Breath Gives Life

living yoga, ayurveda,sadhana & natures earthy ways

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  • About Carmen
  • Yoga – the practice
    • Heart to Heart – Why i teach yoga
    • Starting Yoga for Good Health & Calmness
    • Yoga Nidra – Anyone can do it
    • Private Yoga facilitation with Carmen
    • The role of yoga in cancer
  • Retreats
    • Yoga & Nature Immersion Retreat- Wonderland Lodge, Makarora
  • Learn to Meditate
    • How meditation can help
  • Testamonials
  • Home
  • About Carmen
  • Yoga – the practice
    • Heart to Heart – Why i teach yoga
    • Starting Yoga for Good Health & Calmness
    • Yoga Nidra – Anyone can do it
    • Private Yoga facilitation with Carmen
    • The role of yoga in cancer
  • Retreats
    • Yoga & Nature Immersion Retreat- Wonderland Lodge, Makarora
  • Learn to Meditate
    • How meditation can help
  • Testamonials

Inspiration

abundant.earth abundant.earth. edible weeds recipes abundat.earth ancient awakening awareness ayurveda ayurveda upper clutha Ayurveda with carmen Cha Dao cultivate discipline daily routine deep listening dinacharya EcoHaven ethicalfarming fat-hen saag gentle yoga for good health & calmness health kriya yoga maori meditation Mountain Spirit Retreat natural law nature wisdom no way Hollyford highway organicfood ritucharya self development self realisation shamanism simple sourdough spiritual musings staple recpies the holy cow true happiness wanakacommunityyogawithcarmen Wu De yoga yoga for cancer yogainthecommunity yogainthecommunitywithcarmen yogateacherwanaka yoga wanaka yoga with carmen

Yoga & Nature Immersion

Retreat @ Wonderland Lodge 23/10/2021 -24/10/2021
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Ayurveda

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Yoga for Good Health & Calmness

Two Practice times a week with Carmen
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  • ayurveda/self care,  meditation/sprituality,  Retreats,  yoga

    Why Retreat?

    carmen / September 20, 2021

      Commiting to a retreat may be something new, and like anything we do for the first time can often put us out of our comfort zone. However one of the best antidotes…

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  • breathgiveslife,
    purposeful living

    Freedom, Health and the Pursuit of Happiness

    carmen / July 17, 2021

    There is a “designed” veil of ignorance, concerning the awareness of Unalienable Rights. Freedom, health & happiness are qualities of the highest value which we are ALL born with. These are the highest…

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  • ayurveda and old age
    ayurveda/self care,  yoga

    Ways to support your Yoga practice as you get older

    carmen / March 8, 2021

    The ripe age of 65 marks the transition to “old age” if, we are lucky enough to live this long!! Ayurveda views this stage as the age of Vata dominated by the element…

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  • yoga beyond asana
    purposeful living,  Uncategorized,  yoga,  yogainthecommunity

    Yoga beyond Asana

    carmen / February 10, 2021

      Each Summer i take an 8 week break from facilitating a gentle yoga for good health and calmness practice in my local community. I relish this time, not because i don’t enjoy…

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  • breathgiveslife
    ayurveda/self care,  purposeful living

    Energy into Nature – the Autumn influence of Yama Damstra

    carmen / June 5, 2020

    Autumn,  wrapped up,  hats on, we head outdoors catching the last of the lingering light.  Forest foraging for fungal friends, their timely presence favored to boost immunity & moods for the  Winter season. …

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  • meditation/sprituality,  yoga

    The odd relationship: Yoga and a consumer culture

    carmen / September 21, 2019

    At  the inaugural international conference on yoga for holistic health in New Delhi, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi cautioned against turning yoga into a commodity.  He stated: “Turning yoga into a business will…

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Categories

A brief affirmation practice developed by Paramahamsa Yogananda: cultivating the consciousness of perfect health

