Guru yoga

I have been attending the Diamond Way centre in Canberra and studying hard and I feel a little detached from the whole experience.

I have found a wonderful meditation that has given me a lot of insight. I am learning a lot about the nature of the universe, mind and the pursuit of happiness.

I look forward to becoming more deeply involved and learning even more. I have set up an altar with a Buddha and I've got some beads I can use during my devotions. But for right now I just feel like I'm in limbo and have to wait until I can meet the guru who leads the Diamond Way centre or alternatively make a pilgrimage to meet some of his teachers and find a guru who will be able to lead me in my study.

You see Tibetan meditation is based on devotion, lineage and the desire to emulate a trusted guru. You can study some types of Buddhism from a book and even become a self-realised Buddha but Tibetan methods are based on the availability of a teacher. The leader of the tradition represented by Diamond Way Centres is Karmapa although there are other schools. For example the third Karmapa taught Sharmapa and ever since that time the two have alternated in the roles of student and teacher, recognising each other in successive rebirths. The two teach a very similar method however each has a different energy and some of the details may vary.

I have found the Karmapa visualisations to be very powerful and have a desire to take my meditation further however how can one practice guru yoga in Australia when the guru Karmapa lives in India and doesn't visit us here?

The people at my centre are followers of a very charismatic and Danish Lama called Ole Nydahl who has been instrumental in communicating the essence of Tibetan buddhism to a European audience. Lama Ole studied with the previous Karmapa and continues as a student of the current Karmapa. While his biggest followers are in Germany he does visit Australia every year and holds courses in Asia (for example there may be a Phowa course in Hong Kong next year) so there are many more opportunities to meet him... however he is a controversial lama and with good reason. In order to make Buddhism more familiar to Westerners he disregards the Tibetan cultural traditions which is good but the problem is that he also drinks, parties, travels all over the world... again probably great but not the right role model for me - I want to balance out my energy, not get swept up in an International party!

Sharmapa's recent blog on finding a meditation teacher emphasises the importance of a teacher who lives a simple life. But there are exceptions and Sharmapa would probably identify Lama Ole as a powerful exception for many Europeans and people with European heritage around the world.

So for right now I'm in limbo attempting to build a connection to a teacher and a method. Luckily there are stacks of videos on YouTube that allow me to connect with the lamas and receive their teachings by distance until I can make a pilgrimage and make contact. These videos are going to be crucial to my initial practice of meditation if I am to continue with this method. And I hope I can because up to now it has been really good!

The lunch break workout

There's no reason why the daily office experience has to leave us all weak and floppy and yet somehow we never seem to take advantage of our lunch break to get a bit of physical fitness!

I've designed a workout I can do outside in the couryard or inside around my desk. We have cubicles so I'll be visible but I'm hoping to start a trend.

First there's the aerobic workout. This means a half hour walk, some stair work (every office has at least a few stairs) or even just some skipping rope or jumping jacks in the couryard or in the carpark. As our courtyard is covered I can even use that space if it's raining! Do you have a good spot like that?

Then there's the toning up.

Upper body:

Obviously nobody wants to get down on the floor and do push-ups at the office so let's stick to something you can do at a desk or picnic table. First there's that backwards lunge where you face away from the table or chair (it has to be quite secure and definitely not on castors) then go down and push back up. You can also do push-ups by pushing off from the edge of a table either standing or sitting.

Core:

Apart from situps which don't lend themselves to the office environment, the best exercise is isometric contractions. While you're sitting at your desk, hold your stomach in and do pelvic floor exercises. You can do this all day long!

A good lunchtime exercise is isolations. Stand with your legs at shoulder width and keep your legs and hips steady then move your shoulders and upper body to the right, then back to the left and repeat. You can also do the cat/cow pose by isolating your chest area and pushing it forward then contracting backwards. Finally move your upper body in a cirlce while holding your hips still.

Lower body:

This is probably the easiest. You can do squats and plies at any time - make it a rule that you'll do 2 plies every time you go to the printer or 20 every time you go for a coffee. You can also work them into your lunchtime exercise routine. If your half hour of exercise includes the stairs your lower body is already getting a great workout!

Check out this article on great office stretches.