10 POSES YOUR
body & soul will love the power of
MEDITATION interview series
HEIDI KRISTOFFER
ALZHEIMER’S HOW MEDITATION WILL HELP WITH THE LONG GOODBYE
table of contents
Features 12
The Long Goodbye
The story of how Alzheimer’s has stolen Sarah Martin’s mom and how meditation has helped cope with the loss and heal her soul. text Jerald Winakur photography Tiff Sherwood
06
The Perfect Grilled Cheese Erin, from Naturallyella.com, has finally found the tastiest grilled cheese ever, the Pistachio-Parsley grilled Talleggio Cheese sandwhich. text Erin Alderson photography Erin Alderson
08
Off the Mat Into the World Join the movement with everyone else to take the challenge. Engage communities throughout the world to raise awareness and donations. text Jenny Memmot photography Canden Schow
10
interview: Heidi Kristoffer
Heidi Kristoffer is a yoga teacher in New York City. Her yoga is about laughter while challenging yourself. She was a blog where she posts vegan recipes. text Jane McCoy photography Jim Arnold
18
Rejuvenating National Parks National Parks are the jewels of the United States. Getting outdoors will rejuvenate your spirit and enlighten your soul. text Marsha Newns photography Nicklaus Pipit
11 In celebration of the all great work the Alzheimer’s Association has done. Moksha featured one of their stories for our feature. For more information on Alzheimer’s please visit www.alz.org.
2
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
table of contents
In Every Issue 08 Founder’s Notes 10 Editor’s Letter 12 Contributors 14 Our Picks
[kahr-muh] 14 Reflection of Peace
The guided meditation practice yoga nidra can help you come back to center in 10 easy steps
18
BY KATERINE GRIFFIN
18 Full Bloom
Take root in Lotus Pose to settel your nerves, quiet your mind, and let your energy blossom.
11
BY NORA ISAACS
27 Nerve Center
Connect to the earth stay grounded BY ELISE LORIMER
31 Steady as She Goes
Strength and stability can be yours, even when stress rocks your world. BY COURTNEY SCHOW
34 Grounding Grooves
Sound and motion come together to help you move toward your center. BY ERIN SIEBENHAAR
[buhk-tee] 36 Flowing Practices
A daily practices of Sun Salutations connects you with the world and lets peace and wellness radiate from within BY KYLEE COPELAND
42 Moon Shine
Get your glow on with a gentle lunar flow. BY ERIN SIEBENHAAR
46 Catch the Wave
Let your body and mind flow like water, always seeking the path of ease. BY KAREN MINSHALL
50 Grounding Grooves
Sound and motion come together to help you move toward your center. BY ERIN SIEBENHAAR
55 36 Flowing Practices
A daily practices of Sun Salutations connects you with the world and lets peace and wellness radiate from within BY KYLEE COPELAND
42 Moon Shine
Get your glow on with a gentle lunar flow. BY ERIN SIEBENHAAR
[ juh-nah-nuh] 54 A Beautiful Mind
Want to find inner calm? Choose the right mediation technique for you. BY ADRIENNE SCHOW
34
62 Rethink Yourself
Link poses to positive thoughts, and see real changes in your life. BY SHIVA REA
65 Calm Your Senses
Peace is yours when you draw the senses inward. BY BONNIE HUTCHINGS
67 Rethink Yourself
Link poses to positive thoughts, and see real changes in your life. BY SHIVA REA
On The Cover Estiam inctaspe cupisciet eum repudam nihitiore optur, voluptate eatem nesequi ipsam dolo digenim nos dMinihit quid magnimpos
58 Calm Your Senses
Peace is yours when you draw the senses inward. BY BONNIE HUTCHINGS MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
5
[kahr-muh]
THE PERFECT Through years of tasting grilled cheese sandwiches Erin, from Natrallyella.com, has finally found the tastiest grilled cheese ever, the Pistachio-Parsley grilled Talleggio Cheese sandwhich. text ERIN ALDERSON photography ERIN ALDERSON
6
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
[kahr-muh]
MAPLE-CINNAMON QUINOA GRANOLA Ingredients
¾ cups quinoa (red, black, yellow, or a mix) ½ chopped pecans ½ cup sunflower or pumpkin seeds 2 teaspoons cinnamon ¼ teaspoon sea salt ¼ cup maple syrup 2 tablespoons walnut or coconut oil
PISTACHIO-PARSLEY PESTO AND GRILLED TALEGGIO CHEESE SANDWICH Ingredients
Instructions
1 Preheat oven to 250˚. Rinse quinoa and spread out in a thin layer on a baking tray covered with parchment paper. Bake until liquid has evaporated, 15-20 minutes 2 Raise oven temperature to 350˚.Combine quinoa with pecans, seeds, cinnamon, salt, maple syrup, and oil. Stir until 3 Spread in a thin layer on a tray.Bake for 20 minutes, stirring one to two times. Remove from oven and let cool until clumped. Store in an airtight container.
