Advanced Forward Bends No 2: Sirkka, twin sister of Carlotta, gives a wonderful demonstration of advanced Hatha Yoga Forward Bends. Filmed in Yoga Vidya Ashram Germany. More on Yoga, meditation, ayurveda in International Yoga Community http://my.yoga-vidya.org. More on Yoga Vidya Ashrams and Centers http://www.yoga-vidya.de/english.html

A meditation instruction for immediate practice: Sukadev leads you into a Yoga Meditation on Mantra and Chakra. Carlotta and Sirkka show different leg and hand positions, Sukadev leads you through the different steps of Asana (posture), Pranayama (Breathing), Pratyahara (autosuggestions). Then he leads you into the deeper steps of meditation on a Mantra in the Ajna Chakra. Afterwards you can continue with your meditation for as long as you want. This is one of the most popular meditation techniques in the Sivananda Yoga tradition. Filmed in Yoga Vidya Ashram Germany. http://www.yoga-vidya.de/english

My Yoga Online has posted an informative new pose presented by Dr. Robin Armstrong: Utkatasana Yoga Pose. Learn more about the benefits, contraindications, modifications, and cautions in doing this yoga posture safely.

Benefits of Utkatasana (Chair Pose)
*Strengthens the hip flexor muscles: rectus femoris, psoas
*Strengthens the quadriceps in the front of the thighs, hamstrings in the back of the thighs, adductor muscles of the inner thighs, gluteus muscles of the hip
*Strengthens and stretches calf muscles
*Opens chest and shoulders
*Improves range of motion in ankles
*Increases proprioception (sense of position in space) in the feet
*Traditionally thought to stimulate the abdominal organs and heart

Read more about Utkatasana Yoga Pose

About Dr. Robin Armstrong
Dr. Robin Armstrong is a Vancouver chiropractor and yoga instructor. Robin blends her western knowledge gained from her experience as a chiropractor, with the ancient eastern knowledge passed through generations of yoga teachers. Robin’s classes emphasize safety, breath, alignment, and movement, while teaching students ways to strengthen and lengthen their bodies to handle the stresses of our modern lifestyle. If you are coming to her as a patient, expect to be prescribed yoga! Learn more about Dr. Armstrong at www.stayactive.ca

No Tags

My Yoga Online has posted a new yoga workout video featuring Sharon Gannon: New Chakra Balancing Yoga Video with Jivamukti. In this unique and inspiring program, Jivamukti Yoga founder Sharon Gannon guides you through poses, affirmations, and mantras that open and balance the chakras. Focus on one chakra at a time or balance them all in one practice.

Click to watch: Chakra Balancing Yoga video.

About Sharon Gannon: In 1984 Sharon Gannon and David Life created the Jivamukti Yoga Method, which is a path to enlightenment through compassion for all beings. The JY Method emphasizes vinyasa, scriptural study, devotion, prayer, music, chanting and meditation as well as animal rights, veganism, environmentalism and political activism.

…Learn more about David Life and Sharon Gannon

No Tags

My Yoga Online has posted a new yoga tip video featuring Jesse Enright: Yoga and the Neck Smart Yoga Tip. Enjoy this new Yoga Anatomy workshop in which Jesse explores the nuances of the neck and how it relates to your Yoga practice.

Click here to watch: Yoga and the Neck Smart Yoga Tip

About Jesse Enright: Jesse Enright has been a student of Yoga for eleven years and an instructor for the past nine. He began his studies with Sivananda Yoga before exploring the more dynamic Ashtanga Vinyasa, the detailed alignment of Iyengar and the comprehensive intelligence of Vijnana Yoga.

…Learn more about Jesse Enright

No Tags

My Yoga Online has posted a new yoga workout video featuring Sharon Gannon: New Chakra Balancing Yoga Video with Jivamukti. In this unique and inspiring program, Jivamukti Yoga founder Sharon Gannon guides you through poses, affirmations, and mantras that open and balance the chakras. Focus on one chakra at a time or balance them all in one practice.

Click to watch: Chakra Balancing Yoga video.

