A disciple of B.K.S. Iyengar says that yoga teachers injure themselves as much as football players: “How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body”  (New York Times)

Recovering yogi Glenn Black: the vast majority of people should give up yoga (Daily Mail)

Five years in the making: The Science of Yoga: Risks and Rewards (Simon & Schuster)

Blowback from the yoga industry: Teachers rally to keep their students (The Daily Beast)

One of the criticisms of the new book, The Science of Yoga, is that American teachers are disconnected from the Hindu origins of yoga.

Here, our resident yogini, Raquel Tavares, explains the first principles of the 20th century’s greatest yogi, B.K.S. Iyengar — and models the poses herself:

What Mormon and Muslim fundamentalists share in common: Romney vs. Obama (Huffington Post)

Officially outlawed in the 19th Century when Utah joined the United States of America, polygamy makes for great ratings in award-winning 21st C  television. (LA Times)

On Broadway: Mormonism makes a blockbuster musical. (NY Observer)

Web 2.0: some of the hottest lifestyle bloggers are Mormons (Good Magazine)

Massachusetts and JFK redux:  Romney and religion. (Huffington Post)

Maureen Dowd: “the elite of the elite in the Mormon Church”   (New York Times)

Where Mitt’s Mormonism is an Achilles Heel: The South. (Media-ite)

Are you seduced by the LDS’s multi-million-dollar like-ability campaign? (Businessweek)

BY SOUL’S CODE — Have you heard a question that goes like this from competitive friends, motivational speakers or, say — the foremost practitioners of American reality TV, Oprah and Donald Trump?

“Where do you want to be five years from now?

Which reminds us of a joke . . . How do you make the Gods laugh?

Answer: tell them your plans.
At the age of 20, what were your fantasies?

Supplementary question: How many fathoms of experience away is that from the present-day?

We created Soul’s Code because we wanted to ask ourselves more telling questions, like: What’s the most loving thing that someone has ever said to you?

Anyone and everyone out there has shared their answers on our Love Scroll, which is literally a rolling scroll of messages in the right sidebar of this site.

The responses resonate because they often have an archetypal quality.

It’s partly because the question is very old. Based on an ancient sacred rite, people would form two centric circles, facing inward. After some meditation, those in the outer ring whispered their personal inspirations into the ears of those in the inner circle, rotating around one by one.

Some submissions on the Soul’s Code Love Scroll:

GP Reply27. Jun, 2011 at 10:54 am

My 4-yr old said to me…”Mommy, you make my heart happy.”

nancy Reply 10. Nov, 2009 at 1:01 am

. . . after i was sexually assaulted, my friend came to bring clothes for me. she stayed with me thru the hospital exam, thru the police statement…it took hours and was 3 or 4 in the morning when we finished…she took me home with her, dressed me in her pajamas put me in her bed and held me. i cried until i fell asleep with her still holding me. it was the deepest act of kindness i’ve ever experienced and i am forever grateful to her. thank you deb.

There is no account sign-up. No Facebook clutter.

Click on the “Say It” button, and all that Soul’s Code asks is for an email address.

Thank you all who have shared your inspirations; We send our love back to you.

BY MARY COOK, M.A., R.A.S. — The year that will go down in history as 2011 was marked by yet another parade of news stories about public figures whose lives ended due to addiction — from Amy Winehouse to Alice in Chains musician Mike Starr. What these stories have in common is this: while everyone from economists to motivational gurus like Tony Robbins advocate constant change, change itself means constant stress.

That even goes for positive changes — like getting married or buying your first house.

Stress of any kind can trigger addictive behaviors. Addictions redirect our attention from what we fear or dislike to things that we feel that we can control — or that bring a temporary sense of comfort, pleasure, power, or excitement.

But understanding how addiction works, and the power of the recovery process, can help us see all kinds of change as opportunities for growth.

What is “triggered”? A beast within

When a particular change brings up unhealed issues from the past, it can stimulate unconscious and defensive coping mechanisms, painful emotions, and outdated belief systems. These, in turn, can trigger addictive behaviors.

Addictions are defined as chronic, repetitive actions that are extremely difficult to disrupt in spite of escalating negative consequences. They actually change the way the brain works:

• Base urges dominate — like survival, hunger, thirst, lust, fear and flight, anger and aggression, pleasure-seeking and avoidance of pain
• The body adapts to high levels of stress, adrenalin and depression
• Emotions that stimulate addictive behavior are intensified and prolonged
• Feelings that threaten to diminish or extinguish the addiction become diluted and fleeting
• Conscious awareness of spirit is reduced — and commensurately, receptivity, trust, and faith

Addictive conduct creates the illusion of gratifying one’s needs. But in fact it undermines the very essence of health and fulfillment.

In practicing addictions we are refusing to grow, refusing to see ourselves as capable individuals, and refusing to see the support and resources that are available around us now.

Even a reluctant willingness to change is enough to start the recovery process.

What do we recover in “recovery”?

Learning to distinguish past trauma from current circumstances is critical in recovery. As recovering addicts see how honest, deep sharing can be met with compassion, sensitivity, hope and healing, the higher brain becomes more dominant and psychological maturity can take root.

Building trust in recovery gives recovering addicts the courage to express emotions that make them feel vulnerable, healing trauma and emotional pain. Intentionally experiencing positive feelings like joy, gratitude, serenity, and acceptance strengthens them. Self-soothing to calm fear when there is no real, imminent danger brings resilience, similar to a healthy parent’s response to a child with a nightmare.

Physical healing requires self care and relaxation, including appropriate amounts of rest, sleep and exercise, healthy eating, normalizing energy levels, and conscious reconnection with and appreciation of the physical body.

Opening to a positive relationship with spirit and identifying how spirit communicates is a key component of change in recovery. This bond can be strengthened through prayer, meditation, recognizing blessings and miracles, altruistic giving and spiritual love for all. Accepting the present moment and relying upon spiritual principles to meet changes create alignment with the greatest good.

Mary Cook is the author of Grace Lost and Found: From Addictions and Compulsions to Satisfaction and Serenity. She has 35 years of clinical practice and 29 years of university teaching experience. Mary speaks on addiction issues across the country and has a private practice in San Pedro, CA.

Political activists on both the left and right project dark times ahead. We present a contrarian upside, spiritually-speaking:

 1.  You can start the year by seeing the Dalai Lama, live (Dateline: Bodh Gaya, India)

2.  The world will have more saints in 2012 (Dateline: Vatican City)

3. The Mayans, the New Agers and the movie were wrong: Why the world did not end on Dec. 21, 2012

4.  The world economy ain’t so bad, after all (Global Insight, the world’s largest economic forecaster)

5.  The U.S. economy is posting a surprise comeback (TIME/Associated Press)

6. An AIDS-free generation: NIH-Chapel Hill study of antiretroviral drugs called scientific breakthrough

 7. A new Earth: Our planet has a ‘twin’ 

9. How do you say, “winning”? Charlie’s back! (Hollywood Reporter)

10. So is Al Gore: Watch the epic Inconvenient Truth sequel, “24 Hours of Reality”  (24 locations, 13 languages)