Pesto: 2 tablespoons shelled, roasted pistachios 1 clove garlic 1½ cups packed parsley 2 tablespoons lemon juice 2 tablespoons olive oil ¼ teaspoon salt ½ small red onion, thinly sliced 3-4 ounces taleggio cheese, sliced 4 slices whole wheat or multigrain bread Olive oil for brushing
Instructions
1 In a food processor, pulse pistachios until resembling course meal 2 Add garlic and parsley, run processor until minced 3 Drizzle lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. Run food processor until pesto comes together, adding more olive/lemon juice as needed. 4 Preheat grill pan or regular pan over medium-low heat. 5 Brush sides of bread with olive oil. Place on piece of bread, olive oil side down, in the grill pan and smear on 1 tablespoon of pesto. 6 Layer with sliced red onions and cheese.
BRIE Nothing is better than a good grilled cheese. Not all cheeses melt into yummy goodness. Let us help you pick the best one for your meal.
Known as a smooth or flowing melting cheese, brie adds smoothness and richness to any dish it is melted into.
FONTINA Known as a smooth or flowing melting cheese, brie adds smoothness and richness to any dish it is melted into.
CHEDDAR Known as a smooth or flowing melting cheese, brie adds smoothness and richness to any dish it is melted into.
GRUYÉRE Known as a smooth or flowing melting cheese, brie adds smoothness and richness to any dish it is melted into.
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
7
[buhk-tee]
OFF THE MAT INTO THE WORLD The challenge engaged communities throughout the world. The 113 men and women that participated raised $524,000 in donations for the CCF and generated awareness. text IAN WHITE photography RYAN SMITH
8
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
[buhk-tee]
IN ADDITION TO the tremendous financial
BARE WITNESS TOUR
resources that were cultivated through last year’s Seva Challenge and Bare Witness Humanitarian Tour, the Seva experience inspired participants to take action in their own communities. One group fundraising effort and three individual projects were put into place. In addition, many participants and their families chose to sponsor children in Cambodia, furthering the mission and work of the Cambodian Children’s Fund. Empowered by the impact of this transformational journey, the team left a lasting legacy in Cambodia – life changing for most.
The Seva Challenge 2008 was an incredible success! It was a life-changing journey for all who participated and truly left a legacy of support for Scott Neeson and the Cambodian Children’s Fund. The twenty participants heard stories From survivors of the Khmer Rouge Genocide, went on educational trips to the Killinalso encompassed hands-on work at the CCF vocational center, bperibusdae. Am enditio. Itate non nat ad que nus intest aci dolut mil inullab illecte, asit ut eiumquae sequiatur aliquis dolum volupta sperum quasperrum eosanim renis volendissum hicab is voluptat offictur, etAgnatincto odit aute nonsequis is moloreped molupti atusaperunt autempo restore et vollace rionsecae labore nonsequatur sequidendae. Tior re, odicitatus.
THE TRAILBLAZERS Abby Weis, Adi Carter, Andrea Curry, Angela Herlofsky, Angelika Holtzbrinck, Annalise Oberts, Blair Vaughn, Bobbie Sterbins, Brittany Policastro, Jennifer Wagner, Jennifer Steinwurtzel, Jude Monteserrato, Karen Johnston, Laurel Hicks, Lea-Rae Belcourt, Linda Kraulis, Lisa Palumbo, Nancy Spooner, Shiya Mangel, Suzanne Cary.
