Yoga, Meditation & Your Nature
Mind-Body Counseling & Therapy
Freedom From Fear
Path of Self-Actualization
Meditation: Path of Healing & Transformation
Stillness & Action: An integral path of Acceptance & Change
Weekend Workshops on the Topic of Prakurti (Constitution)
Introduction
Awareness 
Well-being Freedom
Stress has always been present in our existence as human beings, and was never a cause of grave concern. Today, however, stress related illnesses have increased so significantly in our society, that some medical schools have begun to include
mind body medicine as part of their curriculum.
What is your relationship with stress? When your mind/body signals you that it is under stress, at what point do you become aware of this? What are the strategies that you use to reduce the impact of stress on your mind, body and spirit? Can your heart be at rest with whatever gifts and challenges life brings?
Our vision is to make relevant information and practical experience available, so that the individual becomes more aware of self (mind, body and spirit), improves his/her ability to care for self, and experiences life's journey as one of healing.
We are dedicated to healing through knowledge. To achieve this vision, we have created specific courses with proven methods of meditation, yoga, and emotional/cognitive awareness, deepening of emotional intelligence and exploring and expressing creativity. We would like to offer these courses in many locations so that more and more fellow travelers are able to enjoy their life's journey.
If you decide to go on these journeys, we hope you, as a participant, will learn some new skills that will help in improving your state of health, that you will learn new ways of re-framing difficult life situations, and that you will enjoy exploring your creative self in the company of others. You may decide to take one of these courses because you are suffering from an illness, or you may decide to take it as a way of deepening your own understanding of the interactions between mind and body or spirituality. Either way, we think that you will find the courses a
fascinating exploration of various paths of healing and spirituality.
Meditation practices, in which mind and body learn to relax at a very deep level, have been used in many spiritual traditions for thousands of years. It is only in recent years, however, that the health benefits of these techniques have been studied scientifically. Similarly, the medical and scientific community is increasingly recognizing the health benefits of yoga practice.
Emotional/cognitive awareness and deepening of emotional intelligence used in this course have been shown to be
effective in living a more harmonious life, reducing stress, helping in anxiety and depression, as well as assisting people to feel more relaxed and in control of their lives.
Meditation, yoga and cognitive awareness and creative techniques have all been part of spiritual traditions around the world; however, they do not necessarily need to have a religious connotation. They can be learned and used by people without a specific religious orientation, or by people from a variety of different spiritual backgrounds.
Creative pursuits, such as art making or journal writing, help us to learn more about our deeper, most authentic selves. In this healing journey, we encourage participants to use
creative forms of self-expression to reflect upon their lives and to envision more healthy and joyous ways of living.
There are many
paths to healing, embracing physical, emotional, social, psychological and spiritual dimensions. In this brief course, we hope that you will have the opportunity to explore some of these paths, and that you may be inspired to continue your own journey to healing once the course is over.
Reduced rates are available, as we also want to ensure that no one is prevented from taking these courses because of the cost.
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Yoga, Meditation & Your Nature
A Self-Care Skills Building Course with Dr Karen Trollope, Dr Pradeep Kumar, Jocelyne Bateman, David Wilson, Sham Rang Nelson and Jeff Stutley. The course is offered in 9 weekly sessions in the fall, winter and spring.
What is it?
In this program participants will learn about how to discover their own mind-body nature and change their lifestyle according to their own constitution. Participants will also learn and practice techniques of yoga, breathing and meditation, which result in a deeply relaxed state of mind and body.
Emotional and cognitive awareness and deepening of emotional intelligence helps participants to recognize self-defeating thought patterns and to create a more positive mental outlook.
Creative approaches using journal writing, art making, acknowledging and expressing one's own creativity, also help in re-framing life events.
The Spiritual component of the program gives opportunity to the participants to define, acknowledge and cultivate their own spirituality while emphasizing the experiential nature of spirituality.
Emotional/cognitive awareness and deepening of emotional intelligence helps participants to recognize self-defeating thought patterns and to create a more positive mental outlook.
Creative approaches using journal writing, art making, acknowledging and expressing one's own creativity, also help in re-framing life events.
The Spiritual component of the program gives opportunity to the participants to define acknowledge and cultivate their own spirituality and also emphasize on the experiential part of the topic.
Course Content
In this 9 week workshop course, we are going to explore, through dialogue and practice, the following topics:
- Well-being: the core of the self (not disease and pain)
- Sleep, exercise, and optimal eating: three pillars of a healthy lifestyle
- Stress, pain, disease and well-being
- Self-knowing: the beginning of healing
- Yoga, breathing and meditation: tools for self-knowing
- Body: ever ready to heal
- Mind as medicine, mind as poison
- Spirit: sacred healing reservoir within
- Celebration: a ceremony to affirm healing in our lives
Some Benefits
In general, anyone who would like to increase his or her sense of well-being may benefit from participating in this program.
