Bodhisattva Yoga practitioner, Greg Holden raises almost $50,000 for the Red Cross– with a song.

When Bodhisattva Yoga practitioner and rock star (literally!) shared that his yoga practice recently influenced his music, our jaws dropped. Too often we think about our practice as being separate from our life and career. Stories like this are a game changer. We’re proud to host Greg’s deepening practice and what really can be considered a Bodhisattva activity. Here’s his account:

“It was a very bizarre thing. After reading the book What is the What by Dave Eggers, I felt very frustrated. I wanted so desperately to help the people the book was about. It destroyed me. What could I do? A broke musician in Brooklyn who can barely pay his own rent give money to Sudan? Right! Naively I considered giving everything up, packing a bag and going to Africa! So foolish and ignorant, but in my head that’s what was going on. So I wrote a song called “The Lost Boy“, and sent it to a DJ I know in Holland, for no other reason than I thought he might like it, seeing that he does a lot of work for the Red Cross. I had no idea that 14 days later I would be sat on stage in Holland in front of 10,000 people, and 11 million people watching at home on Dutch National TV, playing that song live. Nor did I know my home-recorded demo would be at No.1 in the Dutch iTunes charts. Nor did I know that my song would end up raising almost $50,000 for Red Cross in that time, and nor did I expect that all 5 of my Dutch shows coming up in March as part of my European Tour, would sell out before February. I think what I learned from it all is that art can be a lot more powerful than we sometimes give it credit. We can all help in much more creative ways than just writing a check, and sometimes that way is the most effective too. It’s a very bizarre thing.” ~Greg Holden

Follow Greg!
http://www.gregholdenonline.com/
www.facebook.com/gregholden

It is better to travel well than to arrive.
-Buddha

Lauren H.

This Bodhisattva Yoga Blog series spotlights our rock star body of practitioners, for whom we are proud. The series is intended to inspire, thought-provoke and nurture the growing, friendly Bodhisattva Yoga community. When you see a featured Bodhisattva Yogin in class, say hello!

Although all of BY’s practitioners are really busy New Yorkers, few manage to juggle as much as this month’s BY rock star, Lauren – and, still keep a high level of consistent practice. Lauren is a doting wife, the present mother of two young boys, a full-time professional, and our 3rd highest attending practitioner for many months now. (Wow!)

Lauren has ascended the BY ladder. She started at BY’s Basic levels; she later developed proficiency in the SHILA (Intermediate level) class; and, she has steadily worked her way up even into the SATI (Advanced-invitation only) class – by rockin’ last September’s Semi-Annual Personal Assessment. On the way, she has attended workshops, here at BY, that facilitated her practice and growth. Most recently, we are proud to say, Lauren has gained acceptance into BY’s 2012 Awaken Your Inner Warrior teacher training/yogic immersion program.

Let’s give it up for Lauren! She’s a model of what we can juggle and still maintain a high level of practice frequency. Whether or not you’ve met the friendly, consistent aspiring yogini yet, give her a shout the next time you see her in class.

1. Bodhisattva Yoga: What is your age? Your profession and other life interests?
Lauren H: I am 32. I am a lawyer by training–I practiced at a Wall Street firm for many years and am now an editor at a legal publication. My other interests are my husband, my two sons, cooking, eating and drinking, books and movies, and my yoga practice. Whenever I can, I volunteer with a few great organizations here in the city working to improve maternity care in the USA, including by expanding access to midwifery-based and out-of-hospital options. I am also looking forward to working toward my yoga teacher certification at BY this spring.

2. BY: How often do you practice at Bodhisattva Yoga on a weekly basis?
LH: Recently, I have been making it to three classes a week. Occasionally, I can sneak in a fourth.

3. BY: What classes do you take on a weekly basis?
LH: Bodhisattva Flow; Shila, on Thursday and Sunday evenings; and, Sati – whenever I can make it on Saturday afternoon. The 8:30 weeknight classes are ideal for my schedule.

4. BY: Where do you live and what is your trip like to and from Bodhisattva Yoga?
LH: I live less than a block away, so typically my trip consists of a three- to four-minute sprint.

5. BY: What is it that you like about practicing at Bodhisattva Yoga?
LH: First and foremost, the incredibly high level of the instruction. Aside from that, the studio is just a lovely place and always immaculately run.  And I also like Vivekan’s iPod play list.

6. BY: What is it that you like about your fellow practitioners at Bodhisattva Yoga?
LH: I like that the group is very diverse in terms of age, profession and other characteristics, but once we get into the studio, we are all just BY practitioners. For such an interesting and talented group of folks, there is just very little ego. Everyone is friendly and supportive, and there is no sense of competitiveness or condescension, either on the basis of our practice or anything else.