| Yoga Study Books | |
In February, we began our study of the original yoga knowledge, and building a bridge to our JudeoChristian traditions. The 196 yoga sutras, or little lessons, were compiled some 500-800 years before Christ. You can find many translations and interpretations on the Internet for free if you'd like to follow along. Sanskrit is hard to translate into English. However, I enjoy these two translations as the commentators often set the lessons in a Christian context. Here are my picks for the best two:
How to Know God: The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali
by Swami Prabhavananda by Vedanta Press & Bookshop
Paperback 
List Price: $10.95
Our Price:
New and used from $7.55 Buy Now
Below is a brand new translation/commentary--the one above was written in the 1930s I believe. The cover is a bit scary for Westerners, but the commentary makes the sutras, well--rather enlightening!
The Wisdom of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras: A New Translation and Guide by Ravi Ravindra
by Ravi Ravindra by Morning Light Press
Hardcover
List Price: $14.95
Our Price: $11.21 Buy Now |
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Spiritual Formation |
Yoga Sutra I.48 The experiential knowledge that is gained in samadhi {union with God} is one of essential wisdom and filled with truth.
This may sound a tad sacrilegious, but I heard once that reading the Bible is much like reading a restaurant menu. You read about lots of deliciousness, but it's not the same as actually eating the food. So it is that reading the Bible is an essential element of faith, but it is not the same as experiencing God directly. In Dr. Ravindra's lesson on this sutra (see book, left), he says that samadhi "leads to a state of spiritual lucidity in which the authentic self shines forth without any impressions coming from the outside. Samadhi is not a state of reduced awareness, as is suggested by an occasional translation of 'samadhi' as 'trance'; instead, it is a state of lucidity, luminosity, and brightness."
Through the winter, we spent months in this column reading through one of my all-time favorite books for spiritual development, Richard Foster and Gayle Beebe's Longing for God: The Seven Paths of Christian Devotion. Each chapter was centered around the teachings of one of our great Christian forebears, such as St. Augustine, John Wesley, Teresa of Avila, and many others. Virtually every one of them had a "burning bush" experience, a direct encounter with God that forever changed their lives and set them on a completely different path.
(from BibleGateway.com)
Key Bible passage: Acts 7:51
51"You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!
Acts 7 contains Stephen's stirring speech to the Sanhedrin, with many vivid examples of the power of the Holy Spirit throughout the lives of the leaders in the Bible.
TODAY'S CONTEMPLATION
What is the state of your heart and ears today? Are you taking time to listen and learn? Or are you resisting? Leave some time open today after you bend your neck a bit with scripture reading and prayer.
If you didn't tune in to this column until after the great study series on the Foster Beebe book, take a look. I think I learned more useful faith-building tools from this book than any other I can remember:
Longing for God: Seven Paths of Christian Devotion
by Richard J. Foster by Intervarsity Press
Hardcover
List Price: $25.00
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| Flexibility: The Forgotten Element of Fitness | |
I learned a painful lesson coming back from a week away from yoga. My strength and cardiovascular fitness didn't suffer, but did I have trouble the first time I hit the mat with my opening stretch routine! Many of my students have been pleasantly surprised at how quickly they can develop flexibility after a lifetime of being, as my husband says, "limber as a timber." Yet flexibility is the fastest thing to go when you don't work at it regularly! I have seen firsthand what happens to people as they age if they don't pay attention to flexibility in the hamstrings, hips, and shoulders, so flexibility is at the heart of any exercise class I teach.
A really interesting study came out recently that I spotted on the airplane in Real Simple magazine, so I looked up the study. I rarely read this magazine, because their idea of "real simple" and mine don't sync up. I recall the first time I read it and they had a "real simple" 30-minute morning makeup routine which incorporated quite a number of expensive face treatments and high-end cosmetics. OK, I digress.
In the recent study of flexibility in people over age 40 published in the American Journal of Physiology, results indicated that people with greater flexibility also had more flexible arterial walls. People that were less flexible, as measured by a standard sit-and-reach test, had inflexible arterial walls--a leading indicator for heart disease and stroke. Healthy blood vessels are elastic, and elasticity helps to moderate blood pressure. Arterial stiffness increases with age and is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and death. After reading the study, I don't think the scientists had a firm grip on cause and effect, yet the results were noteworthy. From the study write-up: Why would the flexibility of the body be a good indicator of arterial stiffness? In the study, the authors speculate on why this would be. One possibility is that there is a cause and effect: the stretching exercises that provide flexibility to the body may also slow the age-related stiffening of the arteries. The study found that arterial stiffness among middle age and older people was associated with trunk flexibility but was independent of muscle strength and cardiorespiratory fitness (as measured by performance on an exercycle). In addition, they cited another recent study that found that middle age and older adults who began a regular stretch exercise program significantly improved the flexibility of their carotids, a major artery found in the neck.
Bottom line? Make room in any exercise program you do for flexibility exercises. |
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Happy Baby | |
I work with both runners and bicyclists in my classes that are in top physical form, yet have very limited range of motion in hamstrings and hips. As we age, we have to fight to keep good mobility, especially in the hips and shoulders. Some yoga stretches aren't much appreciated in class, especially hamstring stretches. Without a doubt, this seems to be everyone's favorite flexibility pose and most people notice a big difference immediately. This is not RELAXING Baby or SLEEPY Baby, as is practiced in some yoga classes. Really put some effort into pulling the knees out and down.
Click here for instructions (photo and instructions courtesy of Yoga Journal).
If you'd like a more structured way to practice yoga, try the new Redeeming Yoga Workbook and Journal, now available for sale on-line. It contains an 8-week program of meditations, health tips, Bible study, plus room for journaling. Click here to order now! |
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Thank you so much for spending time here today. If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to E-mail me at sarah@redeemingyoga.com. I'm obligated to say that none of the information contained in this E-letter should be construed as medical advice. Before you modify your diet or fitness regimen, please check with your doctor.
Sincerely,
Sarah Riehm
Redeeming Yoga |
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