The Cambodian Children’s FundV. CCF provides education, shelter, food and services to over 450 children who live and work in the Steung Meanchey garbage dump. These children are horribly abused and exploited, often dying of disease, malnutrition and t verei hintrente audam de ego cris eo, consum potatum inte co viriocus ad fur hilininte, quam ne vide commolturnic reviliu conentilla L. Arius con ignonihicit res opulicia vilibus pro vis. Do,
TESTIMONIALS “We worked and visited places that really awakened my eyes, my spirit and my soul. Every moment was priceless. The smiles and generosity from the CCF children will forever remain in my heart.” Blair Vaughn, Denver, CO
OUR PARTNER The Seva Challenge 2008 benefited just one organization, The Cambodian Children’s Fund (CCF). CCF provides education, shelter, food and services to over 450 children who live and work in the Steung Meanchey garbage dump. These children are horribly abused and exploited, often dying of disease, malnutrition and t verei hintrente audam de ego cris eo, consum potatum inte co viriocus ad fur hilininte, quam ne vide commolturnic reviliu conentilla L. Arius con ignonihicit res opulicia vilibus pro vis. Do, Lerfec itabus fintem te tam pora, pultiamdii si perum virio prareor ublicie ntientemque it, pora ium milic forum o et aucteatin vis apeconveris videlles es es pernina turenihilis actus per hicibun tretife ntemqua L. Vivatuam miurs consu maximus, simove, sili percerum pra vivesen dienat inatora a etilicibunum sum poribulis senam moves im telint. Toriam egit, maximacchi, morterebus alibute rvidi, te, ficis; ince cressim corudes cepondi entensi mactoriam es publii peris, que oporum nostuid ac vivast prarterit. mactoriam es publii peris, que oporum nostuid ac vivast prarterit.
Off The Mat Into The World was able to raise $524,000 furthering the work of the Cambodian Children’s Fund. The team left a lasting legacy in Cambodia life changing for most, if not for all.
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
9
[ juh-nah-nuh]
INTERVIEW SERIES:
HEIDI KRISTOFFER Heidi Kristoffer is a yoga teacher in New York. Her yoga is about laughter while challenging yourself. She runs a blog where she posts recipes and her reflections on yoga. text HANS WAITE photography JESSIE ADAMS
10
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
[ juh-nah-nuh]
HOW DID YOU GET INTO YOGA? I moved to the far west side in NYC, and googled gyms in my new neighborhood. A yoga studio came up in my google search, and with much grumbling, I decided since everyone said it would be so good for me, I would try it out. I feel head over heels in love with my first class, and have practiced yoga every day since. YOU ARE NOT ONLY A YOGI, YOU ARE ALSO A VEGAN. HOW DID YOU BECOME A VEGAN? I was born allergic to seafood, shellfish, and dairy. When I moved to NYC I was trying to save money, so I decided not to buy any red meat. After not eating it for six months or so, I went home and ate some. The result was pain in my stomach; I was curled up in the fetal position of my childhood bed for hours. It seemed to me that my body was trying to tell me something, and so I stopped eating it. Gradually, my body stopped wanting chicken or any other kind of animal, so I stopped eating them. WHEN DO YOU PRACTICE YOGA? Oh, wow! Every day is so different! Every moment is a new one. I like to wake up early, take a few deep breaths and stretch out in bed. Then, I eat some breakfast (maybe tofu salad on a whole wheat pita or oatmeal or a pea-protein filled smoothie.) After breakfast, I will drink some Yogi Tea, digest, and do my best to respond to emails. Then, when I am all digested, I will do my yoga practice. I like to light some Nag Champa incense, roll out my mat and move around for at least 75 minutes, and then meditate for at least 15 minutes if I can. After all of that, I usually clean up and head over to Strala to lead a class. After hanging out with everyone at Strala for a while. YOGA COMES IN VARIOUS TYPES. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE TYPE OF YOGA? I like to move around and connect my movements with my breath. I like anything that doesn’t make me feel stuck and allows me to move with ease is great in my book. YOU OFTEN TALK ABOUT YOUR INJURIES. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT HOW YOGA HELPED YOU HEAL? When I was 18, I was in a serious car accident that let to what I was told would be “permanent damage” to my neck and cervical spine. My doctors at the time told me that I would never regain full mobility in the movement of the neck. I had herniated discs in different parts of the spine as well as two broken vertebrae in my lumbar spine. Because of these injuries, when I approach the physical
postures of yoga, it has always been extremely important to me to, seeing as the alternative was surgery, which was not something I was interested in. Recently, I went in to get a check-up MRI on my cervical spine. When I went to go see my doctor for the results, he informed me with incredulity that the herniation in my neck was gone! I had successfully re-lengthened my cervical spine through all of the yoga. WHICH POSES ARE YOUR FAVORITE AND WHY DO YOU LIKE THEM? I love being upside down! In handstand and forearm stand mostly, but I’ll hang out in supported headstand for lots and lots of breaths – anything to flip perspective without compressing my neck. Plus, all of the blood rushes to your head, and it makes you happy! WHAT IS YOUR DAY AT STRALA AND WHAT ARE THE PRACTICES YOU HAVE LEARNED THERE? I am the General Manager as well as part of the creative team at Strala Yoga in NYC. I am there pretty much every day, which is awesome, because I love, love being there! I lead a bunch of classes and I take a bunch of classes. At Strala, we all move and breathe with ease. It is amazing to see how strong and capable everyone there is, and to be surrounded by such positivity. IS THERE A STEREOTYPE OF YOGA THAT YOU FIND TO BE INACCURATE? WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH YOGA LIKE? Yoga has changed my life, in every possible way, for the better. If there are stereotypes about yoga, I don’t pay attention to them. I focus on the positive in everything. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO THOSE INTERESTED IN YOGA AND ANY FITNESS? Do it! Move, breathe,