About Sharon Gannon: In 1984 Sharon Gannon and David Life created the Jivamukti Yoga Method, which is a path to enlightenment through compassion for all beings. The JY Method emphasizes vinyasa, scriptural study, devotion, prayer, music, chanting and meditation as well as animal rights, veganism, environmentalism and political activism.

…Learn more about David Life and Sharon Gannon

No Tags

Spiritual Science of Non-Dualism

Transcendence via Advaita Vedanta - Nisargadatta Maharaj

Advaita Vedanta is the great spiritual science of non-dualism.  Many of the profound spiritual teachers that are helping the world transcend the ordinary dualistic mind come from this rich Hindu tradition.  Advaita Vedanta is essentially the teaching that the underlying Truth is complete Oneness and that there is no separate individual self or entity.  Realizing the non-dual nature of Reality and experiencing the Truth of Oneness brings transcendence, awakening and Self-Realization.  

The techniques used by Advaita Vedanta are very close to my heart.  They resonate with me very deeply as they deal with awareness, the mind and thoughts, and the meditations that deal with these dimensions are the ones that I find most direct, pure and powerful.  I have written about my experience with using the Neti Neti Advaita Vedanta meditation in the following article, Enlightenment Through Advaita Vedanta Neti Neti Meditation and you will also find more details about this spiritual science in the following articles, Understanding Hinduism Buddhism and Non-Dualism and The Miracle of Self Awareness - I AM ALL.

Today, though I would like to give you another powerful Advaita Vendata meditation, which was used by the profound spiritual master Nisargadatta Maharaj to attain realization and Self Awareness.  Here is a quote directly from him regarding how this technique helped him transcend the false dualistic mind.

Advaita Vedanta Master Nisargadatta Quote:

"My Guru ordered me to attend to the sense ‘I am’ and to give attention to nothing else. I just obeyed. I did not follow any particular course of breathing, or meditation, or study of scriptures. Whatever happened, I would turn away my attention from it and remain with the sense ‘I am’. It may look too simple, even crude. My only reason for doing it was that my Guru told me so. Yet it worked!"

"My teacher told me to hold on to the sense ‘I am’ tenaciously and not to swerve from it even for a moment. I did my best to follow his advice and in a comparatively short time I realized within myself the truth of his teaching. All I did was to remember his teaching, his face, his words constantly. This brought an end to the mind; in the stillness of the mind I saw myself as I am — unbound."

"I simply followed (my teacher’s) instruction which was to focus the mind on pure being ‘I am’, and stay in it. I used to sit for hours together, with nothing but the ‘I am’ in my mind and soon peace and joy and a deep all-embracing love became my normal state. In it all disappeared — myself, my Guru, the life I lived, the world around me. Only peace remained and unfathomable silence."

The Secret Behind these Spirtual Sciences and Techniques:

As you traverse the spiritual landscape you will come across such techniques and meditations and as you study and practice them, you will notice they tend to have 1 very important common denominator.  They all de-emphasize the mind and ego, and they all emphasize pure awareness or being in the moment.  Even the technique above from Nisargadatta Maharaj, implies that one must be aware at all times, in order to stay with the feeling of "I AM", and one must not get caught in the thinking process.  As getting caught would then take one away from the moment and further strengthen the sense of separate existence and duality.

So whether you prefer the Silent Mind Meditation Technique, which I use, prefer the Mindfulness Meditation of Lord Buddha, like the Advaita Vendanta Neti Neti Technique or resonate with this simple yet profound method used by Nisargadatta, you will find you are essentially negating the false/ego/mind and remaining is the light of simple awareness and the Witnessing Consciousness.

The most important thing is to try what is being suggested.  As you can see from Nisargadatta’s experience, it does not matter why do it, it is important that you do it.  No one can do it for you.  You have to do it yourself and there is no better time to get started that right NOW.

