By Atul Vyas According to Indian philosophy, all the matter in our universe is made up of five basic eternal substances in various proportions. They are: Akash (space), Vayu (air), Agni (fire), Jal (water), and Prithvi ( the earth). These five substances comprise the pancha-mahabhutas or five elements or eternal substances and combine with the soul to create...
By Bal Ram Singh, PhD According to the Patanjali Yoga Sutra, 2.30, Ahimsa Satya Asteya Brahmacharya Aparigraha Yama, meaning Yama that blocks, stops, kills, tackles the unnatural tendencies and distractions. So far, we have had elaborations and discussion on the first three elements, i.e., Ahimsa, Satya, and Asteya in this series. Brahmacharya is next in the series...
By Atul Vyas Ustrasana is a powerful back bend. Back bending poses are excellent for relieving tensions and blocked energy. Backbends expand the thoracic spine, chest, shoulders and neck. It frees up energy in the sympathetic nervous system and increases respiration. On a psycho-physical level, bending literally gets us moving by releasing tensions and increasing dynamic...
By Bal Ram Singh The Asteya element of Yama refers to the absence of hiding, cheating, or stealing whether material or mental. I have spent quite a bit of time explaining it, as there are many things people tend to hide in various names, like privacy, confidentiality, business secret, proprietary, diplomacy, business practices, statecraft or...
By Atul Vyas ‘Jathara’ means stomach or abdomen, and ‘parivatan’ means change. This pose means revolving the abdomen. In this yogic posture the lower abdomen is rotated away from the upper abdomen resulting in increased peristalsis. The pelvis is a large circular bony mass that lies between the spine (upper extremity) and the legs (lower extremity). It...
By Bal Ram Singh, PhD It must have been 12 to 15 years ago, when there was a faculty senate meeting of which I was a member for a long time. I heard some presentations about negotiations between faculty and the University administration. I believe, it was professor Jim Griffith, who also used to be the President...
Denver: Smoke from dozens of raging wildfires in western Canada has drifted south into the United States and prompted the states of Colorado and Montana to issue air quality alerts. Colorado’s Department of Public Health and Environment put out alerts and advisories for much of the eastern half of the state, including Denver. It warned that...
Cases have been reported from 18 states New York: U.S. health officials reported another death and several more cases of vision loss from illnesses linked to eye drops tainted with a drug-resistant bacteria. The bacteria has infected 81 people, including four who died and 14 who lost vision, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said....
Lincoln, Neb.: The Nebraska Legislature last week approved a 12-week abortion ban and restrictions on gender-affirming care for people younger than 19 in a move so contentious that lawmakers on both sides have said they may be unable to work together in the future. Conservative lawmakers called in a visibly ill colleague so they would...