As a physcian, I have spent the past thirty years battling against the decline of my Alzheimer’s patients. Now the disease is stealing my own mother. text JERALD WINAKUR photography TIFF SHERWOOD
THE LONG
GOODB
BYE
F
ebruary 24, 2006, is my parents’s sixtieth wedding anniversary. My family plans a brunch for them in their home. We are keenly aware that this may be the last anniversary my parents will celebrate together. It won’t be an elaborate party, just a bitter-sweet one. Seven years earlier, my father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, and he has gone steadily downhill. At 87 years old, he is now a prisoner of his mind. His agitation and paranoia arise from distorted memories, nightmares he can no longer separate from reality. A few days before the brunch, my mother calls me in a panic. My dad is bellicose and paranoid, accusing. Summoning Yiddish profanities he has not uttered in 75 years, he curses at Yolanda, the caregiver who holds everything together in my parents’ household. He will not be bathed or shaved. He will not eat, refuses his medications. He is raving.February 24, 2006, is my parents’s sixtieth wedding anniversary. My family plans a brunch for them in their home. We are keenly aware that this may
to hell! You’re in with them!” There is no walking away now. He is an abandoned child. He searches for his boyhood home on Boarman Avenue, in Baltimore, or perhaps our first family home there, on Forest Park Avenue. He hears voices but can’t decode what is being said, and his mind assumes the worst: My mother is insulting him, planning to run off; his sons are belittling him, his mother scolding him, his older brothers and sisters teasing him. He is lost, with no father of his own to turn to. I see that he has wet himself; a dark ring marks his place on the couch. As a geriatric physician in San Antonio for the past thirty years, I have been through this before. I have been cursed, spit on, bitten, and punched by demented old folks over the decades. A poor woman threw a shoe at me when I stepped inside her hospital room. The day before,she thought she thought I was the devil. As a doctor, I know what to do; as a son, I am uncertain. So I assume my doctor role, retreating into the armor of my starched white coat. I walk to the kitchen and check his daily pill slots to make sure he’s been getting his regular medications. Sometimes my mother, unable to see due to macular degeneration, inadvertently
of thousands of prescriptions, but my constant goal is to cut back on medications, stop them altogether if I can: Less is usually more. Every geriatrician knows this. Looking through my father’s pills, I recall a patient of mine, Lilly, a woman who first came to see me carrying a brown paper shopping bag crammed with pill bottles--at least forty different drugs prescribed by a dozen physicians. “This one’s for the high blood,” she had said, “and this one’s for the sweet blood, and this one’s for the low blood. These three are for my bad knees, and this one’s ‘cause I’m sad a lot, and this one’s ‘cause I don’t sleep too good, and this one’s ‘cause I’m tired all the time. I can hardly keep’em straight, but I got a biglist at home tacked to the wall, over the phone in my kitchen. Last month the company cut off the service when I couldn’t pay the bill. All these medicines and still I feel so bad. That’s why I come to you now. That and all these other troubles.” She had handed me a list of symptoms. I spent two hours with Lilly, hearing one story after another: bad marriages, kids in jail, ER visits, surgeries, strange diagnoses mostly self-made. I knew what was happening to Lilly, what happens to many people like her in a medical prob-
Meditation has been the foundation I have been searching for. It has helped me cope along with providing the patience I have needed with the slow deterioration of my mother. be the last anniversary my parents will celebrate together. It won’t be an elaborate party, just a bitter-sweet one. Seven years earlier, my father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, and he has gone steadily downhill. At 87 years old, he is now a prisoner of his mind. His agitation and paranoia arise from distorted memories, nightmares he can no longer separate from reality. A few days before the brunch, my mother calls me in a panic. My dad is bellicose and paranoid, accusing. Summoning Yiddish profanities he has not uttered in 75 years, he curses at Yolanda, the caregiver who holds everything together in my parents’ household. He will not be bathed or shaved. He will not eat, refuses his medications.“You go 14
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
leaves pills in the plastic containers I fill every couple weeks. seems in order. The pills are often as much a part of the problem as the cure. My father takes eight medications a day; my mother, who is 82, fourteen. They are both on vitamins and minerals, blood pressure medications, diuretics, and cholesterol-lowering drugs. My father also takes two pills for his heart. My mother takes drugs for her diabetes, a thyroid disorder, osteoporosis.
