Yoga Vermont Instructor Course Blog

One of many valid prespectives on how to teach yoga

2012-01-20T21:47:00.001-05:00

It has been a while since I have posted but inspired by tonight’s Yoga Dance Class i have some thoughts to share. Reflecting on my own teaching style and asking my self why do i teach the way i do ? Was i taught to do it this particular way ? Am i emulating what i have experienced in other classes and enjoyed ? Am i just repeating what i have heard others say ? Or am i coming from my own direct experience and sharing what i have experienced to be true, not just what i have heard or seen. There were various flavors of yes and no for each question, but with these questions came a perspective that i feel would be a valuable one to consider. Making no claim this is a correct or superior perspective, each teaching style has something to offer. Here is one of many:

The thing that got me thinking about this in the first place is that i often don’t assist while i am leading a class. I find it difficult to maintain a good rhythm and flow , while assisting individual people (perhaps this is something that comes with experience). You also never really know if a particular person on a particular day would even prefer having an assist. If they do happen to prefer one and they notice others getting an assist, they may start to subtly crave one and throw off the balance of the mind. Any form of outside stimulation , like a physical adjustment or a verbal command directed towards an individual can be a distraction to the meditative aspect of the flow. Of course there are benefits as well for being physical guided into proper alignment or verbally corrected if your doing something that may injure you. There is a place for each perspective, here i focus on the non assist perspective.

When i say non assist i am referring to no physical assists, as well as no verbal assists directed at a particular person. So if your not assisting either physically or verbally what are you doing as you teach ? Practicing. Just like everyone else, we come to yoga to practice. What are we practicing ? Absorption. Absorption with our direct experience. Being fully present. Awake and aware, content and non attached. Taping into our energetic nature and observing as it unfolds. Although when you need to lead a class, how do you direct the practice of others ? By being completely present with your own practice and describing in as much detail as possible, exactly what you are doing moment by moment. As you feel the adjustments you make in your own practice coming into alignment, describing that experience. Clearly seeing what your doing physically and mentally, then finding the words to explain. Not only then are you practicing what you preach , but you are only preaching what you yourself are practicing in that moment. Instead of having thoughts about what you will teach and how you will teach it, actually practicing your self and just describe what you are aware of.

This can be a practice its self for the teacher. Staying so present with your own practice that you are able to explain exactly what your body is doing. Letting the students take in that information and apply little parts of it that relate to them at that moment. While still allowing the freedom of the students to make their own decisions on what feels right in their body. With out ever correcting them , but offering general detailed enough alignment principles that they will correct them selves when ready. Finding the alignment in their own body which only they have the direct experience of. No one else can find that for them.

I offer this approach as an option to consider. Making it very easy to show up to teach. Simply practice and describe. Do not disturb, the natural flow of each persons individual experience. This may not be the optimal approach for beginners, but can potentially be used once a practitioner has become aware enough to not injure themselves. What do you think ?

Metta,

Danny

2011-09-28T12:54:00.000-04:00

An interesting article from a must read author and book, Mark Singleton Yoga Body: The Origins of Modern Posture Practice

http://themagazineofyoga.com/blog/2010/10/13/mark-singleton-part-two/

Chanting with Laksmish

2011-09-18T02:44:00.000-04:00

Found a little clip of my Sanskrit teacher at KPJAYI in Mysore...

Photos from Lindsay's Garden

2011-07-02T08:46:00.000-04:00

It was a beautiful day in the garden. Thanks Lindsay!

Namaste!

"If It Hurts, You're Doing It Wrong."

2011-07-02T07:18:00.000-04:00

Do yoga daily! Does that sound like it takes a great deal of discipline? David Williams thinks not, as he has been practicing the Ashtanga system of yoga daily, with the exception of moon days and Saturdays, since 1973. David is a dedicated practitioner, because he is fascinated by yoga and its many benefits . To him, discipline implies punishment. Upon meeting the very fit and energetic fifty five year old David, the benefits of yoga become readily apparent.

"If it hurts, you're doing it wrong."
"One millimeter past a stretch is tearing."
"You cannot heal pain by adding more pain."
"Yoga will cure everything except injuries caused by improper yoga practice!"
"Do not tug."
"In India, the words yoga and meditation are synonyms."
"What is most important is what is invisible [moola bandha, deep breathing, and mental focus]."
"Yoga is a path to self realization and liberation ... it is meditation in motion."
"Pay attention, be aware, be present in life."

These are just some of the astute observations of David Williams during a four day workshop I attended. Beginning September 30, 2004, my view of yoga was changed forever. The workshop was an almost 180 degree turnaround from my strict alignment based training of the past eleven years. If it hurts, you are doing it wrong, was a principle theme of David's workshop. Based on the number of injured Ashtanga yogis I have met, perhaps this is a very good rule to follow. He shared with us the Ashtanga system of yoga as it was taught to him by Pattabhi Jois in Mysore, India. It is a bit different than one might experience at a led Ashtanga yoga class in the west where competition plays a large cultural role. When David first ventured to Mysore there were not any led group classes and yoga was only taught individually and passed
along to others in the same manner.
David's fascination with yogis was what led him to India in 1971, for he desperately wanted to learn “the yoga”. Through serendipitous events and some hardship, he eventually met his teacher, Pattabhi Jois. One evening, Manju Jois (Pattabhi's son) was performing a yoga demonstration where David expressed his sincere desire to learn. However, Manju said he was traveling and had no organized classes. He had learned from his father. Manju also told David that his father only taught Brahman men. Upon meeting Pattabhi in the flesh, David's enthusiasm and sincerity were so apparent that he agreed to teach him. David was instructed for four months, learning the first, second, and half of the third series of Ashtanga yoga. When David's visa expired he returned to America and began teaching classes at a yoga and kung fu studio.

Soon thereafter, Pattabhi Jois contacted David wanting to come to America. David arranged what would be considered in today's terminology a "workshop". Each student contributed enough to pay for Jois and his son, Manju, to come to America. Jois and Manju stayed for four months. During the workshop, David told us the story of Ashtanga yoga and how it came to be taught by Pattabhi Jois in India. It is as follows: Krishnamacharya was the head professor at Maharaja's Sanskrit College in Mysore. He decided he wanted to learn yoga and ventured to Mt. Kailash in Tibet and then Varanasi in search of a yoga master. Daily for eight months, Krishnamacharya would request to meet with the master and daily for eight months, he was refused. One day, his request was honored and after passing a rigorous Sanskrit test, Krishnamacharya was invited to learn yoga. Upon completing his eight years of training, he returned to the Maharaja's Sanskrit College in Mysore.

It was only a short time before fourteen year old Pattahbi Jois became one of Krishnamacharya's students and began to learn the Ashtanga system of yoga. Jois tells that he was basically an apprentice to Krishnamacharya and had to beg to be taught yoga. A few years later, the asthmatic sixteen year old nephew of Krishnamacharya, BKS Iyengar, came to Mysore. Iyengar's family sent him to his uncle to learn yoga only after exhausting all other possibilities of treatment for his lung/breathing disorders. Jois taught the sickly teenager. Later Krishnamacharya decided to retire and move to the coast, leaving Jois in charge of the yoga program. Jois was twenty-three at the time. Jois
became a Sanskrit Vidwan (master) as well as the yogasana teacher at Maharaja's Sanskrit College.
David’ s first focus is on the moolabandha, deep breathing, and continuous one pointed concentration. “If it hurts, back off. If it is one millimeter past a stretch, back off. That way no one gets hurt”, mused David. He suggested we use our breath to move ourselves into a posture, rather then pulling or tugging on toes, legs or arms. He also stressed the importance of symmetry. Everyone is stronger, tighter, weaker, etc. on one side. Try brushing your teeth with the opposite hand! “Openings" as so beamingly referred to by some are actually tears and rips, David asked that no one have an "opening" during his workshop!
Here are some differences between most ashtanga classes I have attended and David’s workshop, they are:

no vinyasas between sides (this is how it was taught in Mysore)
cobras rather than up dog (ie knees on floor) ... what a difference that makes when you do bunches of them!
to prevent injuries: no shoulder stands, headstands or handstands (during first series class)
to prevent injuries: no backward somersaults

David stayed on his mat during practice and led the class by doing the asanas with us, rather than moving about the class. David taught us that if moola bandha is being properly done, the uddiyana is automatically engaged. The gazing point in most forward
bending postures is the navel, rather than the toes. This engages the chin lock, as instructed by the Yoga Scriptures. He said that if someone has their chest completely on their thighs and chin between legs, then they can look up and gaze at toes, however this
is not appropriate for those who cannot get their head to their knees, and does not give the benefits of the chinlock. Keeping the head down completes the natural curve of the spine and allows for the aid of gravity. David's dialogue does not include many Sanskrit words and he believes that knowing Sanskrit does not make someone a better yogi. The opening and closing chant are not taught because he has found that some students have no desire to invoke Hindu Gods. David teaches from his mat and claims that most people learn better by observing as well as hearing instructions, rather than just listening. He says that savasana is the MOST important part of practice. Sounds easy, doesn't it? Savasana or corpse pose is the time when our body utilizes the prana created by the breath and moola bandha. Prana is life force; prana heals us. Keep the body and the
mind still; do not think (because mental energy is more taxing than physical). Our genetic code and DNA know exactly where healing is needed and will automatically send prana to that area. Cover up with lots of blankets to keep the internal heat as long as possible. David suggested that if one is at home, get in bed under the covers! Depending on one's physical limitations, David may ask someone to repeat sun salutation A and sun salutation B three, five or even ten times, then return the next day for more of the same or to add new poses. When instructing privately, David has time to fully assess each individual, their capabilities, goals, and injuries. During a group class there is not time for that special attention, therefore he does not teach headstand or shoulder stand during first series because he does not want even one person to injure themselves. He also talked about resting on moon days and Saturdays. Consistency is the key. When Jois taught David in Mysore, there were no vinyasas between right and left sides. This began in California because classes became so popular and crowded that Jois added vinyasas to make certain everyone mastered the basics.
After more than twenty years of exclusively teaching private classes, David has recently decided to travel and instruct groups in an effort to introduce the original ashtanga system as it was taught to him by Jois. David does not refer to his workshops as teacher trainings; he wants to appeal to everyone and even though someone may be a student with no intention of ever teaching, no one knows the future. One may end up teaching many people or perhaps just a friend. He considers us all potential teachers.
Most yoga in our lives will be practiced alone so we need to make it fun and make it feel good; that is the key to being able to do yoga at age ninety! A minimum of ten minutes per day. Sun salutations A and B along with the three finishing postures. It sounds easy. The question is ... are you fascinated enough?

http://www.ashtangayogi.com/HTML/article5.html

Subji (sub-jee)

2011-06-30T20:12:00.000-04:00

with love from Milk Baba

olive oil or sesame oil HOT in bottom of pan
throw in seeds and spices.
throw in onion mixture.
then vegies with water
let cook a while then add tomatoes last

Baba also sometimes slips in
peanut butter or cream cheese or ghee.

five seeds of some sort:
banchaphuran is the name for all five
also pronounced panchaphuran.

spices heaping in a bowl:
cumin
corriander
gurumasala powder
cayanne
paparika
meganut powder
chili
salt
black pepper
anything else that catches your eye

more spice:
onion
garlic
ginger
any pepper

chop very small:
potatoes
beet
carrot
sweet potatoe
zuchini and or yellow squash
asparagus
any other vegie you can get your hands on
mushroom
tofu

in separate bowl:
last time putting
tomatoe

RAM RAM SITA RAM

Second Series?

2011-06-28T00:58:00.002-04:00

I googled second series for a good chart to follow, and this is what it came up with...
(quite possibly the most anatomically un-useful chart ever!)

Junior Yoga Workshop

2011-06-13T13:58:00.010-04:00

Last week, I volunteered at my son's school to lead a yoga workshop outside for four days. In each workshop with eight children, I had to fill up about 4 hours of time. Although we were in a tent, it was still hot on some days, and stormy on others. So needless to say, flexibility was KEY.

Kids can't just do poses for four hours. Attention span, physical endurance, behavior issues all came into play. I have developed a bag of tricks I'd like to share with you all.

Each child had a yoga mat, and I started off with some basic warm ups not just to limber up, but to remind them of their "personal space". With arms and legs spread, we swept our arms around in an imaginary bubble. If two "bubbles" touched, the kids rearranged to make sure they had enough space.

We then began to go through poses. I have read many different kids' yoga books to come up with 36 poses that can all be named after animals or objects. The reason I did this is because I have a bag of little plastic animals and shapes that the kids use to learn from. They closes their eyes, reach into the bag, draw one out, then we learn that pose. Those animals are also good for Savasana breathing at the end: I place one animal on each child's chest and have them watch the animal rise and fall with their breath.

We did modified Sun Salutations. We did handstands using the baseball backstop. We did partner poses. We also did the three Warrior poses in a series I call "Flight of the Arrow" (I changed the names to "Archer" poses). We start in Warrior 2, "put your hands together in front, and draw back your bow". Then we "make the arrow" by putting our arms up into Warrior 1. "Place the arrow in the bow" (bend forward with arms parallel to ground, bent over knee) "then let the arrow fly!" by bringing the back leg up into Warrior 3.

One thing that amazed me was the fact that almost every child could do Crow by the end of the workshop. And it was, by far, the most favored pose. As I said, poses are physically demanding, and frustrating for some children who are still learning balance and coordination. That is where some hands on stuff comes in!

The first activity we did was to review the poses using marshmallows and toothpicks. One large marshmallow, 6 mini marshmallows, and 9 toothpicks. After we assembled, the kids arranged the figure into yoga poses that they learned. The best part, of course, was eating the marshmallows at the end!

The second activity was coloring mandalas. I bought the stained-glass mandala coloring book by Dover publishing. Using markers, the kids had some quiet time coloring their mandalas to take home.

Other things I did was teaching them about breathing, placing their hands on their chest to feel their heart, ribs, belly and how they move while breathing. I also made up a story with words that were the yoga poses they learned. As I said each yoga pose word, they were to show me that pose. I.e. "Then the EAGLE landed on the TREE."

