Yoga
Developing Heart Muscle Testing … the Summer of 2019
I haven't been very consistent with writing blog posts, but I think it's important to write down a few details of the past few months. Starting with energy healing with Hailey - heart chakra mantras, preparing me for what's to come later Building a Chakravyuha...
What do you want to be when you grow up?
When I was a little boy, I wanted to be a fireman. I wanted to help people, and I wanted to save people. At the time, I knew that I could do both of those things as a fireman, so that made more sense than being a doctor or lawyer. Plus, you could be big and strong,...
Your thoughts & energy affect everyone around you!
OK, at the risk of sounding a bit excessively proud of myself--I'll try to keep myself in check!--I have to share a little bit of my past week with you. I promise there will be a great point at the end, if you stick with me.... This last weekend I was at a...
Put some energy behind it!
Namaste! OK, I've been having a few conversations lately revolving around creating and manifesting your desires. If you've seen The Secret and What the Bleep! Do We Know?, I'm sure you're familiar with the concept that thoughts create things. This absolutely rings...
Are you Wonderful today?
Someone asked me this morning, "How are you feeling today?" My immediate response was "I'm wonderful!" Although, I have to admit, my current state was slightly lower than wonderful. At that moment, I absolutely was in a happy mood, but maybe not quite at the level...
Guru Pūrṇimā – full moon (July 14-15, 2011)
The purpose of the Guru Pūrṇimā celebration is to review the preceding year to see how much one has progressed in life, to renew one's determination, and to focus on one's progress on the spiritual path. gukāras-tvandhakāraś-ca rukāras-teja ucyate ajñāna-grāsakaṃ...
The Mind – Vasiṣṭha’s Yoga
From Swami Venkatesananda's Vasiṣṭha's Yoga: O Rāma, it is impossible to catalogue the calamities that visit one who is under the influence of the mind. All this weeping and wailing "Alas, I am dead,' 'Alas, I am burning' that one hears in this world—all this is...
Falling Skies … are you Hu-Man?
I know a couple actors in the new TV series Falling Skies, so I happened to catch the first couple episodes that have aired. For the most part, the series is really well done, but there's one little word that came up in the dialogue quite a few times, and made my ears...
A beautiful soul
What you do in each and every moment has profound importance. Patañjali's Yoga Sūtra mentions five different yamas (behavior patterns) that each of us should strive to develop, the first of which is ahiṁsā. Hiṁsā means "injustice" or "cruelty." Ahiṁsā is more than...
Vrttis
A little food for thought: Vrttis refers to the different tendencies, which give rise to the mind expressing a variety of feelings & emotions. In order to achieve a serene consciousness, we have to be willing to change our behavior & approach toward the...
Sevā
Service. Offering one's time, energy, knowledge, experience, physical labor, money, teaching, or any kind of aid or service without expectation, acknowledgement, or reward. Sevā is one of the cornerstones of Karma Yoga (the yoga of selfless service) and Bhakti Yoga...
Wesak Festival – Om Mani Padme Hum
The Wesak Festival occurs annually at the full moon when the sun is in Taurus (usually the full moon in May). Traditional Buddhists celebrate the birth, death, and enlightenment of the Buddha on this day. The Wesak Festival honors the work of spiritual teachers from...
The Laughing Buddha
I see a lot of people choosing not to meditate, simply because they're afraid of the thoughts that arise when they slow down long enough to listen to their internal voices. I've started reading this beautiful book - The Temple of Master Hotei - written by the author's...
Meditating for Japan
Have you ever tried meditating outside during the summer? Do you remember while doing so, perhaps getting bitten by a mosquito? If so, you're well aware of how such a tiny tiny insect can have such a large impact on a comparatively much larger person. This tiny insect...
Breaking Through Mental Inertia!
Is meditation supposed to be FUN? What if it doesn't start out that way for you?... I just read a blog post that gave some suggestions on how to make meditation easy. The author began by commenting that she knows meditation is good for her, and she's read countless...
How do you handle your Stress?
I've recently had a string of clients that have been quite vata and/or pitta aggravated, which prompts me to ask the question: what do you do for stress relief - how do you handle your stress? It's really interesting to me, that the number one response seems to be...
Re-potting Your Plant
You're a happy little plant, stretching your leaves to the warmth of the sun every morning as the dew slowly is absorbed into the soil that surrounds your roots. Each evening, after receiving your nourishment from the soil, the sun and the air, you stretch your tiny...
Love and
Love and forbearance are essential to the growth of harmony. Love nurtures all things that grow; it harmonizes & unites. Hatred agitates & separates; and indifference destroys what could have been made good and beneficial. Love is harmony and harmony is love....
Enlighten Up!
Have you seen the yoga documentary Enlighten Up? If not, you can catch it online at Hulu: http://www.hulu.com/watch/192682/enlighten-up I particularly love Swami Shri Gurusharananandaji Maharaj's discussion, which takes place about 1 hr 5 mins into the film. Such...
Gratitude meditation
I led a gratitude meditation today ... wonderful feeling 🙂 I'm grateful for amazing health & vitality (I haven't been sick for nearly 7 years now), relationships with such amazing people that stretch me mentally/emotionally/physically/spiritually & I keep...
Meditation on Prosperity
It is in giving that we receive. As we sow abundantly, we reap abundantly. This is THE DIVINE LAW. As I give and share generously and abundantly, my life is blessed with great financial and material prosperity. Money flows to me easily, constantly and in great...
Mahalaya Tarpanam ritual
Today marks the beginning of Mahalaya, which is a very powerful time to practice a ritual called tarpanam, which honors your ancestors. To read a little background on tarpanam, check out my previous post here: http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=118372674867935...
Happy Independence Day!
To those of you in the U.S. celebrating Independence Day, I hope you all had a great weekend! Today, I spent a little time working with a mantra for the benefit of our country. We've had a few challenging years lately, and I look forward to seeing us work our way back...
bhakti budhivāra – honoring your ancestors with Tarpanam
Today, on bhakti budhivāra--day of devotion--I want to write a bit about honoring our ancestors. Last week I happened to have a massage client who just had her mother pass away earlier that morning. I did some energy healing with her, and as you can expect, she was...
mantra maṅgalavāra – OM Namah Shivaya
Yesterday, I wrote a bit about seva, or selfless service. When participating in seva, it is a great practice to use mantra japa while you're working--repeat your mantra silently or outloud as you complete your activities. The mantra I use all throughout the day--while...
sādhana somavāra – cultivating sevā
I helped build a fence yesterday, and I've got the sunburn to prove it!! It's difficult to perform actions and not think about the result or outcome of those actions. There is a yogic practice called sevā, or selfless service, that encourages that we do just...
Ahaṃ viśvam. I am the universe.
Ahaṃ viśvam. I am the universe. Taittirīya Upanishad 3.10. This coming Friday is Vishnupati, which brings in the energy of Vishnu. Vishnu is the great preserver or the one who sustains the universe. In Friday's blog, I'll go into a bit more detail about the...
practicing dhyana
Nothing we do is without consequence. Each of our actions shows its effects either immediately, or later down the road. Sometimes our actions can take the form of a residue left behind that action. For example, if we behave in a friendly manner towards someone, they...