The true secret of giving advice is, after you have honestly given it, to be perfectly indifferent whether it is taken or not and never persist in trying to set people right.

-Hannah Whitall Smith, Inspirational author (1832-1911)

Every time we fly, drive, or turn on a light switch, we generate carbon dioxide the carbon emissions that cause global warming. But each of us can undo some of that damage by investing in carbon offset (the funds usually benefit renewable energy projects like wind power and greenhouse gas reduction). Think of it as paying your energy toll.

TerraPass and DrivingGreen.com are two sites that help you calculate your emissions based on car model and mileage or flight distance. DrivingGreen.com even lets you figure out how to offset your events. (You might rethink that destination wedding.)

If you are not up for doing the calculations, you can leave the math to someone else: Silverjet, the new all-business class British airline, bills itself as the first carbon neutral airline. Included in every ticket price is a carbon offset fee, which allows customers to reinvest earned carbon points in various green projects around the world. Pretty Nifty! Now get out there and spread the word Earth Day is April 22nd!

More on Earth Day

Tagar is a hairy, tufted herb. Indian valerian is prescribed as a remedy for nervous unrest, sleeplessness, depression and other illnesses related to mind.

Who needs Tagar & how does it help?

Mental ill health is essentially a result of disequilibrium brought about by unwholesome interaction between individual and surrounding environment.

This interaction operates through an axis consisting of three fundamentnal factors namely kala (time rhythm), buddhi (intellect( and indryatha (sensorail inputs). The resulting edisequilibrium causes a wide-array of altered behavior being reflected on the mental state.

Valerian is a nervine, aiding sleep and helping fight depression. It helps people under emotional stress or pain. In a recent study done on chronic sleeplessness, valerian improved the quality of sleep in 89% of the participants. Of those participants, 44% described their night’s rest as perfect sleep.

Who should not take Tagar?

Caution should be taken during pregnancy. One should also avoid taking Valerian during activities which require alertness.

As with all medications, use only under the direction of a qualified practitioner.

Some foods are considered especially healing in Ayurveda. According to Ayurvedic tradition, a central dietary teaching is to eat in order to provide adequate nutrition for the mind and the body without being too onerous on the digestive system or your body’s ability to fully absorb and utilize those nutrients. There are many easy-to-digest foods that are wholesome and provide multiple health benefits and are prized in Ayurveda. Ayurveda categorizes foods by rasa (taste)…the tastes being sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent and astringent. The typical North American diet includes plenty of the first three tastes and not enough of the last three, and ideally all six tastes should be included at each main meal. Ayurveda also classifies foods according to their quality–foods are considered dry or unctuous, heavy or light, warm or cool according to their physical nature.

In accordance with Ayurvedic teachings, it is recommended to include more of those tastes and qualities that pacify the dosha(s) you are trying to balance at a given time, and less of others. Vegetables and herbs or spices that contribute the bitter or astringent tastes, whole milk, lassi (a drink made by blending together fresh yogurt and water), cooked fruit, chutneys, whole grains, unleavened fresh breads made with flour that has not been refined, and mung beans are examples of particularly nourishing and healing foods that are recommended in Ayurveda. Foods are also classified as sattvic, rajasic and tamasic according to the quality of the impact they have on the heart, mind and spirit.

Foods that are particularly nourishing for not just physical, but mental, emotional and spiritual health, are called sattvic–foods that impart sattva (purity)–in Ayurveda. Rice, milk, ghee and almonds are examples of sattvic foods. Ghee (clarified butter) is among the best rejuvenating and longevity-promoting foods. It aids digestion and calms the nerves. Ghee’s rate of absorption is high, making it an excellent medium for transporting the nutrients of other foods to the tissues.

Don’t judge each day

by the harvest you reap,

but by the seeds you plant.

- Robert Louis Stevenson

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

–Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

[youtube t4Ri37iAyWk nolink]

Lisa Coffey (the lovely Dosha Diva) featured a great piece in her daily enewsletter today about the yoga of sound.

Touching upon the fact that Ayurveda understands that sound has a profound effect on our well-being. Lisa sited how sound can be used to reduce stress, maintain health, and also to invoke spiritual awakenings.

The official term for the use of sound and music as a spiritual path is Nada Yoga, which translates from Sanskrit to mean, Sound Yoga

Russill Paul is a world-renowned musician who was born and raised in India. He blends Indian and contemporary music in his recordings and performances. Author of a new book, The Yoga of Sound: Tapping the Hidden Power of Music and Chant, Russill focuses on the four streams of the Nada Yoga system: mantra (sound), mudra (sacred gestures), pranayama (yogic breathing), and dhyana (meditation).

“When talking about music”, Paul explains, “…each note has intrinsic properties that generate healing, wholeness, and love.”

In the April issue of Conde Naste’s Traveller, they released their 2007 readers’ poll celebrating the top 56 spas in North America. Showcasing the best spas and highlighting the opinions of some very enthusiastic travelers/readers. “Readers raved about destination spas this year,” explains the magazine,” with more than twice as many high scorers as last year”.

Of the top nine awards, Destination Spa Group spas (a select, by-membership-only group) - received a total of seven awards, including their: Cal-a-Vie, Canyon Ranch in Lenox, Golden Door, Canyon Ranch in Tucson, Lake Austin Spa Resort, Rancho La Puerta and Red Mountain Spa.

Plan your spa retreat at DestinationSpas.com.

Finish each day and be done with it.

You have done what you could;

some blunders and absurdities

have crept in;

forget them as soon as you can.

Tomorrow is a new day;

you shall begin it serenely

and with too high a spirit

to be encumbered with your old nonsense.

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ayurveda is the science of life / longevity. Yoga is the science of aligning the individual self with the universal Self. Yoga tries to expand the narrow constricted egoistic personality to the all-pervasive, eternal and blissful state of reality. Both sciences aim at developing our physical, mental, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual levels of being.

During the course of the next few weeks, we hope to provide you with a bit more information on the various types of yoga and to discuss some of the basic principles. For now, just sit back and b-r-e-a-t-h-e…

[youtube voHs9UgFDgM nolink]