I had fun and plan to continue this workshop for years to come.
Jaycie

Please watch - it is very short. xoxo kath

2011-06-10T08:49:00.002-04:00

Terry Moore: How to tie your shoes | Video on TED.com

Wisdom and Yoga – Vipassana insights on Yoga pactice

2011-05-17T20:29:00.000-04:00

What is your purpose of practicing yoga ? Why do you do it ? What does it do for you ?

On the surface Yoga practice is great exercise. Asana and Pranayama how ever you happen to practice them are great for the body and mind. Given that the body and mind are so interrelated keeping the body in good health will also help to keep the mind in good health. Some might also practice yoga for temporary stress relief, deep relaxation, getting into your body and out of the constant chatter of the mind. You come to your practice with all of the struggles from the day and hopefully leave rejuvenated ready to face what ever comes your way. Although when challenging situations come up, things don’t go as you expected or deep emotions bubble up where is that peaceful feeling that you left your practice with ?

Physical health, relaxation, and a few moments of peace are nothing to be taken lightly and if that’s what brings you to Yoga your still doing much better than many others struggling to find those things in life. Although with a deeper understanding of the practice there is an opportunity for more than just a temporary relief. How about liberation, happiness independent of conditions, insight into who you are, a sense of lasting peace that does not fade in the hard times as well as the good times.

Through my recent experience at a 10 day Vipassana course, during which we were encouraged not to practice yoga, a few things about my own practice and what Yoga means to me became a little more clear. It was apparent to me, that at some level i was indeed attached to yoga practice. That great feeling you get working the body, and the deep relaxation that comes when you are done. What an amazing feeling ! Who would not want to have that ? To what extent though is that useful ? Does yoga just become yet another thing in your life that you feel like you need to be happy ? Something outside of your self that is bringing you this happiness. If only i could practice yoga everyday , maybe a few times a week , ahhh then i would be really happy? That feeling of craving that might arise after a stressful day, “practicing some yoga would really make me feel better right now”. If you know anything about yoga philosophy you probability know that yoga is about being in the moment, allowing things to be as they are, contentment and non attachment. I make no claims to say that your not actually doing that, but really investigate your own experience especially when it comes to practicing yoga its self.

I really feel that the insight from Vipassana mediation has much to offer a Yoga practice. Turing it from a temporary relief to a real beginning of transformation and change. Here are the basics of Vipassana mediation and why it is useful:

Buddhism is primary based on what is called the four noble truths:

1) There is suffering

2) The origin of suffering is craving and aversion

3) There is a way to stop suffering

4) This is a path leading to the end of suffering ( Enlightenment )

You could go on in great detail about these four topics, but what is important for my purpose here is the second noble truth. Simply put the very root of our suffering is because we crave things that we like and avoid things we don’t like. If the world was a perfect place and we could always get what we want and completely avoid the thing we don’t want then there would be no problem here. Unfortunately at least from my own experience that is not the case, sometimes we don’t get what we want and sometimes we can not avoid situations we would not like to be in. What is interesting here is that we often attribute the cause of this suffering to outside factors. If only i could acquire some thing or have some experience then i would be happy. Even when we get that thing or experience we are still not satisfied looking for yet another external thing to bring us happiness. If only that person would change or act differently to me then i would be happy. We attribute our happiness outside of our self’s because we don’t understand what is going on at a deeper level. How do we maintain peace and balance of mind though all of life’s ups and downs ?

It is said that there are five things that make up our experience:

1) Physical Matter

2) Consciousness

3) Perception / Evaluation

4) Feeling / Sensation

5) Reaction / Mental Conditioning

With everything that we experience through any of the 6 sense doors ( Sound, Sight, Smell, Taste, Touch, Mind), anything we experience outside or that we generate inside with our own minds:

We first are aware of it through Consciousness. We then perceive it through the lens of our past experience and conditioning, evaluating the raw data and making logical sense out of it. That evaluation results in a positive, negative or neutral sensation arising somewhere in the body (regardless if we are able to detect it). We then react to that sensation with craving or aversion. Wanting to hold on the the pleasant sensations and get rid of the negative ones. This is not something we are normally directly aware of, when very strong emotions or sensations come up we are very aware of them. When very subtle emotions or sensations come up we are not aware but the deepest level of the mind is always aware and reacting to sensations on the body. We think that things outside our of selves are making us feel good or bad, where we are recognizing the object, evaluating it and then reacting to the sensation that was produced. Mind and Body are interconnected, with an experience in the mind manifests a sensation in the body. It is in fact our reaction to the sensations that we are holding on to or pushing away, not any person , experience or material object that is the root of our habitual reactions.

Through the practice of Vipassana you first focus your attention on the breath to calm the thoughts and focus the mind. You do this in a very specific way concentrating on the very small area right underneath your nostrils. Simply observing the breath as it passes through the gateway of your nose, in and out. You begin to become aware of the very subtle sensation that the touch of the breath has as the inhale and exhale come and go. As the breath becomes more subtle the sensations become more subtle and your mind becomes more subtle maintaining awareness of the increasingly subtle sensations. Eventually your mind becomes so focused that you are constantly aware of this subtle level of sensation that is always there, right under the threshold of ordinary awareness, even if the breath is flowing or not. At that point you are ready to begin to scan your entire body , bringing this focused mind, becoming aware of the subtle sensations that are present through out the entire body. These sensations will manifest in many ways, some times pleasant, some times unpleasant, some times you don’t notice anything, sometimes extremely blissful, sometimes painful or horrific. Just like life sometimes good , some times bad. What will become very clear is that all of these sensations are impermanent, constantly changing, pulsing, vibrating. They come and the go, stay for a little while and then dissipate, arise and pass almost instantaneous. When you get to this very subtle level, nothing is solid that you can hold on to, even a very solidified pain when probed deeper is changing and pulsing. If all these sensations are impermanent and constantly changing what is the purpose of clinging to or avoiding them ? As soon as you reacted it has already come and gone. The practice now is to simply, objectively observe the sensations with equanimity. Meaning seeing them for exactly what they are, not identifying with them, not reacting to them, allow them to be and pass through you. To the extent you can be aware of sensations and have equanimity towards them, the process of purification and liberation has begun.

Understanding this how do we relate it to Yoga practice. In Yoga you are already slowing down the mind, focusing on the breath, you are already aware of sensations in your body. What may be missing is this concept of equanimity. Balance, non reactivity, freedom from attachment or aversion. On the surface we all understand this, but it can be really hard to do, speaking for my self at least. It can also be a fine line, for instance how can you approach a pose with complete non attachment yet still exert some effort. If your in a simple forward fold, you get in there and reach your edge. Some craving may arise to want to go a little bit deeper, you almost have your chest on your thighs but not just yet. At this point what is really the goal ? Is it to get as deep as you possibly can in the pose, get your chest flat against your legs ? Or is it to bring your self to your edge, where you need to be in that moment and let go. Become aware of the sensations in your body and observe them with equanimity. If there is a pleasant sensation that arises because maybe the stretch feels good, maybe your deeper than you have ever been before, don’t become attached to it just observe it knowing that it is impermanent and will change. If there is an unpleasant sensation that arises because maybe there is a little bit of strain, or something in that moment triggered an emotional response, don’t push it away just observe it knowing that this too will pass.

Combining the insight of Vipassana meditation with Yoga practice may be able to transform and not just bring temporary relief. Don’t believe me because logically this all makes sense, experiment, practice, know for your self through your own direct experience. Go to the level where the subtle mind is reacting with attachment or aversion to the sensations throughout the body. Our mind has been trained to react, to cling to the things we like , avoid the things we don’t. Not recognizing the impermanent nature of all these sensations we try so hard to control but never can. It’s not too late, this pattern can be changed with time and practice. Practice patiently with determination. Bring this awareness into your yoga practice. What ever sensation arises observe it, as it is, with equanimity. Bring this awareness into your meditation, what ever arises observe it, as it is, with equanimity. Free your self from the habit of reacting and just observe, allow sensations to be, allow your self to be. Be Liberated !

Metta,

Danny

Green Up Day 2011

2011-05-11T11:36:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow We Disappear

2011-05-11T10:53:00.001-04:00

My friend Josh is in Delhi right now working on an interactive storytelling project about this long lineage of magicians in the slums of Delhi who are losing their land to the government for development. They're living with the people of the Colony to learn about their lives and convey their stories with a hint of magic using mixed media. This young boy, an acrobat (or yogi!), can thread a needle with his toes in full scorpion pose on his chest. Here are some behind the scenes photos sent this morning :)

Check out more of this awesome project at www.rebelyell.tv
Teaser video here: http://vimeo.com/20633699

Ayurveda and the 5 Senses - Dinacharya - YTT June 4th

2011-05-08T10:01:00.001-04:00

On Saturday June 4th at teacher training I'll be talking a bit about what I have been learning at the Kripalu School of Ayurveda, and presenting on Dinacharya, or daily routine according to Ayurveda.

I'll talk about why it is important to take care of our 5 senses, and how we can do so daily (or whenever we have time!). We'll be neti-ing, as well as talking about nasya oil, one extra and often forgotten step after using the neti pot.

SO if you've got a neti pot, bring it in, as well as a bowl and a small hand towel.

I hope to share a new Ganesha chant as well ~ Adena

Angelica is one ewe-nique sheep

2011-05-05T16:19:00.003-04:00

(best craigslist farm and garden so far this year- kathy)

Finally the day has come that I have actually placed an ad, right here on Craigslist, for this truly “ewe-nique” sheep. I've been saying I am going to place this ad for about a year and a half but fortunately, for both myself and you, the reader, that day has finally arrived.

Angelica was purchased as a East Friesian mix but what she is mixed with is anyone's guess. She's two, white and very friendly. She loves people. And she loves food. Not necessarily in that order. She knows her name and will come when called... better than a lot of people's dogs. Including some of mine.
Here are some other qualities that you, the potential owner, need to know about this divine animal.

Motherhood: It's really not her thing. That small pesty “Mini Me” thing following her around definitely does not belong to her and she's pretty sure it's up to no good. Better keep it's distance from her too or she's going to butt it into next Thursday. She also throws contracted tendons. Fortunately for her, she did not take this year. (I think she did that on purpose.)

Intelligence: Angelica is on one side of the intelligence curve. We are undecided as to which one. You will be too.

Gardener: Of course she mows lawns. She's self propelled and even fertilizes. Even better, need some help pruning your garden? Angelica can help! She has done an incredible job with my peas, raspberries and strawberries. Give her a chance in your garden!

Musical Talents and Abilities: Blessed with a voice only a mother could tolerate, Angelica isn't just a one trick sheep. She plays percussion too! Once locked out of the barn, she will impress you with her take on old Hollywood's “Zombie Behind a Locked Door” act. Hair raising sounds emanate from behind the door, complete with pounding on the door with near perfect timing! Amaze your family and friends! Rent her out to parties or low budget zombie film production companies! The possibilities are endless! (So is the pounding on the door... at least until you feed her again.)

Expert Knotsewe. Just one attempt at tethering this young lady will give her the opportunity to display her incredible knot-making abilities. Knots only known to God and Angelica will flow from this largely untapped talent and they usually involve at least one leg. Sometimes more.

Proven Dogsheep. Yes, I meant to write it that way. This girl has been known to herd our collie from the pasture right up to the corner of our porch and kept him cornered until we arrived to rescue him. Once uncornered, she herded him right back to the pasture. They've made movies about pigs that herd sheep... why not score big with the next children's blockbuster... A sheep that herds dogs!

So here are my terms... I will entertain all offers between $50 - $1000 depending on what you think this multi-talented young sheep is really worth. Take her home, make her a pet, let her meat her maker (pun intended) or write a book about her akin to Marley and Me and make a fortune. (In which case the $1000 seems more fair to me).

If this sounds like the sheep for you, drop me an email!

2011-05-02T12:17:00.003-04:00

2011-04-18T15:27:00.002-04:00

Interview with Saraswathi

2011-04-12T18:41:00.002-04:00

Oct '08 Interview

Saraswathi Rangaswamy

Yoga and Women:
An interview with the Guru’s daughter - a yoga revolutionary
By Lisa Lalér & Bill Brundell

When we were in Mysore, India in 2007 we had the great opportunity to conduct an interview with Saraswathi Rangaswamy - the daughter of ashtanga yoga´s Guru, Sri K Pattabhi Jois. Saraswathi has been practicing and teaching ashtanga yoga for many years, together with her father and son, Sharath Rangaswamy. She teaches classes at Pattabhi Jois´ yoga shala in Gokulum six days a week in a room that takes around 70 students at a time. At the same time she is also responsible for her father’s household.

Saraswathi created a little yoga-revolution in Mysore when she became the first female yoga teacher to teach both men and women together. She was criticized in the local community for breaking the Indian tradition of keeping men and women separate. She also became the first female student to study at the Mysore Sanskrit College, where she studied Sanskrit and yoga.

In the shadow of a male-dominated family shines a petite, but powerful woman, with a twinkle in her eye, full of knowledge, compassion and humor. With an open mind and a firm hand she passes on the tradition to the next generation of ashtanga yoga practitioners and teachers. Saraswathi walks with steady steps - in her father’s footprints, determined to continue to share her passion for yoga, from India to the rest of the world.

Lisa: You grew up with Guruji as a father – can you tell us something about what it was like to grow up in a yogic family?

Saraswati: Yes, my upbringing was very good. The family was very poor but very affectionate. I started to practice yoga when I was five years old but at that age it was just for fun. My father helped me to do handstands and backbends - I was playing with the asanas. Just like my grandchild Shradda is doing now. I started to do asanas regularly when I was ten and I continued to practice until I was 22. After that, I practiced less regularly. But in total I practiced intensively for maybe sixteen or seventeen years. When my mother got sick I took care of her and I had a lot of things to take care of at home. When my mother died I became responsible for my father’s household.

L: How old are you today?

S: I’m 65 years old.

L: When did you start to teach yoga?

S: I started to teach 35 years ago. Before I got married I assisted Guruji and then I got married when I was 26 years old and I moved with my husband to his home near Calcutta. I got pregnant and had two children and I was very busy taking care of them and my husband’s family, but when I moved back to Mysore I started to assist Guruji again.

