Veggie Blog

Not every yoga book is concerned with better alignment or inner peace. Rob Dinsmoor’s The Yoga Divas and Other Stories takes the more unpredictable route: a collection of autobiographical, comic and sometimes awkward encounters from life as a yoga practitioner, teacher and ordinary human being.

What kind of stories are inside?

The original book description ranges from the discomforts of sharing a room on a yoga retreat to the eccentric characters met in classes. It also reaches far beyond yoga: there are accounts involving a dog adopted under dubious pretences, adventures in Central American jungles and memories of ill-fated creative projects. The point is not to teach a posture but to find humour in situations that refuse to unfold as planned.

Is it a yoga memoir or a short-story collection?

It is best understood as a personal collection with yoga among its recurring settings. The author’s observations can be sharp, sceptical and affectionate at the same time. There is no reason to expect an illustrated training programme, a teaching certificate manual or a guide to a specific school of yoga.

Who is likely to enjoy it?

Readers who have spent time in studios, workshops or retreats may recognise how earnestly people can pursue serenity while life keeps supplying comic interruptions. Others may simply enjoy travel mishaps, colourful characters and personal essays that do not take themselves too seriously. The humour may be irreverent; it is not the tone of a quiet meditation handbook.

Can you still buy it?

Yes. Digital and paperback formats are still listed, although availability depends on region and the format you choose.

Related on Veggie-Blog: What Is Yoga?.

Book: The Yoga Divas and Other Stories by Rob Dinsmoor
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Despite its name, Highest Yoga Tantra by Daniel Cozort is not a guide to ordinary stretching, fitness classes or the commercial use of the word “tantra.” It is an introduction to the advanced contemplative systems of Tibetan Buddhism. Readers interested in Buddhist philosophy and the historical structure of tantric practice will find a very different subject here from the one presented by most exercise-oriented yoga books.

What does the book cover?

The publisher describes a four-part work. It begins with foundations shared by sutra and tantra, then moves into the generation stage of Highest Yoga Tantra. The next part surveys the completion-stage yogas, and the final part compares the completion stages associated with Kalachakra and Guhyasamaja. These are technical concepts within Tibetan Buddhist traditions, not a sequence of postures suitable for casual home practice.

Why distinguish tantra from modern fitness yoga?

The same word can be used in very different contexts. A reader looking for a relaxing evening yoga routine could be surprised by Cozort’s detailed discussion of religious texts, contemplative models and subtle-body terminology. This is best approached as a scholarly orientation to a specific tradition. The book is not a stand-alone invitation to perform advanced ritual or meditation techniques without training.

Who would benefit from reading it?

It may suit students of Tibetan Buddhism, comparative religion and contemplative studies who are comfortable learning specialised terminology. A general reader can also use it to understand why Tibetan tantric systems do not fit neatly into modern ideas of yoga as fitness. Expect explanation and context rather than photographs of accessible poses.

Is the book still available?

Yes. The publisher Shambhala/Snow Lion lists a paperback edition, ISBN 9781559392358, with a current ordering option. This provides a separate verified purchase route while the original Veggie-Blog Amazon identifier remains unchanged below.

For wider background on meditation rather than tantric instruction, the NCCIH summary of meditation and mindfulness is a useful neutral reference. It should not be treated as an explanation of the tantric stages in Cozort’s book.

Related on Veggie-Blog: Where Did Yoga Come From?.

Book: Highest Yoga Tantra by Daniel Cozort
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Spiritual power demands physical health and the contemporary Western practitioner can learn much from the ancient tradition of yoga. Yoga, meaning “union,” is a multi-dimensional discipline designed to help the individual attain health, serenity, focus, and, ultimately, union with the Divine. In the words of one master, Aleister Crowley, “Magick is a Pyramid built layer by layer. The work of the Body of Light-with the technique of Yoga, is the foundation of the whole.”
This succinct and uniquely helpful book explores the often-overlooked importance of bringing and maintaining a healthy body and a clear thinking mind to the practice of ceremonial magick or witchcraft. While many books on magick discuss the importance of ritual, few focus on the physical, spiritual, and moral qualities necessary to make those rituals effective.
“The physical body is the living temple of the Holy Spirit. A person who can’t sit in one position with comfort and quiet, who can’t breathe with evenness and regularity, who can’t temporarily still the mind of its many warring thoughts, who can’t channel powerful energies through the body because of ill health-will be hard-pressed to spiritually advance. This book will teach you do to every one of these things and more.”

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A book promising yoga in a minute speaks to anyone who finds it difficult to schedule a whole class. 1 Minute Yoga, credited in Veggie-Blog’s original archive to R. Mohan with illustrations by Andrea Preda, is presented as a collection of short exercises that readers can select according to the part of the body they want to move.

What does the original description actually say?

The surviving description is brief. It says that the exercises can be done in a minute or a few minutes and that they use body movement rather than stimulants or other substances. It does not provide an independently verified list of exercises, editions or medical outcomes. It would therefore be misleading to describe specific illustrated poses as if we had checked the book’s pages.

Why do short movement breaks appeal?

A short pause can be a manageable starting point during a long day at a desk. Standing up, moving gently and paying attention to your breath is not a substitute for a complete exercise programme, but it can interrupt long periods of sitting. The WHO physical-activity guidance advises limiting sedentary time and reminds readers that some movement is better than none.

What can you realistically expect?

Think of one-minute movement as a habit-building tool rather than a promise of dramatic results. You might use a short practice to notice posture or reduce the feeling of stiffness before returning to work. Move within a comfortable range and stop if an exercise causes pain. The NCCIH guidance on yoga discusses common precautions and the importance of appropriate instruction.

Related on Veggie-Blog: No Time for Yoga? How a Few Minutes a Day Can Still Count.

Book: 1 Minute Yoga by R. Mohan (illustrated by Andrea Preda)
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The featured image is an AI-generated illustration, not a photo of real people or an official book cover.

This DVD set is part of a greater project that is designed to aid the research in Traditional Thai Massage and find the ways to integrate it with other forms and modalities of bodywork and movement education.Disc #1 will guide you through the basic exercises of Thai Yoga Massage with narration. These 130 exercises give plenty of options for an energy balancing full body massage session. Performing all the exercises in one session aren’t called for but picking exercises mindfully based on receiver’s needs, will easily round up a 2 hour session.Disc #2 will give you an uninterrupted overview of each body position of Thai Yoga Massage. The sequences follow the basic structure of the energy balancing massage session but most likely not as a regular session would flow.The material on this DVD can be best used with the book of THE ART AND KNOWLEDGE OF THAI YOGA MASSAGE and with the beginner Thai Massage course offered by CenterPoint Shiatsu and Massage School in Minnesota, or with any training course in Thai Massage where supervision is available. The material IS NOT intended to be a “watch and do” type of thing.This product is manufactured on demand using DVD-R recordable media. Amazon.com’s standard return policy will apply.

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