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Incorporating yoga into your life can be one of the most rewarding and fulfilling experiences you can take on your journey! A nurtured yoga practice can transcend you by creating a disciplined mind a strong and physically fit body and no matter what religion you practice, like any religion, yoga can be a bridge to enhancing your spirituality.

Practicing yoga is associated with establishing harmony, equanimity, balance. It has been well-publicized in mainstream media, recommended to patients by their doctors, and praised by its many practitioners.

Bring the practice of yoga into your life! Learn the top reasons why yoga should be in your life. Discover the key factors to incorporating yoga into your life. Learn to eat like a yogi. Awaken your spiritual life with yoga and use it to improve your love life. Get information on Ayurvedic health care. Take the dosha quiz and determine how to use it to better your health.

Reasons To Incorporate Yoga As A Lifestyle

1. Creates Discipline: Discipline is a necessity in life. Discipline is essential for achieving any kind of success in your life! It is the secret to the most effective, efficient and well strategic plan you can give yourself! Being successful, losing weight, maintaining relationships are not tasks that come easy for most people. They are all things we must work hard on creating, keeping and maintaining!

2. Improves Circulation: Poor circulation is the cause of over 1000 diseases! From a healthy heart to a good sex life, the proper flow and circulation of blood in our arteries is one of the most important things we can do to maintain good health and push back the aging process. There is a common denominator between good arterial health and disorders such as heart attack, obesity, diabetes and high glucose levels, as well as sexual health. That common denominator is blood circulation.

3. Increases Flexibility: Yoga is the way to a more pliable, flexible body. It creates a supple and more resilient muscular structure suited to react quicker to falls, accidents or in any kind of sports. As we age, the flexibility improved by doing yoga has shown to be a deterrent in injury related accidents.

4. Quiets the Mind: A disciplined mind is a free mind. Gain control over your thoughts and you maintain control over your life. Retrain your mind and you regain your freedom. Calming the mind is a behavioral technique used to interrupt, minimize and eliminate "psychological noise". Obsessive, repetitive thoughts, anxiety and fears are all apart of negative, self-destructive patterns that can benefit from the power of yoga and mind quieting.

5. Improves Breathing : Breath is life! Exchange of electrons. Flow of energy. Air is the primary nutrient. Survival without it is measured in minutes. It is so important that you do it without thinking. Your breathing is the voice of your spirit. It's depth, smoothness, sound, and rate reflect your mood. If you become aware of your breath and breathe the way you do when you are calm you will become calm. Yoga helps us to practice regular, mindful breathing and can be calming and energizing. With the addition of music and it's rhythm, the "musical breath" can even help stress-related health problems ranging from panic attacks to digestive disorders. Fall into the rhythm of the music and breathe. Focus on your breathing as you move through your yoga poses.

6. Brings Awareness: Through your yoga practice, you can gain a broader perspective in self awareness. Being able to open up your mind, allowing a free flow of thoughts and ideas can be liberating. Welcoming a new opinion or way of doing something can bring new meaning to your life. If you give up your closed thoughts and make way for a different opinion, you may be surprised at the outcome. Through your yoga practice, you learn to strive to meet difficult goals as you are pushed to stretch the horizons of what you think is impossible. You can then share the ways in which obstacles and challenges have made you stronger, and given you confidence to continue setting goals and dreams in your adventures, your business, and in your day to day life. This is conscious living.

7. Improves Nutrition: The source of fuel you find to nourish you on a daily basis changes as you become a yogi. The demands for a healthier diet make your journey more important. The Ayurvedic science of food is based on incorporating the 6 flavors (pungent, salty, sweet, bitter, sour and astringent) into each meal. The Three Humours or Tri-dosa are Ayurvedic body types that tailor a diet and digestive routines that are best for you.

8. Betters Your Sex Life: As mentioned earlier, a healthy heart and the proper flow and circulation of blood in our arteries is one of the most important things we can do to maintain good health and a satisfying sex life. Not only that, just think how much more limber you will be. Not to mention, stamina.

9. Improves Your Quality of Life: You are now breathing better, are more flexible, have found a new sense of purpose, drive and direction in your life. Welcome change! Through this gateway, your idea of nourishment has changed. Not just what you put in your body, but what you allow or don't allow in your life any more. Yoga is like the lotus flower. It teaches us to unfold one petal at a time in order to reveal the raw beauty underneath.

10. Brings You Closer to Nature/Spirit: Finding spirit and a higher sense of purpose comes to you as you evolve in your yoga practice. It can show us what is truly important in life. Allowing all those things that monopolize our time, to begin to have less value and stress inducing effects on us. Especially as you grow as a yogi.

Key Factors of A Yoga Lifestyle

Bringing yoga into your life can change many aspects of it. To make this all encompassing, pay attention to:

1. Your Awareness is the key to yoga. With a clear awareness of Self, anything we do or experience can become a form of yoga. Self-awareness is connection with all of life. With connection comes joy and deep inner fulfillment. If we can expand and stabilize our awareness then we have achieved something of great importance in our lives. Awareness and consciousness are synonymous; however, one distinction is that awareness can be defined as the illumination of consciousness. Awareness is that part of us that allows us to be conscious, to know, feel and experience.