L: When did you start to teach your own classes?

S: I started to teach my own classes when my son, Sharath was 4 years old (1975).

L: From what I understand, you were the first female yoga teacher in Mysore to start to teach both men and women together. Can you talk about how that happened?

S: I started to teach men and women together more than ten years back. Before that I was only teaching women. Traditionally in India men and women are practicing separately - even though it has started to change a little bit now. Many people asked me if I couldn’t start to teach men as well so I thought, "why not?" Male teachers have been teaching men and women together for many years, so why couldn’t I, as a woman, do that?

L: In the beginning, did Guruji approve of that?

S: Yes... or no, no not at first. I think both Guruji and Sharath were not so happy about it in the beginning. They thought that the boys and men that would come to my class would be a bit shy because I’m a woman. But I was determined; this was something I wanted to do. So I did it! The decision was all mine.

L: You work many hours every day. Can you describe what a normal day is like?

S: I wake up between 3.30am and 4am every morning. I assist Guruji from 5 o’clock in the morning and then I teach my own class until 10.30am. Then I teach again between 4 and 6 in the evening. I rest for maybe 30 minutes during the day, not more because there are so many things to do and the telephone is ringing all the time. There is a lot of work with the family as well. After 6 o’clock in the evening I like to just do nothing! I watch some TV and have dinner. I try to be in bed by 10.30 pm.

L: Do you believe that the asana-practice is or should be very different for men and women?

S: No, not really, but we are different physically. The ladies have their menstruations every month and have the ability to become pregnant and give birth. There are some asanas that are not so good for women to do, but not so many. It is important to have a regular practice but also to rest. Especially for women who often work all-day and then take care of the home and the family. Men can more often focus on their work and then rest. I think for most of the women who work a lot and then take care of their homes and their families it is enough to do Primary series. After having a regular practice for a long time they can do Intermediate as well. Some women can do advanced as well but I don’t think that is so necessary. Primary makes us grounded and strong!

L: Why is it that women should not practice ashtanga yoga during the first three days of their period?

S: For some women it is very difficult to practice during these days, because of pain or that they bleed a lot. Most women work a lot and need to rest and to take it easy three days every month - it is very important! It is not good for the body to practice hard during the days when you bleed the most and during the period women should not do Salamba Sarvangasana or Sirsasana. Here, in India according to the Brahman tradition the woman rest these days, she does not cook and does not even go into the kitchen. Other women cook for her and she eats and sleeps a lot!

L: What is, according to you, the most important thing for women that practice ashtanga yoga to consider?

S: That is to let the body rest the three first days of the period so that the menstruation cycle is not disturbed. For some women, who do not rest from the practice those days, the period may disappear or becomes irregular and it can be difficult for them to become pregnant. The organs in the body are purified through the asanas and that is very good, but not during these days. It is also important to eat properly. Many women say that they do not want to eat dairy products, but women who practice yoga need milk and ghee twice a day. Especially ghee is important because it cools the body. In the yoga practice the body becomes very hot and you sweat a lot. It is not good to eat too much ghee, though, and the ghee should be pure and of good quality. One teaspoon in the morning and in the evening is enough. If you eat pure ghee you do not have to be worried about getting too much cholesterol. My father likes ghee a lot and he used to have maybe a little bit too much of it in his food - I had to tell him not to, ha ha ha! After giving birth, the woman should also eat ghee and drink milk to recover.

L: Why is it that women should not do asanas during the three first months of the pregnancy?S: All women are different and react differently with the pregnancy in the beginning. Some are very tired and feel nauseous, and vomit, others are feeling well. It is best to not do the practice during the three first months to see how the pregnancy is going. Even if you feel strong and healthy it is good to let the body rest because so many things are changing in the body during this time. For some it might take a little "will-power" to slow down though...

L: For some western women it is very hard to give up the practice for three month, what would you like to say to them?

S: Will power! They have to use their will power and rest anyway! With a strong mind you will not lose anything just because you do not do asanas for three months. Yoga is so much more than just asanas.

L: How do you think the pregnant woman should practice after the first three months?

S: After the first three months it is very good to practice ashtanga yoga, but the pregnant woman should not do all the asanas. She should not do twists, like Marichyasana B and D and she should not do Kurmasana and Supta Kurmasana. Baddha Konasana and Uphavista Konasana are very good asanas and so is backbendings. To practice during the rest of the pregnancy makes the woman stronger and the delivery easier. I appreciate the western women who practice yoga because they want to practice and become strong! The Indian ladies are so afraid that something will go wrong with the pregnancy so they don’t do anything. They don’t work and spend most of the time in bed and that is not so good for the pregnant body. Maybe the Indian ladies are a little bit lazy and you cannot be lazy if you want to practice yoga, ha ha! Don’t be lazy! I meet many pregnant women when I travel with Guruji to teach in the west. Many of them come to practice even though they are at the end of their pregnancy. That is very good because you need to be strong and flexible in your body to give birth. The breath is very important, both for the pregnant woman and for the baby who gets more oxygen. I have had many students who have been practicing until it’s time to give birth and they say that they think that the delivery went easier thanks to the yoga practice. Many years back I had a Canadian lady in class who practiced until the day before the delivery started. Her husband came to me when it was time to go to the hospital and I took her there. The doctor who took care of her was upset when he heard that she had been practicing during the whole pregnancy and he asked what teacher approved of that. "She is standing right outside the door, so you can speak to her directly", the Canadian woman said. I had to explain to the doctor that yoga is very good for pregnant ladies and the delivery went very well! A pregnant woman should think about moving her body and to eat more - but not of everything! She should avoid papaya and not eat so many mangos. These fruits heat the body and when you are pregnant, you should not become to hot.

L: What about postures like Salamba Sarvangasana and Sirsasana, is it good to do them if you are pregnant?

S: Yes, no problem!

L: Did you practice when you where pregnant?

S: Yes, yes I did.

L: If a pregnant women, who has never practiced yoga comes to you to learn yoga, how do you teach her?

S: Slowly, slowly. She can start with just a few postures - Surya Namaskar and the first standing postures. She can do Paschimottanasana with her feet apart to leave space for the belly. Baddha Konasana and Uphavista Konasana are very good and important asanas for pregnant women.

L: After delivery, when is it good to start the yoga practice again?

S: After about three months she can start again. In India, the woman stays a lot in bed the first three months after giving birth and she takes an oil bath everyday. The baby should also have oil bath and massage, every day for three or four month. Caster - oil is the best oil to use - both for the baby and the mother.

L: What did it mean to you to become a mother and how is it to be a grandmother?

S: Ah, ha, ha! To become a mother meant a lot of responsibility! My husband worked a lot and was often out of station and sometimes it was a little bit hard to raise the children all by myself, but there was a lot of happiness too! To have children and become a mother is very good yoga - the mind becomes very strong. To be a grandmother means so much happiness to me. I’m very fond of my first grandson, my daughter’s first child - but all my grandchildren make me very happy and give me a lot of joy in life.

L: Why do you think that ashtanga yoga has become so popular among western women?

S: I think it is because ashtanga yoga is a correct method, with vinyasa and counterposes and it belongs to an old tradition. For example, you should always do Uphavista Konasana after Baddha Konasana. Not the other way around. Many people are teaching yoga asanas without vinyasa and they do asanas without a system. That is not correct yoga. Many students who start ashtanga yoga say that their lives change in a very positive way - and I think that that is the main reason for its popularity.

L: What is the best advice you, as the worlds most experienced female ashtanga yoga teacher, would like to give to all the western women who practice the method?

S: Practice regularly and learn the correct method from a knowledgeable teacher. To teach is important and a part of yoga but it is also very difficult and many students start to teach too early. Don’t hurry. It’s not enough to practice this method for three months and then start to teach - then it will become a moneymaking system. That is not a good way of teaching. First you learn the practice correctly and then you can learn how to teach. You should learn how to teach from an experienced teacher. My father showed me how to adjust the asanas. At first I only watched him and then, slowly, I started to adjust one asana at the time. Sometimes I made mistakes, and then I had to try again until I felt more secure. Nobody is perfect, ha ha ha! You learn little by little, one thing at the time. It’s much more difficult to teach then to practice. Something that is very important is to learn one method, from one teacher and not to learn many methods at the same time with many different teachers. That will be confusing. Try until you find a method and a teacher that you like and stay. If you like B K S Iyengar then practice his method. If you would like to learn ashtanga yoga, go to Pattabhi Jois and so on. Chose one method and one Guru. That is my best advise.

L: Do you still practice asanas?

S: I don’t practice asanas regularly anymore - but sure, I practice every now and then. Three years ago I broke my ankle and since then it has been difficult for me to do asanas. Right now the most important thing for me is to be with my family - especially with my father since he got sick. During the last three months I have been taking care of everything here at home. Guruji is now getting stronger again but he still needs a lot of help with his daily routines - after all he his 92 years old! To take care of my father is something that I really like to do and I do it with love. When he was strong and healthy he was the one who took care of the family and I - now it is my turn to look after him. To take care of my family has been my best yoga practice and to teach and adjust as much as I do today is a big part of my own asana practice today.

L: So finally, Saraswathi, what is yoga to you?

S: Mind, a strong mind. What ever happens in life, it does not matter. That I, through yoga, have gotten a strong mind and a strong body has been such a big help in my life. Now, when I’m 65 years old, my back is straight and my body is strong and healthy. I’m very strong, ha, ha, ha! And I do accept everything that comes to me in life, both good and bad things. Yoga is also will power. My father is so fantastic, he knows so much and he has read so many books. He has got a very strong will and a powerful mind. I have not read so many books. The knowledge I have, I have gotten along with the experience I’ve had over the years, and even though I have been teaching for 35 years there are still so many things I want to learn. There is always more to learn about yoga...

NYC Workshop: The Evolution of Krishnamacharya's Yoga

2011-04-09T12:36:00.000-04:00

http://www.yogasutranyc.com/_pdf/KDesicachar_Flyer-1.pdf

Little Monkey

2011-04-06T15:00:00.002-04:00

Amazing Grace

2011-04-05T12:30:00.000-04:00

Amazing Grace

John Newton (1725-1807)

Stanza 6 anon.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

T'was Grace that taught my heart to fear.

And Grace, my fears relieved.

How precious did that Grace appear

The hour I first believed.

Through many dangers, toils and snares

I have already come;

'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far

and Grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promised good to me.

His word my hope secures.

He will my shield and portion be,

As long as life endures.

Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,

And mortal life shall cease,

I shall possess within the veil,

A life of joy and peace.

When we've been here ten thousand years

Bright shining as the sun.

We've no less days to sing God's praise

Than when we've first begun.

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.

A taste of Shadow Yoga

2011-04-04T12:51:00.002-04:00

Read more about it here. My training last week was with Scott Blossom. I like the emphasis on moving energy, tuning into feeling prana within asana. It's a blend of yoga and other martial arts, builds agni and cultivates concentration. There is an uddiyana bandha after each exhale.

Closing Prayer

2011-04-03T10:55:00.000-04:00

Sri Rahul Acharya

2011-03-18T19:07:00.000-04:00

Sri Rahul Acharya

2011-03-18T19:05:00.000-04:00

Event - Saturday at YVT (After Nada Yoga)

2011-03-17T13:59:00.000-04:00

An evening of experiment and more sound and celebration of Spring...all are welcome. More information below:

Hello. How to say simply...The intention is to create a sacredconscious space without the use of any chants or words being associated with the singing we will create together. As a group we will first check in and offer our visions and aspirations for the shifting world....voice our prayers etc....then endeavoring to sing.

Sort of choir style. Everyone will sing long drawn out notes without much melody, rising in soft crescendo and descrescendos...No rules. People listen to the group sounds and the body of sound as a group will shift and change. .....like single note tones, drones. The whole group maintains the sound as a continuity so there is continuous sound...a single body of sound. The idea is to generate a spontaneous wave and flow of sound where waves of explosive harmony arise followed by intense dissonance...

Depending on how things go, we may do group visualizations of light etc integrated with the sound. As well, some movements walking into and awya from the center of the circle.

I chose saturday night bc of the full moon energy and its proximity to the equinox. This moon is the closest to our earth in its perogee since 19 some odd years....and likely has some connection to the japan earthquake last week. As a group, we can create a very conscious and deliberate body of sound that is alive with creative and loving energies, to inspire unity and dissolve the webs of fear and anxiety that are very prevalent in the world right now. The power to create and manifest change through conscious gathering....in a context that is not religious.....just primal sound.

This is something i have wanted to do for years....so this is an experiment. You and all are welcome to come. Theres no money involved.

Starts at 6:30!

Dattatreya

2011-03-15T13:11:00.001-04:00

Advanced Series

2011-03-14T20:50:00.002-04:00

Love this video...

Baird Hersey, Nada Yoga

2011-03-13T21:14:00.000-04:00

RIDING THE BLISS

NADA YOGA: The Yoga of Sound

A Sound Meditation Class with Baird Hersey

“Unequaled bliss comes to the heart of the Yogi who hears the internal sound of the Nada.”

-The Nada-Bindu Upanishad

By bringing our minds to single pointed attention on the internal sacred sound, we quiet the chatter of the mind and experience a deep feeling of comfort and contentment.

This meditation, based on the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, will use the 4 levels of sound: Vaikhari (external sounds), Madhyama (mental sounds). Pashyanti (visual sounds), and Para, (the internal sound) to connect us with the Nada, the sound of bliss.

Climbing the Nada Mala: The 4 Levels of Sound

Seeing the Inner Light

Hearing the Anahata Nada

Riding The Bliss: Ancillary & Supportive Practices

Workshop will be held March 19, 2011

10:00 – noon

1:00 – 3:00

Cost is $40 – Register at Yoga Vermont

Baird has been a student of Yoga since 1988. In 1997 he began both the daily practice of Ashtanga Yoga and the practice of Nada Yoga. He studied with Shri K Pattabhi Jois for 9 years in the US and Mysore India. He has recorded and performed with Krishna Das, Wah!, Ainne Minogue, Nadine Risha, David Nichtern, and his vocal group Prana.

