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Yogi Bhajan (Harbhajan Singh Puri) was born in what is now Pakistan and moved to India during the partition. He was born into a family that had prayed for a son for 25 years and after his birth his father took young Harbhajan to the temple to pray in thanks for a prayer answered. His father, Dr Kartar Singh Puri, was a medical doctor and his mother, Harkrishan Kaur was a woman of indomitable will and unswerving adherence to righteous principles.
Harbhajan was born into a landlord's family and consequently his birthday was a very festive occasion and each year he would be weighed on his birthday and as many pounds as he weighed, that many gold, silver and copper coins, along with seven times that number of pounds of wheat, would be given to the poor people of the village. From this tradition of feeding the poor on his birthday, the consciousness of seva (selfless service) was established in him from an early age.
He was educated as the only boy attending a girls' Catholic convent school, a school that provided the finest education available in the area. His most influential teacher during his formative years was his saintly grandfather, Sant Bhai Fateh Singh, who used to take the young Harbhajan Singh on his lap and tell him inspiring stories, always encouraging him to live righteously. His paternal grandmother also held a very special place in respect to moulding his character, Ishar Kaur was a formidable woman who would always catch the young Harbhajan in his mischief and with love and kindness would guide him on the right path....

Is Kundalini Yoga dangerous? I've heard this question many times. Unfortunately, it is a common misconception. As someone who was unfamiliar with Kundalini Yoga & Meditation before I started practicing, I can understand the concern. We do raise our Kundalini (creative energy within), but we do it in a safe, methodological way. The Kriyas (sets) are part of a sacred science, as taught by Yogi Bhajan. He is the Master of Kundalini Yoga. He brought this amazing form of Yoga to the US from...

This is a copy of the email that I received on January 4, 2008. I cried & immediately forwarded it to my teacher saying, "I can't believe my name is Sat Kriya!"
Sat Nam, dear sister in divine. Your request for a spiritual name has been gratefully received. You have been blessed to live as Sat Kriya Kaur, which means the Princess/Lioness who takes true action, and who walks throughout her life with grace and power.   Sat means...

“What we do is, we consider what your past is, calculating your destiny, and give you a target name, a spiritual name. That is the journey you have to travel. It sets the standard, the base.” ~ Yogi Bhajan
Yogi Bhajan first started giving spiritual names in 1971. Day by day, as those of us who received them pronounced and announced them to the world, we became a part of them, and they became a part of us. The power of the sound of our names vibrated and echoed in our ears. This sound current, together with the meaning of our names, reinforced our spiritual base and became a tool which daily touched our hearts and delicately influenced our actions.
The power of a spiritual name is that the more people speak it, the more it permeates your being, and the more you can experience its power to manifest in your life. The only thing you have to do is be open and allow yourself to receive the power of its Naadh (spiritual sound current). The sound of it vibrates every part of your being to come into harmony with your spiritual name’s meaning, which reflects your destiny.
Taking on a sacred name can be a step on your spiritual journey that helps you leave past patterns behind, take a new direction, and embrace your spiritual identity. Making the choice to receive a spiritual name, and using it, is taking a rebirth in...

Kundalini Yoga is the Yoga of Awareness. It uses movement (asana), sound current (mantra), breath (pranayam) and meditation to relax and heal your mind and body, allowing the spirit to flow freely. This powerful and effective form of Yoga, as taught by Yogi Bhajan, PhD., Master of Kundalini Yoga, is a wonderful way to de-stress, recharge and heal your body quickly.

Kundalini Yoga is about what YOUR BODY & MIND CAN DO. It's not about how flexible you are, if you can touch your toes, or hold a posture for five minutes. We focus on the breath in conjunction with...

DEAR FRIENDS, Instead of running errands yesterday, I took both dogs, Rainbow and Bella to walk the trails at Harms Woods located at Golf and Harms road. It was a perfect day with the warm air and sunshine. The colors were magnificent. The dogs had a blast and my spirit was nourished by nature. Give yourself a gift now. Take time out to slow down. Walk, sit and meditate and absorb the colors around you. You need to absorb and store the healing colors down as we hunker down and prepare for the winter months! Many people of all ages are...

Enjoy this clip of Janet Stone's DVD's...

Combining spin, hoop dance and more than eight styles of yoga, Breathe yoga studio offers classes to suit every body.  This is Denver’s premier boutique studio, giving the student a very different experience that can be found in a sterile gym space. The intimate class sizes ensure individualized instruction from Breathe’s diverse and experienced teachers.
Breathe’s current classes are as follows: SpinFit, Vinyasa yoga, Ashtanga yoga, Hatha and Hatha Flow yoga, Integral yoga, Hoop Dance, Rocket yoga, Restorative yoga (with yours...

 
Yoga has been a part of my life since I was fourteen.  It has always been there for me in many different stages of my life and I have come to rely on it deeply.   The most tangible and profound stage was giving birth to my children.  During the birth of my first child I had childbirth classes that were invaluable to me and I had a wonderful midwife that supported me and answered my questions.  But… it was the consistent practice of yoga over a period of time that allowed me to translate that knowledge into my body.  Yoga enabled me to feel what it was like to tap into a needed boost of strength and energy.  It reminded me how important and powerful focusing on the breath is; especially in the moments of feeling uncertain or inadequate.   During...

A little over a year ago I returned from three months of travel in Bali and Australia.  The time spent outside of my ‘yogasphere’ proved rich and rewarding.  I put a few of the nuggets I dredged out of the stream of my consciousness into my pocket to be carried along and worked smooth like my great grandmother’s worry stone.  While some are still jagged with neglect, repression and hard-wired tendencies, others are showing glimmers of their True Nature.  I am simultaneously the mineral and the process revealing it, distinct but not separate, layered with the mud of identification and attachment yet essentially and irreversibly super shinny and bright.  Heat (tapas), or the physical and mental discipline exerted in the practice of yoga, is the seat of the alchemical fire that converts base metal into gold. 
Sometimes I reel from all the hot pokers I have in the coals; my practice, my community and my family keep me putting one foot in front of the other.  I’ve stopped looking for the end of the proverbial path because it’s all about the here and now.  I don’t imagine that I’ll ever stop shedding my skin and, if I do, I can trust one of you will get me with a hot poker of my own design. I am grateful.   
This article was to be focused on yoga for climbers.  Clearly I digress, but there truly is a connection, albeit tenuous, that led me down the above rabbit hole.  Mainly, that one of the gems I took from my time Down Under was the desire to remain connected to the Earth upon my return to Seattle.  Oddly enough, my re-entry was marked by a house-sitting job worlds away from the little caravan in a Eucalyptus grove outside of Gympie Australia - an ultra modern condominium on the corner of 5th and Mercer, complete with a view of the Space Needle.  I don’t have much Earth in my astrological chart, I am steamy combination of fire and water.  I realize now that this is why a sense of place and home has always been so important to me.  Even when halfway around the...