books

You are currently browsing the archive for the books category.

Happy Diwali

October 28, 2011 in books, events, jnana, Yoga | Add Your Comment

A Nasa Photo of India during Diwali

diwali in india the festival of lights

For hundreds of millions of people, we’re in the midst of one of the most important holidays of the year. Diwali celebrates the return from exile of Rama, a much beloved form of divinity. Across India and around the world, lamps and candles are lit to help guide Rama home.

No, we surely don’t have to subscribe to Hindu beliefs to practice Yoga, but we can use these myths and stories to enrich our practice.

Essentially Rama was known for doing the right thing, even when it is extremely difficult, even when he could have gotten away with the easy route. Rama underwent great hardships and personal loss to do what was just.

When we practice Bow pose, Dhanurasana, it honors the Bow left by Shiva as test of righteousness for who would win the hand of Sita in marriage. Rama was the only suitor who could lift the bow, and was so strong that it broke under his draw. (please don’t pull that hard in class!)

The kneeling warrior pose, Anjaneasana, honors Hanuman, Rama’s faithful servant, who is the quintessential symbol of devoting ourselves to what matters most.

Bridge Pose, Setu Bhandasana, honors the bridge that Hanuman built from India to Lanka – to rescue Sita from the clutches of the villain Ravana. In my practice, I like to see it as the bridge from where and how I am, to where and how I’d like to be.

Although they were not easy to get to, I loved visiting the places in India sacred to Ram: Nasik where he lived in exile for 14 years, and the southeastern most tip – Rameshwar and Dhanuskodi, where Hanuman built the bridge. These places are continuously teeming with countless pilgrims, seekers of peace and simplicity, they welcomed me with open arms.

The Long Ancient Corridor at Rameshwar – a meditative walk.

long corridor at rameshwar jyotir lingam

At the root of many Hindu stories are simple seeds of guidance, how we could live more peaceful lives, richer with meaning and purpose.

Happy Diwali! Consider lighting a candle tonight, and sitting in stillness for a few moments. I hope your practice brings clarity, helps you to cut through the chatter of our turbulent times, so you can do the right thing, and dedicate yourself to what matters most.

On Saturday we have our Open Mic Kirtan/Satsang – We’ll share some music and stories. it’s a free event and you’re most welcome to listen in, or bring something to share.

On Sunday morning, we’ll be sure to integrate these postures into our peaceful Yoga class in West Concord.

Om Shanti, I’ll see you in class.

-john

P.S.  Many thanks to all who joined us for the full-house Live Music Yoga class with Karnamrita. She promises to return, but in the meantime, We’ve got Tom Lena, Irene Solea, Bernadette, Bindy, and Clarence Dow confirmed to offer their beautiful sounds for our Yoga classes in Concord. See the Events page for the scoop.

For a fun read of the stories behind our Yoga poses, check out these books:

Ganesha Goes to Lunch: Classics from Mystic India (Mandala Classics)

and

Downward Dogs and Warriors: Wisdom Tales for Modern Yogis

 

Tags: , , ,

The Weaver and the Loom

September 13, 2011 in books, creativity, writing, Yoga | 4 comments

The Weaver and the Loom

Yoga for artists in concord ma

B.W. Yogini and weaver at Emerson Umbrella

Sit here for a bit. Place yourself

outside the frenzied pace of life.

Slow down long enough to

appreciate birds in flight, water

drops like prisms in the grass and

countless shades of green. Step

off the fast track and listen to the

sound of breath and birdsong. Take

a moment to just be, and in the being,

know the whole of this creation,

mystery and madness, passion and

profanity, know it all as one, stunning

tapestry. Sit still and the thin line

between sacred and profane simply

fades away. There is nothing then

to reconcile. All the disparate threads

are woven on the loom of life. Sit here

for a bit and your unique place in the

pattern becomes clear. Take the still

point with you when it’s time to walk

away. Make the choice to see affinity,

to watch the picture taking shape as

thread joins thread. Dare to be the

weaver and the loom, creator and

creation, the sower and the sown.

In a moment of stillness, all that

came before is seen as one.

–From Danna Faulds’ Go In and In: Poems from the Heart of Yoga

(a great book for Yogis and for teachers of Yogis.)  There’s a long line for the beautiful clothing that BW weaves in Concord at the Emerson Umbrella for the Arts… One thread at a time. She practices with us in West Concord. Thanks B!

 

Tags: , ,

A Clean Sweep

December 27, 2010 in abundance, books, calling, creativity, Reviews by john, writing, Yoga | 12 comments

a clean sweep

One benefit of living on a busy street is that anything put out on the curb is gone in a flash. There's no time to change my mind and get it back.