Jon Kabat-Zinn

2011-03-10T12:45:00.000-05:00

Friday March 18, 2011

6:30 - 8:30 pm

Ira Allen Chapel, UVM

Free

If Guests are coming over on short notice

2011-03-08T13:23:00.000-05:00

first clean the bathroom
second clean the kitchen
third pick up the rest of the house
fourth make tea

a remembered mantra ...

2011-03-05T21:16:00.000-05:00

Neti Neti = Not this, Not that

TLP Mediaplayer - France got Talent - Frog Man

2011-03-04T13:58:00.000-05:00

TLP Mediaplayer
-
France got Talent - Frog Man

prayer.

2011-03-02T09:33:00.001-05:00

my mother was visiting her brother at the hospital. a woman gave her the following prayer. she loved it and saved it. gave each of her children a copy. i try to read it everyday.

trust yourself to me.
i'm here.
i see everything.
i'll never leave you.

Mark T. Kinder

2011-03-01T10:07:00.001-05:00

Jeff and Kathy

2011-02-28T12:29:00.002-05:00

Hi,

TGIF! We have just finished our eighth week here in Mysore. We had our led class this morning at 4:30 and the day off tomorrow. Of course, that means some celebration is in order for tonight. There are two sides to every coin, and we are also one day closer to the end of our adventure here in India. We realize that this will be our last Friday practice here, as next week there is the new moon and that means no classes. But, we are both looking forward to returning, and especially to see our families and friends, and at the same time we will miss this place and the people and the craziness!

The biggest reminder of the fact we are not home in northern NY is the weather. It is sunny and warm almost every day. It is still February, of course, but that means every day will be getting warmer and hotter, as winter is over in India after January. The mosquitos are already out. One morning after yoga practice as I was lying in relaxation pose in the locker room I was bitten seven times by mosquitos! Itchy and scratchy, just like home! It actually rained on Thursday night and early morning, enough for puddles to form. That is very unusual for February, and more like the rainy season of June and July.

We thought we would share some of the things we have noticed over here that make us realize we are not in Kansas anymore.

“You are what you eat,” they say. We have found quite a few different places to eat and subsequently- metamorphosize. One of the most confusing aspects is the timings of the menus. We found several restaurants where you can only order certain things at certain times or on certain days. Invariably, you spend the first few weeks ordering food you can’t get. Like trying to have a thali meal for dinner, instead of lunch. Or ordering dinner before seven o’clock, and wanting a “chat” or snack at dinner. Or wanting the Sunday special on Sunday, of all things! We have not returned to the Grean Leaf because we never seem to be able to get what we want, we are always too early or too late- even though it is all clearly listed on the menu. One of the most fun things we did last week was go on a road trip, and stop in a very typical small Indian town not used to foreigners, (unlike Mysore which has had many years to adapt to the white devils.) Our taxi drivers, whom we have befriended since coming here in January, showed us to this local “hotel” (Indian for restaurant.) We always like the “thali meals” which are sort of a one-man buffet, with small bowls of various curried dishes, some yogurt, lentils and rice and vegetables and sometimes pudding or soup or whatever. These meals are always different, but similar, wherever you go. This we were used to, but the real fun started when we began to eat. We had asked the drivers to join us and were very glad they did, because there was no silverware or napkins to be found! Not a spoon, not a fork, not a knife. We watched, and learned, how to eat everything with your fingers! At first we used the flat bread to pick up the food, but it was soon apparent there would not be enough bread to save yourself from using your hands. We could not eat as fast as they, but we did a pretty good job for out-of-towners and decided we really liked it after all. So the next time we went out to eat we ordered a thali meal and dove right in up to our wrists! You have to try it to like it, and it’s not a bad thing to realize how we often draw boundaries around ourselves, and when they can be happily discarded.

One thing we have noticed is that is is hard to keep enough small change on hand for buying goods and services. A cup of coffee or chai is about 12 rupees, (26 cents), and most of the time the smallest money in your pocket is a 100 rupee note. Most businesses don’t seem to carry any small bills or coins to make change. Especially rickshaw drivers, but also cashiers at the grocery store. Often you don’t get back the right change, or need to come back tomorrow with the correct amount. In the largest grocery store, Loyal World, the cashier did not have any coins at all, and she owed us 2 rupees. So, she asked us if we would take two carmels instead! “Okay,” said Kathy, and the girl reached into the cash register and sure enough, gave us two wrapped candies for change! Wow. I thought it strange, but other people said it happens all the time.

In good old northern NY, we deal with seagulls who seem to come from nowhere to try and steal your food and scraps from right off your table. Over here, it’s the job of the monkeys to make sure no scrap goes unattended. At restaurants or even here at our apartment, the guards and staff are on constant lookout for monkeys which will sneak down looking for food. Mostly, they will shoo away with a word or two, or maybe a small stone thrown at them, etc. Gotta keep ‘em out of the garbage, for sure. The other day we say about a dozen or so in the trees outside our third floor balcony. I looked up from my computer to see a large monkey right on the railing of the balcony, about ten feet away. Didn’t try to come inside, although if I had not been there, I am sure it would’ve. Our friend Marika, from Sweden, was awakened one evening to find a monkey in her bedroom. She screamed at it in Swedish to “scat” and he sort of walked away slowly, back out the half open door and eyeing her with some disdain. I guess because she was so loud.

We have rented a small scooter to putt around with while we are here. I drive a motorcycle back home, and this bike is quite cute, no gears to shift and kind of beat-up, but practical. You drive on the left hand side of the street, (a carry-over from the days of British rule, no doubt), which is already somewhat disconcerting. Four years ago when we first encountered Indian traffic “rules” we were amazed and thrilled and a bit afraid to even venture out onto the streets. Now we are getting somewhat used to driving, and this is what we have noticed; bigger vehicles always have the right of way, (or as one friend told us “Big fish eat small fish.), that makes the bus the king of the road, with dump trucks a close second. Near the bottom of the food chain is the scooter, the bicycle and the pedestrian, in that order. At an intersection, the first one to “beep” his or her horn usually has the right of way, excepting the above mentioned rule about size. In fact, “beeping” is the preferred method of driving. In America, you use your horn in anger, to get revenge or to applaud the “other guy” for some brazen act of stupidity. In India, you are requested to use your horn, (all trucks have the lettering “Please sound horn,” written across the back). It is a sign of respect and if your brakes don’t work, that’s ok- but if your horn doesn’t work- you’re in deep doo-doo. Also, you are allowed to drive on the wrong side of the road if you (a) are in a hurry, (b) only have a little ways to go, or (c) the only other option would be to stop. When you drive on the wrong side you must stay waaaay over to the right so people will know that you know that you are driving on the wrong side on temporary permit. Last Monday there was a road block in Gokulam. I got stopped for driving without my helmet on. (Duh.) My only defense is that we drive very slowly, and about half of the population also drives without a helmet. In fact, only the driver needs one, and only then if stopped (by a road block.) The fine is 100 rupees ($2.20), you pay on the spot and continue on down the road. Oh, the other weird thing, is that there are cows everywhere in the streets. (Occasionally horses and goats and of course, dogs and rarely, a family of pigs.) Sometimes the cows come out in packs, walking slowly across the street. As slowly as they move, they never get hurt, and everyone drives around them and the cows look so peaceful and carefree! Downtown, in Mysore city, we saw a cow cross a four-lane road, gently push a police barricade out of the way, and continue across to the other side. Most people were using the underground tunnel to get across the street, and we don’t know how the chicken would have done it.

The last thing we will touch upon is the language business. In Mysore, there are two main choices for language- Kannada and English. Every school child learns English, and Kannada is the language of the state of Karnataka, where we are. In India there are many different states, as in the US, but each state has its’ own language, as well. That leaves English as the common denominator, and this is found on street signs, in menus and used in most packaging, etc. Added to this is the fact that there are many foreign students here in Gokulam who have come from all over the world- many from Europe, but also many from Japan, South America, the US and Canada. That makes one very large bowl of polyglot soup. And it seems as if everyone else but Americans can speak at least two languages, some even more. (I can sound like a complete imbecil if French, if I need to.) It seems to us that knowing a second language gives your brain a chance to spread out, take a small vacation and maybe see what the other side of the world is doing. We imagine that being bi-lingual gives you sort of a leg up on the socio-evolutionary ladder and allows you to be more understanding and accepting of other cultures and, more importantly, other people as well. That’s the up-side. There is always the other side, you recall, and this is when you realize that no matter how hard you try, you can’t get the store clerk to realize you are looking for clothes pins or a can opener and they insist on showing you a drying rack or corkscrew instead. These are the times when you have to laugh and wish you both were a whole lot better at charades. Some other coloquialisms: “plain” water is room temperature, not iced, “black” coffee is instant coffee with milk, “shifting” is moving, as in packing up, “auto” is a small taxi, “in station” means at home and lastly, “bhogy” is someone who practices yoga on the mat but not off the mat.

Thank you all so very much for your correspondence and news from home. We have enjoyed hearing from you all. We appreciate all of your words of support, even for these lengthy e-mails. We have just one week left and will be returning on March 8th. We leave at 5 in the morning from Bangalore and arrive at around 10:30 the same (calendar) day in Syracuse. Actual travel time will be over 28 hours, though. Gonna outrace the sun, I guess. Hoping to share some more good times and some great yoga with you when we get back. Please take good care of yourselves and we shall see you very soon.

Love and peace,

Jeff and Kathy

Mark T. Kinder

2011-02-24T19:11:00.000-05:00

2011-02-24T18:46:00.000-05:00

In doing research for a grant proposal, I stumbled upon this article that tackles some of the very questions I will be researching. Though it only scratches the surface, it's an interesting interview with Sharath, Pattabhi Jois' grandson who is now running the Ashtanga Yoga Institute in Mysore.

Question & Answer w/ Sharath Assistant Director of Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute

Giam recently did a great question and answer style interview with Sharath, Pattabhi Jois's grandson. Sharah is the assistant director of the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute and one of the few people chosen to continue the organization's legacy. The article is below.

While its roots stretch back in time to an ancient sage named Vamana Rishi, nearly 80 years ago the Ashtanga yoga system was passed to Sri K. Pattabhi Jois from the legendary yogi, T. Krishnamacharya. Since 1948, this Jois has been teaching this disciplined style of yoga from his Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute, located in Mysore, southern India, instructing many thousands of people worldwide.

R. Sharath is the Assistant Director of the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute and Sri K. Pattabhi Jois's grandson. Sharath is also Jois's only student to have mastered all five series in the Ashtanga yoga system, and is currently studying several asanas in the sixth and final series. He resides and teaches yoga in Mysore with his wife Shruthi and daughter, Shraddha.

The Sanskrit word "ashtanga" literally means eight limbs, which, according to Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, correspond to eight distinct practices designed as a means to control the mind and purify the internal being: Yama (moral codes), Niyama (self-purification and study), Asana (posture), Pranayama (breath control), Pratyahara (sense control), Dharana (concentration), Dhyana (meditation) and Samadhi (absorption).

Asthanga focuses first on a daily asana practice to strengthen and make flexible the body and sense organs, the fundamental physical state for steadying the mind. Asana is assembled into six different series: Primary (Yoga Chikitsa) detoxifies and aligns the body; Intermediate (Nadi Shodhana) purifies the nervous system; Advanced A, B, C and D (Sthira Bhaga) integrate strength and balance and are curative for many deep diseases.

We spoke with Sharath in New York City who, along with his mother Saraswati, was recently in the US to assist Sri K. Pattabhi Jois in a series of yoga workshops.

What is the difference between how you were taught yoga and how it is taught in the west?

My grandfather has been teaching western students for the past 35 years. When I was a child, foreigners started coming to Mysore, in India. So from that time on they have been learning yoga from him. What we are teaching is the same for Indians or for foreigners. In the same way that my grandfather has taught me, he has been teaching to the foreigners as well.

What is missing from western practices?

Many people think yoga is like a gym, or like going to a work out, but that is not yoga. Nowadays, it has become a trend to take a yoga course for something like one month, and then you are able to say that you have become a teacher. But that is not yoga. Yoga is spiritual. You should consider it a spiritual practice, not just exercise. Spiritual.

Asana (posture) is only one step on the path of yoga. Yoga really means self-consciousness, self-realization — that is the ultimate meaning of yoga. Not just doing postures. This is only one aspect, but it is the foundation for you to realize what you are. To realize the source, what we are inside, that is real yoga.

I think it is good that yoga is growing everywhere, that people want to do yoga. But people should look for authenticity. Find an authentic yoga method and go to the source to learn. For example Ashtanga Yoga came from Mysore, from Pattabhi Jois; and you have to go there, to the roots, to learn the yoga.

Many people come for one or two months and then become very big teachers in the West, but they don't ever learn about themselves. Their self. This is also the roots of the yoga practice. To learn this, it is very important for find an authentic yoga teacher: someone who know the real meaning of yoga. This is very important.

Is there anything that we in the West are getting right?

Yoga is so powerful that even if you practice without thinking or believing anything — you will benefit. If you are thinking that yoga is only exercise — still you receive benefits. But you can also dig deeper, research further, and learn about yoga philosophy, a process that is never ending. You can keep learning your whole lifetime.

It also depends upon how you think about yoga. Some people think it is only about asana, exercise and practice. Yet still they receive the benefits to their health. Problems will solve. They become concentrated.

Many people have come to me and said, "I started practicing yoga and my life has been changed." People can improve their whole lifestyle.

Yoga changes your life. It doesn't matter what or how you think. It has already changed so many lives, that's why it is getting more popular.

Has there been a change in the type of Western students, between the early ones and those who come now?

Now there are more dedicated students. They want to learn more. Many students are getting deeper into Sanskrit, yoga philosophy and the Vedas. Not all of them — maybe twenty percent of the yoga practioners that we see. But that twenty percent, they really want to know: "What is yoga?"

Indian culture it is totally different. I would say that Western culture is opposite.

How?

