Read these 5 Bright Books by Authors from Colorado
Known for its community of open-minded and spiritual people, it’s no surprise that Boulder, Colorado is home to several authors who are passionate about consciousness, meditation and yoga. Also based in Boulder, frequencyRiser supports our local book lovers.
Why do books that were inspired in Boulder, Colorado stand out? It may be the many yoga centers, ashrams, meditation escapes, and the impressive Flatiron mountains that set the scene. (Or all of these fun things to do for a cheerful holiday season in Boulder!)
Find support in these books while supporting local Colorado authors!
Books Written by Boulder, Colorado Authors
1. The Art of Vinyasa: Awakening Body and Mind through the Practice of Ashtanga Yoga by Richard Freeman and Mary Taylor
The Art of Vinyasa explores Ashtanga yoga as a meditative guide for profound inner change. Well-respected teachers of Ashtanga yoga, Richard Freeman and Mary Taylor, reveal that practicing vinyasa - breath-integrated movements - unlocks the experience of conscious awakening of the body and mind.
Mary Taylor began studying yoga in 1972 and became an avid Ashtanga practitioner in 1987 after her first trip to Mysore, India, to study with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois. She and Richard Freeman founded the Yoga Workshop in Boulder, Colorado in 1988.
Richard Freeman began his commitment to yoga in 1968 and teaches workshops and seminars on yoga asana, philosophy, pranayama, and meditation across the globe. When not traveling, he and his wife, Mary Taylor, split their time between Colorado and Thailand, where they also teach.
2. The Art and Business of Teaching Yoga by Amy Ippoliti & Taro Smith, PhD
The Art and Business of Teaching Yoga teaches how to build a loyal student base, plan dynamic classes and advance your own yoga practice. Beyond the basics, authors Amy Ippoliti and Taro Smith uncover how to become more financially stable, manage a marketing plan, leverage social media, and establish a unique yoga brand identity.
Amy Ippoliti is a yoga education pioneer who teaches online at YogaGlo.com and at venues including Yoga Journal LIVE! events, and Wanderlust.
Taro Smith, PhD, is a movement specialist and wellness entrepreneur who helps yoga teachers elevate their business strategies. Both authors live in Boulder, Colorado.
3. Conscious Bedtime Stories by Andrew Newman
Andrew Newman’s award-winning team behind Conscious Bedtime Stories is global. Cape Town is the base for their book designer, editor and brand manager. Our beautiful Colorado is home to the rest!
A graduate of the Barbara Brennan School of Healing, Newman has been actively involved in consciousness work through the Mankind Project since 2006. Newman fiercely believes that the last few minutes of every day are priceless. Conscious Bedtime Stories help children and parents grow consciously together in mind, body and spirit when the day is winding to an end.
The Conscious Bedtime Story Club Mom’s Choice Award Winning 4-Pack Collection is a complete set of four hardcover stories: The Laughing Witch, The Elephant Who Tried To Tiptoe, The Boy Who Searched For Science, and The Hug Who Got Stuck. The Conscious Bedtime Story Club submitted 4 stories to Mom's Choice and won 4 Gold awards that named these titles "among the best in family-friendly media, products and services."
4. Dance of the Electric Hummingbird by Patricia Walker
In Dance of the Electric Hummingbird, Pat struggles in this true story to balance her roles of (not so) average wife and mom, while at the same time being driven into the volatile world of celebrities, sex, and rock 'n' roll music.
Dance of the Electric Hummingbird chronicles how an unexpected spiritual awakening during a rock concert turned the life of a skeptic inside out. Pat confronts the unparalleled power of the spirit and rethinks her understanding of life.
Patricia Walker lives in northern Colorado where she is working on her next book and maintaining her website www.bajarockpat.com.
5. Persephone's Journey by Vicky Short
Persephone’s Journey is a memoir of Vicky Short’s first hand exposure to paranormal happenings, out-of-body experiences, and psychic awakening. Her life events chronical many years, demonstrating their impact and challenging her understanding of reality.
Using several of the teachings of author Bruce Moen, Vicky’s mission is to pass on his work and share what she’s learned about the mysteries of psychic and paranormal phenomena.
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Also in FrequencyRiser Conscious Lifestyle Blog
Cultivating Mindfulness: How to Practice Mindfulness Meditation
Cultivating mindfulness is the key to overcoming suffering and recognizing natural wisdom: both our own and others'. How do we go about it?
In the Buddhist tradition and in Contemplative Psychotherapy training, we nurture mindfulness through the practice of sitting meditation. There are many different kinds of meditation. For example, some are designed to help us relax; others are meant to produce altered states of consciousness.
Mindfulness meditation is unique in that it is not directed toward getting us to be different from how we already are. Instead, it helps us become aware of what is already true moment by moment. We could say that it teaches us how to be unconditionally present; that is, it helps us be present with whatever is happening, no matter what it is.
Mindfulness, paying precise, nonjudgmental attention to the details of our experience as it arises and subsides, doesn't reject anything. Instead of struggling to get away from experiences we find difficult, we practice being able to be with them. Equally, we bring mindfulness to pleasant experiences as well. Perhaps surprisingly, many times we have a hard time staying simply present with happiness. We turn it into something more familiar, like worrying that it won't last or trying to keep it from fading away.
When we are mindful, we show up for our lives; we don't miss them in being distracted or in wishing for things to be different. Instead, if something needs to be changed we are present enough to understand what needs to be done. Being mindful is not a substitute for actually participating in our lives and taking care of our own and others' needs. In fact, the more mindful we are, the more skillful we can be in compassionate action.
It's Still Such a Wonderful World
It's easy to lose sight of the beauty of the world in the midst of tragedy, political upheaval, injustice and suffering. While we continue with our practice, working to ease the suffering of others and living a life of compassion and Love, we also need to be mindful and grateful for the beauty of the world that still surrounds us when we choose Love. Like Pops says, "Love baby. Love. That's the secret."
"What a Wonderful World" [1970 Spoken Introduction Version] along with Oliver Nelson's Orchestra is a song written by Bob Thiele (as George Douglas) and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released as a single in 1968. Thiele and Weiss were both prominent in the music world (Thiele as a producer and Weiss as a composer/performer). Armstrong's recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. Intended as an antidote for the increasingly racially and politically charged climate of everyday life in the United States, the song also has a hopeful, optimistic tone with regard to the future, with reference to babies being born into the world and having much to look forward to.
From Yama to Samyama
However, the ultimate goal of practicing yoga is to achieve transcendence and to break this cyclic existence. Dharana, dhyana, and samadhi are the three states that prepare one toward this transcendental goal. These three together is called Samyama (sam meaning total and yama meaning to control). “So Samyama means complete mastery over the psychic process or complete control of mental concentration.”