Healing Effects of Yoga

Yoga is an exercise practiced by many for a variety of reasons. A variety of health conditions have been mentioned as being helped by practicing yoga such as asthma, back pain, diabetes, arthritis, high blood pressure, etc. Many turn to this exercise for pain management, while others practice it for the mental performance benefits that it offers. Self-awareness is a common theme among those who practice yoga, as the exercise promotes the mind-body relationship.
There are several types of yoga with each offering various benefits. Some practice what is referred to as hot yoga (Bikram yoga), which is designed to sweat out toxins while the individual assumes certain poses. The room temperature during hot yoga is increased to around 85 to 120 degrees Fare height during this exercise. The body sweats out toxins while the individual must focus his or her mind to stay focuses during the exercise. Those seeking stress relief, weight loss or who want to boost their immune system may turn to this form of yoga. Pregnant women are often discouraged from participating in hot yoga.
Restorative yoga allows the body to be completely at rest while assuming certain positions. Note that rest is different from sleep, however. To assume poses in this type of yoga, props are used. This may include pillows, blankets, blocks, chairs, walls, etc. The props hold the body in position during the pose. This form of yoga, as well as others, helps to trigger the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). The PNS balances the body and brings it into equilibrium. Stimulating it may help to improve heart rate, blood pressure and stimulate the immune system and has positive effects on the endocrine system.
Restorative yoga helps many patients relax, which is why many turn to it when experiencing infertility or going through fertility treatment. This may be a troubling time in the lives of many experiencing infertility, so finding a way to relieve stress, anxiety and depression is often important. This form of yoga may help individuals achieve a more hormonally balanced body as well.
It is important that women who are pregnant inform the instructor that they are pregnant prior to beginning the class unless they are taking a class dedicated to pregnant women or those wishing to improve fertility. Women who are pregnant may be discouraged from assuming certain poses while pregnant such as those that require twisting, inversion, are stressful to the abdominal region or require balancing.

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Yoga for Sinusitis

Immune system plays an important role in the prevention of colds and nasal allergies. Yog Mudra and breathing exercises can improve breathing, reduce tension and stress, and support the immune system. If ling mudra is practised daily, for some time, along with a proper practise of Pranayama etc, then various incurable disease of the Chest can be healed.
Pranayama
Deep breathing techniques like Bhastrika helps in inhaling more oxygen into the lungs, which helps in alleviating colds, congestion, and sinus. This pranayama naturally massages the airway and strengthens the neck tissues. And clear the spasm caused by the excess neck tissues.
Process:
• Go in an open air.
• Start to inhale and exhale through nose rapidly for half to one minute, relax for few seconds and repeat.
• In this pranayama kriya there is no restrain of breath.
This pranayama kriya can be repeated for around 7-8 times but should be done before meal.
Rapid Sun Breathing.
Process:
• Go in an open air.
• Close the left nostril and start deep inhaling and exhaling through Right nose rapidly for half to one minute, relax for few seconds and repeat.
• In this yoga kriya there is no restrain of breath.
This yoga kriya can be repeated for around 5-6 times but should be done before meal. This process will increase the heat energy in the body and burn the mucus of the region and help in clearing the nasal cavity region.
Mudra Healing
Ling Mudra: Join both palms and lock the facing fingers together, keeping right thump straight and upright. The upright thumb must be encircled by the other thumb and index finger. Through this yoga mudra, the fire element of the body increases, and simultaneously heat in the body also increases which results in increase in energy. The practise of this Ling Mudra, will help in curing bad cold and also help in curing chest complications which emerges due the Cough Tridosh.
Pran Mudra: Join the tips of Little finger and Ring Finger with tip of the thump. Practise of this yog mudra will help in improving the immune system and recharge the vital energy of the body.
NetiKriya:
In simple Netikriya can be defined as the process of Nasal Cleansing. Neti is the best process to overcome the snoring. As it clears the airways and helps in curing nasal infections such as allergies, sinusitis and other upper respiratory complaints like sore throats and coughs, inflammation of tonsils and adenoids. It is advised to learn this process under competent supervision. You can get benefit a lot if you do a yogic nasal wash, called neti, once or twice a week.
Meditation:
Even the latest scientific experiments shows that Vibrations created from chanting Om can help clear your sinuses and ward off infections. Vibration created through Chanting and humming sounds encourage the air movement and opens tiny ducts that connect your nose to your sinuses and allows your sinuses to drain properly. So daily "Om" chanting may prevent such an infection.
Process
• Sit in a comfortable Padamasan or sukhasana cross-legged seated position. Keeping both hands on top of the knees in Pran Mudra.
• Keep the spine straight and the shoulders relaxed. Close your ears with both palms. Close your mouth and raise and stretch you head especially chin upwards.
• Close the eyes softly and take a slow and deep breath and hold the breath in.
• Begin slowly exhaling, making humming sound of a bee, while reciting "OM" mentally. Try to feel the vibration in the nasal region.
• Repeat the exercise 10 times.

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How Yoga and Cycling Fit Perfectly Together

At first glance the two don't seem to go together do they? Cycling can be so frenetic, and yoga so serene. Yet, yoga can enhance your cycling experience greatly.
I started cycling in 1992 with endurance rides in the Colorado Rockies. They typically covered anywhere from 68 miles on a single day ride to 700 miles on a multi-day event. Some of those miles were over 12,000-foot passes and others on the flat wide-open plains of eastern Colorado.
After a long ride I would most always pay for a massage to help eliminate the toxins, which had accumulated during the hours in the saddle. Having arrived home I would also stretch to stay limber and decrease soreness.
When I started practicing yoga a few years later I happily discovered unexpected benefits, which lent themselves to cycling very quickly and enhanced what I was already doing.
In yoga breathing is a vital part of every session. You learn to breath slowly, predictably and purposefully. This practice enables you to focus on the muscles being used, the balance required and the mental calmness needed to chase away the rest of the world for a few precious moments.
In cycling breathing correctly is a vital part of the ride. Does that sound familiar? When I saw how much my breathing during yoga changed how I performed, I knew instantly how it would affect my cycling. Learning to breathe during an endurance ride or a race is an important part of performing properly.
Yoga teaches us to breathe into the muscles being worked, relaxing and energizing them at the same time. When I am racing a time trial, which is a race against yourself and the clock, I have learned to apply these yoga principles to keep my breathing under control. Breathing deeply, slowly, and by mentally directing the oxygen and energy toward my legs, lower back, neck, or triceps I can reduce the pain and suffering and increase the effectiveness of racing techniques.
As I mentioned earlier, in Colorado we ride a lot in the mountains and they present a whole host of problems to a cyclist's body. We climb to absurd heights, descend at ridiculous speeds while covering hundreds of miles. As you might surmise, this takes enormous concentration.
Yoga provides the techniques to concentrate on the tasks at hand enabling the cyclist to push through pain, long hours on a skinny seat, breathe sufficiently in the thin oxygen and focus on narrow roads while descending.
During a yoga session we learn to balance on one foot with our arms extended over our head in the tree pose. Poses like this help you have real sense of your body, gain stability, strength, and a quiet focus on your physical condition. This all translates extremely well to cycling.
Consider combining the two, you may find the results to be worth the effort.

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Yoga and the Economy

It is fall 2008. We have a new president-elect, the holiday season is in our presence, and snow is falling here on a beautifully thick gray day in Midwest America. Normally, based on these factors-being an especial lover of gray late-autumn days--I would say things are good.
But things are not good. We are riding a wave of a recession whose dark-lit story seems by experts' observations to be in its early chapters. We've all heard the fears, the fallout, the collapses, and the numbers, and we all expect to hear much more. Even if we generally dwell on the sunny side of the street, these are comparatively dark days.
Enter yoga and the economy. Yoga, the most economical of wellness systems ever created, can help humans through economic hard times. Now, more than ever when millions of people practice yoga worldwide, the power of steadfast yoga can help raise spirits and bring back a universal balance.
First, know that you are an economy in and of yourself. When a nation's economy is strong, the force of humans contained within it functions at a generally higher, smoother state than in a weaker economy. Likewise, when you are healthy in diet, exercise, and mind work (e.g., mental-emotional wellness exercises), you can be said to be a strong economy of one. These three broad realms of yoga practice and principle-diet, exercise, and mind work-are also the foundation of basic human wellness.
It is when one of these personal Big Three falters for you that it is time to take stock, make a plan, and take action. Even if you are eating well and exercising regularly these days but have more stress than you had before the economy started plummeting, you are at risk of personal economy downturn.
Consider the impact our nation's economic crisis, which threatens basic survival, has made on personal wellness. Retirement fund loss, heavy unemployment, and high anxiety of high prices at the store and the pump have touched our lives directly or indirectly, but most likely both. If you are worried about your retirement from 401K fallout or know someone who is, or if you are angry that your brother lost his job at GM or lost a job yourself, or if you are anxious that good, healthy food is so much more expensive than it used to be or worried how your community's much less fortunate are going to get enough food in the coming four weeks, this message is for you: Turn to yoga.
Turn to yoga. Or, if you are already a regular practitioner, turn to yoga more: more often, more intensely.
Yoga means unity. Just like the air you breathe, what happens to you happens to me. Your unemployed friend is your concern. Conversely, your efforts to keep yourself healthy in this recession can become your friend's hope. By keeping yourself up in these hard times, you help keep up the lives of those around you. This is yogic fact, or at least yogic modus operandi.
So use yoga's Big Three to get strong and stay strong. Be the government of your own economy. And don't give up on governance. Keep injecting your economy of one with yoga just like a government would inject its economy with recovery plans. Tap into the infinite resources within you to create a brighter day for you, for others.