Big Pharma I spend my doctoring days prescribing medications for my patients, reshuffling the ones they’re on--a tiny dose change here, a retiming of administration there. By now I have written or refilled hundreds
lem. The physician begins to drown in a sea of conflicting information, feels powerless to alter the circumstances of this person’s life. A wave of helplessness washes over doctor and patient both, and he reaches for his prescription pad. “Here, try this,” he says. “I think it will help.” Then he steps into the hall, picks up the next chart, and moves on, the drug he has prescribed helps but doubtful it will. I could not change the circumstances of Lilly’s life, couldn’t make up for her poverty or lack of education or the poor choices she had made. But she improved significantly when, after some lab work and many more hours of listening, I was eventually able to whittle her medication list down to three.
8
SIGNS OF ALZHEIMER’S 16
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
1
2
3
4
memory changes that disrupt daily life
challenges planning and solving problems
changes in mood or personality
difficulty finishing familiar tasks
5
6
7
8
trouble understanding visual & spatial relationships
new problems with words in speaking & writing
misplacing things & losing ability to retrace
decreased and poor judgement
MEDICINE FOR THE EDERLY Prescribing for the elderly is complex. They don’t metabolize drugs at the same rate as younger, healthier patients. The main workhorses of drug excretion-the liver and kidneys-decline in function with age, as do all our organ systems. The elderly, like my parents. are often on multiple drugs (including over-thecounter preparations the doctor might not even know about), and the incidences of unforeseen interactions begin to mount. We know so little about these. Indeed, the pharmaceutical companies are infamous in geriatric circles for not including our elderly patients in drug trials. These days, between the Food and Drug Administration and Big Pharma, I hang suspended in a netherworld of prescribing angst. The FDA has pulled more than twenty drugs off the market in the past two decades, drugs they first assured me were safe to use but then ended up hurting livers or kidneys or hearts. I have always tried to protect my patients, wait if I possibly can for aftermarket studies to bring more data to light. It is one thing, I tell my patients, to judge a drug’s benefits and risks after it has been given to a few thousand patients in clinical trials; it’s quite another after it has been prescribed to hundreds of thousands. In the parlance of the technology and pharmaceutical industries, doctors like me who are cautious, who do immediately jump on the company bandwagon every time it trumpets its “latest and greatest” product, are known as “slow adopters.” Now these industries have figured out a way to circumvent my judgment should I fail to join the chorus of cheerleaders for their newest breakthrough. On the television, in magazines, they promise an end to arthritis pain, a good night’s sleep, a cure for incontinence, a firm erection, My phone rings off the hook. Patients who worry that I may have blocked their path to the Fountain of Youth when I decline their drug requests.
