Five Things

Proper Exercise

Proper Breathing

Proper Relaxation

Proper Food

Proper Thinking

Yoga leads the way!

Om Peace!
Yogini Valarie Devi

Negative Feelings

When we remove negative thinking from our life, then our emotions will also become free of negativity. When we remove strain and effort from our body, then pain and confusion will also be removed. Then, when we experience negative thinking or pain, we are not only better able to gently remove it, but to identify whether it is ours are coming from someplace outside of our self.

Om Peace!
Yogini Valarie Devi

Peace, not just "non-violence"

The word ahimsa is often translated as "non-violence", but his is not exactly correct.

Himsa means "violence" and a means the opposite of a thing. So more than non-violence, ahimsa means peace.

Consider this: even in non-violence, violence exists by merely considering it, even if considering it as non-action. Whereas peace is always peace.

A perfect example of this is idea was seen in Mother Theresa's request to participate in a anti-war rally. She said, "I was once asked why I don't participate in anti-war demonstrations. I said that I will never do that, but as soon as you have a pro-peace rally, I'll be there."

Mother Theresa new that anti-war still evoke the energy of war. Likewise, ahimsa still invokes the energy of violence when we translate it as non-violence.

For some, the idea of violence is far removed from them, mostly because violence is thought to be something that occurs in a war zone, for example. Yet, people are violent everyday.

When someone makes fun of someone else, that is violence. When laughing at a comedian who riducules people, that is violence. When eating junk food or over doing exercise, that is violence. When sleeping too much, eating too much, or anything in excess, that is violence. When taking pills for every complaint, when drinking coffee or alcohol, this is violence. When overly concerned about appearance - make-up, clothing, this is violence. When engaged in negative thoughts - 'Im stupid', 'Im too fat', 'I hate my hair', this is violence.

In Yoga, I often remind the students that, "flexibility is a state of mind", meaning that, when the mind is flexible and open and willing to flow with changes, then the body will follow. So it is that when we engage in the examples above, thinking and doing and having violent thoughts, the body will follow.

Think peace and the mind will be filled with peace. Think peace and peace will fill the body with peace. Think peace and others around you will experience that peace and bring it into themselves.

Om Peace!
Yogini Valarie Devi

Power Yoga

Does Yoga build power in the body? Can it be used as strength training?

No matter what you do, muscle loss begins in your 30s and continues at a rate of 3% per decade without adequate exercise and sound nutrition.

Yoga is a weight-bearing exercise, and several medical studies can support this fact. This means Yoga is good for seniors concerned about bone loss and athletes looking to get a serious work-out.

For example, a typical Hatha Yoga class at Hamsa Yogashala will burn calories, build strength, create endurance and improve flexibility. For most people, that is a win-win combination because there Yoga is no-impact routine so does not harm the muscles or bones.

For serious athletes, Yoga is an excellent addition to the weight training - or Martial Art, or Running, or any other sport that you may engage in.

Om Peace!

quote : Grace

To know that nothing hurts the godly, is a matter of comfort;

but to be assured that all things which fall out shall co-operate

for their good, that their crosses shall be turned into blessings,

that showers of affliction water the withering root

of their grace and make it flourish more;

this may fill their hearts with joy till they run over.

-Thomas Watson

Saucha Yoga

Saucha means "physical and mental purification".

Hatha Yoga is more than getting in great shape, its also a way to maintain and/or restore health, to de-stress and de-toxify.

"When your body is cleansed, your mind purified and your senses are controlled, you experience the joyful awareness that enables you to realise your inner self."
-Patanjali, Raja Yoga Sutra 2.41

Ask your Yoga teacher about "saucha". If they dont know what it means, find another teacher, because you have been taking a stretch class, not a Yoga class.

Saucha is purification, as seen in physical cleanliness, a clean home, healthy food, pure water, and a mindfulness practice - like Yoga.

Saucha also means mental clarity and calm speaking, or refraining angry and de-basing thoughts, and emotionally charged rants.

Saucha is part of Yoga, for without it, you will never fully experience the inner calm and fullness that is Hatha Yoga.

Yoga asanas done with conscious and relaxed breathing will cleanse the body and mind, calm the emotions, clear your karma, lift your self-esteem, and improve your self-awareness. Combined, these create a reverence for life and a sense of sacredness to all you do.

Saucha is one of the ten precepts that Mahama Gandhi worked diligently on.

When we bring Saucha into our Yoga practice, it reflects in our daily life as transparency, so that all who see you will see the grace and gratitude shining within you.

Here are some suggestions for bringing Saucha into your life:
-Learn a Yoga Kriya, or "cleansing exercise", such as neti. To this on a regular basis.

-Resolve to clean your house everyday. If anything, to remove the clutter.

-Go through your home and find things you no longer need or use. Collect them in a canvas bag and at the end of the month, donate them to charity.

-Once a week, have a Meatless Monday.

-Practice truthfullness by saying what you mean. When we intend to speak truthfully we are more likely to stop before speaking - thinking carefully about what we will say and how we will say it.

-Meditate daily.

-Keep a journal. Jot down your thoughts, or something you overheard, or a passage from a book and why you liked it.

-Ask yourself, "Do I think my body is the temple of the soul? If so, what should I do to really treat it like a temple?"

Om Peace!

FREE Yoga

Hamsa Yogashala responded immediately to the economic emergency by offering free Yoga classes every Thursday. Three class a day.

Come to heal .. come to relax .. come to simplicity .. come to come.

Global Awareness Meditation

Sit quietly and contemplate all the things that are going on around the earth at once, right now.

You may wish to sit outside to better hear the sounds of nature and feel the earth beneath you.

