Mindful Yoga, Mindful Life: A Guide for Everyday Practice

By Charlotte Bell

Book Overview

A longtime yoga teacher and Buddhist meditation practitioner, Charlotte Bell describes in passionate detail how she applied the eightfold path of the Yoga Sutras and the Buddha's heed for mindfulness to her hectic Western life. The path is often rough; she writes of self-doubt and struggles, of trying too hard and discouragement, and of learning to accept the life she has--imperfections and all. But with grace and guts, she navigates the eight limbs of yoga, using the Yoga Sutras and insight meditation as her compass. She shows each limb at work in her relationships, music, asana, meditation, and even in writing this book. Her discussion of each limb includes practical ways that readers can bring mindfulness into asana itself, and in a section called "Reflections," Bell encourages readers to experience even the most ordinary activity as extraordinary, whether it's washing dishes, making tea, or rolling out their yoga mat.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1930485204
• ISBN13: 9781930485204
• Release Date: February 2005
• Publisher: Shambhala
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.1" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Yoga into meditation

Mindful Yoga, Mindful Life is about developing clarity of mind through a modern approach to the classic Eight Limbs of Yoga. Charlotte Bell's book is filled with her own personal stories of depression, relationship difficulties, and the regular challenges of living a wholesome life. She goes deeply into the Eight Limbs of Yoga which includes such topics as: deepening personal integrity, healthy care of the body, breathing disciplines, and centering the mind in meditation. This book is not really about physical yoga, it's about the mental qualities of peacefulness that are possible through physical yoga as well as everyday life. This is a great book if you want to bring peace of mind into your life in a real way, and/or learn to meditate. The foreword by Donna Farhi was less than inspiring and seemed off the mark.

An Open Invitation to Bring Yoga into your Life

Mindful Yoga, Mindful Life is an open invitation to bring yoga into your life. Drawing on many years of yoga study,the author presents its core teachings, artfully weaving in personal stories from her own journey. Part memoir,part instruction,the result is a warm and accessible guidebook to be sampled, savored, and shared. Receive the book as a gift, whether you are just beginning yoga or have been on the path for years. Yael Calhoun, coauthor of Create a Yoga Practice for Kids Executive Director of GreenTREE Yoga