In particular, people suffering from
anxiety or depression, chronic pain, repetitive strain injuries, or fibromyalgia benefit from mind body approaches. Similarly, patients recovering from a
heart attack or living with cancer and autoimmune diseases have also found these programs beneficial. Those who are facing
grief or social isolation may find meaning and support in this program.
As well, anyone facing illness or life
stress, including
caregivers, who would like to learn positive ways of dealing with their situation will benefit from this course.
Who can attend?
Anyone who is interested in the course topics may attend; there is no pre-requisite for this course.
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Mind-Body Counseling & Therapy
With Dr. Pradeep Kumar
Components:
- Optional & customized to the person or groups needs
- Meditation, Yoga and Breath work
- Transforming harmful Emotional and thought patterns
- Discovering your personality type
- Creativity
- Lifestyle management, which includes sleep and exercise.
- Mindful eating.
- Affirming and cultivating spirituality for healing & well-being
What is it?
In a mind-body counseling & therapy session, participant will learn and practice techniques of gentle, flowing Yoga, breath work and Meditation, which result in a deeply relaxed state of mind and body.
Emotional/cognitive awareness and deepening of emotional intelligence helps participants to recognize self-defeating thought patterns and to create a more positive mental outlook.
Creative approaches using journal writing, acknowledging and expressing one's own creativity, also help in re-framing life events.
The Spiritual component of the counseling, gives opportunity to the participants to define, acknowledge and cultivate their own spirituality and also emphasize on the experiential part of the topic.
There is growing scientific evidence that documents the health benefits of body-mind counselling and therapy.
During counseling & therapy session participant will learn about:
- Personality type
- Body's wisdom
- Mindful eating
- Sleep, exercise and Life style
- Emotional intelligence
- Cognitive intelligence
- Creativity and reframing
- Affirming and cultivating spirituality
Benefits
- Learn a practical set of mind-body skills using techniques of meditation, yoga and breathing exercises to achieve relaxation response.
- Learn to frame life stressors in more positive ways to facilitate a sense of mastery.
- Increase awareness of the internal and external factors (including exercise and nutrition) that contribute to an enhanced sense of well-being.
- Develop a self-care plan
Anyone facing illness or life stress, including caregivers, who would like to learn positive ways of dealing with their situation can benefit from this counseling and therapy.
In particular, people suffering from:
- Stress & related illnesses
- Fear, anxiety, depression, guilt and anger
- chronic pain, fibromyalgia, Infertility
- Patients recovering from heart attacks or living with cancer and autoimmune diseases.
- Those who are facing grief or social isolation may find meaning and support in this program.
- Anyone who would like to experience mind-body and increase his or her sense of well-being will also gain from counseling and therapy.
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Freedom From Fear
A 10 week course:
Exploring the insights into origin and ending of the fear.
Course content
- Origin of fear
- Biological and psychological fear
- Expressing fear creatively
- Fear as prison
- Fear as the way to growth and freedom
- Way of Yoga & breathing to transcend fear
- Way of contemplation & observation to transcend fear
- Way of prayer and meditation to transcend fear
- Expressing fear creatively
- Ending of fear
Note: This course is not meant for the people who are suffering from severe anxiety, depression or significant mental illnesses.
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Path of Self-Actualization
Exploring and experiencing Chakras (energy centres) & their connecting force (Kundalini)
A 10-week course in self-discovery with Dr Pradeep Kumar, Jocelyne Bateman, David Wilson & Sham Rang Nelson.
Course content:
- Introduction: Chakras or Mind-Body Centres and their connecting energy or Kundalini
- First centre or Root chakra: Rooting and Belonging - Path of Body
- Second centre or Energy chakra: Beginning of pleasure and mastery- Path of Energy
- Third centre or Solar chakra: Feelings and action - Path of Action
- Fourth centre or Heart chakra: Emotions, dreams and creativity - Path of Love and Devotion
- Fifth centre or throat chakra: Science, Systems and Communication- Path of Intellect
- Sixth centre or Third eye chakra: Fear and naked duality- Path of Intuition
- Seventh centre or Crown chakra: Individuation and integration - Arriving at the Edge
- Beyond seventh centre . . . Flight of the swan - Journey without a path
- Conclusion: Way of Energy and words of caution
Where this path may take?
- Experiencing energy Yoga, breathing and Meditations
- Discovering bodys intelligence leading to healing of the body
- Discovering emotional intelligence leading to emotional healing
- Discovering intellectual intelligence to express creatively
- Discovering intuitive intelligence to understand and resolve fear
- Discovering integrated intelligence to live life in joy and wholeness
- Preparing the mind-body for the deeper spiritual experiences
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Meditation: Path of Healing & Transformation
With Dr Pradeep Kumar & Sham Rang Nelson
What is meditation?
Meditation is the path and process of realization of ones individual and universal biological potential.