2. Your Prana or life force is that which gives you life. Everything that exists, animate and inanimate, is a manifestation of energy in one form or another. At the macrocosmic level, this energy is called Maha Shakti, which means great power. Within the microcosm of living beings Maha Shakti is called mahaprana (which means the great life force), and it is a very special form of energy. It is our life-force or vital energy, our inner power and strength. Mahaprana in the body is divided into functional divisions in the pranic body. When mahaprana is involved in respiration it is called prana. The word prana can also be translated as breath.

3. Yoga Nidra or conscious sleep is a powerful healing tool that is fundamental to yoga therapy. This is because yoga nidra is an ultimate method of inducing profound relaxation and deep rest. Resting the body-mind is the basis on which true and deep healing takes place. Most people find it very difficult to rest deeply, especially when they are ill. Many will not take time off from work during an illness because of commitments, or because they are so driven. This reluctance to slow-down may lead to more complex and difficult to manage illnesses.

4. Your Meditation Practice is the foundation for cultivating awareness. Whenever awareness is present in a part of our life, that part can improve. Awareness is the key to health, greater intelligence and intuition, higher knowledge, and to uncovering our hidden abilities. Through regular meditation we develop our powers of perception and begin to see things as they really are. Awareness, which is cultivated in meditation, allows us to manage life, with its joys, sorrows and difficulties, with greater intelligence and creativity. To develop meditative awareness we need to learn a range of skills that cultivate our internal abilities. Each skill brings its own benefits, including relaxation, introversion, concentration, self-reflection, contemplation and the capacity to generate higher states of mind and being. All of these processes have one main aim, to cultivate greater and more stable awareness of who we are. We can then use meditation to benefit our physical, psychological and spiritual well-being.

Eating Like A Yogi

Eating healthy and nourishing meals are the best way to reward your body and therefore, your practice. When your body is filled with foods that serve you, you have good energy, healthy skin, better assimilating and eliminating capacities and you honor the mind and spirit.

An Ayurvedic diet should reflect the needs of an individual's constitution, their dosha imbalances, their current state of life and the current season they are in. The foods that are best for an individual will reflect what best supports their body and their yoga practice. This is determined by their Prikruti and their current state of imbalance. Also to consider is the personal ethics of the yogi. Serving the self, serving the earth and honoring all living things are some of the ethical reasons behind a yogi's food choices.

The Yogi Diet

1. Include the six tastes at every main meal

In ayurveda, foods are classified into six tastes--sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent and astringent. Ayurvedic healers recommend that you include all of these six tastes at each main meal you eat. Each taste has a balancing ability, and including some of each minimizes cravings and balances the appetite and digestion.

2. Choose foods by balancing physical attributes
In ayurveda, foods are also categorized as heavy or light, dry or unctuous/liquid and warm or cool (temperature), and different qualities balance different doshas. A balanced main meal should contain some foods of each physical type. Within this overall principle, you can vary the proportions of each type based on your constitution and needs for balance, the season of the year and the place you live.

3. Choose foods that are sattvic
ayurvedic classification of foods is by the effect they have on the non-physical aspects of the physiology--mind, heart, senses and spirit. Sattvic foods have an uplifting yet stabilizing influence, rajasic foods stimulate and can aggravate some aspects of the mind, heart or senses, and tamasic foods breed lethargy and are considered a deterrent to spiritual growth.

Everyone, whether actively seeking spiritual growth or not, can benefit by including some sattvic foods at every meal because they help promote mental clarity, emotional serenity and sensual balance and aid in the coordinated functioning of the body, mind, heart, senses and spirit. Almonds, rice, honey, fresh sweet fruits, mung beans and easy-to-digest, fresh seasonal vegetables and leafy greens are examples of sattvic foods.

4. Opt for whole, fresh, in-season, local foods
Authentic ayurvedic herbal preparations are made by processing the whole plant or the whole plant part, not by extracting active substances from the plant. Similarly, from the ayurvedic perspective, the most healthful diet consists of whole foods, eaten in as natural a state as possible, the only exception being when removing a peel or cooking helps increase digestibility and assimilation for certain types of constitutions. If the digestive fire is not strong enough, even wholesome foods can turn into ama (toxic matter) in the body.

5. Rotate menus and experiment with a variety of foods
The sages that wrote the ancient ayurvedic texts would be horrified by our current fascination with the low-carb diet or the no-fat diet or the juice diet--from the ayurvedic perspective, any diet that is exclusive in nature is by definition incomplete in its nutritive value and ability to balance all aspects of the physiology. Eat a wide variety of foods for balanced nutrition--whole grains, lentils and pulses, vegetables, fruits, dairy, nuts, healthy oil or ghee, spices and pure water all have their roles in the balancing process.

