they are is extremely difficult for some people. Relationships often fail because of pre-conceived expectations. Many people go out on a “first date” with a pre-qualifying list of requirements for a prospective partner to fulfill.

While it is true that each of us has expectations in regard to the pursuit of a “soul mate,” it is also true that you cannot change people to suit your requirements. This concept applies to every relationship we have. You can choose your spouse and friendships carefully, but you must accept what you cannot control.

A passive state of mind will also help cultivate your work, business, and family relationships. Patanjali points us toward the appreciation of life’s difficulties. It is easy to embrace joy, happiness, and bliss. On the other hand, life can be full of suffering, pain, and sorrow.

Santosha teaches each of us to accept and learn from the difficult experiences we will encounter in life. Know that life will change, and we should be happy with what we have at this moment. When we stop the outer world from affecting our inner-being, we have found true happiness.

It is hard to believe that one Niyama can be so valuable, but contentment, and the resulting states of happiness, will serve a Yoga practitioner like a flashlight down a dark path. Light gives us vision and focus. With the help of Santosha, a dark path that we were once lost on, can become an adventurous journey.

Copyright 2008 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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FREE CONTENT: If you are a Yoga Teacher, Yoga studio, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles) – Please be sure to reprint each article, as is, including the resource box above. Namaste, Paul
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Yoga for Happiness – One Key to Successful Relationships

Monday, December 22nd, 2008

PadmasanaBy Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

Jnana Yoga is often considered the “Yoga of truth.” This form of truth, in Yoga practice, is found through self-discovery and by carefully performing honest self-analysis. Yet, all that we change from within will not change the world around us, unless we interact with it.

Relationships are our interaction, with the people we see, in the course of a day. We cannot change the world by sitting and meditating in a cave for the rest of our lives. Yoga, meditation, mindfulness, and loving kindness are put into practice when we engage in balanced relationships.

In all relationships, the keys to success can be found. Take the following key and apply it toward all of your relationships in work, with family, at home, and with your friends. In this way, you can apply time-tested Yogic principles in your daily life.

The Key of Mutual Trust

You have a right to be skeptical of everything you encounter, but when you wear skepticism like a badge, people will become skeptical of you. This does not imply that you should trust everyone and train your children to “take candy from strangers.” However, when you assume that everyone has a hidden agenda, and you do not trust anyone, you encourage an atmosphere of mistrust.

Supervisors and business owners set the tone within a company. If mistrust starts at the top, it trickles down to the foundation of the company. An atmosphere of mistrust breeds a multitude of problems. The supervisor who does not trust his or her help is most likely to take credit for the help’s ideas.

Similarly, the same supervisor is least likely to take responsibility for his or her mistakes. It is very tempting, when you do not trust anyone, to see everyone as potential enemies. It is also possible to view every subordinate as a threat to job security. Do you think the workers who answer to an openly distrustful supervisor will be loyal?

So far, all we have considered is the level of mutual trust in business relationships, but the key of mutual trust is part of every aspect of life. If you treat your children and spouse with mistrust, you will definitely encounter mutual feelings from them.

Whether trust is earned, or violated, do not ignore it. There is no need to carry a grudge forever or assume that one act of kindness makes someone a saint. We have to accept people the way they are, without going through harsh judgments or leaving ourselves unnecessarily open to be taken advantage of.

Yoga teaches each of us about living in balance and harmony. There is no need to let life’s highs or lows throw you out of balance for long. Granted, we are all human and mistakes are part of a lifelong learning process, but Yoga can help us find the higher purposes of life.

© Copyright 2008 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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Yoga Teacher Training Courses
FREE Yoga Report. FREE Yoga Newsletter. FREE Yoga Videos.
Free Podcasts. Bonus: Free Yoga e-Book, “Yoga in Practice.”
——————————————–
On-Site Yoga Teacher Training: http://www.aurawellnesscenter.com
——————————————–
FREE CONTENT: If you are a Yoga Teacher, Yoga studio, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles) – Please be sure to reprint each article, as is, including the resource box above. Namaste, Paul
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Yoga for Inner Harmony and a State of Happiness

Wednesday, November 12th, 2008

Bow PoseBy Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

Yoga is most often defined as “union.” Harmony can be defined as many things. The most common definitions for harmony would be agreement and compatibility. It is not difficult to see that Yoga, harmony, and happiness can work together for mental and emotional stability.

This leads to a round of questions for us to ponder. What is happiness? Is happiness being successful? How do you define success? As you know, each of us cannot reach a state of happiness in the same way.

Happiness is a positive emotion that we experience when we are in a state of well-being. We could also state that happiness is bliss, contentment, satisfaction, or joy. Some of us can find this same feeling on a warm beach in the tropics.