I've lived in the same place for some time now, and much has accumulated. While I have been open to the new coming into my life, there was no clear path out for what no longer had a place, the flow impeded by sheer busyness, and by my grasping for permanence. 

I imagine if Yoga had a currency it would say "In flow we trust" across the top. “let it come, let it go” across the bottom… and of course, a picture of Patanjali in the middle.

Over the last few months I've been earnestly clearing out, I came across a great book which helped me in the process of making space, not just in my home, but in my mind, and in my life:  Your Spacious Self: Clear Your Clutter and Discover Who You Are

How can I realize my abundance with all this stuff in the way?

Out onto the curb go the belongings, mementoes, and anchors that no longer serve a purpose, or bring joy. Sometimes I see the new owner from my window, loading my old relics/their new trophies, into their car and driving off. I make sure to wish them both well, the material has become very easy for me to let go of.

It's happening, sometimes it’s scary. I started this outward flow, and who knows how deeply it will go. 

We’ve got so much invested in who we think we are, that there’s no room for who we’re becoming.

Old habits, no-longer friendly relationships, ideas, masks, and tendencies are going out onto the curb of my consciousness. Some by choice, some perhaps just getting caught-up in the outgoing tide. 

This is formidable, nobody takes these away. They were part of me, they defined me, and I am compelled by their gravitational pull. I’m practicing new ways of being, in hope that they take root.

The old us holds on for dear life, but the bold light of awareness loosens the grip.

As if by providence, I was sent two nutritional cleanse kits. One to give away, and one to try out and evaluate on my blog. They are from DrNatura, the Advanced Internal Cleansing Program.

Between the cleanse, some changed habits, a stronger practice, and a heartbreaking 'growth opportunity' that whacked my appetite, I've shed 18 pounds from my physical body, and much more than that energetically.

I can finally fit into the clothes that I gave away last month. 

My part in the economic stimulus will be buying some new clothing. If you happen to make black Vegan tee shirts, expect a surge in sales this coming year.

I feel so far away from my teachers, but can hear them say “keep going.” Forgotten postures are revealing themselves from the dusty corners of my Yoga practice. There’s new space in my music, in my Pranayama.

I'm opening to new ideas in my writing, my practice, and in what I've been offering in classes, and our retreats. I’m bringing vibrant colors into my space, new art, and new possibilities. I’m eyeing a sweet little house that I just may move to.

Trying not to rewind, or fast forward, I sit still, sometimes squirming with what I’m missing, what is no longer. Some things baffle me, and just cannot be figured out, some things are clearly out of my hands. Gate Gate – Para Gate, Parasan Gate – Bodhi Swah. They feel so gone, beyond gone.

As Rilke alludes, “May you someday live into the meaning.”

Loosening my grip I look forward to the new that will surely come… but for now, I'll sit with, and savor this beautiful space. Many thanks for sharing this journey with me.

We don’t have to wait till spring to start cleaning…

Just in time for New Years Resolutions, I’ve got this DrNatura nutritional cleanse to give away to a lucky reader. It’s the #1 rated kit, and has a retail value of $80. Here’s how we’ll do this. Make a comment on this post, let us know what you’re going to let go of in the coming year. A week into the new year I’ll choose one post randomly, and you’ll be well on your way to being shiny inside and out.

Om Shanti, I’ll see you in class, -j

P.S. We’ve got a great class raffle for January. Jason from Revolution Community Acupuncture is awarding one lucky Yogi three healing sessions. 23 chances to win this month. Also, please join us in ringing in the New Year with our Live Music Yoga Class – Sunday January 2nd 9am. West Concord.

Tags: , , , , ,

Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras

October 30, 2010 in books, jnana, Sutras, video, Yoga | Add Your Comment

 Every few thousand years, a good book comes along:

Patanjali's yoga sutras

Before written language, teachings were passed to the next generation by the chanting and memorization of short soundbites called sutras. Sutra means a thread, it's where our word suture comes from.

  The teachings were sacred, secret, and for the priviledged classes.

Patanjali, often called the father of classical yoga was the first known person to gather the knowledge of Yoga and write it down, penning The Yoga Sutras over two thousand years ago. I can imagine at the time this was quite blasphemous, to break from tradition and write down the secret teachings. He was a radical – our kind of guy.

  Now anyone could learn the secrets of Yoga and liberate themselves.

The sutras can be cryptic, and were meant to be 'unpacked' through commentary by a teacher. In the practice of Swadyaya, we play detective, excavating the meaning of the sutra within the context of our own lives. 