6. Include spices and herbs in your daily diet
Spices and herbs are concentrated forms of Nature's healing intelligence. They are particularly revered in ayurveda for their ability to enhance digestion and assimilation, help cleanse ama (toxins) from the body and their yogavahi property--their ability to transport the healing and nutritive value of other components of the diet to the cells, tissues and organs.

The Author: Shreelata Suresh is a yoga instructor from the Bay Area who writes for various publications on yoga and ayurveda. For more information on ayurveda, please visit http://www.ayurbalance.com

The Yoga Detox Ebook
The Yoga Detox Ebook is a 3,5, or 7 day plan that can be used to help the body to eliminate toxins from your body. Modern day lifestyles and environmental stressors can overburdened our body systems and make them weak. This fascinating ebook is an in depth view of the yogic detox as well as a 3, 5 and 7 day plan to cleanse the body, the mind and our emotional body! This detox blends a combination of simple foods with non-complicated yoga poses and soothing meditation to create an empowering, affective detox for mind, body and spirit!
This 40 page program is an inspirational way to look at detoxing through the tenets of yoga and Ayurvedic principles of balancing body, mind and your spiritual being. The course includes:
Detoxification Process
Detox Self Test
What is the Yoga Detox
Adopting a Healthy Lifestyle
Managing Your Detox Top 10
Detoxing with Pranayama
Detoxing with Asanas
Detoxing with Diet
Detoxing with Body Care
The Yogi Detox Plan
80 Detox Recipes, Meals and Juices
Liver/Gallbladder Flush
Daily Mantra
Morning Devotions On Your Mat
Evening Devotions On Your Mat
The Organs of Detoxing and Simple Ways To Detox Them
Herbs To Compliment Your Detox
Essential Oils To Compliment Your Detox
Words of Enpowerment

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Yoga Therapy
Whether you are new to yoga or one who practices, you will find a host of products, yoga lessons and resources available at Peacefulmind.com. Be sure and visit our three major destinations including yoga therapy, living a yogic lifestyle and ayurvedic medicine. You can take the online yoga class, find our most comprehensive yoga remedies, discover the top 10 reasons why yoga should be in your life and how to eat like a yogi. You can also learn and understand how to determine your dosha, learn about the significant greeting of Namaste and how to do a yogic detox!

Meditation
Meditation is a time-honored technique that can take you into infinite dimensions of consciousness. It is a simple effort that becomes effortless as we do it more and more. One major principle to meditation is the ability to completely quiet your mind. Learn how to meditate with the Deluxe Meditation Kit and the Guided Imagery Course. Incorporate different meditation tools such as color therapy, incense and candles! Discover the health benefits of meditation in your life, how to create a space for meditation and the best ways to meditate.

Love Life
Love and all it's divine power can be manifested from within us! They can be learned through the teachings of yoga. Passion, intimacy and commitment are the tenants of love and they are all lessons that can be taught, nurtured and refined through the art of your practice. No matter what style or school of yoga you practice, it will teach you about honoring who you are and your intentions. It will leave you with lessons of compassion to yourself and others, commitment to your practice and your life path and intimacy with your soul and your higher self!
Tantra Yoga is the yoga of sensuality, yet it is much more than this. It is yoga to awaken the body's energies. Tantra is actually a philosophy which emerged in India approximately 2,500 years ago. It has a modern counterpart in the worship of the "goddess," as tantra honors the feminine principle of cosmic existence. Tantra yoga teaches that one can use the power of this feminine energy, shakti, to facilitate a state of liberation. Various rituals and meditations awaken shakti energy, sometimes called kundalini energy, by which the practitioner of tantra enters a new state of consciousness.
"The tantra yoga student uses the energies of the body to transcend worldly attachments." -Swami Rama
Unlike traditional yoga, tantra yoga does not reject the experiences of this world as hindrances to wholeness. Rather, tantra techniques are designed to help the student see the Divine as She exists in all aspects of the world. While the yogi may attempt to control the body, for example, the tantra yoga student uses the energies of the body, sometimes the sexual energies, to transcend worldly attachments.
Start the journey by balancing your body with our Wellness IQ Test. Learn more about the principles of love, the difference between infatuation and love and an anthem to unconditional love.
We then honor the tantric spirit in several ways. See the joys of sex, the art of Tantric massage, and 20 sacred sexual secrets.

Spiritual Life
Yoga is not mind over body. It is harmony between them. In yoga, the mind is used to perceive (diagnose) and guide (heal) the body. Not to "control" it and never to force it.