Biological potential here means the physical/physiological, psychological & spiritual possibilities in a person. Such potential contains the dimension of both individual and universal life and existence. Once the person reaches the peak of individual and universal experience, meditation may end in transcendence. Transcendence is the merging of the individual and the universal into a non-dual state, which is beyond any meditation effort or practice. Such a state is beyond time and space and can only be inferred when the person comes out of it into the dual state where the individual and the universal are experienced separately.
Studies from around the world are accumulating to show that indeed there are definite physiological effects of meditation. These include lowering of high blood pressure, a reduction in anxiety levels and a reduced need for pain medications among those suffering from chronic pain syndromes. In heart patients it was shown that a regime of diet, exercise and meditation resulted in significantly lowered rates of coronary events. Meditation based stress reduction programs have been used in chronic pain clinics, in psychiatric hospitals and in inner city health centres. These techniques are also widely used by people who are physically well to deepen a sense of well-being and peace.
For those who explore the practice of meditation, three major experience modes may emerge:
- Physical & psychological healing
- Body mind Integration
- Transcendence or going beyond the know psychological limits of experiencing
Healing: The first effort in a meditation technique is to observe our own body, emotions and thought patterns. In most people the body is neglected, emotions are repressed and a web of thoughts circulates through the mind. The process of becoming aware brings a tremendous sensitivity to the mind that promotes self-knowledge. This self-knowing brings a state of acceptance in which conflict is resolved and injuries resulting from conflict are healed.
Integration: As meditation practice deepens, this healing of body-emotion-thoughts leads to a state of inner integration, which brings a sense of well-being.
Beyond....After integration, the process of meditation is entirely spontaneous and beyond the effort and control of the mind. At this level, the individual may go through mystical experiences in which a deep sense of universal love, unity and compassion is perceived.
In this 10-week workshop course we are going to explore, through dialogue and practice, the following topics:
- Body, brain and mind
- What is meditation?
- Effects of meditation on body, brain and mind (behaviour)
- Preparation for meditation: through body movements and breathing
Seven meditation techniques:
- Mindfulness meditation
- Who Am I?
- Sound meditation or chanting
- Visualization
- Energy or Chakra meditation
- Neh or Love Meditation
- Active meditation
- Experiences and stages of meditation:
Relaxation: beginning of awareness
Joy: Wholeness & peak of individuality
Tranquility: I am the Universe
- Sahajta: Ending of meditation
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Stillness & Action: An integral path of Acceptance & Change
Dharma is the timeless, boundless and natural rhythm of the cosmos. It expresses itself in both the individual person and the universe as we know it. Sat-Chit-Ananda (Existence-Consciousness-Bliss) is the experience of this cosmic rhythm, which is a feeling of ever moving, expanding and evolving awareness of life, bringing bliss to the individual.
Knowingly and unknowingly we all seek joy and delight in our lives. Whether one is a religious person or an atheist, criminal or self-righteous, poor or rich, scientist or artist, ruler or ruled, all yearn to arrive at Sat-Chit-Ananda. More often than not, many of us wander away from it. Such wanderings result from trying to possess these moments and things through which we get a glimpse of Sat-Chit-Ananda. Possession gives a sense of false security and stability. We wrongly identify Sat-Chit-Ananda with things and memories we possess. Can we capture and hold onto the suns rays in our closed palm?
Beyond the level of survival and comfortable living, the possession of wealth, power or a million more material things (as attempts to experience Sat-Chit-Ananda), brings only fear and sorrow, makes life stagnant and eventually suffocates it. Beyond a point, possession is destructive, both for the individual and the earth. Belonging and not possessing, maintains the movement and flow of living, which is the essence of the cosmic rhythm. One may belong to the whole world and yet possess nothing.
Is it possible then to come back to the core and centre of life, dance with the cosmic rhythm and feel the delight and rapture of it in conscious movement? These workshops explore such tools and paths which may help in such a journey.
Course Content:
- Existence-Consciousness-Bliss: experience of the stillness
- Body to soul family to earth: exploring and affirming life
- Serving with affection: living in the world with love
- Study and contemplation: gathering and questioning knowledge
- Observation and experimentation: going beyond teacher and teachings
- Fasting and pilgrimage: acts of purification
- Yoga and breathing: awakened body, tranquil mind
- Meditation: process of self-knowing
- Worship and prayer: path of feelings and faith
Facilitators:
Dr. Pradeep Kumar, MD (India), D.Ac.
Pradeep was trained as a pediatrician in India. At present, he has a private practice in acupuncture in Hamilton and teaches acupuncture at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.
Sham Rang Nelson, B.A., B.Ed.
Sham Rang worked as an art teacher and guidance counselor. She is a certified as both a Kundalini and a 5-Tibetans yoga teacher with training in conscious communication and transformative self-healing.
For the dates, times and location please go to Next Course, Reteats &Registration.
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