Dearest stone,
How are you? It must be pleasant,
resting all day, being loved
by the warmth of the sun
and cooled by the rays of the moon.
Or do you tire of being trod upon
by careless feet, cursed at
when toes smash into your
smooth, hard side? Does it hurt?
When you feel like no more than
compacted dust, take solace
in the refuge you provide
for sow bugs and centipedes
and know that when I venture out
on smiling mornings
my toes will caress--not curse--
your warm, unyielding side.
Sincerely,
me
by Brooke Boon
From the back cover
According to the dictionary, for something to be holy, it must be "dedicated or devoted to the service or worship of God, the church, or religion." And that's exactly what this style of yoga is, says instructor and founder Brooke Boon. It's not the yoga that relies on Hindu spirituality or teaches some form of oneness with the universe. This is Holy Yoga, and it's specifically for Christians.
What Brooke teaches through this inspiring and informative book is a profound physical worship of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, though prayer, breath work, and movement. Line drawings of the different poses make learning easy, and a fifty-minute DVD leads readers through an entire yoga routine.
My rating
My review
To answer my earlier question, yes, this book is a tad cheesy. I mostly skimmed the first 74 pages, which were written in a very modern I-want-to-be-your-best-friend voice, but would probably be very informative for someone who does not know why one should do yoga or how it can be a Christian practice.
However, the last half of the book turned out to be a wonderful resource, and the DVD provides several different easy-to-follow yoga routines. I especially appreciated the chapters on breathing and meditation, and the illustrated step-by-step descriptions of postures. The very last chapter contains a few routines that are different from the ones on the DVD and that vary in type and difficulty.
I highly recommend this book for beginners and novices of yoga.
A ridiculous idea? Perhaps. But humor me a moment and entertain this thought that was introduced (offhandedly mentioned, more like) in the sermon at church yesterday. For the full effect, you may want to look up Job 41, but I have pulled bits of it together below (NIV):
"Can you pull in the leviathan with a fishhook
or tie down his tongue with a rope?...
If you lay a hand on him,
you will remember the struggle and never do it again!
Any hope of subduing him is false;
the mere sight of him is overpowering.
No one is fierce enough to rouse him.
Who then is able to stand against me?...
I will not fail to speak of his limbs,
his strength and his graceful form...
Who dares open the doors of his mouth,
ringed about with his fearsome teeth?
His back has rows of shields
tightly sealed together;
each is so close to the next
that no air can pass between...
His snorting throws out flashes of light;
his eyes are like the rays of dawn.
Firebrands stream from his mouth;
sparks of fire shoot out.
Smoke pours from his nostrils
as from a boiling pot over a fire of reeds.
His breath sets coals ablaze,
and flames dart from his mouth...
His chest is hard as rock,
hard as a lower millstone.
When he rises up, the might are terrified;
they retreat before his thrashing.
The sword that reaches him has no effect...
Iron he treats like straw
and bronze like rotten wood...
A club seems to him but a piece of straw,
he laughs at the rattling of the lance...
Nothing on earth is his equal--
a creature without fear.
He looks down on all that are haughty;
he is king over all that are proud."
