Saturday, January 28, 2017

A Guiding Path to Peace


 
 
 
 
 
 
We all need a moral and ethical code to live by.  This is what guides us towards deciding what is right and what is wrong. Yoga suggests we follow the yamas and niyamas which are the things we should abstain from doing and the things we should observe.

Something we can all benefit from is practicing the yama of nonviolence. It is to be practiced in body, mind and soul.  If we could remove violence what a peaceful world this would be.

When we think of violence we think of physical pain and although that is one kind of violence, thoughts that are negative and words that hurt, slander and disrespect are also violent. Someone or something always gets hurt. Fundamental to yoga is to do no harm.

Yoga does however teach us that sometimes violence is the best course of action to take. If you take it from a good moral and ethical position violence has its place. Although this seems like a contradiction think of it this way: if someone you love was being attacked would you kill the attacker? Your love is much stronger than nonviolence; as it should be.

As humans we kill animals to eat the meat. We are meat eating mammals. Meat sustains life just as killing a tree provides us with paper and books. Everything in life sacrifices. The question is intent. If you intend to hurt, for the sake of hurting, you are being violent.

The opposite of violence is kindness. All violent thoughts, words and deeds paralyze the soul. Perhaps it might be better if we reflected on our thoughts and then only spoke words that were kind.  Mastering this duality will help you to live a more peaceful life.

 

 

The practice of nonviolence should not be taken too rigidly. Yoga takes into account that most of us live a social life with many different cultural norms. The easiest way to practice this yama is to remember to always try to do the greatest good for the greatest many.  Examine your moral and ethical code and follow the path that gives you the least resistance. It will bring you peace.

When a negative thought pops up in your mind, replace it with something positive. This is the path of nonviolence. Step back, take a breath, change the way you look at things and the way you look at things will change.

 

Doctor Lynn


The Tree

If you find yourself experiencing violence think of the tree pose. No matter how hard you try eventually you will lose your balance. Life is not meant to be stationary.  Practicing the tree is about finding your balance and then remembering to return to it each time life throws you off balance; and it will.   This week you may experience an argument, a misunderstanding or gossip. Regain your balance and you will be practicing nonviolence.

 

 

 

Saturday, January 21, 2017

How to live Above the Blur of Life


 
 
In yoga we use the postures and the breath to help us establish balance, improve flexibility and find strength, as well as a sense of tranquility. In yoga the cleansing of the mind is called the cleansing of the astral channels. This cleansing takes place so that we can arrive at higher levels of consciousness.

The astral channels correspond to the physical nerves. The nerves are the only part of our body that never regenerated during our lifetime. The astral channels are higher mental channels that connect us to the spiritual force of the universe. Just as we reach out and experience touch through the sensation of our nerves, we have the ability to reach out with our mental force and touch higher levels of consciousness. We do this through the study and implementation of the Yamas and Niyamas which are the abstentions and observances. These cleanse the mind state and allow us to reach higher levels of consciousness by cleansing the astral channels. The posture and the breath help us to cleanse the astral channels associated with the body. Together they create a state of purity in body and mind.

To understand these focus on your spine. Think of it as a long channel from which we move energy from the lower levels to the higher lives of being.

Over the next several months we are going to work on opening and cleansing the astral channels in both body and mind by focusing on the yamas and the niyamas. So let’s get started.

 

When the astral channels are clear the body becomes healthier and the mind becomes calm and serene.  By gaining control over the life force we raise our level of consciousness so that the every day experiences of life become a blur in comparison to the higher levels of consciousness. This simply means that life becomes what life does. Clear the polluted energy  out of your body and your mind and you will begin to live a life that is healthy, happy and peaceful.

Doctor Lynn

Thursday, January 19, 2017

Asking for Help-it’s OK











Don’t be afraid to ask for help. It is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of strength. We all need support from time to time. Yesterday a student and good friend of mine sent me an email. She has been diagnosed with colon cancer. She reached out for emotional help and support. More than anything I think the word cancer scares us all. I reminded her that she is a survivor in life. She also takes care of her health by eating well, exercising and taking time to relax every day.

So let’s get started today with a focus on taking care of our health. Eat well, exercise and take time to relax and enjoy the moments because in life they fly by way too fast.

Affirmation -: “Bones, muscles, movement, I surrender now; anxiety, elation and depression, churning thoughts — all these I give into the hands of peace.”

We never know what life will hand us so it is best to be prepared. When I went through my cancer surgery and recovery I was coming from a healthy body-mind and that along with my determination to survive was my savior. So each day take care of your health because it is your wealth. Lose it for only a minute and you will wish it back above all else in life. It is the most important thing in your life – don’t take it for granted.

