Lizzie for Free : a yogi's blog
The Free State of LizArchive for off the mat
20 Instructions for Life by The Dalai Lama
1.Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
2. When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.
3. Follow the three R’s:
- Respect for self,
- Respect for others and
- Responsibility for all your actions.
4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
6. Don’t let a little dispute injure a great relationship.
7. When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
8. Spend some time alone every day.
9. Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.
10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and
think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.
12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.
14. Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.
15. Be gentle with the earth.
16. Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.
17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
19. If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
20. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.
Published January 3, 2012 at 2:20 PM
‘Gut Feeling’ is Second Brain at Work
By Sandra Blakeslee
The New York Times
Ever wonder why people get “butterflies” in the stomach before going on stage? Or why an impending job interview can cause an attack of intestinal cramps? And why do antidepressants targeted for the brain cause nausea or abdominal upset in millions of people who take such drugs?
The reason for these common experiences, scientists says, is because each of us literally has two brains, – the familiar one encased in our skulls and a lesser-known but vitally important one found in the human gut. Like Siamese twins, the two brains are interconnected, when one gets upset, the other one does, too.
The gut’s brain, known as the enteric nervous system, is located in sheaths of tissue lining the esophagus, stomach, small intestine and colon. Considered a single entity, it is packed with neurons, neurotransmitters and proteins that zap messages between neurons, support cells like those found in the brain proper; and a complex circuitry that enables it to act independently, learn, remember and, as the saying goes, produce gut feelings.
The brain in the gut plays a major role in human happiness and misery. But few people know it exists, said Dr. Michael Gershon, a professor of anatomy an cell biology at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York. For years, people who had ulcers, problems swallowing or chronic abdominal pain were told that their problems were imaginary, emotional, simply all in their heads. Gershon said. They were shuttled to psychiatrists for treatment.
Doctors were right in ascribing these problems to the brain, Gershon said, but they blamed the wrong one. Many gastrointestinal disorders such as colitis, and irritable bowel syndrome originate from problems within the gut’s brain, he said. And the current wisdom is that most ulcers are caused by a bacterium, not by hidden anger at one’s mother.
Symptoms stemming from the two brains get confused, Gershon said. “Just as the brain can upset the gut, the gut can upset the brain. If you were chained to the toilet with cramps, you’d be upset, too,” he said. Details of how the enteric nervous system mirrors the central nervous system have been emerging in recent years, said Gershon, who is considered one of the founders of a new field of medicine called neurogastroenterology.
Nearly every substance that helps run and control the brain has turned up in the gut, Gershon said. Major neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, glutamate, norepinephrine and nitric oxide are there. Two dozen small brain proteins, called neuropeptides, are in the gut, as are major cells of the immune system. Enkephalins, one class of body’s natural opiates, are in the gut.
And in a finding that stumps researchers, the gut is a rich source of benzodiazepines – the family of psychoactive chemicals that includes such popular drugs as Valium and Xanax.
In evolutionary terms, it makes sense that the body has two brains, said Dr. David Wingate, a professor of gastrointestinal science at the University of London and a consultant at Royal London Hospital. The first nervous systems were in tubular animals that stuck to rocks an waited for food to pass by, Wingate said. The limbic system is often referred to as the “reptile brain”.
As life evolved, animals needed a more complex brain for finding food and sex and so developed a central nervous system. But the gut’s nervous system was too important to put inside the newborn head with long connections going down to the body, Wingate said. Offspring need to eat and digest food at birth.
Therefore, nature seems to have preserved the enteric nervous system as an independent circuit inside higher animals. It is only loosely connected to the central nervous system and can mostly function alone, without instructions from topside.
This is indeed the picture seen by developmental biologists. A clump of tissue called the neural crest forms early in embryogenesis, Gershon said. One section turns into the central nervous system. Another piece migrates to become the enteric nervous system. Only later are the two nervous systems connected via a cable called the vagus nerve.
Until relatively recently, people thought that the gut’s muscles and sensory nerves were wired directly to the brain and that the brain controlled the gut through two pathways that increased or decreased rates of activity, Wingate said. The gut was simply a disgusting tube with simple reflexes.
