How Meditation Can Help
in Times of Loss and Heartbreak
In grief and loss, the mind is powerfully affected. The way we think is changed. The content of our thoughts is altered. Particularly in early and traumatic grief, we forget things, we lose things, we are distracted and inattentive. Alternatively, we can be utterly focused on thoughts of our loved ones and what we have lost. We zone out, we draw blanks, we review, we scrutinize, we reject, and we ask unanswerable questions. We may question the very foundation of our most deeply held beliefs. The way we see the universe, other people, relationships, life itself, and the way things are can change drastically. We think about who we are now that this has happened to us, and try to decide how that makes sense based on who we were before grief came and what that will mean when we become whomever it is we will be in the future. We contemplate the strangeness of the loss of past interests and the inability to care about things that were once important. We wonder why other people continue to...
Sacred Sounds, Healing Sounds
The use of sacred sounds for healing dates back to ancient civilizations worldwide. From chanting and mantra in Eastern cultures to the shamanic songs of Icaro in the Amazon Rain Forest, The effects of sound have been used to balance the mind, calm emotional...
Healing PTSD: Yoga for Stress Management
When deadly floods and mudslides devastated communities across southwestern Japan in 2018, many survivors were afflicted with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They had lived through complete devastation and the loss of home, family, friends, and all sense of...
More Recent Articles
Ayurveda, Addiction, and Recovery
This post is an edited excerpt from Ayurveda Journal of Health, vol. XIV, issue 2, Spring 2016, (16–21). Read the full, uncut article here. Ayurveda is often introduced and practiced alongside its sister science of Yoga, which has been heartily embraced by a large...
Shake It Off: Neurogenic Yoga™ and TRE®
What if you could shake off your stress, tension, and trauma? That’s exactly what students are doing when they practice Tension & Trauma Releasing Exercises (TRE) and Neurogenic Yoga. Both practices activate the body’s natural, therapeutic shaking response called...
Resilience: Bouncing Back from Stress
Stress is a given in our lives—it can even be a positive and healthy experience, such as a marriage, a move, or a new job. But when it feels as if there is no relief from stress and tension, our bodies and minds can become taxed and overwhelmed. Joan Borysenkno,...
Stages of Yogic Sleep: How Yoga Nidra Works
“I’d rather be in Yoga Nidra! It’s my favorite part of a Yoga practice,” can often be heard from people with a Yoga practice that focuses on physical postures and breath-work. In fact, a Yoga practice is never actually complete without Yoga Nidra—it is how the body,...
Serving Our Service Members: Bringing Yoga and Meditation to Military Communities
Much of Robin Carnes’s work has been dedicated to the service and support of soldiers and their families. In 2013, The Smithsonian Institute recognized Robin for bringing Yoga and meditation to military communities. She co-founded Warriors at Ease (WAE), an...
Yoga for a Lighter Life: Mind-Body Health
Ask what brings most people to Yoga and many will cite the transformative power of the practices. Students find that Yoga practice brings numerous benefits, including relaxation, improved focus, increased strength and flexibility, and more. Anna Neiman Passalacqua,...
Yoga and Ayurveda: Sister Sciences
As someone who practices Yoga, you may have heard of Ayurveda, but did you know it is actually the sister science of Yoga? It’s true; Yoga and Ayurveda are related healing disciplines of India. They have the same origin and goal. They both originate as part of the...
Unity Through Yoga
Yoga does not always look accessible to all. Images of practiced yogis twisting their bodies into difficult asanas can make Hatha Yoga appear downright daunting to the beginning student. Jivana Heyman, founder of Accessible Yoga, is working to change that. Accessible...
Chickpea Mango Curry
On any given day at Yogaville, you can always find the kitchen team busy at work preparing a delicious vegetarian meal. This past weekend was no exception. One of Yogaville’s top chefs, Karuna, gave us a sneak-peak into the kitchen and shared her recipe for Chickpea...
The Freedom of Forgiveness: Working with A Course in Miracles
What makes a miracle? We decided to ask Bharata Wingham, a long-time student of A Course in Miracles and an experienced Laugha Yoga Teacher Trainer. In the following interview, Bharata shares his knowledge and understanding of A Course in Miracles, Yoga philosophy,...
Sutras for Self-Realization
When Yoga practitioners want to expand their understanding of Yoga philosophy and explore the depths of the Self, they often turn to the Yoga Sutras. In the following commentary, excerpted from The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Gurudev offers readers an introduction to...
Teaching Meditation by Kidding Around
Though it may sound like no small feat to teach Yoga and meditation to little ones, Haris Harini Lender has been teaching kids and developing unique methods and forms of teaching children’s Yoga since 2000. With years of experience in running the children’s summer...