our-yoga

Do I know the way home?
Am I homeward bound?
Where is home, anyway?
A place on a map?
A certain point in time?
A state of mind?
Some barely emoted emotion?
Some barely dreamed-about dream?
All of these?
None of the above?
Who knows?

I look around the train
At familiar faces that have turned unfamiliar;
I look out the train
At station names that have changed beyond recall,
At a route that has altered beyond recognition.
Where is this taking me?
Or am I not supposed to be here
In the first place?

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Once upon a time, there was a woman named Okin Carmegorg. She lived in a big city where she went to school. She worked out regularly at a gym. At the gym, she learnt about these classes they were offering called yoga classes. She had no prior experience with this thing called yoga, but she found the sight of people standing on their heads fascinating. So Okin decided to sign up for yoga. After a few classes, she decided that she liked yoga, so she started taking classes at a yoga studio.

The studio she went to specialized in this particular style of yoga called Gatashan yoga. Now, Gatashan is a very physically rigorous and demanding form of yoga involving a set sequence of postures linked together by a very specific number of breaths. Now Okin was somewhat flexible, but she wasn't particularly physically strong. As a result, she really struggled with the postures that required her to balance her body weight on her arms. Indeed, a few of her (male) teachers actually told her that she would never be able to stand on her arms in this lifetime.

Nevertheless, Okin was undaunted, and kept working on her practice. She also went to India, the birthplace of Gatashan yoga, and studied with the Guru of this tradition. After a few years, the Guru authorized her to teach this system. After another few years, she became a certified teacher.

Wanting to bring this yoga to more people, she opened a studio in this place called Imami Beach. Many people took up the practice, and experienced many physical, emotional and spiritual benefits. And then she realized that she would be able to reach out to more people--people who otherwise wouldn't be able to meet or practice with her regularly--if she made instructional videos that were easily available online on YouTube. In an attempt to reach tweens and other individuals of the non-yoga crowd, she also made this video called "Yoga Girls of Imami Beach." That video wasn't so well-received, but she didn't let that bother her, and instead went on to make more instructional and practice videos. And many people (including the author of this neither-here-nor-there story) benefited from the clear instruction in these videos.

Meanwhile, there existed a group of individuals called bloggers. There are many ways to describe bloggers, but it probably wouldn't be too much of an exaggeration to say that bloggers are basically individuals whose minds are so active and chattering that they couldn't keep the contents of their chattering minds to themselves. So what do they do? Well, they blog! Needless to say, the exploits of Okin Carmegorg did not escape the attention of these bloggers with their ceaselessly chattering minds. These bloggers formed many differing and conflicting opinions about the actions of Okin, especially the "Yoga Girls of Imami Beach" video. Some bloggers also formed this curious habit of fixating on the fact that Okin has this curious habit of teaching and practicing in short shorts and tube tops. (Which is more curious, teaching and practicing in short shorts and tube tops, or fixating on teaching and practicing in short shorts and tube tops? Well, this is a hard one...) In any case, the bloggers formed many diverse and conflicting views on Okin's actions. Some thought that she was a good teacher whose actions and intentions were misunderstood. Some thought that she was a good teacher who had sold out and commercialized herself and the tradition which she purported to represent. Some thought she had a super-big ego, which was, of course, a very unyogic thing to have in yogic circles. Yet others were undecided.

In the meantime, Okin continued to do her thing, bloggers continued to blog their blogs, waves continued to rise and fall in the oceans, and the sun and the planets continued to move in their assigned orbits.

Isn't this a very silly neither-here-nor-there story? :-)     

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First, a little practice report. I did second only up to Karandavasana today. So it appears that I have gotten my Karandavasana muscles back (after yesterday's less than stellar "performance"; see previous post for more details): I landed the duck on my first attempt! Coming back up still seems very far away. After being on my upper arms for five breaths, I tried with all my might to lift up, and my knees lifted off by, maybe, half a millimeter? And then my strength gave out, and I had to simply come down into padmasana. I think coming back up has lots to do with landing the knees closer to the armpits; I have the feeling that one gets more leverage that way. Will keep trying.