Trouble is, no one bothered to count the nerve fibers in the gut. When they did, he said, they were surprised to find, that the gut contains 100 million neurons – more than the spinal cord has. Yet the vagus nerve only sends a couple of thousand nerve fibers to the gut.
The brain sends signals to the gut by talking to a small number of “command neurons”, which in turn send signals to gut interneurons that carry messages up and down the pike, Gershon said. Both command neurons and interneurons are spread throughout two layers of gut tissue called the myenteric plexus and the submuscosal plexus. (“Solar plexus” is actually a boxing term that refers simply to nerves in the abdomen.)
Command neurons control the pattern of activity in the gut, Gershon said. The vagus nerve only turns the volume by changing its rates of firing.
Reprinted at:
The Denver Post, January 23, 1996
Present and Embodied
Daily life in a big city can sometimes feel somewhere between a race, a juggling act and balancing on a high wire. The cacophony of sounds, smells, and visual stimulation can mean that the moment the mind kicks into gear, the body does its best to keep up, and this doesn’t allow for time to connect with the sensations in the body as we move through our daily life. As a result it can feel like the ground has been pulled out from under us – unstable, disconnected or just plain unaware of the relationship we have with our bodes throughout the day. As a result, the breath can become shallow, our posture held by tension, our physical actions on auto-pilot. Its no wonder that we live without a presence in the body, the mind holds so much tension there that it makes it an unpleasant place to be. But what does it mean, to not be present in the body?
When we find ourselves disassociated from the sensations in the body, unaware of the earth beneath us and the sounds, smells (and moving vehicles headers straight for us), we are not embodying the human experience.
What does it mean to be present and living in the body; to embody the human experience?
To Embody:(v)
To be an expression of or give a tangible or visible form to (an idea, quality, or feeling).
Provide (a spirit) with a physical form.
Synonyms: incarnate – personify – incorporate
We are organic, sentient beings with a great capacity to express joy and a matrix of other emotions. These emotions are then organised and critiqued by our minds that, when not controlled, can trump the senses, spiralling us out of our bodies and into another dimension; one where we miss all the clues that the universe offers us in connecting into ourselves. Whether we feel our heart racing due to fear, or peaceful and grounded in body and mind, if we don’t know how we feel in our body, we are more likely to injure ourselves in mindless ways. What is more detrimental is the potential for build up of emotional blockages in the body that manifest as physical stress patterns, in some cases even leading to disease.
Asana is a wonderful time to check in with oneself, in mind and in body. Rather than letting the mind wander during surya namaskar or picking at old nail polish in paschimottanasana, instead focusing on the sensations in the body, it becomes possible to explore how the body and mind interact. How does standing on one leg feel, and what happens to your thoughts when you fall, or master the posture? Sitting with bent knees, with feet open and hugging the hips do you feel open and joyous, or frustrated and stiff? Does standing on your hands make your heart race, or do your legs feel like lead? Asana practice holds so many important clues about what is happening emotionally if we are open to listening in.
Asana practice is not intended to injure the body, yet so many people end up pushing themselves beyond their boundaries because they aren’t living in the body. Instead, their minds govern how far they will push themselves for achievement, and often this ends in physical injury. These injuries can take months, sometimes years to heal.
Shtira Sukham Asanam, from book ii number 46 of the yoga sutras suggests that we should be stable and grounded, at ease in our seat. Our seat is ultimately our body, our mind, our relationships with ourselves and all of animate life. In a city, we can learn to stay present by checking in with our selves in the midst of the sensory experiences all around. How we feel in our bodies and our minds enables us to live more consciously with all other animate life forms, to connect with our emotions while settling the mind. We can embody a seat of stability and ease- all we have to do is slow the mind and be present, to take the time to bring ourselves back into our body.
Blog break
Where have my posts been in February 2012? In the draft box mainly, as one post after the next is left unfinished, life goes on, life with a two year old! For the next couple of weeks I’m on a little hiatus from my blog as I go for a quick holiday and make some decisions about whether or not I will apply for the first UK Rolfing training program. More on this and other exciting plans for 2012 soon. Stay tuned…
Contentment…but not in our practice?
