Yoga at Life Time Fitness Life Time Fitness in Columbia, MD Hot Vinyasa: Sun 11am, Mon 6pm, Sat 8:15am Yin: Wed 9:30am Hatha: Thu 6pm
American Tribal Style® Bellydance
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"I have had the fortune of watching Flissy turn from a student to a strong, giving and attentive teacher... Recently, speaking throughout the preparation as the students attempted a familiar posture, she taught an awareness of very subtle yet important ways to improve one's position in the pose..." read more
What a lovely way to wrap up National Yoga Month: dhyana (meditation) and samadhi (union with the divine). This is the heart of the yoga practice-- to sit and meditate and connect to something greater than yourself. One of my yoga teachers described the eight limbs of yoga not as a ladder that is reaching towards samadhi, but as a wheel that you can enter and experience at any point, and all the other limbs can bring you to samadhi, at the center. Which begs the question, what, exactly is at that center? What is at YOUR center? What does it take for you to feel most alive and connected? Asana? Working out? Serving others? Being in nature? They are all right answers, and I think we all owe it to ourselves to go on this inward journey to discover what makes us feel most fruitful and most at peace so we can shine that back out and become a positive, loving influence on the world around us.
I'll wrap this up by sharing some words from my teacher, Erich Schiffmann, from his book Yoga: The Spirit and Practice of Moving into Stillness
"Imagine a spinning top. Stillness is like a perfectly centered top, spinning so fast it appears motionless. It appears this way not because it isn’t moving, but because it’s spinning at full speed. Stillness is not the absence or negation of energy, life, or movement. Stillness is dynamic. It is unconflicted movement, life in harmony with itself, skill in action. It can be experienced whenever there is total, uninhibited, unconflicted participation in the moment you are in – when you are wholeheartedly present with whatever you are doing."
This week's National Yoga Month topics for "YIOM are pratayahara and dharana. What what? I'd venture to say that of the eight limbs of yoga, these are probably given the least amount of consideration by your average asana practitioner, this yogini included. That's unfortunate, because pratayahara (withdrawing of the senses) and dharana (concentration) are a sweet pair. Together, they can be used as simple and effective meditation technique.
Recently I gave myself this Prosperity Mala by Tiny Devotions. I wanted a reminder for myself to cultivate a positive attitude as I work towards my dreams for myself as yoga teacher and bellydancer. I love wearing it because it is both beautiful and uplifting, but it is also a wonderful tool for meditation.
I like to keep it simple. I find a quiet place to sit (if possible!) and close my eyes (pratayahara), and hold my mala in one hand, starting with one of the beads closest to the aventurine guru stone. After each exhale, I move on to the next bead. Observing the breath and the feel of the beads in my hands (dharana) gives me something to focus on that is not the crazy soup of thoughts swirling in my head. It's especially helpful if I'm keyed up and feeling impatient, because it forces me to slow down. By the time I've made it through all 108 beads, I am usually feeling calmer and more centered, and from there I can either slip into a deeper meditation practice, or go on with the rest of my day in a much better state of mind.
Do you have a mala you love? How does it help your meditation practice?
Did you know that September is National Yoga Month? In celebration, the collective of YIOM bloggers are writing about the 8 limbs of yoga. I’m really excited about this project, because while I am very interested in the holistic practice of yoga, most of what I have the opportunity to share in class is limited to asana (the postures). I’m looking forward to reflecting on my own practice and hearing about my fellow yogis experiences, too.
This week we’re looking at the Yamas (social ethics) and Niyamas (personal ethics).
Yama: Ahimsa
A few years ago, one of my yoga teachers gave me this great little book called The Secret of the Yamas. The in yogic philosophy, the yamas are: Ahimsa (non-violence), Satya (truthfulness), Asteya (non-stealing), Brahmacharya (self control), Aparigraha (non-grasping). While there was commentary on all of the yamas, it always came back around to Ahimsa as the primary practice, and all the others organically arose from the practice of compassion towards yourself and others. Even before I started practicing yoga, this sentiment has been important to the way I live my life. I always strive to be gentle and kind to others. I love animals and I want to take good care of them, too.
My general appreciation and commitment towards compassionate living took a fierce turn when six months ago, my dad passed away unexpectedly. Ever since that happened, I have felt like I can never watch any film that portrays violence, even in passing, ever again. It's just too real. I’m acutely aware of violent undertones in silly internet memes, everyday figures of speech, and innocent exaggerations in conversation. It upsets me a lot. I just can't see how glorifying or romanticizing violence in film or other media can do any good to anyone. We are becoming desensitized, not just to violence, but to suffering in general.
I have found that shielding myself to such references has helped to ease my own grief, and by eliminating violent language from my own speech, I might be able to ease the grief and suffering of others. You just never know what other people are going through and aren't telling you.
It’s my hope that people will want to do something positive and life-affirming by eliminating unnecessary references to violence in how we interact with others, so that we can make a shift towards greater peace.
“If we are peaceful, if we are happy, we can blossom like a flower and everyone in our family, our entire society, will benefit from our peace.”
Thich Nhat Hanh
Recently, I met up with a couple yoga friends of mine, and I was both surprised and excited by the fact that we had all, independently, become students of three different master teachers. What do these teachers have in common? All of them are teaching that yoga is something much bigger than the asana practice.
Here's Rod Stryker:
Not unlike what my teacher, Erich Schiffman is saying, a lot less delicately when he says, “Yoga is an investigation into WTF is going on!”
At the end of our time together last week, Paul Grilley was saying that, if you are looking at the yoga postures as something to achieve, you are missing the point. He said that sooner or later, every pose you practice will be limited by your bones. You won't be able to advance any more. You need to be prepared for that time, and ask yourself … Why are you practicing yoga?
Of course, physically, it is good to move your body to the fullest range of motion on a regular basis. Asana feels good to do. It's fun. It will make your body healthier, stronger, more balanced, more flexible … all that good stuff they tell you about yoga. Asana is wonderful tool to become connected to your inner wisdom, and it's a wonderful tool for building community in a classroom, but it is not the only way, and it is not the end-all-be-all of yoga.
I feel really fortunate that as a relatively young yogini, and as a relatively baby teacher, I have come to this realization. And from what Paul implied at the workshop, there are plenty of yoga superstars that are still grasping with that one, and are bitter, ugly people who happen to be able to do amazing things with their body.
I have come to love my meditation practice. I love sitting and listening to what God has to say to me. I love taking the time to honor that I, as tiny as I may be, am divinely inspired. I love looking out on my students, my dance sisters, my family, people passing by and seeing that they are divinely inspired, too.
I'm not exactly sure where I'm going with this at the moment, but I wanted to share that I think this is a very exciting time in my own personal practice and my teaching, and I think it's an exciting time for yogis worldwide, as people are waking up to the possibility that there is more outside of us and inside of us practically leaping to create positive change in the world.
Namaste, people! The goodness in me sees the goodness in you!
Next weekend I'm heading up to Kripalu for a weekend with my teacher, Erich Schiffmann. Here's a short talk by Erich that introduces his approach to yoga, and what is the point of doing yoga in general.
I just love Erich. He has a wealth of downloadable material available at his website, Freedom Style Yoga. This is also my first time going to Kripalu. I'm super excited because it's like ... the hub of Yoga in America, and my very first yoga teacher was a Kripalu-trained instructor. I've been feeling like I need a little jumpstart to my yoga and meditation practice, and so this workshop is coming around at just the right time. I'll be sure to report back next week!