—
Related Articles at Mastery of Meditation, Kundalini Yoga and Zen:

• How Does Enlightenment Happen?
• Bhakti Yoga & the Path of Love - Quotations to Uplift Your Spirit
• Yoga Meditation Techniques - The Top 3
• Insights From Advanced Zen Meditation Practice - The Fact of Greed
• Comprehensive Guide to the World of Meditation Practice - Part 1

Meditation Instructor Program Updates

Online Meditation Training Program Graduates

I am very happy to report the excellent response and ongoing success of the Mastery of Meditation Teacher’s Training and Certification Program, that went live earlier this year.  Since it’s inception there have been some important updates to this program and I would like to share those with you today.  In addition, I want to congratulate the new graduates, who are now fully Certified Meditation Teachers and Instructors and I would like to share some thoughts on what is yet to come, with regard to this course.

Some Testimonial Regarding the Meditation Certification Program:

Here are some testimonials of current students and recent graduates.  More testimonials are available on the registration page as well.

Robin Writes:

Thank you again for your great support and for the quality and professional content. I feel humble and proud to be a part of this worthwhile teaching.

Clarisee Writes:

I have to first say I am enjoying the course sooooooo much!!  You are a wonderful teacher.

Patricia Writes:

I received my certificate today and it is so beautiful and the lovely letter that wrote with it.  Thank you so much.

Last Sunday I gave my first meditation class to a group at the yoga studio in Dorking.  At the end of the class one of the students said to me, "That was the best money they had spent in their whole life".

I am so grateful to you for helping me to become a tool through which this precious knowledge can be passed on to others.

Congratulations to New Graduates and New Teacher’s Directory Now Online:

First, I would like to congratulate the latest graduates, who have successfully completed their meditation teacher’s training and passed the final exam as well.  You will find their listing now active in the newly launched Certified Meditation Teachers and Centers Directory.  In addition, new graduates can get a listing on the following page as well, which due to it’s authority with Google can help boost their website ranking and search results, Best Yoga, Meditation and Wellness Centers.

Here are the 5 recent graduates who I would to congratulate and wish the very best on their teaching endeavors.  If you are looking for a certified meditation and yoga instructor, please feel free to reach out to them for their services.

Joseph Caldiero

Patricia Rose Barnett

Robin Lynn Kremer

Helen Skold

Sirisha Gavvala

370 Page Massive Meditation Training Manual Now Online:

During the early days of the program all the material was only available online, but then due to feedback I received, I created a meditation teacher’s training e-book which now contains all the material you need in order to participate in the program.  This book is included for free when you sign up for the training program.

If you are interested in training yourself in meditation and yoga, but not in becoming a certified instructor, you can purchase this manual separately as well.  Here are the highlight of this manual…

• It is in internet friendly PDF format.
• Contains 77 chapters and is 370 pages long.
• Contains all the details of the 8 week training program. 
• Teaches you Meditation, Yoga and Pranayama.
• Instructs you how to teach meditation and yoga.
• Teaches you how to run a meditation.
• Instructs you how to create a high traffic website.
• Is fully illustrated.
• Has active links to all the articles and related articles.
• Has active links to all the videos needed for your training.
• Yes it took me forever to create .  Many thanks to my father, Om Mehta and wife Trupti Mehta, for helping with the editing and formatting.

You can get more information on this massive e-book here:

Best Meditation Training Manual and E-book

Future Plans - Affiliates and International Payments:

Affiliate Program Coming Soon:

Soon the affiliate program for the Certification Course will be fully active.  I am just holding back till some final adjustments and tweaks are completed.  Once that is done I will broadcast this opportunity to all my webmaster and meditation friends, so be on the lookout for that in the near future.

International Enrollments and Payments:

I know some of you located outside the US have had difficulty enrolling and paying with your credit cards via PayPal and I apologize for this inconvenience.  But I am happy to report that soon Mastery of Meditation and Yoga will be upgrading it’s payment processing capabilities to be able to directly and securely handle credit cards and international payments.  This should be online within the next 1-2 weeks, as we have been approved for a Merchant Account and are in the process of acquiring our Secure Certificates for credit card transactions.  I would much rather be practicing meditation and yoga than dealing with these types of issues, but what to do, we do after all live in a manifested world .

