A foundational concept in yoga is that we have a subtle, or energetic body. The human body is a complex energetic system and subtle energy is simply energy that can’t yet be mapped by current scientific measures. Whatever animating force that spins the planets, turns the tides, and bursts caterpillars into butterflies, this is the same energy flowing through us.
Read MoreIn terms of our own bodies, we often overlook what’s going well for us and focus on or obsess over those things that we see as problems to be fixed. Too much (or not enough) somehow.
Read MorePropelled by the Black Lives Matter movement, there’s been a necessary call to action within the Australian yoga community to take a good hard look at ourselves and the issues of bias, accessibility and cultural appropriation that are entrenched in the broader wellness coterie.
Read MoreThe first cognitive skill we learn in yoga is concentration. We train our mind to watch the breath or pay particular attention to a sensation or action occurring in the body. The importance of this skill cannot be understated. Attention - what we allow ourselves to notice - literally determines our experience.
Read MoreFrom a Buddhist perspective, the sanskrit word for meditation is bhavana and literally means “to cultivate.” Built into the agrarian spirit of the word is a sense of patience as we carefully tend to the garden of the mind.
Read MoreLast week I jumped on a webinar with Ben Crowe, performance coach to world class athletes including Ash Barty and Andre Agassi. The focus of his talk was how to maintain a positive mindset through challenge. He’s a contemporary guy but I was immediately struck with how much of the content rang true with concepts from the ancient wisdom traditions. At the heart of his message was the idea of lovingkindness.
Read MoreThis week my son returned to daycare post lockdown and I was reminded that the human heart is wide enough to hold opposite emotions in equal intensity. Sometimes you just don’t know how you feel or you feel it all at once.
Read MoreAnyone else experiencing highs and lows over lockdown? Days and weeks of frustration open up into stretches where I seem to find my groove. Steering me in either direction are small, in-the-moment decisions. Setting my alarm to wake up before the kids to meditate, no matter how tempting it is to sleep through.
Read MoreThere’s been a lot said about connection over the course of this pandemic. Separated from our usual networks, many of us are experiencing a sense of isolation or loneliness. We are missing our family and friends, our usual haunts and our yoga studios.
Read MoreI am often asked if meditation and mindfulness are the same thing. Both are big, juicy concepts but in relative terms we can consider meditation as an activity and mindfulness as an attitude. In other words, mindfulness is the mindset of meditation.
Read MoreThings are always changing. We know this. But even if we grasp this idea intellectually, we don’t always live our lives from this place of understanding. We still get bummed out when things don’t go how we want.
Read MoreAs human beings we all make mistakes. In moments without mindfulness and understanding, we cause suffering for ourselves and those we love most. Under pressure, we raise our voices and act in ways we regret, in short – we blow it.
Read MoreWith all the heaviness of the past few months, it is tempting to think happiness belongs to some other time or place. I was reminded by a friend recently that it’s up to me to go looking for joy rather than waiting for it to tap me on the shoulder.
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