Entries by derik

Deepening Connection: Introduction

The experiment related to Brahmacharaya and it’s application to my life as a married person.  This yama was chosen randomly, as the group size was the smallest and therefore, most appealing to me personally.  In recognizing that the concept of Brahmacharaya is essentially explained by Pantanjali  as abstinence of sexual behavior with the intention to […]

Deepening Connection Experiment

The hypothesis developed by myself and my husband is, “If we practice mindfulness within our relationship (which includes creating a spiritual intention for shared space, time, intimacy/sexuality) and apply principles of chastity in the sense of purity, specifically purity of intention through mindful lovingness, then we will experience a deeper connection to the divine through […]

Deepening Connection Journal Entries

Sitting in a gas station, my husband and I began a discussion of our sexual practices — the frequency, quality, spiritual aspects and satisfaction of these practices.  I realized that this conversation was very “large” and almost too intense to have in one setting.  We realized that this would be one of many conversations on […]

Deepening Connection Journal Entries (Con’t)

We had unexpected house guests, including two 5 year-old twins.  I felt drained and overwhelmed almost the entire time that we had to do this assignment.  I viewed it as an opportunity to learn more about what it is that I needed to “learn” and found out that I am not  taking enough time to […]

Deepening Connection: Conclusion

In conclusion, I feel “out of time”, but this experiment has really caused a chain of events which has increased my awareness of my own self as well as deepened my connection with my husband.  In many ways, we are still trying out new ideas, practices, and behaviors.  Bramacharaya has increased my energy and focus […]

Student Explores Truthfulness

As part of Denver’s Axis Yoga teacher training program, students experiment with different yogic principles by applying them to their lives. This student chose to experiment with satya: truthfulness, word and thought in conformity with the facts. She thought, “If I can live my daily life in a way that is synergistic with Satya, life […]

Exploring Truthfulness: Introduction

When we first began exploring the Yamas my initial thought was, “how am I going to just pick one, I really need help in all of these areas.” Being faced with that reality presented me with a myriad of emotions. I felt shame, amusement, embarrassment, but above all else my ego felt humbled. Rarely do […]

Exploring Truthfulness: Experiment

I have decided to break my experiment into two easy lists successes and failures. I wanted to have something that was tangibly quantifiable. I knew that this experiment was going to be difficult for me, but as stated earlier, I KNEW that Satya would be a great challenge for me. To give you a bit […]

Practicing Truthfulness: Successes

Upon reflecting over the last few weeks I realized that I did not find a lot of success with this project. This is not a self deprecating statement, but more of a reality which I will expound upon in my failures analysis. One success that I did find however was simply living my life more […]

Practicing Truthfulness: Failures

First and foremost I did not commit to this experiment nearly as much as I should have or wanted to. For the first week I focused quite diligently, really focusing on how I was forming my sentences and being concise in the words that I spoke. As time passed I found my focus drifting into […]