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Yogic eating

Any dog or horse trainer will tell you that what is fed to an animal influences its behaviour.  Although we like to forget this when it comes to ourselves, what we eat has a huge influence not only over our physical well being, but also over our thoughts, and ultimately our emotional and spiritual well being. The yogis of ancient times knew this, and many classical yogic texts, such as the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, contain advice on a yogic diet. However, proper diet is a controversial subject.  Nutrition has been extensively researched by modern science, and there seems to be as many 'proper' diets as there are scientific studies.  It is more than a bit confusing for someone to devise their own individual diet amidst so much, often contradictory, advice.
The advice given below is based on the classical yogic texts and on the author's experience. It also gives pointers for further research and experimentation.
Unlike modern scientists, yogis are not interested in the chemical content (protein, vitamins, etc...) of the food. Instead, food is traditionally classified according to its effect on the body and mind, using the the three Gunas: Sattva (the quality of love, light and life), Raja (the quality of activity and passion, lacking stability) and Tamas (the quality of darkness and inertia, dragging us into ignorance and attachment) :

• Sattvic food promotes clarity and calmness of mind and is favourable for spiritual growth. It is "sweet, fresh and agreeable" and includes most fruits, nuts, seeds, vegetables, particularly green leafy vegetables, whole grains, honey, pure water and  milk (with the reservation that commercially produced milk may not nowadays be so sattvic...). Given the amount of pesticides and chemical fertilisers used on commercial crops, only organic products still qualify as Sattvic, and tinned or frozen food certainly don't.
• Rajasic food feeds the body, but promotes activity and therefore induces restlessness of mind. It disturbs the equilibrium of the mind and is generally to be avoided by yoga practionners. Rajasic foods include most spicy foods, stimulants like coffee and tea, eggs, garlic, onion, meat, fish and chocolate, as well as most processed food. Eating too fast or with a disturbed mind is also considered rajasic. Rajasic food should be avoided by those whose aim is peace of mind, but will benefit people with an active lifestyle. A little rajasic food can be sattvic, for example, hot spices can help digestion, and therefore help create peace of mind!
• Tamasic food (to be avoided)  induces heaviness of the body and dullness of the mind, and ultimately benefits neither. It  includes alcohol, as well as food that is stale or overripe.  Overeating is also tamasic. The traditional advice is to fill the stomach half with food, one quarter with water, leaving the last quarter empty.

The nature of food can change. Cooking is the most obvious way to change the nature of food. Grains become sattvic only after cooking. Honey becomes tamasic (poisonous) with cooking. The nature of  a food also change by being in combination with other foods and spices, or if it is stored for periods of time. Generally grains should be aged a bit (they become more sattvic) but of course, fruits shouldn't (they rot and become tamasic).
How and when to eat is also important. One should not eat too late at night, for there should be a gap of at least two, and preferably 3 to 4 hours between supper and sleep. Food should be freshly prepared and eaten with attention, respect and gratitude. While one should eat to live, rather than live to eat, food should be tasty, so as to be appreciated. The attitude of the person preparing the food is important as well, as the mood of the cook permeates the food. Most Indians still prefer their lunch box prepared at home to lunch in a restaurant for this reason, and some yogis only eat food prepared by themselves or other yogis.
Another important issue with a yogic diet is that of vegetarianism.  Not only are fish and meat specifically listed amongst the "food injurious to the yoga" by the Hatha Yoga Pradipika (I, 59), but eating the flesh of dead animals violates the first principle of yogic ethics (yamas) as laid down by Patanjali in the Yoga Sutras, that of non- violence (ahimsa). Yogis believe that the fear of death permeate every cell the body of an animal when it is slaughtered, and therefore, the traditional yogic diet is lacto-vegetarian and avoids eggs as well as all animal flesh (including fish!).  Indeed modern research has shown that vegetarians are generally in better health than meat eaters. Proteins that can be obtain from nuts, dairy products and legumes are generally of a better quality than meat.
Anyone who has lived for a while on a dairy farm might go as far as questioning the morality of eating dairy products when the milk is taken from a cow whose calf has been taken away and slaughtered. This is a valid point, and while milk is not inherently "injurious to the yogi", it may be that in the world we live in, only a vegan diet can really be sattvic, because of the poor treatment of the milking animal, the stress they are subjected to, and the quantity of drugs that they have to ingest (some of which undoubtingly find their way into their milk). However, I believe that dairy from farms where animals are well treated, such as organic ones, is acceptable.
Another important point to consider is how any particular diet suits an individual's particular constitution and circumstances. Ayurveda, the classic system of Indian medicine, classifies people, as well as food into three categories according to their nature. These three categories, or doshas as they are called, are Pitta (hot and oily), Vata (dry and light) and Kapha (cold and moist) and in ayurveda, the individual's diet should be tailored to the individual's constitution to keep the doshas in balance. Some foods which are recommended for a particular ayurvedic constitution may not be suitable for another; for example, while milk, a sattvic food, is generally good for Pitta constitution, it may not suit someone with a Kapha constitution. The ideal ayurvedic diet also changes depending on the time of the year. For further information, see our articles on Ayurveda, Ayurvedic diet, and Ayurvedic cooking
Finally, the issue of food combining, which has received some attention in the West in recent years, is also important, for even the right foods taken in wrong combination can cause problems. Without going into too much details, let's just say that some types of food combine well, while others, because of the difference in the digestive process they require, should not be mixed. For example, strong proteins should not be mixed with carbohydrates. To be safe, avoid mixing too many different types of food in the same meal. See  "Food Combining Made Easy " by Herbert Shelton, or "The Tao of health, sex and longevity", by Daniel Reid (also offers a wealth of advice on diet and exercise) for more information on that subject.
They are many more approaches to dieting, and eating the right food, in the right amount, in the right combination, at the right time, is a difficult art, that can only be learned by experimenting to find out what works best. I hope that the  recipes from our  recipes section will inspire you!

Christophe Mouze
Christophe is one of the resident yoga teacher and chefs at the Clare Island Retreat Centre, Ireland

The Many Forms Of Yoga

Mention yoga and many people assume it is a uniform practice. In truth, there many different forms of yoga that can be practiced and each has a different approach.
What are the many different forms of yoga? To grasp them, you will first have to understand that some forms of yoga are more popular than others. For the sake of this article, we will be discussing the most popular forms of yoga, so that you may find these types at a local fitness club in your area. Those yoga classes that you are likely to come across include: Hatha, Vinyasa, Ashtanga, Iyengar, and Bikram.
Let's start with the one that is gaining a lot of attention lately: Bikram. Bikram yoga is also known as "hot yoga," and since its inception people have been yearning to learn these exercises. This movement was first begun by Bikram Choudhury many years ago with the intent that it would become an intense form of yoga. Bikram is done in an extremely hot room (usually 95 to 100 degrees), which helps to loosen tight muscles. In addition, the high heat will cause a person to sweat profusely (sweating cleanses the body). Usually, this class will contain around 10 poses, though some contain all 26 poses. Another popular form of yoga is Hatha, and you are sure to find this one near you as well.
Hatha is really quite a generalized term. Hatha encompasses many different forms of yoga, though a Hatha course will usually move at a slow pace. In many ways, Hatha is the best introductory yoga course. Also, you will find that Vinyasa is another form of yoga that beginners will enjoy due to the breath-synchronized movements and slow poses. In great contract to Hatha and Vinyasa is Iyengar ... though this type of yoga is closer to its true roots. What are the different types of yoga poses involved in Iyengar?
Iyengar is really based upon bodily alignment. Those that practice this form of yoga do so in order to hold various poses for long periods of time. There are also many props that will be used in an Iyengar course (blankets, blocks, straps), and these courses are highly addictive. As you can see, there are many sorts of yoga that you can easily take part in.

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Should Christians Practice Yoga?