There are many ways that we are born to family, caste and tradition. Yoga was born in India, so it is easier for an Indian to learn about yoga, but it is still hard to learn yoga. And nowadays the westerner is starting to understand yoga, at least that twenty percent. This is really good, because the culture is totally different. And yoga does not impose religious preferences. It doesn't say only these people who think this way can practice — anyone can practice. It's universal. Anyone can enjoy the benefits of yoga.

But we must "go to the source" to learn?

This is called guru parampara. In Indian culture, you go to a teacher and learn from him, like you in the west go to a school and learn the ABC's. But we devote everything to this lineage, from the teacher's guru through to you. It transfers like that. And then, after many years, a guru says, "Okay, you have learned what I have to teach you, now go out into the world and teach." Only then can you teach. It's not like doing a two week teacher's training course. You have to be a student before you can become a teacher. You have to be a student before you can realize "What is yoga?"

You have to experience it before you can teach others.

What do you think about the fact that nowadays there are more yoga teachers in the West than in India?

It's a market. That's why. Everybody wants to become a guru immediately. Fifteen days, one month, and then they want to become a big star, be in the magazines ... [laughing] All the [ancient] yogis, they didn't come in magazines. They never advertised themselves. They didn't say, "Hey, I'm a big yogi." That's just ego. You have follow the yamas (moral codes of conduct) and niyamas (self-purification and study).

We get so many calls from westerners. They call, "How can I become a teacher?" They write to us, "How can I become a teacher?" You have to become a student first. For a long time. Maybe ten years.

Teaching is very difficult. And unless you really want to understand what yoga is, how can you teach?

Do you have any closing words about yoga?

You have to be a student your whole life. Yoga is never ending. It's like the ocean and what we have learned is like a small drop. There's a lot to learn and for our whole life, we keep learning.

2011-02-24T17:59:00.001-05:00

What is an Ashtanga Yoga practice?

2011-02-23T15:10:00.001-05:00

If someone doesn't have an hour and a half to watch. Ask them if they have 3 minutes........
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeEOPif8WXE&feature=player_embedded#at=80

Mark T. Kinder

2011-02-21T11:08:00.002-05:00

Shanthi Mantra

2011-02-20T12:16:00.000-05:00

Om saha naa vavatu /
Saha nau bhunaktu /
Saha viiryam /
Karavaa vahai /
Tejas vinaa vadhiita mastu ma /
Vidvishaa vahaihi //
Om shantih shantih shantihi

“May Braham protect us both together. May he nourish us both together. May we both work together with
great energy. May our study be vigorous and effective. May we never hate each other. May peace,
physical, mental and spiritual, be on us forever. Om peace peace peace.”

Sirsa = head

2011-02-16T12:51:00.001-05:00

Jake Shimabukuro plays "Bohemian Rhapsody" | Video on TED.com

2011-02-09T09:10:00.000-05:00

Jake Shimabukuro plays "Bohemian Rhapsody" | Video on TED.com

2011-02-08T13:29:00.001-05:00

Jeff and Kathy

2011-02-07T10:20:00.001-05:00

We just enjoyed a short week of yoga practices. Because of the new moon on Wednesday and the shifting of Sunday’s practice to Saturday, we went from a week of seven practices in a row to a week of just 4 sessions, split by a day off. Not sure which was harder! Anyway, it feels good for it to be Saturday again and a holiday. We also registered at the shala for February, and our new starting time for the next month is 5:30 am. So, we shall be early birds for awhile. Our two roomates from Norway now start at 4:30, so we feel a little grateful we can sleep in a bit.

Since we have been here, we have taken advantage of some Ayurvedic therapy treatments. Kathy has been for two massages, and we are both taking some various natural medicines to balance our systems. Briefly, in Ayurveda you are a mixture of three doshas, or constitutions: Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Vata constitution is comprised of the elements of air and ether, Pitta is comprised of the elements of fire and water, and Kapha is a combination of earth and water.

When these tendencies are not in balance then there could be troubles. Both Kathy and I, and I guess most yoga students, are pretty high in vata tendencies. So we take some herbal medicines before eating, after eating and before bedtime. And every once in a while, something, (read: castor oil), to clean out the entire system. Ahem.

But, the best part is the ayurvedic massages. I signed on for a twenty-one day treatment, so that means twenty-one massages! These massages are definitely not the ones you are thinking about, however! I just finished my second week and have one week more to go. I will tell you about them, but if you are squeamish or prudish or easily embarrassed, you can just skip the whole thing and go to the end of this e-mail. The cost for 21 day treatment is roughly $238 per week, and there are seven 2-hour treatments. A bit costly by Indian standards but a real deal in American moneys.

The massage begins by sitting on a small stool and having your head, scalp, face, neck, and shoulders all rubbed with oil. Sometimes you get your neck stretched upwards, and downwards or to either side. Oh, I forgot to mention- no clothes! You get to wear a string tied around your waist and something like a large napkin tucked into the front and back! (I did say this might be graphic.) This heads-up massage takes about ten minutes. They use palms, thumbs, forearms and hands for all this. Some of it is very reminiscent of thai bodywork, with lots of rubbing and stroking and pressing. Feels really good on your neck, especially.

Then it’s time to lie down on the table. This table is all dark wood, about seven or eight feet long and about two feet wide. There are no sheets. It sorta reminds me of a extremely large turkey basting dish, as it is recessed about 2 inches in from the edges, like a shallow bowl. There are two arms extending from the top for your arms and hands, and a hole at the bottom end of the table that functions like a drain. “For what?” you might ask. Well, let’s just say they use a LOT of oil in these massages! So you need a way to siphon and collect it somewhere, otherwise the table might just fill up with oil! Under your knees, elbows, feet and hands they place large sponges for padding. Your butt will have to suffice for the middle part!

And there are two therapists who will do the massage at the same time. Two women for the ladies and two men for the gentlemen clients. You lie down on your back and the massage continues on your neck and face and shoulders. They can use some deep pressure here on the sides of the neck and the large muscles that support our heavy thought-filled heads! You realize this part is over when they drizzle some cooler oil on your forehead. Then they start to pour nice warm oil on your belly and then down each leg and up each arm. It feels really nice! The two therapists work like a team, sweeping the oil in circles around your belly, up and down your arms and legs. It takes just a little getting used to because you pretty much are lying there naked on a table while they run their hands all over your body! There may be a little adjustment to make, but remember, you are in India and this is the typical order of the day. (Almost everything you do or say, eat or drink, see or think, drive across or walk next to requires a re-thinking.)

When you can relax and close your eyes, the warm oil and the coordinated massage and the sound of breathing begins to melt away the tensions or soreness. These two have definitely worked as a pair for awhile and they seem to be in complete sync. Sometimes you just aren’t sure how many hands are working on you all at the same time. After a bit you roll over, hang on to the two wooden arms above your head, and have warm oils drizzled across your backside and they begin to sweep across your legs and back and shoulders and arms, pressing down with long sweeping strokes. Any tensions left in your body just don’t have a chance!

The massage will last about two hours! Your hair and you will be completely covered with oils, but you will be happily relaxed. Of course there are also specific massage treatments for certain physical issues, which will make the treatment go a bit differently than the simple massage. In my 21 day treatment, the doctor is trying to help me with my low back and leg pains. So, after about one hour of the massage, some other cool things have happened. For the first few days he would use tightly rolled up towels, filled with herbs and very hot. He would pat these hot towel/rolls up and down and all around my back, legs, arms, etc. Every few moments he would heat them up again using a very hot metal plate, so they were always warm. This technique feels pretty good, I think he was trying to tenderize me.

The next few days he switched the treatment. After about an hour of the massage, he began to pour warm water from a small bucket onto me. He might start at the feet and move up the legs and back and shoulders and arms with a single bucket. The very warm water felt really great, imagine it as a sort of hot bath that moves all around your body. With the other hand he would gently massage or rub the water around onto your muscles. I wish I could describe just how nice this part felt, having the warm water poured over you- it’s kinda like when you are taking a hot bath and pull the drain plug and feel the water recede, but in reverse! Anyways, now you know why there is a big drain at the foot end of the table. After the first week, the treatment switched again. Now they are using hot oil instead of water, and it is even more amazing! Warm oil has more weight than water, seems to stay on you longer and feels like silk. The only way I can describe it might be to imagine that you are a big pile of pancakes and someone is pouring warm maple syrup onto them, completely covering them until the syrup runs down the sides of the pancakes, off of the plate and onto the table, then the floor.

It feels magical. We both agree we would never be able to find this type of massage anywhere in America, that’s for sure. Back home it’s mandatory to carefully cover the client with sheets so that nothing but the area being massaged is exposed. Over here, everything you got is all right out there. The really nice thing about this is that the massage feels completely integrated and holistic because the whole body is connected and massaged from head to hands, along the torso, down the legs to the feet and back again. This just isn't possible when there are sheets involved and only parts of the body are being massaged at one time. Now, it’s not that we are promoting exhibitionism, but there is a cultural and legal bias back home that would make these techniques non-existent. I have one week left of my treatments, and the doctor says they will change again starting tomorrow. Hmmm, I can only wonder what that might mean.

When it’s all over, you use towels to wipe off the excess oil. Well, actually, they do most of this part for you. You also get a small daub of choornam powder on the top of your head as the finishing touch. Then a warm glass of water with some herbs infused in it and you are on your way. Back at the apartment, a hot shower is definitely in order! Then take rest.

Well, I think that’s enough for now. If you read this far I am sure there will be more than enough to think about! We shall write again soon, maybe some more about the royal city and its’ people. In the meantime, we hope you are doing well, and remembering to take some time each day to be grateful and smile every once in awhile. Thank you very much for all of your nice e-mails and messages. It really feels a bit like Christmas everytime we are able to connect with you.

Love and peace to you all,

Jeff and Kathy

2011-02-07T10:10:00.000-05:00

Headstanding!

2011-02-05T21:58:00.000-05:00

Here's my photo contribution, a playful headstand variation. Would love to see others!

"8 Natural Handstands"

2011-02-04T13:42:00.000-05:00

Would love to see pics of all of you in handstand or headstand when the urge over-takes you...

2nd Series this Saturday!

2011-02-03T09:45:00.002-05:00

Pashasana
Krounchasana
Shalabhasana A, B
Bhekasana
Dhanurasana
Parsva Dhanurasana
Ushtrasana
Laghuvajrasana
Kapotasana
Supta Vajrasana (Partner Pose*)
Bakasana (2nd- Jump in)
Bharadvajasana
Arda Matsyendrasana
Eka Pada Sirsasana A, B, C
Dwi Pada Sirsasana A, B
Yoganidrasana
Tittibhasana A, B, C, D
Pincha Mayurasana
Karandavasana
Vrishchikasana
Mayurasana
Nakrasana
Vatayanasana
Parighasana
Gomukhasana A, B
Supta Urdhva Pada Vajrasana
Mukta Hasta Sirsasana A, B, C
Baddha Hasta Sirsasana A, B, C, D

lovelovelove.

From Jeff and Kathy part two

2011-01-31T12:45:00.000-05:00

In our last episode, we left our two travellers sitting outside the yoga studio door, watching other students in their early morning practices. As the call rings from inside, "one more, seven o'clock," another student grabs their mat and steps over the painted wooden threshold into the shala. Everyone in the foyer scrunches just a little bit closer to the door. "One more," and now it's your turn to go inside. "Over here," or "back there," the teacher points and you look around the room, crowded with bodies and yoga mats at every possible step, looking for the elusive empty spot where you are supposed to unroll your mat. Sometimes it's an empty place and sometimes a student is still there, just about to finish up, doing the final posture. You try to walk through the maze, not stepping upon or being kicked by or bumping into or tripping over anyone else. Unrolling your yoga mat, folding- not rolling your cotton mat, and go into the quiet locker room to shed your street clothes and steady your nerves. Then you walk back through the mats and bodies to your mat and stand feet together to begin your own practice, once again.

For those of you who do not do yoga, or don't know much about ashtanga yoga in particular, here is a brief guide: everyone begins with the first series, and learns all the postures in the correct order. There are about 30 postures in the first series and 17 postures at the finish. You begin with standing poses then seated poses, and you have to memorize the entire sequence by yourself, because in Mysore, the teacher does not "lead" the class, only to assist you with adjustments or advice. Every breath that you take has a movement associated with it. At first it is a real challenge to breath smoothly and do the postures without force, but eventually you become strong enough and relaxed throughout the whole series. This may take a couple years or more of regular, (read: daily) practice!

The yoga room is very hot and soon you are all sweaty, even drippy. This may take some getting used to! When your rubber mat becomes too slippery to get a grip, you unfold your cotton mat. There is the sound of deep breathing all through the room, but nothing else. Remember, every breath has a movement associated with it, and there is movement everywhere. You try not to be distracted by all these bodies jumping, floating, stretching, bending, upside down and downside up. Normally, your practice is by yourself, just your mat and you, and it feels very different to be in such a crowded, busy space with so many others all practicing together. But, you soon realize that you need to focus on what you are doing, or you will get noticed by Sharath, who will call you out if you slip up. "You do navasana?", it's more of a statement than a question. Or, "not correct, why you leave your leg!" (Don't even try to figure out that one!) Even with 65 students all practicing all at once in every possible combination of postures, he manages to see you when you mess up. Right now, there are usually three or four other teachers in the room, giving asjustments and helping you throught the difficult parts,. Saraswati, the daughter of Gurui, is there as well, she is amazingly strong! Your practice takes about ninety minutes, more or less depending on your energy and how you are feeling. When you do this each morning, you begin to realize that you are definitely not the same person today as you were yesterday. Somedays you feel very strong and light, and on other days you feel very "solid" and heavy. Nothing stays the same but the observance of it.

After the backbends and the counter posture of a deep forward bend, you pick up your mat and leave the crowded shala floor for the relative quiet and cool darkness of the locker room. In here you do the finishing postures and take a short rest in corpse pose, (gotta love that name.) It is a nice change from the strong pace of the main studio and your body can downshift and relax a bit. Then you change into something not damp with sweat, roll up your mat and find your way back out through the shala to the front door. "One more, eight thirty!", and you have to half smile at the thought of someone just entering the room to start the whole thing again. Not a smirk, but a soft knowing smile of shared effort, of facing the common challenges of a strong practice and the reward of knowing that you won't have to be back until tomorrow morning! Hopefully, you can catch the teacher's eye before you leave and receive that beautiful smile and you suddenly feel very grateful for this place and this practice.

