Live Your Dreams With Yoga Practice
Yoga practice guides people to become self-aware, if only for a short period of time. They must stop living in their mental fog and pay...
How to Reduce Negative Thoughts with Yoga
"Practice makes perfect" is a very wise saying. Practice builds confidence, as well. The visiting team cannot wait to go practice on the opposing team's home field before game time. Visiting teams are not familiar with the turf, and they will also face hostile sports fans. Even professionals have to "get the bugs out." If you do not have a stage or a field to practice on, you still have your mind. In Yogic meditation, you are taught to visualize. Therefore, you should visualize success. Do not approach a negative thought as a victim. Instead, look at your problems as a victor would. Forget the worries and focus on the solutions. Some of my Yoga students have said, "But what if I fail?" In truth, no adventure in this life is a failure, unless you quit. If you never give up, you are still working on a positive outcome.
Traditional Spiritual Initiation from a Yoga Guru
It is said that if you do receive the gift of Shaktipat from a Yoga Guru before commencing a dedicated practice, you will experience...
What is the Purpose of Japa?
In order to maintain a strong connection with the divine energy in one’s own heart, many spiritual teachers or Gurus have recommended the practice of japa. This practice entails the silent or barely audible repetition of a sacred mantra. The practice of japa is well known in Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism. Japa is similar to praying the Rosary in Catholicism, although it is slightly different. During the practice of japa, the repetition of a sacred mantra or phrase clears the subtle pathways in a Yogi or Yogini’s energy body, known in Sanskrit as nadis.
Celebrating Life with Yoga: A Metaphorical Journey
By: Virginia Iversen, M.Ed. What can Yoga Teach us about celebrating life? For the past twenty-five years, I have been diligently practicing Yoga several times a week. I began to practice Yoga when I developed severe lower back problems in my mid-twenties. One day, as I was walking across a city park in Denver, the [...]
Creating Healthy Habits with Yoga: Regularity
By: Virginia Iversen, M.Ed Creating healthy habits can be difficult for many of us. Establishing a regular time to practice Yoga is one of the primary keys to benefiting fully from this ancient system of physical postures, pranayama exercises and meditation techniques. For instance, engaging in a thirty-minute practice several times a week, or even daily, will benefit [...]
Maintaining Healthy Rituals in Busy Modern Life
Whatever your life might hold, it just takes a bit of curious exploration and mindful commitment to find healthful practices that you can regularly maintain. Such rituals can make a world of difference in how you come to approach both consistent and unexpected stressors, as healing and dependable despite any and all of them.
Yoga for the Winter Blues: Japa Recitation and Chanting
During the cold winter months, maintaining a steady Yoga practice, with the inclusion of japa recitation and Yogic chanting, will help to keep your heart and your mind light and positive. When the weather permits, spending time out in the sunshine is also an important aspect of mitigating depressive symptoms during the wintertime.
Staying with Yoga Instruction
I also gained a few private students when students whom I tutor in my university’s academic support center discovered I teach yoga, and expressed interests in having me teach them. Though busy and incompatible schedules could make those commitments short-lived, the bits of experiences (and extra cash) were valuable enough to make my efforts more than worth it. For anyone who might have to suspend formal teaching temporarily because of other work and financial obligations, I believe that similar connections are possible.
About Yoga Practice For Spring
It has been a long winter in the house. I cannot wait to get outside for a dose of vitamin D and some fresh air. Some studios offer monthly full moon meditation or yoga events once the weather turns warmer, and I will definitely be on board for some warm evenings outside.