Finally. Ashtanga Yoga for Beginner’s Mind is available as an Ebook on Amazon! Ashtanga for Beginners is a guide to the practice of the primary series with a section on shamatha meditation and commentary on how each practice informs the other. While the book is appropriate for all levels of students and gives instruction at theContinue reading “Ashtanga Yoga for Beginner’s Mind”
Category Archives: Psychology
Foundation for a New Life
I’m walking down a lazy dirt lane in the late afternoon heat of Northern Thailand. A gaggle of ducks waddle about, making their way to a large pond for their afternoon dip. Rice paddy extends to low hills in the distance and as I approach the meditation hall where I am to lead the afternoonContinue reading “Foundation for a New Life”
3 New Year Revolutions
Every year, the calendar reaches its final page and I am confronted with a blank sheet–12 new months of possibility, wide open for whatever I want to invite. And each year, there is a whiff of hope, an inkling of inspiration as I contemplate a new life, filled with everything I want, and none ofContinue reading “3 New Year Revolutions”
Change your mind, Change your world
Though the word mindfulness has turned into a catchy buzzword recently, there is a powerful message behind the buzz. The ability to steady the mind and bring it back to the present moment—which is another way of saying back to the breath, as we practice in yoga– is an important aid to healing. When youContinue reading “Change your mind, Change your world”
Raising Consciousness with Thich Nhat Hanh
Just back from a long weekend with the Thai Plum Village people (not to be confused with the Village People) (sorry, I couldn’t help myself), which is the local sangha of revered Vietnamese Buddhist teacher and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Thich Nhat Hanh. We spent the time in the mountains near Chiang Dao, in NorthernContinue reading “Raising Consciousness with Thich Nhat Hanh”
Beginners Mind for Yogis
Here’s the honest to god truth: after over twenty years of devoted (bordering on obsessive) yoga and meditation practice, I am amazed at how much time I still spend criticizing myself, judging others and wanting things to be different than they are. Wanting things, in general. Or, not wanting things. Being mad at how ourContinue reading “Beginners Mind for Yogis”
More Failure Equals More Success
I’ve noticed that the biggest difference between wildly successful people and total failures is that the successful people fail more. –Martha Beck This quote hit me like a brick. I am ashamed to admit to you how much time I waste fretting about my failures: no husband, no children, I’ve “failed” to stay in oneContinue reading “More Failure Equals More Success”
Are You Getting the Most From Your Yoga Practice?
If yoga means union, what is it that we are joining with? Have you ever thought about what that means? Union with what? And how does jumping around on a purple sticky mat every morning help us toward this goal? We are told that the union we seek is with “something” (for lack of aContinue reading “Are You Getting the Most From Your Yoga Practice?”
Noble Peace and the Softening of Ambition
You can’t go to Burma without seeing photos of Aung San Suu Kyi adorning the walls of almost every business establishment. Her elegant, smiling face is everywhere, and it is clear that this lady has won the hearts of the Burmese. About a week before I left for Yangon, I came across this article inContinue reading “Noble Peace and the Softening of Ambition”
Interview with New Life
The good folks at New Life Foundation in Chiang Rai, Thailand interviewed me last month while I was there. Here is the print version… How did you first start practicing meditation and ashtanga yoga? I discovered them both at the same time, actually, within the same week. I was a graduate student at Naropa UniversityContinue reading “Interview with New Life”
Diary of a Pilgrim 