breath_gives_life
In what ways are you re-imaging the world at this In what ways are you re-imaging the world at this time of transition? The old world has gone, no singular cure, country, political ideology, belief systems, religion will save us. The institutions that used to protect people don't anymore! Folk no longer consenting to be governed. Instead choosing #freedom. We, each our own #creator what do you #dream and #imagine as the cracks widen and the light shines ever more brightly.
#innerawakening is to step outside of the mass cul #innerawakening is to step outside of the mass culture of society, and live an authentic way of life - Michael Meade #livingmyth Some say that we are currently in the collective battle for the soul to become authentic: to awaken to its uniqueness that is not confined by mass culture. Which in turn is connected to the rediscovery to the nature of the #spirit of life that cannot be seen but is the #breath that gives life. #breathgiveslife #breathetocomealive #findyourself
There is so much right now that is taking inspirat There is so much right now that is taking inspiration away from our creativity, however the one thing accessible to all of us is #nature. Direct experiences with nature have the ability to awaken the higher qualities of humanity, heal & sustain our vitality. The upcoming #yoga&nature immersion retreat at #wonderland lodge this week-end is an ernest response to the need to #unplug and turn to uplifting practices such as #shirinyoku #yoga #mediation #ayurveda to step back into the realm of creating the dream. We have some day spaces and accommodation options still available. head over to #breathgiveslife.com for full details and join the powerful transmission that happens when we all come together with the intent to lift our #consciousness & #energy.
It takes skill, strength & great will to push out It takes skill, strength & great will to push out of the mainstream. #sattva #rajas #tamas #3gunas #purity #restlessness #idleness #bhagavadgita
Life is Sacred.... All life. At least that's how i Life is Sacred.... All life. At least that's how i experience it. The importance of ritual, initiations, rights of passage the embodiment of #gratitude to the #blessing of life. My practice an embodiment of sacredness. Our time is so short, why do we spend so much time in opposition, this is no way to live a #sacred life. Our ability to step outside the crazy, be responsive, to embody the wisdom of kindness towards ourselves and to others, to take things on, to be discerning about every single choice we make is determined by our ability to let things go, in turn determined by our level of #self belief. Only then can we allow all information to come to us, because we know life is sacred and discern from this awareness. Letting go is the most difficult aspect of a sustained Yoga sadhana, but what does it look like when you do? Like me, perhaps you stop taking on others beliefs and awaken to your own apathy towards your own authority. A sacred life is seeing all the ways that you seek authority outside of your own #self and suppress the self. #awakening is to know who you are. #sadhana #sacredlife #sacredearth #blessingstobealive
#unplug #replenish then move forward. It takes ski #unplug #replenish then move forward. It takes skill to step back from our plugged in world. Much of the #yoga teachings recognised the distraction of overpowering culture... long before smartphones & facebook. More pertinent than ever the simple technique of sensory withdrawl #pratyahara. Taming the senses, to draw the mind inwards then upwards to direct #consciousness into the higher sensory faculties of our being: then we awaken to the knowledge that everything exists to support us, we move out of limited beliefs towards self belief.
when we know who we are, steady in our SELF, we no when we know who we are, steady in our SELF, we no longer need to project our well-being onto objects and experiences. #atman #brahman #spirit #unity #bodymindsoul #practicepracticepractice #practiceandalliscoming
All things #copper my drink bottle arrived and i h All things #copper my drink bottle arrived and i have had my first glass of copper I have known about drinking copper water since my #ayurveda training but never committed to this daily ritual. Now feels like a good time to do so. There are cautions that need to be understood when drinking water from a copper vessel, but like any medicine if we apply it with wisdom, intuition & common sense it will serve our health. As well as being #antimicrobial - (copper surfaces kill bacteria) ayurveda views copper water as being #tridoshic balancing all 3 #doshas #vata, #pitta #kapha. In sanskrit copper water is called tamra jal, and can benefit: inflammation, digestion, regulate thyroid, brain stimulant, and maintains hemoglobin levels - one of the reasons i am using it. if this is a practice you are drawn to, be sure to seek proper advice from an ayurvedic consultant or practioner that is familiar with this practice.
According to the #science of life & living #ayurve According to the #science of life & living #ayurveda a primary cause for #dis-ease is not listening to your own innate wisdom. Violating your own inner sense of intuition as well as ignoring past/present experience. This gives us a great responsibility to our health and is an empowering tool for taking control of our own #health. Also known as #crimeagainstwisdom #prajnaparadha, fundamentally means the intellect (buddhi) can discern between good & bad, suitable, unsuitable: impressions, food, medicine, and general lifestyle choices, harbouring #fear and other dense and inert emotions. This principle also applies to physcians; mismanagement of disease due to cognitive errors of thinking, largely due to ignorance and lack of knowledge of the #self Current research is showing what the #vedic seers realised: that the practice of #yoga #meditation and applied #ayurvedic principles can improve our ability to make life-affirming decisions, that better align with natural living. #achaiadaykeepsthedoctoraway #vedicwisdom
