Pranayama are breathing exercises developed by the ancient yogis for purification. Prana translates into "life force energy" and Yama translates into "control or mastery of". Thus, Pranyama is used to control, cultivate, and modify the Prana in the body. Prana is taken in through the air we breathe, and since the Pranayama exercises increase the amount of air we take in, they also increase our intake of Prana.
For all Pranayama (except Kapalabhati), the breath is slow and steady, breathed in and out of the nose and down into the belly. Always sit with a straight spine and a relaxed body. While you are practicing Pranayama, let go of any thoughts by focusing on the breathing involved with the Pranayama.
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Muhammad Rashid, a prominent Muslim
community activist in Queens, has stirred
controversy in Muslim communities by publicly
extolling the benefits of yoga. Many of the immigrants in Jackson
Heights, Queens are first-generation immigrants who consider yoga to
be a Hindu (and forbidden) practice. Yet a fatwa issued by a council
of Malaysian Muslim clerics four years ago which sought to forbid
yoga on the basis of Islamic law was forced to amend the edict to
allow “yoga as exercise” and prohibit only the use of Sanskrit
and chanting, following
demand by the Sultan of Malaysia and popular outcry.
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According to a pilot study by Jessica
Noggle and colleagues at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard
Medical School, yoga
classes have positive psychological effects for high school students.
Given that mental illnesses often begin to develop in the teenage years, “yoga
may serve a preventive role in adolescent mental health,” shares
lead author Jessica Noggle, PhD.
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Listen to spiritual icon Ram Dass as he shares stories from life, talks about his new book, and continues inspiring people to live to their full potential. The author of the popular book Be Here Now will discuss his own spiritual journey, from working with Timothy Leary at Harvard to meeting his guru, Neem Karoli Baba. The special three-hour interview with Oprah Winfrey will include a full showing of Fierce Grace, the documentary that illustrates how his faith helped him recover from a massive stroke.
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A recent article by yoga instructor and
fashionista Meghan Blalock sets out to establish the “shared
truths of fashion and yoga.” She argues that
“contrary to appearances, the two enterprises share a core truth:
they are vehicles by which one can both discover one’s core self
and endlessly re-shape one’s identity.” Blalock then describes
preparing to take a 5:30am hot yoga class during her teacher
training, for which she found the most crucial aspect of preparation
not adequate sleep, sustenance, or hydration, but finding the
“perfect outfit;” something that “helped [her] feel fierce,
strong, nearly invincible.”
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Remember how it felt to be a
teenager—the hormonal fluctuations you didn’t understand, the
social pressure from peers, teachers, and family members, your
looming emergence into adulthood and the ultimate responsibility of
yourself? Whether you were the type to act out or to tow the line,
these years are often hard in a way that we can only recognize in
retrospect. Imagine if someone pulled you aside during this time and
taught you to meditate. In Brooklyn, a unique partnership is doing just that. |
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Geshe Michael Roach, spiritual director of Diamond Mountain University and Retreat Center, has broken his silence regarding the death of Diamond Mountain University student Ian Thorson. The incidents of which read like a Hollywood thriller--a three year spiritual retreat in the desert and a married couple dealing with issues of alleged domestic abuse said to be fueled by spiritual influence. Both are asked to leave the retreat grounds, their whereabouts are unknown for two months until an emergency phone call is made from a cave in the middle of the desert.
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I'm not exactly your typical yogi. When I’m stressed out and
need to blow off steam, I grab a bottle of wine and a pack of cigarettes. I’ve
tried a few yoga classes over the years—any exercise involving a ten minute nap
at the end is my idea of a good workout session. But I’m the one in the class
who likely ate a cold piece of pizza for breakfast. It’s probably fair to say
that I’m an unlikely yogi. Basically I’m the Bridget Jones of the yoga world, and this is my diary.
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A
recent op ed in Forbes Magazine gives voice to several differing perspectives
on the topic of the evolving “soul” of western yoga. Centered in an ideologically
diverse culture that shares the primacy of physical appearance, it is more
homogenous (asana-centric) than the multi-faceted, rich tradition of yoga as
practiced in its motherland. Yet practitioners here are more heterogenous, and
yoga means something different to every person (sparking routine protests from
Hindu advocacy groups).
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Forget everything you think you know about raves—unless you
think of them as a conscious gathering of like-minded folks striving for
enlightenment. The new raves are drug, alcohol, and smoke-free yoga-oriented
dance parties, and they are gaining popularity as an alternative to traditional
nightclubs.
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Last week, the ongoing
Anusara drama added another episode when a
letter signed by John Friend was posted on Facebook. To many, the letter
appeared to be Friend’s attempt to downplay the furor and reestablish control
by disbanding the leadership committee
appointed to negotiate the future of Anusara. The social media response was
overwhelmingly derisive.
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Who isn’t familiar with the old adage that when a door
closes, a window opens? It’s been four months since the John Friend scandal
broke, and with developments of these past two weeks, it looks as if Anusara is
ready to throw open a window. A letter
posted by the Anusara Leadership Committee (LC) on May 19 announced that
Friend was stepping aside from Anusara and its trademarks, clearing the way for
a teacher-led school.
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Meditation is “making its way back
onto the yoga mat,” proclaims a recent NY
Times article, following years of yoga’s frenetic usurpation by the fitness
industry. The New York yoga community is cited as an example of practitioners
maturing in their practices, evidenced by an increased interest in seated
meditation. While an encouraging trend, the Times makes an unnecessarily rigid
delineation between asana (postures) and meditation. Some tantric and kundalini
yoga paths—for instance, Kripalu yoga—teach that asana may reflect and serve as
a path to higher states of consciousness. However, asana can be a hindrance and
source of mind disturbance if practiced in the absence of mindful,
compassionate awareness.
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Between all the news flashes, status
updates, articles to read, videos to watch, and local, national, and global
tragedies to track, there is a stream of information constantly wanting our
attention. On top of that are the basic communications we must maintain to keep
our lives in order at work and home. Yet, even a twenty minute asana,
meditation or mantra practice can turn all of this noise off, recenter us, and help
us focus on what is important in our lives and let go of what is not. No matter what
the yoga practice looks like, we need
yoga; and this need increases in direct proportion to the increasing chaos and
media encroachment on our lives.
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Last week marked the beginning of Mata Amritanandamayi’s
North American tour. Amma, as she is known, will
make appearances in 10
cities in Canada and the U.S., including Chicago, Dallas, New York and
Washington D.C. To date, Amma has traveled to hundreds of countries and cities
throughout the world, and wherever she goes, thousands of people flock to see
her.
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