Twenty-one day sādhanā challenge

Exercise 21 Discovering your swara Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment : As indicated throughout the day We spoke about knowing the breath, through a preliminary exercise, and we practiced Chandra-bhedana prānāyāma as well. We spoke about preparing for death, and today, the last day of the sadhana exercise series, we will speak about…

Exercise 20 शवासन – Śavāsana Difficulty level -3 (very difficult) Time commitment : 10-15 minutes, after every yogic practice The standing joke in yoga classes, is that everyone’s favourite pose is śavāsana. Most people think of this āsana to be easy, but nothing could be further from the truth. Yoga Guru Shri B.K.S. Iyengar has…

Exercise 19 उद्यान अवगाहन – Forest bathing Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment : One hour every week We spoke about connecting with nature in an earlier post. This exercise is an extension of the “walk in the park” aspect of that exercise. A few points to note: No devices – Not even a…

Exercise 18 Chandra-bhedana pranayama Difficulty level – 2 (moderately difficult) Time commitment – 10 minutes, thrice a week in Week 3 This is the first cross-nostril prānāyāma that we will practice. While the prānāyāma has many levels, our attempt here is to get familiar with the process of breathing through one nostril, and observing the…

We had some good exercises this week. We deserve a story! As the frog said, “the one with thousand tricks sat on the head of the fisherman, the one with hundred tricks is hanging by the fisherman’s arm and I with only one trick am happily swimming in the water.” Two fish named Sahasrabuddhi and…

Exercise 17 Freeing up your time – Part 2 Difficulty level – 3 (difficult) Time commitment : (-45) minutes everyday A few days back, I had spoken about freeing up your time. This is the second part of that exercise. The first thing we need to do is to be aware of how we spend…

Exercise 16 Rediscovering food Difficulty level – 3 (difficult) Time commitment : At every meal and throughout the day We have spoken about perspectives, basic breathing exercises, āsanā practice, meditation and mantra japa. All these steps are beneficial, but they don’t amount to much if you don’t take care of what you eat. We are…

Exercise 15 Jñāna Mudra and Chin Mudra Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment : 5 minutes everyday Today, we will practice our second mudra – the jñāna Mudra. I have made a lot of references to this mudra in my earlier articles, and a lot of you requested for a more detailed look into…

Exercise 14 Sukhāsana Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment : 10 minutes thrice a week This is a meditative āsanā, and among the easiest sitting āsanās. It can be performed without any strain, and by anybody, regardless of their level of flexibility. We had practiced Tāḍāsana earlier, which is the simplest of the standing…

Today, let me tell you another story. There was a beautiful hermitage on the bank of river Gangā, where a group of hermits lived in peace. The hermits were disciples of a Guru Yadnyavalkya, who was always absorbed in meditation, and followed rigorous self-discipline. One day, while he was bathing in the river, a hawk flew…

Exercise 13 Mantra Japa Difficulty level – 2 (moderately difficult) Time commitment : 10 minutes thrice a week We have, so far, practiced an āsana, a form of prānāyāma, a mudra and basic meditation. Bringing this all together is mantra japa, or meditative repetition of a mantra. The mantra that I have chosen is Aum,…

Exercise 12 Anjali Mudra Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment : 5 minutes everyday Today, we will practice an introductory mudra – the Anjali Mudra. I have made a lot of references to this mudra in my earlier articles, and a lot of you requested for a more detailed look into the mudra. While…

Exercise 11 Soham Meditation Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment : 10 minutes thrice a week As we enter the second phase of our sādhanā, it’s time to introduce to you our first meditation exercise. A few points to note: Time to practice – Ideally before sunrise or during sunset. However, for beginners, early…

Today, let me tell you a story. The great emperor Kṛṣṇadevarāya (Krishnadevaraya) had a lot of wise ministers in his court. The wisest of them was Tenali Ramakrishna. One day, a merchant came to the king’s court from a foreign kingdom. He saluted the king and then said, “Your Majesty, I have heard from many…

Exercise 10 Tāḍāsana Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment : 10 minutes thrice a week We are nearly halfway through the course, and it’s time to introduce you to our first āsanā. A few points to note: Time to practice – Ideally before sunrise or during sunset. However, for beginners, early morning or late…

Exercise 9 Tracking accomplishments Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment : 10 minutes everyday This exercise will help you reflect upon your daily tasks, and take the first steps to move from being busy, to being productive. A few points to note: Consistency – It will take a bit of effort to get into…