THE MIRACLE OF MEDITATION Prescribing for the elderly is complicated. They don’t metabolize drugs at the same rate as younger, healthier patients. The main workhorses of drug excretion--the liver and kidneys--decline in function
with age, as do all our organ systems. The elderly, like my parents. are often on multiple drugs (including over-thecounter preparations the doctor might not even know about), and the incidences of unforeseen interactions begin to mount. We know so little about these interactions. Indeed, the pharmaceutical companies are infamous in geriatric circles for not including our elderly patients in drug trials first assured me were safe to use but then ended up damaging livers or kidneys or hearts. I have always tried to protect my patiore data to light. It is one thing, I tell my patients, to judge a drug’s benefits and risks after it has been given to a few thousand patients in clinical. I settle on the bottle of risperidone. Although I am reluctant to use this drug-any drug in treating my father, I know that he has taken it before with success. It has worked. It has settled him down, albeit with an added degree of cognitive impairment. My hope is that by continuing to use this drug judiciously, I can maintain the status quo and keep my father at home for a bit longer, delay the decision to relegate him to a long-term facility where I know he will only deteriorate faster. I bring my father a bisected tablet and a cool glass of his nutritional drink. “Here, Dad, take this. I think it will make you feel better.” His eyes, still wild, stare at me. “What’s this for?” “Dad, you’ve got shpilkes,” I say. I use this Yiddish word, retrieved somehow from my own memory, because my father has lately been interspersing his speech with snippets of this language, his mother tongue--the mamaloshen--the first words he ever heard and therefore the last ones to abandon him. He smiles. “Az ich habe shpilkes,” he says. And he swallows the pill. “For the shpilkes,” my mother and Yolanda tell him when it is time for the next dose. Before long he is back to his usual demented but pleasant self. This time I have made the right decision. Three days later, on my parents’ anniversary, those of us who love them assemble in their home, My wife brings a dozen yellow roses and arranges the table. My brother stops at the grocery store for a side of sliced smoked salmon, some
IS STRESS KILLING YOUR BRAIN? text DHARMA SINGH KHALSA, M.D.
If you are a success-seeker, you really DO need to know more about stress and how it impacts your brain. Does stress kill brain cells? The scientific evidence is yes! Although many high-power business people and success-seekers say they LIKE the sensation of high-stress thinking, it is actually both non-productive and unfocused. What Does Stress Do in The Brain? You can read elsewhere in this site about brain waves and what they are. So let’s will focus on exactly what occurs in your brain when you are stressed. Stress is a mental and physiological state that occurs when you interpret something as a threat to your well being. This can be something as real as jumping out of the way of a speeding bus — or as non-obvious as worrying about getting to the post office before it closes. When you interpret something as a “threat,” your brain creates a cascade of biochemicals designed to prepare you to either fight or run from the threat. Your hands and armpits start to sweat, you tend to hold your breath, your digestive system shuts down, your heart pounds, and your large muscles contract. Fast multi-tasking, for example, has been tied to high stress. Studies have shown that although people “think” they are getting more done while multi-tasking, the quantity and quality of their output is actually reduced. MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
17
The Most
Rejuvenating National Parks
National Parks are the crown jewels of the United Stated. Getting out doors and experiencing what mother natures has to provide will do wonders for your soul. Here are our top 4 most rejuvenating places on the American continent.
text Marsha Newns
Shrine Drive Thru Trees Drive your car through a redwood tree or over a fallen redwood log. The Shrine Drive Thru Tree has been attracting visitors for years. Located in Myers Flat, four miles south of the Humboldt Redwoods State Park Visitor Center, it’s an easy stop right on the Avenue of the Giants. There is a minimal fee to drive through the tree. 13708 Ave of the Giants Myers Flat, CA 95554 707-943-1975
Redwood National Forest Though Native Americans live in the park area today, archaeological study shows they arrived in the area as far back as 3,000 years ago. Modern day Native groups such as the Yurok, Tolowa, Karok, Chilula, and Wiyot all have historical ties to the region. An 1852 census determined that the Yurok were the most numerous, with 55 villages and an estimated population of 2,500. They used the abundant redwood, which with its linear grain was easily split into planks, as a building material for boats, houses, and small villages. [9] For buildings, the planks would 20
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
be erected side by side in a narrow trench, with the upper portions bound with leather strapping and held by notches cut into the supporting roof beams. Redwood boards were used to form a shallow sloping roof.Previous to Jedediah Smith in 1828, no other explorer of European descent is known to have thoroughly investigated the inland region away from the immediate coast. The discovery of gold along the Trinity River in 1850 led to a minor secondary gold rush in California. This brought miners into the area and many stayed on at
