Darren Zeer - High Yoga: Enhance Yoga with Cannabis and CBD Treatments for Relaxation, Healing, and Bliss

This book is dedicated to the vast tribe of healers and advocates increasing awareness about these ancient sister medicines, cannabis and yoga.

Text copyright 2019 by Darrin Zeer.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Names: Zeer, Darrin, author.
Title: High yoga : enhance yoga with cannabis and cbd treatments for relaxation, healing, and bliss / Darrin Zeer.
Description: San Francisco, CA : Chronicle Books LLC, [2019]
Identifiers: LCCN 2018041907 | ISBN 9781452176635 (hc : alk. paper); ISBN 9781452176734 (epub, mobi)
Subjects: LCSH: Hatha yoga. | YogaHealth aspects.
Classification: LCC RA781.7 .Z455 2019 | DDC 613.7/046dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018041907

Design by Brooke Johnson.
Typeset in Globe Grotesk and Grenale.

Chronicle Books LLC
680 Second Street
San Francisco, CA 94107
www.chroniclebooks.com

Whether you are a self-described stoner or a weed tourist looking for adventure, High Yoga will take you on a journey toward your higher self. If you like weed and you like yoga, then you will love this practice. These ancient sister medicines work synergistically to offer a combination of deep relaxation, pain relief, creative inspiration, and spiritual insight. The following pages provide a therapeutic exploration that is designed for everyone, no matter your yoga or cannabis experience or physical ability. Give yourself permission to slow down and make your self-care a priority.

Within this book, you will find seven chapters connected to the seven chakras, energetic wheels in our bodies that energy flows through. The chaptersBe, Feel, Energize, Open, Share, See, and Freeare designed to activate these chakras, and open your mind and body to healing energy. Each chapter includes yoga sequences and recommendations for marijuana strains to enhance and complement your practice. Each yoga pose includes a mantra, instructions on how to move through the pose, weed wisdom on how to make the most of your high, and notes on the therapeutic benefits of the practice. You will also find some favorite slang terms for weed throughout the book. These terms were born out of necessity; cannabis has been demonized, and weed users have had to come up with inventive code words and phrases to refer to strains, smoking rituals, and altered states.

Interact with the content in whatever way suits your needspractice one chapter that matches your mood, try poses from all seven chakras in one session, or just veg out in one pose and enjoy your buzz. With a clear intention and a commitment to your sadhana, or practice, you can safely take a trip into your body, mind, heart, and spirit, whether you are flying solo or with a group of friends.

My big Aha! moment came when I was meditating at Kopan, a Buddhist monastery just outside Kathmandu, Nepal. During meditation, I had a momentary taste of enlightenment, and I knew then and there that my life would now be devoted to finding my way back to that state of freedom. I have been practicing and teaching yoga and meditation for more than twenty years through my books, classes, and retreats. My first book, Office Yoga, was a bestseller and CNN named me Americas Relaxation Expert.

During my travels I have received spiritual guidance from some amazing gurus. A few of them shared the benefits of combining cannabis with spiritual practice. One of my gurus shared with me how to do free-flow yoga while high as a way to expand my consciousness.

At my 420 Yoga Retreats, we combine therapeutic yoga and cannabis with the goal of helping people find healing. I am always amazed and humbled by the wisdom that this teacher plant provides. It reminds me of my time hiking in the Himalayas, when a hippie screamed to me across a large valley full of cannabis plants, Dude, no matter where you go, there you are.

Cannabis acts like a spiritual ally, an inner truth serum that helps you tap into how you feel in this moment. In the ancient Indian Vedic scriptures, ganja was considered a respected tool for spiritual transformation, a holy sacrament. Hindu sadhus, holy men who roam across India, have a tradition that has lasted thousands of years: smoking charas (hashish) in their homemade chillums (one-hitter pipes), drinking bhang (edible cannabis) lassis, and practicing yoga and meditation. Sadhus wear orange robes and have no possessions, not even shoes. In a tribute to the Lord of Bhang, Shiva, they pray aloud, Bhang Shiva, before taking a hit.

Marijuana is medicine for the body, mind, heart, and spirit. Before you practice high yoga, consult your doctor or mental health professional to be sure this practice is right for your mind and body (and please note this practice is for people of legal consuming age). As with all medicines, its important to find your correct dosage and the best tool to take your medicine. The appropriate dosage for spiritual seekers is the amount with which you can still stay present and navigate your journey. Microdosing (taking just a little) is recommended for safety and well-being until you feel more confident and at home in your asana, or pose. Increase your dosage as you become more adept at navigating through the amplified energy. If you desire a stronger dosage, remember these two ancient medicines are alchemic when used together. The combination of weed and yoga is powerful and should be respected. If you tend to get anxious or paranoid, pick a relaxing strain that has a low dose of psychoactive THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and a higher level of healing CBD (cannabidiol).

The combination of cannabis and yoga could be the cure for modern stress. Chronic stress is rampant in our society, and it doesnt just increase risk for disease, it actually can cause it. Real or imagined stressful situations can trigger a cascade of stress hormone reactions, your fight-or-flight response. To combat this stress, practice a mindful cannabis and yoga session to help activate your parasympathetic nervous system, your relaxation response. This practice also lowers blood pressure, relieves chronic pain, decreases inflammation, decreases anxiety, and helps you get a good nights sleep.

Ancient yoga describes the structure of the universe as earth, water, fire, air, and space (or ether). Prana (life-force energy) originates and grows from these five elements and helps sustain life. The seven chakras that run along the spine help process the intake and outtake of this prana. These chakras are energetic centers that can be activated through medicine (cannabis), asana, meditation, mantra, intention, and prayer. You dont need to believe in the chakras to receive the healing benefits consider them a road map for your self-discovery. Balance the energetic wheels of your chakras, and develop more balance in your life.