Exercise 8 Rediscovering Eating Difficulty level – 2 (moderately difficult) Time commitment : 15 minutes per day – week 1, 30 minutes per day – week 2, 45 minutes per day – week 3 You know that things are bad, when someone has to remind us how to eat. When we were kids, we were…

Exercise 7 Saptarishi Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment : 45 minutes every week Those who are familiar with financial planning know the importance of diversification of assets – allocating monies to different asset classes (property, mutual funds, stocks, gold etc.) in different proportions and monitoring the overall performance of your portfolio. You also…

Exercise 6 Freeing up your time – Part 1 Difficulty level – 3 (difficult) Time commitment : (-45) minutes everyday Till now, we discussed 5 exercises that can take up anywhere between 30-45 minutes cumulatively each day. Exercise 6 helps you provision for that time. Hence the time commitment of (-45) minutes each day. An…

Exercise 5 No-Mind Difficulty level – 3 (difficult) Time commitment – 10 minutes every alternate day From observing, to observation. From total involvement, to no involvement. The no-mind exercise has a simple procedure – DON’T DO ANYTHING FOR 10 MINUTES. You may think that this is the easiest exercise of the lot. It isn’t. On…

Exercise 4 Breathing Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment – 10 minutes everyday Breathing is a fundamental life process. Our life is a collection of breaths – and we live between our first inhalation, and our last exhalation. The objective of this exercise is to help you connect with your breath, and introduce you…

Exercise 3 Connect with nature Difficulty level – 1 (easy) Time commitment – 10 minutes everyday – ideal. Else every alternate day. Chances are that you already practice this exercise. If yes, then you can try to add a bit more to it. If no, well, it’s a good time to start! The exercise involves…

Exercise 2 Wake and sleep Difficulty level – 2 (moderately difficult) Time commitment – 10 minutes everyday This exercise is simple – after all, we do this everyday. The catch is that you have to do this AT THE SAME TIME EVERYDAY, FOR 21 DAYS. Choose a waking time and a sleeping time. I wake…

Exercise 1 Write for 3-5 minutes everyday Difficulty level – 1 (easy to execute) Time commitment – 10 minutes everyday This exercise is simple. All you need to do, is write something that no one else will see. Just you. But, you have to follow a short process, and a few house rules. Write at…

I have been wanting to write regularly from quite some time now. It did happen in fits and starts, but didn’t go on to be consistent. We often wait to find the optimum conditions to start anything – be it a new exercise routine, or a new project, or a new way of living. Big…

We looked at the first week of the Sādhanā here. And at the second week of the Sādhanā here. On Day 15, I had a look at what yoga means – beyond the physical dimension that we have recently come to associate this ancient science with. I have been asked on how my yoga is…

We looked at the first week of the Sādhanā here. On day 8, I spoke about how the lockdown has an unexpected benefit – at least an hour saved in travel time. We can choose to waste this hour – or use it to learn something new, and exercise. Learning should not be confined to…

And so we reach day 21 of the sādhanā. A short journey, but a life-changing experience for me. I started off by diving into the unknown – not knowing what to write, what to expect – I just started. While a lot of my readers may not believe this, the truth is that I didn’t…

अन्नाद्वै प्रजाः प्रजायन्ते । याः काश्च पृथिवीं श्रिताः । अथो अन्नेनैव जीवन्ति । अथैनदपि यन्त्यन्ततः । तैत्तिरीयउपनिषद् – Taittirīya Upaniṣad This can be translated as – from food life springs forth, by food, it is sustained, and in food it merges when departed. Such is the importance of the food we eat. The Taittirīya Upaniṣad…

Today is the 19th day, and I have two more to go. All these days, I didn’t plan my writings – I just penned down whatever came to my mind on that particular day. Now that there are three more days – here is what I feel I will write – day 21 will be…

The worldwide lockdown due to COVID-19 has resulted in an unexpected benefit – cleaner air, clearer skies, and marked decreases in pollution levels. The Ganga is visibly cleaner, so are the canals of Venice. Delhi’s notorious air quality has seen remarkable improvement. There have been sightings of wildlife on the streets of Chandigarh, reduced vehicular…

I got a lot of requests to write more on the 8-fold path of yoga – that some refer to as Ashtanga Yoga or Raja Yoga. I know that it gets a bit confusing at times – after all , there are so many terminologies and variations – ashtanga, raja, bhakti, karma, kriya, gyana –…

We are but a sum total of the choices we make. Life is all about choices. From the food we eat, to the clothes we wear, to bigger decisions such as the career we choose, to where we live, even our life partners. It is said that we humans are the only beings on the…

