Month: April 2017

Yoga Meditation

retreat

Published by smcblog

By Katharine Kaufman // Of all ridiculous things the most ridiculous seems to me, to be busy—to be a man who is brisk about his food and his work.                                               ~ Kierkegaard Snow falls in the early morning at Hokoji. First bells ring at 5:25. Warm inside. Quiet is palpable. Dim light in Zendo, and snow outside softens, cushions.  I think I hear one snowflake drop.  Even our breaths are quiet, bears in their cove. Then I hear scraping. Really loud! What is that!? I imagine a giant creature. Oh, shoveling. Arthur decides to skip the morning sit and shovel in the dark. REALLY? Can’t we just sit here together? But now Arthur is gone and the memory is dear. …Now I say, dear Arthur. What would it take to let the snow drop all around with no response but to breathe in and breathe out. ~ Ned Hallowell, psychiatrist and author of Driven to Distraction says, “We reach for our devices as if we were grabbing from the bowl of m & m’s on the …

Lucid Dream Yoga

Andrew Holecek on the Science and Spirituality of Lucid Dream Yoga

Published by Travis Newbill

In recent years, lucid dreaming has become a widely recognized phenomena, and gradually, the methods for accessing deeper dimensions of the dream world are emerging into the mainstream as well. Andrew Holecek, who has been practicing and teaching dream yoga for three decades, sees this traditional practice as a likely next stage in the Western world’s yearning for realization—which has brought yoga studios to every street corner, and mindfulness meditation to the covers of magazines in grocery store checkout lines. In this interview with Shambhala Mountain Center, Andrew discusses some of the current research on lucid dreaming, as well as the possibilities that dream yoga presents for taking full advantage of dream lucidity. He also draws parallels between the popularity of lucid dreaming and that of hatha yoga and mindfulness—as each of these three practices have their own virtues, and are also considered to be entryways into much vaster experiences within long–established contemplative traditions. Enjoy the full video interview below, or scroll down to stream or download the audio. Shambhala Mountain Center hosts Lucid Dream …

Sara Avant Stover: Springtime Detox & Renewal Advice for Women

Sara Avant Stover Offers Springtime Detox & Renewal Advice for Women

Published by smcblog

By Sara Avant Stover // Every woman, whether or not she realizes it, is a creative genius. Within her lives the capacity to bring forth new life and to regenerate during each moon cycle and each spring. Life, and our vitality, bursts forth in the springtime. This season calls your innate creativity to awaken and make itself known, just as a seedling pushes through the thawing soil past roots and rocks toward the light. Now your visions and deep dreaming from the winter come into being. Nature’s New Year arrives in the spring because it heralds a rebirth into a whole new you. Sara Avant Stover leads The Way of the Happy Woman Spring Detox & Renewal Retreat, May 11–14, 2017 at Shambhala Mountain Center — click here to learn more Officially arriving on March 2o with the spring equinox in the northern hemisphere, the spring exhales the intoxicating fragrance of radical possibility. Who do you want to be now? How do you want to live? What’s ready to come to life inside you? We can …

dream yoga retreat

What is Dream Yoga? Andrew Holecek Explains

Published by smcblog

By Andrew Holecek // Most people have no idea about the extent of possibilities that exist with the nocturnal meditations, an adventure in consciousness that awaits us in the darkness of the night. We begin our journey with lucid dreaming. “Lucid dreaming” is when you realize you’re dreaming, but without waking up from the dream. You’re fully conscious within the dream and can do almost anything you want within it. Lucid dreaming is the ultimate in home entertainment. Your mind becomes the theater, and you are the producer, director, writer, and main actor. You can script the perfect love story or the craziest adventure. Lucid dreaming can also be used to solve problems, rehearse situations, and work through psychological issues. From the trivial to the transcendent, lucid dreaming is a spectrum of experience mostly concerned with worldly matters and self-fulfillment. Shambhala Mountain Center hosts Lucid Dream Yoga with Andrew Holecek, May 17–21, 2017 — click here to learn more Going deeper, lucid dreaming can develop into dream yoga, and become a spiritual practice. This is …

Women, Food, and Forgiveness Part 5: How Do We Live Forgiveness?

Published by smcblog

By Marcella Friel // Editor’s Note: This post is the fifth in a five-part series on Women, Food, and Forgiveness by mindful eating and body image coach Marcella Friel. Her 5-day retreat, Women, Food, and Forgiveness, opens April 19, 2017. Click here to learn more and register. “Self-love is the only weight loss aid that really works in the long run.” ~ Jenny Craig “I’ve gained 10 pounds in the last two weeks. I’m so disappointed in myself. I should be over this by now.” These were the words of my client Linda in yesterday’s session. They were nothing new. “Linda,” I suggested, “I wonder if your true addiction is not to the food but to the disappointment? Might you be using your food behaviors to maintain your story of being disappointed in yourself?” Linda fell silent but was open to my suggestion. I asked her to close her eyes, place a hand on her heart, take a few deep breaths, and tell me all the things she genuinely loved and appreciated about herself. She …