Ahimsa wk 3

How do you try to fix people? Do you worry about others?

Ahimsa, Week 2, Balance

"Balance comes from listening to the guidance and wisdom of the inner voice. When we are in balance, we automatically live in nonviolence. Ahimsa, or nonviolence, invites us to question the feeling of powerlessness rather than accept it." "Our ability to stay balanced and courageous has much to do with how we feel about ourselves. How we treat ourselves is in truth how we treat those around us. Our inability to love and accept all the pieces of ourselves creates ripples-tiny acts of violence- that have huge and lasting impacts on others." The Yamas & Niyamas by Deborah Adele.
This week our practice is to guard our balance as we would our most precious resource. Find guidance from the messages of our body. How do you create balance in your life? What effects does balance have in your life and on others?

Ahimsa

Friday we began a book club at the Spiritual Deli. The book we are exploring is "The Yamas and Niyamas, Exploring Yoga's Ethical Practice" by local author and co-owner of Yoga North, Deborah Adele. For the next 4 weeks we are going to be practicing the first Yama, Ahimsa. Ahimsa is the Sanskrit word for non-violence. At first glance this seems like an obvious ethical guideline. In the book Deborah writes "In Eastern thought, nonviolence is so valued that it stands as the very core and foundation of all yoga philosophy and practice." She goes on to say, "Killing and doing physical harm are grosser forms of violence that are easily seen and understood. However, nonviolence has many subtle implications as well. When we feel hurried, afraid, powerless, out of balance, and harsh with ourselves, we may find ourselves speaking words of unkindess or even exploding with a violent outburst." Becoming less violent involves discerning between fears that keep us alive and fears that keep us from living- fear of the unfamiliar. "It is only our minds that have created the turmoil in our gut and kept us hostage to the possibility of our own lives."
This week practice courage by doing one thing daily that you wouldn't normally do. If you're feeling brave make it something that scare you. See if you can discern between fear and the unfamiliar.
Post your inquiries and share your discoveries with us!

I want to be an Avatar!

I just saw the movie Avatar last week. It was truly thought provoking. I've always been a country girl. I love nature! I feel alive when I'm outside appreciating the amazing beauty that Mother Nature offers. I've yet to discover anything man made that can compare to the natural, organic beauty of the Earth. So why do spend so much time manipulating, destroying, and trying to control all this natural beauty?
In October I completed my 500 hour teacher training at Yoga North. We spent our final weekend together at Camp Amnicon. Most of the weekend was spent in silence and nature. It was a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the vast amount of knowledge I had learned over the past year.
Yoga teaches Ethical Practices to live more skillfully. They are called the Yamas and Niyamas. One of the practices is called Asteya or Non-Stealing. The Yoga practice of non-stealing dives deep into the subtle ways we steal from each other, ourselves, and the Earth.
In Deborah Adele's book The Yamas and Niyamas, Exploring Yoga's Ethical Practice she says "You wouldn't go to a friend's house for dinner, complain about the food, leave your trash lying around, and walk off with the candlesticks because you wanted them. And yet, this is so often how we treat our world." She talks about the concept of taking nothing without giving something back.
During this retreat I was sitting on the breathtaking shore of Lake Superior in silence and began to engage in one of my favorite pass times...hunting for agates. I had many, many agates that I've collected over the years, little gems I've stolen from Lake Superior. "My agates", nicely contained in pretty jars for my exclusive enjoyment. In my silence I was reminded of this profound concept of Asteya. It might not seem like a big deal. But I live 6 blocks from the lake and can enjoy these agates any time I want to! And they do look much more spectacular all shiny from the water with the sun glistening on them then they do in my dim living room collecting dust. In my own small way I was stealing from one of my most beloved friends, Lake Superior. They're free now. Returned to their home, for all to enjoy.
Imagine what would happen if each time we took something we gave something back. This week act as if you're a visitor to this Earth. Remember how beautiful the Avatar's world is without manipulation, destruction, and stealing.
Jodi Avatar Christensen
Join us at the Spiritual Deli for the Yama's and Niyama's Book Club. It begins March 26th! We will meet the 4th Friday of each month through October from 5:30-6:30p. Your only cost is the book. Deborah Adele will be joining us on the 26th from 5:30-7:30pm to kick of the book club! Live more skillfully and be Free!

