...Even though the world population has shifted from mainly rural to mainly urban in the last decade, there are still lots of folks like me who live in the sticks. Doing things like taking a yoga class becomes a different thing in our case from driving to the neighborhood gym. Since I live 40 miles from the nearest town large enough for yoga studios, when I decided to take a class, I was more interested in the schedule than I was the type of yoga. I couldn't afford to be picky if I preferred not to wait around for a couple hours after getting off work. So I looked in the phone book, and didn't pay attention to anything but the schedule. There it was: M-W-F at 4:00. Perfect. I don't know what rock I'd been living under, but the word "Bikram" writ large across the ad in the yellow pages didn't trigger the term 'hot yoga' in my mind, and that left me in for a big surprise.

I showed up with a comfy pair of sweatpants and a long- sleeved t-shirt. As the woman at the desk was giving me a little orientation information - explaining that the r...more

Yoga Solutions for Managing Anxiety, Stress, and Negativity

...tual sense, but negative energy cannot be purged from anyone, without the willingness of the subject to change.

Therefore, if a friend, family member, or Yoga student wants to change, you should use all the tools at your disposal. Pranayama, Asana, Mudra, and Meditation, come to mind first, but self-help books and audio self-help books are powerful tools to cultivate positive energy. Also, prayer, mantra, japa, and hypnosis, all have therapeutic value for purging negative energy.

Competent Yoga teachers have all the tools available to teach students how to cultivate positive energy and live life to the fullest. Each Yoga lesson should be filled with practical tools, which Yoga students can easily use throughout their daily lives.

Copyright 2007 Paul Jerard / Aura Publicationsmore

Indian Gurus and unsafe Yoga practice

...really safe for the beginner to learn yoga only through the TV channels? Well, it is a serious question for the swami Ramdev Ji and others who are teaching yoga to masses to answer said Subodh Gupta.

If seems that in India there is no governing body which understands the fragility of adverse impact of yoga exercises if done in improper way. No doubt yoga is effective for treating various diseases and a noble effort has been taken by Swami Ramdev and organizations like Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana but unless these exercises are not done in a proper system and with supervision, the whole concept of yoga teaching will become more of mockery or maybe it has already become. Perhaps in near future when the ill effect of unsafe yoga practice will come to the limelight, the media will come up with great news stating that 50 or 100 million Indians are making fun with yoga everyday in front of TV and playing with their health.

Issued in public interest by Subodh Gupta, for all those who are beginners and are learning yoga through TV, video cassette, DVD or in camps with hundreds of other people.more

Stress Relief Gifts - 4 Great Gift Ideas To Chase The Stress Away

...Stress is something that everyone encounters as part of their day to day life. Not all stressful experiences are bad ones, but even 'good' stress can become exhausting if it is something we encounter a lot. Prolonged exposure to stressful situations can damage our health, and that is why it is important to find ways to relax, unwind, and reduce the stress we feel.

When giving gifts, consider ways that you could help people unwind, and give stress relieving gifts that will be cherished and appreciated.

Stress Relief Gift #1: Yoga Gift Sets

Yoga gift sets are a great, innovative gift. Yoga is a wonderful way to relax and improve your psychological, spiritual and physical well-being. You could give a r...more

Yoga Excercise Yoga Equipment Yoga Props Yoga Clothing Yoga Shoes Yoga Books Yoga Magazines Yoga Mat