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<title>Elizabeth Reninger - EzineArticles Expert Author</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Elizabeth_Reninger</link>
<pubDate>Wed, 15 Feb 2012 06:28:15 -0600</pubDate>
<image><title>Elizabeth Reninger - EzineArticles Expert Author</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Elizabeth_Reninger</link>
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<copyright>Copyright 2012 EzineArticles.com - All Rights Reserved.</copyright>
<description><![CDATA[Elizabeth Reninger holds a Masters degree in Sociology/Philosophy (from the University of Wisconsin, Madison) and in Chinese Medicine (from Southwest Acupuncture College).  She is a student of Buddha Dharma, and a longtime practitioner of Yoga and Qigong. Her first collection of poems ~ "And Now The Story Lives Inside You" ~ was published in 2005 by WovenWord Press.  Elizabeth currently resides in Boulder, Colorado, where she maintains a private acupuncture practice, and continues to write poetry.]]></description>
<lastBuildDate>Mon, 30 Jun 2008 12:54:59 -0500</lastBuildDate>
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<title>Herbal and Alchemical Support For Yoga, Qigong &amp; Meditation Practice</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/1279195</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/1279195</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jun 2008 12:54:59 -0500</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[An introduction to the use of herbal and alchemical formulas - as tools for regaining health and increasing our vitality.  Includes brief reviews of three powerful herbal/alchemical substances, which I've had great success with.  Of interest especially to practitioners of Yoga, Qigong and Meditation.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Krishna &amp; the Gopis -  Gender &amp; Spiritual Practice</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/152999</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/152999</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 27 Feb 2006 17:38:09 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Krishna saw his own self - as the Infinite -  In the throng of lovely gopis.  They experienced in Krishna, O wonder,  Their own self - but as the Absolute.  And when, in play, he stole their veils,  He wished to see himself in Truth's naked ray.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Flying Lessons</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/152649</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/152649</guid>
<pubDate>Sun, 26 Feb 2006 20:51:32 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The first time that I saw Jet Li's film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (in a little theatre in Boulder, Colorado) I wept, fairly continuously, for about the first thirty minutes, and after that sat enraptured, amazed & deeply grateful for the beauty, power & truth that I felt being emanated from the film. Two days later I returned, for my second viewing. By the third time (all week-day matinees: cheaper & less crowded), the theatre clerks & I exchanged amused glances of recognition.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>Yes, No, Yes, No - The Yamas &amp; Niyamas</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/143856</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/143856</guid>
<pubDate>Sun, 12 Feb 2006 20:52:24 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The Yamas & the Niyamas represent the first two limbs/branches of the eight-limbed body/tree of Ashtanga (ashta=eight, anga=limb) Yoga. Considered as foundations for the remaining six limbs, these "outer" branches of the Ashtanga system are attitudes & actions that have the power to align us with Inner Peace. Totaling ten in number ~ five Yamas or "don'ts, and five Niyamas or "do's" ~ they strike a resonant cord, for many who first come upon them, with the Christian Ten Commandments.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>Trinity - The Three Levels of a Yoga Or Qigong Practice</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/139994</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/139994</guid>
<pubDate>Sun, 05 Feb 2006 09:17:13 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Yoga and Qigong practice is traditionally spoken of as occurring on three levels: the outer, the inner & the secret.  These three levels of practice have similarities to what in Taoist practice are known as the Three Treasures (Jing, Qi & Shen); and also to what in Buddhist practice are known as the Three Bodies (Tri-Kaya) of the Buddha/Awakened Mind (Nirmanakaya, Sambhogokaya & Dharmakaya). [They also have a less precise but still resonant relationship to the Hindu yogic system of the "five sheathes."] This articles explores these three levels of practice, from the perspective of: the practitioner; the teacher; and the world-view which they invite/support.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Mesothelioma - A Full Spectrum Examination</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/136386</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/136386</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Jan 2006 08:53:56 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Receiving much press in recent years ~ both because of the number of people affected, as well as the sometimes sensational, multi-million-dollar lawsuits that have been filed, fought, won & lost ~ is a rare form of cancer known as malignant mesothelioma, whose principle cause is exposure to aspestos fibers.    Asbestos, a known toxin since the 1930's, is an inexpensive fibrous material that is extremely durable and heat resistant. Because of these properties it was, for many years, heavily used in industry throughout the United States.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>Magic, Science &amp; Poetry - The Alchemy of Yoga</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/134991</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/134991</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 27 Jan 2006 07:27:59 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[What is science?  What is magic? And how do these two, in combination with one other "secret" ingredient, allow a Yoga practice to become "alchemical" ~ infused with a sweetness, joy & ecstasy quite beyond what might be expected, were it not something more than the "sum of its parts"?]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>On the Strangeness of Writing About Yoga</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/132605</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/132605</guid>
