Resources
for
Revelation
Sun Salutations - you do them almost every class...but why? where did they come from? Are they more than just exercise?
They can be.... Below is a brief lecture from the Secrets of Sun Salutation Workshop and also a 12-minute Home Yoga Practice MP3 guiding you through classical Surya Namaskar.
Learn about your lineage. Discover myths and metaphors to make your practice more meaningful. Change your perspective to change your performance.
Patanjali's version of Yoga is quite different than "modern postural yoga". So is this text still meaningful and relevant? I think so. However, you have to do a little translating to make the text culturally and historically relevant.
For example: The most popular sutra on Asana (and one of only 3 sutras on asana!) says:
Loosely translated, this could mean "the seat should be steady and easeful" but let's unpack it a little bit more...
Asana – often translated to "seat". Asana can also mean abiding, dwelling, inhabiting. The emphasis here is being present, grounded and committed to whatever you are doing when you are doing it.
Sthira – steadiness, strength, to stand or to be firm. It has a relationship to the Sanskrit word Asthi which means bones. Your bones are the support for your body. In posture practice, when you align with the architecture of your bones, there is release in the muscles and space in the joints.
Sukha – Often translated to easeful or joyful, agreeable, and gentle. The word literally breaks down to "Good Space". When you first create steadiness through your bones, then every movement has grace and ease. The joints sing with space and the muscle sigh with support.
Want a little more insight? Here is a 15 minute lecture about Patanjali's instructions for "Asana" and how you can translate it for your practice. Below the lecture recording is a Home Practice MP3 based on a Stira-Sukham class from Yoga Club.
Click Here to Download the Sthira Sukham Practice MP3. (this file is too large for the website to host, so you will be taken to Google Drive to download)
Interested in studying Patanjali's Yoga Sutras? Overwhelmed by the choices? Which book is best?
Each book will have the author's flavor and perspective. Here are a few of my favorite resources for different levels of interest and experience.
I feel like I was a walking head before yoga.
Even though I played competitive sports and was active, I wasn't really communicating with my body. Oh, there were plenty of commands - run faster, you can do it, no pain, no gain - but very little conversation.
When I first started yoga, it was like I had to translate everything - put your left foot forward... okay....left.... foot... where is my left foot?... now, forward... more forward... come on left foot! ..... why doesn't it get to the top of the mat? ... - Anyone else have that in their head? Progress was slow, but progress came, and it came more quickly once I understood the role of the breath and the bandhas.
It's like you come to yoga with a "flat tire" for a body - even if you're active, there is rarely awareness. The yoga postures and alignment start the conversation. You begin to feel - which can be as simple as equal weight on your feet, as subtle as the stacking of your bones, or as complex as the emotions that arise when a pose is challenging, unfamiliar, or uncomfortable.
And as you begin to feel, your inner awareness unfolds, reaching ever deeper, to subtle concepts like the bandhas. As seals, the bandhas patch up "leaks" - weaknesses, sleepy deep core muscles, underutilized stabilizers - and strengthen you from the inside out. The bandhas also create more of a container inside of your body. Which is why they are a prerequisite for pranayama - breath expansion practices.
Pranayama comes from two words. Prana which is life force, vitality, eternal energy. It's like Qi in other Eastern Traditions or Mana in the Hawaiian Tradition. Ayama means to liberate or remove restraints. When you dissect the word, you see that pranayama is designed to invigorate, expand, and liberate the life force and energy inside of you.
Once the breath has a strong container, a solid vessel, it gains momentum. Then you pump prana into the body. Prana creates space and potential for something new to arise, for transformation to occur. It inflates and enlivens your body with awareness.
Instead of clunking along with a flat tire, you cruise, glide, and really ride the vibrancy of being in-body.
This is how yoga makes you more youthful and vital. This is what sustains your practice for a lifetime. This is the alignment of feeling uplifted inside and out.
This is the "Clear Blue Sky" Visualization Meditation from the Ajna "Command" or 3rd Eye Chakra Classes.
Just like there are many different poses, there are many different practices and "shapes" of meditation. There are meditations on the breath, loving kindness, or walking. With visualization meditation, you turn your sense of sight inward and utilize your imagination to expand your perception.
This was recorded during class and is only about 6 minutes. I recommend setting a timer for the amount of time you want to meditate then use this recording to get you started.
Download the MP3 File by Clicking Below.
Obviously the spine is of vital importance for the physical body, and the Yoga Tradition describes yet another layer – Susumna Nadi – running parallel to the spine. Nadi means “channel” or “pulse”. It’s the yogic equivalent of an energetic vein or meridian. Susumna is referred to as the Eye of Hurricane or the Center of the Spinning Wheel because life in the body revolves around this central axis. Susumna is the super-highway for prana (vital energy or life-force). It’s a place of stillness, calm, focus and connection. It’s an ideal, like Samadhi, Nirvana, or Enlightenment.
