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Yoga
Mala
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Mala
is a Sanskrit term which
means garland. In India, there are many
different kind of malas. There are
japamalas, made of sacred beads strung on a
thread which are used in prayer for counting and
keeping focused on the repetition of a mantra. There
are pushpamalas, which are garlands of vivid
flowers smelling of jasmine that are strung in the
form of wreathes and offered in worship of deities
in homes and temples.
In
his book Yoga Mala, Pattabhi Jois offers
another kind of mala, which is ancient in
tradition, as sacred as prayer and as beautiful as
flowers. His mala is a garland of yoga, in
which each vinyasa is like a sacred bead to
be counted and focused on, and each asana is
like a fragrant flower strung on the thread of the
breath.
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as a japamala adorns the neck and a pushpamala
adorns the gods, so too this garland of yoga, when
diligently practiced, adorns our entire being with
peace, health, radiance, and, ultimately,
Self-knowledge. |
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from
the introduction of Yoga Mala |
| Yoga
Mala is
now being published by North Point Press and is
available from local bookstores as well as on line.
Bulk orders can be made by contacting elizabeth.pope@fsgbooks.com |
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Sri K. Pattabhi Jois: A Tribute
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Produced in June 2002 for the opening of the new Ashtanga Yoga Research
Institute in Gokulam, this special Tribute book commemorates Sri K.
Pattabhi Jois’s 64 years of teaching and living in Lakshmipuram. It is
the first comprehensive recording of Guruji’s life, chronicling his
introduction and lifetime dedication to yoga.
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Illustrated with old and rare photos, the soft-covered book also includes
excerpts from an informal interview, recorded in January 2001, during one
of Guruji’s weekly student-teacher conferences.
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Surya
Namaskara
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The Surya Namaskara
form the foundation for the entire method of the
practice of yoga - and, as we all know, if one's
foundation is firm, then whatever is supported by it
will be stable as well. So, if the Surya Namaskara
are first learned properly and their inner meaning
grasped, then all the various asanas, pranayamas and
the like that follow them will be useful and
beneficial in their outcomes.
In creating this
small booklet, it is Pattabhi Jois's wish that all
practitioners who undertake the practice of Surya
Namaskara do so with a proper understanding of their
inner significance and of their practical method, so
that health, clarity of mind and spiritual elevation
may be achieved.
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