Today I got am email from my friend Norman in response to my post about my learnings from the 30 Day Yoga Challenge.
I wrote:
The word in sanskrit for contentment, or satisfaction is santosha. One of the niyamas, santosha is about being satisfied with things exactly as they are; not requiring any more or any less, instead, maintaining that everything is exactly as it should be… It’s so easy to find fault in ourselves and others, and often much more challenging to accept wholeheartedly what is. This is true whether contemplating the asana practice, assessing how well one has done one’s job, accepting the opportunities available at any given time, or one’s limitations. We are all doing the best we can given our current life situations, and, try as we may, it is impossible and debilitating to compare ourselves to anyone else. We are all unique.
To which he responded:
I’ve recently read ‘Sivananda Buried Yoga’ where the author – Yogi Mammoyanand – says this: “Contentment is a virtue when it is applied to material greed. The niyama of contentment does not actually apply to the spiritual desires of the aspirant. To ascend in the realms of spirituality, contentment is only a hindrance. A yogi should always remind himself “neti-neti” (this is not yet it, this is not yet it)’”.
While I haven’t yet read Sivananda Buried Yoga (though did just purchase it on Amazon, so expect a review soon), I can’t help but imagine that contentment on the mat and from a spiritual perspective would be a effective tool to stay in an uplifted, present state of mind – a state of needing nothing.
In my own practice I have certainly benefitted from the reminder that going deeper into an asana won’t necessarily make me a happier, more blissful being. The concept of santosha has also aided me tremendously in unconditional self-acceptance. That is not to say that I’ve become complacent, it’s just to say that in a culture so rife with expectation, self-critique and judgement, the idea that we can embrace fully who we are, and how we practice on and off the mat is refreshing and beneficial to many.
Perhaps being content with things as they are slows down or even grinds to a halt svadyaya the fourth of the niyamas, meaning self-reflection or self study. It may even present an obstacle to the practice of faith and devotion, the fifth niyama, ishwara pranidhanad. My interpretation, however, is that
because santosha supersedes svadyaya and ishwara pranidhanad in the list of niyamas, it is given that santosha is present when practicing both self-study and devotional faith, much the same way that ahimsa (non-harming) is present when practicing satya (truthfulness). Is it
Just a case of semantics, or is the spiritual practice of yoga meant to keep one in a state of non-attainment (Neti, Neti). Or perhaps non-attainment is the true state of santosha- ruling out all conscious observation and still being content. What is your interpretation?
Jivamukti Yoga Focus of the Month: February: Comfort in the City
Sthira sukham asanam PYS II.46
The connection to the Earth should be steady and joyful
Connection implies a relationship; Earth includes all of manifestation-all other beings and things; steady means consistent; and where there is joy there is a feeling of ease and comfort. Most people aren’t comfortable in their bodies, with their feelings, in their jobs, in their relationships or with the other people and situations they encounter daily. The cause of this discomfort lies in how uncomfortable we make the lives of others. Since we all would like to be more comfortable, more at ease with ourselves and others, it might be helpful to look into practical ways that we could bring more comfort into the lives of others and in turn benefit our own lives.
To the yogi comfort does not mean seeking pleasure and avoiding pain. Whatever we want for ourselves we can have if we are willing to provide it for others first. No lasting happiness can be had for ourselves by depriving others of happiness. So if we want to be comfortable then we should do our best to provide comfort for others. As we reach out to comfort others we discover the universal shared sources of lasting comfort, and we dispel the illusion that shortsighted self-centered pleasure will result in lasting comfort for ourselves or others.
Often when we experience pleasure it is fleeting, because instead of enjoying the moment we become worried about when it will end. When we find ourselves in a painful situation we try to get out of it. But comfort is available to anyone at anytime-it can be found in the midst of pleasure or pain-if one is willing to look deeply into things. The yogic concept of comfort is that ease comes from an inner condition, untainted by outer circumstances. We could call it portable comfort-because you can take it wherever you go! The familiar example is the yogi lying on a bed of nails-in utmost comfort. How does he do it? What’s the trick? No trick, unless you call magic a trick. But magic is just a shift in perception. Yogic practices are magical practices designed to help you to be able to shift your perception of yourself and others in any given moment under any circumstance and in any situation.
