Yogini Kitchen - Mint Vegetable Pulao

One of my private students is actually a family affair, meaning I once taught their child and now the dad has been my long standing student as well. Because I am going to go away for some time, my student invited me to stay for dinner. They made an amazing feast of Indian Vegetarian Delights. Part of the Main Course was Mint Vegetable Pulao. Pulaou is a South Indian Rice dish, usually made with Basmati Rice and a variety of Veggies. It is very yummy and very nutritious.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups Basmati Rice - Uncooked

1/4 cup Yogurt/soy yogurt

4 carrots diced/chopped

a bunch of pearl onions or 2 medium sized Onions diced

2 tablespoons of peas

2 tablespoons of beans

8-10 Mint leaves (crushed)

6 green chillies (optional)

3 small garlic cloves (crushed into paste)

1 Tablespoon diced ginger (crushed into paste)

6 cloves

8 cardamons

3-4 Black Pepper corns

Pinch of Turmeric

1 Tablespoon oil

Salt to taste

A Whole lot of LOVE

INGREDIENTS:

Cook Rice till almost done

Heat Oil in Pan

Add Turmeric and Onions when Oil is heated

Add Cloves, Cardomon, Pepper corns and stir for a minute

Add Ginger-Garlic Paste

Add Cut Veggies

Stir and Cover till veggies are 3/4 cooked

Keep occasional stirring to avoid burning the veggies

When Veggies are 3/4 cooked lower the heat add Yogurt and Veggies (high heat will curdle the yogurt)

Cook on Low heat till water is evaporated and Veggies are cooked and finally Add RICE. Stir on Low heat.

As a Side you can add Cucumber Raita or Papadam

Serve in a dish, say Grace and ENJOY!

The beauty of South Indian Cooking is that it is rich in Flavor, Nutritious and Vegetarian. The use of Cloves, Cardomon and Turmeric are also medicinal for the Body. The combination of Legumes and Rice, improves the amino acid chain of the legumes to give optimal protein absorption.

Two AMAZING Days with Sri Dharma

Recently I participated in two days, back to back with Sri Dharma Mittra at the Dharma Yoga Center. Sri Dharma is a blessing to the city of New York, and especially to Yoga Instructors. As thursday is usually my day to go, my summer schedule has blessed me with a little more flexibility that allows me to take amazing classes! His class is remarkably challenging, inspirational and healing. While I have written many posts about Sri Dharma, it is because he is my favorite Instructor, and the favorite to many. From my Inversion Workshop on Sunday, to teaching 2 classes and taking 2 classes on Monday (one with Dharma), and then last night with Sri Dharma again, my body was a little sore.....but Dharma goes into the fullest expression of the pose with ease, grace, smiles and a sense of humour, as though his body has no tension at all. It is AMAZING!!! At the end of Monday nights class, my body was shaking with joy and fatigue.....as we laid down in Savasana, Dharma said one person is laying the wrong way.....I looked up and noticed it was me, and Dharma had a sweet jovial smile on his face and hands on his hips....I quickly adjusted myself & smiled back at him. After class he gave a wonderful talk on the Bhagavad Gita and pranayama. The way he ties in the Spiritual aspect of the practice to daily life is so amazing, and he lives it too! It is always lovely to meet friends and fellow Yoga Instructors in class as well.

During Savasana last night, Dharma came around and shook my legs and arms, any tension was gone, and I felt like I could sleep for days. After last nights class, my friend and I were speaking about how wonderful class was, and I said to my friend that Dharma's picture is on my altar, right next to Jesus, we both giggled, but she knew that it was true (it really is). He really is an incredible Teacher!

If this is what 72 years young looks like, everyone should practice yoga. I love how Dharma emphasizes the importance and aspect of vegetarianism as it relates to the Yoga Practice. Many times you will hear him say "without Yamas & Niyamas there is no yoga". He embodies Yoga in every way, and regardless of your level of ability, you can benefit from hearing his wise words, participating in his guided meditations & pranayama, experiencing the brilliant energy of the class, and witnessing inspirational Yogis as they practice with respect and reverence for their Guru. When you don't try to do the asana, he will encourage you to try, and advise you to not act like an old person (so fun)! While he has earned the title of "The teachers teacher", it is advised that everyone take the advantage of taking a class with this amazing Teacher. Sadly, I may be leaving NYC for a short while, and I must admit, I will miss Sri Dharma's classes very much! Thank you Sri Dharma for inspiring me, deepening my practice, inspiring my students, and teaching many people the beauty of Yoga.....you are a blessing to my life.