<pubDate>Sun, 22 Jan 2006 14:35:31 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[For a little over a month now, I've been spending a fair amount of time in front of a computer screen, composing short essays on yoga-related topics.  And in a way, this feels like a fairly natural, easy and mostly-enjoyable thing to be doing:  I love to write, and have been exploring Yoga (in its Taoist, Buddhist & Hindu varieties) for long enough that finding aspects of these practices ~ or their related philosophies ~ to present in this way, is not a problem.  Yet there's also a feeling of "strangeness" about it ... this little gnawing sensation in the pit of my belly ... something which seemed to be asking for its own "exploration".]]></description>
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<item>
<title>The Paradox of Prana &amp; Citta</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/132290</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/132290</guid>
<pubDate>Sat, 21 Jan 2006 16:57:18 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[One of the fundamental principles of Yoga/Qigong practice is that "prana" (energy, life-force, qi) follows "citta" (mind, intention, focus).  We see this principle at work in every aspect of our lives:  when we're focused on something (a project, our work, a relationship), our energy flows into that activity, and it tends to grow ... This article explores applications & paradoxes of this principle as it unfolds within a yoga/qigong practice.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Gradual and Sudden Enlightenment?</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/131860</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/131860</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jan 2006 11:36:54 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[There is within the Zen tradition this question about whether enlightenment (whatever that is!) happens all-at-once or is a more gradual process.  Soto lineage teachings tend to emphasize "gradual enlightenment," while the Rinzai lineage accepts the possibility of "sudden enlightenment."  And at least one modern teacher ~ Adyashanti ~ whose Zen training was/is complimented by the insights of Advaita Vedanta, claims that both are true, and necessary.  So let's explore.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>Not This, Not This-I Am That!</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/131255</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/131255</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 19 Jan 2006 12:43:50 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA["Netti, Netti ...Tat Tsvam Asi!", whose English translation is "Not this, Not this, You are That!" is a phrase that has its origins in the Chandogya and Katha Upanishads. This article explores ways in which this phrase can be used to work with difficult states of mind.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Meditation -  Merging With the Formless Truth</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/130630</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/130630</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 18 Jan 2006 14:59:37 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA["Self is everywhere, shining forth from all beings, vaster than the vast, subtler than the most subtle, unreachable, yet nearer than breath, than heartbeat.  Eye cannot see it, ear cannot hear it nor tongue utter it; only in deep absorption can the mind, grown pure and silent, merge with the formless truth ..."  Using this passage from the Mundaka Upanishad as a starting-point, this article introduces the practice of meditation.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Theory of the Kleshas - a Yogic Understanding of Human Suffering (and Liberation!)</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/130066</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/130066</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2006 18:21:44 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[One of the foundational texts of the Yoga Tradition is Patanjali's "Yoga Sutras."  It is here (among other places) that the Yogic understanding of the origins of human suffering (and Liberation) is offered in the form of what is know as the "Theory of the Kleshas." This article is an introduction to the Theory of the Kleshas.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Through the Eyes of a Chinese Doctor -  Feminist Theorization of the Bodymind</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/129324</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/129324</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2006 08:59:02 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[One of the most highly contested issues in feminist theory today is how to go about the theorization of the body. The debate is generally cast in terms of the distinction between essentialist and constructionist readings of the body. In an essentialist reading, the body is posited in naturalistic terms as having some sort of fixed, unchanging essence.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>True Offering -  Asana Through the Eyes of the Vijnanabhairava Tantra</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/128277</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/128277</guid>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2006 07:00:49 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA["When one casts into the fire of supreme reality the five elements, the senses and their objects, the dualistic mind and even vacuity, then there is true offering to the Gods." How might this verse from the Vijnanabhairava Tantra be applied to an asana practice?]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Qigong Standing Meditation</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/127827</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/127827</guid>
