Iyengar Yoga with Caroline

A magnificent root sculpture. Weathered and ancient and strong.

Nigella Lawson has been officially announced as the new judge of The Great British Bake Off. in an interview with , she talks about over the years, exercise has helped the 66-year-old maintain her health and wellbeing. ‘I do yoga three times a week,’ she told Good Housekeeping. ‘I have to do something I enjoy, otherwise I wouldn’t do it. The older I get, the more I realise I have got to do lots of stretching. So even if I’m not doing yoga, I make myself do lots of stretching.’

Nigella favours Iyengar yoga, that highlights precision and correct positioning when performing postures, often using props like blocks and belts as support. For her, fitness is as much about overall wellbeing as it is about physical results.

‘As you get on in life, you value feeling well as opposed to looking well,’ she’s said

“Yoga certainly makes you feel great, and you want to carry on feeling great.”

James Gourley//Getty Images

https://www.womenshealthmag.com/uk/fitness/yoga/a70152660/nigella-lawson-66-fitness/

Stability and mobility, then strength and alignment. What yoga does to you.

The Samsara of War, by Tias Little

In times of war, sorrow courses through our veins and our hearts bleed droplets of grief. In the face of such immense suffering, we are perplexed and deeply saddened. How could people wreak such ruin upon each other?

War evokes such existential sorrow as violence, divisiveness, terror and hate perpetuate samsara. Samsara is the endless cycle of suffering, carried out by the blind eye of aggression. Violence breeds more violence.

For those of us committed to realizing an undivided mind, and a heart that is wide open, it is shockingly painful to witness senseless acts of war. War ensues when people get caught in the snare of dichotomizing belief-- taking sides, each side deeming themselves to be right and the other wrong, vowing revenge. For those of us on the path of yoga, the aim is to reconcile split-mindedness, knowing that a divided mind perpetuates personal and collective suffering.

The outbreak of war in the Middle East emboldens us to be more committed to loving kindness, tolerance, and non-harming (the first vow in yoga, ahimsa). While there is never perfect harmony between peoples of the world, we must strive for unity and peace. On the world’s stage, we must move away from dualistic thinking and narrowed mindsets of us versus them and find a way to greater compassionate presence.

Wise words from B. K. S. Iyengar.

Yoga theory - inquiring minds want to know! Free event at the London Public Library next Wed, June 21 IDY- International Day of Yoga.

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