Ahimsa: Non-violence

It's summer and just like us humans, taking walks in the park and lying in the sun, most living things are thriving right about now. For the most part we appreciate this. Sweet regionally-grown strawberries. An orchestra of tweeting birds waking us every morning. Soft grass to walk barefoot in.

There are unfortunately some pests which also thrive in the summer. Uninvited they find their way into your bedroom at night and buzz around your ear, bite you and laugh at you as you clumsily try to slap them away only hitting yourself. Mosquitoes! I would normally have no problem swatting a mosquito. Its you or me buddy. But, after a few years of practicing yoga and delving deeper into the practice, I look at this scenario in a new light.

Yoga is the result of thousands of years of people using themselves as guinea pigs to finally liberate themselves from normal human suffering. Yoga is broken down into eight limbs or stages of which only the third stage is asana (posture), or the part yoga which we most often practice in the western world. The first stage is actually yama, universal moral commandments, and the first of these commandments is ahimsa, or non-violence. So, the very first thing we can start doing to riding ourselves of suffering is clearing violence from our lives.

If you are like me, you are probably not very violent. You probably don't get into fist fights regularly and you probably don't kick your dog, but according to B.K.S. Iyengar, one of the world's foremost teachers, violence is more than just an act, but also a state of mind. It can be inflicted with words or intentions directed towards others or oneself. Additionally, non-violence is not just a negative or passive state, but also includes active love and compassion.

Some yogis take ahimsa to an extreme and live in isolation, doing everything in their power to make sure that their lives do not cause any violence or death to any other species, even wearing a clothe over their mouths to prevent insects from dying in their mouths. I can't say that I agree with that interpretation but I do think that practicing non-violence and having love and compassion for all other living things (or at least trying) will make your life better. So, I try to do that in how I treat others (including animals/plants) and myself and I feel better for that.

Now back to that pesky mosquito problem... I ended up getting a mosquito net to hang over my bed, but I can't say that the spiders, who have also moved in, follow yogic teachings. Good luck little guy! I sincerely wish you the best, now that I can get some sleep.

For more on the eight limbs of yoga and ahimsa in particular, you can check out B.K.S. Iyengar's book Light on Yoga for a good overview. In his book he also demonstrates something like a million poses which will amaze and mystify you.

Side Note: In Germany its not that common to put screens on your windows so in summer my apartment becomes a lively ecosystem of buzzing, flying and biting friends.  

Capellini Pasta with Peppers Recipe

It was hot today! Im talking 30 degrees celcius HOT (86 degrees fahrenheit)! Some of you might not be that impressed (especially my sister who lives in the dessert), so please keep in mind that for 80 percent of the year Hamburg has pretty shitty weather. It is the kind of humbug weather that might drive someone to go to the tanning bed just to heave themselves out of a deep rain/cloud/drizzle-induced depression.  So here we are with gorgeous weather and we don't have the slightest idea what to do with ourselves.

I am hungry and tired of eating bread and butter. Hmmm. In this kind of weather cold pasta dishes sound great to me. I flipped through my Ayurveda cookbook, Heaven's Banquet by Miriam Kasin Hospodar, and found just thing, Capellini with Peppers (p.263). My boyfriend was already in the process of making a pizza for lunch so I took advantage of an already warm oven to roast the peppers early in the afternoon and then give them time to cool. With the peppers roasted, the rest of the preparation only took about 20 minutes.

The recipe is intended for 6 to 8 servings (definitely the case) so it makes a lot and it tastes sensational. It really allowed the natural flavors of the fresh summer vegetables and herbs to shine through. It is definitely not my fault if I am forced to binge eat... it's just too damn good. Below is a slightly adapted version of the recipe found in the book.

Ingredients:

Roasting the Peppers
4 bell peppers (mix and match)
Olive oil
Salt

Pasta
12 ounces dried Capellini

Sauce
3 tablespoons ghee or butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove minced garlic
8 oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and finely chopped
1/4 cup (60 ml) torn fresh basil
1/4 cup (60 ml) minced fresh flat-leaf parsley (FYI parsley is good for all three doshas. Click here for more information on Ayurveda doshas)

Topping
1/4 cup (25 g) grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Salt and black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Coat bell peppers with olive oil and a bit of salt and then spread them out on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring once or twice and removing once tender.
2. Cook the pasta al dente and drain.
3. Melt the butter or ghee and with the olive oil in a sauce pan. Add the garlic and saute for about 30 seconds when the garlic is fragrant. Then turn off the heat and add the tomatoes, roasted peppers, basil and parsley.
4. Toss the vegetables and Parmesan with the pasta in a serving bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately or chilled.
5. Take a picture with your phone and post it on Instagram!