Relatively new to the list of controversial health topics is the practice of yoga by Christians. Though its Hindu origins are widely understood and agreed upon, the Christian community offers conflicting opinions about yoga's spiritual relevance in the United States today. Those who simply view yoga as an effective way to improve flexibility and reduce stress are met with criticism by those whose stance rings loud and clear: the practice of yoga is spiritually dangerous and should not be taken lightly.
In the West, yoga has introduced itself to the American people as a secular, neutral practice. Yoga is known to improve physical fitness, reduce stress and help relieve chronic pain. The flexibility achieved through yoga reduces a person's risk for injury and can even elongate a person's figure. "America's Next Top Model" winner Eva Pigford claims that she grew two inches after intense yoga training. The deep breathing techniques associated with yoga are also linked to efforts in smoking cessation and migraine relief.
Yoga comes from the Sanskrit term for "yoke" or "union." Historically, the practice aimed to produce an experience of union with Brahman, the impersonal god of Hinduism. Prana is the Hindu label for universal energy, which through yoga is concentrated from the air and distributed throughout the body through various breathing techniques. Through hatha yoga and tantric yoga, prana is allegedly transferred from one individual to another. In other forms of yoga, the pinnacle of enlightenment is called "Kundalini arousal." In Hindu mythology, Kundalini is the serpent goddess who rests at the base of the spine and when aroused, travels up the spine to activate prana. Many adept at manipulating this force are commonly referred to in the United States as shamans, witch doctors or psychics associated with the pagan or occult world.
But yoga's Eastern roots are not the sole cause for controversy. Many Christians in opposition to yoga share the same opposition to any energy healing practice that holds the pantheistic view that everything in the universe is divine. Therapies such as Reiki, Quantum-Touch and Chakra balancing fall into this category. If man is divine, man is his own god and can heal himself. This view removes the separation between God and man, which Christians call sin. Without sin, man would be in no need of Jesus Christ, the Savior. It is the Christian belief that only through God's son Jesus Christ can a man be reconciled to God. The conflict between yogic ideology and Christianity by now should be quite obvious.
Where does this leave Christians who want the physical benefits of yoga without the potentially dangerous spiritual ramifications? Laurette Willis, a well-known author and speaker in the Christian community, left "New Age" practices and developed a deep breathing and stretching program called PraiseMoves, which many have labeled "the Christian alternative to yoga." Improved flexibility can come from any general but comprehensive stretching program, or through classes in gymnastics or ballet. Christians who feel "strong enough in their faith" to practice yoga without succumbing to Eastern religious influence are encouraged to research instructors before they begin a program, and to fully understand which form of yoga the instructor is teaching.
No matter where a person falls on the spectrum of belief, personal motives should be addressed. What void does yoga fill? For some, yoga is only exercise. For others, stress relief. To the Christian opposed to yoga because of its connection to energy healing, yoga is blasphemous and profane. It is the Christian belief that God offered the free gift of salvation through his son Jesus Christ and through Him alone comes healing and true peace. Accepting the free and eternal gift of salvation may not improve your physical flexibility, but for many Christians, the peace found through Christ is all the stress relief and enlightenment they need.

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Yoga for Brides

Every bride wants to look trim, toned, and relaxed as she glides down the aisle in her beautiful wedding gown and pearl earrings. A great way to achieve all three? Yoga! With its unique combination of muscle-toning and stress-busting postures, many brides have found that yoga is the perfect form of exercise to prepare them for their weddings. Learn more about yoga for brides.
First of all, you should know that you do not have to be flexible or experienced to enjoy the benefits of pre-wedding yoga. Flexibility is something that you develop from practicing yoga, just as you develop strength from lifting weights or endurance from running. So never be afraid to try yoga, no matter what your current level of fitness or flexibility. As long as your doctor says you are healthy enough for exercise and you work with a qualified instructor, you will get all the benefits from yoga whether you are a beginner or experienced.
Many brides wear strapless wedding gowns with their pearl earrings, and toning their arms and shoulders can be a major concern. The classic yoga posture Downward Dog is excellent for developing slim muscles in those areas showcased by a strapless gown. A great thing about yoga is that you never have to worry about getting the bulky muscles which can come from weight lifting. Any poses in which you bear some of your body weight on your arms will help to tone that area, including postures like handstands (full expression or modified for beginners), Crow, or side angle. Even postures in which the arms are engaged in space will tone the biceps and triceps, like the Warrior poses.
Looking to trim your waist to look more slender in your wedding gown? There are many great yoga postures which can help. To get a firmer tummy, feel the burn with Boat pose. Many of the balancing postures like Eagle also require you to engage your core muscles to hold the pose. Unlike conventional sit ups or crunches, yoga has a number of poses which are effective at tightening the muscles down the sides of the waist. Holding a side bend will do wonders to whittle your waistline for your wedding. Side angle is great for slimming the sides of the waist as well.
Don't forget your back when you are trying to trim your waist. Losing the back part of a "muffin top" is a definite wedding "do". Any back bending poses will help tone up your back muscles. Good options include Cobra, Wheel, Bridge, and standing back bends like Dancer. Your teacher can help you adapt the back bends to be appropriate for your level of experience and flexibility. A healthy strong back also aids in creating a tall elegant posture - perfect for gliding down the aisle on your wedding day with a regal bearing.
Of course, you can always recognize a yogini by her "yoga bottom", so if losing the junk in your trunk is one of your pre-wedding fitness goals, you will find yoga to be very beneficial. Any of the postures which involve kicking your leg behind your body like floor Bow will firm, lift, and round your tush to get it in shape for a trumpet or sheath style bridal gown. And certainly any of the lunges are great to firm up your entire lower half. Best of all, not only will yoga help you look better in your wedding gown, it will help you achieve the serenity and radiance that all brides seek for their wedding day.

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Yoga Benefits Teens - Helps Them Deal With Many of the Challenges Specific to Adolescence

Yoga is well known as a great full body workout and a way to manage stress. These same benefits apply when teens do yoga. As well, there are a myriad of other ways in which yoga helps alleviate many of the concerns specific to the chaotic world in which teens live.
First yoga helps teens de-stress. Between academic pressure and the social jungle that is Junior and Senior High School, teen lives are extremely stressful. There is a significant amount of peer pressure. They have to make decisions which impact the rest of their lives. Their schedules are filled to overfull with school, sports, part-time jobs and a social life. Their hormones are completely out of balance most of the time. Yoga helps teens deal with all of these challenges. It teaches them to look inward for inspiration, to connect with themselves. Furthermore, it provides training in relaxation techniques and breathing exercises which promote calm and stimulate the relaxation response.
Second yoga is a full body workout which builds strength, increases flexibility, improves balance, develops coordination, reduces fatigue, clears the mind, stimulates the immune system, and invigorates the entire body. Yoga means 'to join' or 'to unite' and works at bringing into harmony the body, breath and mind. A regular yoga workout will stabilize core muscles, engage the mind, and challenge teens on all levels.
Third yoga helps teens develop confidence and improve their self-esteem. The physical changes inherent in adolescence often lead to poor self-image. Yoga focuses on accepting they body as it is today while working toward improvement. Learning to stand with proper posture, to carry oneself with confidence, to find the beauty within and without are all repercussions of a regular yoga practice. In addition, yoga helps to develop creativity and is a means for self-expression through journalling, yoga dance, flow sequences, guided meditation, and other outlets.
Fourth yoga provides a foundation for lifelong health to all teens regardless of ability, gender, race, age, or socio-economic status. The yoga mat is a level playing field. There are no tests, no competitions. Athletes will discover a wonderful cross-training tool. Non-athletes will learn to appreciate and care for their bodies and minds. Teens who engage in self-destructive behaviours can find a healthy and challenging way to experiment and push boundaries. Teen yoga classes are a place to feel comfortable, to receive positive reinforcement and encouragement, and to provide a means for lifelong health and vitality.
Teens truly can benefit from yoga. They are at a perfect age to develop good habits. Their innate curiosity and desire for self-expression work beautifully to create fun and dynamic yoga classes. Yoga in turn empowers them with confidence and peace, allowing them to live their lives to the fullest.

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Yoga meditation music

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Yoga Cure for Hypertension

Hypertension, the extensive problem found in all age groups has created a panic throughout the world, as its proper and harmless cure is still not confirmed even by the physicians of the modern world. Hypertension in its definition means a condition where the blood pressure is higher than the normal.
There are several causes of hypertension but the major ones are:
o Hormonal imbalance (increased secretion of epinephrine)
o Food habits (Excessive intake of oily foods)
o Age factors (narrowing of the arteries due to deposition of fat in them making the arterial wall narrower thereby which in turn increases the flow of blood)
Hypertension has drastic consequences like:
o Strokes
o Heart Attacks
o Heart Failure
o Arterial aneurysm
o Renal/Kidney Failure
It is true that hypertension could be controlled through intake of several allopathic drugs like - ACE inhibitors, terazosin, propranolol, amlodipine, bendroflumethiazide etc. though there are several hundreds besides them. But it is mostly found that there are always some side effects associated with them.
The burning question! Is it fully curable? The answer for this is same for all deadly illness - Every disease is curable but...? The statement continues. Anyway in this article I would like to focus how to control the problem of hypertension through Yoga practices.
Hypertension is mainly caused by improper working of arteries and heart which is ultimately controlled by our brain impulse. So if we are able to calm our brain it's possible to calm our body parts too. Yoga provides a unique technique to handle this. Practices of several Yoga asanas (Postures) and Dhyana (Meditation) has proved beneficial to several high blood pressure patients.
Postures includes bending of legs and sitting in a fixed position, slow movement of neck in circular directions, lying on the floor over the front and bring legs closer to back etc., this relaxes the muscles which ultimately strengthens the blood vessels.
The other technique includes Meditation which is considered to be the best weapon against hypertension, this is one of the most ancient technique used for managing stress and other mental disorders. But some recent studies have shown that meditation even help in control hypertension because hypertension is caused by more or less a mental disorder. Meditation or Dhyana involves severe concentration of mind over one point, in order to do medication bring yourself in a relax able posture you like, after that concentrate your mind (Not eye, as we found in many books / articles which focus our eye over one object, it is entirely different phenomenon used to sharpen memory and has nothing to do with mental ailments) over any object with eyes shut. Practice this method in several body postures regularly and ultimately you will find your mind in calm position thereby helping in coping with your Hypertension.
Now-a-days several modern health organizations are promoting yoga for treating the hypertension and launching campaigns and workshops for the people to follow several Yoga guidelines in its treatment against Hypertension.

