All posts tagged: kindness

Perspectives on Unity and Karma

Published by Sharon

Last week, under a news story about some other tragedy, the news source suggested some other stories I might be interested in. While I don’t usually take these recommendations, as part of my feeble attempt to control the negative media that I permit myself to absorb, this time, the top story caught my interest. At the Metropolitan Zoo in Santiago, Chile, a young man (a child…really…too young to order a beer in the United States), jumped into the lion enclosure, took off all his clothes and began to taunt the lions by shouting biblical quotes. They found a suicide note with the man’s clothing and the note was signed, “Jesus”. In order to save the man, the zoo was forced to shoot and kill the two lions. The male lion had been born into captivity. The female lion had been rescued from the circus. And, in that moment, the lives of the man, the lions and the zoo staff and all the children and adults who witnessed the happening unfold came together in a most unexpected …

Pounding On An Open Door

Published by Sharon

“How long will you keep pounding on an open door, begging someone to answer?” ~Rabia As soon as I read this quote, I knew it was a question I needed to deeply consider. It was illuminating to read this because I immediately visualized myself pounding furiously on the open door of life hoping that someone would arrive to help me find my way through. Yet, there is no need to pound on the door, to kick, scream, beg or demand because the door is already open. You can walk through, just as you are, right now. According to the Bhagavad Gita, “There has never been a time when you and I have not existed, nor will there be a time when we will cease to be. Therefore, play the role you’re meant for right now.” It’s so hard to accept this in the busy, fast paced life of self-improvement projects that we all live in right now. My clients all present various anxieties and fears that they are, at the same time, doing too much …

A Precious Human Life

Published by Sharon

Everyday, think as you wake up, Today I am fortunate to have woken up. I am alive, I have a precious human life. I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all of my energies to develop myself, To expand my heart out to others, to achieve enlightenment For the benefit of all beings. I am going to have kind thoughts towards others. I am not going to be angry, or think badly about others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can. ~HH The XIVth Dalai Lama

Keep Your Unkind Words to Yourself

Published by Sharon

Walk silently. I read this today on a sign indicating appropriate behavior while in the hallway at my son’s elementary school. When I read it the first time, it made sense to me. I’m sure that I was trained in the same way and have probably seen this message infinite times in my own elementary school and other institutional experiences and beyond. But, the more I looked at the sign, the less I was sure of what it meant. In my experience, this means, don’t make noise when you walk in the hall. But, how do I know this? Walk silently actually means something very different depending on the context. There are other messages on other signs. One of those messages is that students should “Keep their unkind words to themselves.” Again, upon initial reading, I immediately knew what this meant. It means that I shouldn’t call anyone a Poopy Head, you know, at least to their face. But, again, the more I saw this message, the less I was sure of what this really …

Compassion and Generosity

Published by Sharon

For those of you who live in Pittsburgh and use public buses regularly for transportation, you know that the last week has been a nightmare. At all times of day and night the buses are crowded and most service that we had come to depend on every 15-20 minutes is now only coming once every hour. Many bus drivers are frustrated and exhausted and riders are squished and even riders that have no business standing and hanging on for dear life are being asked to do so. With the reduction in service, many buses are too crowded to stop and pick up new passengers along the route. As I looked out the window when we passed stops by there were literally ten to twenty people waiting at these stops who would now have to wait 30-minutes to an hour for the next bus with absolutely no guarantee that one might come that would actually be able to stop and pick them up. I am currently 30+ weeks pregnant and was riding the bus with my …

It’s Not About the Place

Published by Sharon

Dear Yoga Matrika Community: At the end of April, almost four-years ago, I opened Yoga Matrika as a studio at 1406 S. Negley Avenue. At the time, my son was just an infant and I had newly returned to Pittsburgh after 17-years of roaming in various cities in the United States and countries in Asia. In these few years, Yoga Matrika has truly developed from a yoga studio into a beautiful community. This community has offered consistent support and encouragement both in the healing work that I am committed to doing and in my personal life. Since opening Yoga Matrika, I have experienced kindness and generosity and developed relationships that have enriched my life in ways that I could not have predicted. This work would not have been possible without the dedication and commitment of hundreds of students to this mindful and healing practice of yoga and meditation. Although I may have opened Yoga Matrika, I have not acted alone. Our community has had the benefit of the dedication and the selfless efforts of so …

A Great Healing

Published by Sharon

About 2-weeks ago now, I went to the emergency room in some of the worst pain I have ever been in. The back of my throat was blistered and I had a deep pain in my upper chest. For three-nights I had been up with this terrible pain that did not respond to Ibuprofen or any of the over the counter treatments I had to try. In the emergency room, I was told that I had acid reflux and was given some very powerful medications—-including one that has irreversable neurological problems as one of the common side effects. I had a suspicion that I actually had a viral infection and made an appointment with acupuncturist Melissa Sokulski at the Birch Center. In addition to the viral infection, I suspected that recent headaches and some of my complaints were related to stress and grief. I had responded well to acupuncture before, so I had high hopes for this treatment and my recovery. To my absolute amazement, the morning following my treatment, the blisters in the back of my …