Открытый Йога Журнал

So often we hear phrases like, «It’s not a trifle!» or «The game is not worth the candle!» Should life be taken so seriously? Trying on different roles, do we become different, or does our personality remain unchanged? Which games are worth playing and which are not worth playing?

From an early age, a child tries to imitate adults. During life, we play different roles: son/daughter, husband/wife, boss/subordinate, mother/father. Playing from birth, we lose an understanding of what we really are. We believe that the roles we assign to ourselves are ourselves. Although initially, an infant is pure, potentially he or she can play any role: rich or poor, healthy or sick, having a home or homeless. A child can learn more and more new roles, depending on the conditions in which he/she will live.

Theatre art helps to master new roles and play them on stage. It has been developing inseparably from society and human culture, reflecting the realities of society, and it was called to guide the viewer, to convey some insights. The audience, feeling the non-verbal message, was inspired by the mastery of the actor and avoided making personal mistakes moving forward. If the performance succeeded to reflect the real life on stage, it  made a strong impression.

Открытый Йога Журнал

Yoga is a system of self-exploration that includes physical and mental exercises and helps to expand our freedom. When should we start practicing Yoga to make the process of engaging in practice as easy as possible and to build the habit faster? How can you understand that a person is ready for yoga classes? Is it possible to arouse interest in yoga in other people?

When we contemplate the idea of starting yoga practice, we choose a period when we can make a conscious decision, and have yoga classes on a regular basis.

The most important thing is to make yoga interesting
We can take interest in yoga at a very early age when we do not only know what yoga is, but also we do not even know how to put our thoughts into words. However, this will not be an obstacle for a young yogi. A child can look up to adults and take certain poses, getting to know the body and enjoying this activity. The child will repeat and copy much of what he or she sees at a yoga class of the adults and, over time, will be able to start independent practice. Such classes will be an excellent base for the formation of the habit!
It should be noted that young children switch their attention from one type of activity to another very fast. In one minute the baby reaches out for socks, and in the next moment he is following a cat or a toy. We, as parents, can engage these “distracting” factors, by using our child’s favorite toys, objects, and music for yoga practice, thereby turning yoga into an exciting game.

Открытый Йога Журнал

Sooner or later every person starts thinking about starting a family, having kids and raising a new generation. Many new parents ask themselves: How should they bring up their children and what kind of personal example can they demonstrate? What does Yoga offer in this respect?

The questions of relationship, family issues, the advent of life are covered by the Kin yoga. The main idea of the Kin yoga: «There is nothing more valuable than life.» Understanding the grandness of life will allow us to dispel the illusion about ourselves, avoid a lot of conflicts and misunderstanding, and make a huge step towards our spiritual development.

Our parents gave us the most precious gift — our life, the possibility to develop spiritually and to realize ourselves. The fact that they gave us our body to manifest ourselves in this world deserves the endless respect and gratitude, regardless of the conditions in which we were born or the attitude of our parents towards us.

We know from the axiomatics of yoga that we all have equal Higher Self, which is all-mighty and absolutely free. At the same time, we all have an initial lack of knowledge and we have no idea of our tremendous dormant faculties. Our main task is to unlock this power in ourselves and in other people, including our children, by widening our freedom and the freedom of others.

Открытый Йога Журнал

Has it happened to you that some thought was stuck in your head? You would willingly get rid of it, but it would not disappear as a troublesome fly. How can we escape unnecessary thoughts? Can we put  it under control?

Many of you may know the expression by Charles A. Hall

«sow a thought — reap an act,

sow an act — reap a habit,

sow a habit — reap a character,

sow a character — reap a fate.»

Every thought has consequences in real life. Forgetting about the importance of thoughts in our head, we admit uncontrollable emotions, reactions and events in our life. With time we can notice that we don’t like what is happening with us. We want to change the situation for the best. Yoga says that there is a solution — we should put our mind under control.