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Yoga and Learning Disabilities

Learning disabilities are a common cause of frustration for children and adults. It is estimated that as high as 15 percent of Americans have some sort of learning disability. By definition, they are defined as the psychological or neurological conditions that influence a person's ability to communicate and learn efficiently.
While people who have disorders such as ADHD and autism may very well also possess learning disabilities, these types of disorders don't belong in the learning disability category. Diagnoses that do belong, however, can greatly vary, ranging from reading disorders, such as dyslexia, to disorders that disallow for the comprehension of mathematics, such as dyscalculia.
Those who are plagued with learning disabilities are not always of high or low intelligence, though presence on both ends of the spectrum are possible. Likewise, a person born with a learning disability wasn't necessarily born with an inability to learn. Instead, the individual simply possesses a processing impairment, such as an auditory impairment or visual impairment, that makes their ability to learn from routine ways of teaching particularly difficult.
While learning disabilities can weaken a person's ability to learn, the damage they do often falls into deeper crevices. Some people, particularly children, with learning disabilities may have severe self esteem issues, anger problems, behavioral problems, and a desire to quit things like school or extracurricular activities.
How Yoga Helps
The treatment of a learning disability can vary from person to person. Different disabilities require different treatment options and even then, therapy must be determined on an individual basis: what works for one person with dyslexia may not work for another. However, yoga, because it does not focus on the disability but the person, can benefit a variety of people with a variety of learning problems.
Self Esteem: Self esteem can be a hard thing for some people to obtain, particularly when that person feels as though they have something wrong with them. Yoga is a vehicle of self-awareness, self-realization, and self-acceptance, three things that work together to increase a person's sense of self, ultimately solidifying their self esteem.
People who do yoga feel better about themselves and the world around them. They become motivated, better able to tackle the hardships a learning disability, or any kind of disability, can bring. Yoga also helps them gain acceptance of their disability, accepting that they have it and learning what can help minimize the effects of it. Yoga also provides time for self-reflection, helping students to become less influenced by their negative capacities and more influenced by their positive ones.
Conscious Breathing: If there is one function that can help just about anything, it's probably the act of conscious breathing. Breathing helps a person on innumerable levels.
From increasing circulation to providing oxidation, from ridding the body of stagnant energy to bringing in fresh forces, breathing helps people to be more in tune, more empowered, and more ready to learn.
Breathing can also help thwart a major element of learning disabilities: frustration.. Because frustration comes along with nearly every learning disability, with some people succumbing to aggravation and hindering their ability to learn even more, the breathing techniques taught in yoga can help people to relax, rejuvenate, and try again.
Concentration: The ability to concentrate is a major factor in the ability to learn. Oftentimes, those with learning disabilities have an impaired ability to concentrate. Yoga, however, facilitates concentration.. Not only does the actual practice of it require students to focus on their breathing as it weaves through the poses, but yoga also gives people the ability to focus when away from the studio.
Yoga increases the circulation of oxygen and blood to the brain, allowing people to focus, to concentrate, and to remember things with greater clarity. It also stimulates the Central Nervous system, the system that serves as the messenger between the brain and the rest of the body. Through the meditation and mindful practices of yoga, people become more centered and balanced, allowing them to focus on tasks at hand with greater attentiveness.
Eye Movements: People who have dyslexia, a learning disability that affects reading and writing, may particularly benefit from practicing yoga. This is because parts of yoga involve eye exercises, with students forming poses and focusing on a certain spot for an extended period of time. These eye exercises can increase the efficiency of the optic nerve, relax the muscles of the face, and increase the functionality of certain areas of the brain. These benefits all work together to improve a person's ability to focus visually, helping them to correctly recognize words in the process.
People with learning disabilities may need a wide range of therapies. Children, in particular, may require more one on one attention during class or tutoring. Even with therapy, however, learning disabilities might not go away entirely. Because many are biological or genetic, some people are just programmed to learn differently than others. However, yoga can help those afflicted to accept their impairment and gain strength by removing the focus from their disabilities and placing it on their abilities.
About us: TWISTED is a medical yoga studio at the Center for Osteopathic Medicine in Boulder, Colorado. Twisted integrates osteopathic medicine, Hatha yoga and mindfulness practices to teach optimal balance between physical, mental, and emotional health. It aims to educate and help people to live a healthy life from the inside out. Rehabilitation programs offer a comprehensive treatment regime for the whole being, empowering each person one breath at a time to stimulate the body's natural healing potential.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

Eight Yoga Exercises For the Lower Back

EXERCISES FOR BACK RELIEF
Many people believe that rest is best for a painful back, but actually, what your back really needs when it's hurt is exercise. Regular exercise relieves back pain by strengthening and stretching the muscles that support the spine and helps to prevent future injury. This is a use it or lose it situation: the more you rest, the weaker your back gets, even if it is hurt. Studies have actually shown that you can heal your back pain faster and get back to your regular activities with just two days of rest. This article will focus on Yoga Exercises. Remember to contact your doctor before beginning any exercise program.
YOGA EXERCISES FOR YOUR BACK
A good, regular yoga practice will go far in relieving the stress and tension that sometimes cause mild back pain, and in fact, studies have shown that yoga is the number one most effective exercise for relieving back pain. However, not all yoga poses relieve back pain, and some can in fact aggravate existing pain, so it is important to know which poses will be most helpful in relieving back pain. It is best to do these exercises under the supervision of a certified yoga instructor, and if you encounter any problems with these poses, you should consult an expert. Even just one or two sessions with a yoga instructor can help, as an instructor will help you with your form and posture during poses. Here are some of the best yoga poses for relieving back pain. Each pose should be held from five to ten seconds, depending upon your level of comfort, and should be done on a mat or other soft, supportive surface.
CORPSE: Lie flat on your back in a relaxed position, arms resting at your sides, palms down, and legs lying naturally, with knees turned out slightly. If it hurts your back to have your knees turned outward, do this pose with knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Breathe in and out for a few seconds while allowing any tension to leave the body.
CAT STRETCH: Start out on your hands and knees with a flat back. Your hands should be directly under your shoulders with fingers spread. Knees should be directly under the hips. Head is held loosely so that you are looking at the floor between your hands. Inhale, and as you exhale, arch your back toward the ceiling, tuck your chin in to your chest so that you are looking at your navel, and tuck your tailbone underneath. Hold, then release back into your original position.
WIND-RELEASING POSE: Lie flat on your back as in Corpse pose. As you inhale, bend your knee, place your hands right below the knee, and draw your leg towards your chest. Your left leg should remain flat on the floor. Exhale and bring your forehead up to touch your knee. Inhale, and then as you exhale, return to your original position. Repeat with the other leg.
SAGE TWIST: Warning for this pose-it involves twisting your back, so you should take particular care not to twist too far or you risk aggravating any existing back pain. This should be a gentle stretch; twist just as far as is comfortable. Sit on the floor with both legs out in front of you. Bend your right knee, lift your right leg over your left, and place your right foot on the floor next to your left knee. Sitting with spine straight, place your left elbow on the right side of your right knee. Bend your left arm so that your left fingertips are touching your right hip, while at the same time, twisting to look over your right shoulder. This is where you need to be careful not to twist too far. Hold for a few seconds, release, and repeat on the opposite side.
PALM TREE: Stand with feet facing forward, arms at your sides, weight distributed evenly on both feet. Raise both arms over your head, interlock your fingers, and turn your hands so that your palms are facing upward. Next, place your palms on your head and turn your head so that you are looking slightly upward. Stretch your arms upwards, and at the same time, come up onto your toes if you can do so without pain. Stretch your entire body upward and hold, if you can. Some people have difficulty balancing during this pose, so just do the stretching part if you need to.
FISH POSE: Lie on your back with knees bent and arms at your side. Arch your back as far as you comfortably can and raise it off the ground by pushing the floor with your elbows. If you can, tilt your head backwards and rest the crown of your head on the floor. Breathe deeply from the diaphragm and hold pose for one minute if you can.
LOCUST: Lie face down with arms at the side, palms down, and elbows slightly bent with fingers pointing towards the feet. Raise your legs and thighs as high off the ground as possible without causing your back any pain. Hold for one second and repeat up to twelve times. This can be a vigorous exercise so you must take care to strain already injured muscles.
BENDING FORWARD POSTURE: Stand up straight with feet together and arms hanging loosely along your sides. Breathe in deeply and raise your arms straight above your head. While breathing out, bend forward and touch your toes if you can. If you can't reach your toes, grab hold of your ankles or calves. To complete the pose, you should touch your head to your knees, but this may be too difficult for many who suffer from lower back pain. Your movements during this pose should be smooth, not jerky.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

