BLISSFUL LIFE INSPIRATION
Books
Yoga
This was my very first yoga book. It gives you an overview of yogic history and philosophy, as well as simple and challenging yoga poses. I give most of my books away, but this one I kept as a reference and I re-read it and always learn something new.
Yogananda is an amazing spiritual teacher who will dazzle your mind and soothe your soul. This is a very esoteric book that will challenge the way you think. You can believe his stories or not, but you will be able to go on Sivananda's journey to enlightenment as well as learn some history of yoga coming to the west. I thoroughly enjoyed and have been enriched by reading it and I will read it again and again.
Yoga has such a colorful history and many people don't know how yoga came to the west. Pierre Bernard helped establish Hatha Yoga as the yoga we know today (where we do backbends and up-dog). His work helped yoga become accepted in a society that used to call it "unethical, dirty". He taught yoga to the Vanderbilts, Goodriches, War Spies, and many influential American figures.
I have the best big sister. She gave me this book when I was suffering from depression. I was able to heal my depression with yoga, amino acids, and by making better life choices. This is a great book to read if you already do yoga and struggle with depression, or if you teach yoga. It gives great tips for how to teach students with different types of depression. I realized that regular practice, even 5-10 minutes day, is the most effective technique to stay happy and positive!
Meditation
How the hell do you meditate? I had a wild purple monkey mind and I needed help guiding my monkey! Stephen was a great teacher, and I really benefited from his personal stories and meditations. This a great beginning guide to meditation. There are sliding scale Vipassana centers all over the country where you can meditate for 10 days. I haven't done it yet, but everyone I know who has says it's life changing-they come back clear, happy, and relaxed.
www.dhamma.org The simplest way to be happy is to forgive ourselves and others, and then love ourselves and others. This is a great book for learning great mediations on forgiveness and love. I felt very blissed out while reading!
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Blissful LivingThis book really helped me when I was in my early twenties and in the process of figuring out who I was and how I wanted to be in the world. The Dalai Lama believes that everyone is here to be happy, just like me! A psychologist interviews him to find tips on how to keep a positive attitude even when life's challenges confront us. I don't re-read many books, but I've read this book 3 or 4 times! I read this when I was in a Masters in Teaching Program at Saint Martin's. I re-read this many times, and again there are only about 10 books I've done that with. Morrie and his student, Mitch, form a bond where Morrie shares his wisdom about life. This book made me cry and helped me realize that our most important job is to mentor and be mentored- to love and be loved. We can have all the skills in the world but if we don't know the importance of spending time with loved ones and listening to the birds sing, we haven't learned much. Read this and let your heart warm and your eyes water.
Karma Yoga (helping others) is the best way to become present and feel a sense of purpose and love. This book is so inspiring and encouraging. A housewife brings zoo animals to lift the spirits of nursing home residents, a nun tends the wounded on the first night of the Nicaraguan revolution, and a police officer talks a desperate father out of leaping from a roof with his child. In another chapter, a nurse allows an infant to spend its last moments of life in her arms rather than on a hospital machine. How Can I Help? reminds us just how much we have to give and how doing so can lead to some of the most joyous moments of our lives."
I had a therapist suggest this book to help in all my relationships, and I'm so glad she had me read this! You can take a test to see how you receive love- affirmations, touch, quality time, gifts, and/or acts of service. You can take the test on-line: www.5lovelanguages.com/profile/
I got affirmations and touch. If you know me, this is no surprise! This book has helped improve my relationships with my family and friends, because I'm paying more attention to their love language, and making sure I speak it to them. I read this book while on a month long rejuvination trip to Colorado. Dan researched the happiest and longest living people on earth and shares their tips and tricks.
I love researching happiness because it always makes me realize that humans are essentially good; what makes us happy is helping one another and feeling close to our community. There are other reasons for our happiness, but if you have a close family and friends who love you and you love them and you improve your community in some way then you are most likely already pretty happy. |
Sustainable LivingI took a class in college called "Sustainable Communities". We studied cultures all over the world that were able to live happily and sustainably. Gaviotas was, by far, the winner. In a world that focuses on what is wrong, it is important that we find what is going right! Gaviotas is that place. "Gaviotas is a village in Colombia, South America. For four decades, Gaviotans have struggled to build an oasis of imagination and sustainability in the remote, barren savannas of eastern Colombia-an area ravaged by political instability. They have planted millions of trees, thus regenerating an indigenous rainforest. They farm organically and use wind and solar power. Every family enjoys free housing, community meals, and schooling. There are no weapons, no police, no jail. There is no mayor."
The United Nations named the village a model of sustainable development. Gabriel Garcia Marquez has called founder Paolo Lugari the "inventor of the world."' Nutrition
When I had a brain imbalance and needed help, I used anti-depressants. They helped enough to make me stable, but they also made me gain weight, feel sluggish, and they numbed the sadness but they also numbed the joy. I wanted another option, so my sister gave me this book. I used amino acids to help me while on anti-depressants, and I used them to help me get off my anti-depressants!
There are great tests in the book to see what neurotransmitters you are low in and different suggestions to help balance them. I've known many people including myself who have been helped by using this book and amino acids. They helped me get my brain back into balance. Most naturopaths can help you with this as well, order the book and schedule an appointment with your naturopathic doctor. CookbooksVanessa has written an easy to read cookbook with clear directions in her newly released Blissful Life Community Cookbook. This book is suitable for the novice as well as the seasoned chef. The recipes are based on healthy choices and are tried and true as Vanessa bravely invited friends and neighbors to critique her creations as she hosted dinner parties at her Olympia home. Blissful Life Community Cookbook is in beautiful and vivid color illustrations and includes everything from making the perfect cup of tea to a sumptuous vegan (or alternatively chicken) entree.
