Nirmala Institute of Yoga and Ayurveda
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Knowledge about yoga, Ayurveda, Marma therapy, breath, and conscious living.

Found 45 items

Why is it worth drinking water from copper vessels?
Articles
Ayurveda

Why is it worth drinking water from copper vessels?

Tamra Jal — what is copper water in Ayurveda? Water stored in a copper vessel has its own name: tamra jal. This isn't a modern wellness trend.

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What does guru–śiṣya paramparā mean?
Articles
Yoga

What does guru–śiṣya paramparā mean?

In earlier posts I briefly explained who a yoga teacher / guru / acharya / yoga instructor / certified RYT 200 / RYT 500 yoga teacher, swami, sadhu, sanyasi, etc. actually is.

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Is Yoga Nidra only for physical relaxation?
Articles
Yoga

Is Yoga Nidra only for physical relaxation?

Is Yoga Nidra only about physical relaxation, or is there a deeper meaning behind it that we need to discover?

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Yoga Nidra is not concentration
Articles
Yoga

Yoga Nidra is not concentration

In Yoga Nidra, concentration isn't necessary — quite the opposite, it shouldn't be there at all.

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Yoga is a science
Articles
Yoga

Yoga is a science

The philosophy of yoga is one of the six systems of Hindu philosophy found in India. Unlike many other world philosophies, it is entirely practical.

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Who is a yoga teacher?
Articles
Yoga

Who is a yoga teacher?

Who is a yoga teacher / guru / acharya / yoga instructor / certified RYT 200 / RYT 500 yoga teacher, etc.? Can anyone be a yoga teacher?

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Be a student of yoga
Articles
Yoga

Be a student of yoga

Even while being a yoga teacher, think of yourself as a student of yoga! Above all, remember that you are never simply "the teacher" — thinking of yourself that way blocks learning.

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An introduction to Yoga Nidra
Articles
Yoga

An introduction to Yoga Nidra

Yoga Nidra, rooted in the tantras, is a powerful technique through which you learn conscious relaxation. In Yoga Nidra, sleep itself isn't considered relaxation.

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The Ayurvedic ritual of Usha Pāna — "morning water drinking"
Articles
Ayurveda

The Ayurvedic ritual of Usha Pāna — "morning water drinking"

I'm often asked whether to drink morning water before or after brushing your teeth, and why you should drink water first thing in the morning at all.

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The definition of yoga
Articles
Yoga

The definition of yoga

The definition of yoga according to Swami Sivananda: the word "yoga" comes from the Sanskrit root "Yuj", meaning "to unite".

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Integral Yoga: Head, Heart and Hands — "Yoga of the 21st Century"
Articles
Yoga

Integral Yoga: Head, Heart and Hands — "Yoga of the 21st Century"

Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati speaks about his guru, Swami Satyananda. The foundation of yoga is spiritual experience — not in abstract terms, but in very clear and precise words.

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Bija mantras for the chakras and the Sanskrit alphabet
Articles
Meditation & breath

Bija mantras for the chakras and the Sanskrit alphabet

Each of the seven chakras has a sacred word or sound associated with it, called a bija ("seed") mantra.

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What is a Yantra?
Articles
Self-development

What is a Yantra?

A yantra (Sanskrit: यन्त्र) is a geometric diagram used in Hinduism, Tantric Buddhism, and Jainism as a tool for meditation, concentration, and spiritual transformation.

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The experience of the five koshas (layers of the body)
Articles
Self-development

The experience of the five koshas (layers of the body)

Annamaya kosha, the body of matter, is the first level of our experience. The human body is not just a composition of bones, blood, muscle and skin.

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The benefits of yoga for prisoners
Articles
Yoga

The benefits of yoga for prisoners

Yoga is taught in many prisons around the world for various reasons: to cope with stress, for general health, and to ease physical problems — but mainly as a method of…

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Sthiram Sukham Asanam
Articles
Yoga

Sthiram Sukham Asanam

Asana is not merely a practice performed by the physical body; it is a practice that engages body, mind, and prana.

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Being here and now
Articles
Self-development

Being here and now

Can we ever be absolutely in the present moment, or do we always live in memories?

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The Mahamrityunjaya Mantra
Articles
Meditation & breath

The Mahamrityunjaya Mantra

This mantra first appears in RV 7.59, a composite hymn attributed to Vasiṣṭha Maitrāvaruṇi.

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Meditation is the evolution of the mind
Articles
Meditation & breath

Meditation is the evolution of the mind

In Western countries, practising asanas and pranayama is called hatha yoga, but hatha yoga is much more than that. "Ha" means life; "tha" means mind.

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The festival of Maha Shivaratri
Articles
Self-development

The festival of Maha Shivaratri

Today India celebrates the great festival of Maha Shivaratri — a hugely important holiday, and while travelling there with a Polish group we got to feel its magical atmosphere.

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The meaning of AUM / OM
Articles
Meditation & breath

The meaning of AUM / OM

The meaning of Om is difficult to fully grasp and explain. It's a mantra of such symbolism and power that it takes time to truly contemplate its meaning.

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The modern perception of yoga — how much yoga is in yoga?
Articles
Yoga

The modern perception of yoga — how much yoga is in yoga?

These days yoga has become an important, recognisable word — for some groups it's even become a trendy commodity, especially noticeable over the last dozen or so years.

