YO-GA

A Bit of Yoga Sutra, Pretty Please!

This week's ingredients is the best I can muster, for the moment (and it's within my budget...I'm all 'smiles' to that!) :-

• Made carrot potato soup served with delicious wholemeal home made garlic bread with extra virgin olive oil.  Very yummy for the tum tum!  Chamomile tea (added with half a tea spoon of raw sugar) has been top of my list this week.  Next try will be watercress soup.

• Honey shampoo from the Body Shop, lurve the texture it leaves in the hair after. 
• Colonic therapy - great way to detox especially with the promotion going on right now (yup, you don't have to be a Gweneth Paltrow to afford one in Brunei.) $180 for a trial of two sessions.  Reminder: give Elaine a call later ( If you like to try it, call her at 8846848) 
• Yoga & Joyful Living (mag: issue Oct 2008) : Iove the article Living Kindness                                                                                                                    "  I love you in this way because I don't know any other way of loving but this, in which there is no I or you, so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand, so intimate that when I fall asleep it is your eyes that close."                                    Pablo Neruda Poem                                                                                                 Meister Eckhart:"You need to love all persons as yourself, esteeming them and considering them alike.  What happens to another, whether it be a joy or a sorrow, happens to you."
• From the Yoga Sutras : 1.14 sa tu dirgha-kala-nairantarya-satkara-adara-asevito drdha-bhumih                                                                                                        To achieve a strong foundation in our practice, we must practice over a long time, without interruption, believing in it and looking forward to it, with an attitude of service.                                                                                                                ...an advice to recognize that there is going to be some effort involved when you undertake anything new.  To consciously create the foundation you hope to build on, not just to attain a successful outcome but also to feel good in the process.    ...dirgha-kala  or ''long time''....means recognizing that what you are undertaking cannot be perfected overnight, that you have to commit over time to get lasting results that you are happy with.   Nairantarya  as "no interruption", which addresses your commitment to the process.  Your efforts must be wholehearted; an attitude of a little bit here and a little bit there is not going to help you reach your goal.  Imagine trying to lose weight while eating healthfuly only once in a while.     
• Practice some yoga off the mat, try a few asana stretches when you get up in the morning, have a few deep breaths....if you will it, it takes place.  Yoga doesn't necessarily mean 10 chaturangas and headstands for 10 minutes.  It's about feeling 'wholesome' and living compassionately...a path to self discovery, mindful thinking, mindful decisions, mindful actions.  Asevito  ..approach each endeavor with an attitude of service......For me, I'm in service of others if I can help.  Something simple but effective.                                                                                              Adara ...look forward to what you're doing.  Whatever you set out to do, on some level, you must enjoy the job at hand.  Even if what you're doing is difficult or tiring, there can still be joy or satisfaction in the effort if you know that you are experiencing something positive from it.  Adara is important because without it, you are prone to burnout or to abandoning your commitment.         
• And last but not least, to have an attitude of friendliness toward those who are happy, compassion toward those who are suffering, pleasure and delight at those who are doing good deeds in the world, and an attitude of nonjudgmental watchfulness toward those who do harmful deeds.    (and p.s these applies to all and everybody)                                                                                                           
• On an ending note, love the fact that we actually burned 520 calories on the last class.  Woo hoo!