Sunday, February 27, 2011

Dancing with the Divine

1. John's visit to town last weekend, talked about opening to grace, letting the
divine lead you in the dance...man in cairo who said "my heart is in
the sky".
2. Talked about ripples that start in the bay area (banning plastic bags)
3. Pause for a moment before each pose to listen to your heart and
the lead dancer

All 4 DD
SN - LL/HL/Twist
SN - Pvak/bind/WII/Rev
SN - Trikon/AC/Pvott/PTrik
SN - EPRK/EPRK up+ts/EPRK fb

Bind Uttan
Virasana - Pranayama
Ardha Virasana/Krounchasana
Supta Virasana - Level II attempt backbend
Sivasana

Closing: Freedom and peace to all beings everywhere. May the ripples expand outward from all the places where people stand for their highest and best intentions today.

Monday, February 7, 2011

5 Yamas for Thought - Balancing Your Energy in Life

Yama's are ethical rules or literally "deaths" that one must practice in classical yoga to attain union with the divine. The Yama's are the list of DON'Ts and the Niyamas are the observances or DO's list.

There were 10 Yamas in the Upanishads, and those were condensed into 5 in the tradition of Patanjali's yoga sutras, the text which we usually reference in modern yoga as classical yoga. We don't want to take these observances too any kind of extreme, but wish to meditate on their value in our own lives.

We contemplate the Yama's to see areas where we may curb excessive energy to better align with our highest and best intentions.

Downdog Stretch - Alternating Legs with Breath - Child's Pose = Ahimsa (non-harming, self and others)
SN - Iguana to thigh stretch twist - cobra = Satya (truth, relinquishing ego to recognize the supreme in self and others)
SN - Pvakon - Warrior II - Rev Warrior - dhanurasana = Asteya (non-stealing, includes others money, time, and enery)
SN - HL turn open to pigeon - sphinx with thigh stretch - Bramacharya (appropriate use of vital essence, avoiding gambling, addition, etc...)
SN - Pigeon up, TS, then bow forward - shalabhasana - Aparigraha (absence of avarice, honesty in business dealings)

Utkat - Mal - Bakasana (ardha bakasana)
Vrksasana - Eagle
Natarajasana
UHP - Bakasana Pigeon Balance
Dragonfly

Ardha Virasana
Virasana - Square Breaths
Eye of the Needle
Sivasana