Ayurveda is all about having just enough of what you need, which can make it hard when people want to buy you gifts. There’s nothing wrong with acquiring things that make you happy without a specific purpose, but we can also derive a lot ofread more
“Holding space”—a task given to many a yoga teacher and holistic practitioner, a responsibility and a blessing that gives us a sense of unity and connection and safety. I spent many years leaning on my teachers to hold space for my personal healing, whether itread more
This week, I read a book. A fairly unremarkable statement from someone whose life has been defined by books, by stories, by reading and writing, and yet at this particular moment it feels like something to pay attention to. Like many of us, I’ve beenread more
In nature, the five Ayurvedic elements—ether, air, fire, water, and earth—very rarely exist on their own. Instead, what you see are beings and creatures that are combinations of elements, usually all five if they are alive. This is especially true in us humans, for withoutread more
Vata, Pitta, Kapha: The Ayurvedic doshas are part of our vocabulary usually thought of as yet another label we can put on our personalities, body types, and diets. “I’m so vata,” you might hear from your friend who can’t keep a lunch date or constantlyread more
Lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu.… I sit on my yoga mat, ankles crossed in a Half Lotus pose, eyes closed and struggling to form the shape of these foreign sounds in my mouth. Horns blare and headlights shine dimly through the gossamer-curtained window—the thinnest of veilsread more
If I had had a different sixth grade math teacher (or, while we’re going here, ninth grade biology teacher or twelfth grade English teacher(s)), my life would probably look much different than it does now. It was in Mrs. C’s “honors” math class that Iread more
“Have fun on your retreat!” I’ve heard this countless times over the past six months during which I’ve been a student at the Kripalu School of Ayurveda. The 650-hour certification program to become an Ayurvedic Health Counselor is split over six ten-day modules, four toread more
Bore: (verb): 1. to weary by dullness, tedious repetition, unwelcome attentions, etc.; 2. To move forward slowly and persistently, as a hole-boring tool does; 3. To carry or support (past tense); 4. To be called by (past tense). Tao (noun): (in Chinese philosophy) the absoluteread more
“Why should you want to exclude any anxiety, any grief, any melancholy from your life, since you do not know what it is that these conditions are accomplishing in you?” —Rainer Maria Rilke The memory of waking up on summer mornings as a kid hasread more