The big lesson is that yoga takes time. Time for muscles to coordinate. Time for tissues to grow. Time for breath, spirit, and energy to flow. The time you invest in yoga comes back with interest in greater vitality, presence of mind, reduced need for sleep, and longer life.
Yoga should be conscious action not "learning routines.". The skill, grace, and poise develop naturally as an inevitable result of regular practice. No major effort is required or even effective. Trying hard will make your practice painful, even injurious, and will actually slow your progress! The therapeutic effect of yoga comes from involving your mind totally in inspiring (breathing) your body to wake.
Start the journey of finding spirituality with our Wellness IQ Test. Now that you have your score, it is important to understand just what is the power of spirituality? One of the best ways to connect to our spiritual awareness is through a practice of meditation. Finding spirit and a higher sense of purpose comes to you as you evolve in a yoga practice . Through your yoga practice, you can gain a broader perspective in self awareness. No matter what religion you practice, like any religion, yoga can be a bridge to enhancing your spirituality. It is important to commune with nature. Nature connects us to useful tools such as treasures of the earth, essential oils and herbs. Embrace the intangible spirit through metaphysics and understanding divinity. It can show us what is truly important in life.

Crystals for a Yoga Practice

Any gemstone can help you connect with your practice! Crystals can "speak" to us in different ways and it is usually due to the fact that we instinctually need something from it. It may be that we are attracted to its shape, color or sheen. It could be its size, wieght or properties, but whatever it is that draws us in, there is a reason behind it. When this happens at first glance, I often like to look up it's metaphysical properties and color meanings. This often explains immediately why I was drawn to it. Below is a list of my favorite stones I use in my yoga practice. I hope you find a stone or two that calls to you!

Amber:

Properties: This ancient petrified resin (possibly pine tree) has electromagnetic properties. Rubbing a piece of amber with a cloth, will build up an electric charge that makes it attract small items such as wood shavings, paper and straw. It is excellent at detoxification and protection from radiation, especially x-rays, sun, computers, airport, planes and other people's energies. Due to its strong connection to nature and the earth, amber is a great stone for grounding our higher energies. Amber can add stability to your life and your yoga practice. Helpful in clearing up depression and suicidal thoughts therefore, bringing about a positive mental state. Also useful as a memory aid, which makes it a good stone for any yoga student. Amber is used for past life work, divination and scrying. It aligns mental and emotional bodies via its deep orange and yellow color.

Amethyst:

Properties: The stone of transformation, and spirituality. It is used for contentment and meditation. Provides common sense and flexibility in decisions. Strengthens and enhances psychic abilities, imagery and mind quieting. This soothing stone is in tune with your Brow and Crown"Chakra. Amethyst contains the grounding color of red with the energy of blue, which is expanding, spacious and flows with peace. Amethyst is the color that you see in the sky as twilight transitions into night. Amethyst takes you on this transition from the magic time of dusk to a conscious shift into a different place. Crossing this threshold is the lesson of humility, which Amethyst can teach us.
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Coral:

Coral is a rich blend of calcium and calcite. It resonates with our body and is used to bring about diplomacy and concurrence, quiets our emotions, and brings peace to our inner self. Facilitates intuition, imagination, visualization, and expedites and accelerates the transfer of knowledge. Strengthens both circulatory and bone structure in the body therefore it good for us on the mat. It helps with disorders of the spinal, alimentary canals, nervous system and thalamus. Different colors of Coral can be used alone, in combination, or all together. Sympathetic to both the skeletal structure and the circulatory system. Coral has a true link with the past and can pass knowledge along.
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Emerald:

Properties: Emerald is a symbol of love and good fortune. This stone is used for abundance, growth, peace, harmony, patience, love, fidelity and honesty. It used against negative energy and has been used in many forms of divination. Most effective on the Heart Chakra perhaps because it access desires held deep within. Emerald provides inspiration and helps those in need of balance, healing, and infinite patience. Lifts depression, helps with insomnia, knowingness of the heart and peaceful dreams. Helps the wearer gain physical, emotional, and mental equilibrium. The pale, clear, green Emeralds are valuable in meditative work, as well as healing.
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Hematite:

Properties: This crystal is the most recommended stone for grounding and is associated with the Root Chakra, by encourages ones survival instincts and is centering. Hematite condenses scattered feelings, turns fuzziness into mental clarity, enhances concentration, memory, practicality, helps those who study, do bookkeeping, detailed work and helps with sound sleep. Considered the symbol of life energy, hematite allows for more confidence, will power and boldness. Helps us adjust to being physical. A protective stone and helps bolster low self-esteem. Hematite is known to deflect negativity. It restores equilibrium, stability and is also used for astral protection. It brings our awareness back to the body and helps one maintain their sense of self. If worn, Hematite should be placed near the base of the spine.
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Herkimer Diamonds:

Properties: These clear crystals closely resemble Diamonds but are really Quartz. Considered a "Dream stone", they are used in meditation or under your pillow to enhance visualization, astral travel into the light and dream recall. Most effective on the Brow and Crown Chakra therefore, this stone shifts the brain powerfully into alpha/deep stillness. Amplifies and stores thoughts, energy; and can be used as a bridge to stimulate energy flow (kundalini) up through the Chakra centers, opening the Brow and Crown Chakra for a strong, clear channel for psychic awareness, intuitive insight and yoga meditation. USe this stone to help you choose a direction to follow that will offer the path of least resistance. They contain a store of ecological memory that can be utilized by a person who can tune into the energy. Can also guide you in remembering your own past-life experiences (on or off your yoga mat.)
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Himalayan Sea Salt:

