John Friend on Sex & Tantra - (Video)

I came across this short little video on the Devil Wears Prana yoga blog and I had to share it here. It's John Friend, founder of Anusara Yoga, talking a bit about Tantra and what it may or may not have to do with Sex. Check it out!

Email Readers - Click Here for the Video.

Everything We See Will Come to Pass

"Life is short, don't work too hard, take time to spend with the ones you love, and be love.

For everything we see will come to pass." - Mark Giubarelli (one of my teachers)

Yoga! For Science!

I haven't been doing enough yoga lately. I've been too distracted by the whole weight-training and better nutrition thing. I have to work pretty hard to build up habits and then I have to work even harder to integrate new habits side by side with the old. It's a problem.

Anyway, the point that I was getting around to - is that it's fairly obvious that I haven't been doing enough yoga. Not only because my backbends are already getting a little worse and my neck muscles are feeling tight... but because I have been in a foul mood. Yoga has always had a very nice chippering-up effect on me. There was a time when I had rage problems, but once I had thoroughly taken on yoga it pretty much went away. I became much more calm and level-headed. Lately - not so much. Bring back the yoga! Before I flip out on someone. Please.

It's not just me either - Science has proven yoga's magical mood-lifting abilities. Read about it HERE. (from Allure magazine of all places) Not that there's anything wrong with Allure. I just don't usually consider it my go-to reading material for all things Science.

More yoga - I'm putting it on the To Do List. Definitely.

Just Be Together

“Let’s trade in all our judging for appreciating. Let’s lay down our righteousness and just be together.”

— Ram Dass

Repeat After Me - Spread Your Toes

I may have said this before, but spread your toes. In every single pose - spread your toes. Standing on 2 feet, standing on 1, inversions, arm balances... lunges... everything. Spread your toes for balance, rooting, appropriate levels of "reach" through your legs, foot strength, knee therapy, etc.

Bruce Lee on Limits

Sorry if the font is too light and small... if you click the pic you should be able to make it bigger.

Picture Source: not sure, but it's not mine.

Beginner's Mind - Like a Fish

I spend a lot of time on this blog talking (and even teaching a little bit) about things I'm good at. I don't talk much about my weaknesses. One of my biggest weaknesses that I'm reminded of every summer is swimming. It's not like I can't swim, but I'm not even remotely a strong swimmer.

I can do challenging yoga for like 9 hours a day, and I can run for at least 5 miles without much work, but swimming in freshwater around 80 feet is HARD. I was at the lake yesterday and practicing maintaining my composure in water maybe 10 feet deep. I was swimming the length of the dock (80 feet or so) and then swimming back. I do this for cardio and for general practice. Ya never know when you're gonna need to swim. Every year I have to re-learn all these skills and work back up to being comfortable in deep water... then work on basic swimming skills... then on stamina and ability to hold my breath. It's crazy. It's humbling. I can outrun Adam by distance a thousand times, but he swims like a fish and I swim like a clumsy rock.

In Yoga we're supposed to at least attempt to always come at our practice from a space of being open and listening. Not cocky, not like we already know what we're doing. We're still supposed to take the time to quiet the mind, open to grace, feel what's going on and what can shine brighter. When you're just as open as a fresh newbie at her first class with no expectations and the willingness to try - This is beginner's mind.

What brings you back to beginner's mind? For me it's swimming. Definitely.