Relieve Your Neck Pain with Yoga

Everyone gets a little stiff neck once in a while, and yoga can wipe away the pain with a few concentrated exercises. First, though, you must be certain the pain isn't related to something more serious than a simple stiff neck. Instead of yoga, see a doctor if any one of the following is true:
- You neck pain has persisted for more than three days, or it keeps coming back.
- Your neck pain is accompanied by dizziness or nausea.
- The pain seems to radiate down into your arms or legs.
- The pain began with a fall or accident.
If your stiff neck does NOT meet any of the above conditions, these simple yoga exercises can help increase your neck's flexibility and strengthen the neck muscles. By exercising you speed blood and needed nutrients to the area, easing the neck pain gradually. Try these:
Neck Stretches
Sitting cross-legged, tall and straight, and inhale eyes forward. Exhale, moving chin to chest. Repeat this breath five times, the fifth time holding chin to chest breathing three times through the nose. Inhale, raising the head to center again. This time drop your right ear to your right shoulder during the exhale. Repeat this breath five times, the fifth time holding ear to shoulder for three breaths. Repeat this sequence with the left ear to left shoulder.
Half-Circle Rolls
Drop your chin to your chest. Slowly roll it up to your right shoulder, down to center, up to the left shoulder and down to center. Repeat this three to five times. Never roll the head in a full circle, as this can cause damage.
Shoulder Hunches
Hunch your shoulders up as high as you can, then relax them completely. Repeat five to six times. Next roll your shoulders in forward circles five to six times, then backward circles five to six times. Notice how relaxed your shoulders feel. Try this quick relaxation exercise any time you feel tension building.
Chest Expander
Stand with your feet together and your fingers interlaced behind your back. Inhale while raising your hands behind your back, squeezing your shoulder blades together and tucking your tailbone under to keep from over-arching your back. Hold this position for three to four breaths, then lower your arms slowly during the next exhale.
Arm Lifts
Hold your arms straight out in front of you, parallel to the ground with palms facing each other but not touching. Inhale while bringing them up next to your head. Exhale while you bring them down again. Repeat this four to eight times.
Press It
Place either palm on the back of your head. Simultaneously press the head and hand against each other for a count of ten. Move the palm to the forehead and repeat the pressing for another count of ten. Now place the right palm against the right side of your head and press head and hand together for a count of ten. Repeat with the left palm and left side of the head.
These yoga exercises are designed to relieve physical stress and related pain. The best pain relief is pain prevention, so be sure to watch your posture and set your workspace to avoid slouching.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

The Truth About Bikram Yoga and Weight Loss

Bikram is currently the most popular form of Yoga used for weight loss programs. Bikram regulates the metabolism, which in turn leads to better calorie consumption. On top of that, the high heat used for Bikram helps burn an average of 450 calories during a session. The only problem of losing weight through hot yoga is dehydration, as the high temperatures in a hot yoga class create a large moisture loss from the body. People who are on a hot yoga regime for weight loss need to take special care of keeping themselves hydrated, so that the loss of water during the session does not cause severe lack of fluids in their body.
Bikram's Hot Yoga can be broken down into seven key ways to lose weight by following: B.R.E.A.T.H.E., which is actually very true, as all forms of yoga are mainly focused on breathing techniques. So when we break down the word breathe, we can come up with the basics of the Bikram essential for weight loss.
So here is how we can break it down in simple terms:
B - Beliefs
Weight loss through hot yoga can be achieved when you shift your thoughts and beliefs to achieve a more balanced inner self. As yoga teaches patience, it inevitably leads to acceptance of good eating habits.
R - Regular Yoga Routine
With regular practice of Bikram Yoga, you can be sure to notice a change in cravings for certain types of food. At the same time, you will feel that to maintain good health, certain behavioral changes need to be implemented. Also hot yoga improves breathing strength enormously, which leads to less stress. When the stress level goes down, it diminishes the tendency of the body to either under or over metabolize. In order to establish this new weight loss model, it is absolutely necessary to practice hot yoga at least 3 times a week, but 6 sessions lead to the results much faster.
E - Eating Habits
In order to lose weight effectively, a well balanced diet plays the most important part. With a regular strenuous hot yoga routine, of 3 or more sessions a week, the body automatically initiates its metabolism and directs it to a choice of natural foods that are better for you. Eventually a yogi's over all food preferences change leading to weight loss.
A - Self Acceptance
Bikram Yoga also teaches self acceptance, which creates a more emotionally stable you and boosts your confidence levels.
T - Throw away inhibitions
When people start weight loss management, they tend to keep monitoring their weight on scales, and when they don't see quick results, they lose faith in their program. So throw away these inhibitions as Bikram yoga improves blood circulation giving you a glow. It also tones the body, turning fat into pure muscle. Once the muscles start building up, more fat gets burned during sessions.
H - Hydration
Staying hydrated is essential for Bikram Yoga, not just because you lose water excessively during hot yoga, but also because water is very important in burning fats and calories. If the water levels of your body drop, then the Bikram session will not be able to produce the weight loss that is desired, as the body needs water to break down the fats and producing effective weight loss.
E - Excellence
Achieving excellence in Bikram Yoga is another important factor for successful weight loss. If the yoga routine is not done properly, then the body will not respond to hot yoga for weight loss in the correct way. So always pay attention to the instructor, and follow all poses correctly.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

Yoga for gas trouble

Yoga is very helpful for gas trouble as it helps to expel the gas by stimulating peristalsis and increasing blood flow to the digestive organs so that they can work more effectively. Try these pose to relieve your gas problem –

• Vajrasana – sit in vajrasana for 10-12 minutes after your meals daily, this pose is very helpful in eliminating the gas problem. For this place yoga mat on the floor. Sit on the mat with legs straight. Now bend one leg at a time at knees and place it under the hips. Place both legs carefully in such a way that the toes touch each other and the knees are apart forming a ‘V' shape. Place your hips on the heels and place your hands under the stomach. Concentrate on your breathing while you are in this pose.
• Pawanmuktasan – lie on your back on a yoga mat that is placed on the floor. Bend your left leg at the knee to fold it and bring it close to your stomach with the support of the left hand. Bend at neck and try to touch your nose to your knee, stay in this position for 30 seconds and then repeat the same thing with right leg. Then bend both the legs together and perform this pose. This pose will not only help to eliminate excess gas but also provide flexibility of hips and knees and reduce the belly fat.  

Source: www.yogawiz.com

Hot Yoga For Detoxification Benefits

Hot yoga or bikram yoga is gaining popularity as the new way to detoxify and to remove toxins from your body. For this method, you just need to think of yoga as if you are in a sauna. In fact, it is thought so effective for cleansing purposes that some natural health treatment centres are including it as part of the regimen for chronic liver diseases like hepatitis C.
Your skin is one of the best waste disposal systems in nature. While it is different from your waste-extraction organs like kidneys or livers, your skin is an equally effective organ for removing waste, especially toxic wastes. It does this through sweat.
Hence, hot yoga provides the perfect channel for detoxification to happen. You would be tapping the ability of your skin to convert toxins that come from various fats into simpler and water-soluble compounds that can be easily removed. At high temperatures, you will begin to sweat. Amonia and urea is eliminated as well as sugars and salts.
When you do hot yoga, exercises are performed in a room heated to temperatures of around 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Once inside, you go through a program of specified postures in a vigorous but very aerobic workout. The internal heat generated by the yoga exercises combines with the external heat of the room to make you break out in torrents of sweat.
On its own, yoga is already a powerful healing regime. When you do yoga exercises, you are working out every muscle in the body, making them strong, supple, and flexible. Aside from being able to help in cardiovascular problems, yoga is also excellent for people suffering from arthritis, stress reduction, and a host of other body conditions.
Every posture in the hot yoga for detoxification exercise is complemented with proper breathing techniques to assist you in reaching the maximum limit of the movement. Thus, you may notice that apart from the regular Bikram yoga exercises, you are also trained in the proper breathing techniques. Proper breathing techniques is vital in detoxification and cleansing.
By boosting circulation and metabolism through deep breathing and yoga posture, hot yoga accelerates the result of any detoxification program. Additionally, you also get to learn the techniques of meditation. You learn to relax your mind, thus addressing stress toxins. In conclusion, bikram yoga or hot yoga for detoxification is a powerful means to achieving balance between mind, body and spirit.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