Yet, many of us also have family and financial obligations that make living permanently, at a warm tropical beach, difficult. At the same time, not everyone is happy at the beach. Again, we realize that happiness is a choice and a personal decision.

Although success is often linked with happiness, you could say that personal happiness is more dependent on a purposeful life, than a successful life. What do I mean by this? Some people are quite content to sleep all day, avoid work, and let others support them. They have no purpose or goals. A few animals and insects also display this behavior.

As humans, we call this behavior “laziness.” Most humans are inherently driven to plan, discover, and create. We consider these qualities admirable, but successful people are not always happy. To be successful and sad at the same time is a strange paradox, but it exists.

How is this possible? A successful person may not be living the happy life that he or she envisions. For example: If you are born into a position of social status that you did not choose, you may feel that you are not a success in life. Whether we are rich or poor, anyone can have these feelings.

We have now gone “full circle” in this discussion. Therefore, I ask you, “How do you define success?” The answer to that question should give you a deep sense of contentment. It is worth the time to practice Yoga, meditation, breathe with purpose, and do some soul searching, before you envision your true picture of happiness and success.

In short, happiness requires balance, agreement, and compatibility, with our surrounding environment. You cannot force yourself to be happy, but each form of Yoga can bring about inner harmony and states of happiness.

© Copyright 2008 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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Free Podcasts. Bonus: Free Yoga e-Book, “Yoga in Practice.”
——————————————–
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——————————————–
FREE CONTENT: If you are a Yoga Teacher, Yoga studio, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles) – Please be sure to reprint each article, as is, including the resource box above. Namaste, Paul
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Yoga for Happiness – Crisis Management

Friday, November 7th, 2008

TiryaktadasanaBy Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

How can Yoga help you find mental and emotional balance during a crisis situation? It is so easy to become upset over current events, a traffic jam, or a domestic dispute. How can Yoga help us “keep our cool,” when we are being tested by real life situations?

One realization that each of us should come to is that we can create a state of anxiety from within. If you watch a flock of birds, the birds who feel the most anxiety, create a state of panic within the entire flock. Humans are just as guilty of creating a state of fear within groups.

You can witness this behavior first-hand by watching any stock exchange, on any given day. Some forms of mass hysteria have caused violent behavior in the form of witch hunts, genocide, and lynch mobs. Fear can take on a sense of reality, when we collectively anticipate the worst.

If we know that unjustified fear can only make a crisis situation worsen, why do we adopt it? The average person’s natural viewpoint of life is to see it on the outside. We see life all around us, but how many of us see life from within. Yoga teaches us that the path to happiness, and the solutions for management, of any crisis, is within each of us.

When a person cannot find the answers within, or does not have time to make a rational decision, that person would be better off to get help from the most balanced friend he, or she, knows. In contrast, through training the mind, a Yoga practitioner reaches a state of self-realization, where there is no need to make irrational decisions and harsh judgments.

Each of us has strengths and weaknesses, so there is no need to be upset with oneself over personal faults. We can learn to change our faults, if we recognize them; but it is worth noting that all of our planned changes will not happen at once.

One of the biggest positive changes you can bring into your life, is to regulate the daily news, and information, you absorb. With the power of the Internet, current events and financial reports arrive to you in “real time.” This can lead to a flood of anxiety and negativity. Compounding this negative effect, listening to people divulge personal information about each other can also take a toll on your outlook of life.

Awareness of each moment, as it occurs, is a key to complete happiness. If Yoga teachers truly want to help others, we must strive to live in a state of purposeful attention. The teachings of Yoga sages from the past, and present, prepare us for any real problems in the future.

© Copyright 2008 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

——————————————–
Yoga Teacher Certification Courses
FREE Yoga Report. FREE Yoga Newsletter. FREE Yoga Videos.
Free Podcasts. Bonus: Free Yoga e-Book, “Yoga in Practice.”
——————————————–
On-Site Yoga Training: http://www.aurawellnesscenter.com
——————————————–
FREE CONTENT: If you are a Yoga Teacher, Yoga studio, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles) – Please be sure to reprint each article, as is, including the resource box above. Namaste, Paul
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Yoga for Happiness – A Formula for Success

Thursday, November 6th, 2008

By Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

Hatha Yoga teachers often teach their students about stress management techniques. Yet, how many teach their students how to be happy, successful, and how to apply these principles, in daily life, outside the Yoga class?

This is why we mention the word “practice” in a classroom setting – Your life outside the class, in work, commuting, in traffic, and at home, is “real life.” It is easy for me to teach you how to relax, in a Yoga session, but how will you react when you open the mail box or when you listen to the daily news?