Well, we hope this hasn't been too long winded or boring for you, and thanks for making it this far. We have learned many many lessons in this practice of yoga, but one that seems to stick out is that this practice only asks that you show up and do your very best, with respect for how you are feeling that day. Notice how you push and when you hold back, where you are afraid and when you feel brave. Notice your mind and its' commentary, and then let it go in the next moment. This instant is all there really is.

Jeff and Kathy

If you'd like to see some more pictures from the trip, use this link to Jeff's facebook photo album:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=1912901&l=849e7e62e7&id=1049372278

Incredible yoga girl

2011-01-31T11:43:00.000-05:00

From Jeff and Kathy

2011-01-26T09:56:00.001-05:00

Greetings from Mysore~

On Friday we celebrated the incredible fact that we actually survived our first full week (6 days in a row) of EARLY morning yoga practice at the shala. We celebrated with a bottle of (yogic) wine at our favorite restaurant, The Green Hotel. We are now half way through our second week, but this week will be much easier because we have been blessed with a beautiful full moon on Wednesday - right in the middle of the week. Full and new moon days, as well as Saturdays, are days of rest in the Ashtanga yoga tradition. Woohoo!! We will take advantage of this thoughtful tradition.

Currently, we are scheduled to start our Mysore practice (also called self-practice) at 7:00am. Mysore practices are Monday through Thursday and led classes are on Fridays and Sundays. The time at the shala is set 15 minutes ahead and we are also supposed to arrive 15 minutes before our scheduled time. This means that we have to get up at 5:15am Monday - Thursdays. On Sunday the led class starts at 4:30am so on Sundays we have to get up at 3:00am to get to class on time. At first we thought 5:15 was early, however, after Sunday, it now seems almost easy. It is fun, in a strange kind of way, to start yoga practice in the dark, end in the dark and then sit on the stoop at the tea shop having chai and coffee while the sun comes up. Knowing that we have already accomplished the most challenging part of day before the sun shines is pretty nice.

The walk to the shala takes us about 15 minutes. We enjoy the dark, quiet streets of Gokalum. It is a welcomed contrast from the noisiness and busyness of the day and evening hours. There are only a few other early morning risers: newspaper carriers, tea shop owners, and the coconut stand owner stirring. There is a Ganesh temple along the way that is doing puja (spiritual practice). There are people inside and around the temple watching the Priest perform the puja ceremony. We can only catch a glimpse as we walk by, but there is incense, lots of flowers, candles, and music of some sort. Jeff noticed that it sounded something like the march of the soldiers at the wicked witch's castle in the Wizard of Oz.

The shala is already full when we arrive and the stairs are covered with shoes. When we open the door we step from the cool morning air into the warm, humid air of the shala. January and February are the busiest months. We estimate that there are probably at least 400 yoga practitioners from all over the world here. At any one time there are about 65 students practicing in the yoga room. Mats have only about 3 - 6 inches between them. You have to quickly get over any squeamishness about being close to other people who are very sweaty. The yoga room is hot and humid and the windows and walls are streaked and dripping with moisture. If Jeff is wearing his glasses they will steam up as soon as he walks inside. If sweating is good for you and detoxifies the system then we must be on our way to immaculate health!

We sit in the foyer with 5 - 10 other students on a cool marble floor. For about fifteen minutes we wait here for a space to open up in the practice room. There is an open door leading inside and we can watch other students and their practices. Some of them are amazing, very strong and flexible doing advanced postures while others are beginners, just learning the practice. However, all of them inspire us with their focus and dedication to yoga, something that has brought them halfway across the world to this small room in India. Back in the foyer, we wait patiently for the words “one more," which indicates that a spot has opened up and we can come into the practice room and place our mat in the vacated spot.

"Now the teaching of yoga begins." Yoga Sutra 1:1

To be continued...

Kathy's Beautiful Belly

2011-01-23T00:17:00.000-05:00

Nauli

Uddiyana Bandha

And a few other shots from the beautiful studio on Church St.

Namaste

2011-01-18T09:13:00.001-05:00

Bhoj Kriya: How To Eat and Bless Your Food

2011-01-09T15:54:00.002-05:00

By Yogi Bhagan...

I have to teach you how to eat. You do not know how to eat; so I have to start alphabetically [from the beginning], all right? Now please, sit calmly and fold your hands. Bring your hands into Prayer Pose and close your eyes and feel that you are going to be blessed. You are going to be blessed. Calm down and empty yourself to receive the gift of God. If there is no emptiness, nothing will come in. You are receiving the best gift of God; it is for your nourishment, for your acceleration, for your healing, for your purity. It is something for today, at this moment, marvelously wonderful, ‘blessful,’ and blissful. Please concentrate. Now please bow down for a moment in prayer—just a little, not much. Okay, please open your eyes and touch your hands to your shoulders as a sign of strength. Touch your knees as a sign of strength, touch your heart as a sign of compassion, and touch your forehead and then please put the food before you as it is served and put your hand on it to bless it. Concentrate and bless your own food calmly and quietly. Create a relationship with your food and your spirit, your soul.

Be calm and quiet; a saint blesses her own Self. There is a God in you—feel it. Feel the food piece-by-piece; touch it and request that when you become part of it and it becomes part of you, that there is a union. You are experiencing a union; you are having an intercourse. This food will become part of you and you will become part of it.

Now this food is identity. Now it is between you and your identity. Once it goes in, it can give you gas, it can give you indigestion, it can mess you up, it can create poison in the man. You may not digest it all; it may mess up your colon, your descending colon. It may come through so heavy that you wish you would never have eaten it; therefore, create friendship, create love, create grace, create respectfulness. You and your food become one. Cut out the rudeness: “I am going to eat it, I am going to swallow it, I am going to have it.” You have time, you have space, you have grace, you have blessing, and you are blessing your own today, so it can serve you tomorrow.

Now, you have to touch it, look at it and feel it exactly. You have to mentally talk to your food. Ask it, “What are you going to do to me?” Talk to your food. It's very difficult for you because you are Western: you want to drive a car, talk on the telephone and eat at the same time—and if the car had a commode, you would want to go to the bathroom at the same time. But this is not life. Animals don't live that way. You are human: touch it, feel it, discuss with it and tell it, “I selected you, I cooked you, I brought you here to become part of me.” Create a very graceful relationship, a relationship of understanding, affection and love.

I have seen a man, 120 years old, absolutely healthy. His total meditation in life was the preparation of his Bhoj Kriya. Fantastic man! I saw him doing it. What I read in the scripture was nothing compared to what he did, which was so graceful. Actually, I thought to myself, if he gives his plate to me and I eat it all, he can do it again; it was so good. Now, do you feel ready?

Now please, with your hands, choose what you are going to eat. Each thing must be touched by all five fingers, at least a portion with all five fingers and send all your energy into it with your fingers. And whatever little portion you put in your mouth, like a kiss, then chew it. Your saliva must become part of it—25% of the food. Chew it totally, freely, openly. You don’t have to keep your lips closed. Some of you have a habit of eating—smack, smack, smack—do that; that's not bad. But each muscle must have 25% saliva mixed with it. You have the capacity and that is the most nurturing, health-giving, young-making stuff; it's right in your mouth! Chew it; don't swallow it; I have not said so. All I said is to chew it, mix it, grind it, whatever you do, but keep going, you can't swallow it yet. It has to be in your mouth—and now, with your tongue, feel if there is anything hard or still in one piece. It should be total jelly, feel with your tongue and use your tongue to get a little more juice into it.
Now bring it to the tip of your tongue and find out if it is sweet enough. If it's not, keep chewing it. Now, very slowly, take it in. You have to take it through the throat many times and with your tongue, clean your mouth, around your teeth, inside, up, down, you know? Clean your mouth once and for all. Isn't it a shame that I am teaching middle‐aged people how to eat? But no, it's a kriya, which guarantees health forever, youth forever, strength forever. Now, just see that your mouth is all clean—that there is nothing in it. There should not be one trace of that thing you put in your mouth—check around. All right, then go to the food again. Look at it, look at this, look at it, talk to this guy and then take a small portion and very affectionately put it in your mouth. Just remember, all five fingers must touch it and in the same way, chew it. Looks ridiculous, I know, but in the end, we will discuss whether we were ridiculous before or we are ridiculous now.

Any person who doesn't have time to nurture himself is sick to start with. Now, calmly and quietly, in this procedure, please eat. Each time you have to repeat it; you have to totally create a hypnotic relationship with this food today. It's going to be part of you, you are going to be part of it, and there are certain things I will tell you in the end, if you do it right; there is no hurry. Each time your mouth should be totally clean and absolutely clear of its existence before you put a second one in and you chew it. You have to see and taste of everything. Food in the mouth cannot go to the throat and on into the stomach until it is sweet to your tongue.

I tested this one day with green chili. Really, my tongue is numb today because it was so bitter; somehow it happens you know. I numbed my tongue but I still made it sweet before I swallowed it. And it's my request to you that you do this, just as an experiment, very perfectly. We are not going to hurry, there is nothing we have to go to, weather is clear and cool and we are already in the heaven of the Earth. It's called Española; so enjoy your time, concentrate on the food, meditate on it.
What I am trying to make you experience is the food, which we usually just gulp in 15 minutes. But if you just proceed and eat in this way, methodically, it will become your best friend, your best strength and your best Self. Your entire nervous system moves when you move your mouth and your tongue together. I want you to feel it, I want you to understand it. I know, we should just gulp it and go to the movie, you know? You swallow things, but you don't eat. When you swallow things, they swallow your strength, your life, then there is nothing left of you.

I didn't do any hard exercises; they were just simple exercises, which I used to put my officers through in training and I could not believe it. How much pain everybody experienced—and they were not even three minutes each. When you put food in your mouth and muscle it, it should have touched all five fingers: thumb, Jupiter, Saturn, Sun and Mercury. You can understand your mental strength within another three minutes; you should start freaking out, even just eating. Slow eating is one of the biggest meditations on this Earth; that's why Guru gave us langarii. Langar mean anchor. Ships have a langar; the word langar came from anchor.

All the sea‐going ships have an anchor. When they put out their anchor, they are stabilized, then the storm cannot take them away. That's why the word langar means anchor of the ship. The other word we have is teg deg: deg is the sword of righteousness and teg is the food of righteousness. The deg is what you prepare spiritually, respectfully as an offering; teg you all know. Between the sword of righteousness and the food of righteousness, we live. Now, don't look left and right; look at your food. You have two things going for you: your food and your energy. You are going to baptize each muscle, each part of your food, each little bit of it.

A quote ...

2011-01-09T06:56:00.000-05:00

this reminded me of yesterday's talk on positive thought intention

We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far.
– Swami Vivekananda

Yoga//Roots

2011-01-06T11:15:00.001-05:00

Sometimes yoga in the city begins to feel a little less sacred and a little too commercial. Here's an article from NPR by Sandip Roy that touches on the West's yoga industry and how it can be a very "un-Indian" experience. Maybe it's the being surrounded by breathtaking nature and grounded people that keeps yoga a humbling, simple practice in Vermont. Whatever it is, I'm grateful for my yoga roots. Om shanti.
--Claire

NPR | Yoga: A Positively Un-Indian Experience

From NPR News:

True confession: I am an Indian who doesn’t do yoga. I wouldn’t know a downward dog if it bit me. But because I’m Indian, people don’t even ask if I know yoga. They ask, “What kind of yoga did you grow up with? Iyengar? Ashtanga? Bikram?”

Actually, most Indians I know don’t do yoga, either. My friend Rajasvini Bhansali is an exception. And she’s often the only Indian in class. She recalled one class in particular:

“The instructor pointed to me and said Indians are better oriented towards squats. And I realized he was holding me up as an example of how we primitive people are better squatters and have looser hips,” she laughed.

I always thought I wasn’t thick-skinned enough to survive yoga class. Then I heard the Hindu American Foundation had launched a campaign to Take Back Yoga and reclaim its Hindu roots. I was alarmed. What if they really took it back? And I wasn’t ready. I decided to fix my Yoga Deficit Disorder.

So I show up at my first yoga class in San Francisco. It’s steamy hot. There are over 100 people — and sure enough, my friends and I are the only four Indians.

The instructor is from Tennessee. Blond, shirtless, and a bit of a yoga rock star. There are disco balls on the ceiling and huge posters of Krishna on the wall.

I am just amazed at all the … stuff. Yoga tops, bottoms, blankets, mats. My vision of a yogi was a guy in the forest, sitting on a piece of tree bark — or in the deluxe version, a deerskin. He didn’t have a yoga mat carrier!

I survive the yoga class without embarrassing 5,000 years of Indian culture. It doesn’t feel very Indian. My friend Naveen Chandra calls it bionic disco yoga. But he thinks Yoga’s Hindu roots are still there.

“The vast majority of yoga teachers have studied more Hinduism than I have or my parents have,” says Chandra. “I am learning more about the meanings of the shlokas and the intention of Hinduism than I ever knew as a kid growing up, being taught from my community.”

Even back in India, yoga has not been such a big deal.

Kate Churchill, director of the documentary Enlighten Up, interviewed yoga pioneer Pattabhi Jois at his school in south India.

“And we might as well have been in the Puck building in New York. There were over 100 Westerners, not a single Indian. I was looking around and saying, ‘Well, where are the Indians?’ “

But things are starting to change. The Indian government is filming hundreds of yoga poses so no one tries to patent them. People are practicing yoga at call centers and other workplaces.

“We saw in large cities like Mumbai, power yoga studios cropping up, because Madonna does yoga,” says Churchill. “It has nothing to do with India. Whereas if you go to a power yoga studio in the U.S., they will say it’s a 5,000-year-old tradition.”

NEW SCHEDULE - Starts Jan. 9th (Sunday)

2011-01-05T22:34:00.001-05:00

Welcome Chris, Kelley, Kristine, Katrina and Larry!

Something's gotta give....