Let your thoughts be calm. Let deep awareness of your surroundings wash over you.

Offer a prayer for the world and all that is happening right now on the planet.

Become aware that the world is filled with people who are laughing and crying, who are loving and yelling, who are giving and dreaming, with dogs barking and cats sleeping, with children young and adults old.

Think on all these things and more as you sit quietly upon the earth, filling your longs with air, feeling the rhythm of your heart like waves upon a shore.

Now remember that all of this is divine, for all the world is divine.

Om Peace!
Yogini Valarie Devi

Spiritual Sounds

Krishna Das : Grace
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a19I8FtPscs&feature=related

Charlotte Church : Ave Maria
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8g6Tqqc6DQ

YHSVH sacred Chant
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FMQG4BQ-9s

Enigma : Sacred Spirit
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5zUomoea6Y

JaiMa James : InterFaith Chant
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TAxTzPKmvI

Om Peace!
Yogini Valarie Devi

Krodh

Krodh. That means "anger, wrath, rage; uncontrolled anger".

To understand ourself we must understand anger. Sometimes krodh takes the form of silent sullenness, and sometimes destructive temper. In Sanskirt, "krodh" often appears with "kam", as in "kamkrodh". This means, literally: desire-anger. Anger is the offspring of desire, specifically, thrwarted or jilted desire.

Yogis grow through a process of successive identifications. Anger is the emotional/chemical reaction produced when we are confronted with rejection or judgment or the inability to get what we desire. This is because our current self-identification is being threatened. Threatened with change (maya). Because none of us should fear change, let alone react negatively to it, anger is insecurity.

Anger is a downward spiral that drags spiritual growth with it. In India, it is said that "kam and krodh dissolve the body as borax melts gold." Anger is an obstacle upon the path of spiritual growth. The best way to repel anger is by deep breath .. which helps us remain calm. While breathing deep and slow we should see anger as impersonal, or as something not 'against me'. While breathing deep and slow remember love - the love of goodness, the love of truth, the love of change.

Let love be your guru, so that through boldness and courage, through labor and energy, you arrive at a place of wisdom and spirit.

Om Peace!
Valarie Devi

Pranayama

"Now I shall tell you the rules of Pranayama or breath control. By its practice the student will become the Yogi."
-Gheranda Samhita, 5.1

In Christ

To live "in Christ" is to live in a mystery equal

to that of the Incarnation and similar to it.

For as Christ unites in His one Person

the two natures of God and man,

so too in making us His friends He dwells in us,

uniting us intimately to Himself.

Dwelling in us He becomes as it were our superior self,

for He has united and identified our inmost self with Himself.

From the moment that we have responded by faith

and charity to His love for us, a supernatural union

of our souls with His indwelling Divine Person gives us

a participation in His divine sonship and nature.

A "new being" is brought into existence.

I become a "new man" and this new man,

spiritually and mystically one identity,

is at once Christ and myself."

-Thomas Merton

No Organic!

Below is a list of foods that we do not need to buy organic. This is due to several reasons, ranging from the thickness of the skin, to the skin not being eaten, or that the pesticides used on them are minimal to non-existent.

Dr. Andrew Weil (the only physician I place trust in) says, "Of the 43 different fruit and vegetable categories tested, the following foods do not have to be organic. These had the lowest pesticide load, and consequently are the safest conventionally grown crops to consume from the standpoint of pesticide contamination." He also goes on to point out, "However, make it a habit to wash them thoroughly before eating or cooking, to remove dirt and bacteria."

In addition to Dr. Weil's 'Top 11', I found three more from reputable sites, so have included them below. For Dr. Weil's list:
http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/id/TIP02559

The additional foods I found have been added below, in alphabetical order.

Asparagus
Avocados
Bananas
Broccoli
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Corn (sweet, frozen)
Eggplant
Kiwi
Mangos
Onions
Papaya
Pineapples
Peas (sweet, frozen)

Om Peace!
Valarie Devi

Lobh

Lobh. That means, "greed, possessiveness, covetousness".

When we feel separate from All That Is, we have cravings for fulfillment. At its most basic, lobh manifests as our cravings for food and sleep, shelter and clothing - all of which are necessary for our survival, and so emanations of the first chakra (Muladhara).

Lobh, however, is when we confuse our sense of fulfillment with basic material survival. Which means, after we have the basic needs, we still feel empty. Because we all know how to obtain our basic needs - food, sleep, shelter, clothing - its when we seek to acquire more then we need that we are working from a place of greed.

In our society today we often hear, "money doesnt buy happiness", which is true. It does bring security, but when we feel paniciky about not having enough, that is when we begin to feel desperate or lost and should realize that greed is just around the corner.

Lobh comes from insecurity, and insecurity from mis-identifiction of our higher self. When we do not believe in our higher self, we do not believe in providence. Consider how pointless greed or worry; for example, you can acquire vast amounts of material wealth, yet when you die, it stays behind. Sadly, such vast amounts are fought over by our family, so that greed becomes inherited.

So it is that lodh should be used positively, as an asset to our spiritual growth. We do this by becoming greedy for the wisdom of our higher self, for spiritual knowledge, and for love.

Om Peace!

Chair Yoga

Did you know Yoga can be done in a chair?

Hamsa Yogashala has a relaxing atmosphere with trees on three sides, gentle music, and ambient lighting.

If you are unable to stand for long periods or sit comfortably on the floor, then we have a chair for you!

Chair Yoga is excellent for seniors or those with injuries. While sitting, you can still create strength, or maintain and restore it. Likewise, you can increase your range of motion, improve your balance and restore your energy. All while sitting down!

Om Peace!