How to Enroll in the Meditation Teachers Training Program:

If you are interested in enrolling in the Meditation Teachers Training Program and becoming a Certified Instructor, please do so by following this link.  It will take you to the registration page for the program.

Meditation Teacher’s Certification Program Registration Page

—
Related Articles at Mastery of Meditation, Kundalini Yoga and Zen:

• Saturday Kundalini Yoga Class Full & New Thursday KY Class Launched
• Key to Successful Weight Loss - Your Testimonials
• Best Meditation and Yoga Products Affiliate Program
• Silent Mind Meditation Program Overview: Chapter 2
• Enlightenment via Letting Go Meditation

Lose Weight at Home with Yoga

Natural Weight Loss Program

Natural Weight Loss Program - Online Course #107

Welcome to the Free Online Yoga and Meditation programs here at Mastery of Meditation and Yoga.  All the material needed for this Free Weight Loss Yoga Program is available via the links on this post and you can start anytime you wish.  For more information on the free online classes, please read the Free Online Yoga and Meditation Classes page. 

This course focuses on burning fat and helping you achieve optimum weight loss naturally and safely.  All the exercises and techniques can be practiced at home, but please follow the guidelines carefully and read our Legal Disclaimer as well. 

The course is designed for those who are out of shape, elderly or obese.  On this page I will provide the program objectives, details, syllabus and participation guidelines.  Please read through everything carefully so you will be able to get maximum benefit from the program.

This free yoga at home weight loss course uses gentle yoga exercises and breathing techniques which have been proven to be very useful for losing weight and getting fit.  The techniques come from the schools of Hatha Yoga and Kundalini Yoga and combined with a proper diet, provide an excellent natural weight loss solution.  You will find a more vigorous weight loss yoga program here: Healthy Weight Loss via Yoga and Pranayama.

To register please just leave a comment on this post that you are going to start the Yoga at Home Weight Loss Program, or just send me an email at anmol@anmolmehta.com.  This way I know what kind of participation and interest there is. 

PLEASE ALSO READ THE FAQ below.  It addresses many of the common questions about the online classes:

FAQ for Free Online Meditation & Yoga Classes

Free Yoga at Home Natural Weight Loss Program Objectives:

1. Burn Fat and Promote Natural Weight Loss.
2. Improve Metabolism.
3. Reshape the Body.
4. Improve Health and Fitness.
5. Increase Energy, Vitality and Vigor.
6. Cure Diseases.
7. Purge Negative Emotions to Create Emotional Balance.
8. Purge Negative Thoughts to Promote Clarity and Peace.
9. Strengthen the Nervous System, Respiratory System and Digestive System.

Free Yoga at Home Natural Weight Loss Program Details:

Class Structure: 

Each class session consists of 2 sections: Breathing exercises (pranayama) and the Natural Weight Loss Yoga Set.  Unlike the other yoga sets on this website, which you can find in the Free Online Yoga Sets E-book, this particular set starts off with only a few exercises and then grows over time.  So it really helps those who are out of shape get more fit and healthy, before becoming more intense and involved.

As I mentioned above for effective weight loss a sensible diet should accompany your yoga regiment and below you will find important articles dealing with this subject in the Required Reading Section.  These articles will introduce you to Ayurveda (the Indian Science of Natural Healing) and suggest a Fat Burning Diet from this profound school.  Please try to integrate some of these guidelines into your diet and life-style as well.

The total time for this class is approximately 10-50 minutes / day.  Do the best you can and most importantly, walk the middle path with regard to each session.  DO NOT OVERDO OR OVER STRAIN and at the same time don’t have it be too easy either.

