APRIL 27, 2012

Distinguishing Marks On The Soles Of The Buddha

Posted by Dorothy under Community Interests, Interesting Reads, Philosophyno responses

I have found this information about The Lord Buddha interesting and hope you would too.

There are 108 distinguishing marks on both the soles of Buddha. They represent the 3 worlds. 59 indicating the inanimate world ( Okasaloka ), 21 indicating the animate world ( Sattaloka ) and 28 indicating the world of the conditioned ( Sankharaloka ). The essence here is that the Buddha is greater than all the 3 worlds. These marks became apparent right from the birth of the Buddha when 8 out of the 108 royal astrologers present were asked to comment on them. 7 said that the child would either become the Buddha or the Cakkavati ( Universal Monarch ). Only Sudatta Kondamma, the youngest of them made a single prediction that the royal child was destined to become the Buddha. This is because there was the image of Cakkavatti on the child’s soles and a personage superior to a Cakkavatti could only be a Buddha.

In worshiping the108 distinguishing marks on the soles of the Buddha, one should therefore remember to one’s benefit that the Buddha is endowed with the attributes of :

The Chief Of The World ( Tilokagga )
The One Who Has Reached The End oF The World And All Things Wordle ( Tilokantagu )
The Knower Of The Three Worlds ( Lokavidu )

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APRIL 26, 2012

Pranayama For Motion Sickness

Posted by Dorothy under Community Interests, Interesting Reads, Wellnessno responses

“Motion sickness” as the name says it, means sickness due to movements. The most common occurrences are when one travels in a car, train, aeroplane and boat. It is caused when inconsistent signals are sent by the eyes, body and inner ear to the brain. An imbalance will occur as a result of this confusion.

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For instance, when you are travelling in an aeroplane or a boat, when the aeroplane is going through a turbulence or a boat rocks in a storm, your body feels the movement, but your eyes are looking at things in the plane or boat which are still, will not register such movements. Therefore the signals sent to the brain is inconsistent resulting in dizziness and nausea which often leads to vomiting, perspiration and nervousness. Under normal circumstances, motion sickness stops when the movement stops. If you want your air travel to be as comfortable as possible, consider booking a chartered flight from Jettly.

There are ways to help ease travel sickness and mainly medications are used. Putting medication aside, I have personally found deep breathing pranayama and a stable mind helpful. Deep breathing or the full yogic breathing ensures that the body gets enough oxygen. Other than that, it contributes to calming your mind. In addition to that, think positive and imagine or convince yourself that you are in a stable environment. Avoid moving your head too much and if possible, sit by the window to get some fresh air.

In conclusion, both deep breathing and a stable mind work perfectly well together in ensuring a comfortable travelling experience whatever mode of transport you are in.

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MARCH 25, 2012

Embody The Present & Mindful Communication

Posted by Dorothy under Community Interests, Interesting Reads, Natural Highs, Philosophyno responses

Early last year, I had the opportunity to practice some yoga in a studio called Brezze Yoga in East Croydon, London. I have since become a subscriber of their weekly newsletter which arrives in my mailbox every Friday. I could not find the contents of their writings on their website, therefore I have no url to link you to these interesting  yoga philosophies. Hence, I am sharing these on my blog.

Embody The Present

Our culture values productivity and speed. Before we know it, we’re embroiled in a perpetual battle with time, missing out on our connections to our deeper selves and to others. If your busy schedule leaves you feeling drained and depleted, maybe it’s time to reevaluate your relationship with time.

Mindfulness of time is rooted in the philosophy described in the Yoga Sutra—particularly the concepts of self-study, honesty, and non-grasping.  Practicing these concepts together can help bring you into harmony with time and allow you to enjoy the present moment. Look inward and get to know yourself better.  Ask yourself questions like – besides eating and sleeping, how do I allocate my time in a typical 24-hour period? Do the activities on which I spend most of my time nourish me, or do they feel obligatory? Your answers will help identify the activities that are intrinsically important to you as well as the pace that’s most compatible with your own organic rhythms. Self-study opens up your truths. Now, try to acknowledge and honor your truths, even the uncomfortable ones!  Eventually, your truth will illuminate what’s possible and what’s not.  Let go of the need to achieve more.  When you can stop grasping, even if only for a little while, you can access that state of flow, remain in the present and enjoy and harvest the time that is available to you.  Practicing these concepts will help cultivate awareness to the moment.

Each and every moment holds the potential for a transformative experience of time. Don’t be tied down to that stressful clock—embody the present.

Mindful Communication

The power of words isn’t lost on anyone – just think of the pleasure you feel when someone pays you a sincere compliment, or the discomfort of realizing you’ve spilled a secret you’d promised to keep.  Words and the energy they carry make or break friendships and careers; they define us as individuals and even as cultures.  We know this, and yet we often let our words flow out more or less unmediated, like random pebbles tossed into a lake.  Sometimes, it’s only when the ripples spread and cause waves, and the waves rush back and splash us, that we stop to think about the way we speak.

The sages of yoga obviously understood the human tendency to run off at the mouth, because many texts of the inner life, from the Upanishads and the Yoga Vasistha to the Bhagavad Gita, counsel us to use words carefully.  The Buddha made right speech one of the pillars of his Noble Eightfold Path. On the simplest level, these sages point out that unnecessary speaking wastes energy that could be devoted to self-inquiry and transformative action.  More important though, is the power that words have to change the communal atmosphere, to cause joy or pain, and to create a climate that fosters truth or falsity, kindness or cruelty.

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