A very strange thing has been happening with my laptop at work. From time to time, it would take the longest time to start up. But whenever I bring it in to the campus IT office for the IT people to look at it, it would work perfectly fine! It happened again this afternoon. I brought my once-again-slow-to-start laptop in to IT, and it worked perfectly fine once I tried to get it to repeat the problem there. Which is starting to make me look very silly, since this was already the third time I brought it in! I'm starting to believe that computers are like cranky pets; they act up when they want you to take them out for a walk.

Anyway, because of my computer issues, I had to prepare and teach my classes today the old-school way, i.e. using the chalkboard. Which is a very interesting experience. On the one hand, I didn't particularly enjoy getting chalk all over my hands, or the sound of chalk scraping the blackboard (yeah, that sound really disturbs me...). On the other hand, however, there is just something almost magical about writing things out physically; it's almost as if the act of writing physically reinforces certain grooves (samskaras?) of knowledge in one's brain, and causes knowledge to sink deeper into the grooves of consciousness. I also had the feeling that my students paid more attention when they had to read and follow words that are written on a physical surface in real time, than if they simply passively stared at words on a projector screen. Sometimes, I think that less technology makes for more learning ;-)

In any case, in my Introduction to Western Philosophy course today, we discussed St. Anselm's Ontological Argument for the Existence of God. Here's my formulation of his argument:

1. Things that exist in reality are greater than things that exist only in the understanding.

2. A non-believer in God (a "fool") understands what is meant by the phrase "a being than which none greater can be thought."

3. For the fool, a being than which none greater can be thought exists only in the understanding (since he does not believe that such a being exists in reality).

4. But if a being than which none greater can be thought exists only in the understanding, then it is possible that there exists a being which is greater than such a being (i.e. a being than which none greater can be thought, which exists in reality, and not just in the understanding).

5. Therefore, if a being than which none greater can be thought exists only in the understanding, then such a being would be at the same time a being than which none greater can be thought, and also not a being than which none greater can be thought.

6. But this is absurd, for something cannot both be and not be a being than which none greater can be thought.

7. Therefore, the fool is wrong: a being than which none greater can be thought cannot exist only in the understanding.

8. Therefore, a being than which none greater can be thought has to exist not just in the understanding, but in reality as well.

9. God is the being than which none greater can be thought.

10. Therefore, God exists.

I don't know what you think of this argument, but we had a lot of fun in class putting this argument together, taking it apart, and thinking through its implications. Perhaps if you have a spare moment, this might also be a fun argument for you to contemplate :-)  

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Image: Iyogalife.com

My feet press strongly into the ground. Balls? Check! Heels? Check! Outside edges? Check! I try to feel my arches lift--as if to suck that grounding, stable energy of the earth up like I would suck the last drops of lemonade out of the bottom of a glass through a straw. My toes lift and spread.

Planting my feet firmly into the ground lifts the crown of my head just a little closer to the sky. For just a moment, I feel tall... regal... powerful!

I firm my calves, then my thighs. My femur bones spiral in just slightly, but at the same time press away from each other. I feel my bones stack.

I lengthen my tailbone toward the floor and firm my belly.

My chest lifts toward the sky as my shoulder blades descend.

I feel that same energy that I draw from the ground shine out through the top of my head and extend through my fingertips, pointing toward the floor.

But after a few moments of pulling and pushing, firming and gripping, aligning and realigning something almost magical happens: A softening--not of the muscles, but of the mind.

This is my experience of Tadasana.

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There are two things in life that I can count on to make me feel uplifted, positive about life, and (dare I say) joyful: My yoga practice and writing about my yoga practice.

It's not surprising, then, that I devoured Writing Yoga: A Guide to Keeping a Practice Journal by Bruce Black. In this gem, published earlier this year by Rodmell Press, I discovered chapter after chapter of inspiring ideas for expressing my yoga through writing.