Doctor Lynn

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

The Pendulum of Emotion- finding pure joy


 
 
 
Think of your consciousness as a calm still body of ever flowing water. The overall height of the water is always the same even when we add the waves of emotion. It is the waves that disturbs the calmness of the water; the higher the wave the deeper the trough. The waves of happiness are counter balanced by the trough of sadness. That is because all of life is a duality. It is like a pendulum swinging back and forth. The only way we know anything is by its opposite swing.  The swing of success is only realized by its opposite swing of failure. The only place where joy, love and peace are not balanced by opposites is in pure still ever flowing consciousness. It is a state void of opposites. To understand this we first need to become aware of the waves and the troughs and how the pendulum swings.  When we practice yoga we seek balance. We only discover it by experiencing a loss of balance.  In seeking to find peace we need to understand all that is counter to peace; impatience, anger, hatred and fear. The pendulum of life is like the waves of the ocean. It will rise and then it will fall.

The farther the pendulum swings in one direction the farther it must swing back. We get caught up in thinking that if we push the pendulum toward more possessions, greater fame and intense pleasure we will increase our happiness. The problem is the pendulum always swings back. The only way to end the eternal rising and falling of life is to be content right here right now. That is why we do the sitting Zen; to experience moments of pure joy. Let’s get started.

 

The farther the pendulum swings in one direction the farther it must swing back. The only way to find happiness is to be content with what you have, with what comes into your life and what leaves your life. It is ego consciousness that keeps you in the constant swing of emotions.  Bend your ego to your higher power and you will discover the wisdom of pure joy.

Doctor Lynn

Saturday, January 07, 2017

What is the Practice of Yoga?


 
 
 
 


The Practice of yoga involves not only the poses (asana) and the breath (pranayama), but also the yamas and niyamas or the things we should abstain from and the things we should observe if we are to live a spiritual life. The object of these four stages is to cleanse the body-mind so that the life-force can flow through and lead us to higher levels of consciousness. This means to become more balanced and aware.

The poses are not yoga, but through the practice of the poses we have an opportunity to discover yoga. For example; balance can best be understood when we do a tree. It takes strength, focus and stillness to find balance. In life you will need all of these to maintain your balance when life’s stormy emotions pervade your life.

Pranayama is the control of the breath. It is not the breath, but the life force that gives rise to the breath. When we sit in Zen and take a few controlled breathes we clear the astral channels and allow a flow of energy throughout our body-mind and this produces contentment and peace.

The astral channels correspond to the nerves of your body. The nerves are the only part of your body that does not regenerated throughout your lifetime. When we clear the astral channels we touch the soul. Think of this like touching something with your body. We need the nerves to be able to feel. Damage the nerves and the ability to touch disappears. Damage the astral channels and the ability to touch the soul becomes impossible.

The yamas and niyamas are guides for living a spiritual life. In the weeks to come we will discuss each of these. For now let’s focus today on the poses and the breath.

 

Using the body and the breath we learn to harness prana or the life-force. This week pay attention to your sense of touch and your breath. Flow with the force of life and you will bring balance and harmony into everything you think, say and do.

Namaste

Doctor Lynn

Tuesday, January 03, 2017

The Greatest Obstacle
















The greatest obstacle in your way is your mind. Our thoughts often time direct our life without us even being aware of it. Thought patterns repeated become habits. These habits can be positive or negative. Positively they free the mind to focus on other things. For example – tying your shoes is a habit. You can do it without thinking.  You can focus on other things at the same time you are tying your shoes.  Habits therefore can be time saving and a great sense of freedom. However, habits can also make us their servant. Repeat a bad habit over and over, like smoking a cigarette, and soon we are enslaved.

Now there are several ways to free the mind of negative habits. One is to feed it positive thoughts and the other is to deny it negative thoughts. But this requires controlling the conscious mind. The conscious mind has a tendency to move in many directions and is easily influenced.

How do we control the mind?  By paying close attention to our thoughts, words and deeds.  If they are serving the greater good you have removed the negative and replaced it with the positive.

 

Merely replacing negative with positive energy is like trying to fill a cup that is riddles with holes. No matter how much you try to fill the cup it will be empty. First you need to fill the holes by paying attention to your thoughts, word and deed and then fill the cup. How? Be at peace and content with what comes into your life, as well as with what must depart. And always think, speak and act towards the greatest good.

The ego pulls you away from the center. The higher power brings you back. Live from your center and you will be wise.

Doctor Lynn