LESSON ONE Sometimes Ahimsa is translated as “nonviolence,” and that’s a good place to start. We don’t want our yoga practice to be violent on the body. I like to go one step further, and think of Ahimsa not just as the absence of violence, but as the active practice of cultivating loving kindness. In […]
SATYA – Core and Crow Pose
LESSON TWO For me, Satya, truthpractice is all about alignment. In a yoga pose, we might consider whether the alignment of our hips is true and squared, like in downdog with one leg lifted. Off the mat, we may ask ourselves whether our words, thoughts, and actions are all aligned with each other so that […]
ASTEYA – Headstand and Handstand
LESSON THREE Generosity/NonStealing (Focus on Headstand + Handstand) Generosity and Nonstealing are two sides of the coin, when it comes to practicing Asteya. I mention nonstealing a lot in our video practice this week, in terms of not “stealing” a pose that doesn’t really belong to you yet; don’t rush your progress; stay the course […]
APARIGRAHA – Deep Hip Opening
LESSON FOUR One of my favorite definitions of yoga is “our connection to reality.” Yoga connects us to what is. Aparigraha literally means nongrasping, or open handedness, and it frees us up to receive reality in the present moment. When we unclench our minds and fists from grasping at the past or the future, we […]
BRAHMACHARYA – Twists and Standing Balance
LESSON FIVE Sometimes Brahmacharya is translated as “abstinence.” However, when we break down the word in Sanskrit, it more literally means “abiding in God/Divinity.” So let’s feel into what that means to make a home inside of the Divine; to dwell in the remembrance that we have a spark of the Divine within us. […]
SAUCA – Backbends
LESSON SIX Our first five lessons were dedicated to the teachings of the Yamas. There are 5 Yamas (ahimsa, satya, asteya, brahmacharya and aparigraha) and 5 Niyamas. The 5 Yamas can be understood as the rules of Yoga. The Yamas answer the question “what does a yogi look like?” Whenever possible, a yogi does no […]
SANTOSHA – Standing Balance
LESSON SEVEN One of my favorite nuances to the teachings of the Niyamas is that Santosha is taught as a practice. Contentment is considered something to be practiced, rather than a state to be achieved. There’s a great quote from Marianne Williamson that’s gets at the heart of this teaching: “Ego says, “Once everything falls […]
TAPAS – Arm Balance
LESSON EIGHT Tapas means fire. It’s a heat and fire that cooks or transforms you. In the literal sense, you can think of the way an oven’s heat transforms ingredients into a meal; or the way a forge’s fires transforms metal into tools. You can feel a fiery heat in your muscles during a powerful […]
SVADYAYA – Poses at the Wall
LESSON NINE Svadhyaya means self-study. It means consulting the guru and seeking advice from a place of deep knowing. This deep source of knowing takes several shapes. Svadhyaya can be the study of sacred scriptures, textbooks, and ancient wise literature. Svadhyaya can be sitting at the feet of a guru, attending a class with a […]
ISHVARA PRANIDHANA – Slowing Down
LESSON TEN We’ve reached our final lesson in this 10 class series! I like to think of the lesson of Ishvara Pranidhana as “you’ve tried your best, now surrender the rest.” The first 9 lessons lead us through the teachings of what yoga is, and how to do it well. On our journey we have […]