Posts made in August, 2011

One day I told my friend that I would be visiting New Delhi for some meetings. When I got there, and had a couple days off, she surprised me with a trip to Amritsar, the home of the Golden Temple, the primary pilgrimage site for Sikhs. I was really excited, because I not only have close friends who follow Sikhism, but also, my yoga teacher from Phoenix, Aradhana Kaur, is an American Sikh. It is from her I began to learn about Kundalini yoga and the Khalsa, or community. Aradhana used to make tea and cookies for our class at the studio, or invite people for a potluck lunch at her house after a Kundalini class. From these interactions, I felt a sense of community. This is the tradition in Sikhism, where people are fed in the gurudwaras or temples, regardless of any...

Bangalore, India: Thousands, nay millions, of Muslims in the city are celebrating Ramadan. Meanwhile, the Hindu Puja Season has begun with Varalakshmi Puja and Raksha Bandhan last weekend. This weekend is Krishna Janamastami. All of these festivals have one thing in common: food, and lots of it. Most of it isn’t very healthy either. Ramadan comes with lots of fried foods being sold on the streets. Krishna Janamastami is a celebration of Krishna’s birth. One of the most vivid avatars of Vishnu, Krishna was a lover of (amongst other things and people) BUTTER! So on this festival, devout Hindus eat fresh, homemade butter, and savory snacks also favored by the little Blue Boy. Then, on September 1, Hindus across the nation will toast to Ganesh, the God who...

I recently joined a gym here in Bangalore. When I mentioned to another member that I am a yoga instructor, he was taken aback. His friends, he told me, practiced yoga and he could never convince them to join a gym. “Really!”, I exclaimed. “I always felt the two are complementary.” In fact in the United States, yoga is part of most, if not all, gyms. Members who take yoga classes usually also work out on cardio, weight train, and take other classes as well. My mom is a perfect example of this. At over 60, she takes 3-4 yoga classes a week, plus works out and goes hiking, training to climb in the Himalayan ranges. Once I realized the different mentality in India, I started asking others. Most members in this area have mentioned to me that...

India is the country with the 3rd largest population of Muslims, after only Indonesia and neighbor Pakistan (with whom relations might just get a little better thanks to Pakistan’s brand new Foreign Minister). There are a number of Muslims right here in my area, many wearing full-burqas, and some a little less orthodox in attire. So I am not at all surprised that my Muslim student (the one I’ve mentioned before on this blog) is unable to attend classes due to her devotion to her religion. Starting today, Muslims all over the world are observing Ramadan, a month-long fasting during daylight hours. How does yoga view fasting? Actually yoga and ayurveda have forms of fasting which help to cleanse the body, making it ready for higher spiritual practices...