Walk your hands...

Ok, I'm still far away from grabbing my ankles but Saraswati told me that I should walk my hands more and try to touch my heels.

I feel that my backbends are getting deeper and I can walk my hands now but I don't think it is "that" close to the heels though... maybe I'll just try it to walk it more closer tomorrow.

This photo is of Paul with Sharath assisting him.

In life, it's always good to have a picture of where we want to go... it gives us focus and concentration... but with non-attachment so that we don't get upset if we don't get there.

Ugh, 90 more minutes to lunch. I'll have a huge one for sure, then maybe take a nap and prepare for my Sanskrit exam later in the afternoon. Dinner will probably be just milk... half a liter though. ;-)

Ciao.

Great Day but humid afternoon

Here are Anu's now trying to think of something relevant to post but nothing really comes out of my mind. Nice to catch M online though so we're chatting as of the moment. The photos are not related to this post. Just wanted to share some of the ones I've taken during the last 4 weeks.

Practice was great this morning... from pranayama to asanas. The breath was smooth and the mind was calm. Had a nice 10 minute walk towards the shala with Jack Harrison's Wind across the Sea on my ipod. The energy at the shala is calmer now that a lot of people had left. I didn't have to wait when I arrived to get a spot and Sharath even told me to come 15 minutes earlier tomorrow.

I was at the 8am class when I arrived and didn't start practice until about 8:40 because there were so many people. Two weeks later, Sharath moved me to 7:30. When I re-registered last week, he told me to come at 6:30. And a week later, 6:15. I just hope I don't come earlier than 6 because that means I need to get up at 3am and do my pranayama before practice. A friend said to just do it after asanas as it is actually the recommendation written in the old hatha texts, but I feel more ready to do asanas after pranayama. Will see how it goes when I get there.

It's humid and I feel like taking a shower but it's another 8 minute walk to my place and I promised one of my Sanskrit classmates that I'd help him with the last lesson because he missed it.

Got to leave now as sweat is starting to drip off my face. I feel sticky ... feels like I'm in the middle of EDSA. Ciao.

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Yoga Rahasya I:19-20

In ashtanga yoga, yama and niyama comes first. Having practiced this, one must regularly practice the prescribed asanas.

Then one must do pranayama, followed by pratyahara. Then dharana, dhyanam, samyama and Samadhi must be continuously practiced.

In case one gives up this sequence, and practices as he wishes, he will not obtain the benefits of ashtanga yoga.

The flute player at the Haleebidu Temple

Something to meditate on...

If you have done something meritorious, you experience pleasure and happiness; if wrong things, suffering. A happy or unhappy life is your own creation. Nobody else is responsible. If you remember this, you won't find fault with anybody. You are your own best friend as well as your own worst enemy. – YS II:14

To one of discrimination, everything is painful indeed due to its consequences; the anxiety of fear on losing what is gained; the resulting impressions left on the mind to create renewed cravings; and the constant conflict among the three gunas, which control the mind. – YS II:15

Vegan Portobello Muffuletta

Click here for the recipe. Thanks M for the link.

Yoga Practical Application

Baddha konasana in real life.

Cooking Class with Anu

Palak Paneer

Blanch spinach for about 5 minutes.

For seasoning:

Oil, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, 2 green chilies broken, garlic, onions. Add the turmeric towards the end. (Turmeric is added to keep the color of the spinach. Hing and turmeric powder are also added towards the end of every cooking. Fresh ginger as well).

How to make paneer:

Boil 1 L of 3% (fat) milk, add about 1-2 tbsp lemon slowly until the milk breaks into solids and whey. When the milk has broken completely, remove from the heat and allow to cool a little before draining it in cheesecloth.

Fry the paneer in a little oil. Add turmeric. Add the pureed spinach and seasoning.

Add salt to taste.

Pumpkin Delight

For seasoning:

Oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, red dry chilies, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, add to kinds of dhal (chana dhal and urad dhal), ajwain, white and black sesame seeds, hing towards the end. You can fry the chana dhal and urad dhal separately.

Add the sweet pumpkin into the seasoning. Mix well and add turmeric. Add water if necessary. At the end, add freshly grated ginger. Fresh grated coconuts and coriander to garnish. Salt to taste.

Kosambari Salad

600 grams grated carrots. 1 cup of mung dhal soaked in water for 1 hour. Freshly grated coconuts. Coriander. Pomegranate.

Seasoning:

Oil, mustard seeds, curry leaves, red dried chilies, 2 kinds of dhal, hing. Lemon and salt to taste.

Mix everything well and serve.

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Delicious. I learned a lot from Anu yesterday. I'm also going to get my own masala box so Chona won't have to worry about which spices to get, right Chons? hehehe.

(Clockwise from bottom right: urad dhal, chana dhal, black mustard seeds,
cumin seeds, fennel seeds, coriander seeds. Turmeric powder in the center.)

She'll be coming up with a cookbook soon so watch out for it. Read about Anu's Bamboo Hut and Internet Cafe here.

Happy Independence Day, India!

Life in Mysore

Wake up at 5am

Do kriyas until 5:30.

Pranayama until 6:45.

Walk to the shala at 7.

Practice at 7:30-9.

Have 1-2 coconuts after practice.

Walk home at 9:30.

Coffee and breakfast at home until 12ish.

Take a nap in the afternoon.

Go to Sanskrit and chanting class at 5pm, M-W-F. On the alternate days, maybe go to town, hang out somewhere, have chai, get lost in cyberspace.

Have dinner at 6:30ish or just smoothie at Anu's if lunch was huge.

Go to bed at 9:30ish.

Really fun, aye? Liberation should come in 60 days or so. :-p

Brunch with Tesa and Breakfast @ Tina's

"Farewell" brunch for Tesa... Spanish-style scrambled eggs, curd rice, cucumber with ginger-lemon dressing...

fresh fruit salad, and congee with hard-boiled eggs and roasted cashew nuts.

And as promised (to Tesa), we had breakfast at Tina's last Wednesday morning. It was still a bit disorganized because they just opened (in that new spot). Wasn't very satisfied with the food though. I like their lunch and dinner better.

The place is definitely cool but still quite a walk from the shala... and I live at the other side of Gokulam.

It's led-class tomorrow so will be finishing early. I've started Sanskrit and Chanting classes at the shala so at least I get to do something in the afternoons 3x a week. Other than that, I basically just sleep, read and eat.

Hungry, anyone?

We went to visit the temples at Belur, Halebeedu and Sravanabelagola last Thursday and Friday. I will create another entry for that next time as I'm still organizing my thoughts about the experience. For now, let me just share with you what I had for the last two days.

Carrot soup which came with the North Indian thali that I ordered for lunch at the Sri Krishna Hotel in Hassan.

North Indian thali which I think is better than South Indian ones simply because it has more flavor in it. It's spicier as well. Channa curry, sambar, dhal, and the usual, rice and chapatti.

Dinner was at Ashok Hotel, I ordered rice and mixed vegetable schezuan which I didn't take a photo of. This is the carrot halva which I had for dessert. It wasn't as good as the one I had in Riyadh though but it was ok.

Breakfast at the Southern Star Hotel and I had idli rava with sambar and coconut chutney. I was planning of taking cooking classes while I'm here in Mysore but since I've been eating all these thalis and basically know how the dishes taste like, I think I can just get the recipes online and make them myself.
The Spice Rack at the Southern Star Hotel in Hassan.

Indian meal at the Raghu Restaurant in Sravanabelagola. This one tasted different. Light but tasty... and felt very sattvic. A friend said food will be different here because it's a Jain's area. I still need to do my homework and read more about the way Jain people prepare their food.