As much as I love yoga, one thing bothers me. Westernized modern yoga focuses far too much on our bodies rather than our lives or lifestyle practices. While all yoga teachers learn about the yamas and the niyamas, yoga teacher trainings don’t delve deep into the vedas.
In an attempt to highlight off-the-mat practices, I published “From the Boxing Ring to the Ashram” on International Day of Yoga, 2023. As a reflection of the breadth and depth of yoga, only one of 12 chapters in my yoga-in-disguise book highlights asanas.
Give to Others
An often ignored (but oh-so-important) yogic path is karma yoga, also known as seva. About 20 years ago, one of my female gurus instilled in me the importance of selfless service. In “From the Boxing Ring to the Ashram,” Vietnamese-born Swami (Sita) Sitaramananda says, “Service comes first. We gain more from giving than from taking.”
Swami Sita’s teachings struck a chord. Maybe because my first guru (my mom) repeatedly said, “Better to give than to receive.” Likewise, my maternal grandmother fed any houseless person that knocked on her door. One of the few Hebrew words we heard in our home, tzedakah, taught us about everyone’s moral obligation to give to others.
Were those values cultural? Familial? Generational? Regional? Old country? Are they still prevalent as our modern society pushes competition, rising to the top, and breaking glass ceilings?
As the Beatles lamented in their song “I, Me, Mine,” the ego is too often the focus. The Fab Four yogis, who spent time in India, recognized true yoga as the opposite. George in particular was dedicated to vedic principles. A Krishna devotee, his spiritual beliefs and practices stayed with him until he left his body. Many of his songs reflect this. For example, in “Within You Without You” he urged: “And the time will come when you see we’re all one.”
“We are all one” is exactly how I translate my favorite Kundalini phrase and mantra: Eck Ong Kar.
Be Selfless
I hope most yogis understand the importance of setting aside the ego to give and help one another, their communities, other sentient beings, and the planet. But, Swami Sitaramananda stresses that we should be utterly selfless in our actions. It’s admirable to contribute a sizable donation to a non-profit. However, if a primary motive is a tax break or recognition, that’s not selfless, but an example of I, Me, Mine taking over.
Likewise, rather than say “I can help with X, Y or Z,” offer to do whatever needs to be done. In my book, I recount volunteering in India, Italy, and Central America. I told the organizers some of my talents or strengths. But, when assigned to remove cobwebs, wash floors, chop dozens of carrots, or feed livestock, that was fine. I recognized I was helping out wherever the greatest needs were.
Swami Sitaramananda points to Swami Sivananda as an excellent karma yogi. The former medical doctor’s teachings led to the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres and ashrams around the world to which Swami Sita dedicated her life for 50 years. As an example of his selflessness and humility, Swami Sivananda said, “I am just an instrument. It’s not about me. I am here to serve.”
Another karma yogi my guru admires is Mother Teresa. The epitome of selfless service, the saint born in the Ottoman Empire beautifully said, “I am a little pencil in God’s hands. He does everything, and sometimes it’s really hard because it’s a broken pencil, and He has to sharpen it a little more.”
Just like any yoga practice, we all need sharpening—and re-sharpening.
For two decades, Deborah Charnes managed hundreds of news conferences, editorial board meetings, press briefings, and one-on-one interviews. She worked with security, communications, and advance teams for many presidential candidates and celebrities. To balance the chaotic scales directing major league campaigns, she tapped into her yoga background. In 2011 she left the corporate world to dedicate her energy to positive transformation of herself and others. She vowed to never stop learning — or sharing. Already a certified yoga teacher, she added training in Ayurvedic massage therapy, nutrition, and cooking. She received certification in multiple holistic modalities and after an additional 800 hours of specialized training became one of the first bilingual certified yoga therapists in Texas. She created a dozen signature therapeutic workshops. Her deep commitment to helping others achieve maximum well-being led her to teach yoga, lead therapeutic workshops around the world, and publish her award-winning book, “From the Boxing Ring to the Ashram.”
Download the current issue of the magazine HERE.
