Day 6 by Autumn Blanton

Day 6!

 Today, like most days, we started with yoga guided by Dr. Reese. We were guided through warrior one, two, and triangle poses, including a practice while pressed against the wall to help keep our cores in line with our bodies which helped increase the stretch we felt. These yoga poses help to stretch the insides and backs of your legs and give your upper legs and core a workout! I recommend you give them a try with advice from Dr. Reese: pay attention to your body and move as far as your body wants to. Yoga is a great way to become more in tune with what your body is telling you and find out where you might be tense.

Next, Dr. Shivani led us through our pranayama, a yoga breathing exercise. We completed Anilom Vilom (alternate breathing), Kapal Bhati (jerk breathing), and two new ones we learned today, Virachen and Aum breathing. 

Virachen breathing is done by taking a deep breath, putting your arms up to the sky, and pulling it down with a sharp exhale through your nose. Aum breathing is done by focusing on your stomach while saying the first syllable of the mantra, "a", focusing on your throat while saying "u", and the top of your head by saying "m". Make sure to say each syllable of the mantra for double the time then the last. 

Next, we had a guest speaker, Ms. Daniela, who taught us the basics of meditation. It started about 5000 years ago in Hinduism as a way to connect the mind and body. Through meditation, you're able to move away from the roots of hate (aversion, attachment, and ignorance) in order to let your self-love blossom! We learned that the trick to meditation isn't necessarily clearing your mind, but instead slowing down the thoughts you have. The more you practice meditation, the easier it will be and the more results you will see such as managing stress, thinking calmer and clearer, improving self esteem, and more! 

Make sure to meditate over 7, 14, or 21 minutes for the best results! You can also say a mantra repeatedly over the duration of meditation which is a 1 or 2 syllable word that your brain can connotate to relaxation

We ended the day by drawing the outlines of our large sand mandalas. Everyone made designs in their journals fueled by an intention they wanted their mandala to fulfill. Some had intentions of becoming ...

                              ( Sketch/outline of sand mandala )

...more aware of their surroundings or removing negativity from their lives, but they were all positive things to improve their wellbeing. Finally, we cleaned and reset the room for the next day! :)