Love Yourself
Love Your Asana
Focusing the Core Region of the Body with Asanas:
Visiting the Core Region of the body, the idea of relieving emotional and physical constipation and restriction surfaces when strengthening the core. We aim to release deep guttural anxiety. Yoga is about creating space, and learning to radiate outward while drawing awareness into the core of the body. The idea is that while the core is strengthened, opened and refined, it becomes a source of balance, stability, ease and levity.
Focusing on Backbends of the Body with Asanas:
In the Backbends section the primary focus is on opening the heart. The physical purpose of Backbends is to open to the full movement of the breath and to the energy flow in front of the body. Playing on the “edge” by emphasizing the heart-opening qualities of the asana, feeling the compassion toward oneself, especially when feeling one’s way into the “edge”. The goal is to have an opening sense of innate inner harmony and a sense of healing presences rather than judgement when moving into a difficult asana. Understanding pure love is the glue that holds everything together. Practicing Backbends is not about perfection, it is about purification for the purpose of freedom, it is the practice of equanimity.
Focusing with Twists of the Body with Asanas:
Twists in Yoga stimulate and tonify our internal organs (specifically our kidneys and liver) while also creating freedom in the spine and opening the chest, shoulders, neck, and hips. Regular twisting also helps restore the spine’s natural range of motion, maintaining the normal length and health of the vertebral disks and facet joints. Additionally, with regularly incorporating twists into our daily routine, the more easily we find we can unwind the body’s accumulated physical and emotional tensions from everyday life.
Love Your Asana
Savasana is the practice of death.
Not in the morbid sense we so often fear, but in the sacred, transformative sense that invites us to let go—of everything.
Death of the ego, death of craving and grasping and obsessing toward anything outside ourselves.
Anything we believe that might finally fulfill us.
Savasana marks the death of who we were when we first walked into our yoga class. In the space, we have the opportunity to transform.
What we’re re-born into before we awaken and head back out into the world, is entirely up to us.
In yogic philosophy, the final resting pose mirrors the final liberation—maha samadhi—where we dissolve into oneness beyond self and ones story.
It’s helpful to remember that our yoga practice is not about getting things. Not the perfect body, nor the clearest mind. Every quality of an enlightened being is already within us and through yoga, we drop the veils and cease the churning of the mind that prevents us from recognizing this.
Yoga is a letting go.
In every Savasana, we rehearse this release, practicing how to be fully present at the threshold between holding on and letting go.
Savasana is not optional. It’s not a reward for a vigorous practice. It is the practice of Death.
MORNING GATHA:
Visiting the Core Region of the body, the
I run the water over my face, breathing in the warmth and running this beautiful clean water over my clean skin.
I breath out the worries of the day, to pause in gratitude for this moment and I close my eyes to smell the fragrance of my soap, thankful for its healing properties and soothing abilities.
I rinse my face and hands, thanking the warm clean water and thanking my wonderful hands for all they do to support me
I rinse away the soothing soap leaving my skin clean and pure
Ready for the day
STEPPING OUTSIDE IN THE AFTERNOON GATHA:
I step outside and raise my head to the sky, taking a deep, long breath in.
I close my eyes and stretch my arms up high, holding my breath at the top.
I pause and take in the moment. Then releasing my breath slowly with a sigh, I lower my arms stretching them out as far as they can reach, opening my eyes when my arms reach the bottom.
I smile.
LOVE YOUR YOGAS
There are various types of yoga that are methods to help people live spiritually, to live in union with the Divine. Yoga means to “yoke” or join in oneness and the pathway to uniting with the divine is different depending on the individual's cast and personality type. The goal of Yoga is to be in equal balance across all areas of being. It is a way for people to perfect their union with the divine; it suggests different roads to perfection that are also called margas (paths).
- Bhakti Yoga (Devotion Yoga) is an expression of love and devotion. It is the spiritual discipline of devotion to a deity or guru. This type of yoga encourages us to look outward, beyond ourselves. Some expressions of devotion include chants, songs, food offerings, and worship of a god or gods. The use of hymns, rhythm, and repetition helps produce a state of altered consciousness bringing a sense of selflessness and union with the divine.
- Jnana Yoga (Knowledge Yoga) is appropriate for priests and intellectuals. It is the spiritual discipline of knowledge and insight. It brings insight into one’s divine nature by studying the works of literature, the Upanishad, and the Bhagavad Gita. It is a path of learning from gurus. Here it is argued that everything is ultimately one Brahman. According to the greatest teacher, Vedanta Shankara, it is said that even though a person may perceive things to be separate and different from Brahman, they are mistaken. We are all one. Like the ocean and drops of water riding the waves of life. The drops are part of the same ocean all together as one. This is the yoga of devotion and of the heart, seeing the Divine in everyone and everything, cultivation of supreme love and acceptance.