Yoga class at Equinox

Today after teaching two morning classes, I was invited to join a friend/student, Al at Equinox for a Yoga Class. Equinox is a popular gym that offers some group fitness classes too. I was told that this teacher gives a wonderful class, and that I should check it out. While many people think that the vibe in a mega chain gym cannot provide the Spirituality of a small Yoga Studio, I have to disagree. While it is true that often times we will find an Instructor that resonates with us, or a preferred studio, this all happens when we are receptive ourselves, as Sri Dharma says. The spirituality of the practice comes only when we are open to that aspect, also when the teacher provides guidance towards that, and ultimately, once we acknowledge God is everywhere, we see past all our preferences and focus on the practice. Along with that, many times the asana aspect of the practice takes preference for some, especially in a city like New York, where people want a lunch time break. The Yoga Asana is is a beautiful way to detoxify the body, increase strength, improve flexibility, oxygenate the blood, balance the subtle body, and recover from injuries.

So I arrive at the gym, sign in as a guest and head to the Yoga Studio. The room is dimly lit, with hard wood floors, mirrors on one side and windows on the other. I decide to sit myself down and read my nook while I wait for the room to clear. Apparently, I was a half hour early, so I got in some good reading. I lay my mat out, and ask another student if we are supposed to face the mirrors. She says yes, so I wait, and stretch. In walks my friend, and the teacher is setting up his Ipod. The Instructors name is Jeremy Jai Fahey. My arms were a little tender from the Inversion Workshop of the previous day, but I was happy to participate. Slowly the room began to fill, and I was told that it usually gets even more crowded. With light instrumental music and hardly a murmur of the gym sounds outside we began class. Jeremy led us through a lovely Level 2 Vinyasa Flow Class, with a lot of awareness to the energetic body. Somehow, I knew that he did some other form of body work by the way he would cue the asana. The flow was fluid and fun. Much of his flow was preparing our bodies for Crow Pose. I truly loved how Jeremy led us into Crow, with awareness of Bandhas, lifting of hips, and squeezing of arms with the knees. He actually had us work with the alignment and form of the pose in various ways, including on our backs, before he even got us into Crow. It was really wonderful to explore the pose like that. After class, I thanked Jeremy for his beautiful class, and asked him where he trained, and he explained how much of his training was in body work. It made so much sense. Thank you Jeremey for providing a lovely class, with energetic sequencing, and purpose driven asana.

Photo: Ambria & Jeremy Jai Fahey

Yoga Inversion Workshop with Amitai

Today my student & Karate Sensei Joseph embarked on the "Inversion Workshop" requirement for his Teacher Training. For those who don't know, Joseph isKung Fu & Karate Black Belt, A Reiki Master, A Crystal Healer, an ordained Minister, and an amazing friend. While my friend and fellow Yoga Instructor Agustin was set to teach the class, he sent his friend Amitai instead. Both Amitai and Agustin are remarkable Dharma Yogi's. I have taken many classes with Amitai at Dharma East, and he truly has a remarkable gift for teaching, and a humble energy that one can only attain with sincere devotion to the practice of Yoga, and their Guru. The class was at the Reebok Sports Club in the Harmony by Karate Dojo. Amitai entered and introduced himself to Joseph. After a very challenging yet beautiful weekend, I was excited to deepen my asana practice too. Even though many people think my asana practice is strong, I personally think it could be stronger, and never hesitate to share that, and continue to take classes to learn and grow. After our Om, Amitai began with beautiful guided meditation/pranayama using the chakras & alternate nostril breathing which is a common exercise Sri Dharma does after Master Class. We progressed into Bandhas, Surya Namaskar and then straight into inversions. Amitai gives amazing verbal cues, and assists in ways that make you feel like you can do everything upside down. He lead us through many variations of forearm balance, hand standing, and scorpion with highlighting the importance of how the prana flows, the importance of bandhas, the proper alignment of our body, and it was super fun!!! It goes without saying that Amitai's demonstration of poses are inspirational, and more than once Joseph and I turned to each other with a full "OMG" expression on our face after Amitai would effortlessly demonstrate!!! Thank you Amitai for an incredible experience. Thank you Joseph, it was so amazing to alternate forearm standing variations with you.

