Beyond the mat with the four yogas
Part III: Karma
By Nancy B. Loughlin

Published in News Press on April 28, 2015

There is nothing wrong with wanting to make a lot of money.

But, how are you going to get it, and what are you going to do with it?

Wealth is a resource like talent, compassion, generosity, intelligence, creativity, leadership and the list goes on.

Resources are collective. They are meant to be shared, not hoarded.  All the world’s a stage, and you’re merely a player.  So, if you are blessed with one of these resources, it is your duty to cough it up.  It’s not really yours to have and to hold.

In fact, the more resources you have, the more in debt you are.

Continue reading →

Beyond the mat with the four yogas
Part II: Raja
By Nancy B. Loughlin

Published in News Press on April 21, 2015.

 A great yogi told me a story.

When he was in elementary school, he tore up the classroom like a monkey, so the teacher confined him to a chair with duct tape.  When he was finally calm and quiet, the teacher removed the tape, but, instead of staying serene, he just resumed tearing up the room.

“Because that’s what monkeys do,” he said.

This is the problem when you try to calm the mind’s fluctuations with meditation.  You sit, confine yourself to silence and stillness and om your way to serenity.  When your timer rings, you go back to bouncing off the walls.

Continue reading →

Beyond the mat with the four yogas
Part I: Bhakti
By Nancy B. Loughlin

Published in News Press on April 14. 2015

It’s right there in the Sutras.  Through a yoga practice, you can reach the pinnacle of self-actualization, that transcendent oneness.

So you go to class four times a week.

If that’s all you’re doing, it won’t really matter where you can put your head because your head will always be up your (you get the picture).

Class isn’t enough.

The physical postures are a small part of yoga, yet asana dominates the American yoga landscape.  It’s not surprising given the cultural fixation on the body along with our penchant for quick fixes.  Practicing and throwing poses would be too easy.

You have to change your thinking and behavior.

Continue reading →

The Apocalypse; or “Most Likely to Succeed”
A review of the documentary film awarded Audience Favorite at the Fort Myers Film Festival

WARNING:  This is long.  There is also profanity.  You may wish to “opt out.”  

On March 25th, the Fort Myers Film Festival kicked off with “Most Likely to Succeed,” a documentary that showcases High Tech High, a charter school in San Diego. High Tech High, according to the film, emphasizes development of soft skills such as innovation, leadership and creativity over the acquisition of a broad, albeit more shallow, field of general knowledge and rote memorization.

This film wound up winning the festival’s Audience Favorite Award, and I am not surprised.
Such awards often sink to the lowest common denominator.

I found the film dangerous, dishonest and emblematic of the culture of entitlement as well as the intellectual collapse of this country. I also group the testing opt- out movement in this indictment.

Continue reading →