At the suggestion of a friend, I’ve been reading a lot of Joseph Campbell lately. I recently watched his DVD interviews with Bill Moyers around the idea of myth and the hero’s journey. A piece of the interviews that really caught my attention is their discussion about the importance of having a sacred place in our lives.

Every time I practice yoga, I set an intention before I begin the asanas. Sometimes it’s for a friend or family member who needs help. Sometimes it’s for a cause I believe in or an organization doing good work. For the past week I’ve been dedicating my practice to the people of Haiti.

For the past few weeks, I’ve been working on clearing my mind more often during the day. The natural tendency for a busy mind is to work ever harder to crack a problem or find an innovative solution. The yogic belief is that a clear, unburdened, relaxed mind is actually a more creative, efficient problem solver. And now that belief has a boost from hardcore science.

Last night at the park, after my run, a girl was practicing yoga next to me. (A cute assortment of yogis had gathered at one end of the track.) She did lots of stretchy poses, the ones I like to do: Standing Crescents, High Lunges, Wide-Legged Forward Bends. And after enough peeking, I noticed a [...]

Well, I’m back in the city again. A few days in Florida with my mom filled me up on oranges (and blues and greens). I feel sunny inside, even if it’s not so much outside. With the return to city life came the return to Twitter, CNN, texting, and emails. (I could have continued them [...]

When I first started meditating, it was not what you’d call meditation. I’d sit down, close my eyes, try to focus, and promptly have a panic attack about all the things I should be doing besides SITTING ON THE FLOOR DOING NOTHING. Gradually, I learned that there is some actual technique to this hobby. Yes, [...]

In the past week I’ve had two good lessons on drishti, or the point of focus for each pose. I knew that looking in different directions stimulates different functions of the brain (looking left stimulates new thought, which is why liars look left, while looking right stimulates memory, etc.), and that keeping our eyes focused [...]