Author Archive
Ayurveda: The Principle of Three Gunas
ayurveda, healthy eating, productivity August 28th, 2008
In Ayurveda we meet the principle of 3 Gunas - qualities that categorize behavior and impact of food or activity upon one’s body and mind. By understanding these categories and their influence we are able to build the diet and activity we need to reach a particular state of mind and body. People living in Western countries are not used to such an abstract categorization, but from my experience I can confirm that it brings more clarity into my doings and food I chose.
- sattva (”being”, “entity”) - lucidity, purity, balance, light, consciousness. Dominance of this guna usually means that individual is optimistic, kind, compassionate and thoughtful. Think: do you know any people of this kind? How often do you experience this state of mind? What is it connected to?
- rajas (”air”, “atmosphere”) - force, activity. Rajas guna creates our desires, aspiration to own something. It also brings us fears for losing things we have and people we love. Individual with rajas dominance loses tranquility; if rajas force gets very strong, person becomes a hostage of own desires. Look around. Isn’t rajas the type of most people we meet nowadays?
- tamas (”darkness”, “obscurity”) - negative, lethargic, dull, sleepy. Tamas guna brings person into passive state of mind, when desires and aspirations become misty and distant. Person may gain a self-destructive mood following ruinous ideas and actions (smoking is a tamas action in long time perspective). Everyone has experienced tamas increase after a heavy meal, when the only thing you want is a short nap. Try to remember: do you know someone with a permanent tamas dominance?
Try to recollect, what food and activity brings you to the state of sattva? rajas? tamas? How did you feel yourself after the last meal, - can you pick one guna to describe the state or was it a combination of gunas?
The easiest way to balance gunas is by proper cooking and diet.
Spreading Wings news and further topics
travelling, yoga practice August 4th, 2008
I hope everyone is having a great summer, productive practice and a good mood 
I’m back from 2 weeks Universal Yoga Certification Program run by Andrey Lappa in Ukraine. Intensive practice, wonderful people and tender Black Sea washed all the stress away and filled my soul with peace and enthusiasm. 3-4 hours of yoga, pranayama and energy work; 5 hours of theory and dynamic Shiva Dance practice made my days.
Now it’s time to think everything over and start implementing new principles and methods. We have only 2 months left till our long India/Nepal trip in October-December (more news on it soon).
I’m replacing several teachers in KievYogaStudio now and the schedule is a little bit tough, but it brings unbelievable easiness to my mind. What can be more delightful then seeing students’ bright eyes after the class?
As for blogging, my further topics will be:
* Food and healthy eating rules
* Ayurveda principles of healthy life and nutrition
* Yoga for teachers: what to pay attention to; how not to lose own practice and continue personal growth
* Reaching balance during the class
* Pranayama: types, methods, what to start with
* Kundalini Yoga: what’s the idea?
If my dear readers have some topics in mind, - please let me know, I want to be useful
May you all find real freedom..
Photo by mike9alive
Relaxation methods. Start changing your life today
meditation, music and movies, simplicity July 17th, 2008
I hope all of my dear readers are well and your awareness grows every day
You’ve probably noticed that a short rest from any intensive activity clears your mind and gives a different perspective of the same situation, whether it is a work problem or a personal question. Depending on your involvement and the depth of emotions, you may need just a few minutes.. or several days to calm down and reach deeper relaxation. In our daily routine we often need to “reset” our mind, become fresh and more active. Diversify our doings.
Depending on the way you perceive the world, you will find music or visual relaxation fitting you better. I am suggesting several methods to let everything be for a moment. To realize the value of every second; to realize what is really important for you. Don’t miss a chance, this life is so short.. Small daily meditation may become your refuge and change your life for better.
Web relaxation tools
Tools available online are amazing - you can simply sit back and relax a little, letting your mind travel somewhere else and meditate, concentrating on a beautiful video or sound.
Here are my favorite relax-videos from different sources. They are short and light. Don’t forget to turn on the music or wear headphones. I wish you all could leave problems and hard situations aside and simply relax. Let it all go. Just be present for a moment.
Tender flowers, smell of spring and great sounds.
Water drops and sound of the ocean.
Zen symbols, Buddha statue, simplicity of a flower, - accompanied by theme music. My favorite.
Murmur of the forest. Green grass and spikelets, ancient trees.. You are almost standing there.
Galaxies and planet pictures with beautiful ambient music.
Amazing piano music, cold and bright winter pictures. Remember your cozy winter evenings?