Yoga for Brain Injury

For people recovering from traumatic brain injury (TBI), concussion or head trauma, yoga offers gentle exercise with therapeutic benefits. Many survivors find themselves unable to pursue former ways of staying in shape. Balance difficulties, loss of motor control, vertigo, and neck injuries limit physical activity, further restricting an already curtailed lifestyle. Fortunately, a yoga practice can adapt itself to any illness or injury, lending itself particularly well to TBI recovery.
Where to start? With yoga's recent popularity in the West, students can now choose anything from hot yoga to Kundalini to Ashtanga. People with neck or back injuries in addition to head trauma probably want to begin with a teacher trained in Iyengar yoga, which uses props to support proper alignment without strain. Kripalu trained teachers also tend to offer calmer, restorative classes. Any yoga class that emphasizes flow (not too fast, though) will help retrain sequential processing-an advantage for people who suffered damage to their left-brain or rational side. A vinyasa sequence links breath and movement, emphasizing step-by-step progression in a set order. Learning and remembering such movements through repetition becomes a form of cognitive therapy.
Before beginning a yoga practice, survivors should talk with their treatment providers, as well as their intended yoga instructor. Most teachers ask about injuries in the beginning of class, but few people understand the intricacies of TBI on their own. Explain any unusual sensitivities or restrictions you experience and ask the instructor for recommendations within his or her own class, or for suggestions on where to find more compatible classes. Yoga is supposed to support and nurture growth, not exhaust the body and nervous system.
For this reason, survivors might initially want to stay away from Kundalini Yoga or Bikram Yoga, both of which offer intense workouts. Kundalini Yoga aims to awaken dormant energy potential, which sounds like a good thing for TBI survivors. Indeed, it can help tremendously--once neurons have stopped misfiring and "short-circuiting." Most survivors inaccurately gage their stamina, though, easily over-stimulating themselves. Kundalini Yoga works powerfully on subtle levels, making energy levels more difficult to monitor. Sometimes the rapidly awakened kundalini proves too much for a sensitive TBI survivor. Bikram Yoga takes place in a very hot room, moving rapidly through poses that encourage the sweating of toxins. As with Kundalini, adherents of Bikram rave about its benefits. For a hypersensitive survivor, though, the excessive heat, body odor, and physicality of Bikram make it a less safe option. In the beginning, look instead for class titles like: "Restorative," "Beginner," "Iyengar," "Kripalu" and "Gentle."
Yoga Journal offers many DVD's, in case survivors prefer to learn in the comfort of their homes. Start with short sessions to build up mental and physical stamina. Twenty minute DVD's allow survivors a sense of accomplishment, without the potential fatigue caused by hour or hour and a half long in-person classes. Downward Dog Productions with Sarah Bates also offers accessible yoga DVD workouts designed especially for people with disabilities. At-home yoga workouts take most of the expense out of learning yoga, too, since survivors can invest in one or two DVD's to practice every day, rather than paying for class each time. On the other hand, a good yoga teacher can personalize routines to support survivors' own unique health challenges.
Besides sculpting lean, strong muscles and naturally realigning the spine, yoga offers TBI survivors a chance to reconnect with their bodies in a positive way. Robin Cohn, a TBI survivor and Vice President of the New York State Brain Injury Association, recognized the transformative effects of yoga in her own recovery: "I began with a beginner's gentle yoga class, where I slowly started to get atrophied muscles moving once again. The more I went, the better I began to feel." Inspired, she began co-teaching yoga classes designed especially for other survivors. "These students are so thrilled to have the opportunity to be practicing yoga and reaping the wonderful benefits of asana and pranayam (breathing). ... The happiness, tranquility and peace that yoga brings to them is so rewarding! Their smiles just say so much about how happy they are to be practicing."
Yoga brings awareness from 5000+ years of connecting human body, mind and spirit. It began as a means of calming the endocrine system and relaxing the body so that practitioners could sit longer in meditation. These calming, strengthening and relaxing effects make it an ideal practice for TBI survivors whose systems run on constant overload. Slowing down and bringing oneself to center can help anyone deal with stress. For TBI survivors, though, yoga offers a glimpse of not just "normal" functioning; yoga also brings the chance for optimal health and well-being. Many practitioners experience peace and self-acceptance for the first time in their lives, including pre-injury. Yoga becomes part of a greater awakening (facilitated by TBI)-helping survivors to find and appreciate the hidden blessings of their journey.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com

For thousands of years, yoga has been a tool to open the mind and body, bringing transformation. At its core, yoga is a process that involves confronting your limits and transcending them. It is a psychophysical approach to life and to self-understanding that can be creatively adapted to the needs of the times. Yoga transforms you by opening up the physical and mental binds that block your potential, limiting your life. Transformation is a process that brings newness and interest. You might think that changing deeply could make you so different that you’d lose touch with those you love and even yourself. Actually, the transformation that yoga brings makes you more yourself, and opens you up to loving with greater depth. It involves a honing and refining which releases your true essence, as a sculptor brings out the beauty of form in the stone by slowly and carefully chipping away the rest. Doing yoga brings many concrete benefits: it’s a powerful therapeutic tool for correcting physical and psychological problems; it retards aging and keeps you opened sexually; it
gives strength and flexibility for other physical activities; it can enhance your looks, posture, skin and muscle tone, and vitality; and it can give your life a sense of grace and overall well-being. At its deepest level, yoga involves generating energy. Energy is often thought of as a mysterious force which is either there
or not, and out of your control. But through yoga, you can actually change its quality and generate more of it, by enlarging the body’s capacity as an energy transformer. Everyone has experienced different qualities of energy. Sometimes “scattered” or agitated – you’re off in different directions at once. Yet, at other times, you may also have great energy and be very focused and calm. Yoga involves learning to generate energy, and also to focus it into different parts of your body. This enables you to break through physical and
psychological blocks, increasing energy, which allows new interest to come into your life. At any instant, the quality of your life is directly related to how interested you are in it. Yoga involves far more than either having or developing flexibility. Being able to do complicated postures doesn’t necessarily
mean you know how to do yoga. The essence of yoga is not attainments, but how awarely you work with your limits – wherever and whatever they may be. The important thing is not how far you get in any given pose, but how you approach the yogic process, which in turn is directly related to how your
mind views yoga.

Five Ways Swami Satchidananda Yoga Can Balance Your Life Article

Swami Satchidananda brought his brand of popular yoga to the United States in the Sixties. Half a century later, there are facilities all over the country that make his teachings and his practices available to millions of Americans searching for enlightenment and balance. With yoga, they find exactly that. In fact, yoga isn't just good for the body. It's good for the mind. There are many ways his practice and teachings can benefit interested parties today. You want to truly improve your life? Pick an area, and yoga can give you exactly what you need:
Family: With the healing peace of yoga, you can find calm in the relationships with those closest to you: your family. This yoga practice gives you time, peace, and energy to evaluate the bond you share with those around you, and helps direct your mind to ways you can improve upon that bond. Of the millions who have taken advantage of Swami Satchidananda's teachings over the years, this has been one area universally agreed upon as beneficial.
Relationships: Imagine not worrying about finding Mister or Missus Right. Imagine being at peace with who you are. Can you see how that could open you up to possibilities in your relationships with other people. You can't pick your family, but you can pick your friends and lovers. Swami Satchidananda yoga helps you to pick these things wisely by placing you in a position where you can be at peace with yourself and what you hope to gain from outer relationships.
Religion: Who created us? What happens to us when we die? What should I believe? What should I condemn? Traditional religion is plagued with questions that bring judgment and doubt. Yoga is not a practice for absolutes. It doesn't focus on who's right and who's wrong and what must be done about it. It focuses on you. It does not condemn your faith, nor uphold it. It simply helps you find peace with what you believe and what your purpose is in this world.
Self Improvement: Swami Satchidananda yoga has so many benefits for the mind, but it helps the body, too. Improve the way you look and feel with yoga strategies that challenge your body even while making it stronger and more effective. Health and wellness is as much physical as it is mental, and yoga understands this.
Lifestyles: Eat better. Live better. Yoga teaches you to treat your body and mind as a temple.
Satchidananda and his yoga teachings and practices seek to include every person and every belief. It's the perfect complement to who you are and what you hope to achieve from life. Give your body and mind what it needs with yoga, and wake up to a better you.

Source: http://EzineArticles.com

Egg plant Bharta

Recipe type: Low fat, cholesterol free
Preparation time: 45 minute

Ingredients:

• 1 Eggplant large size, uniform dark color
• 1 Onion, finely chopped
• 1 tomato, finely chopped or equivalent tomato puree
• 1 Tbsp green peas
• 1 green chili
• 1" ginger, finely chopped
• 2 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1 tsp fresh lime juice
• 1 Tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped
• 3 tsp canola oil or any other vegetable oil

Spices:

• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp garam masala
• 1/8 tsp turmeric powder
• Salt to taste
  
  

Preparation

1. Cut the eggplant into two pieces lengthwise from middle. Spread an aluminium sheet in broiller and place the eggplant pieces. Broil at 400 deg F for 15 minutes. Reverse the side of eggplant and broil for another 15 minutes. The skin of the eggplant should become wrinkled and dark due to burning (light burning of the skin gives the real taste). Remove the eggplant and let them cool. Remove the skin of the eggplant pieces and crush them by your hand. Keep aside.
2. Heat a nonsticking frying pan and pour oil. When the oil is heated, add onion and stir for 5-7 minutes on medium heat till they start turning light brown. Add tomato, ginger, garlic, peas, green chili, all the spices and lemon juice and stir for another 5 minutes. Now add eggplant, stir well for 2-3 minutes to mix.
3. Garnish baingan bharta with chopped coriander leaves.
   