The enlightened yogi doesn’t view the world as coming “at them” and they never see themselves as a victim of circumstance or being victimized by others. An enlightened yogi is comfortable with all beings, in all situations and under all circumstances. In order to begin to acquire these types of skills a necessary first step is to develop compassion, for truly the best way to uplift our own lives is to do all we can to uplift the lives of others. Yoga practices provide us with practical ways to expand our perception and try to see the world through the eyes of others, touch the Earth with their claws, or hooves or roots, and understand how we could, through simple acts of kindness create a more comfortable city for ourselves and others.
I have lived in New York City’s lower East side near Tompkins Square Park since 1983. I remember when I moved from Seattle, Washington to New York City-New York City was not what I had imagined it to be. I think my ideas had been influenced by movies like Breakfast at Tiffany’s-so it was a big surprise to me when walking home one day to see police on horseback galloping down Avenue B, which was a dirt road at the time, in hot pursuit of someone, who would then detour into the park and be lost in the tent and cardboard village which had colonized it-covering most of the green lawn space. I forget exactly when it happened, but sometime during the 1980s riots broke out in the park, which resulted in the city removing all of the makeshift housing and closing it.
One day as I was leaving my building a film crew from some network news show stopped me on the street to interview me. “How do you feel about what the Mayor has done-closing the park? Are you outraged that as a citizen your only access to nature as been denied?” My reply was not what they had expected. I said, “I am glad the park is closed. Look at it: anyone can see that the park is happier-the trees are fuller and look more at ease and the birds and squirrels you can bet are relieved that they don’t have to deal with all of us people day in and day out. I think that there should be places in densely populated urban areas like New York City which are off-limits to human beings and are kept as wild places for our fellow inhabitants of the city-the many birds and small mammals and of course the trees, bushes and flowering plants.” We tie up our dogs, keep birds in cages, poison foxes and shoot bears in New Jersey-why is it that we human beings think that only we have the right to roam free? We make life very uncomfortable and miserable for monkeys, rats and cats in laboratories, and cows, goats, chickens and pigs on farms. We rationalize our exploitation and cruelty toward animals as a necessary evil, the terrible price that must be paid to ensure human health, happiness and comfort. And yet we are still self-centeredly complaining about not being rich, happy or comfortable enough.
Perhaps we could start taking responsibility for the suffering around us and see that we actually do have the power to bring more happiness, joy and comfort into the world for ourselves and others. In whatever circumstance, wherever we live, the secret to our own comfort is to be kind to others and do what we can to make them more comfortable; then our own comfort will be ensured.
-Sharon Gannon
Take your yoga practice off the mat and into the world by providing more comfort for others. Here are a few ideas:
. Veganism. Eating a vegan diet is undoubtedly the most powerful way that we as human beings can contribute to creating a kinder and more comfortable world for ourselves, other animals and the planet.
. Animal Rights. Respect non-human animals as fellow Earthlings, not as a lower life form existing to be enslaved and exploited by us. Don’t perceive animals as exploitable. Extend rights to all animals by not participating or supporting any type of animal exploitation, be it for food, clothing, research or entertainment.
. Provide fresh water for feral cats and other wild animals-put a pan of clean water on your balcony or fire escape or on the sidewalk next to the stairs of your building or in a park or vacant lot nearby your house.
. Feed a colony of feral cats and alert a local TNR (trap neuter release) organization that will help these cats. You may even want to take a training from them to learn how to provide a more comfortable life for a feral city cat. Trap Neuter Release programs are humane, effective solutions to outdoor cat overpopulation. TNR involves spaying and neutering feral cats, returning them to their territory and providing for their long-term care with shelter and food. Urban Cats (www.urbancatleague.org) and Neighborhood Cats (www.neighborhoodcats.com) are two such organizations based in New York City that can provide information and education to anyone (world-wide) who is interested.
. Walking dogs-your own, or take one lucky dog out of a shelter for a 20 minute walk-this is certainly a way to uplift someone’s life.