<pubDate>Mon, 16 Jan 2006 07:59:42 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Here's a wonderful ~ simple & powerful ~ Taoist meditation practice, which can be done either outside (in a beautiful natural setting is best!), or indoors.  It's similar in many ways to Buddhist Shamata sitting meditation practice, but ~ and hence the name! ~ you're standing.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Cultivate Peace, Joy &amp; Clarity Through Walking Meditation</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/127821</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/127821</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jan 2006 15:53:50 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Walking meditation is a practice that I was introduced to in 1992, by the Vietnamese Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh.  It was offered as part of a three-week retreat at Plum Village ~ Thich Nhat Hanh's monastery in south-central France.  What's wonderful about this practice is that it takes something that most of us do everyday (walking!), and transforms in such a way that it becomes a tool for becoming more awake, more conscious, more peaceful and clear ... more ALIVE in the present moment.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Polarity Processing - a Simple Yogic Tool For Getting &quot;Un-Stuck&quot;</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/127824</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/127824</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jan 2006 15:51:51 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[When you're feeling stuck in old emotional, mental or physical patterns, Polarity Processing is a simple & powerful tool ~ based firmly in yogic principles ~ that can help you get un-stuck. The technique has been given to the world through the contemporary Teacher Leslie Temple-Thurston, who is based, with her organization CoreLight, in South Africa and Santa Fe, New Mexico.    So here's how it works.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Find and Maintain Your Perfect Weight - the Yoga of Mindful Eating</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/127816</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/127816</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jan 2006 15:45:49 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[A common experience, among those who have practiced some form of yoga(or qigong or meditation) for a sustained period of time, is the experience of having ones weight stabilize, and maintain itself ~ almost magically ~ at the "perfect" level. But this sort of natural equilibrium, around weight and food choices, for most people takes a while to cultivate.  So, in the meantime, what to do about this eating thing?  This body-weight thing?]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Qigong Practices -  Hugging a Tree &amp; Seeing Subtle Bodies</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/127819</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/127819</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jan 2006 15:28:50 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Trees play an important role in Taoist practice ... They serve, for one, as a metaphor for the human body, awakening to its natural state ... What also has been discovered ~ through the "research" of the Masters of the Taoist martial & healing arts, and many generations of qigong practitioners ~ is that trees are actually nourished by the "negative" energy of human beings.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Resurrecting Your Sexuality - Two Yoga/Qigong Practices</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/127822</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/127822</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jan 2006 15:22:51 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The Taoist world-view, and its associated yoga/qigong practices, is based largely upon an understanding of the flow of energy, within and outside of the human body, and includes an understanding of sexual energy which is far more sophisticated than anything produced by western culture.  How exactly this happens is the subject of a vast field of enquiry & practice called Internal Alchemy.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Paradox of Opening &amp; Closing -  a Pair of Qigong Meditation Practices</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/127784</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/127784</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Jan 2006 14:19:08 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Becoming aware of the vibratory nature of our bodymind, and learning how to gather, store and circulate energy (qi, prana, life-force) skillfully, is central to any yoga or qigong practice.  Yet how exactly do we accomplish this?  To "gather" energy would seem to require a kind of "opening" to new sources of energy, yes?   Yet to "store" energy implies the creation of a container, of boundaries:  a kind of "closing" ...  And indeed it is (like most things in a healthy, vibrant yoga/qigong practice) a paradox!]