What is yoga? I had written about this earlier, but as my own journey progresses, I find some more answers on the way. Here are some of them. What is Yoga? This seemingly simple question is quite difficult to answer actually. Answers differ – it depends on who is asking the question, and who is…

“Watch your thoughts, they become words;watch your words, they become actions;watch your actions, they become habits;watch your habits, they become character;watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.” This quote is a favourite of many Instagrammers and finds its way to many WhatsApp message inboxes in a ‘good morning’ wrapping. It has been attributed to…

Did you know that most of the time, you breathe through one nostril only? Yes, this is true. Try it for yourself. Hold your palm below your left nostril and breathe normally…now hold it below your right nostril. You will find that one nostril dominates the other. Repeat this exercise after around 2 hours. You…

Have you noticed that we tend to remember bad experiences more than good ones? Think of the past few days. Try and recall all the good experiences that you had – can be a good meal, or a great conversation, or a wonderful book that you read…attempt to recall as much as you can about…

Mindfulness. A new mantra in the West, but a concept ingrained in all Eastern traditions, mindfulness is the new yoga. There are books been written on mindfulness, seminars and convocations conducted, and larger corporates are warming up to the fact that mindfulness does make a difference to employee happiness and more importantly(in their eyes), productivity….

We are a society obsessed with productivity. From managers in offices, to parents at home, everyone speaks about not wasting time, being more efficient, filling up every minute with something to do. Every appraisal contains a detailed discussion on KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) that try to measure how productive an employee was, and outlines steps…

Two snippets of thought caught my attention in the past couple of days. One, from Sridhar Vembu, tech billionaire and founder and CEO of Zoho, and the second from Kangana Ranaut, three time National Awards winning actor and arguably among the most talented artists in India. Two personalities from diverse backgrounds, but very similar in…

A lot of people seem lost right now. Being confined to their homes is not something that they had factored into their schedules, and so it is quite uncharted territory. From sending in instagram videos of them performing daily chores like sweeping and cleaning, to ‘workout-from-home’ videos, people seem to be struggling to prove that…

It has been a week of sādhanā. When I look back at it, I feel that there is a lot more that could have been done, and done better. But I also know that I am on the right track, so what if I am a few steps behind? We need to celebrate our small…

Why is it that we think of a retreat, of going away from it all, we always tend to go closer to nature? I am fortunate enough to live in a community that is very close to nature. We have low-rise buildings, larger terraces, trees all over and abundant green spaces. I wake up with…

Have you decided to be positive about the lockdown yet? Have you tried to set a small goal, and made up your mind about achieving it? I hope you did. Coz we all are going to need a lot of self-motivation, to get through what may be ahead of us.  Locking down a hyper-connected world…

And so it has been announced. a 21-day lockdown. Unprecedented in India, and anywhere else in the world. Reactions have varied, from support for the move, to criticism, to despair. After all, we are a generation that has largely seen growth and prosperity for most of our lives. Living conditions have arguably been more better…

Breathing is such an underrated process, isn’t it? I start my day by practicing to breathe. Ancient seers gave it an apt name – prānāyāma. What is prānāyāma? Some call it the science of breathing. Others give it more definition by classifying categories of breathing – Ujjayi, bhastrika, anulom-vilom, nadi shodhana prānāyāma. The Bhagavad Gita…

Sometimes, you find some answers in the unlikeliest of places. I did too, while having a conversation with a colleague today. So how is my Sādhanā shaping up? Frankly, I can do better. The morning was spent in getting essentials from the grocery, to stock up for a few, given that the UAE has started…

I witnessed something amazing today – a billion people came together to celebrate humanity. Janta Curfew – how does that work? A clarion call by the Prime Minister – rather, a request to all Indians to observe a self-imposed curfew today, and another request as well – to stand at balconies, terraces, doors and windows…

And so it rained in Dubai. Not just rained – this was a hailstorm. If you have lived in this part of the world, you would know that rain alone is a rarity (well, off late, not so much). And so temperatures dropped, the weather calmed down, all conducive for a good night’s sleep. Only…

It’s been a productive first day. While Saturday is usually a weekend here in the UAE, I do tend to work on strategic tasks, and set the tone for the upcoming week. Added to the mix today was the sense of purpose – to identify some long-standing habits, be aware of them, and attempt course…

Being at home for an extended period of time usually gets us into vacation mode. This time, it’s different. Circumstances are not pleasant, and the immediate future doesn’t look very bright. Being self-quarantined means less or no access to some of the basics that form our routine – the neighbourhood gym, your favourite coffee hangout,…