“That’s how it is: when you are vulnerable, you feel stronger, not weaker. And if you are stronger, you will feel vulnerable, for vulnerability is an opening, and a strong person is open to all: open to death, open to all kinds of winds, open to light and darkness, to the friend and to the […]
Courage
To be courageous is not to have an absence of fear. Rather, to have courage is to have mastery over the fears that reside deep within us. It is the willingness to tear the bandage off, dissect our subconscious mind, heal old wounds, and understand our inner most processes as intimately as possible. It is […]
OwieZowie
Has something ever happened to you that cut deeply into your soul? Have you ever allowed someone access to your heart and you ended up being hurt by them? Have you ever loved someone unconditionally, given them your trust and found that they misused it? Have you ever been blind-sided by an event in life […]
Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don’t
Have you ever been subject to unkind words, insensitive comments, or criticism? Have you ever felt that something you did or said was misunderstood, misconstrued, or picked apart by others? Have you ever invested your time and energies into something meaningful to you, something that you cared about dearly, only to learn that your efforts […]
Be Bold
“Sin boldly,” wrote Martin Luther, the German priest and theologian that is the namesake of the Lutheran denomination. How confusing this quote seems at first glance. How confusing it is that a priest, a man of God, would instruct Christians to sin and to do so with abandon. Yet, when this quote is brought back […]
The Core
In yogic terms, the body’s core is defined as the workings of the entire torso. This includes the major and minor, inner and outer muscle groups, the stabilizer muscles, the connective tissues, organs, and energetic bodies of the entire midsection. According to a yogic definition, the core is not just a body part, rather it […]
Resistance Makes the Heart Grow Stronger
Fun fact: I almost never remember my dreams. However, when I do, I am usually in flight. Ever since I was quite young, in fact, my preferred mode of transportation while dreaming has been flying. I had not thought much about this dream-theme of mine until I studied dream analysis in college and learned […]
Serenity Prayer
Most of us are familair with the following prayer: “Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference.” …Through experience, I have learned that it is not always easy to accept the things in our lives that are […]
Laugh and the World Laughs With You
Most of us are well-acquainted with the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. And of course, this is an excellent rule to follow, as it offers us sound advice as we navigate our way through life. But how many of us are familiar with Rule Number Six? If […]
The Practice
{Sthira sukham asanam} : Strength and ease within the pose Sthira: This word translates as firm, stable, resolute, changeless. Sthira speaks not only of challenge, strength, endurance and fortitude, but also vigilance, the ability to pay attention, and to be present. It is the opposite of agitation and refers to both physical and mental stillness: […]