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Dharana on the pleasure of eating and drinking
Articles
Meditation & breath

Dharana on the pleasure of eating and drinking

Continuing the series from Dharana to Dhyana, I'll be sharing Dharana techniques (concentration and contemplation practices) with you — this time, Dharana on the pleasure of eating and drinking.

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Dharana in the darkness of night
Articles
Meditation & breath

Dharana in the darkness of night

Continuing the series from Dharana to Dhyana, I'll be sharing Dharana techniques (concentration and contemplation practices) with you — this time, Dharana in the darkness of night.

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From Dharana to Dhyana — Dharana on an object
Articles
Meditation & breath

From Dharana to Dhyana — Dharana on an object

Continuing the series from Dharana to Dhyana, I'll be sharing Dharana techniques (concentration and contemplation practices) with you — this time, Dharana on an object.

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From Dharana to Dhyana
Articles
Meditation & breath

From Dharana to Dhyana

In yoga, meditation — Dhyana — is the seventh step, not the first. Just as you start school in first grade and gradually progress, yoga should be approached the same way.

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Svara Yoga: examining how aligning with the cycles of Svara Yoga affects body and mind
Articles
Yoga

Svara Yoga: examining how aligning with the cycles of Svara Yoga affects body and mind

In the fifth edition of our year-long professional course, Holistic Body-Mind Therapist, one participant — Przemysław Waszak — wrote a beautiful thesis, which I'd like to share with you.

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What is Trataka?
Articles
Meditation & breath

What is Trataka?

Trataka is a classic yogic cleansing kriya for the eyes: staring unblinkingly at a small point until tears begin to flow on their own.

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Yoga is a science, not a religion
Articles
Yoga

Yoga is a science, not a religion

The concept of yoga is very simple; it's based on scientific principles, and through practice it brings about a great change in a person's physical and mental structure.

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Mantras aren't religious — on misunderstanding mantras
Articles
Meditation & breath

Mantras aren't religious — on misunderstanding mantras

The understanding of mantras shifted as people drifted away from their spiritual nature. One example is the meaning of the mantra Om Namah Shivaya.

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Panchakarma — Ayurvedic cleansing
Articles
Ayurveda

Panchakarma — Ayurvedic cleansing

For thousands of years, the ancient art of Ayurveda has helped people find a way to a healthy, peaceful life, through the science of the five elements: fire, water, earth, air and space.

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Meditation before sleep
Articles
Meditation & breath

Meditation before sleep

Today I'll share with you one of the talks by my teacher, Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati, from the series "Yoga in Everyday Life", titled "Meditation before sleep".

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Havan — the fire ceremony
Articles
Self-development

Havan — the fire ceremony

Havan, or Homa — the fire ceremony. This ritual of powerful purification and transformation has been known since the dawn of civilisation and humanity's mastery of fire.

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What is Pratyahara, really?
Articles
Meditation & breath

What is Pratyahara, really?

To introduce the practice and process of Pratyahara, we need to start from the basics, from kindergarten — because it's there that the foundation for observing and training the mind is formed.

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Why are people drawn to the Himalayas?
Articles
Self-development

Why are people drawn to the Himalayas?

What makes people go there? The Himalayas have provided a spiritual home for spiritually-minded people in India. You can go to the Alps, or anywhere else — grand, majestic, beautiful — but not sacred.

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Sankalpa
Articles
Self-development

Sankalpa

The New Year should be celebrated continuously, right through to spring. Spring brings joy; spring nurtures life.

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How can we become better yoga teachers?
Articles
Yoga

How can we become better yoga teachers?

The first point is deepening our understanding of yoga and raising our teaching skills. Every new teacher who starts leading their own classes adds their own style, intention and words.

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Rudraksha — seeds of great power
Articles
Self-development

Rudraksha — seeds of great power

What is a Rudraksha, why is it so special, how many kinds are there, which one is right for whom, and how should you wear, maintain and cleanse it?

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The morning mantra that changes your life
Articles
Meditation & breath

The morning mantra that changes your life

Today I'll share another morning practice, meant for those who already know the power of chanting mantras.

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The colours of emotions
Articles
Self-development

The colours of emotions

When the word HEART is used in yoga, it doesn't refer to a body part — it's used as a subtle centre where both positive and negative emotions arise.

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How can we understand the consciousness of children
Articles
Self-development

How can we understand the consciousness of children

When we're born, our consciousness is pure, unmarked by any impression from today's environment. This pure awareness stays with us up to about eight years old.

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Traps of the mind — intellect and emotions
Articles
Self-development

Traps of the mind — intellect and emotions

Trying only to manage the mind, or manage things intellectually, won't get you very far.

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Svara Yoga — the yoga of breath
Articles
Yoga

Svara Yoga — the yoga of breath

Svara Yoga in brief: when we use the word "svara", we mean something more than the air flowing from the nostrils — we're also talking about the flow of prana, a very subtle and vital aspect of breath.

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I want peace
Articles
Self-development

I want peace

Everyone wants peace and says, "I want peace." There are three words in that sentence — I, want, peace. So if you truly want peace, forget the other two words — I and want — and only peace remains.

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The importance of women in the Vedas
Articles
Self-development

The importance of women in the Vedas

Ancient Indian texts make clear that women were always meant to be respected and valued within this culture.

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