By Shannon Seyler

Special to the Sun-News The popularity of yoga is increasing not only nationwide, but also in Grant County.

Several varieties of yoga are being taught in this area, including a lineup of classes offered at the Lotus Center at 211 W. Broadway in Silver City.

At the Lotus Center, Marilynn Freeman teaches Restorative Yoga, and Matthew Sommerville teaches Svastha Yoga.

There are also other instructors teaching yoga regionally, each offering a rich variety of techniques, backgrounds and training.

Freeman has been studying yoga since 1978.

"I began taking yoga classes because I never got out of work early enough to register for dance classes," Freeman said. "The registration person suggested that I might enjoy yoga instead of dance. Little did she know!"

Her journey in yoga continued, eventually leading her into teaching. "I substitute taught for my teacher in the '70s and '80s, but received formal certification in Kundalini Yoga in 2003," she said. With a background in Iyengar Yoga and Kundalini Yoga, she is currently teaching Restorative Yoga at the Lotus Center.

"I began making yoga a daily practice around 15 years ago," Sommerville says. "Around six years ago, I realized that yoga was becoming the focus of my life. It was at that point that I trained to become a certified Svastha yoga instructor. I'm currently finishing my 500 hour Svastha yoga therapy certification." He adds, "Svastha yoga follows quite closely the ancient classical approach to yoga, placing much of its emphasis on the breath and the way the breath, the body and the mind interact."

Both Freeman and Sommerville agree that yoga is highly beneficial.

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Yoga more than pants, postures

New Delhi: Terming yoga the country's "civilisational contribution" to the world, RSS on Saturday called for its inclusion in educational curriculum in India.

Hailing the UN move to name June 21 as the 'International Day of Yoga', it also urged that steps be taken to promote it in social life.

A resolution to this effect was adopted at the Akhil Bhartiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS), which is the Sangh's top decision and policy-making body.

Hailing the UN move to name June 21 as the 'International Day of Yoga', it also urged that steps be taken to promote it in social life.

"The ABPS urges the Union and state governments to carry forward this initiative by introducing yoga as a part of the curriculum in education, supporting research in yoga and taking all possible efforts for promoting yoga in social life," the resolution said.

ABPS also appealed to "all the countrymen, including swayamsevaks, people of Bharatiya origin and yoga followers" to endeavour earnestly for spreading yoga for making the globe happy, healthy and sustainable.

Stating that the declaration of June 21 as International Yoga Day had brought "cheer and immense pride" to all the Indians and millions of yoga practitioners around the globe, the resolution said, "Yoga is Bharat's civilisational contribution to the world."

It expressed joy that the proposal for an International Yoga Day moved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his UN General Assembly speech last year had received an unprecedented response.

Yoga is not limited to physical exercise but is essentially a holistic way of life leading to the union of body and mind and intellect and soul, the RSS resolution said.

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Introduce yoga as part of educational curriculum: RSS

Quote of the day:

"Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths."

~Etty Hillesum

My good friend Mariam Gates is going to be at Prana Power Yoga Newton on Tuesday, March 31st at 2pm for aBook Signing + Family Yoga EventCome join us!

Mariam says it best: "I wrote Good Night Yoga: A Pose by Pose Bedtime Story, because after years of teaching childrens yoga, I wanted a way for my students to (literally) take it home. This book became a way to hand children the tools to create their own practice and for parents, caregivers and teachers to share in that experience. There is a power in being able to pause and take a deep breath in and a long breath out. As I teach kids and train teachers around the country I am amazed by how this simple tool of slowing things down through breath and movement can be so essential to how we experience a moment, a day, and our lives. This book is my way of bringing that practice to life. As a parent, part of the purpose of this book was also to create more ritual around bedtime. My daughter has always needed a longer lead-in to sleep. With this simple flow, we had a way to relax her mentally and physically and really let go of the day.

We all, adults and kids alike, need opportunities for true rest, true renewal and a way to settle without there being anything else to do. This book is meant to support all of that. Enjoy!" Good Night Yoga: A Pose by Pose Bedtime Story (pub. Sounds True, April 1, 2015)

Have the best day ever!

Namaste!

Taylor plus 5

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Good Night Yoga

When was Buddha born?

Many believe that Buddha lived from 563 to about 483 BCE while others think it may be about 100 years later. He was born in southern Nepal and is said to have lived for about 80 years. Information about his life and teachings was transmitted orally by his disciples prefaced by the phrase 'evam me sutam- (thus have I heard) and the composition of Buddhist texts started centuries after his death.

When did Buddhism start spreading outside India?

The first evidence of the religion spreading outside India coincides with Ashoka's rule as he sent emissaries to Sri Lanka and an area called Suvarnabhumi, which could be in modern Myanmar or Thailand. Ashoka's son, monk Mahinda, converted King Devanampiya Tissa and other nobility in modern day Sri Lanka to Buddhism. King Tissa built the Mahavihara monastery, which became the main centre of Buddhism in the island nation. After Sri Lanka, it took more a thousand years for Buddhism to become a leading religion in Myanmar.

How did Buddhism reach central Asia?

There are two main accounts - traditional legends say that Ashoka's son Kushtana founded the Khotan kingdom around 240 BCE in the present day Xinjiang province of China and introduced the religion, while other accounts indicate that it was Kaniska, who ruled over northern India, Afghanistan and parts of central Asia, encouraged the spread of the religion.

What was the golden period of Buddhism in China?

The religion was actively propagated in China in the first century CE. Legends say that Han empire Mingdi (57-58 to 75/76 CE) dreamt of a flying golden deity and subsequently dispatched emissaries to India who returned to China with the Sutra in forty two sections and then Buddhism was introduced. The golden period of Buddhism came during the Tang dynasty rule (618-907 CE).

How did Tibet's Buddhist kingdom come into existence?

According to Tibetan tradition, the religion was first introduced during King Srong-brtsan-sgam-po's regime (627 to 650 CE). After the council held at Bsam-yas monastery between 792-794 CE, it was decided that Indian tradition should prevail. During the 11th and 12th century, many Tibetans travelled to India to acquire and translate Buddhist texts. The golden period, however came when the Mongols got influenced by Tibetan Buddhism and in the middle of the 17th century, they established the fifth Dalai Lama as the theocratic ruler of Tibet.

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Ashoka's son took Buddhism outside India