2011-01-05T22:32:00.000-05:00

I certainly still consider myself a new teacher - I have been teaching for about year and a half, though, plenty of class-hours, and last night was the first night I had a student leave in the middle of class.

I consider myself lucky - hearing stories from Kathy and others about the times they have had students walk out, either because of something personal going on with them, or maybe because their favorite teacher wasn't in that day - but I didn't realize how it would make me feel!

It wasn't what you might think - sure I was hurt that this student was not enjoying my class - but the hardest part was why she left. I think she was crying, and I'm pretty sure from pain.

As a teacher, I feel the responsibility to make sure everyone in my class feels safe and comfortable, in asking students to try asanas, I know I am asking some people to try things that might otherwise put them in an awkward position (ha ha.)

I could not take care of her in the way I wanted to. I do not want yoga to hurt, I want yoga to heal, and I felt ashamed that my yoga was not healing for this woman last night.

She had come up to me before the class and told me she had recent injuries, low back pain and had pretty recently had shoulder surgery. She had asked me if this was suited for beginners, and being an Intro to Ashtanga class, I said yes, though I did give her the disclaimer that it could be a very vigorous practice, and even spent time with her checking out down dog and plank before we began the class.

As soon as we did our second sun salutation, I saw that upward facing dog was killing her. Her low back was extremely tight and I could tell it was painful to even try the small back bend. I tried to give her a modification, but it may have been too late. I saw that in the next down dog she was sniffling, and I hoped it was just a cold. I showed the class child's pose, then we sat up to practice ujjayi.

She could not sit comfortably, and she was fighting back tears. My heart went out to her, and I tried an alternative pose. It was over, and I had to come back to the other students.

She sat and watched for a moment, and then got her things and left the room. No one else felt as awkward as I did, and the other students seemed to have a great class, and enjoy it. I had just felt like I had failed this student, and that she may have been further deterred from practicing yoga.

I realize that there is another side to the experience, I just wanted to share my thoughts and insecurities with you all! I would love to hear about your teaching experiences, especially teaching people with injuries.

I just hope I did not discourage her, and that she finds the perfect yoga to help her work through her injuries.

OM.

Adena

2011-01-04T14:13:00.000-05:00

Insights from the holidays and a new year

2011-01-03T16:22:00.001-05:00

Each Holiday season we overindulge, with material goods , food, drinking and celebrations. Then once the new year hits we are so burnt out from the over indulgence we set resolutions to cut back, eat better, exercise, make better choices etc ….

Year after year the cycle repeats. Not that there is anything wrong with it or we don’t have great times and then make positive improvements in our life. Although if you take a moment to reflect about this cycle it’s kind of funny. In the constant search for happiness, we hope to find it in the activities of the Holidays, food, gifts, celebrations. When the holiday season is over although we thoroughly enjoyed it as is was happening that sense of happiness does not sustain. Life goes back to normal and with the coming of the new year we set intentions for personal improvements in search of true unconditional happiness.

This cycle is a source of Insight for what may bring unconditional happiness. We often fool our selves in thinking that happiness will come from material goods or experiences but if you reflect on your own experience how well does that really work out ? True happiness comes from within, through the thoughts and intentions you create for your life. Nothing out there will bring it to you, but you already have everything you need to create it with in yourself.

Metta,

Danny

Numerical example of effortless effort.

2011-01-03T15:46:00.001-05:00

Here is a little insight i had about finding the right amount of effort in your yoga or meditation practice. To be a little more clear its really all about releasing any conceptual basis for what effort is all together and finding that place in the middle.

Now when it comes to yoga and meditation you often come up against a paradox that does not appear logically possible. Although if you let go of what you think you may know and allow your self to just experience you will understand the meaning of the paradox. A frequent teaching is; “find the place in the middle”, “not too tight, not too loose”, “effortless effort”, “Stay active but remain relaxed”, “go to your edge but no farther.” It comes in many different sayings but what do they mean ?

Lets consider the concept of effort. Since everything is relative and a concept only really makes sense in relationship to something, (Yin and Yang , Positive and Negative) the concept of effort has no meaning unless there is something to compare it to. Thus we have effort and non effort, in order to intellectualize this concept we must separate it into opposites. The amount of effort or non effort you may be experiencing is a subjective amount. No one else but you really knows how much you may be or may not be exercising effort. We draw arbitrary lines for ourselves for what we consider too much effort , not enough effort or just enough effort. The idea is not to create the concept for some arbitrary point of “just enough effort” but it is too let go of any concept of effort what so ever, with out grasping and with out aversion.

Imagine a number line -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5. Lets say this is our effort scale. The positive numbers are effort and the negative numbers are non effort. At any point you may be able to rate your self on this arbitrary scale, telling your self how much effort or non effort you are exerting. When you continue to hold on to this dualistic concept, on one side effort on the other side non effort, you are in a constant battle either grasping on to where you think you should be or avoiding where you think you should not be. How do you find the place in the middle ? What is in the middle ? That’s right “Zero”. What does zero mean here ? It is nothing at all or does it have some kind of quality. In math zero is not simply nothingness it has attributes and its own nature. In meditation or yoga zero pertains to the concept of emptiness, a concept not having an intrinsic value with out a relative nature(Non-dual realization).

So in order to find “Zero”, the place in the middle, effortless effort, you must let go of dualistic concepts such as effort or non effort. Experience your current state fully allowing your self to be as you are without intentionally holding back or pushing. It is this thought, that we need to be at a place other than where we already are, that places us on the relative scale. When you can dissolve the concept of effort all together with out falling into the positive or negative range you will experience the solution to this paradox.

Metta,

Danny

Mind and Life - Understanding Contemplative Practices: Yoga and Jain

2010-12-30T13:51:00.002-05:00

Mind and Life is an organization with a mission to bring together Western Science with Eastern Contemplative Science. They have been integrating Buddhist practice and Neuroscience for many years. The latest conference was the first one bringing in the idea of Hinduism , Jainism, Yoga and Vedanta.

If you have the time it would be worth your while to watch all of these sessions that are posted for free. I found this one below particularly interesting talking specifically about yoga meditation practice , the parallels and differences to Buddhism and what scientists in India are learning about the physiological affects of yoga practice.

Enjoy !

http://www.mindandlife.org/dialogues/past-conferences/ml22/mind-and-life-xxii-session-4/

gingerbread

2010-12-27T08:57:00.000-05:00

winter from the studio window

2010-12-24T16:58:00.000-05:00

A Moment of Silence

2010-12-11T14:49:00.002-05:00

Today at teacher training we were silent. The practice sounded like this:

Sweet Silence
Brave
Impermanence
Breath
Surrender
Forgiveness
Rhythmic Focus
Gratitude
Love
& Lightness.

Namaste. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti.

Fish

2010-12-08T16:05:00.000-05:00

This Saturday, December 11, we will be silent.

Try to be quiet from the time you go to sleep Friday night.

If you have young children or animals that need your voice

try to be silent from the time you get in your car to come to the studio.

This means no talking, no singing, no radio, no tunes.

If all of that is too much,

then be quiet once you arrive.

On December 18th we will practice Ashtanga in the am.

Scott will be coming in for Thai Massage in the afternoon.

Practice will start at 10:15. Thai Massage will start at 1:00.

You are welcome to bring your own partner for Thai massage,

as long as they are willing to give back to you.

Happy Snow Storms,

xoxo

kathy

Labyrinth (Nashua, NH)

2010-12-03T14:05:00.004-05:00

If you live near Nashua, NH (or if you are ever in the area) check out this Labyrinth!

http://www.nashualabyrinth.org/

Smokey

2010-12-02T14:18:00.002-05:00

We meet three times this month.

December 4 please bring a blindfold

December 11 day of silence

December 18 to be decided later

and thank you all for voting,
AHC won the seed money

xoxo
kath

and Delany loves horses as much as I do

Last few days to VOTE for Del's sake!

2010-11-28T14:53:00.002-05:00

Yogis,
Only today, Monday, and Tuesday left to vote for AHC by texting and online- if possible please do both! Please get a few new folks (grab your partner's or coworker's cell phone, etc.) to vote and remind those who are already familiar. Historically the last few days can really shake things up in the ranks so we need to stay on top- we
have worked way too hard! The current #3 organization actually won the $250,000 in August and are back for more. But just look at the little lady to the right (with stuffing and mashed potatoes in her hair) and hopefully all your time, energy, and recruiting efforts are worth it! So many thanks and blessings, Katrina

All three sites below will take you to vote online:
https://sites.google.com/site/helpdelaney/
www.brothersroot.com
www.refresheverything.com/cureahc
> Text 104112 to phone number 73774

surya namaskar a

2010-11-21T18:42:00.000-05:00

inhale rise, exhale fold, inhale look up, exhale chaturanga, inhale up dog, exhale down dog ((5 breaths)), inhale step or float, exhale fold, inhale rise, exhale Samasthithi ~repeat

Shiva Rea and Prana Flow Yoga

2010-11-15T18:10:00.000-05:00

Hi friends, here's a little article from the Prana blog interviewing Shiva Rea and talking about the evolution of vinyasa flow yoga. Check it out!

http://www.prana.com/blog/index.php/2010/11/08/shiva-rea-the-evolution-of-vinyasa-flow-practice/

Be apart of something bigger than yourself!

2010-11-12T19:29:00.002-05:00

Please take time this weekend to vote for Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood (AHC) in the Pepsi Refresh challenge 2 ways, online and by text:

www.refresheverything.com/cureahc
Texting 104112 to phone #73774

Delaney thanks you!

DH Lawrence essay, Education of the People, published in 1918

2010-11-10T17:55:00.000-05:00

"How to begin to educate a child. First rule: leave him alone. Second rule: leave him alone. Third rule: leave him alone. That is the whole beginning."

Danny Morris teaching Mindful Leadership Workshop

2010-11-09T12:47:00.002-05:00

For those of you inclined to business, and bringing yogic ideals into the workplace, our Danny Morris is teaching a workshop this weekend at the Vermont Center for Yoga and Therapy.

Serve Others

2010-11-09T11:57:00.003-05:00

Yogis,

I need your help and Kathy has graciously allowed me to request it on this blog (love you, Kath). More specifically my daughter needs your help. Delaney has a very rare neurological disorder called Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood (AHC): only 650 cases WORLDWIDE. There is no government funding to research or treat AHC and that is why we desperately need your help. AHC is in the running to receive $250,000 from the Pepsi Refresh program. You can vote daily online AND by texting EVERYDAY in November:

www.refresheverything.com/cureahc
By texting 104112 to phone #73774

Also, anyone you can pass this info onto is awesomely appreciated. So much love and namaste, Katrina

Vata Season - Grounding Breath

2010-11-08T11:32:00.001-05:00

Vata (along with Pitta and Kapha) is one of the three humors, or doshas, which make up our personal constitutions. These principles are also present in the world around us, and dictate natural rhythms of our days, seasons and even our lives.

Autumn is Vata season. Vata is characterized by cold, dry, light, rough, clear and hard. Seems to make sense for this cold weather, right?

Staying warm, hydrated and eating nourishing foods such as soups, stews and warm grains are great ways to stay healthy and grounded. Another thing to try is a warming grounding Pranayama and yoga practice. (Ashtanga every night at 5:40 anyone?! :) )

Dirga, or Three-Part-Breath and Ujjayi Pranayama:

Start seated or even lying down. You may use a blanket to cover your body or wrap around your shoulders.

Start by taking deep, slow nostril breaths down into your belly. This way, we expand the lower lobes of our lungs, in turn massaging our internal organs, and signaling to our body that we are safe and happy.

Bring one hand to your side rib cage to start, then you may lower it down as you get used to the breath. The next step is to begin filling the rest of your rib cage with air. Start by filling you belly, then middle rib cage, then right up under your collar bones. You may even feel the air come into your throat.

As you exhale, do so naturally until you come to the bottom – you may use your abdominal muscles to squeeze the last bit of exhale out.

Begin again, starting with your belly first.

Once you become comfortable with this breath – you may layer a nice, warming Ujjayi breath over this.

Feel your seat grounded into the earth, and at the same time, lift the crown of your head to lengthen the spine. Picture your breath beyond your body – inhales coming up through your tailbone and out the crown of your head. The exhales coming down from the top, along your spine, and back out through the floor below you.

Ujjayi is a loud, ocean sounding breath, made by slightly contracting your throat. It is used in Ashtanga practices, but along with your Bandhas.

Read more about Ujjayi pranayama here.

Namaste.

Ma Bhaskarananda

2010-11-05T18:45:00.000-04:00

A 20 Minute Gentle Practice

2010-11-03T11:53:00.000-04:00

Made this for my family :)

Part 1

Part 2

Love you.

More on Vata Dosha Balancing

2010-11-03T11:15:00.000-04:00

It's that time of year again, when the weather changes so swiftly it leaves you standing on the street corner shivering in shorts and wondering what happened to those warm, balmy afternoons (it was 80 degrees here last week in DC!). The anxiety kicks in and your mind blows around faster than the leaves on the street. How do you get grounded again?

Anxiety comes from an imbalance of the doshas, an aggravation of vata in the nervous system. To balance vata dosha, try the following:

1. An oil massage to reduce stress. Use sesame oil if you have a vata dosha, coconut oil if you have pitta dosha, or corn oil if you have kapha dosha.

2. Drink calming herb teas made from 1 part valerian, 1 part musta. Steep a teaspoon of these herbs in 1 cup of hot water. Drink twice a day.

3. Almond milk is very good for anxiety. Soak 10 raw almonds in water over night, peel off the skins and put them in the bledern. Warm the milk and add a pinch of ginger, nutmeg and saffron.

4. Orange juice is good if your anxiety is accompanied by a fast heart rate, ayurvedic practitioners recommend drinking a cup of orange juice with a teaspoon of honey and a pinch of nutmeg.

5. A warm bath of ginger and baking soda pacifies anxiety. Add 1/3 cup ginger and 1/3 cup baking soda to a tubful of water, soak for 10-15 minutes.

