The Wisdom of Yoga

Author: Stephen Cope
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 0553801112
Category : Yoga
Languages : en
Pages : 354

Book Description
For modern spiritual seekers and yoga students alike, here is an irreverent yet profound guide to the most sophisticated teachings of the yoga wisdom tradition–now brought to contemporary life by a celebrated author, psychotherapist, and leading American yoga instructor. While many Westerners still think of yoga as an invigorating series of postures and breathing exercises, these physical practices are only part of a vast and ancient spiritual science. For more than three millennia, yoga sages systematically explored the essential questions of our human existence: What are the root causes of suffering, and how can we achieve freedom and happiness? What would it be like to function at the maximum potential of our minds, bodies, and spirits? What is an optimal human life? Nowhere have their discoveries been more brilliantly distilled than in a short–but famously difficult–treatise called the Yogasutra. This revered text lays out the entire path of inner development in remarkable detail–ranging from practices that build character and mental power to the highest reaches of spiritual realization. Now Stephen Cope unlocks the teachings of the Yogasutra by showing them at work in the lives of a group of friends and fellow yoga students who are confronting the full modern catastrophe of careers, relationships, and dysfunctional family dynamics. Interweaving their daily dilemmas with insights from modern psychology, neuroscience, religion, and philosophy, he shows the astonishing relevance and practicality of this timeless psychology of awakening. Leavened with wit and passion, The Wisdom of Yoga is a superb companion and guide for anyone seeking enhanced creativity, better relationships, and a more ethical and graceful way of living in the world.

Yoga Wisdom at Work

Author: Maren S. Showkeir
Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
ISBN: 1609947991
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 226

Book Description
Yoga’s Ancient Wisdom Can Transform Your Work Life Everyone knows that yoga helps reduce stress and increase the body’s flexibility and strength. But the physical aspects barely scratch the surface of yoga’s transformative powers. The poses are only one part of a larger philosophy offering profound insights for confronting the complexities of daily life. Yoga can help you remain centered, compassionate, positive, and sane every hour of the day—especially those between nine and five. This unprecedented guide shows how practicing the full range of yogic concepts—the traditional “Eight Limbs of Yoga”—leads to a productive, creative, and energizing work environment and features examples from professions like law enforcement, teaching, banking, filmmaking, medicine, and many more. But beyond that, this book is an invitation to use all of yoga’s teachings to cultivate the spark of the divine that dwells within each of us. “Filled with personal insights and stories that carry yoga into the world of daily decision making.... It is wonderful to see the foundations of practice brought to life in such a confident, sincere, and thoughtful way.” —Pandit Rajmani Tuganait, Chairman and spiritual head of the Himalayan Institute “Maren and Jamie show that yoga is not just about poses—the practice is about creating the stillness of mind that will allow you do the work you were meant to do. Seriously, read this book!” —Russell Simmons, cofounder of Def Jam “The [Showkeirs] bring the deepest teachings of yoga alive by showing exactly how to bring our yoga—and our best selves—into the world.” —Judith Lasater, PhD, author of Relax and Renew: Restful Yoga for Stressful Times

Yoga and the Quest for the True Self

Author: Stephen Cope
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 198480006X
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 485

Book Description
More than 100,000 copies sold! Millions of Americans know yoga as a superb form of exercise and as a potent source of calm in the midst of our stress-filled lives. Far fewer are aware of the full promise of yoga as "the way of the fully alive human being"--a 4,000-year-old practical path of liberation that fits the needs of modern Western seekers with startling precision. Now one of America's leading scholars of yoga psychology--who is also a Western-trained psychotherapist--offers this marvelously lively and personal account of an ancient tradition that promises "the soul awake in this lifetime." Drawing on the vivid stories of practitioners at the largest yoga center in America, where he has lived and taught for more than ten years, Stephen Cope describes the philosophy, psychology, and practice of yoga--a practical science of development that urges us not to transcend or dissolve the self, but rather to encounter it more deeply. In this irreverent modern-day Pilgrim's Progress, Cope introduces us to an unforgettable cast of contemporary seekers--on the road to enlightenment carrying all the baggage of the human condition: confusion, loss, disappointment, addiction, and the eternal conflicts around sex and relationship. As he describes the subtle shifts of energy and consciousness that happen at each stage of the path, we discover that in yoga, "liberation" does not require us to leave life in the world for some transcendent spiritual plane. Life itself is the path. Above all, Cope shows how yoga can heal the suffering of self-estrangement that pervades our society, leading us to a new sense of purpose and to a deeper, more satisfying life in the world.

Yoga and the Wisdom of Menopause

Author: Suza Francina
Publisher: HCI
ISBN: 9780757300653
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 308

Book Description
Hormone Treatment Is Called Harmful-Washington Post, 7/10/02 Estrogen Use Linked to Higher Cancer Risk-Boston Globe, 7/17/02 31.2 million women facing menopause in America are concerned by these headlines. Most women today will live over one-third of their lives post-menopausal, but what about the age-old solution of hormone replacement therapy? In 2002 the U.S. government halted a major study of hormone therapy because it increased the risk of invasive breast cancer. Now, millions of women are left wondering whether they should approach menopause without hormones, suffering from hot flashes and low sex drive or take hormones and live in fear of being another statistic. Suza Francina has a simpler solution: Yoga. In this practical book, Francina, a leading yogi and author of The New Yoga for People Over 50, shows how yoga can be a powerful tool to help women turn menopause into a positive and empowering experience, both physically and spiritually. Included are easy-to-follow, indexed photos of yoga poses that alleviate key menopausal problems including: hormonal changes; hot flashes; irregular bleeding; fibroids; stress and anxiety, mood swings, depression and fatigue; bone loss; heart disease and cancer. Francina delivers a timely and truly heartening message to women: you don't have to get weaker or depressed when facing menopause, it can truly be an empowering, restorative time.