Financial Peace
This book changed my life! I used to really struggle with my finances and it made my life really hard. This book helped me look at my belief systems and helped me consciously choose how I wanted to relate to money. I now have a much more abundant life.
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Organizations
Sustainable Travel
http://www.friendshipforce.org/
"Friendship Force International provides opportunities to explore new countries and cultures from the inside, by bringing people together at the personal level. Through the signature program of home hospitality, local hosts welcome international visitors into their culture-sharing meals, conversation, and the best sights/ experiences of their region" |
.https://www.couchsurfing.com/
My friend Cato told me about Couch Surfing before I moved to Maui from Olympia. Although traditionally people couchsurf while traveling, I did it when I moved to a new place until I found a home. I met a woman who became my family, and we ended up living together. All my friends who have couch-surfed have had excellent experiences; often had their own bedrooms, gone on tours/out to eat with their hosts, and made meaningful connections. I plan on couch surfing in Europe this winter, and I'm very excited about the opportunity. |
Whttp://www.wwoof.net/
WWOOF is a worldwide organization that links volunteers with organic farmers. They help travelers who want to learn farming skills and travel meaningfully, while also helping farmers who love to teach and meet travelers. I wwoofed in Oregon and Italy. I rode a draft horse through the woods in Oregon, and renovated a thousand year old cottage in Italy. This program has brought me lifelong friends and memories. I encourage you to try this if you enjoy farm work, meeting people from different countries, and learning new skills. |
Retreat Centers
Washington and Vancouver Island
You don't have to be rich to take a week off to do yoga and/or meditate; there are incredible retreat centers that are very affordable (many by donation).
Cloud Mountain Retreat Center
www.cloudmountain.org
You can do a two to ten day meditation retreat in beautiful Southwest Washington. There is a list of teachers and courses on-line. They have scholarships and very affordable pricing. If you are feeling a bit overwhelmed with life try meditating a few times a week and/or just jump into a two day or week long meditation.
"Retreat is an extraordinary opportunity to disengage from the rhythms and habits of our daily lives and bring ourselves wholeheartedly to meditative practice. As we engage periods of sitting and walking meditation, daily meals and Dharma instruction, we observe and investigate what is happening in our minds and hearts to see and welcome the deepest truth of all that arises. In this way we can explore the roots of our suffering, as well as our potential depths of peace, compassion and wisdom. Through this noble practice we may get a taste of the radical freedom of being present with what is and to fully realize the teachings of the Dharma."
You can do a two to ten day meditation retreat in beautiful Southwest Washington. There is a list of teachers and courses on-line. They have scholarships and very affordable pricing. If you are feeling a bit overwhelmed with life try meditating a few times a week and/or just jump into a two day or week long meditation.
"Retreat is an extraordinary opportunity to disengage from the rhythms and habits of our daily lives and bring ourselves wholeheartedly to meditative practice. As we engage periods of sitting and walking meditation, daily meals and Dharma instruction, we observe and investigate what is happening in our minds and hearts to see and welcome the deepest truth of all that arises. In this way we can explore the roots of our suffering, as well as our potential depths of peace, compassion and wisdom. Through this noble practice we may get a taste of the radical freedom of being present with what is and to fully realize the teachings of the Dharma."
The Hermitage
www.thehermitage.ca
I went to a kundalini yoga retreat here last summer and it was the most peaceful place. The journey to the island is gorgeous; you have to take a ferry or plane to Vancouver Island and then drive and take another ferry to Denman Island. The coastline is spectacular and the people are wonderful. The retreat was so affordable; 5 days or yoga, meditation, food, and lodging was $450 (and they will work with you). Also, if you are abundant they accept larger donations.
"Our focus is on practice and many retreats are silent. Following the tradition of Eastern “forest monasteries” accommodations are small, private meditation huts set among trees, sharing a central wash house. Guests are encouraged to take their cushions to a private spot and meditate in the midst of nature.
Small and rustic, the Centre is located on a 60-acre organic farm on Denman Island, off Vancouver Island, Canada. It is quiet, surrounded by woods and fields, and populated by herds of deer, and other wild creatures. We are within walking distance of nearby ocean beaches.
Scheduled teaching and silent practice retreats are offered during the summer months and occasionally during the winter. With are currently forming the nucleus of what we hope will become a self-sustaining monastic community."
I went to a kundalini yoga retreat here last summer and it was the most peaceful place. The journey to the island is gorgeous; you have to take a ferry or plane to Vancouver Island and then drive and take another ferry to Denman Island. The coastline is spectacular and the people are wonderful. The retreat was so affordable; 5 days or yoga, meditation, food, and lodging was $450 (and they will work with you). Also, if you are abundant they accept larger donations.
"Our focus is on practice and many retreats are silent. Following the tradition of Eastern “forest monasteries” accommodations are small, private meditation huts set among trees, sharing a central wash house. Guests are encouraged to take their cushions to a private spot and meditate in the midst of nature.
Small and rustic, the Centre is located on a 60-acre organic farm on Denman Island, off Vancouver Island, Canada. It is quiet, surrounded by woods and fields, and populated by herds of deer, and other wild creatures. We are within walking distance of nearby ocean beaches.
Scheduled teaching and silent practice retreats are offered during the summer months and occasionally during the winter. With are currently forming the nucleus of what we hope will become a self-sustaining monastic community."