The O-town Scene

Holistic & Psychic Fair 2-DAY ADMISSION: $6 in advance / $8 at the door Children under 10 are FREE (accompanied by an adult) "My mind expanded 3 sizes in just one day - So much fun!" S.H.I.F.T. Spiritual Holistic Integrative Festive Transformation o s c May l0th & llth, I0-5 SUNY Oneonta Hunt Union $6 in advance/$8 at door, Children under 10 Free Gets you into both days of fair and: • Over 22 Free Workshops from Renowned Spiritual Teachers over two days! • Unique Metaphysical gifts, jewelry, scarves, crafts, crystals, herbs, incense, healing regimens & more • Photo of your Aura, Massage, Henna Tattoos • Private Tried & True Psychic Readings • Personal Sessions with Great Energy Healers What: SHIFT NY Holistic & Spiritual Arts Fair When: Saturday, May 10th, 10am - 5pm • Sunday, May 11th, 10am - 5pm Where: SUNY Oneonta, Hunt Union, Oneonta, NY Questions? Co-Chairs, Diana Friedell, Swamiji - Call Diana - 607-433-2089 Plan your day! All Listings/details/bios online & Tickets in Advance @ SHlFTNewYork.com Book ahead with your preferred reader or healer! Contact thru the website! 273405 "Would not Miss it. Amazing! l've been to two. So much Energy & Vendors Galore!" C.H. And for additional fees. . . . A4 A4 4 O-Town Scene May 8, 2014 Yoga Life By Ashok Kumar Malhotra After a fabulous 32 days long trip to India this year where I visited the Ninash Foun- dation's five schools providing education to more than 1,200 female and minority children of India as well as giving keynote lectures on the science of yoga at the vari- ous Indian universities, I just returned to our beautiful city of Oneonta nestled in the snow-clad Catskill hills. Though India and the USA are quite dif- ferent socially and culturally, they are con- nected to each other politically by being the two largest democracies in the world. While giving lectures at the Indian Insti- tute of Technology in Guwhati (Assam), Sardar Patel University in Anand (Gujarat), and Dharmaram Vidya Kshetra-Roman Catholic College in Bangalore (Karnata- ka), I found another common connection between the two countries. The college community in India showed a similar amount of excitement in the sci- ence, spirituality and practice of yoga, just like the academic community in the USA. A majority of the students and faculty attending my lectures in India asked questions on the effectiveness of yoga in dealing with issues such as stress, sleeplessness, depression, obesity, lower back problems, anxiety before taking ex- aminations or speaking before the public or flying in airplanes or taking a cruise or fighting a war or fear of heights or closed spaces etc. These questions were similar to the concerns of people who listen to my lectures in the USA. Some were curious about whether regular practice of yoga could get rid of laziness, provide vigor to the body, improve memory and intelligence, make them good athletes, help them form good reading habits, get along well with their roommates and make them more socially effective by positively changing their social relationships. Some were inquisitive about why Americans were so enthusiasti- cally gravitating towards yoga. Why was American society so stressed out? Why were there so many cases of sleepless- ness, depression, stress, backache, soldier's anxiety before, during and after the war and other issues of concern in the USA? Will that be the fate of India and its population as it imitates America through more and more industrialization? Since these were some of the topics of common concern to the people in India and USA, we might devote some of the future columns indicating the possible usefulness of yoga and meditation exer- cises to deal with such issues. Caution: The meditation exercise listed below is presented as a suggestion only. When done correctly, it might be helpful in reducing stress. One might try a simple and direct method of meditation, which consists of first finding a comfortable and easy posi- tion (asana). For the beginner, sitting in a cross-legged posture with back, neck and head straight up is a good start. While in this pose, become aware of breath- ing in and out. As you breathe in, think about "hum," as you breathe out, think about "so." Let this be your mantra that takes over the inhalation and exhalation process. With daily practice for 15-20 minutes in the morning and evening, this mantra might help to lessen the hold of the intellectual mind leading one closer to the delight of the inner self. Dr. Ashok Kumar Malhotra's work through the Ninash Foundation to build schools for the female and minority children of India earned him a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize. His pro- gram on "Yoga for Re- laxation" is shown at 9 a.m. Saturdays on the Public Access Chan- nel 23. His articles are condensed from his books, available at amazon.com and www.info@ideaIndia. com. Yoga Creates Bridge Between Cultures Students at Thapar University in Patiala, India, by flickr user Niyam Bhushan

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