. Fresh air for cats. If you have a cat, take him or her to the park for an afternoon to enjoy the sights and sounds and to soak up some vitamin D. Put her in a carrying case. The first time you try this, be prepared: she will probably be scared-keep her in the case. Eventually she will become accustomed to this outing-then taking baby steps you can put a halter on her and allow her to come out of the case and walk around. Most cats in NYC never are able to touch their feet upon the ground and never are able to experience being in fresh air and sunlight.
. Provide nutritious food for pets. Don’t feed your cat or dog commercial pet food-prepare their meals yourself using a variety of nutritious and organic fresh foods.
. No more zoos! Living in a cage is no life! Boycott zoos and all places where animals are kept captive to provide entertainment for human beings.
. Free the fish. No more fish bowls/aquariums. Envision a free world, see a world where there is no SeaWorld!
. Plant trees, bushes and flowers. Devote space in community gardens to grow food for wild animals-like plant fruit trees or berry bushes or flowers for insects and birds.
. Feed the birds. Perform random acts of kindness, like: always carrying some bird seed or a few walnuts in your pocket-so when you leave your apartment on your way to where you are going you can surprise the hungry birds and squirrels you pass, who are for the most part ignored by most human beings, by giving them a surprise meal.
. Save the birds. Glass windows can be dangerous for birds. Make them safer with decals, dot patterns, nets or opaque covers and put pressure on architects to design safer building for birds. An estimated 90,000 migrating birds crash into glass windows in NYC every year. Crashing into glass windows is the second leading cause of death to birds next to habitant loss-with US casualties, alone up to one billion deaths a year.
. Leave some places off limits to human beings: encourage your city planners to make natural areas or section of existing parks inaccessible to human beings.
. Limit the human population. Stop having so many children! There are 7 billion human beings on the planet now and this number is increasing by the minute. At this rate of growth the planet will not be able to provide enough basic resources and a comfortable life for anyone. As the human population increases the Earth’s diversity of species decreases at an alarming rate.
Day 27, Lizzie’s 30 Day Yoga Challenge
The universe has been sending me signals this week, and I’m receiving them…maybe unable to interpret them fully, but receiving them nonetheless.
First, the two classes earlier in the week that focused heavily on pranayama. Then yesterday at my regular Rolfing appointment when I showed up very eager for deep bodywork, and my rolfer decided it was the time to instead have a somatic experience session that left my body largely untouched. The idea behind somatic experiencing is that trauma that isn’t fully dealt with emotionally gets left behind in the body, building up over time, even being the catalyst for illness and other physical, mental or emotional problems. Through somatic experiencing one becomes more aware of the physical sensations in the body, ultimately aiding in the letting go of the held traumas.
Today when I was late for the class I planned to take at Triyoga, Leila Sadahee’s class was right under my nose at Indaba – lucky me! Leila, fresh from her trip to Peru, spoke about her time with a shaman in the jungle who sees the human form as a series of shapes based on energetic flow and blockage rather than at face value (no pun intended). The class was focused on yoga as a healing medicine, with the theory that when engaging specific areas of the body this can lead to a shape of health rather than disease. Billed as a hip opening class, it was not immensely challenging physically and not obviously hip-opening, but certainly strengthening with great alignment instruction. To add to this, Leila is a passionate and compassionate teacher who is captivating and charismatic. If you love Anusara but haven’t been to Leila’s class, make the time – this is a special and gifted teacher.
Having said this, of my handful of Anusara classes and workshops I’ve attended so far, none has resonated with me on a deep personal level, despite enjoying the practice. I am planning to go to Zhenja De Rosa’s workshop tomorrow and have heard wonderful things about her, so maybe tomorrow my world will get rocked by Anusara. At the very least, I expect another hint from Ms. Universe soon…
Learnings, Week 3, Lizzie’s 30 Day Yoga Challenge
I’m always struck with how much there is to learn. Writing these posts are in a sense, the most disposable form of content; they are my experiences as seen through the subjective lense of the mind, given to change and shift in any moment; in fact, experiences are nothing but memory and perception, and it’s almost guaranteed to change. Likewise, on any given day a teacher may be going through personal issues, be late or rushed to class for many reasons out of their control, and a yoga studio or members of its staff are inevitably facing their own life situations as well.
