I have been able to enjoy a lot of time on my yoga mat lately. I consider that to be a great gift. I usually am able to do yoga in the late morning and again at night before I go to bed. Tonight I held the poses for at least 3 minutes each and did around a 10 minute setubandha sarvangasana (bridge pose) sequence. Here is what I did:
child's pose/ balasanaack
adho mukha svanasana
vinyasa thru surya namaskar a
uttanasana legs as wide as mat head supported with block
with a roll in 2 positions. 1) step halfway on the roll with back half of arch and heel on rolled up blanket 2) front half of arch and ball of foot on rolled up blanket
sirsasana
setubandha sarvangasana on block. remove block, then parsva grabbing ankles on each side. knees bent first then straight
sarvangasana
baddhakonasana
bolster under lumbar for savasana.
I was reading Iyengar's hardback book tonight and he said "When I was young, I used to play, Now I stay"
So, in my own practice I've had the opportunity to work on the subtler aspects of the asanas, refining them like gold. I have recently had a tweaky knee, so in the inversions, I work on Iyengar's series, as given in Light on Yoga, which elongate the spine and the thighs, leg muscles and strengthen upper body. They also do a great job with digestion. It feels good to be with my own practice. Being a tree. Transplanted on my own into the sun. Om Shanti.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
A Poem
i am the rivers, the purple crested sunsets, the four winds unleashed with fury into crescendo.
blazing orange fire, rocks and clay.
the moon bow and it's reflection.
a dream and insomnia.
the movement and the energy.
inertia and chronos.
a delicious sustenance and dissatisfied famine.
terrible and wondrous.
all the world reflects in me and it makes me confused because i forget the remembering.
blazing orange fire, rocks and clay.
the moon bow and it's reflection.
a dream and insomnia.
the movement and the energy.
inertia and chronos.
a delicious sustenance and dissatisfied famine.
terrible and wondrous.
all the world reflects in me and it makes me confused because i forget the remembering.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Cheap Date
I have started to see that another great gift of yoga is freedom from rampant consumerism...
Last week, my husband and I went on a spontaneous date. A cheap one at that. We decided to go to Oliver's, a local pay by the hour pool hall off Dutchman's Lane in the Ville. With two cokes, and hour of pool for the 2 of us ended up being around $8. They have nice, tournament tables and varying prices throughout the week. Before we played pool, we went to a local Mexican restaurant, Bazo's Mexican Grill. The tab there was under $14 for dinner for the both of us. So, after dinner and a hour of pool, we spent around $25. Also, these places are both locally owned and operated businesses, which are very worthy and important to support. My husband and I have made the decision to support our local economy and try to purchase local products as much as possible.
I shop at local Farmer's Markets, locally owned Paul's fruit market, local restaurants, go to a local mechanic instead of a big corporate dealership, and purchase other local products when available. It's about choices. If I don't agree with big business philosophies, then the best thing for me to do is to put my money where my mouth is and to stop supporting things I don't agree with and support the things I do agree with.
I was talking to a friend last week about Yoga being a grass roots effort. It requires people to take small steps to improve their own lives. When we feel helpless, like what we have to offer doesn't make a difference, we can take action. Start by recycling, walking more and driving less, shopping locally, buying products which have traveled a shorter distance to get to you. These are all small ideas which help the earth in a great big way. Think globally, start locally!
Last week, my husband and I went on a spontaneous date. A cheap one at that. We decided to go to Oliver's, a local pay by the hour pool hall off Dutchman's Lane in the Ville. With two cokes, and hour of pool for the 2 of us ended up being around $8. They have nice, tournament tables and varying prices throughout the week. Before we played pool, we went to a local Mexican restaurant, Bazo's Mexican Grill. The tab there was under $14 for dinner for the both of us. So, after dinner and a hour of pool, we spent around $25. Also, these places are both locally owned and operated businesses, which are very worthy and important to support. My husband and I have made the decision to support our local economy and try to purchase local products as much as possible.
I shop at local Farmer's Markets, locally owned Paul's fruit market, local restaurants, go to a local mechanic instead of a big corporate dealership, and purchase other local products when available. It's about choices. If I don't agree with big business philosophies, then the best thing for me to do is to put my money where my mouth is and to stop supporting things I don't agree with and support the things I do agree with.
I was talking to a friend last week about Yoga being a grass roots effort. It requires people to take small steps to improve their own lives. When we feel helpless, like what we have to offer doesn't make a difference, we can take action. Start by recycling, walking more and driving less, shopping locally, buying products which have traveled a shorter distance to get to you. These are all small ideas which help the earth in a great big way. Think globally, start locally!