Enjoy!!

Simple Ingredients for Home-made Cleaning Solutions

After moving to Germany and starting a graduate program at the university, I was pretty broke... well, real broke. So, of course I tried to cut expenses as much as possible and opted for the cheapest thing on the shelf instead of the eco-friendly andor higher quality products. 

The day I impulsively grabbed an all-purpose cleaner in a bright, and I mean bright, pink plastic bottle off the shelf, I felt a little guilty and even slightly alarmed by the way the obnoxious color seemed to hint at the toxicity of its chemical contents. I used this cleaner for months, despite its nauseating artificial scent (comparable to likes of pine tree air fresheners) and the fact that my skinned burned after using it.

DIY Cleaning Solution: Vinegar and Water

Finally, I'd had enough. With a little searching online I quickly found a wonderful solution. Vinegar. Vinegar is an amazing liquid with a variety of uses in addition to making salads and pickling veggies. I soon started making a vinegar and water solution that I have used to clean the kitchen and bathroom. 

A friend sent me a link to the Zero Waste Home blog some great recipes for all kinds of things, and that recipe includes castile soap to cover up the sour smell that vinegar can leave. Due to my laziness perhaps and an only half-way attempt at finding castile soap in Germany I decided to just use vinegar and water. It works fine for me and it is cheap! The smell sticks around for a day or two but I barely notice it anymore.

Vinegar Also Kills Mold :)

An added bonus of using a vinegar/water solution in your bathroom is that it is the arch enemy of mold. As a person living in Hamburg, Germany, this is a god-send. For some reason, the humid and cool weather make it some kind of paradise for all varieties of mold. As somewhat of a self-made mold exterminator I have come to appreciate vinegar on a whole new level.

Use Gloves When Cleaning

The one draw-back of vinegar is that it does dry out your skin so feel free to use gloves when cleaning and then a healthy portion of hand lotion (coconut oil) afterward. 

Coconut Oil: Moisturizing + Better Stir-fry

We know that the additives and preservatives, added to our food and cosmetics to give them a longer shelf-life, are if not out-right toxic, unhealthy and unnecessary. We don't want to ingest or absorb toxins and so sometimes we are motivated and patient enough to read the ingredients at the supermarket or drug store. Then comes the inevitable moment when you are on your third tube of hand cream and you still find at least three or four words you have never heard of and couldn't even begin to pronounce. AND those were sadly the 'natural' brands. Hey, it's not their fault... to give these manufacturers the benefit of a doubt, they are shipping these products hundreds of miles to sit on a store shelf for days or weeks or months and want to make sure you get a fresh product. But, hey, this isn't working.

Like many others, I like finding simple, pure alternatives and luckily there are loads of websites out their offering tips and recipes for pretty much any kind of concoction you are interested in making. Because it's summer and because I have skin that tends to be dry I have been very much interested in finding a natural moisturizer. For the last three years or so I have used jojoba oil, which is wonderful because it is easily absorbed by your skin (i.e. you won't look like a body builder), it washes out of clothes and you can even use it sparingly on your hair.

All was well, but then I found a new concoction, Shea Body Butter, that I have every intention of making. It looks and sounds delicious and I kind of want to eat it, but who knows when I will actually get around to making it. A friend then suggested that I just buy some coconut oil and use that instead. She could say from experience that it was really good moisturizer. So, I bought some cooking coconut oil and have since used it for both moisurizing and cooking. The cooking coconut oil is by the way cheaper than the stuff intended for the skin even though both should be 100% coconut oil.

The result is that my stir-fry is tastier and my skin softer. Aside from the fact that I want to eat my arm when I put it on I can see no downsides. The jar was about 3,50/4 euros and looks like it will last a long-time in the fridge. Chilled coconut oil will melt in your hand as you rub it in and it seems to be a little thicker than jojoba oil and better for drier skin. And in case I haven't emphasized this enough... it's delicious!

Rapunzel Kokosöl is the brand I bought (I live in Germany).
  

Getting Back on the Horse

Its not Monday and you are still having a tough time getting out of bed. You are tired even though you think you are getting enough sleep. You are eating right and exercising consistently, but something isn't exactly right.

I have had the opportunity to take yoga classes with some teachers that I respect a great deal both as teachers and as yogis. These teachers have trained for years in not only Hatha yoga, or the postures and movement we commonly know as yoga, but also in exercises of the breath and the mind including self-restraint and meditation. They radiate peace and contentment and serve as sources of inspiration for their students.

