From My Shop

I was a late-comer to Facebook. I joined because I had moved to India and it turned out to be the best way to stay in contact with my large family. Like the rest of you, I felt a little icky when I learned of their algorithm systems…..sending me more items like the ones I was posting and Liking; sending me more things Facebook thinks I should be paying attention to. Being a lifelong non-joi ...

I am HAPPY

The first week of English training at the ashram with our visiting teachers [ www.shrijasnathasan.org/karma-yoga ] is about greetings, so that our family can bec ...

India Hasn’t Enough Yoga Teachers?

Teaching 300 visiting Boy Scouts, Shri Jasnath Asan

“It is not the receiver that is blessed, but it is the giver.” Swami Vivekenanda

FAQ: “I thought yoga originated in India. Yet I have friends who go there to teach ...

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Just Throw the Ball

"If Society will not admit of woman's free development, then society must be remodeled." Elizabeth Blackwell

I’m not the first idealist to arrive in India convinced that its women are getting the shady end of the deal, in need of some western-style liberation to even out the playing field. And I won’t ...

Whisper It and They Will Come

It is 6 A.M. on a Thursday morning in a suburban town of Jodhpur, Rajasthan, northwestern India. I'm on stage about to demonstrate basic Hatha Yoga asanas, looking out at a sea of faces including young children, men, women, teens, retirees, disabled - people from many socio economic backgrounds, many traditions within Hinduism and Muslims. The birds stand quiet in anticipation. Even a crowd of neighborhood stray ...

Karma Yoga – Stepping Into the Stream

"Give yourself up – it is the best way of finding yourself." The Mother, Sri Aurobindo Ashram I arrived a little early to lead yoga class this morning so I sat in the garden enjoying the early sun for awhile. With my eyes closed I listened to Kabu’s broom as she swept the grass clean of fallen leaves and debris. She joins us at the ashram when she can, doing whatever seva is required – and is persi ...

10 Days Spiritual ‘Quarantine’

Did you ever wonder what Buddha was thinking about all those years while he sat under the Bodhi tree in India? His nose! It's true. Focusing on the tip of the nose is the first stage of the meditation method he discovered and taught to millions in northeastern India around 400 BCE. It is called Vipassana, which means insight into the true nature of reality. The method is now being taught at Vipassana centers around the world. Last ...

Headstands and Carrot Halva

Fasting, in India, means missing one meal, or only eating fruit. Tonight's fast included homemade French fries and carrot halva, with red carrots from our garden in Rampura! (I can really enjoy fasting in India!) Like most Westerners, my first exposure to the Rajasthani desert left me perplexed. What do these people eat?! After a few meals at the ashram I realized there is food all around me....great food! An ...

Lessons from Avi and Sheela

I returned to the U.S. to visit family and friends for the holidays: New York, Michigan, and Iowa. I moved around lot, conducted a yoga program in my home town, and talked to some High School World History students about how Hinduism and Buddhism shaped India's history. It was an early honor to bring home what I've learned since living in India. When I returned to the airport for my return flight I discovered that the flight was cancelled ...

Transitions

India has been on my bucket list for a long time. So finding myself between jobs, I visited Rajasthan with my yoga class in February. I hadn't done enough homework to prepare myself for life on the other side of the planet. And though I've been a creativity consultant and teacher for two decades, well adept at the change required to acclimate quickly to any new situation, stepping outside Delhi airpor ...