Veggie Blog

A Woman’s Book of Yoga, by Machelle M. Seibel, M.D. together with renowned yogini Hari Kaur Khalsa, shows how every woman can embrace the feminine energy of creation to enhance her physical and spiritual development.

Interest in yoga is at an all-time high, especially among women. Whether readers wish to begin the practice or are already involved in yoga, this innovative book will help them understand the unique benefits yoga provides for a woman’s health and mental well-being.

The authors lead women of all ages through the health and life cycles specific to females by illustrating the spiritual and physical advantages of Kundalini yoga, as taught by yoga master Yogi Bhajan. Hari Khalsa applies ancient wisdom to explain how to determine and enhance one’s own special relationship with the mind, body, and soul. Using his expertise on women’s health issues, Dr. Siebel reveals the scientific basis for yoga’s positive effects on the brain. Together, Dr. Siebel and Hari Khalsa create a dialogue of spiritualism and science, elucidating how every woman can reap the rewards of yoga for a lifetime.

Machelle M. Siebel, M.D., is a reproductive endocrinologist at the Fertility Center of New England and a clinical professor of gynecology and obstetrics at Boston University School of Medicine. He is an expert in alternative and nutritional approaches to gynecology.
Hari Kaur Khalsa is one of the most respected Kundalini yoga and meditation teachers in the world, and has created specialized yoga programs for pregnant women, senior citizens, and youngsters. She lives in the Boston area.

Book: A Woman’s Book of Yoga by Machelle Seibel
View this book on Amazon (affiliate link: we may earn a commission at no cost to you)

Yoga remains a popular pursuit for people of all ages, and veteran sportswriter and journalist John Capouya is among the committed devotees. With his Real Men Do Yoga: 21 Star Athletes Reveal Their Secrets for Strength, Flexibility and Peak Performance, the author provides a readable and well-illustrated guide to yoga practice. The ostensible “guy hook” here comes by way of testimonials from high-profile jocks such as Tennessee Titans running back Eddie George, New York Mets pitcher Al Leiter, all-star forward Kevin Garnett of the Minnesota Timberwolves and many others, all of whom endorse yoga as a serious adjunct athletic regimen that enhances flexibility, improves balance, helps prevent injury, increases breath support and relieves stress. “Regular” guys chime in as well truck drivers, restaurateurs, architects, etc. giving witness to yoga’s role in general fitness and mind-body awareness. Besides a rundown of basic yoga poses and how to achieve them, the text also offers sport-by-sport workouts, material on meditation (for the guy who strives to go “deeper within”), and a chapter on yoga’s positive impact on one’s sex life. Capouya’s own New York City-based yoga guru Michael Lechonczak serves as consultant to this earnest volume. 

Book: Real Men Do Yoga by John Capouya
View this book on Amazon (affiliate link: we may earn a commission at no cost to you)

When God gave Susan Bordenkircher the vision for her yoga-based Christian ministry, Outstretched in Worship, she truly believed she was stepping into uncharted territory. And while God has used her ministry as a pioneer of sorts in this movement, she was amazed to see the level of interest and involvement that already existed. She quickly learned that there are approximately 15 million people in this country practicing yoga, and fully 50-60 percent of them say they come from a church background. In fact, many churches, Christian retreats, and denominational conventions are incorporating yoga as one creative approach to cultivating a quiet, receptive spirit and deep prayer life.

Fitness instructor Susan Bordenkircher wondered along with other Christians whether the practice of yoga somehow compromised Christian beliefs. When she tried it she found that it gave her a workout that slowed down her nervous energy and allowed her to get quiet, remain still, and focus her mind on the Lord.

Book: Yoga for Christians by Susan Bordenkircher
View this book on Amazon (affiliate link: we may earn a commission at no cost to you)

The old version of this post was only a few short paragraphs. It said yoga began in India 3,000 to 4,000 years ago, that it has never been a religion, that about 5 million people in the United States practice it, and that many health professionals feel it can be part of a treatment plan. This rewrite expands each claim and checks the numbers.