As students we tend to see these yogis as perfect, as the end game. However they all seem to agree on the fact that even at an advanced state of their practice they are not left in an unwavering state of peace, and that they sometimes still 'fall off the horse' or go through difficult periods in their lives. The difference that years of yoga has made is that it just doesn't take them as long 'to get back on.' The world will still throw us off our horse. We will still experience pain, loss and suffering but we do yoga in order to have the mental and spiritual resiliency to come back to a place of contentment quicker and with fewer bruises.

So, we cannot expect to be free of low points. We just have to learn how to be present with these moments and patient with ourselves. Our yoga practice (or whatever it is you do to exercise your mind, body and spirit) is there to leave us better equipped to handle all kinds of challenges.

P.S. I realized that this post started out sounding like a Prozac commercial... woops... my real intention couldn't be farther from that.

Releasing Tension in the Upper Back

We sit sometimes for 8 hours straight without taking even a few minutes to take a walk or stretch the arms and legs. We know that this is unhealthy and even though we are really aware of it when we are on an airplane, we totally ignore this unhealthy lack of movement while in the office. Ok, your office is not at 20,000 ft but still, you need to get your blood moving and you need to somehow counter any tension that is due to stress and/or just plain bad posture. By bad posture I mean while sitting in front of your computer your upper back is rounded, shoulders hunched, neck extended and chin jutting out (your body looks like a 'c'). I know this posture from experience and it will leave some aches and pains.

So get up. Take off your high heels or loafers and place your feet parallel and hip distance apart. Make sure you have a wall close behind you so as to shield yourself from any unflattering or unprofessional displays of your backside. Then bend your knees slightly and fold over your legs so that your arms and head are hanging loosely. It is important to make sure that your head and arms are heavy (shake your head 'yes' and 'no' to make sure your neck is loose) so that you can  relax the place between your shoulder blades and feel a wonderful release of tension. You can hang here for about 30 seconds or as long as it feels comfortable and then slowly roll your body up into a standing position. You can repeat this calming stretch throughout the day.

The standing forward bend as described above (known as Uttanasana in Yoga) is great for releasing tension in the back especially in the upper back, shoulders and neck. Keep the knees bent if your fingers do not reach the floor or straighten the legs if your fingers do reach the floor and the lower back is able to release. If straightening the legs is not comfortable for the lower back, keep the knees bent.

This is just one of many stretches that will help to improve your work day. More to come.... and always remember to breath!

For more information on Uttanasana click here. FYI this is a yoga website and those in the picture are usually abnormally flexible.    

What the Hell is a Burnout?

Living in Germany, I get the opportunity to learn some new English vocabulary. Crazy, right? I have not just learned English words I have never heard before ('handy' as a noun), I have learned new definitions for words that I thought I knew ('shitstorm').Whether or not this should or shouldn't take place is irrelevant, as I am sure this is taking place all over the world as we speak. In any case it is a 'mind-fuck,' as I personally like to call it, for any native English speaker.

'Burnout' is one of these words that I started to hear a lot that didn't sit right with me. Of course I am not the ultimate authority on English but where I am from we almost always used this in reference to sports. When a player has played a sport too often and no longer enjoys playing, he or she is burned out. I suppose it could also be used in reference to work but with the same underlying meaning. In Germany I have found that the definition has expanded significantly. It can encompass sleep disruption, depression, dizziness, depression and anxiety among other symptoms. As far as I gather it is a relatively new concept and it includes a variety of symptoms with the cause most often being the job. 

This was really interesting to me because a burnout, though of course undesirable, is seen as an acceptable condition that must be treated. It does not mean that someone is then forever labelled as crazy. It is actually a legitimate reason for someone to take time off of work to improve their mental health and then later return as a rejuvenated and healthy person. 

The best translation I can think of for this is a mental break-down. However a break-down is not something that you can easily come back from. You have crossed a line that may label you forever as an unstable person. Thus the options are limited for an American experiencing anxiety and depression. If we absolutely must take time off of work to treat these things, it is shameful so we would never tell our co-workers or boss. So we are forced to continue on with our everyday lives, often abstaining from treatment that might make us healthier happier and better workers/partners/friends etc. 

The reason for this disparity is of course not the vocabulary, but rather different cultural perceptions of mental health. I think that Americans in general are not totally on board with whole body health. We often ignore the mental factor completely, which is unfortunate because I believe that this keeps us from contentment. Thankfully there have been quite a few health movements in the USA recently and with traditions like yoga that focus on whole-body health, I think more people will start to pay more attention to their own mental health.