PinnedMember-onlyMuddy waters, Muddy Roots, Still Grow Flowers.Recently Jivana Heyman of the Accessible Yoga organization posed the question on FB: “Re: Cultural appropriation, how do you honor your teacher if they are/were abusive”, naming the Sivananda organization. I haven’t felt compelled to write about it until this moment, but now I do. *trigger warning: rape, assault, abuse…Guru6 min readGuru6 min read
PinnedMember-onlyMa Chronicles: Caring for a Loved One with Alzheimer’s (part 1)“How is your mom?” asks a face staring through the tiny zoom screen, as one popped up after the next to say hello to each other before the gentle yoga asana class begins. Somehow, on this day, I tried a new answer. “Well it’s hard to say.” “Is her disease…Alzheimers7 min readAlzheimers7 min read
PinnedMember-onlyThrough A Yogic Lens: Is It Really Cultural Appropriation? Or Something Deeper?BY ANJALI SUNITA We’ve all seen it: the deity tattoos, the turbans, self-appointed spiritual names, goddess circles, Yoga business courses, pornographic Yoga pose selfies, events described as “tribal” galore. …Cultural Appropriation12 min readCultural Appropriation12 min read
PinnedMember-onlySpiritual People, please stop naming and blaming the Universe.Today as I lay with my leg up in a moon boot after breaking the base of my fibula, I am starting to count the number of times people call upon the Universe to explain the unexplained. This week alone in response to my broken bone, I have heard some…Spirituality5 min readSpirituality5 min read
PinnedMember-onlySmashing Four Common Myths About Ayurvedaby Anjali Sunita Many people shy away from Ayurveda because it classifies substances and people into basic categories or bio-energies called the doshas; classification of people in general bares warranted suspicion. As we have seen in Westernized Yoga communities, half-baked information can lead to stereotyping and a diluted understanding of…Ayurveda7 min readAyurveda7 min read
Dec 16, 2022Member-onlySeven Ways to Awaken Your Body’s Natural Wisdom: Ayurveda for beginnersAyurveda is the indigenous medicine system of Ancient India, with texts dating back thousands of years from doctors, surgeons, and specialists, which parallel all branches of modern medicine. The systems are still alive and practiced today both in lineage folk traditions as well as through medical colleges in India. Ayurveda…Ayurveda5 min readAyurveda5 min read
Nov 17, 2022Member-onlyThree Reasons to Integrate Ayurvedic Wisdom into your Yoga PracticeIf you have found your yoga practice has plateaued or become rote, disconnected from the rest of your world, lacks context, feels rigid, and is relegated to the yoga mat at best, or if you feel lost in a home practice without your teacher giving instructions, there are many reasons…Wellness4 min readWellness4 min read
Mar 18, 2022Member-onlyEmbracing the cool, Kapha SeasonEMBRACING THE COOL KAPHA SEASONAyurveda4 min readAyurveda4 min read
Nov 12, 2021Member-onlyThe Yoga Industry: How Much have we transformed in 2021?In 2020–2021, with the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, Stop Asian Hate, and The Farmer’s Strike in India, commercial yoga outfits ‘woke’ to engage with the communities who’s cultural riches they have sold for centuries. Franchises opened their checkbooks like never before to fund the latest trending organization. …Colonialism6 min readColonialism6 min read
Oct 22, 2021Member-onlySafety In the Dark: Recalibrating My Nervous System*Trigger warning, assault, stalking, domestic violence, and rape are briefly mentioned in this piece. Today I walked home alone in the dark, and I felt fine. In a small town of 7,500 people on the North Island of New Zealand, I walked in the dark for more than a mile. …Womens Rights4 min readWomens Rights4 min read