Thoughts on efficiency
productivity, simplicity July 14th, 2008
Usually I am continuously thinking on open questions I get from books or people and on the flow of situations in my life, turning them around in my head, looking at them from different angles. I live with them, trying to come to some final idea or understanding. These thoughts pull up another books, people and other connected situations that give some answers (you probably noticed it in your experience, - when you think about something, - alike things start happening).
Whether you think of something good or bad, - you make it more real, more probable to happen or somehow come to your life (that is why many fears come true when we actually *do* fear and don’t want them to happen).
What ideas am I thinking on these days? I decided to record a few.
1. Hard work and productivity in a global sense
I must confess to myself and other beings that my office work is truly useless. It doesn’t bring any joy to me or thousands of people visiting sites my company develops. And it will not get any better, as the company is money-oriented only. Sometimes I prefer not to think about it, as I’m leaving this place soon. But is it really fair, am I really seeing things the way they are? What if I die in 3 month, still working in a dull office and promising myself to start a new life tomorrow.. This is a hard question. Usually people ask to stop talking about it and make death a taboo topic. But this is silly, - we can’t run away from it.
Imagine what your life could be if you set a single motivation - reach enlightenment and help others no-matter-what? Life would simplify a lot. It would become beautiful, full of hard work and very realistic. Lama Ole Nyidahl said that those people who work more, - reach more on the way of Dharma, get more blessings and results. They live a full, complete life. We all talk about ego we want to get rid of, but are we really honest with ourselves about it? Are we doing everything we could do today? You can let everything be, thinking that “I have much time. I will do it later. I am tired. I am not in the mood right now”. But the truth is.. we never know how much time we have.
2. Finding my own path and practice
This is a second big thought flying around me for quite a while. I have had a hard week with 2 yoga classes daily at 9am and 7pm and office work in between. By my Saturday’s “2 hours weekend yoga” I got so tired that I felt energetically overworked. I did my personal meditation practice in a public transport through the week and dedicated only 5-10 minutes in the mornings and evenings. This did upset me much (as I started feeling I don’t move anywhere in it, my mind got less meditative and more chaotic). Teaching yoga in this state is difficult because you have to continuously give-give-give, help and coach. Synchronize with others. “No ego”-state. Otherwise the practice becomes empty.
In any case I’m very grateful for this tough experience. I hope I started understanding the point of giving and finding happiness in it. And.. I can’t combine office with such an intensive practice, - it will simply burn me out. I can switch my priorities to own practice and coaching.
Life brings so many challenges and every situation is a key to a deeper understanding.. : )
Lama Ole says: “Sometimes you have to go away from meditation in order to get back to it in a while with a new look”. I agree, I’m starting my meditation with so much aspiration now. I find a saving refuge in it, realizing it’s impact on my mind and the way I treat others.
This is what I’ve been on recently. I always wonder what others think of. Anyone with alike thoughts? : )
Wonderful picture by Gnaharro Flickr free pics
More to read:
12 healthy eating rules from Yoga teachers
healthy eating, productivity, yoga practice July 8th, 2008
You are what you eat. I’ve started this 12 rules article in one of previous posts to help readers correct their diet and start eating in a more healthy way. Any practice, including yoga, will be times more effective if supported by wholesome nutrition; and some Indian schools of yoga even start education with kriyas - special body cleaning practices - before studying postures or breath techniques.
I will briefly describe the first two rules I wrote about:
1. Eat to live; don’t live to eat
Do you often eat favorite cookies/sweets/chocolate blaming yourself and promising to stop “after this last one”? Do you eat much when you are stressed? Do you automatically eat in front of computer or TV? Do you eat before going to sleep? If you do, this article will help you slightly change the way you eat to become healthier and happier. Food is an instrument, a fuel for your body. Using this or that fuel, your body will feel better or worse. Everyone wants to live a longer, healthier, happier life, - and that is why we should choose good fuel that will not harm our body. It’s very simple in theory Try to treat the food in this way.
2. Hunger is truth, appetite is a lie
Whenever you want to eat and hold out your hand for something tasty, try to think and analyze - “Am I feeling hungry? Is it a real hunger? Or am I bored, stressed, used to eat more then I need?”. Be honest with yourself and try to become aware of every little thing you eat.
Next step is to experience a real hunger. Dedicate your day (why not Friday or weekend?) to explore a real feeling of hunger. Eat less for breakfast and take a long walk during lunch. Don’t eat anything before next meal. Watch how your hunger appears and grows, let it fill your thoughts and body. Remember this feeling. During next few days try to work out a new habit - to eat when you feel hungry, not when you see something tasty.