The Wisdom of No Escape

Author: Pema Chödrön
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 1590307933
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 174

Book Description
An American Buddhist nun encourages accepting everyday life and the wonders and pains of this world as the gateway to an enhanced spiritual life.

Living the Sutras

Author: Kelly DiNardo
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 161180549X
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 209

Book Description
Discover wisdom of The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali—the ancient text on yoga philosophy—with this “perfect guide for dipping your toe into where and how you understand the Sutras and their impact on your own life” (Book Riot) In its highest form, yoga is a practice for your body and your mind. Living the Sutras brings the wisdom of classical yoga philosophy into your life in an accessible and relevant way. The Yoga Sutras, written by the guru Patanjali over two thousand years ago, are made up of 196 aphorisms that offer potent teachings on how to deal with loss and pain, and guidance on how to lead a healthy and fulfilling life. Here, Kelly DiNardo and Amy Pearce-Hayden offer an entrée to this yoga training for the mind and spirit by introducing a sutra or group of sutras on a related theme—providing a brief commentary, and writing prompts to allow you to reflect on and apply the meaning of the sutras to your life. Living the Sutras is at once an introduction to the classical philosophy, a quick guide for students and teachers, and an active self-study that helps you to engage with yoga wisdom in a deeply personal way.

Yoga Gems

Author: Georg Feuerstein, Ph.D.
Publisher: Bantam
ISBN: 0307493490
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 256

Book Description
Here is an inspirational and accessible introduction to the deep inner wisdom of yoga gathered from sources both ancient and modern by one of America’s most respected yoga scholars. YOGA GEMS For the millions of Americans who now practice yoga regularly, here is the perfect introduction to the rich philosophical and spiritual tradition behind the exercises. George Feuerstein has drawn short, memorable quotations from the key texts of this five-thousand-year-old legacy, with an emphasis on the wisdom of modern yoga masters.The quotations have been selected and arranged to address the needs of yoga practitioners in the twenty-first century. Among the many themes touched on in this treasure of a book: the process of inner growth; the value of silence; how to meditate; how to infuse everyday life with joy; universal kinship; overcoming suffering; dealing with grief, loss, anger, and jealousy; remembering and cultivating one’s true inner self; developing self-discipline; and bringing out the good in all you say and do. For both new and experienced yoga students alike, Yoga Gems is the perfect travel companion on the road to inner peace.

Threads of Yoga

Author: Pamela Seelig
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 0834844079
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 242

Book Description
Deepen and enliven your yoga practice with 30 themes based on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras that can inspire on and off the mat. Yoga draws many practitioners because of its physical benefits, but it is often the experience of peace that people return for. Threads of Yoga supports those seeking to learn more about yoga’s deeper spiritual teachings. Each short chapter introduces a foundational yogic theme, such as letting go, the breath, the yamas and the niyamas, and the chakra system. Each theme is accompanied by practices, including meditation, complementary poses, breath work, or quotes to contemplate. It is an ideal guide for both practitioners and teachers who want to connect with the spiritual wisdom of yoga, deepen their personal practice, or develop and support a theme for yoga class.

Living Yoga

Author: Georg Feuerstein
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0874777291
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 305

Book Description
Explore the many paths of yoga. Yoga has been a living tradition of spiritual teaching for five thousand years. Here, readers will discover the wisdom of the millennia—and learn to live yoga. This book contains the best of Yoga Journal: the most outstanding interviews, essays, illustrations, and photographs. It offers the promise of hatha yoga exercise for health, and the yoga approach to diet and nutrition. It teaches meditation as an antidote to stress and a path to mindfulness. It explores the yoga of love and devotion in relationships; karma yoga, the path of work; and tantra yoga, the path of ritual, creativity, and sexuality. The authoritative contributors and wide-ranging topics here include: • Ram Dass on life as service • Joan Borysenko on the healing power of love • Larry Dossey on illusions about the body • Judith Lasater on asanas, or hatha yoga postures • Thich Nhat Hanh on the nature of suffering • Ken Wilber on the role of meditation • Frances Vaughan on the common ground between psychotherapy and spirituality • Daniel Coleman on early-warning signs for detecting spiritual abuse • John Welwood on spiritual relationships • Georg Feuerstein on sacred sexuality • Jacob Needleman on money and the path • Joanna Macy on caring for the earth Also richly illustrated, Living Yoga celebrates a fresh vision of life for spiritual seekers. Beginners will find an accessible, far-reaching overview of the topic; advanced practitioners will be reminded once again of the value and promise of yoga.

A Woman's Book of Yoga

Author: Machelle M. Seibel
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1440627983
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 289

Book Description
Interest in yoga is at an all-time high, especially among women. Whether readers wish to begin the practice or are already involved in yoga, this innovative book will help them understand the unique benefits yoga provides for a woman's health and mental well-being. The authors lead women of all ages through the health and life cycles specific to females by illustrating the spiritual and physical advantages of Kundalini yoga, as taught by yoga master Yogi Bhajan. Hari Khalsa applies ancient wisdom to explain how to determine and enhance one's own special relationship with the mind, body, and soul. Using his expertise on women's health issues, Dr. Siebel reveals the scientific basis for yoga's positive effects on the brain. Together, Dr. Siebel and Hari Khalsa create a dialogue of spiritualism and science, elucidating how every woman can reap the rewards of yoga for a lifetime.