From Me to You – November 2020

Sat Naam and heartfelt greetings from The Netherlands.

As a recently emigrated American, I still hold the holidays of my youth in my heart. November 26th is Thanksgiving Day in America and I view this month as a time to reflect on all that I have to be grateful for in my life. Some of these include my family, my friends, the teachings that Yogi Bhajan, the amazing staffers and volunteers at KRI, and the broader, beautiful Kundalini Yoga community. I am a blessed and grateful man.

Modern science is showing how incredibly powerful gratitude is as a key to happiness.  It is not just a feeling that can arise in response to something positive happening in your life, but an encompassing attitude that can be cultivated to positively change your neurochemistry, your resiliency, and your happiness.  From Aristotle to the Buddha, practicing gratitude has been a precept of ancient wisdom traditions around the world. 

What are you grateful for?

If you’re like me and enjoy learning about how modern science is validating many of the benefits of yoga and meditation, check out our science-focused online workshops – and look out for monthly new science-focused webinars, taught by members of KRI’s research advisory committee! 

Another important theme in KRI’s online courses center on the topic of social justice.  The traditional American celebration of Thanksgiving brings up issues of racism and colonization that are still not resolved to this day.  As householder yogis, it is important that we use the clarity and courage that our yoga practice gives us to stand-up for and speak-up for all oppressed peoples, and to recognize and work to change systemic racism.  We hope you are finding your own way to be an agent of social and planetary justice, and we are happy to offer a few yogic tools to help you.

 Wishing you the best of things, Sat Naam.