Scott Anderson, Ph.D.

Backcountry skiing is one of my favorite activities. Rather than riding ski lifts to the mountaintops, backcountry skiers get to the tops of the mountains under their own power. It’s said that backcountry skiers earn their turns , and I’ve certainly found that the pleasures of untracked snow are even greater when I’ve broken a sweat to get there. Over the years, I’ve daydreamed about doing longer and more remote backcountry tours, and inevitably come to the conclusion that a guide would be essential. The threat of avalanche is a constant companion, as is the very real possibility of getting turned around in whiteout conditions. As I consider the need for a guide, I’ve further reflected on the attributes I’d look for in a guide. Firstly, I’d like a mountain guide to be a proficient skier. Should anything go awry, the guide would need to ski in whatever conditions were present, and perhaps across the steepest and gnarliest terrain. Expert skiing skills would be essential. ...

It used to be that spies were masters of disguise. By donning a suitable disguise, spies could pass as legitimately belonging within a given office or lab, along the way extracting what they wanted or implanting their ideas. I imagine most spying is now freed from physical disguises, instead relying on cyber-aliases - though there may still be the occasional spy roaming the planet who rely on wigs and fake noses to avoid detection. While the era of spies-in-disguise may be shifting, the disguise is still very much alive and well. Anxiety is a master of disguise, and seems to be more and more prevalent. Sometimes anxiety is immediately recognizable, though often it slyly disguises as a justified worry or fear. For example, many people will worry about money at points in their lives. Often there is at least a shred of validity to the concern, though frequently the extent of the worry exceeds the intensity of the stressor. The anxiety is very ...

Living in the outskirts of exurbia, I never know what may present itself during meditation practice. In the winter, the pulsing thrum of snowmobiles is sometimes heard, while in the warmer months, the lub-lub-lub of the Harley-Davidson V-Twin occasionally accompanies my practice. Most days I'm accompanied by cats; sometimes lugubriously sitting by a closed door, often meditating on my lap, or just passing through the Dharma Hall on an undisclosed mission. The other day, Amelia's mission had taken on an unusual urgency. She bolted down the stairs and came flying into the Dharma Hall. The bushiness of her tail indicated there was big excitement in the air, and her furtive movements were unusual. It was still daybreak, so I could not make out the cause of her alarm, though it did not appear that she was being pursued or otherwise in danger. As I continued meditating on form, the cause of her furtive movements came into focus - she had brought a live mouse into the Dh...

In my late-20's, I met an eccentric yoga teacher who later became one of the strongest influences on my teaching. Some of this influence included what I would consciously choose not to do, though many of his teachings still inform my yoga practice, and correspondingly, my yoga teaching. Under the tutelage of Roger Eischens, I became a student of energy. Whether we call this energy chi, qi, prana or Floyd, an awareness of energy in the body is found in many healing modalities. At first, I felt that energy was tangential to structure: There was body alignment, strength and flexibility... And then there was energy. With further training and practice, however, I began to feel how alignment could facilitate feeling energy moving in my body, and how energy-based techniques could influence alignment. Rather than being two distinct systems, Roger showed me that they were the two sides of the same coin. Roger was famous for containing multitudes. As I mentioned previously, I consci...

When we think of increasing our lifespan and reducing our physical discomfort, we often think of exciting advances in medicine, or the latest scientific innovation. While science and technology have certainly increased life expectancies, it's largely the seeming banality of public health that allows many of us to live well into our 70's and beyond. By keeping excrement separate from the drinking water, for example, cholera outbreaks are largely unheard of in the West, and lifespans have significantly increased as a result of this single preventative measure. For those of you who are interested in yoga and meditation, perhaps you're already doing many of the right things: moving toward a plant-based diet, brushing your teeth, exercising, flossing and meditating. Are there any simple preventative measures that are unaccounted for? For many of us, a simple way to reduce our risk of injury involves how we drive our cars, and specifically, how we hold the steering wheel....

Over the years, I feel fortunate to have connected with many different animals. Certainly I’ve connected with cats – having lived around cats since I was an infant, I can count many friends that are cats. Along the way, I’ve also met many dogs I’ve felt a connection to; Hannah, Louis and Lucky are among my dog friends. It’s been thrilling to swim with turtles while snorkeling in Hawaii. Their effortless movements make it look like they’re flying in the water, and I always feel like I’m in the presence of old wisdom when I’m around them. It would probably be an overstatement, though, to count these turtles as friends. It would be akin to attending a ‘Stones show, and referring to the lead singer as Mick. Not uncommon, perhaps, but presuming a closeness that probably isn’t reciprocal. It wasn’t until this morning that I felt a connection to a tortoise. I’m still saddened by the circumstances surrounding our brief friendship, but grateful to have been in the presence of this...

In another installment from our Assistant Director of Trainings, Andrea Russell, we learn the benefits of the Classic Sun Salutations and how to practice them.