Serve baingan bharta with roti, bread, naan or use as a filling in sandwich.

Mung Beans and Rice

This is a delicious and healthy vegetarian recipe that will fill you up and keep you going for hours!

• 1 cup mung beans
• 1 cup rice
• 2 ½ q water
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 carrot sliced
• 1 zucchini sliced
• 3 ribs of celery thinly sliced
• ½ cup ghee
• soy sauce to taste
• 2 T tumeric
• 1 t black pepper
• ½ t cayenne
• 1 T cumin
• 1 T coriander
• 4 cloves of garlic

Put mung beans, carrots and celery into pot and let boil. Sautee onion until soft. Lower heat and add spices and garlic. Continue to sautee on low heat for an hour. When mung beans are soft (can take 3 to 4 hours), add spices and rice. Stir regularly and cook until rice is soft.

Herbed Cous Cous

• 1 ½ c couscous
• 1 ½ c water
• 1 bu scallions
• 1 green or red pepper
• olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 T basil
• 3 T chopped parsely
• 4 T soy sauce
• pinch of thyme
• pine nuts

Roast cous cous in a skillet in olive oil over medium heat. Boil water and add to cous cous. Gently stir once. Set aside for 5 minutes.
Sautee scallions and bell pepper in olive oil, add salt and pepper to taste. Mix in basil, parsely, soy sauce, and thyme.
Fluff cous cous with fork and add the finely chopped scallions/ bell pepper mixture. Serve with pine nuts sprinkled over the top.


Source: http://freevegetarianrecipes.com

Paneer Lababdar

Paneer Lababdar is an authentic Indian dish made in rich creamy gravy with very less ingredients and prepared in no time.
It’s combination of creamy gravy and cottage cheese will give your taste buds a treat. Goes very well with ghee parathas.
Preparation time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 15 mins
Serves: 4

Ingredients

Paneer Lababdar Ingredients

Paneer 150 gm refined oil 50 gm cumin seeds 1/2 tsp onion, chopped1 medium tomato chopped1 medium chilli powder 1/2 tsp garam masala 1/2 tsp seeds, powdered 1/4 tsp kasoori methi a pinch white butter 15-20 gm fresh cream 50 gm salt to taste chopped coriander shredded ginger ½ piece sliced tomato 1 small

Method

1. Heat oil in a pan. Add cumin seeds and chopped onion in the pan until brown.
2. Add chopped tomatoes and stir well. Add some salt to soften the tomatoes. Pour some tomato puree over it. Cook over low flame for 2 minutes.
3. Add the powdered cumin, red chilli powder, garam masala, and a pinch of kasoori methi.
4. Throw in the paneer and mix well over low heat for about 5 minutes
5. Remove from flame, to avoid cream to cuddle. Pour the butter and cream over the top.
6. Garnish with chopped coriander, shredded ginger and tomato slices

Paneer Lababdar

Serve with rice or roti.

Source: www.freeindianrecipes.com

Malai Kofta

 

Malai Kofta one of the most popular dishes in any Indian restaurant which can also be easily prepared in your kitchen.
A mixture of paneer and vegetable dumplings in rich creamy tomato gravy which will leave you craving for more.
Preparation time: 20 mins
Cooking time: 30 mins
Serves: 4

Ingredients

For Koftas

• Oil
• Paneer 250gms
• Boiled Potatoes  3 Large
• Boiled carrots,beans
• Cauliflower 1 small bowl
• Corn flour  2 tbsp
• Cumin powder 1 tsp
• Dhaniya powder 1 tsp
• Red chilli powder 1 tsp
• Cashews  4-5
• Salt to taste

For gravy

• Onions 2
• Tomato puree 1 cup
• Ginger Garlic paste ½ tsp
• Cumin seeds 1 tsp
• Dhaniya powder 1 tsp
• Red Chili powder 1 tsp
• Garam masala 2 tsp
• Turmeric powder ½  tsp
• Powdered cashew nuts 1 tbsp
• Cream 1 tbsp
• Coriander leaves

Method

1. Mix all the ingredients for koftas except for oil and corn flour.
2. Shape into small balls and roll them in corn flour.
3. Deep fry until light brown in color and place on a paper towel to drain excess oil. Keep aside.
4. For the gravy, take onions, green chillies and grind to paste.
5. Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds.
6. Now add the onion n green chillies paste and ginger garlic paste. Sauté until golden brown.
7. Add the tomato puree and all dry masalas.
8. Add little water if the gravy is too dry and cook on low flame until oil leaves masala
9. Add cashew nut powder and stir.  Lower the flame and add cream while stirring continuously.
10. Turn off the flame and drop in koftas
11. Garnish with coriander leaves and cream

Malai Kofta

Serve with rice or roti.

 

 

Source:  www.freeindianrecipes.com

Mushroom Curry

Mushroom Curry is an awesome vegetarian cuisine. Mushrooms are a good source of Vitamin B and contain no fat or cholesterol, so it is very healthy recipe.
In this Mushroom Curry recipe I’ve potatoes which is optional, you can replace it with any other veggies like peas or cottage cheese (paneer).
Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking time: 30 min
Serves: 4

Ingredients

Mushroom Curry Ingredients

• Mushrooms: 200 gms
• Potatoes: 150 gms
• Tomatoes: 2
• Onions:1
• Onions (chopped): 1
• Ginger and garlic paste: 2 tablespoons
• Cumin seeds: 1 tablespoon
• Fenugreek leaves (Kasuri methi), dried: 1 tablespoon
• Chilli powder: 2tablespoons
• Salt: to taste
• Turmeric powder: ½ teaspoon
• Coriander powder: 1tablespoon
• Asafoetida (hing): a pinch
• Refined oil: 3 tablespoons

Method

1. Heat little oil in a kadai fry potatoes and mushrooms (until they turn to light brown color) separately and keep them aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan add cumin seeds, hing and chopped onions fry until color changes.
3. Add tomatoes fry them and then add onion paste, ginger garlic paste cook until color changes.

Mushroom Curry Frying Masala

4. Now add mushrooms and potatoes fry them for 3 minute. Add chilli powder, salt, turmeric, coriander powder, dried fenugreek leaves. Add water and cook until potatoes become soft.
5. Now mushroom curry is ready to serve.
6. Garnish with coriander and serve hot with roti or rice.

Mushroom Curry is ready to be served

Source:  www.freeindianrecipes.com

Dal Makhani

Dal Makhani is an authentic Punjabi dish. It is eaten throughout North India. It is also known as ‘Maa ki Dal’. Traditionally, it is cooked on low flame, for hours, which gives it a creamy texture. It’s main ingredient is kidney beans (rajma) and black gram lentils (whole urad dal). It gets its special taste from the cream & butter, which makes it high in calories as well. It is commonly eaten with naan or chapatis.


Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 50 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients

Dal Makhani Ingredients

• Black gram dal (whole urad dal): 1 Cup
• Kidney Beans (rajma): 2 tbsp
• Chana dal: 1 tbsp
• Onion: 1 Big (cut into small pieces)
• Tomato: 1 Medium (cut into small pieces)
• Ginger: 1″ (Minced)
• Garlic: 2 cloves (Minced)
• Garam Masala: 1/2 tsp
• Green Chili: To taste
• Red Chili Powder: To taste
• Turmeric Powder: 1/2 tsp
• Coriander Powder: 1/2 tsp
• Cream: 3 tbsp
• Salt: To taste
• Oil: 1 Tbsp
• Butter: 1 Tbsp

Method

1. Soak Urad dal, Chana dal & Rajma seperately for 8 hours or if possible, overnight.
2. Put them in a pressure cooker & add salt, turmeric powder and 4 cups of water. Close the lid and bring to boil on high flame.
3. After 1 whistle, lower the flame & cook for another 30 minutes.
4. Take another pan. Heat oil & add chopped green chillies.
5. Then add finely chopped onion & fry it till it turns golden brown.
6. Add minced ginger & garlic. Fry for another minute.
7. Add tomatoes and fry till oil seperates from it.

Frying Masala

8. Add red chili powder, salt, garam masala & coriander powder. Mix well and cook for another 5 minutes.
9. Now add cream in boiled dal & cook it for amother 5 minutes stirring constantly.