As your practice and understanding of yourself evolves, your understanding of the Sutras evolves. In essence, you weave these threads of wisdom into your practice, using them to help navigate your life.

   YS II.35 AHIMSA PRATISTHAYAM TAT SAMNIDHAU VAIRA TYAGAH

Originally written in Sanskrit, there are many translations to choose from. When researching a sutra, I often have many translations open, gleaning an understanding from bits of each commentary. 

A good translation to start with is: The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: Commentary on the Raja Yoga Sutras by Sri Swami Satchidananda. it is used in many teacher trainings, is well indexed, and has many stories to draw from. I love my tattered, drawn in, dog-eared copy that has accompanied me all over the world.

My current favorite is from Edwin Bryant:  The Yoga Sutras of Patañjali: A New Edition, Translation, and Commentary

Nischala Joy Devi brings a feminine slant to the Sutras:  The Secret Power of Yoga: A Woman's Guide to the Heart and Spirit of the Yoga Sutras

Chip Hartranft from the Arlington Center:  The Yoga-Sutra of Patanjali: A New Translation with Commentary

A Buddhist view from Geshe Michael Roach and Christie Mcnally: The Essential Yoga Sutra: Ancient Wisdom for Your Yoga

Desikachar:  The Heart of Yoga: Developing a Personal Practice

Georg Feuerstein:  The Yoga-Sutra of Patañjali:

To learn how to chant the Sutras, check out Manorma's disc:  Yoga Sutra Of Patanjali

To hear them, check out this video of Krishnamacharya at 50 years old:

If you add just one book to your library this year, make it a copy of the Yoga Sutras, the original 'self help' book.

What's your favorite sutra, or translation? Click the add comment link to add yours to the list.

Om Shanti, I'll see you in class.

John

Tags: , , , , ,

a few good books

November 20, 2009 in books, video, writing, Yoga, yoga films | 2 comments

Namaste.  Before I head off for travels in Asia I wanted to share what I've been reading over last month or so.

First off, our local teacher Jacqueline Ryan Brodnitzki has just published Awaken Your Inner Radiance.

Subtitled Four Steps to a Joy filled life, Jacqueline lays out a very-approachable map to happiness and vibrant health.  The book is a quick read, though you'll find yourself marking pages to return to,  I did some of the written exercises and found them thought provoking.   there are insightful quotes, plenty of recommendations for good books to follow along with, and it's apparent that she's writing from her own experience, Jacqueline lives, and teaches this.  Thanks J.  I enjoyed reading your book.

Doorways To The Soul.

Our own Elisa Davy Pearmain gave me a copy of her book almost a year ago. Why has it taken this long to review?  Well, Elisa's beautiful book has 52 chapters, and she encourages you to read it slowly, taking time to absorb the stories.  In our speeding culture, this is refreshing advice.  Elisa draws from a vast array of traditions to convey wisdom of the ages, peace, and connection with nature, divinity, and each other.  I took my time with this one, a story for each week.  you will want to as well.  Thanks E,  It's been nice seeing you in class.

Yoga in America.

Edited by Deborah Bernstein and Bob Weisenberg.    Deb and Bob sent out the question "What is yoga?"  to a community of teachers, 300 responses were edited down to 46 that are published in this substantial volume.  the spectrum of yoga represented is wide, and I appreciate the different writing styles.  this is another book that can be read over time, taking time to soak up what's been said.  Deborah lives in Boston, and does much work to comfort the families of fallen firefighters and disabled veterans.  Check out her Yoga blog, and beautiful retreat center, Florian Yoga – St. John, US Virgin Islands.

Thanking the Monkey

I'm still working on Karen Dawn's fresh look at Animal Rights.  I met Karen back in 2000 at the national Animal Rights Conference, but had recognized her from conferences in the past.  She's been actively publishing the E-newsletter 'DawnWatch' for many years, alerting us to how animals are represented or more often misrepresented in the media.  

This is a comprehensive, yet inviting book, intermixed with glossy photos, cartoons and a mix of philosophies.   Chosen by the Washington Post as one of the Best Books of the year, Thanking the Monkey is full of insight from the well known, and the rank and file.  Karen, thanks for all you do for the Voiceless animals.  I appreciate your efforts, and will revisit your book when I return from Asia.  Thanks for the tee shirt too !

Lastly, a film.   I just received the film Dalai Lama Renaissance, I was able to watch one volume chronicling the conference between His Holiness and 40 of the worlds current intellectuals.  Quantum physicists, talk show hosts, film makers and social scientists gather to discus the worlds problems and what can be done about them.   The scenery is amazing, but what struck me most about this documentary is the incredible patience the Dalai Lama has when dealing with this collection of mostly-Western minds.  