- Karma Yoga (Action Yoga) is working unselfishly leading the way to perfection. It is the action of performing deeds without desire for rewards. It is the spiritual discipline of selfless action. As discussed in the Bhagavad Gita, “Desire for the fruits of work must never be your motive in working”. Keep in mind, that while Karma refers to the universal law of cause and effect that determines the direction of rebirth, Karma Yoga is the spiritual practice that emphasizes selfless action to attain spiritual liberation.
- Hatha Yoga (Force Yoga) is the physical exercise we tend to think of in the West when we think of practicing Yoga. This yoga path includes asanas, postures, breathwork techniques, deep relaxation, stretching, balancing, and cleansing practices. These exercises help make it easier and more obtainable to meditate easier for long periods of time. This is the spiritual discipline of postures and bodily exercises.
Love Your Asana
Kriya Yoga
The Ego Eradicator:
It is a dynamic practice that helps to activate the spine and circulate Prana (life force energy) throughout the body, aligning and balancing the Chakras. Prana, which nourishes both health and consciousness, is often described as breath or the vital energy flowing through us. It originates from the Hindu tradition and has also been embraced in Buddhist practices.
- Find a Comfortable Seat: Sit cross-legged with a straight spine, and gently tuck your chin to elongate your neck.
- Position Your Arms: Raise your arms to a 60-degree angle from the floor.
- Form the Hand Mudra: Curl your fingers into the pads of your palms, keeping your fingers straight. Point your thumbs straight up.
- Set Your Gaze: Close your eyes and focus on the third eye (the point between your eyebrows).
- Begin Breath of Fire: Start breathing rapidly and rhythmically through your nose. Each exhale should be forceful, pulling your navel towards your spine, while the inhale is passive. Keep the rhythm continuous.
- Hold the Posture: Continue the Breath of Fire for 1 to 3 minutes, or longer as your endurance builds.
- End the Practice: Inhale deeply and hold. Bring your arms overhead until your thumbs touch.
- Release: Exhale slowly, spreading your fingers wide as you lower your arms. Take several deep breaths to absorb the benefits of the practice.
Spinal Flex:
Sit in Easy Pose, grab your ankles, and alternate between exhaling and rounding your spine backward and inhaling and flexing your spine forward. Keep your head level to avoid a "flip-flop" motion. Continue this movement, focusing on rocking your pelvis forward and back and moving your spine from the mid-back down.
- Sit in Easy Pose: Begin by sitting comfortably in a cross-legged position on the floor.
- Grasp Your Ankles: Place your hands on your ankles, interlocking your fingers or holding the outside of the ankles.
- Inhale: Take a deep breath in as you flex your spine forward, lifting your chest and drawing your shoulders back. Open your chest.
- Exhale: As you exhale, flex your spine backward, rounding your back and bringing your shoulders forward.
- Continue the Motion: Repeat the forward and backward spinal flex in sync with your breath. Keep your head level and focus on the movement of your spine and pelvis.
- End the Exercise:
- Inhale deeply and hold the breath.
- Exhale and gently release the breath and pose.
- Inhale deeply and hold the breath.
Rest: Return to Easy Pose and take a minute or two to relax, focusing on how your body feels after the practice.
Spinal Twist:
Sit cross-legged in easy pose, place your hands on your shoulders with fingers in front and thumbs in back, and twist your torso side to side, coordinating your breath with the movement. Inhale as you twist to the left and exhale as you twist to the right, keeping your upper arms parallel to the floor. Continue for 1-4 minutes and conclude by returning to the center, inhaling, holding, and then exhaling to release.
- Position Your Body: Sit cross-legged in Easy Pose with your spine straight.
- Place Your Hands: Bring your hands to your shoulders, fingers at the front and thumbs at the back. Keep your elbows parallel to the floor and your upper arms level with the ground.
- Coordinate Breath and Movement:
- Inhale: Twist your torso to the left, looking over your left shoulder.
- Exhale: Twist your torso to the right, looking over your right shoulder.
- Inhale: Twist your torso to the left, looking over your left shoulder.
- Continue the Motion: Move side to side, synchronizing each breath with the twist.
- Hold the Pose: Continue for 1 to 4 minutes.
- End the Practice: Inhale to return to the center. Exhale completely, then release your hands and relax.
Unguided Meditation Practices
First you focus on one object, our breath for a great example. Sit in a comfortable position and find your breath. Start to pay attention to it. Noticing how it feels, how it sounds. After a while, your mind will start to wonder. It’s okay. When you realize your mind is wandering, bring your attention back to the breath. A little while later, you’ll start to get lost in a thought again, just bring your attention back to your breath. Keep doing this over and over again. This is the practice of Dharana. If focusing on the breath becomes boresome, focus on something else. Focusing on how our body is feeling is the practice of self-awareness which leads to inner peace. Focus on the temperature of your skin. Focus on the feelings on your skin. Focus on how your muscles feel- for example, focus on how your hand feels, or one of your toes. Then move to anther body part when you need to regain focus. And always remember to breath when practicing yoga.