How old is yoga, and where did it begin?

The word comes from the Sanskrit for “to join” or “union,” as the old post says. Historians agree that yoga began in India, but they disagree about when. In their introduction to Roots of Yoga, Mallinson and Singleton write that systematic yoga techniques are hard to find in South Asian sources before about 500 BCE, and that popular claims that the oldest Vedic texts prove an ancient yoga practice are speculation. The 3,000 to 4,000 years in the old post is therefore an estimate that cannot be proved. A safer statement is that texts about yoga-like practices date from the first millennium BCE. Our post on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras covers the best-known classical text.

What are the three parts of hatha yoga?

The old post says that hatha yoga, the kind you see in a gym or YMCA, has three parts: poses (asanas), breathing techniques and relaxation. That matches Harvard Health’s description of a typical class, which starts with breathing exercises, moves on to poses and ends with a final relaxation called savasana. Hatha texts themselves began to appear in the Middle Ages (historians place the first ones between roughly the ninth and eleventh centuries), and the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, written by Svatmarama in the 15th century, is the best known. If you want to know what a modern hatha class looks like, read what hatha yoga is.

Is yoga a religion?

The old post says that yoga has never been a religion. That is partly right. Yoga developed within Indian philosophical and religious traditions, including Hindu, Buddhist and Jain ones, and Britannica describes it as something that may be atheistic or theistic and can adopt different principles. In most American classes it is taught as exercise and relaxation, with some teachers adding chanting, meditation or philosophy. If you are unsure, ask the teacher what a class includes and whether you can skip any part you are not comfortable with.

How many Americans practice yoga?

The old figure of 5 million is out of date. According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, the share of U.S. adults who practiced yoga rose from 5.0 percent in 2002 to 15.8 percent in 2022, based on a national survey, which is roughly one adult in six. In 2012, 94 percent of adults who practiced it did so for wellness-related reasons. Our post on how yoga became popular in America tells that story.

Do health professionals recommend yoga?

The old post said that you may be given yoga postures by a physical therapist, and that many health professionals feel it can be part of a treatment plan. That is a fair statement if it is read carefully. The NCCIH says that research suggests yoga may help with stress, neck pain and some other problems, but the evidence is mixed in places, and it is not a replacement for medical care. Some therapists do use yoga-based movements, so ask your provider whether a gentle practice suits your condition. For the full picture, see yoga explained: what it is, who practices it and what the research supports.

View this book on Amazon (affiliate link: we may earn a commission at no cost to you)

Yantra Yoga offers the practitioner a unique approach to Yoga practice, parallel to the Hatha Yoga of the Hindu tradition. Called the “Union of Sun and Moon”, it is a dynamic system of trulkhor (movements) and tsalung(pranayamas) and differs from more widespread yogas in that it is done as a sequence of movements co-ordinated with breathing and specific ways of holding. This practice helps us to relax and achieve a state of well-being and harmony, at the same time enhancing physical health, energy, and mental balance. At a more profound level, it is an important practice to integrate body, speech and mind in a state that is beyond our normal dualistic concepts.Yantra Yoga is a very rich body of knowledge that includes 3 preliminary series, 75 yantras (asanas), 7 breathing practices, 7 lotuses and the vajra wave–108 exercises in all. Profusely illustrated with drawings and photographs,Yantra Yoga presents Tibet’s trulkhor yoga tradition as taught by one if its master exponents, Ch?ɬ?gyal Namkhai Norbu. Yantra Yoga’s movements, exercises, and methods of concentration are all based on an eighth-century text by Vairocana whose translation is included, illuminated by Ch?ɬ?gyal Namkhai Norbu’s commentary. Detailed charts for the timing of the breathing exercises are also included.

View this book on Amazon (affiliate link: we may earn a commission at no cost to you)