Properties: Pure Himalayan Pink Salt is hand- mined in the Himalayan Mountains. This salt is known for its unique healing properties. According to the Global Healing Center, "this salt's unique cellular structure allows it to store vibrational energy. Its minerals exist in a colloidal form, meaning that they are tiny enough for our cells to easily absorb them." Himalayan pink salt naturally generate beautiful ions, which improve air quality and health. Place a few chunks in a bowl and place the bowl in any room in the house. Most of us live in home environments surrounded by computers, microwaves, air conditioners and other electronc appliances. These lifestyle conveniences emit excessive amounts of positive ions into the air we breathe, often resulting in mental and physical exhaustion. Counteract the excess by using Pink Himalayan Sea Salt. Place a chunk of sea salt in a hot bath. Heat magnifies the natural healing properties of the salt. The chunk will dissipate slowly, lasting for a couple of baths. Click here and learn all about the healing remedies with Sea Salt.
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Jasper:

Properties: This stone is a methodical and meticulous worker of practical, down to earth solutions. It has the ability to foster and nurture and its energy is used for grounding and protection. Considered more effective if it is used for long periods of time because it works slowly. Each color of Jasper has additional, specific qualities when used alone. Jasper is very effective when use on the Root Chakra. Jasper is a general tissue regeneration; mineral assimilation; and general healing. Darker colors are more grounding. Suggested to be used for elixirs because it will not over-stimulate any part of the body.
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Pearl:

Properties: In tune with emotions, water, and women, especially pregnant women, pearls are a symbol of pure heart and mind; innocence and faith. Because it is from the sea, it has watery and lunar elements, therefore it is used for balancing emotions, especially for water signs. Absorbing by nature, this mineral absorbs thoughts and emotions and because of this, must be used with caution. If you feel excessively negative while wearing a pearl, it will hold that energy until it is cleansed. Remember, Pearl is the result of layer upon layer of substance produced to combat irritation. Pearl can cool and soothe. It is very nurturing. If using pearls in conjunction with other gemstones, consider Diamonds to amplify and purify, or Emeralds to bring negative energy out and disperse it.
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Phenacite:

Properties: also spelled phenakite, is a powerful, loving, healing, spiritual stone. It is believed to be one of the highest vibrational crystals yet discovered. The clearer the stone, the more intensely it opens the Third Eye, Crown Chakra and Transpersonal Chakra as a white light channel. Hence, its aura clearing abilities are phenomenal! This stone ignites clairvoyance/spiritual communication, meditation, astral travel, as well as life journeys. Helps one to map out a pathway within the dimensions. Energizes meridians and the healing of other stones. It is a powerful crystal for clearing and activating the chakras. It helps one to go further in a trance state and gives a deeper awareness of one's inner structures. Phenacite can be used to amplify the energies of other stones used for healing, and to balance energy within one.
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Quartz: "Rock Crystal"

Properties:Quartz is the Master Healer and the "stone of power"! Probably the most versatile multipurpose healing stone. Easy to cleanse, store information/energy in, program or amplify energy and is used as a healing instrument. The natural tendency for quartz is for harmony. Quartz can both draw and send energy therefore it is effective for sending/receiving guidance. Quartz is used for transformation in healing and in all levels of change (mentally/emotionally, physically and spiritually). Quartz stimulates the natural crystal in body tissues and fluids to resonate at the highest healing frequency. Quartz works with All Chakra and master gland for balancing, cleansing and healing. It is the perfect stone for complete Aura balancing.
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Clear Quartz: is thought to amplify both body energy and thoughts. It can assist in the creation of power, clarity of thinking, meditation, cleansing, clearing the aura, spiritual development and healing. Clear Quartz is considered the "stone of power". A dedicated healer. Pure white light passes through it easily, leaving all the colors of the spectrum unaltered and giving substance to the argument that Clear Quartz crystals can help balance all the elements needed to make us whole and fulfilled. Amplify whatever influences are present in an individual or location. Acts as a purifier and tunes into the frequency of each individual. Will unblock specific areas or organs blocked from transmitting or receiving the flow of energy throughout the body. Helpful in guiding our search for the meaning and importance of existence. Aids in meditation. Can be used in conjunction with any other stone or gem for specific physical problems. It will amplify the effects of individual stones and attune the treatment to the energy of an individual person.
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Rose Quartz:

Properties: Rose Quartz represents love, beauty, peacefulness, forgiving, lovingness, self-love and emotional balance! Rose Quartz works with the Heart Chakra. It is a soft, gentle, soothing stone that warms the heart center. Its value as a nurturing friend cannot be overstated. Neither can it's soothing influence. Helps diffuse negative stimuli and uncomfortable memories. Helps us discover the ability to love ourselves and makes us more open to other people. It is of particular value in helping us to forgive ourselves, hastening self-acceptance. Helps us realize that all change is important, even difficult change. Stimulates love and tender appreciation of all things. One of the best stones to bring self love and compassion into your practice!
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Shiva Lingham:

Properties: Lingam is the sacred Sanskrit word for phallus. In Tantra, the shape embodies the masculine energy; dynamic expression and knowledge. The markings or Yoni depicts female energy; wisdom and intuition. The Tantric Shiva Lingam unifies the dualistic female/male world into harmonious balance. This Sacred Stone relates to the Heart Chakra, and represents the harmony and balance of the soul that is maintained within the hearts of all of us. Shiva Lingham stones are used for spiritual detox, allowing us to see the higher knowledge within ourselves. The stone gives us the capacity for hanging on to the beliefs which work the best for us and letting go of those beliefs which no longer serve us. When used during meditation, lingam shows us how to connect with our physical and spiritual energies and therefore, our higher selves.
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Smoky Quartz:

Properties: Smoky Quartz is a grounding stone. It is used most often to overcome depression, nightmares and stress. Quartz stimulates the natural crystal in body tissues and fluids to resonate at the highest healing frequency. The clearest smoky quartz are the most intense, powerfully opening the Crown Chakra emanating light down to the Root Chakra, therefore, inducing Alpha/deep meditation. Because of this situation, it's benefits also include channeling higher guidance, deep relaxation and helping with unconditional love. Heightens your understanding of nature and concerns for the environment. Smoky Quartz helps store information well for easier recall. Because it is associated with the Root Chakra, it helps to alleviate fear, anxiety and associated emotional depression. When placed opposite other smokies in a crystal grid these stone vibrate at a high energy level.
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Crystal Clusters

I love using crystal clusters in my practice. I have often used a quartz, amethyst or selenite tower in the middle of the yoga studio and have my students circled around facing the stone throughout the practice. Another idea is placing the stone(s) on my yoga mat as I practice, to remind me why I am here on the mat this day. Clusters of crystals bring a "group" energy to it's surrounding area. They are used to foster protection, cooperation, purification, harmony, friendship, intimacy and to break up negative energy in the environment. Clusters help to keep all life forms energized and clear of heavy or unproductive energy. Find some wonderful crystal clusters here.

Crystals for the Chakra

Crystals are used to help balance the energy of the Chakra and can affect us on a daily basis. These crystals allow you to work through each center on a mental, spiritual, as well as a physical level and assist in ways to re-align, balance and manage your energy in a positive way! Crystals are suggested for each Chakra center here.

Crystals by Ailment

Dis-ease is the body out of balance. Crystals have been used as an adjunct therapy for centuries. Physical health is a state of heightened energy and vitality; freedom from pain, disability, and disease. Here you can find indepth healing methods, listed by ailment or take a look at Andrew's quick crystal remedy reference.

Crystals by Color

The color behind Earth's minerals can be felt the minute you put a crystal in your hands or near your physical body. The Mineralogical Society of America has extensively logged, categorized and classified every mineral on the planet! Andrew has organized the crystals by their primary colors of red, yellow and blue, as well as the secondary colors of orange, green and violet, including the blend of red and blue, creating indigo.

Crystals by Element

The Elements are the forces of nature that express their energies on earth and within us. They are the fundamental building blocks of many paradigms from every culture. Crystals have an affinity and association to the elements based on their structure, make-up and historical connections. Discover crystals for air, earth, fire, water, metal, wood, ether.

Crystals by Emotions

Although the mind/body connection has been acknowledged only relatively recently in Western medicine, the interaction of emotions with the physical body is an essential aspect of traditional Chinese medicine. Learn how crystal therapy can teach us about our seven major emotional states and how it relates to our physical health by understanding anger, joy, worry, pensiveness, grief, fear, and shock (fright). Discover more about our emotions and the mind/body connection.

Crystals by Name

Gemstones have names. A crystalline substance is uniquely defined by the combination of its chemistry and the structural arrangement of its atoms. Crystals differ in physical properties, such as hardness, cleavage, optical properties, heat conductivity, and electrical conductivity. They can be known by their scientific name (silicon dioxide), their common name (quartz), their nickname (snow quartz) or by their metaphysical properties (magic quartz). Here you will find thousands of fact, folklore and ancedotal information on the metaphysical properties of crystals.

The Crystal Quiz

What crystals are right for you? Crystals and Gemstones are one of the most beautiful, mystical and profound "energy medicine" tools, which have been used for centuries throughout all cultures, religions and empires. Andrew has one of the most extensive collections of crystals and crystal information on the Internet. Take the crystal quiz. Search through our tumblestones, crystal jewelry, spheres, clusters, crystal fountains, or unique crystals and specialty gifts.