the coast after failing to strike it rich. This quickly led to conflicts wherein native peoples were placed under great strain, if not forcibly removed or massacred. By 1895, only one third of the Yurok in one group of villages remained; by 1919, virtually all members of the Chilula tribe had either died or been assimilated into other tribes. The miners logged redwoods for building; when this minor gold rush ended, some of them turned again to logging, cutting down the giant redwood trees. Initially, over 2,000,000 acres (8,100 km2) of the California and
Havasupai Falls Havasu Falls is a waterfall in the Grand Canyon located 1½ miles from Supai, Arizona, USA. It is arguably the most famous and most visited of all the falls and consists of one main chute that drops over a 120-foot (37 m) vertical cliff into a large pool. Due to the high mineral content of the water, the falls are ever-changing and sometimes break into two separate chutes of water. The falls are known for their natural pools, created by mineralization, although most of these pools were damaged or destroyed in the early 1990s by large floods that washed through the area. A small man-made dam was constructed to help restore the pools and to preserve what is left. There are many picnic tables on the opposite side of the creek, and it is very easy to cross over by following the edges of the pools. It is possible to swim behind the falls and enter a small rock shelter behind it. Havasupai is a dialect of the Upland Yuman language spoken by fewer than 450 people on the Havasupai Indian Reservation at the
bottom of the Grand Canyon. It is the only Native American language in the United States of America spoken by 100% of its indigenous population. As of 2005, Havasupai remained the first language of residents of Supai Village, the tribal government seat. Colorado River in the United States in the state of Arizona. It is contained within and managed by Grand Canyon National Park, the Hualapai Tribal Nation, and the Havasupai Tribe. President Theodore Roosevelt was a major proponent of preservation of the Grand Canyon area, and visited it on numerous occasions to hunt and enjoy the scenery. It is considered one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. For thousands of years, the area has been continuously inhabited by Native Americans who built settlements within the canyon and its many caves. The Pueblo people considered the Grand Canyon (“Ongtupqa” in Hopi language) a holy site and made pilgrimages to it.[8] The first European known to have viewed the Grand Canyon
Great Smoky Mtns Ridge upon ridge of forest straddles the border between North Carolina and Tennessee in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. World renowned for its diversity of plant and animal life, the beauty of its ancient mountains, and the quality of its remnants of Southern Appalachian mountain culture, this is America’s most visited national park. The Great Smoky Mountains are among the oldest mountains in the world, formed perhaps 200-300 million years ago. They are unique in their northeast to southwest orientation, which allowed species to migrate along their slopes during climatic changes such as MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
21
Kenai Fjords National Park Kenai Fjords National Park sits at the edge of the North Pacific Ocean, where storm patterns develop and feed a land of ice. The Harding Icefield crowns the park and is the source of at least 38 glaciers that flow over the land, sculpting as they go. These gigantic rivers of ice have shaped the terrain and are now receding to reveal their work. As ice melts, rock is uncovered and the process of succession begins to take place. Scientists in the park investigate such diverse topics
22
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
as newly colonized nunataks, black bear genetics, and the reproductive success of shorebirds. At the edge of the Kenai Peninsula lies a land where the ice age lingers. Nearly 40 glaciers flow from the Harding Icefield, Kenai Fjords’ crowning feature. Wildlife thrives in icy waters and lush forests around this vast expanse of ice. Native Alutiiq relied on these resources to nurture a life entwined with the sea. Today, shrinking glaciers bear witness to the effects of our changing climate. River otters defecate in certain spots to mark their territory. Researchers in Kenai Fjords National Park have discovered that these “latrine sites�
Great Rocky Mountains Ridge upon ridge of forest straddles the border between North Carolina and Tennessee in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. World renowned for its diversity of plant and animal life, the beauty of its ancient mountains, and the quality of its remnants of Southern Appalachian mountain culture, this is America’s most visited national park. Great Smoky Mountains National Park preserves a rich cultural tapestry of Southern Appalachian history. The mountains have had a long human history spanning thousands of years-from the prehistoric Paleo Indians to early European settlement in the 1800s to loggers and Civilian
Conservation Corps enrollees in the 20th century. The park strives to protect the historic structures, landscapes, and artifacts that tell the varied stories of people who once called these mountains home. Biological diversity is the hallmark of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which encompasses over 800 square miles in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. No other area of equal size in a temperate climate can match the park’s amazing diversity of plants, animals, and invertebrates. Over 17,000 species have been documented in the park: Scientists believe an additional 30,000-80,000 species may live here.