So Many Changes
My life has been changing. Of course, change is always occurring, I shed old things that I don't need and room appears for what I need at the time. When the universe pushes me, yanks me, pulls me kicking and screaming (well, at least not as much or as long as I used to) in another direction, there is sometimes confusion, pain, an overwhelming sensation of fear. It's important for me to recognize my own true progress in this area. I am resilient now. I am strong and I don't let things keep me down. I bounce back. I have learned how to do this from Yoga. It's not something I was just born with; patience and other virtues have been hard to come by. With the awareness of Yoga, I have been gifted with more of the tendencies that bring me to my authentic, loving self. The self that doesn't want things to be different. The self that is accepting. Loving Kindness. It's important for me to see where I have been in my Yoga practice.
I began about 6 years ago and I was overweight, I smoked, I worked at a very high stress job. I hated life and myself. I had no energy. I was mean and hateful, most of all I was unhappy with myself.
My whole life and outlook upon it has changed. I attribute it to the awareness I have received from my Yoga practice. I have gained a sense of self acceptance and joy. I am enjoying the small things that I took for granted for a long time. I am excited about continuing to learn and watching my path unfold.
Awareness is the key. I am looking forward to the new gifts coming in to my life and not regretting the things that are no longer there. My practice has truly shown me that "Your Pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding. Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its heart may stand in the sun, so must you know pain. And could you keep your heart in wonder at the daily miracles of your life, your pain would not seem less wondrous than your joy. And you would accept the seasons of your heart, even as you have always accepted the seasons of that pass over your fields. And you would watch with serenity through the winters of your grief." - Kahlil Gibran
I have been able to step back, assess and see things as they are, being right in the moment. It is the only moment- a wonderful moment!
I began about 6 years ago and I was overweight, I smoked, I worked at a very high stress job. I hated life and myself. I had no energy. I was mean and hateful, most of all I was unhappy with myself.
My whole life and outlook upon it has changed. I attribute it to the awareness I have received from my Yoga practice. I have gained a sense of self acceptance and joy. I am enjoying the small things that I took for granted for a long time. I am excited about continuing to learn and watching my path unfold.
Awareness is the key. I am looking forward to the new gifts coming in to my life and not regretting the things that are no longer there. My practice has truly shown me that "Your Pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding. Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its heart may stand in the sun, so must you know pain. And could you keep your heart in wonder at the daily miracles of your life, your pain would not seem less wondrous than your joy. And you would accept the seasons of your heart, even as you have always accepted the seasons of that pass over your fields. And you would watch with serenity through the winters of your grief." - Kahlil Gibran
I have been able to step back, assess and see things as they are, being right in the moment. It is the only moment- a wonderful moment!
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Not Letting Decrease Sense of I
Today, I am considering the idea that my teacher Ramanand constantly brings up when I study with him in his Yoga classes: "Do not let anything decrease your sense of I" meaning, nothing on the outside so be able to diminish one's adequacy and true nature and thoughts about one's self. This idea is a simple one, yet hard to always remember because of the mind's nature of attachment to outside things for self identification. When these thoughts arise, I must remember that I am not my stuff, not my house, or my marriage, or my job or the amount of money I make- That my essence is perfection and wholeness and bliss. Supreme shimmering consciousness. Not tying my identity to outside things makes me question, "well, who am I really then?". According to my teacher, this should always be the question. Of course, intellectual knowledge and knowledge to the marrow of the bones are two totally different things. My current understanding is this: I am a limited being by nature of my mind, body, sense complex. I love and have an affinity for nature, my nature is living this life and hopefully with the least amount of rubbing up against everything else. I have limited understanding and am constantly receiving knowledge through perceptions.
Then, I realized that it's ok to just be. be in the moment. This is where "I" really am. Pattabhi Jois, the Ashtanga lineage guru, said "practice, and all is coming". when doing your yoga, only doing yoga. when chanting, only chanting. when eating, only eating. i actually saw a little girl about 10 on her bike with an ipod, she didn't know i was there because she obviously couldn't hear me. she was right behind my car in our driveway. it seems that the more technology we have and more sensory stimulation we get, the more we try to do too many things at once. there was another kid on a bike texting! i have been savoring being in the moment and not having to do five hundred things at once. This gets me to who I am and not what I do.
Then, I realized that it's ok to just be. be in the moment. This is where "I" really am. Pattabhi Jois, the Ashtanga lineage guru, said "practice, and all is coming". when doing your yoga, only doing yoga. when chanting, only chanting. when eating, only eating. i actually saw a little girl about 10 on her bike with an ipod, she didn't know i was there because she obviously couldn't hear me. she was right behind my car in our driveway. it seems that the more technology we have and more sensory stimulation we get, the more we try to do too many things at once. there was another kid on a bike texting! i have been savoring being in the moment and not having to do five hundred things at once. This gets me to who I am and not what I do.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Yoga= seeing God in everyone
One of my friends said the other day- "I believe that if you squeezed everyone hard enough, God will pop out". I think that's a great way to connect to others. In Yoga, we say "Namaste" as a greeting. We bring our hands in prayer position in front of our hearts to symbolize the unity of the right and left sides of the body, and also uniting feeling and intellect. The meaning of the greeting is: That which I hold as the most sacred part of myself (or the God inside of me) recognizes and honors that miraculous, divine (or the God inside you) vast place inside of you.