Renaissance has won 14 awards and is an official selection in at least 40 international film festivals.  I'll let you know about the other volume when I return.  Khashyar, thanks so much for sending me a review copy, I'll be showing it to my friend Ani-hla, a student of His Holiness this afternoon.

Be well.  Om Shanti.

john



Tags: , , ,

Yoga Books

September 21, 2009 in abundance, books, Yoga | Add Your Comment

 I’m often asked "What Yoga books would you recommend?"   I have more than a few favorites, but first a caveat.

Jnanna Yoga is the pursuit of knowledge.  However it can be a trap.  When we approach our Yoga studies like the rest of our modern lives we ‘collect’ Yoga knowledge. We stuff ourselves with the facts and figures and leave no room for clear understanding.  Our culture is about more.  Yoga is about less.  

There are acres of ancient texts available, ancient maps to liberation, We’re fortunate that the modern masters have translated them for us.  As usual in our culture, we can drown in our abundance.  

Paramahansa Yogananda taught that once we integrate a single sentence into our lives, only then should we move on to the next line.  A book would last a while huh?

When we approach our practice from the point of less is more, then we can appreciate the subtle.  No need to run after every workshop, or fill your schedule with classes.  Honor the space between things.  This practice of space shows up in our lives, doing less, needing less, making some space for the unfolding.  Pour a cup of something. Sit and sip. That’s enough.  

I was brought to this most amazing Puja, (fire worship) for Chamundi, a form of the Mother. Very complex.  All sorts of Mudras, Mantras, songs, and offerings to the fire.  It took 4+ hours to conclude.  At the end my teacher handed me a mala, and whispered a mantra in my ear.  "Condensed" he said.  The entire 4 hour ceremony contained in 7 words.  Yes, the rituals are sacred and important, but balance is key.

You’ll never learn all the mantras.  No need to, they are all contained in our sacred sound ‘Om.’  Can you really feel Om?  It’s no surprise that we need to approach our Yoga Studies in a Yogic mindset of balance.  Can we practice that most ancient Mantra of ‘enough?"  Okay.  here’s the short list:

I have a well used, and often referred to copy of the Jivamukti book:  

Jivamukti Yoga: Practices for Liberating Body and Soul

and you’ll need a copy of the Sutras:

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: Commentary on the Raja Yoga Sutras by Sri Swami Satchidananda

 and perhaps a  translation of the Bhagavad Gita:

The Bhagavad Gita : A Walkthrough for Westerners

Start there.  Savor them, a page a day.  Let me know what you think. The teachings are vast, give up the idea of absorbing them all this time around.  

Om Shanti,  I’ll see you in class.

Tags: , , , ,

Garudasana

November 19, 2008 in books, Uncategorized, Yoga | Add Your Comment

 Garudasana (the eagle pose)

Before I had a name

I existed in the world as breath, as the wind, as a star.

For a moment, if I could be the breath

& the wind & the nameless star.

I’d meet the sky that holds them

as it holds me  & I’d say Joyfully,

Namaste

-Leza Lowitz Yoga poetry – Lines to unfold by   a nice book to read and re-read.

Tags: ,

Bhujangasana Cobra pose

July 29, 2008 in books, Uncategorized, Yoga | Add Your Comment

 

Shedding my skin
    skinning my shreds
       leaving behind
          every failure
             every success
                   every anger
                   ever expressed
                 or never expressed.
             What’s left behind
           stays behind,
         it’s ancient
   poisonous sting
all but forgotten.
 
           -Leza Lowitz Yoga poetry – Lines to unfold by   a very nice book.

 

 

 

Tags:

Waking

July 14, 2008 in books, Uncategorized, Yoga | Add Your Comment

Required reading for anyone who has a body:  

Waking: A Memoir

 A paraplegic Yoga teacher with much to share.  I’ll be re-reading this book next time I feel challenged.

From the web review:

Matthew’s mental awareness–as a result of a spinal cord injury–was literally knocked out of the lower two-thirds of his body. While doctors were able to keep him alive, he was not given the tools to reconnect his mind to his paralyzed body.

Matthew describes how for years after the devastating accident, from the chest down, he experiences a "schism" or "a form of silence" between his mind and his body. During his first months in the hospital and later periods in intensive care units there was so much pain that leaving his body became a survival skill. These experiences alone catapulted Matthew into unknown territory when it comes to understanding the mind and body.

From this understanding Matthew begins to practice, and eventually teach Iyengar Yoga.  
 

Take care, I’ll see you in class.

John

Tags: , ,

Copy Protected by Tech Tips's CopyProtect Wordpress Blogs.