Have you ever wondered why Yoga āsana are named after animals?
We have a whole bunch of them: the cobra, the peacock, of course the dogs, we also have a camel, a fish, and a dove…
When I started with Yoga over 20 years ago i never spent a lot of thoughts on this. I giggled a bit when I heard them the first time, but I didn’t really think about it. After getting used to their names, I put a little effort into pronouncing them correctly in Sanskrit, but that was it…
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Scholars and practitioners hold nearly opposite, contradictory positions when it comes to the roots of sūrya namaskāra practice. But new research sheds some light on the practices of sun salutations.
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Marketing is a bad word for many of us, evoking images of sleazy commercial manipulation. But if we have something that really helps people, we need a way to let them know it’s available. So here are some non-cringe ideas for yoga teachers whose goal is helping people, not making money.
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Does Haṭha Really Mean Force? For those of us who have discovered profound tenderness and a way OUT of self-force through Yoga, this seems strange and jarring. Has yoga softened over time? What is the basis of these definitions?
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Popey was having a hard time. Things were desperate, dull and dissolute in the lead up to Christmas. The bulls had been kicking up dust in the city office, and the team, including the Drillers and Fieldies, were bored, tired and overworked — a sure-fire recipe for trouble. I was leaving that day for Christmas break despite Popey’s conviction that I had been permanently transferred to his team. Later that day there would be tears, but not from me, for once.
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There’s nothing like a list of no-nos to inflame the adolescent western mind.
I was sitting in a circle at a yoga study group in New Zealand, and the only person of Indian descent was reading out a list of their personal list of Yama and Niyama, which very roughly translates as ethical precepts, dos and don’t dos.
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I used to be obsessed with making and eating delicious things… What happened?
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In this article, we collate advice for those who share yoga in strongly Christian communities, for how to break down barriers and teach in a non-dogmatic way.
Yoga is what you do as your principal devotion. It is your principal practice. Not puja, not meditation, not kirtan, not philosophy. In the ancient times, asana itself was what was done in the temple to your deity.
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