Be Bear Aware Great Smoky Mountains National Park is one of the few places remaining in the eastern United States where black bears can live in wild, natural surroundings. For many, this famous Smokies’ resident is a symbol of wilderness. All black bears in the park are black in color, but in other parts of the country they may be brown or cinnamon. They may be six feet in length and up to three feet high at the shoulder. During the summer months, a typical male bear weighs approximately 250 pounds while females are generally
Yellowstone National Park It’s wonderland. Old Faithful and the majority of the world’s geysers are preserved here. They are the main reason the park was established in 1872 as America’s first national park—an idea that spread worldwide. A mountain wildland, home to grizzly bears, wolves, and herds of bison and elk, the park is the core of one of the last, nearly intact, natural ecosystems in the Earth’s temperate zone. The human history of the Yellowstone region goes back more than 11,000 years. From then until to the very recent past, many groups of Native Americans used the park as their homes, hunting
grounds, and transportation routes. These traditional uses of Yellowstone lands continued until a little over 200 years ago when the first people of European descent found their way into the park. In 1872 a country that had not yet seen its first centennial, established Yellowstone as the first national park in the world. A new concept was born and with it a new way for people to preserve and protect the best of what they had for the benefit and enjoyment of future generations. Please visit the links below to learn more about history and culture in Yellowstone National Park. With half
of the earth’s geothermal features, Yellowstone holds the planet’s most diverse and intact collection of geysers, hot springs, mudpots, and fumaroles. Its more than 300 geysers make up two thirds of all those found on earth. Combine this with more than 10,000 thermal features comprised of brilliantly colored hot springs, bubbling mudpots, and steaming fumaroles, and you have a place like no other. Geyserland, fairyland, wonderland--through the years, all have been used to describe the natural wonder and magic of this unique park that contains more geothermal features than any other MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
23
YOGA IN THE U.S. 4 YOGA POSES TO INCREASE METABOLISM
BOW POSE
BRIDGE POSE
LUNGE POSE
HEAD POSE
Indicators of a slow metabolism include a poor digestive system and a lethargic liver. When these two organs are not functioning properly, the whole body suямАers, including your metabolism. Because both organs are located in the abdomen, yoga exercises focusing on your core are a great solution.
YOGA PRACTITIONERS DEMOGRAPHICS
PRACTITIONERS THAT LIVE ON THE WEST COAST 20% PRACTITIONERS THAT LIVE IN THE NORTHWEST COAST 30% PRACTITIONERS THAT LIVE IN THE MIDWEST 30% OTHER PARTS 20% 24
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
POPULATION AMERICAN’S WHO ARE INTERESTED AMERICANS WHO PRACTICE PRACTICERS WORLD WIDE
AGE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 18-34 BETWEEN THE AGES OF 35-54 OVER 55
18.3 M 21 M 300 M
GENDER 72.2% 27.8%
FEMALES MALES
40.6% 41% 18.4%
21 MILLION
AMERICANS CURRENTLY PRACTICING YOGA
Yoga came to the attention of an educated western public in the mid 19th century along with other topics of Hindu philosophy. The first Hindu
teacher to actively advocate and disseminate aspects of yoga to a western audience was Swami Vivekananda, who toured Europe and the United States in the 1890s. The reception which received is inconceivable without the active interest of, and others who found Vedanta in agreement with their own ideas and a cherished source of religious-philosophical inspiration.
HEALTH BENEFITS OF YOGA Most Westernized yoga classes focus on learning physical poses, which are called asanas. They also usually include some form of breathing technique and possibly a meditation technique as well. Some yoga classes are designed purely for relaxation. But there are styles of yoga that teach you how to move your body in new ways. Choosing one of these styles offers the greatest health benefits by enabling you to develop your flexibility, strength, and balance.
MOOD IMPROVES MEMORY IMPROVES
BETTER ZZZZZZ’S
RESPIRATORY EFFICENCY INCREASES WELL-BEING INCREASES LEARNING IMPROVES
STRENGHT INCREASES
DEPTH PERCEPTION IMPROVES
PAIN DECREASES
BLOOD PRESSURE DECREASES
POSTURE IMPROVES ATTENTION IMPROVES
MOKSHAMAGAZINE.COM
25