I could also relate to Black's stories about his own yoga practice, and how writing down his experiences before and after he unrolled his mat changed the way he thought about his practice. I've had similar experiences through this blog. Writing adds a whole other contemplative level to an already very contemplative practice. I'm a firm believer that when I sit down and actually put my experiences onto paper (or computer screen as the case may be) I gain a new perspective on things. Yoga practice in no exception.

If you haven't already read through Writing Yoga, I encourage you to grab a copy and let Black be your guide as you explore what beautiful, complex emotions you can uncover through writing about your yoga practice.

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There are lots of great new clothing lines for Fall this year, but on my most coveted list are two pair of pants that I think are incredibly innovative.

I'm really impressed with Lululemon's new Acro Crop. It's such a great idea to put a little sticky silicon paint on the pant legs to give you some extra traction in arm balances and balance poses like Vrksasana (Tree Pose) that is, if you practice with the lifted foot below the knee, anyway! Admittedly, I haven't seen these in person, but from what I can tell they're pretty neat. That said... I have one major concern about these nifty pants: If you manage to get your leg behind your head while you're wearing these, will you be more likely to get stuck?

I'm also really into the Knee Pad Yoga Capri by Fila. Sometimes my knees get sore from those Pigeon Pose variations and Camel Pose. My solution has always been to fold the edge of my mat over to give me some extra padding... I think it's genius that someone decided to put discreet pads in yoga pants so the padding is built in! I haven't seen these in person yet, either, so I can't tell if they look totally dorky or not.. but the pictures look sleek.


Have any of you tried either of these pants? Did you love them? I'd love to hear your reviews!

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In this somewhat fuzzy picture of my desk at work.. you will see several things that inspire me beyond belief and get me through my work day.

The highlights are:

- A woman with grey hair on a surfboard... because if I'm half that cool when my hair is all grey, I will consider this a life well lived.
-  A card that a coworker from a past job gave me that says "Tolerance". I think she was trying to tell me something.
- Cute shoes. For without a regular paycheck I could not afford life's simple luxuries.
- An illustration of Parvati, my favorite Indian goddess. She's the epitome of girl power, but in a totally soft, approachable way.
- A picture of a mala to remind me of my meditation practice.
- A cute kitten. So. Freakin. FUZZY! I just want to squeeze it! Oh yeah. It also reminds me to be gentle and kind and stuff.... and that I like kitties.. and doggies!
- Om.

Do you have an inspiration board? What's on yours?

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Model: Abbie Dutterer;   Photography: Faern

Find ways to incorporate yoga clothing into your work wardrobe. I wear a mala to work nearly every day. I also wear yoga tops in the place of camisoles. That way even though I am conforming to my office culture and look "professional" I have little reminders of my practice even when I'm in meetings away from my desk. (And it makes changing for yoga after work a breeze!)

Take stretch breaks often. There are lots of poses you can do right in your desk chair. My favorite desk stretches are seated twists (using the arm rests for extra traction), Cow Face Pose, and--when no one is looking--seated Cat-Cows and Tolasana from my desk chair!

Listen to kirtan. I love listening to music while I work, but songs with lyrics are distracting when you work with words. Kirtan is soothing and reminds me of my yoga practice, and the fact that I don't understand the words is a bonus because I can just enjoy the vibrations.

Take a deep breath every time you get a phone call or email. This is my trick to manage stress and communicate mindfully.

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Tell us about your favorite yoga outfit. What do you love about it?

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Migraine headache is a pain of head's half part, this pains occurs when the blood vessels of a person enlarge automatically, it effects more females than males throughout the world, taking America only the ratio of causing migraine in women is three times more than men. This pains last for around 4 to 72 hours in adults and around 1-2 days in children.

Causes of Migraine Headache:

The main migraine headache causes are:
1. Listening to sound continuously for more than 3 hours.
2. Exposure to light for hours, for example, sitting in front of computer or television screen for long time.
3. Stress, hunger and sometimes fatigue plays important role causing migraine headache.
Treatment of Migraine Headache:

The best way that doctors advice is less use of aspirin, person should take rest when having migraine headache and should take medicine according to doctors advice.