6. And of course...yoga!

*Here's a great list of foods that balance vata dosha:

http://www.holisticonline.com/ayurveda/ayv-vata-food-plan.htm

Managing Vata Dosha in Winter

2010-11-03T10:41:00.000-04:00

Stop, Drop, and Roll: A Three Point Plan for Managing Vata Dosha

Tis the season to be vata – la-la-la-la-la, la, la, la…wait? What were we singing? Yes indeed friends, tis the season to feel our Vata Dosha begin to take the reigns. But fear not, out good friend and Ayurvedic practitioner Daniel Shankin (Sitaram Das) is here with a three part plan for managing our Vata Dosha this season – Stop, Drop, and Roll!

When the weather starts to change, and the harsh winds begin to blow cold, deranged expressions of Vata Dosha are sure to be close behind. This vata energy can go out of balance at any time, and troubles many of us year round, but it’s particularly prevalent in the winter. Vata is considered to be an accumlation of the elemental energies of air and space, and is associated with several qualites that we see manifested throughout the natural world. These qualities include: cold, dry, light, mobile, rough, and subtle. A large part of ayurvedic medicine is based on the premise that ‘like increases like’ and ‘opposites decrease’. For example, drinking iced tea (cold) while driving very fast (mobile) on a windy day (rough, mobile) in February (cold) is a good way to increase vata dosha, and the nervousness, insomnia, joint pain, energy loss, and depression that come with it. Here is a simple, easy to remember, three point plan to make sure that your winter is as warm, juicy, sensual, and luxurious as any in recorded history.

Stop: For the Love of God, turn off the computer and go to bed already. Close the 10,000 browser windows, quick checking your texts and keep your eyes on the road. Put nineteen of the twenty books you are reading back on the shelf, and finish one. And no, you aren’t going out tonight, to all five parties which all happen to be on opposite ends of town. Just stop. Renounce activity. Eschew multitasking. Don’t do something, just sit there. Practice living calmly and simply. Do bathtub yoga. Let yourself off the hook when you feel like you ‘should‘ do something. If you catch yourself feeling an anxious and obssesive need to fix, fiddle, improve, or adjust, drop your ass into meditation immediately. Take some time to breathe deep, dropping into the body, and let your awareness explore the roots of your neurosis. Once you’ve found your grounded center, rise up, and move from that place. Ahhh, Exhale.

Drop: If we’re going to get this under control, we need to go straight to the bowels of Ayurveda. Vata Dosha accumulates in the large intestine and colon. When Vata runs wild it creates constipation, indigestion, and flatulence. To keep this dosha at bay, we want to make sure that we move our bowels regularly. Chances are, if you are reading this, you probably have a pretty healthy diet to begin with, and probably only need to make some minor changes to make sure that what goes in, comes out in a timely fashion. Rather than fixate on lists of foods that are ‘do’s and don’ts’, just start paying attention to the way your meals affect your elimination. Make sure that you are eating foods that are easily digestable as well as nutritious. WInter is also a perfect experiement with spices. Warm sweet spices like the kind you find in chai tea (cinnamon, cardamom, clove, etc) are perfect for winter, perfect for vata, and might just be perfect for you.

Roll: We all love our hot fast sweaty vinyasa flow classes. Our favorite classes involve loud, funky music. Nothing wrong with these classes, nothing at all. Only thing is, they can aggravate Vata. One of the characteristics of vata is that it is mobile, and is increased by excessive mobility. Physical Mobility like fast flow yoga, and sensual mobility like loud fast music. These two things increase vata in the nervous system and mind, and cause disturbances such as anxiety, insomnia, and lack of focus. Vata is also dry, which means that if you are leaving a huge pile of sweat on the floor, you are dessicating yourself, and potentially making your life harder with symptoms such as dry skin and the aforementioned constipation. I’m not saying to never do flow class, but it certainly wouldn’t kill you to mix it up and spend a little time with some of the more mature members of our yoga family, rolling around on the floor, rolling our joints open, lightly stretching and breathing into our chakras. Rolling around on the floor is very pacifying for Vata Dosha.

Read more.....

http://yoganonymous.org/stop-drop-and-roll-a-three-point-plan-for-managing-vata-dosha/

Photos by Kathy, age 46

2010-10-30T10:39:00.000-04:00

Photos by Sabian York, 8 years old

2010-10-26T13:42:00.000-04:00

Recipes from Saturday October 23

2010-10-25T13:55:00.002-04:00

Peanut Butter Cookies

(gluten and dairy-free)

Ingredients

1 ½ cups peanut butter

½ cup packed brown sugar

1 large egg white

Directions

Preheat oven to 350º and line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Combine all three ingredients. Roll dough into 1-inch balls and place on sheets, spacing them about 1 inch apart. Using a fork, make a criss-cross pattern on each cookie.

Bake 12-15 minutes until pale golden and set around the edges. Cool completely on wire racks.

Yields about 2 dozen cookies.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

2 ¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

1 ½ tsp. cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

½ cup brown sugar

½ cup granulated sugar

1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin

2 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

grated zest of 1 orange, optional

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup chopped walnuts, optional

Glaze

1 ½ cups confectioner’s sugar

2 ½ Tbsp. Milk

½ tsp. vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375º F. Spray baking sheets with cooking spray or line with parchment paper, set aside.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and ginger in medium bowl. Set aside.

Cream together the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Scrape the sides of the bowl.

Add the pumpkin, eggs, vanilla and orange zest, beating well to blend.

Slowly add the dry ingredients, blend well. Stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts.

Using a tablespoon scoop, drop the dough on the baking sheets. Bake on the middle oven rack for 13-18 minutes, until edges are lightly browned. Let cool on the baking sheets 5 minutes before transferring to racks to cool.

For the glaze: Stir together the sugar, milk and vanilla until smooth. Dip the tops of the cookies in the glaze and put back on the racks to set, or drizzle in a pattern.

Mount Major

2010-10-22T23:11:00.000-04:00

Radiant Child Yoga

2010-10-20T08:15:00.002-04:00

From the presentation that Kristin and I gave a few weeks ago.

I am happy, I am good

Satnam, satnam, satnam ji

Wahe guru, wahe guru, wahe guru ji.

Satnam, satnam, satnam ji

Wahe guru, wahe guru, wahe guru ji.

Satnam = true name, true self

Wahe guru = wonderful teacher, supreme being, god...

We also played 2 games:

- The Intuition Game - The group sits in a circle, and one person leaves the room. While that person is gone, someone in the group hides an object under their seat (a coin, a feather, whatever you have). When the person comes back, he/she stands in the center of the circle, and the people on the outside send them "you can do it" vibes. The person on the inside of the circle uses his/her intuition to guess who is sitting on the object.

- Yoga Counting - The group works together to count to 10. There is no set order to tell you who counts when - you just use your intuition! If two people talk at once, you start again at 1.

These games are fun with adults and kids...have fun playing!

Moon Days

2010-10-14T14:09:00.002-04:00

Traditionally in Ashtanga you don't practice on "moon days" which are the full moon and new moon.

I always just accepted this as a fact and didn't really care why.
However the "why" is kind of interesting. Here is a link if you would like to learn more~ http://www.ashtangayogacenter.com/moon.html

upcoming moon days are as follows:
Oct 23, 2010 ~ Saturday ~ Full Moon
Nov 6, 2010 ~ Saturday ~ New Moon
Nov 22, 2010 ~ Monday ~ Full Moon
Dec 6, 2010 ~ Monday ~ New Moon
Dec 21, 2010 ~ Tuesday ~ Full Moon ~ Total Lunar Eclipse and Winter Solstice

Namaste!

Supta Kurmasana

2010-10-06T10:54:00.000-04:00

Prajanaparamita (The Heart Sutra)

2010-10-02T16:22:00.003-04:00

In today's class Kathy offered us a new chant to learn: Prajanaparamita translated as "Heart of the Perfection of Transcendent Wisdom." Although the full sutra is much longer, the last line is the most important one, and the chant we learned today. Invoking this chant is for the eradication of attachments, or opening the heart.

gate gate para gate
para samgate
bodhisvaha

There seems to be many translations of the chant, but from what I gather, it is basically emphasizing that "beyond all that I know, beyond and all that exists, I accept to be fully awakened."

Check out Wikipedia for more details. Listen to the full sutra on YouTube...and try to keep up with the cadence!

(jaycie)

The Mahabharata by R. K. Narayana

2010-08-30T19:51:00.002-04:00

please read.

2010-08-30T08:55:00.001-04:00

Fly

2010-08-28T00:49:00.002-04:00

Absurdity

2010-08-24T21:42:00.002-04:00

Okay, I'll admit it ...
the practice of yoga seems ridiculous.

I get onto a yoga mat and twist myself into a sweaty pretzel and somehow this makes me a better, more spiritual person.
Sitting to breathe in a particular way somehow makes the world seem brighter.
Chanting in a language I don't understand somehow calms my mind.

On the surface it appears absurd.
I've been wondering a lot recently about how and why yoga works.
Then I came to a realization ...
the how and why don't matter.

I have no clue how my car works, or my computer
or most of the other things in my life.

Then why do I need to know how yoga works?
I don't.

For me it's enough to know that it does work
and every time I roll out my mat,
or sit to meditate,
or chant,
absurd or not,
it works.
That's enough for me.

2010-08-23T21:25:00.003-04:00

Hello again from the coast of Maine!! I have yet to make it to Yoga Vermont this summer and am always thinking of it, yet life seems to keep me away.

A new Ashtanga Yoga studio opened this summer in Portland, Maine (just up the road from me) and they are searching for highly qualified (experienced) Ashtanga yoga instructors, so I said I would do my best to help and get the word out. If my schedule allows I'll make it up there once a week this fall. If anyone is interested in teaching in this area (1 hr led Ashtanga, and Mysore style classes) check the studio out online, and drop them some info or ask a few questions!! Or...just come for a workshop or holiday!!

Be well...Fall is in the air, Celina McMichael

Sublime States

2010-08-19T17:01:00.004-04:00

Treat those who are happy with friendliness
Treat those who are unhappy with compassion
Treat those who are virtuous with supreme joy
Treat those who are wicked with indifference

About a year ago, I was in class and Kathy mentioned these Buddhist "sublime attitudes". I wrote some of it down, then went home to Google it (completely missing the fact that they were in my Yoga Sutras!). I found nothing, punching in terms that were delivering other results. I decided to come back to it again later.

And, as life does, it came back to me at a time I needed it most. Dealing with frustration, trying hard to control and detach from emotion...it was hard to breathe! And there they were. Like a key to finding peace of mind. I read them over and over thinking, how can I remember these in the future? So, I thought I would share them with you all.

In Buddhism, this is the Brahmaviharas: the Four Immeasureables. It is discussed in Yoga Sutra 1.33: "In relationships, the mind becomes purified by cultivating feelings of friendliness towards those who are happy, compassion for those who are suffering, goodwill towards those who are virtuous, and indifference or neutrality towards those we perceive as wicked or evil."(maitri karuna mudita upekshanam sukha duhka punya apunya vishayanam bhavanatah chitta prasadanam)

To break the sanskrit down, I found this direct translation:

maitri = friendliness, pleasantness, lovingness
karuna = compassion, mercy
mudita = gladness, goodwill
upekshanam = acceptance, equanimity, indifference, disregard, neutrality
sukha = happy, comfortable, joyous
duhka = pain, misery, suffering, sorrow
punya = virtuous, meritorious, benevolent
apunya = non-virtuous, vice, bad, wicked, evil, bad, demerit, non-meritorious,
vishayanam = regarding those subjects, in relation to those objects
bhavanatah = by cultivating habits, by constant reflection, developing attitude, cultivating, impressing on oneself
chitta = mind field, consciousness
prasadanam = purified, clear, serene, pleasant, pacified, undisturbed, peaceful, calm

Enjoy.

(jaycie)

2010-07-26T14:09:00.003-04:00

http://www.liberatevt.com/

Aug. 20 -21

Happy Summer

2010-07-08T10:34:00.000-04:00

Happy 4th of July

2010-07-04T07:21:00.003-04:00

Partner Yoga with Penny and Angela

2010-07-02T13:16:00.003-04:00

Yoga Vermont Instructor Course Blog

One of many valid prespectives on how to teach yoga

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Photos from Lindsay's Garden

"If It Hurts, You're Doing It Wrong."

Subji (sub-jee)

Second Series?

Junior Yoga Workshop

Please watch - it is very short. xoxo kath

Wisdom and Yoga – Vipassana insights on Yoga pactice

Green Up Day 2011

Tomorrow We Disappear

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Angelica is one ewe-nique sheep

(best craigslist farm and garden so far this year- kathy)

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Oct '08 Interview

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Little Monkey

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A taste of Shadow Yoga

Closing Prayer

Sri Rahul Acharya

Sri Rahul Acharya

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Dattatreya

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a remembered mantra ...

TLP Mediaplayer - France got Talent - Frog Man

prayer.

Mark T. Kinder

Jeff and Kathy

recommended reading.

Mark T. Kinder

Question & Answer w/ Sharath Assistant Director of Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute

What is an Ashtanga Yoga practice?

Mark T. Kinder

Shanthi Mantra

Sirsa = head

Jake Shimabukuro plays "Bohemian Rhapsody" | Video on TED.com

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Headstanding!

"8 Natural Handstands"

2nd Series this Saturday!

From Jeff and Kathy part two

Incredible yoga girl

From Jeff and Kathy

Kathy's Beautiful Belly

Bhoj Kriya: How To Eat and Bless Your Food

A quote ...

Yoga//Roots

NPR | Yoga: A Positively Un-Indian Experience

NEW SCHEDULE - Starts Jan. 9th (Sunday)

Something's gotta give....

Insights from the holidays and a new year

Numerical example of effortless effort.

Mind and Life - Understanding Contemplative Practices: Yoga and Jain

gingerbread

winter from the studio window

A Moment of Silence

Fish

Labyrinth (Nashua, NH)

Smokey

Last few days to VOTE for Del's sake!

surya namaskar a

Shiva Rea and Prana Flow Yoga

Be apart of something bigger than yourself!

DH Lawrence essay, Education of the People, published in 1918

Danny Morris teaching Mindful Leadership Workshop

Serve Others

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Ma Bhaskarananda

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