Show Notes
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ON THIS WEEK’S EPISODE: In this special interview episode, Aaron is joined by Ayurvedic teacher and yogini Myra Lewin, founder of Hale Pule, for a grounded and nourishing conversation about the Earth element (Pṛthvī), the importance of embodiment, and how to stabilise Vata in the modern world. Together, they explore what it truly means to be grounded, not just as a trendy concept, but as a deeply Ayurvedic principle tied to health, clarity, and spiritual connection. Myra shares insights from her 35+ years of practice, including the effects of food, overstimulation, irregularity, and disembodiment on our mental and physical well-being.
DEFINITION & ETYMOLOGY: Pṛthvī (पृथ्वी) is the Sanskrit term for Earth, the densest and most stable of the Mahābhūtas (five great elements). It represents solidity, stability, support, and form. To be “grounded” in Ayurveda means to be connected with the body, rooted in presence, and in right relationship with gravity, awareness, and nourishment.
KEY CONCEPTS & INSIGHTS: Grounding is awareness in the body: Myra explains that being grounded means occupying your body fully with awareness in your feet, energy, and personal space. Vata imbalance = ungroundedness: Common symptoms include dissociation, spaciness, bumping into things, fear-based decisions, irregularity, and overstimulation. Modern contributors to Vata aggravation: Excessive travel, screen use, fasting, liquid meals, poor sleep, irregular routines, and overstimulation. Stabilising Vata through food and routine: She shares examples of grounding (augmenting) foods like whole grains and sweet vegetables, and encourages a consistent schedule of meals and sleep. The importance of sadhana: Myra shares her own daily routine of mantra, fire ceremony, Surya Namaskar, pranayama, meditation, and gratitude - simple practices that anchor presence and build resilience. Awareness begins in Ajñā (the centre of seeing): Myra redefines grounding as not just dropping into the pelvis, but anchoring awareness from the Ajñā chakra, with clear seeing and conscious presence. Ayurveda as holistic living: Rather than compartmentalising health, Myra reflects on how Ayurveda helped her life “make sense” and guided her toward true freedom, embodiment, and joy.
PRACTICAL INTEGRATION: Start with one grounding practice and do it every day: regular meals, sleep, walks, or even a grounding cord visualisation. Eat augmenting foods: whole grains, root vegetables, and nourishing sweet tastes that build tissue and bring you into your body. Hold your awareness at the centre of your head (Ajñā) while sending energetic roots down - ground from within without dulling your clarity. Be consistent, not extreme: Myra reminds us that Ayurveda is not about restriction, but about rhythm and presence. Stay rooted in your own experience: Learn from others, but discern what supports your individual path.
ABOUT MYRA LEWIN: Myra Lewin is an Ayurvedic practitioner, yogini, and founder of Hale Pule School of Ayurveda and Yoga. With over 200,000 hours of teaching experience, she’s mentored thousands of students worldwide. Learn more at halepule.com.
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HARI OM
More from Om Som Yoga + Ayurveda Podcast
PRACTICE WITH US✦ Practice Online — Sadhana Sangha: 5 practices per month, asana workshops, subtle body techniques & Yoga Sūtra translation https://practice.omsom.yoga/365-sadhana-sandha/join✦ OmSom App (free) — Yoga philosophy, Sanskrit study & our online community. Search OmSom in the App Store✦ 100 Hr Yoga Teacher Training — Asana Sadhana Dharma bridging course https://practice.omsom.yoga/asana-sadhana-dharma-oto✦ 200 Hr YTT — Sri Lanka Immersion 2027 https://omsom.yoga/200-hour-yoga-teacher-training-sri-lanka✦ 300 Hr YTT — Online & India Immersion 2026/2027 https://omsom.yoga/300-hour-advanced-hatha-yoga-training✦ 50 Hr Yin YTT — Online https://practice.omsom.yoga/yin-yoga-and-prana-vayus-oto✦ Practice in Person — Classes, workshops & community in Berwick, Victoria https://omsom.yoga/book-a-class IN THIS EPISODEWhat's the fastest way to steady a restless mind? Most would say discipline. Patañjali offers a shortcut in his very first chapter: īśvara-praṇidhānād vā — "or, by devotion." The mind doesn't need to be forced; it takes the shape of whatever it dwells upon. Week three of THE PATHS OF YOGA is BHAKTI YOGA, the path of devotion — where love itself is the vehicle, and emotion, the most unruly force in human life, becomes the most direct road home. We open with Hanumān breaking open Sītā's priceless pearls one by one — "if Rāma is not inside it, it has no value to me" — and what the court saw when he tore open his own chest. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN✦ Bhakti from the root bhaj — "to share, to partake, to belong to": not worship at something distant, but participation in the beloved ✦ The mind becomes what it loves — worry is just devotion pointed at fear ✦ Aparā and parā bhakti: love with a face as the practice; lover, loving and beloved dissolving into one as the fruit ✦ Why Patañjali makes devotion a valid technique — and YS 1.39's quiet generosity: meditate on whatever you love ✦ The nine limbs of bhakti: hearing, chanting, remembering, serving, worshipping, bowing, servitude, friendship, self-offering ✦ The democratic path: no qualification, no Sanskrit — a leaf, a flower, water, offered with love, is enough ✦ Paige's doṣa medicine TEXTUAL REFERENCES✦ Nārada Bhakti Sūtra 1–2: "bhakti is of the nature of supreme love directed toward this" ✦ Bhagavad Gītā 9.26: a leaf, a flower, a fruit, water — offered with devotion, accepted ✦ Bhagavad Gītā 12.2: those whose minds have entered the beloved are the most established in yoga ✦ Yoga Sūtra 1.23 & 1.39: by devotion to Īśvara; by meditation on whatever is dearly desired ✦ Bhāgavata Purāṇa 7.5.23: Prahlāda's nine limbs ✦ The Hanumān pearl-necklace story, Rāmāyaṇa devotional tradition TRY THIS IN YOUR PRACTICE✦ Open practice by dedicating it to something you love — and notice how the quality of attention changes ✦ Japa with feeling: the mantra practised not as technique but as address — someone is being spoken to ✦ Take one of the nine limbs as your whole practice this week: just hearing, or just remembering ✦ Offer the first portion of one meal a day ✦ Notice what your mind already worships — what it returns to when no one is directing it — and choose deliberately ✦ Leave us a comment: if the mind becomes what it loves, what is your mind becoming? SHARE & CONNECTWebsite: https://omsom.yogaOmSom App (free): search OmSom in the App StoreInstagram: @omsomyogaIf this episode landed, the best way to support the show is to share it with one person who might need it. We run a yoga studio in Berwick, Victoria, offering classes, workshops, and Yoga Teacher Training programs. Wherever you are on your journey, we'd love to connect with you.HARI OM
PRACTICE WITH US
PRACTICE WITH US ✦ Practice Online - Sadhana Sangha: 5 practices per month, asana workshops, subtle body techniques & Yoga Sūtra translation https://practice.omsom.yoga/365-sadhana-sandha/join ✦ OmSom App (free) - Yoga philosophy, Sanskrit study & our online community. Search OmSom in the App Store ✦ 100 Hr Yoga Teacher Training - Asana Sadhana Dharma bridging course https://practice.omsom.yoga/asana-sadhana-dharma-oto ✦ 200 Hr YTT - Sri Lanka Immersion 2027 https://omsom.yoga/200-hour-yoga-teacher-training-sri-lanka ✦ 300 Hr YTT - Online & India Immersion 2026/2027 https://omsom.yoga/300-hour-advanced-hatha-yoga-training ✦ 50 Hr Yin YTT - Online https://practice.omsom.yoga/yin-yoga-and-prana-vayus-oto ✦ Practice in Person - Classes, workshops & community in Berwick, Victoria https://omsom.yoga/book-a-class
PRACTICE WITH US ✦ Practice Online — Sadhana Sangha: 5 practices per month, asana workshops, subtle body techniques & Yoga Sūtra translation https://practice.omsom.yoga/365-sadhana-sandha/join ✦ OmSom App (free) — Yoga philosophy, Sanskrit study & our online community. Search OmSom in the App Store ✦ 100 Hr Yoga Teacher Training — Asana Sadhana Dharma bridging course https://practice.omsom.yoga/asana-sadhana-dharma-oto ✦ 200 Hr YTT — Sri Lanka Immersion 2027 https://omsom.yoga/200-hour-yoga-teacher-training-sri-lanka ✦ 300 Hr YTT — Online & India Immersion 2026/2027 https://omsom.yoga/300-hour-advanced-hatha-yoga-training ✦ 50 Hr Yin YTT — Online https://practice.omsom.yoga/yin-yoga-and-prana-vayus-oto ✦ Practice in Person — Classes, workshops & community in Berwick, Victoria https://omsom.yoga/book-a-class