We know it is easy to let stress take over your life. In good economic times, people worry about moving fast enough to keep up with the pace around them. In bad economic times, people worry about food, clothing, and shelter.

In truth, worrying is the problem. Many of us look for something to worry about the moment we wake up from bedtime. In this case, it is a matter of focusing the mind on what is truly important. Some people refer to this as envisioning a goal, an achievement, or success.

Some of my colleagues argue against teaching students about abundance and success. The general consensus is that Yoga students might abuse these techniques and become greedy. However, the world is in need of innovative and goal oriented people, right now.

My feeling is this world needs success more than ever. If we have enough people, who become prosperous, many of them will be charitable, as well. Here are a few ideas for envisioning your success in life. You can reflect on them, meditate on them, or visualize them, but you must act on them.

Be very specific about your goals. See yourself as successful. Feel what it will be like to give to others who need your help. Write your aspirations down and be clear about what you want to accomplish. There may be some “twists and turns” in life, but do not let it bother you.

Keep your “eyes on the prize.” Too many people get caught up in worrying about each hurdle in life. Let God take care of the details. Life is a big picture, not a brush stroke. If you make a mistake, do your best at repairing it and move forward.

Be ready to “turn on a dime.” If you visualize a path of success, be prepared for a “long and winding road.” Do not let the changes bother you, because you are navigating through unfamiliar territory. Imagine how Christopher Columbus felt when he saw “all that land.”

Lastly, look at an ethical example of success. If possible, do some research into how he or she made the achievements you desire. If you see a clear example of this, why should you have to “reinvent the wheel?” It is much easier to replicate success than to invent it from “scratch.”

Yoga teaches us many things, but Yogic principles must be applied to real life situations. In this way, each of us will experience optimum health and true happiness.

© Copyright 2008 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

——————————————–
Yoga Teacher Training Courses
FREE Yoga Report. FREE Yoga Newsletter. FREE Yoga Videos.
Free Podcasts. Bonus: Free Yoga e-Book, “Yoga in Practice.”
——————————————–
On-Site Yoga Training: http://www.aurawellnesscenter.com
——————————————–
FREE CONTENT: If you are a Yoga Teacher, Yoga studio, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles) – Please be sure to reprint each article, as is, including the resource box above. Namaste, Paul
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Yoga for Happiness and The Law of Karma

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

By Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

Yoga is a gateway to happiness. Through a proactive lifestyle, anyone can be happy at the worst of times, because internal happiness is a choice. If you talk to a survivor of a war, holocaust, or natural disaster, about his or her experiences, each one of them will admit they had to tap into their proactive will to survive.

Yet, within Yoga, there is an underlying belief that we should wait for life to do something to us, and then we should react to it. Some teachers will state that we should wait for the results of life’s actions, which produce situations that may be either good or bad.

It is easy to forget that Karma means “action.” We can wait for life to happen to us or we can embrace each day – whether it is good or not. In fact, we do not have to wait for a “bad day” to look for solutions to problems. Sometimes, the need for a solution is obvious.

How many people died in automobile accidents before seat belts and air bags were required as standard equipment? Unfortunately, far too many car accidents happened without the standard of safety equipment we see today.

It is worth noting that Nils Bohlin, a Swedish inventor, created the contemporary “three point” seat belt, which is now standard equipment. His invention was not the first seat belt, but he modified the concept, improved it, and saved more lives.

How can we apply this to Karma Yoga? Do not wait for life to come to you. Life is just not long enough to wait for solutions to “fall in your lap.” Another lesson we can learn from the example of Nils Bohlin, is that you can build and improve on the existing solutions of past innovators.

When you reflect back on your life, do you regret inaction? Most of us feel the same way, but our lives are not over. We still have time to “make” good changes happen. If you feel happiness from within, you should share it with those who will appreciate it. Spread the wealth of loving kindness and happiness when it is possible; especially, when good feelings are flowing throughout your inner-being.

Do not wait for someone else to show the first act of loving kindness. If you show acts of kindness, happiness will follow you wherever you go. For every action you take, there is always an equal reaction, which comes back to you.

You may ask for nothing in return for acts of loving kindness, but the Law of Karma will always bear fruit. Everyone deserves happiness. If you find yourself in the middle of a surplus, make sure you are always generous.

© Copyright 2008 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

——————————————–
Yoga Teacher Training
FREE Yoga Report. FREE Yoga Newsletter. FREE Yoga Videos.
Free Podcasts. Bonus: Free Yoga e-Book, “Yoga in Practice.”
——————————————–
On-Site Yoga Training: http://www.aurawellnesscenter.com
——————————————–
FREE CONTENT: If you are a Yoga Teacher, Yoga studio, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles) – Please be sure to reprint each article, as is, including the resource box above. Namaste, Paul
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