Taking the time to honor someone else and to really search objectively for the God inside someone else helps to center me. It means being truly in the moment.
Deep, cultivated respect for others (adara kari) and a true interest of being of service (seva) is a great gift that I have been given from my Yoga practice. When that connection is made between another living being and myself, there is that glance of true shimmering consciousness that is my true nature, often veiled by the body-mind-sense complex and my misunderstanding of who i am. I am the Whole, Purnam- the all expansive ocean, my physical form is temporary and limited, but I am not. True nature is limitless, unhindered by time and space. Om Shanti. Peace, perfect peace.
Taking the time to honor someone else and to really search objectively for the God inside someone else helps to center me. It means being truly in the moment.
Deep, cultivated respect for others (adara kari) and a true interest of being of service (seva) is a great gift that I have been given from my Yoga practice. When that connection is made between another living being and myself, there is that glance of true shimmering consciousness that is my true nature, often veiled by the body-mind-sense complex and my misunderstanding of who i am. I am the Whole, Purnam- the all expansive ocean, my physical form is temporary and limited, but I am not. True nature is limitless, unhindered by time and space. Om Shanti. Peace, perfect peace.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
a new day
inspired continuously by fellow writers, to continue my blog. i am definitely a novice, but enjoy writing nonetheless.
i had an interesting conversation with a student who used to be scared of me. i am glad that she stuck around and i didn't run her off... i think the longer i teach, the more confident i become with this practice. i actually love my students, they become the beloved. i wish i could allow this to spill over into all of my thought and feelings, interactions in life. to be right in the moment, to be adequate and enough. not to be, because i am, but to really believe it and embrace it. the quality of purnam, being included in all that is whole and complete and perfect and enough. i know my teaching style is either love it or hate it. there will either be a drawing towards it or a strong aversion, this style comes from teachers i have studied with so their influence cannot be denied. it is important to recognize that it is unnecessary to like a teacher, but can you obtain the necessary knowledge from them about yourself. it is the teacher's job to give you information, and the student's job to assimilate. don't get caught up in like or dislike. it is irrelevant. a student told me she liked me last night, and i told her that was good i like her too, but it makes no difference really. i will still teach someone even if i don't like them and i have begin to think less and less in those terms. like and dislike- just brain discriminating and categorizing, departmentalizing. is the information correct, does it help me? these are the important questions, as you will receive information even if you don't like it. liking a teacher can also be distracting. i know i need to be around my teachers and guru, but to be around them too much can be distracting. some teachers, i would hang out with, and others i wouldn't even dream of it. i need to find my own way, that's nothing anyone else can give me. at my teacher, ramanand's advice, i am insisting on being happy and that is not determined by my likes and dislikes. sometimes, it still is from an external standpoint, but yoga teaches us to be steadfast in wisdom, eqinimity- evenness of mind no matter what the circumstances, like tadasana- a big strong mountain, steady and unmoving, unshakable with a beautiful shimmering lake below reflecting our existence and shimmering consciousness.
i had an interesting conversation with a student who used to be scared of me. i am glad that she stuck around and i didn't run her off... i think the longer i teach, the more confident i become with this practice. i actually love my students, they become the beloved. i wish i could allow this to spill over into all of my thought and feelings, interactions in life. to be right in the moment, to be adequate and enough. not to be, because i am, but to really believe it and embrace it. the quality of purnam, being included in all that is whole and complete and perfect and enough. i know my teaching style is either love it or hate it. there will either be a drawing towards it or a strong aversion, this style comes from teachers i have studied with so their influence cannot be denied. it is important to recognize that it is unnecessary to like a teacher, but can you obtain the necessary knowledge from them about yourself. it is the teacher's job to give you information, and the student's job to assimilate. don't get caught up in like or dislike. it is irrelevant. a student told me she liked me last night, and i told her that was good i like her too, but it makes no difference really. i will still teach someone even if i don't like them and i have begin to think less and less in those terms. like and dislike- just brain discriminating and categorizing, departmentalizing. is the information correct, does it help me? these are the important questions, as you will receive information even if you don't like it. liking a teacher can also be distracting. i know i need to be around my teachers and guru, but to be around them too much can be distracting. some teachers, i would hang out with, and others i wouldn't even dream of it. i need to find my own way, that's nothing anyone else can give me. at my teacher, ramanand's advice, i am insisting on being happy and that is not determined by my likes and dislikes. sometimes, it still is from an external standpoint, but yoga teaches us to be steadfast in wisdom, eqinimity- evenness of mind no matter what the circumstances, like tadasana- a big strong mountain, steady and unmoving, unshakable with a beautiful shimmering lake below reflecting our existence and shimmering consciousness.
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