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Circles &amp; Spirals -  The Center of a Yog /Qigong Practice</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/126545</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/126545</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2006 09:58:31 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Every Yoga or Qigong practitioner at some point discovers that circluar or spiraling actions (of body or mind) tend to augment or circulate (in a useful way) their energy/qi/life-force, while more linear or perpendicular actions tend to drain or decrease energy.  This article explores this phenomenon.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Inner Smile -  a Meditation Practice</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/126562</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/126562</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2006 09:50:47 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The practice of the "Inner Smile" is one that is found in Hindu, Buddhist & Taoist traditions.  This practice is a wonderful way to release anxiety, to balance the endocrine system, and to increase within you feelings of loving-kindness and compassion.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>What is Yoga? Asana in the Context of the Six Yogas System</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/126537</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/126537</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2006 09:49:15 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[In the west, the term "yoga" is usually associated with the practice of Yoga asana - physical movements & poses. Yet asana is just a tiny slice of the entire "pie" that is the Yoga tradition.  This article places yoga asana in the larger context of the Six Yogas System of Hatha, Raja, Bhakti, Jnana, Kritya & Karma Yoga.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Distant Star, Approaching - a Qigong Visualization Practice</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/126571</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/126571</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2006 09:45:41 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[This is a beautiful & powerful Taoist Meditation practice. So to begin, please find a comfortable place to sit.]]></description>
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<item>
<title>When All Has Turned to Ashes, Enter Bliss -  Explorations of the Vijnanabhairava Tantra</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/126575</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/126575</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2006 09:25:40 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[See the entire world as a blazing inferno. Then, when all has turned into ashes, enter bliss.    ~ Vijnanabhairava Tantra, verse 53 [from Yoga Spandakarika: The Sacred Texts at the Origins of Tantra, by Daniel Odier]. Today we're going to explore this verse from the Vijnanabhairava Tantra, that most sublime conversation between Bhairava and Bhairavi, who ~ lovingly united in the same knowledge ~ left the undifferentiated state so that their dialogue might enlighten all beings.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Through the Looking-Glass - Alice in Yoga-Land</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/126560</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/126560</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2006 09:04:47 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[There's a specific training, within Buddhist Yoga, which asks us to look upon the things of our world as being very similar to the reflections of objects as seen in a mirror: arising as the result of specific causes and conditions, yet possessing - in and of themselves - no "inherent" existence. In this article we explore this practice.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>Dancing For Your Whole Life -  Yogic Advice From the Vijnanabhairava Tantra</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/126549</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/126549</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2006 09:02:37 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[This article explores a verse from the Vijnanabhairava Tantra - one of the most revered of Yogic scriptures (from the tradition of Kashmir Shaivism). And finds in it advice for how to be more fully alive even (and especially!) in the face of our inevitable death.]]></description>
</item>
<item>
<title>The Blissful Body of the Yogi(ni) - Yidam Practice &amp; Yoga Asana</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/126734</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/126734</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2006 08:41:14 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche, a Tibetan yogi often compared to the great Milarepa, when addressing the issue of Yidam practice within the Vajrayana vehicle of Tibetan Buddhism, has said:  "It is the blissful body of the yogi or yogini that is the true Deity."  So what might this mean?  And how, if at all, is it (or could it be) related to the practice of Yoga asana?]]></description>
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<item>
<title>Warm Sesame-Oil Massage -  a Yummy Yoga Treat! (And Great Way of Calming Vata)</title>
<link>http://EzineArticles.com/126769</link>
<guid>http://EzineArticles.com/126769</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2006 08:06:19 -0600</pubDate>
<description><![CDATA[The art & science of Ayurveda (a close cousin to Yoga) perceives, maps & speaks of the human body in terms of the three Doshas ~ Vata, Pitta and Kapha ~ each of which governs a different aspect of our lived experience. Though all three Doshas operate within every (living) person, each of us manifests a unique (and ever-changing) combination of their attributes. The predominant pattern of this combination within us gives rise to what is known as our Tri-Dosha "type," or "constitution.]]></description>
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