• 19 Instructions for Life
• 19 Instrucciones Para la Vida
• Broken Consciousness
• Conciencia Rota
• Christian Comtemplation
• Contemplación Cristiana
• Dependent Origination
• Origen Dependiente
• Four Great Vows
• Family Karma
• Karma Familiar
• Heart Sutra
• Heart Sutra (Spanish)
• Hsin Hsin Ming
• Hsin Hsin Ming (Spanish)
• Human Route
• La Ruta Humana
• Meditation
• Meditacion
• Morning Calisthenics
• Morning Calisthenics (Spanish)
• Nirvana Behind Bars
• Nirvana tras las rejas
• Our Practice
• Nuestra Practica
• Precept Ceremony (Spanish)
• Step by Step
• Temple Rules
• Reglas del Templo
• Wearing a Kasa, Carrying the World
• Vestir Un Kasa

Morning Calisthenics

(Variations on the Arica gym)

1. Standing: Integration Breath—legs wider than shoulders, outsides of feet parallel to each other, knees bent about 30 degrees, fingers intertwined, then breathe in powerfully, bring hands over head to occiput, squeeze occiput like a CV4, release squeeze as you release the breath, breathe out as you return hands to place in front of hara. Repeat 3X

2. Standing: Grape Picking—breathing in, reach both hands up to the sky, high as you can go, then pick an imaginary grape with your left hand while bringing your right heel off the ground while still breathing in. This is all done quickly. Now transfer to picking a grape with your right hand, left heel off of the ground, then back to left hand up, and so on, until you have picked a “grape” four times with each hand, all the time breathing in and not once breathing out. At the end of the fourth right-side “pick,” bring your fingertips to your shoulder tips and then breathe out while your arms move down outside your legs to the ground in a big swing. Then you swing up again to grape picking on the in-breath.

3. Standing: Integration Breath just once

4. Standing: Lateral Stretch begins like grape picking by raising both hands up above your head, but then you go as far as you comfortably can pure lateral while you breathe in, then back up to arms above heard in the center, and only then breathing out while you bring your elbows together, make fists with your hands, and bring your elbows quickly down, between your knees almost to the squatting position. Repeat to the other side, do each side a total of 4 times. Bend from your hips, not your back—don’t hurt yourself.

5. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

6. Standing: Flexor Stretches—arcing hands behind your back as you breathe out, breathing in as you bring your arms to the front. Move your arms as far behind you as you can, with fingertips pointing directly behind you if possible, to stretch your pectoral muscles and your forearm flexor muscles. Repeat in different arcs of movement from almost above your head to almost down at your knees. From Physical Therapy. Finally hold a stretch for at least 15 seconds.

7. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

8. Standing: Shoulder Rolls—clasp your hands behind your back by holding one wrist with the other hand. Breathe in. Rotate your shoulders backwards 7 times, all the while breathing in. Stop. Reverse direction 4 times while breathing out. Repeat 4 times.

9. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

10. Standing: Arm Circles—breathing in, make 7 large external-rotation circles of your arms, with straight elbows, then breathe out making 4 large internal-rotation circles. Repeat 4 times.

11. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

12. Standing: Hand Circles—breathing in, elbows fully flexed, make 7 very quick, tiny external-rotation. Wrist movements, then reverse directions and breathe out for 4 rotations.

13. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

14. Standing: Windmill—bend your trunk forwards about 30 degrees from the vertical, bring your knees and feet a little closer together, and rotate your arms backwards 7 times breathing in, then forwards 4 times breathing out.

15. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

16. Kneel on the floor: neck exercises-Roll—breath in, look straight ahead and drop your chin on to your chest, then roll your head as far around to the left as possible, while still looking straight ahead with your eyes. Come up to center. Breathe out as you drop your head gently back down to your chest. Repeat 3 times to each side. Do not do if you are suffering from a whiplash injury.

17. Kneel on the floor: Side Side—breathe in the center, then while breathing out, rotate your head as far as you can to your left while you breathe out. Give your neck a little extra push at the limit of left rotation. Breathe in while coming back to center. Repeat to the right side. Do each side, slowly, 3 times.

18. Kneel on the floor: Lung Stretch—drop your head on to your chest while breathing out, then rotate your head slowly as far as you can to your left but only up to straight and level (don’t rotate upwards), then allow your head to fall back the same way it came up while you breathe out. Repeat t the right. Stretch you lungs. Do 3 times to each side.

19. Kneel on the floor: Camel—breathing out, drop your chin to your chest. Breathing in, scrape your whole chin up the front of your throat, then breathing out push your chin and your whole head and neck straight out in front of you as far as you can. Breathe out as you let your head fall back to your chest. Repeat 3 times.

20. Standing: Integration Breath three times.

21. Standing: Uddiama—feet wide and parallel, knees bent to about 45 degrees, place palms on knees with your fingers inside the knees. Breathe in powerfully, then breathe out, hold the out-breathe, and suck your belly up into your diaphragm 7 times while you still hold your breath. Breathe in and relax. Repeat 3 times.

22. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

23. Standing: Pendulum—bring your left leg up in front of you, and the opposite hand out in front of you, and begin a kind of “walking” with one leg and both arms swinging. Breathe freely; emphasize the forward swing of your leg. Do 7 swings with the left leg, then change over and do 7 with the right leg. Repeat 3 times on each side. This is a wonderful psoas exercise.

24. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

25. Standing: Heel Drops—breathing in, rise up on to tip-toe and then let go and drop back on your heels while breathing out. Repeat 4 times. Then lift your left foot with your left hand and tap the sole with your right fist many times, quickly. Change over, do the other foot. Do once on each foot. Now make quick little tapotement movements on to the front of your foreleg, front of your thighs, buttocks, and finally you pectoral muscles. Then shake your arms out. This is a Bioenergetic exercise.

26. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

27. Standing: Leg Arcs: breathing in, raise your left leg in front of you as high as you can, then, breathing out, move your leg laterally as far as you can, then, breathing out, bring your leg back down to the ground. Your arms are out to the sides like bird’s wings as you do this. Repeat on the other side. Do 3 times on each side.

28. Standing: Integration Breath just once.

29. Lying down on your belly: Rest for 2-3 minutes, feel your hara melt into the earth, with your palms on the floor above the crown of your head.

30. Lying on your belly: Tiger’s Breath—bring your hands just lateral to your shoulders, breath out very fast and simultaneously raise your sacrum as high in the air as you can, then swing your pubis down towards the floor as you breathe in, with your head now as high as you can. Make a tiger’s roar-open your throat. Repeat by now bringing your sacrum up and your head down while you breathe in again. Do a total of 3 times then stand and do an Integration Breath. Go back down to the floor, do 3 more Tigers’s Breaths, then come up and do another Integration Breath. Do sequence 3 times.

31. Standing: Integration Breath just once. finito