• Gift Catalog
  • Donate
  • Contact Us
Call Us: 800-487-1074
Global Volunteers
  • Countries
    • International Partnerships:
      • China
      • Cook Islands
      • Cuba
      • Ecuador
      • Greece
      • Italy
      • Nepal
      • Peru
      • Poland
      • Portugal
      • St Lucia
      • Tanzania
      • Vietnam
    • USA Programs:
      • Appalachia – West Virginia
      • Blackfeet Reservation – Montana
      • Rosebud Reservation – South Dakota
      • Española – New Mexico
  • Projects
  • Give
    • Giving Options:
      • Donate Now
      • Gift Catalog
      • Ways to Give
      • Philanthropy
  • Impact
  • Blog
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
Culture and Traditions Worldwide

Yoga, Happiness, and Prosperity

YOGA, HAPPINESS, AND PROSPERITY

As part of our series on Myths and Legends, India Country Manager Stephen Raja continues talking about Kolam, and explains its relationship to yoga, happiness, and prosperity.

On a previous post Stephen explained the legend behind Kolam (beautiful drawings found in the streets of India.) Now Stephen explains why women really choose to make this drawings every day before sunrise rather than making a permanent drawing and just sleep in.

The real reason behind kolam is different from the legend. Kolam is actually a kind of yoga. Hindu religion could be rightly termed as ritualistic yoga. Our sages long back had mastered yoga and wanted to pass on the benefits of yoga to the ordinary person. But the ordinary person is not interested in doing yoga. (Many Indians don’t do yoga, it is catchier in the western world then in India). Our sages knew this, so to make the ordinary person do yoga, they created the Hindu religion, all the gods and goddess, and established rituals detailing how to worship the gods and goddess. These rituals are yoga, and one of these rituals is kolam.

The saying goes – if the Mother is happy, the family is happy. The mother is a multi-tasker. She cooks, cleans, washes, takes care of the children, husband, and many such chores every day for her family.

It will be good for the mother to do yoga everyday so that her mind and body are healthy and she can do all of these chores day after day for the family. But doing the chores everyday could be too hard on her health and very stressful in the long run.

YOGA,  HAPPINESS,  AND PROSPERITY

Woman in India doing beautiful kolam with chalk powder.

The yoga part of the kolam is as follows: The mother does the kolam first thing in the morning. It should not be done with chalk, which is easy. It is done with chalk powder, and drawing these kolams is truly an art. There are no fixed designs for kolam. A good kolam would take at least 15-20 minutes to do. So for these 15-20 minutes they are concentrating on a simple activity, and is very easy to make mistakes if you are not concentrating. So this concentration is yoga for the mind. Since it is done on the floor, you need to bend your back and sit down and get up a few times. Which is yoga for the body.

So those mothers/women who regularly do the kolams get their yoga done. This keeps their mind and body healthy, which makes them happy, and where there is happiness there is prosperity.

So,

Kolam = yoga = healthy mind and body = happiness = prosperity

YOGA,  HAPPINESS,  AND PROSPERITY

Kolam contest in India.

Share this:

  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)
January 3, 2017/0 Comments/by Daniel Salazar
https://205eev2oa0jm1t4yb914s1nw-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Woman-in-India-doing-a-kind-of-yoga-may-have-not-heard-about..jpg 1004 1500 Daniel Salazar https://205eev2oa0jm1t4yb914s1nw-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/2014-GlobalVolunteersLogo-Web.png Daniel Salazar2017-01-03 18:36:472017-01-03 12:57:35Yoga, Happiness, and Prosperity
0 replies

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

You must log in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Partner Communities

  • China 66
  • Cook Islands 44
  • Cuba 117
  • Ecuador 88
  • Greece 68
  • Italy 54
  • Montana 42
  • Nepal 16
  • Peru 98
  • Poland 77
  • Portugal 42
  • South Dakota 8
  • St Lucia 57
  • Tanzania 144
  • Vietnam 43
  • West Virginia 24

Categories

  • Boomer Volunteers
  • Conversational English
  • Couples Volunteering
  • Culture and Traditions Worldwide
  • Development Impact
  • Family Volunteers
  • Free Time Options
  • Global Volunteers
  • Group Volunteering
  • Impact Stories
  • Individuals on Teams
  • Projects for Professionals
  • Reaching Children's Potential
  • Repeat Volunteers
  • Retiree Volunteers
  • Staff Worldwide
  • Student Volunteers
  • Uncategorized
  • Volunteer Voices
  • Women volunteers

Tags

alumni volunteers American Indian culture Appalachian culture best destination peru Care for children Caribbean island College groups Conversational English cook islands economy covid-19 covid-19 consequences Cuba people-to-people donate for children Earthbox gardens economic support Essential Services food insecurity Funding your fee Health and nutrition High school groups Labor projects lgbt program peru resume resume high shcool retiree service-learning share food Spring break summer volunteer program support children Support women teaching children teaching english team leader things to do peru top places to visit peru tourism cook islands tours peru travel peru volunteer benefits Volunteer impact work on reservations Work with youth youth volunteering
  • About Us
  • Boards of Directors and Advisors
  • US and International Staff
  • Our Beginnings
  • Our Vision
  • Community Partners
  • Collaborators
  • Compare Us
  • Volunteer Vacations FAQs
  • Accountability and Agreements
  • Travel Risks
  • Impact and Outcomes of Service
  • Donate to Global Volunteers
  • Donate to a Volunteer
  • Money Matters – Explaining Your Service Program Contribution
  • Discounts & Fundraising
  • Alumni Center
  • News/Media
  • Privacy Policy
  • Agreements
  • Site Map
  • Contact
  • Podcast
  • Volunteer Portal
  • Employment
Global Volunteers
375 East Little Canada Road
St. Paul, MN 55117-1628 USA
(800) 487-1074 | toll-free
(651) 482-0915 | fax
globalvolunteers.org
email@globalvolunteers.org

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Subscribe receive notifications of new posts and updates by email.

Global Volunteers - Partners in Development ® | © Copyright 2002 - Present Global Volunteers
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Mail
  • Global Volunteers is an apolitical, non-sectarian, non-profit (501C-3) tax-exempt organization.
  • Send feedback about this web site and its administration.
Kolam: Beautiful Drawings in India Beautiful Drawings in India Service Trips for Couples Service Trips for Couples: Advice from Seven Couples
Scroll to top
loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.