Photo: 1) Joseph working into Scorpion 2) Ambria, Amitai & Joseph

Yoga with Magi

One of my amazing Yoga students Joseph, has been telling me to take a class with a brilliant Yoga Instructor, Magi. Magi, a native Bostonian, teaches at Life in Motion Yoga studio, and she gives a remarkable class. Life in Motion offers Yoga, Spin Class and a lot more! Since I teach a lot on the Upper West Side, I am familiar with the studio, but never had a chance to take a class. Last week, a friend/yoga instructor Sarah joined me for an amazing class. I enter into the street side door, and climb the stairs. Soon enough a lovely young lady enters and sits on the steps with me, and I asked her about the class, ironically she said that she is the Instructor. We spoke briefly and I told her that Joseph told me about her class. She was so kind and sweet. Soon Sarah walked, we hugged and situated our mats towards the back of class. Magi brought our bodies through such a beautiful anatomically cued vinyasa flow. With a lot of emphasis on alignment, and incredibly challenging yet poetic sequencing that leaves the body feeling amazing! The reason I say that Magi has a poetic sequence, is because the rhythm of the class is something indescribable as she manages to balance the body, challenge the body, take you on a journey, throw in unique tweaks to poses that appear like poetic metaphors, and leave you in a sweaty state of bliss with an occasional joke. She studied with the ever famous, Anna Forrest and another teacher in Boston who she credits as her alignment/anatomy inspiration. Magi does not really teach with esoteric and spiritual aspects of the practice, but more of a concrete anatomical depiction of the asana, and I really loved it! While both Sarah and I were so tempted (and I mean really tempted) to sign up for the discounted membership, my journey is taking me to new horizons these days, so I decided I would pay as I go, should I have the time for an incredible class with this teacher extraordinaire. I have to say that when two Yoga Teachers leave a studio anxious to come back for the teachers class, and tempted to sign up, based off of one experience, that Instructor is truly remarkable! Thank you Magi for being a true inspiration, you are a blessing to the Yoga community in New York City.

To find more info on Magi: www.magipierce.com

Learning to be in a State of Yoga.

"Yogastha kuru karmani sangan tyaktva Dhananjaya Sidhyasidhyo samo bhutva samatvang yoga uchyate" Bhagavad Gita 2:48

Yogastha - Steadfast in Yoga

kuru - perform

karmani - duties or actions

Translation: Be steady in yoga, Arjun, do whatever you must do; give up attachment, be indifferent to failure and success.

In life we have to accept our path, accept our Dharma (our purpose) without being attached to the fruits of our actions, the same goes for the yoga journey. Concentration on action means concentration on the present or living in the present. While concentrating on the present that is the only way one can make conscious based choices and decisions. Once we concentrate on the present, we are no longer caught up in the past or the future, thus, past anxieties and future worries no longer can make us suffer.

In this epic Hindu Verse, Krishna explains to Arjun "do your best and leave the rest", meaning give 100% and be attached to your actions but be detached to the results. This is also an act of surrender to God, to Divine intervention, and an example of faith. Always living in the present moment with awareness, and practicing the beauty of allowing. The primary gist of the Gita is that at all times, your mind should be in a "state of yoga", having consciousness in our actions, acknowledging that at every moment our mind is working through our actions, united. This unity is where we derive the word Yoga, translated in Sanskrit as to yolk/join/unify which is the union of the mind, body and spirit.

This "state of yoga" translates onto our asana practice....when beginning a class never be attached to the studio, the location of our mat, to the instructor, to the asana we plan to do in our class, to the asana that other people may do in class, but rather surrender to our breath, and just allow the practice to be an extension of that surrender. This approach to practice without ego and with total receptivity is when miracles happen.

This "state of yoga" translates into our dietary habits. We are always in a rush to eat, on the go lifestyle forces us to adapt to quick meals, fast food or skipping meals. Do we enjoy the sight of our meal, the smell, the touch, the taste, or even take time to notice how much we must chew? People who eat with awareness, connection of mind to body, generally never over eat.

Regardless of what religious faith you abide by.... a good lesson from the Gita, a parable from the Bible, a verse from the Kabbalah are all means for us to learn, grow and better ourselves.....to be aware, to allow, to be present & receptive, and invite a "state of yoga"

Yoga Jewelry for your FEET

My last post on Yoga Jewelry highlighted the incredible talents of up & coming Jewelry designer Milta. This post highlights the incredible talents of her aunt, Isabel. Beauty and Talents run deep in this family. Isabel is a lovely, amazing fellow aquarian lady, with a beautiful heart, and a lot of creativity. She played a major part in helping the healing process of my broken toe this year, and gratitude is constantly flowing in my heart for her. She recently made me beautiful, delicate crochet "shoeless sandals", that have Tigers Eye on them too!.....ok so let's all say WOW!!! When I saw them, it was amazingly thoughtful, super creative, and really beautiful!!! I had been meaning to wear them for a long time, and this Saturday I rocked the lovely shoeless sandals! Everyone enjoyed the Yoga Studio Debut of the Shoeless Sandals.

In India it is not uncommon to see women wearing Jewelry on their feet, silver or Gold anklets (sometimes with tiny bells), toe rings, amd various other Jewerly specifically used for Indian Classical Dance. For the fashionable Yogini, the Shoeless sandal looks like it will be the way to go!!! Thank you Gonzales Ladies for keeping me looking stylish!!! Love you lovely ladies!