One learning from the week is to be more sensitive to the human experience we are all going through, and when feeling let down by a studio or by a teacher (or anyone, for that matter) for what presumably is a legitimate reason, a sensible thing to do is to let the them know in a kind way so they can rectify it if they care. In short, not assuming people know what your expectations are, and being gracious when giving feedback. The optimal time to give feedback, or course, is when asked. Triyoga does a discreet job requesting feedback by leaving forms in the changing rooms, where people may feel more at ease to give honest feedback.
It could be that the biggest learning of the week is that a key to giving a good class as a teacher is to be honest without being too heavy handed; to find the humour whatever the situation, to let go, and to trust that the knowledge and compassion for others is there.
The best classes I’ve taken so far have been with teachers who have exposed themselves, who have been authentic and generous with their personality. This seems to come with the comfort of the confidence in knowing what one is doing – esse quam videri – to be and not to seem (my high school’s motto).
This is especially poignant for me given that as a teacher I’ve been getting that very feedback – to have more fun, to not be so serious while teaching. For me that’s a challenge as I don’t consider myself to be a funny person, especially not in a group. I was born into a family of subjective thinkers. When we hear the word ‘black’, we think the word ‘charcoal’ instead of ‘white’, the answer most people would give…but I digress.
The other learning for the week is to listen to my body and not expect to have boundless energy like I did in my 20′s. Whether its because I’m getting on 40, a relatively new mum or because I’m blessed with an imperfect body that (I like to think) keeps me humble, practicing yoga is all about being content with what is going on in the present, not with what we could do 10 years ago or what we might do in the future or under a different set of circumstances, but being here now, having some faith that everything is as it should be.
I’m looking forward to these last days of the challenge and seeing what else comes up, and how I can actively continue to learn with each practice…and maybe even learn how to lighten up along the way (without having to resort to poopy jokes which works pretty well at home)…
Learnings from Week 1: Lizzie’s 30 Day Yoga Challenge
On completion of Week 1 of my 30 Day Yoga Challenge I thought it would be interesting to take time to reflect back on the week, with the goal of taking these learnings and incorporating them into Week 2. I didn’t invest too much in the preparation or planning of my little yoga adventure, I just thought it seemed to be a fun idea to get me out of habits and ‘known’ territory, and to connect with other yogis.
In no particular order, here are the things that came up:
1. The intention to use this idea to connect with other yogis has: a. flown by the wayside; and b. proven near impossible due to the very nature ‘dropping in’ to studios and classes I don’t normally frequent.
Point a. pertains to the content I’ve chosen to write about and tone of voice; it has been more critique based writing than anything else which was not my intention. I would like to change this aspect of my posts but I know it will prove challenging for my opinionated mind. One idea is to write more about the overall experience and changes in my mind and body rather than the technical details of the class.
Point b. is perhaps more interesting from a satsang, community-building perspective. In the majority of classes I’ve attended the teachers seem uninterested and unaware of students who are not ‘regulars’ in their classes. This has even been the case in studios where I work, in classes of colleagues whom I’ve met before on multiple occasions! I will need to reflect on this a bit more, it is certainly something I plan to be more mindful of in my own classes.
2. Logistics have been challenging with full time work, a toddler and a husband. I need to get better at planning for my week instead of day by day. This is a general statement of self-discovery, but also one that will help each class I attend be more meaningful and appropriate. This past week I have discovered daily hour-fifteen classes too short for my personal needs, so I will need to prepare for this around my other responsibilities. I hope to be able to post this tomorrow so that any one who can make it will come and practice with me.
3. Skipping my self-practice to attend yoga classes has thrown me a little off balance, and other attachments/preference/aversions have come up as well. I am missing the regularity and solitude of my self practice. I haven’t had the time to think how to incorporate this into the month schedule, and it just may be that self practice will be limited to a meditation practice for now. I’m also surprised by just how attached/repulsed I am to certain asanas, studios, place in the room, teachers, yoga sequences, etc. I suppose this is the real work, letting go and accepting all that is around me in the present. Being content with whatever is there and with whatever comes up. A work in constant progress.
To be continued…