Never a better time for a #wellnessretreatnz #yog Never a better time for a #wellnessretreatnz #yoga #shirinyoku🌲🌱🌳🌿 #connectiontonature #sensoryreset
"In our comtemporary society, most people grow up "In our comtemporary society, most people grow up with minimal connection to the natural world around us. Most can identify many more corporate logos than plants" - #katrinablair #thewildwisdomofweeds. The return to my roots: growing and harvesting food for myself and family, cooking foraging, fermenting, making medicine tinctures. Reclaiming this knowledge then using #ayurveda principles learnt along the way is the cornerstone for living a balanced life, revealing the wisdom that living simply is the best life and that eating food is in fact #sacred. #ayurvedalifestyle #ayurvedaeveryday #retreat #wonderlandlodgemakarora
"MAD HUMAN DISEASE" is #mayatiwari comment on ge "MAD HUMAN DISEASE" is #mayatiwari comment on genetic engineers, biochemists those behind the forces of the drug companies, tampering with sacred life. Violence against #motherconsciousness. To take back control of our health is to stop these insufferable crimes. The cosmic role of the feminine mother energy that sustains and produces life must be honoured as the most sacred. When we honour the sacred we heal. Health is never the property of nor dictated by #technocrats #commerce #science #governments. We must turn to the innate ways that expand #freedom & #joy the content of our own #healing. Find the peaceful lifeways. #womenspowertoheal #menspowertoheal #healthissacred
I feel most connected in the forest realms and gar I feel most connected in the forest realms and gardens. Anywhere there is #biodiversity. These are places of #sattva balance & natural order. Through my #yoga & #ayurveda journey i can see how nature heals, how we as a bodily organism heal and when given the right situations and circumstances like #nature will return to balance. I am not afraid, i do not remedy a symptom to mask it, to only have more symptoms & imbalances continue, we must dive to the root and heal the whole. Comfortable in who i am, the awareness that so long as i see things as holistic, in terms of how how each choice has an impact on my #body #mind #soul. To live simply is the best life; like the beloved forest and gardens: sunlight, clean air, pure water, balanced and enriched soil, sattvic food, to limit the things that distract & burden the senses we will flourish and thrive in a balanced way. #sattva #doshas #ayurveda #forestlovers #gardenlover #naturalhealthrevolution
Paramahamsa #yogananda taught affirmation as a pow Paramahamsa #yogananda taught affirmation as a powerful tool. He refers to affirmation as the scientific use of concentration for healing inharmonies of #body #mind #soul through reason, will, feelling & prayer. He says that every word you utter should be potent with soul vibration and mans word should not only be #truth but definate understanding & #selfrealisation (knowing who you are and what you are not). Words saturated with sincerity, conviction faith & intuition are like highly explosive #vibrationbombs, which when set, shatter the rocks of difficulties and create the change desired. If we extend this out into the wider world it may also be a tool to help us discern truth & goodwill. Apply the practice of observation to your inner responses when listening, if your body & mind contracts, this is your body reacting to the negative vibration of the words, which are likely not sincere nor spoken with the intent to uplift. Words are powerful tools & weapons! #scientifichealingaffirmations #kriyayoga #knowwhoyouare
Why Retreat? #Retreats are a wonderful way to rese Why Retreat? #Retreats are a wonderful way to reset focus at any time. But more pertinently, in an uncertain post c0-vid world, we are more tense, stressed & exhausted. Even more important than ever to put the phone away, turn off the telly & radio, and just allow yourself to be present. Present to your #breath, to #silence, the sensations and sounds sitting in or walking through the forest the taste of your food. A few days living simply and away from technological distraction and turning to Yoga, nature & Ayurveda has a powerful impact on the nervous system, and can be really helpful in resetting focus, improving energy and shifting perspective. New Dates for the #yoga&nature #immersion #retreat 23/10/2021-24/10/2021 at #Wonderlandlodge #makarora day spots available if unable to commit for the entire time.
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~ Learn more about the method of Yoga that Carmen facilitates~

Exsistence, consciousness & bliss are the three longings of the heart

abundant.earth, yoga in the community
reflections by the lake

Yoga & Nature Immersion Retreat 25 26th September Wonderland Lodge, Makarora

breathgiveslife
Yoga & Nature Immersion Retreat, Wonderland Lodge

Yoga for Good Health & Calmness with Carmen two practice times a week

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Paramahamsa Yogananda
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