Boiled Dal with cream

10. Add the masala in the dal & cook for another 2 minutes.
11. Now add butter.
12. Serve hot with naan or roti.

Dal Makhani is ready to be served

Source:  www.freeindianrecipes.com

Onion Palak Pakora

Pakoras are one of the most popular evening snacks in almost all regions of India. Onion Palak Pakoras are very easy to cook. It is spicy and very tempting as well. The addition of spinach (palak) make it nutritious as well. In this recipe rice flour is added to make it crispy. If you want to munch on lip smacking snacks during a rainy evening, this is a perfect one.
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients

Onion Palak Pakora Ingredients

• Gram flour: 1 cup
• Rice flour: 1/4 cup
• Spinach: 200 gms
• Onion (finely chopped): 2
• Green chilli: 4
• Oil: 1.5 cup
• Chilli powder: 1 teaspoon
• Salt: 1 teaspoon
• Baking soda: 1/2 teaspoon
• Cumin powder: 1 teaspoon
• Coriander powder: 1 teaspoon
• Ajwain: 1/2 teaspoon

Method

1.Take rice flour and gram flour in a bowl, add chopped onions, spinach (palak), green chilli, cumin powder, coriander powder, baking soda, ajwain, salt and chilli powder mix them well. Add enough water to make the batter of thick consistency.

Onion Palak Pakora Batter

2. Heat oil in a kadai and drop this mixture little by little. Fry till they get a nice brown color. Take them on a paper towel.

Frying Onion Palak Pakora

3. Crispy onion palak pakoras are now ready to serve.

Onion Palak Pakora is ready to be served

Source:  www.freeindianrecipes.com

Aloo Gobi

Cauliflower is low in fat, high in dietary fiber, folate, water and vitamin C, possessing a very high nutritional density. Aloo Gobi is a dry Indian dish made with potatoes, cauliflower and Indian spices. It is generally served with chapati or parathas.
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Serves: 2

Ingredients

Aloo Gobi Ingredients

• Cauliflower florets: 1 lb
• Onions: 2 (finely chopped)
• Ginger paste: 1 tsp
• Garlic paste : 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
• Chilli powder: to taste
• Cumin powder: 1 tsp
• Coriander powder : 1 tsp
• Potato: 1 large (cubed)
• Salt : to taste
• Cilantro/coriander leaves: few
• Oil: 1 tbsp

Method

1. Heat oil in a non-stick frying pan (or skillet) and fry the onions till they become golden brown.
2. Add ginger and garlic paste together with cumin and coriander powders and saute it for five minutes.
3. Add potato, cauliflower florets, turmeric and chilli powders and salt together with half a cup of lukewarm water and cook on medium low heat for fifteen minutes or until when potato & cauliflower are cooked.

Aloo Gobi Cooking

4. Mix well in betweeen to ensure that the vegetables blend with the spices.
5. Be careful not to over cook the cauliflower.
6. Garnish with cilantro/coriander leaves.

Aloo Gobi is ready to be served

Source: http://www.freeindianrecipes.com

About Yoga and Its Secret Goal

I would like to share a secret about yoga and its real purpose. Perhaps, you already know what it is.

Reflect for a moment.

After all, isn’t all knowledge ‘hanging’ somewhere in some collective consciousness? Often, learning is remembering, or recognizing something distantly familiar.

As a cohesive, practical system, yoga was developed over five thousand years ago. Why did it take this long to become popular? Five thousand years! There have been many yogis throughout history, but never was the system so widespread as it is today. Is there something about yoga that stunted its growth in the past?

Ancient yogis recognized powerful effects of this practice on one’s physical, energetic, and mental constitutions. As a service to the world, the rishis of the past sent out a wish into the future (a mental projection of sorts) that whenever the planet needs this ancient wisdom, it would re-surface.

And like a seed planted long ago, yoga popularity has germinated, sprouted, and now become a beautiful bloom with all of its traditions, styles, and variations. Obviously, the need is here and now. The world needs its message. Why? What is so special about yoga? What did ancient yogis foresee?

They saw Ego. Yes, a huge ego, growing into billions of faces and invading hundreds of cultures. The ego, or the sense of separateness, is an essential part of the mind. It places us in the infamous human predicament: ensuring our physical and mental safety, but robbing us of the continual experience of inner peace.

As a protective mechanism, the ego continuously strengthens itself through physical training of the body, conditioning and education of the mind, securing a ‘comfortable’ place in the world socially and financially, and so on. Basically, the ego always looks out for itself, even at the expense of others.

When dealing with other egos, there may be conflict. If unregulated, conflict may grow into war. History has shown how prevalent wars have been in ‘solving’ ego’s problems.

However, when dealing with the natural world, which has no ego and doesn’t consciously wage war, there is consistent, on-going abuse, overuse, and destruction.

As a conscious human being living in today’s world, you already know the damage caused by the constant onslaught of human ego-driven activity on our precious planet.

This is where yoga comes in. But what does yoga have to do with nature and the ego? Well, everything, really.

What is yoga, anyway? Union. Right? Union of everything:  body, breath, mind, inner self, and every other living and non-living thing in the entire existence: rocks, plants, animals, other humans, every thing.

Yoga is a realization that there’s Oneness behind everything and this Oneness is who you are. This Oneness is inexplicable in words or thoughts, but one feels it anyway, when, suddenly but often enough, one peeks beyond the mind’s constant chattering.

This experience of Oneness, of yoga, of lasting inner peace and happiness, is the opposite of Ego, the sense of separateness.

In fact, yoga, and absolute happiness, are experienced only when the ego is clear, or, to use the language of yoga, purified. Once the ego is pure, yoga happens naturally.

This may seem unexpected for some of you, but, as a science and a practical system, yoga primarily deals with the mind. It may begin with the physical conditioning of the body - postures and sequences to gain physical control, but all to get a handle on the mind. According to yogic wisdom, to control the mind perfectly is the most difficult task in the universe.

The body is much easier to control. Gradually, the transition is made from the physical to the subtle energetic and mental exercises.

So what about yoga's secret goal?

Imagine what would happen if large numbers of people had an authentic experience of yoga. Imagine if people could sustain ego-less existence for periods of time long enough to feel compassion for all other beings on Earth. As yogis, awake to our inner nature and in union with our environment, ever conscious of the One essence behind all, we realize that we are inseparable from Mother Earth.

The purpose, or goal, of yoga becomes our purpose in life. We realize that it is our inherent duty to take care of our planet and all its creatures, to live in harmony, as a family, as brothers and sisters, with all. As yogis, we become ecology-warriors, messengers of Peace, and guardians of Mother Nature, and of Life itself. We realize that we are the caretaker-species; and that is why we have our intelligence and the energy for this grand task. We naturally dedicate our lives to alleviate the suffering of others, create peace in the world, raise our common consciousness, and awaken others to their true nature and the unity between all life.

So this is the seldom-told secret about yoga: its goal is to bring about change in the world – global transformation of consciousness. This is what has been projected by the great rishis of the past as a means to save our precious Mother Earth and learn to live in harmony and love.

Why is this a secret? Perhaps, ‘hidden’ or ‘unapparent’ may be better words. It is unapparent about yoga that it has such a deep transformational effect on one's consciousness. Often, yoga comes into one’s life through the back-door of the ego. People are usually attracted to yoga because of the ego. The reasons for starting a yoga practice range from getting a yoga-butt to searching for inner peace.

Thus, the ego plays a crucial role in one’s path to self-discovery and ego-purification. With the regular practice of Love for the body, mind, and heart, yoga practitioners transform.

There are countless examples of such yogis, and you may very well be one of them. So thank you for your work. Please continue on your path, inspire others by example, and become the needed change we want to see in the world.

Yoga: Instant 10-minute Yoga - New Form of Yoga

Yoga began in India 3,000 to 4,000 years ago. The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit language and means, to join or integrate, or simply union. Yoga started, as far as we know, as part of India's philosophical system, but not everyone practiced yoga, and it has never been a religion.

About 5 million people in the United States do some yoga. Dance and stretching exercise classes usually have parts and pieces that come directly from yoga. If you ever go to a physical therapist, he or she may give you therapeutic exercises that are yoga postures.

There are several types of yoga. The yoga you may have seen on TV or taught at your local Y or an adult education class is called hatha yoga, or physical yoga. Sometimes it's known as the yoga for health. You may also find yoga being taught in a hospital or medical setting. Many health professionals today feel yoga can be part of a treatment plan.

Hatha yoga has three parts: a series of exercises or movements called asana (poses or postures in English), breathing techniques of all kinds, and relaxation.

Do you drag yourself out of bed on Monday mornings, exhausted before you've even begun the week. Or maybe you can't enjoy your evenings, because work drains you of every ounce of energy.

Don't worry, you can boost your energy levels and balance your body with a new form of yoga - dynamic yoga.

Its simplicity and almost instantaneous benefits have made it one of the most fashionable alternative exercises of the new Millennium. Normally known for its relaxation benefits, dynamic yoga can boost your energy levels in just 10 minutes.

It includes some of the most basic yoga postures. You can try each of them individually, or in succession, but none of them should be rushed. However, you should feel the benefits after just ten minutes.

The deep stretches and graceful movements help to unblock energy, improve muscle tone and increase your general stamina. When practised regularly, say enthusiasts, you will experience improved energy levels, greater sexual vitality and better self-discipline. In the long-term, the breathing and body exercises will help detoxify your mind of tension and strain, creating calm and an inner peace.