Required Reading:

• Beginner’s Guide to Yoga Practice
• Beginner’s Guide to Yoga Pranayama
• Introduction to Ayurveda
• Healthy Ayurvedic Diet to Burn Fat and Lose Weight
• Legal Disclaimer

Suggested Reading:

• 6 Safe and Natural Weight Loss Solutions
• 5 Healthy Weight Loss Tips from Ayurveda
  

Course Materials:

• Kapalbhati Yoga Breathing Exercise for Optimum Health & Healing
• Bhastrika Yoga Breathing Exercise to Burn Fat for Natural Weight Loss & More
• Best Yoga for Weight Loss Set
  

Natural Weight Loss via Yoga Program Syllabus:

The following describes the 2 sections comprising the 10-50 minute daily yoga and pranayama for this class.  The approximate total times for each section and set are also given.  Take more rest if you need to, or if you feel comfortable do the poses and exercises a little longer.  Each breathing exercise and the yoga set below is a link to the article with all the details you need.  Links are in green, please click them to go the article with all the details for that technique or set.  Video demonstrations are included there for free as well, so you can learn yoga in the comfort of your home.

Weight Loss Via Yoga at Home Program:

The program is designed to help you lose about 5 months a month.  Each day do the following till you feel you have achieved your weight loss goals…

Section 1: Breathing Exercises Section (Pranayama):  Total time 2-10 Minutes

• Bhastrika Yoga Breathing Exercise to Burn Fat for Natural Weight Loss & More: Start with Bhastrika Yoga Pranayama, doing it at a capacity which suits you for 1-5 minutes.

• Kapalbhati Yoga Breathing Exercise for Optimum Health & Healing: Next do Kapalbhati Yoga Pranayama, doing it at a capacity which suits you for 1-5 minutes.  Then move onto the Weight Loss Yoga Section below.

Section 2: Weight Loss Yoga Section:  Total time 5-30 minutes

• Online Yoga Exercises for Health Weight Loss:  Start practicing this set as described in the article.  You will be starting with just 2 exercises initially and slowly building up your capacity week by week.  If you are more fit you can start with more exercises.  As I mentioned earlier, this program is designed to help even those who are very overweight or out of shape, therefore it is scalable by design.

Free Home Yoga Natural Weight Loss Program Participation Guidelines

Following are the guidelines which I suggest we follow…

• Please post all comments, questions and feedback in the comments section of this post.  This way all will benefit from the discussion.  Feel free to ask questions or discuss issues, as that is one of the main reasons for this particular class format.  Of course, you are free to email me as well if you would like the discussion to not be public.

• If you like, you can indicate with a comment that you have completed your daily session.  Could be as short as "did it", or of course could be questions, issues or more detailed feedback.  The hardest part with a daily yoga and exercise practice is establishing consistency and regularity and I think having to acknowledge that you completed your daily practice will help in facilitating that.  In addition, your comments will inspire others as well.
   
• Before starting your daily yoga session, take a moment and tune in to your higher self for guidance and protection.  At the end of every session, visualize yourself and the world as you would like it to be.

• Do the best you can and modify the techniques as required.  It is more important to do something, than be overwhelmed and not do anything at all.

• I wish you all a wonderful learning and transforming experience and hope this program really helps you lose the weight you want and get into great shape :-).

• Below, in the related articles and series sections you will find other free yoga and meditation classes; feel free to take advantage of them.

• If you are interested in becoming a certified gentle yoga and meditation teacher you can check out the online program I am offering here:  Meditation Teacher’s Training and Certification Program.

—
Related Articles at Mastery of Meditation, Kundalini Yoga and Zen:

• 6 Safe & Natural Weight Loss Solutions
• Weight Loss Yoga Exercise Program Feedback
• Key to Successful Weight Loss - Your Testimonials
• Can You and How to Lose Weight with Yoga? - Part 1
• Rapid Weight Loss Yoga Exercise Video

Simon Borg-Olivier, faculty of the Vibrant Living Yoga Teacher Training, on pressing the toe mounds versus gripping with the toes. tags: asana bandha Health radiantly_alive simon_borg-olivier synergy_yoga toes
radiantlyalive

Simon Borg-Olivier, faculty of the Vibrant Living Yoga Teacher Training, leading an exercise to strengthen ankle Bandha. tags: ankle asana bandha exercise Health radiantly_alive simon_borg-olivier
radiantlyalive