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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

9/20/2023

I will be silent when it is time to listen.
I will be silent if my words convey the wrong impression.
I will be silent when in the heat of anger.
I will be silent if I would regret my words later.
I will be silent if my words will offend someone.
I will be silent when I do not know all the facts.
I will be silent if my words could damage a friendship.
I will be silent when I am feeling critical.
I will be silent if I cannot say it peacefully.
—Garchen Rinpoche

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

9/19/2023

We must be willing to challenge the assumption that time spent in relaxation and meditation takes away from our realizing other goals, such as a successful career or successful relationships. My own experience and that of my students has been that, as paradoxical as it may seem, when we take time for meditation we actually gain in the other areas of our lives. - Thich Nhat Hanh

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

9/18/2023

We are always practicing something in our lives. If we’re not practicing calm abiding, it is highly possible that we are practicing agitation, restlessness, craving, or ill will. - Christina Feldman

BE HEALTHIER AND LIVE LONGER: EAT LIKE THE PEOPLE OF OKINAWA

9/17/2023

Since the 1970s nearly one thousand scientific articles have been published about the remarkable health of people who live on the Japanese island of Okinawa. They attribute their healthy and long life span to these factors:
1. Okinawans eat a wide variety of foods, especially vegetables. On average they consume eighteen foods daily. Tip: add far more variety into every daily meal.
2. Okinawans eat at least five servings of fruit and vegetables daily. Fully one third of their diet calories come from these sources. Tip: Eat the "rainbow" - peppers, cauliflower, carrots, spinach etc.
3. Okinawans make grains the foundation of their diet. White rice is consumed daily with an occasional addition of noodles. Tip: don't be afraid of white rice.
4. Okinawans consume very little sugar. Sweets and chocolates are not a regular part of their diet. Tip: be conservative about desserts.
5. Okinawans consume 1,785 calories per day. North Americans and Europeans consume a whopping 3,540 daily. Tip: eat less. Eating slowly will help you accomplish this.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

9/17/2023

Lack of boundaries manifests in myriad ways. Many of us have developed a belief that we must be overly nice, pleasing, or helpful to escape feelings of unworthiness. This false belief can lead to resentment, anger, and shame.
- Elizabeth Hernandez-Stomp

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

9/16/2023

We have to ask ourselves, “Why are we practicing?” Are we practicing so that we can be happy, or free, or are we practicing so that we can benefit others? This is not just an academic debate, because it is our true motivation for being on the spiritual path, rather than what we say, that will color everything that happens to us. - Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo

WHY THIS OSTEOPATHIC PHYSICIAN RECOMMENDS YOGA + MEDITATION

9/15/2023

Natalie Nevins, DO, is a board-certified osteopathic family physician and certified Yoga instructor in Los Angeles who says: “As an osteopathic physician, I focus a lot of my efforts on preventive medicine and practices, and in the body’s ability to heal itself."

Yoga and meditation are an important part of her "treatment" plans for patients because yoga delivers these physical benefits:

increased flexibility
increased muscle strength and tone
improved respiration, energy and vitality
maintaining a balanced metabolism
weight reduction
cardio and circulatory health
improved athletic performance
protection from injury

When yoga and meditation are both used, the result is stronger mental and spiritual health. Yoga and meditation practice "creates mental clarity and calmness; increases body awareness; relieves chronic stress patterns; relaxes the mind; centers attention; and sharpens concentration."

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

9/15/2023

It is not only when things are going our way and people are kind to us that we can benefit from others. We can also benefit from them when they’re not treating us well. This is a very delicate point, especially in the West, where people are quite sensitized to the notions of abuse and victimhood. - Traleg Kyabgon

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

9/14/2023

If you do not have a positive mindset, you will always feel like a victim. We are all born into a free world, so why should any of us live with a sense of victimization? - Pomnyun Sunim

THAT ONE THING WHICH BRINGS YOU PAIN IN THE BACK, KNEES AND ANKLES

9/13/2023

Constantly wearing shoes is bad for your physical health!

Yoga considers the shoe a “sensory deprivation chamber” and a “massive bacterial factory.”

Here are ten ways that shoes negatively impact your physical health and why going barefoot much more often is the corrective:

1. Going barefoot strengthens the stabilizing muscles of the foot and ankle and makes them stronger. Shoes give a lot of stability and support and can make the foot and ankle lazy.

2. Going barefoot improves proprioception – this is the subconscious awareness of where and how the body's limbs should be most advantageously positioned.

3. Going barefoot strengthens the ankles and develops more support. Almost 30% of the joints in our body are in our feet. Our feet are the base of support for our whole body. Often knee and back pain stem from improper foot mechanics.

4. Going barefoot improves muscle alignment. Different muscle segments are used when we are barefoot than when we are in shoes (sensory deprivation chamber).

5. Going barefoot improves and strengthens the neuromuscular pathways of the foot and leg which, in turn affects and improves the way we move.

6. Going barefoot strengthens the arches while wearing shoes weakens them greatly. Weak arches are due to shoe wearing and weak arches lead to a lifetime of orthopedic issues.

7. Going barefoot increases flexibility and mobility of the foot providing a much wider range of motion.

8. Going barefoot creates better circulation. It not only wakes up long-dormant muscles of the feet and legs, but gets more blood flow to the feet and legs. This increased blood flow means less aches and pains, less varicose veins, and warmer feet, toes and legs in the winter.

9. Going barefoot decreases blood pressure. Studies show that stimulating the nerves in the bottom of the feet lowers blood pressure.

10. Going barefoot creates healthier feet overall. Shoes (sensory deprivation chambers) are the cause of most foot problems: bunions, corns, athlete’s foot, hammer toes, ingrown toe nails and fallen arches. People who spend lots of time barefoot do not experience any of these and generally do not even get any callouses. Research has shown that people before the invention of shoes had much healthier feet.

BONUS BENEFIT: Going barefoot eliminates, completely, foot odor. Bare feet do not naturally produce an odor. The sweat glands in the feet are just like the sweat glands in the hands. No one ever complains about smelly hands. Wearing shoes produces “athletes foot” issues. No one ever complains about having “athletes hands” Feet will only give off an odor and produce “athletes foot” after being cooped up in shoes for hours.

These are the reasons why yoga is always, always done barefoot. Yoga seeks to be a corrective for unhealthy feet suffocating inside shoes hour after hour.

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

BE HEALTHIER AND LIVE LONGER: EAT LIKE THE PEOPLE OF OKINAWA

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

WHY THIS OSTEOPATHIC PHYSICIAN RECOMMENDS YOGA + MEDITATION

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THAT ONE THING WHICH BRINGS YOU PAIN IN THE BACK, KNEES AND ANKLES

Victor M. Parachin ...is a

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