Crystals by Season

The seasons influence our energy. Whether it is a bright Summer day or a rainy afternoon in Fall, crystal can be there to boost our mood, keep us energized or calm our restless mind. Unearth the most important crystals you need for the renewal of Spring, the heat of the Summer, the transitions of Fall or the introspective Winter.

Crystals by Shape

Symbols throughout the world can have a variety of different meanings. In almost every religion, culture and part of the world, shapes have significance. Regardless of their origins, certain particular shapes are Universally recognized and play a part of our subconscious mind in one way or another. When crystals grow or are faceted into these shapes, they take on the Universal energy they share. Learn more about how they influence our own energetic field.

Crystals by Zodiac

Astrology has an amazing connection to crystals in the form of our birthstones. Other crystals can be used to complement and assist us in our path to enlightenment Discover which crystals are essential for Aries * Taurus * Gemini * Cancer * Leo * Virgo * Libra * Scorpio * Sagittarius * Capricorn * Aquarius * Pisces

Essential Oils For Your Yoga Practice

Essential oils are the pure essence of plants, extracted for their healing, cleansing and magical properties. The olfactory nerves in the brain work by transporting us, encouraging us or relaxing us through the power of scent. In order to benefit from all the rich aspects essential oils have to offer, it is important to look at each structural source as an individual and unique frame of reference. The therapeutic "signature" of each plant, tree or fruit, is its essence, or essential oil.

Essential oils in yoga have so many uses, on and off the mat. I have a core group I recommend such as eucalyptus, juniper, lavender, orange, rosemary, rosewood, tea tree, thyme ...These essential oils work as a calmative, an antiseptic, diuretic and infection fighter. These select oils are simply a jumping point for you to start discovering these wonderful "scent tools".

Eucaluptus: This oil is best know as a decongestant for colds. Powerful antibacterial and antiviral. Good for use in rheumatism pain. Promotes cell regeneration and regulates the oiliness of the skin. Increases circulation and helps stabilize blood sugar. On the mat: add 25 drops of eucalyptus oil to a spray bottle with 4 ounces of water. Shake and spray your yoga mat to clean and disinfectant your mat after class. Off the mat: add 30 drops of eucalyptus oil to 2 tablespoons of carrier oil (jojoba, vegetable, olive oil). Massage into stiff joints.

Juniper: This oil is an antiseptic, diuretic and fights infection. Excellent for its detoxification properties. A good oil for skin conditions such as eczema and dermatitis. Warning: Avoid during pregnancy. Activates the kidneys. Consult your healthcare provider with kidney problems. On the mat: Inhale this stimulating oil directly out of the bottle. One nostril then the other, before class to encourage a more focused and energized practice. Off the mat: add 20 drops of eucalyptus oil to 2 tablespoons of carrier oil (jojoba, vegetable, olive oil). Massage into any small eczema patches, dermatitis or heat rash.

Lavender: This oil is an amazing therapeutic oil. Stimulates new cell growth, lifts depression, calms nerves, fights infection, reduces inflammation, and eases congestion. Relieves pain and muscle spasm. Lowers blood pressure. On the mat: add 15 drops of eucalyptus oil to a misting bottle with 2 ounces of water. Shake and spray over face and Crown Chakra for a restorative end of practice meditation or Savasana. Off the mat: 100 uses including massage oil, de-stresser oil, room refreshener.

Orange: Stimulates lymphatic circulation, improves immunity, fights infection, reduces inflammation, relieves muscle spasm, eases digestive disorders. Cools fever and warms chills, calms nerves, diminishes depression. Warning: may irritate skin, promote photosensitivity. Avoid going in the sun while using this oil. On the mat: add 15 drop of orange oil to a cloth and massage into your yoga mat. Removes residue and negativity! Off the mat: add 20 drops of orange oil to a spray bottle with 4 ounces of water. Shake and spray in any room in your house. Increases conversation, stimulates prana energy and lifts depression!

Rosemary: Stimulates the adrenal glands, circulatory system, liver, gallbladder, promotes nerve health, improves the functioning of the heart and nervous system. Tones and tightens the skin, regulates oil secretion, fights infection, joint pain, muscle spasms, and eases digestive orders. Warning: This oil may trigger epileptic seizures in prone individuals, may irritate sensitive skin. Avoid if you have high blood pressure. On the mat: Massage 10 drops of this oil into your abdomen and 3 drops into your temples, right before class. Improves circulation, focus and awareness. Off the mat: Add 15 drops rosemary oil into 2 tablespoons of carrier oil (jojoba, vegetable, olive oil). Massage oil over ankles and arms using upward strokes toward the heart to boost circulation.

Rosewood: helps relieve pain, fights infection, diminishes depression, stimulates the brain, clears the head, improves immunity, helps skin disorders, and stimulates sexual desire. On the mat: This is a wonderful oil to diffuse during class time. Add 15 drops to an electric or candle diffuser and let the scent permeate the room. Off the mat: Add 10 drops rosewood oil into 2 tablespoons of carrier oil (jojoba, vegetable, olive oil). Massage into ligaments and muscles after a long, hard class.

