E S H A
Educators' Society for Heritage of IndiA ईशा
A Non-Profit Organization offering authentic educational resources
on culture and heritage of India www.ESHAusa.org
Harvard neuroscientist: Dr. Sara Lazar, PHD, published Article in Washington Post 5-26-2015 " Meditation not only reduces stress, here’s how it changes your brain " (for the better)
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Buddhist and meditation teacher Tara Brach leads a Vipassana meditation group at the River Road Unitarian Church in Bethesda. (Andrea Bruce Woodall/The Washington Post) 5-26-2015
Researcher Dr. Sara Lazar, PHD: We found differences in brain volume after eight weeks in five different regions in the brains
of the two groups. In the group that learned meditation, we found thickening in four regions:
1. The primary difference, we found in the posterior cingulate, which is involved in mind wandering, and self relevance.
2. The left hippocampus, which assists in learning, cognition, memory and emotional regulation.
3. The temporo parietal junction, or TPJ, which is associated with perspective taking, empathy and compassion.
4. An area of the brain stem called the Pons, where a lot of regulatory neurotransmitters are produced.
The amygdala, the fight or flight part of the brain which is important for anxiety, fear and stress in general. That area got smaller in the group that went through the mindfulness-based stress reduction program.
The change in the amygdala was also correlated to a reduction in stress levels. For full story, click on the link below:
Relevance of Yoga in Modern Life’ - by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev. How to meditate --- for beginners at home
Online Sanskrit Pronunciation Guide for Yoga Terms
UN Declared June 21, the summer solstice, as the International Yoga Day
Celebrate IDY on June 24 in Morganville, NJ click here for info
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York on Saturday Sept 27,2014. "Yoga should not be just an exercise for us, but it should be a means to get connected with the world and with nature," Modi said at the U.N. "It should bring a change in our lifestyle and create awareness in us, and it can help fighting against climate change." The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution with overwhelming support from member nations to declare June 21, the summer solstice, as the International Day of Yoga after Indian Prime Minister Modi mooted the idea in his speech at the General Assembly.
International Yoga Day
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Neurophysiological and neurocognitive mechanisms underlying the effects of yoga-based practices:
towards a comprehensive theoretical framework http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnhum.2015.00235/full
Journal: Frontiers in Human Neuroscience Comment by Charles Staubs: This is an awesome article. I am reading it a second time more carefully now, but I just had to tell you how good a job you did. I think 2014 and 2015 will be seen as watershed years in yoga scientific research because of your "Movement-based embodied contemplative practices: definitions and paradigms" article, Tim Gard's "Potential self-regulatory mechanisms of yoga for psychological health" article and this paper. All concept papers by solid scientists stating the direction and quality needed in further yoga research. Thanks and congratulations!
Anti-India Narrative - How Yoga and the culture and
heritage of India are being distorted in USA
The classic Sutras (threads of Sanskrit verses), at least four thousand years
old, cover the yogic teachings on ethics, meditation, and physical postures,
and provide directions for dealing with situations in daily life.
The Sutras are presented in the purest form, with the original Sanskrit
and with translation, transliteration, and commentary by Sri Swami
Satchidananda, one of the most respected Yoga masters.
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Transcendental Meditation:
What’s the evidence?
More than 350 peer-reviewed research studies on the TM technique
have been published in over 160 scientific journals.
These studies were conducted at many US and international
universities and research centers, including Harvard Medical School,
Stanford Medical School, Yale Medical School, and UCLA Medical School.
For details: http://www.tm.org/research-on-meditation
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Harvard Meditation study shows beneficial changes to human brain associated with awareness, stress
“It is fascinating to see the brain’s plasticity and that, by practicing meditation, we can play an active role in changing the brain and can increase our well-being and quality of life,” says Britta Hölzel, first author of the paper and a research fellow at MGH and Giessen University in Germany. “Other studies in different patient populations have shown that meditation can make significant improvements in a variety of symptoms, and we are now investigating the underlying mechanisms in the brain that facilitate this change.”
Read the full story here: http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/01/eight-weeks-to-a-better-brain/
In New York or L.A., it’s pretty common to learn that a yoga teacher used to be a dancer, an actor, or a former Wall Street banker.
In Bogota and Medellin, the same is true. Except that here, the teacher may also be an ex-member of a Colombian death squad.
Since 2010, a local organization called Dunna: Alternativas Creativas Para la Paz (Dunna: Creative Alternatives for Peace) has been gradually introducing the basic poses to two groups for whom yoga has been a foreign concept: the poor, mostly rural victims of Colombia’s brutal, half-century conflict, and the guerilla fighters who once terrorized them.
Hundreds of ex-militants have already taken the offered yoga courses. A dozen now plan to teach yoga to others. Full Story here
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The Benefits of Yoga - American Osteopathic Association
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Developed in India thousands of years ago, yoga has become an increasingly popular form of exercise in the United States. “Yoga is a healing system of theory and practice. The purpose of yoga is to create strength, awareness and harmony in both the mind and body,” explains Natalie Nevins, DO, a board-certified osteopathic family physician and certified Kundalini Yoga instructor in Hollywood, Calif.
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Also Raja Yoga, the eightfold yoga path, a system first described in Patañjali's Yoga Sūtra
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Yoga & Meditation
Evolving Dharma: Meditation, Buddhism, and the Next Generation of Enlightenment Evolving Dharma is a “next generation” book on meditation, Buddhism, and the path of awakening, published by North Atlantic Books in October, 2013. The latest book by Dr. Jay Michaelson, Evolving Dharma tells the story of how meditation has evolved beyond Buddhism, beyond religion, even beyond spirituality — and how one’s own meditation practice can evolve throughout one’s life. It is, in the words of Deepak Chopra, a “must-read.” Fearless, unorthodox, and irreverent, Michaelson shows how meditation has moved from ashrams and self-help groups to classrooms, prisons, and corporate boardrooms. He introduces the reader to maverick brainhackers, postmodern Buddhist monks, and cutting-edge neuroscientists while also sharing his own stories of months-long silent retreats, powerful mystical experiences, and many pitfalls along the way.
A Master of Memory in India Credits Meditation for His Brainy Feats
The New York Times By MAX BEARAK NOV. 17, 2014
Until midafternoon, audience approached the stage to show the young monk many objects, ask questions, ...
After six hours he opened his eyes, and recalled all 500 objects and questions asked. Click here to read the story