philosophy — Blog — brooke does yoga

A Yogic Perspective on Weathering a Global Pandemic

Depending on where you live and who you are, we’re somewhere between 30 and 50 days into world-wide stay-at-home orders during an unprecedented (I swear if I hear that word one more time…) global pandemic, practicing physical distancing with no knowledge or control over what comes next. We’re into the time period now where the novelty is wearing off, the motivation is running dry, and exhaustion is setting in as these unusual circumstances are turning out to be more of a marathon than a sprint. How can yoga help us get through the experience of weathering a global pandemic?

Brooke ShotwellMay 6, 2020yoga asana, philosophy

Satya Week 3: Doing It Right the First Time

In this week’s exploration of Satya, Deborah Adele introduces complexity and ambiguity to the conversation by drawing the tension we experience in our daily lives between the desire to belong and the desire to grow. She connects this to a concept she describes as “doing things right the first time.” She expands on this by detailing those moments of procrastination like putting off doing our finances, or little lies we tell ourselves like “Oh yes, I’ll definitely have enough time to do all 10 items on my to do list today.”

book club, philosophy, yamas and niyamasBrooke ShotwellDecember 16, 2019satya, yamas and niyamas, philosophy, truth

Satya Week 2: Self-Expression

This week we’re looking at the second aspect of Satya truthfulness: Self-Expression. In Deborah Adele’s The Yamas and Niyamas she contrasts self-expression with self-indulgence. Its an interesting addition to last week’s focus on “being nice” instead of being true to oneself. Adele argues that when we are not true to ourselves, when our true expression is muted in some way, we look elsewhere for that expression or fulfillment.

yamas and niyamas, philosophy, book clubBrooke ShotwellDecember 8, 2019yamas and niyamas, satya, philosophy

Satya Week 1: Being Nice

Being nice is the cursory, “polite,” all-too-common exchange: Hi there; how are you? I’m good, you? I’m good. How often do we ask that question in earnest to really hear the answer? How often do we answer that question with honesty and trust? Adele draws a line between nice and real. As someone who considers herself to be a Nice Person, I found this section to be challenging.

book club, philosophy, yamas and niyamasBrooke ShotwellDecember 1, 2019blog, philosophy, satya, yamas and niyamas

The Yamas and Niyamas: Satya

Is my “yes” coming
From a dark corner or from
The light in my heart?
~C.L.

yamas and niyamas, philosophy, book clubBrooke ShotwellNovember 25, 2019satya, yamas and niyamas, philosophy, truth