Tea tree: fights infection, and fungi, soothes skin disorders, and heals wounds. Releases mucous, relieves respiratory congestion. Increases immunity. Kills insects. Excellent for foot, nail fungus, athlete's foot. Warning: May be irritating to sensitive skin. On the mat: This is a fantastic oil to cleanse your mat with. Add 20 drops of tea tree oil to a spray bottle with 4 ounces of water. Shake and spray your yoga mat to clean and disinfectant after class. Off the mat: Massage a few drops of tea tree oil directly to your feet and nails, about an hour before bedtime.

Thyme: fights infection, improves immunity, eases pain of arthritis, eases muscle pain, improves digestion, and relieves urinary tract infection and respiratory ailments. Improves circulation, elevates coughs, improves lung function. Overcomes emotional fatigue, nervousness, and stress, regulates oiliness of skin, regulates skin disorders. Warning: Avoid during pregnancy, or if you have hyperthyroidism, or high blood pressure. Can irritate or sensitize skin and mucous membranes, stimulates menstrual flow. On the mat: This is another great oil to diffuse during class time. Add 10 drops thyme oil to an electric or candle diffuser and let the scent permeate the room. Primarily used for respiratory issues, it works as a great air freshener. Off the mat: Add 3-5 drops of oil to a cup of water and massage into cuts, bruises or to disinfect a wounds.

Namaste: The Significance of a Yogic Greeting

In a well-known episode, it so transpired that the great lover god Krishna made away with the clothes of unmarried maidens, fourteen to seventeen years of age, bathing in the river Yamuna. Their fervent entreaties to him proved of no avail. It was only after they performed before him the eternal gesture of namaste was he satisfied, and agreed to hand back their garments so that they could recover their modesty.

The gesture (or mudra) of namaste is a simple act made by bringing together both palms of the hands before the heart, and lightly bowing the head. In the simplest of terms it is accepted as a humble greeting straight from the heart and reciprocated accordingly.

Namaste is a composite of the two Sanskrit words, nama, and te. Te means you, and nama has the following connotations:

1). To bend, 2). To bow, 3). To sink, 4). To incline, 5). To stoop

All these suggestions point to a sense of submitting oneself to another, with complete humility. Significantly the word 'nama' has parallels in other ancient languages also. It is cognate with the Greek nemo, nemos and nosmos; to the Latin nemus, the Old Saxon niman, and the German neman and nehman. All these expressions have the general sense of obeisance, homage and veneration. Also important here is to note that the root 'nama' is a neuter one, the significance of which will be elaborated upon later.

The word nama is split into two, na and ma. Na signifies negation and ma represents mine. The meaning would then be 'not mine'. The import being that the individual soul belongs entirely to the Supreme soul, which is identified as residing in the individual towards whom the namaste is directed. Indeed there is nothing that the soul can claim as its own. Namaste is thus the necessary rejection of 'I' and the associated phenomena of egotism. It is said that 'ma' in nama means death (spiritual), and when this is negated (na-ma), it signifies immortality.

The whole action of namaste unfolds itself at three levels: mental, physical, and verbal.

It starts with a mental submission. This submission is in the spirit of total surrender of the self. This is parallel to the devotion one expresses before a chosen deity, also known as bhakti. The devotee who thus venerates with complete self-surrender is believed to partake the merits or qualities of the person or deity before whom he performs this submission. There is a prescription in the ancient texts known as Agamas that the worshipper of a deity must first become divine himself, for otherwise worship as a transaction would become invalid. A transaction can only be between equals, between individuals who share some details in common. Hence by performing namaste before an individual we recognize the divine spark in him. Further by facilitating our partaking of these divine qualities, namaste makes us aware of these very characteristics residing within our own selves. Simply put, namaste intimates the following:

'The God in me greets the God in you The Spirit in me meets the same Spirit in you'

In other words, it recognizes the equality of all, and pays honor to the sacredness of all.

Conclusion:

As much as yoga is an exercise to bring all levels of our existence, including the physical and intellectual, in complete harmony with the rhythms of nature, the gesture of namaste is an yoga in itself. Thus it is not surprising that any yogic activity begins with the performance of this deeply spiritual gesture. The Buddhists went further and gave it the status of a mudra, that is, a gesture displayed by deities, where it was known as the Anjali mudra. The word Anjali itself is derived from the root Anj, meaning "to adorn, honor, celebrate or anoint."

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The Art of Adornment steeped in the yogic mind set and practiced through tantric traditions, stones, crystals, seeds and precious metals can be worn as jewelry to help in maintaining balance, focus, centeredness, mental clarity as well as, physical and emotional stability. Yoga-inspired jewelry is created for a purpose. Whether it is used to evoke a sensual mood, create undeniable calm or stimulate energy, jewelry can be used to balance the three dosha, increase physical energy and bring emotional well being.

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References