...you become more in tune with your body, mind and spirit. These studies show that when you get these aspects of your life in harmony, you are able to improve your health, happiness and other areas of your life.

There are numerous reasons to start practicing yoga for your health. Many people take up yoga simply as an exercise program because of medical reasons, such as a back injury. Others take up yoga because of a knee injury prevents them from jogging or other strenuous exercise. Many athletes take up yoga to improve their flexibility.

As with any exercise program, yoga can improve your health by increasing your muscle strength and flexibility and your respiratory endurance. It also tends to reduce pain and inflammation by increasing the oxygen supply into the blood stream which helps to flush the body and eliminate toxins.

Another health benefit of yoga is increased positive mental s...more

Teaching Hatha Yoga: Should a Yoga Teacher be a Vegetarian?

...of meat consumption and its consequences.

Due to the cultures people are raised in, they are used to the taste of a particular meat. An example of this is the global beef consumption. The Japanese had been used to eating whale meat. There are cultures that have acquired the taste of dogs and cats. Luckily, cannibalism has been outlawed worldwide.

Most of us are in agreement that our forests should be preserved. The forests serve as a filtering system for all of the fossil fuels we expel into the atmosphere.

Global warming may not be the only problem, if the last human on earth is gasping for oxygen. Removing any more forests, to make room for cattle to graze, is a slow form of global suicide. This only makes environmental sense.

Health problems, due to meat consu...more

Teaching Hatha Yoga: What is Normal?

...o in harmony with the best prepared plans. If you are commuting, by car, to teach your next Yoga class, and you are delayed by an auto accident, or a mechanical break down, your priorities have changed instantly. You are not in control of this situation and all you can really do is damage control.

Therefore, we cannot count on a Yoga class, or life, to be normal. earth quakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, death, and behavior are very hard to predict. All a Yoga teacher can do is help one person, one student, or one Yoga class at a time.

Discard any ideas about what is normal. The universe, Yoga students, ...more

Teaching Hatha Yoga: The Transformation

...s happen often. When a Yoga student feels the physical or mental benefits of practice he or she becomes transformed by discarding pain and gaining new found enthusiasm.

Within any given Yoga class, there is a form of collective transformation that students and Yoga teacher experience. If you take a typical hatha Yoga class and consider the warm ups, Pranayama, Sun Salutations, asana practice, meditation, relaxation, or an integration of any other Yogic components; the transformation is quietly happening to the entire group.

There is no mystery here. Transformation of mind, body, and spirit is a result of steady Yoga practice.

Copyright 2006 Paul Jerard / Aura Publications