Be Creative. Do Yoga.

Breathe, relax, and ride the creative wave! Yoga brings you back to yourself and to the present moment. It brings you closer to being in the "zone." You know, that special place where ideas flow naturally and spontaneously. Feeling stuck or blocked. Take a break. Breathe deeply. Stretch your body, and you'll find the zone!
"Practice and all is coming." Pattabhi Jois

Do Yoga.

Meet our Teachers!

April, Jodi, Kate, Caroline, Hilary, Kiki, Salima, Gary, Sara, Patti

Curious? Try Yoga for Yourself and See!

Yoga has been practiced for more than 5,000 years, and currently, close to 11 million Americans are enjoying its health benefits.

When some people think of yoga, they imagine having to stretch like a gymnast. That makes them worry that they're too old, unfit, or "tight" to do yoga. The truth is you're never too old to improve flexibility.

The series of yoga poses called asanas work by safely stretching your muscles. This releases the lactic acid that builds up with muscle use and causes stiffness, tension, pain, and fatigue. In addition, yoga increases the range of motion in joints. It may also increase lubrication in the joints. The outcome is a sense of ease and fluidity throughout your body.

Some styles of yoga, such as ashtanga and power yoga, are more vigorous than others. Practicing one of these styles will help you improve muscle tone.

But even less vigorous styles of yoga, such as Iyengar yoga, which focuses on less movement and more precise alignment in poses, can provide strength and endurance benefits.

Because of the deep, mindful breathing that yoga involves, lung capacity often improves. This in turn can improve sports performance and endurance. Most forms of yoga emphasize deepening and lengthening your breath. This stimulates the relaxation response -- the opposite of the fight-or-flight adrenaline boost of the stress response.

Even beginners tend to feel less stressed and more relaxed after their first class. Some yoga styles use specific meditation techniques to quiet the constant "mind chatter" that often underlies stress. Other yoga styles depend on deep breathing techniques to focus your mind on the breath. When this happens, your mind becomes calm.

Curious? The only way to be certain of all that yoga can do for you is to try it for yourself and see.


Adapted from www.webmd.com/balance/the-health-benefits-of-yoga

Nourishment For Your Mind, Less is More

Doing less leads to more love, more effectiveness and internal calmness, and a greater ability to accomplish more of what matters most to us, and by extension to others in the world.
It's easy to get caught up in doing activities. We live in a fast paced world full of text messages, emails...blogs. Providing opportunities for our children to pursue their interest and talents while maintaining a good education can feel overwhelming and exhausting.
Where does it end? When do we finally get to exhale? How do we cut the clutter from our busy lives? How do we spend more time doing what really matters while being less busy?
Less is more. It's simply profound paradox that gets missed when we're scurrying about completing our to do lists. Yoga continually invites us to slow down, push less, be present. The result...greater and faster gains with more satisfaction. When we approach any task in the right spirit, we become more successful and efficient at it. When we engage in fewer self-defeating behaviors, engage in less fear, become less distracted, we accomplish more of whatever we set our hearts to.
In Marc Lesser's book Less he lists 5 ways to learn to do less.

1. Take time to rest metally and physically in between our outside of our usual activities. Find an activity that feeds your soul and revitalizes your spirit, like yoga and meditation.
2. Pause in the midst of activities: mindfullness practices like connecting with our breath between emails or walking meditation.
3. Identify and reduce unnecessary activities, things that are not in alignment with what we want to accomplish.
4. Be completely present for what we are doing, without sacrificing or rushing what's in front of us in order to get to "more important" stuff later. No matter how mundane the activity, treat everything as important and take pleasure in it. Whatever we are doing right now is what we are engaged in and it deserves our full attention and appreciation.
5. Integrate effort with a feeling of effortlessness. This sounds like a contradiction but it isn't With practice, we all can find that sweet spot that combines engagement, creativity and composure. Non-excess.

Fear less, hope more; Eat less, Chew more; Whine less, breath more; Talk less, say more; Love more and all good things will be yours. ~ Swedish Proverb

Nourishment For Your Time Workshops
February 6th, 9-12pm Historic Relief Society Building, Richmond Utah with Jodi Christensen
March 27th, 10-1pm Spiritual Deli, Duluth, MN with Jodi Christensen and Hilary Buckwalter

www.spiritualdeli.com