Category: Practice Guidance

Not much about the future is certain right now.  All of us face worrying about those we love and their health. All of us are worried about what “return to normal” will look like.

As the safe shelter at home lifestyle continues we could use some internal heroics and a boost to our fortitude.  Virabhadra is a powerful warrior in Hindu mythology.  The name is derived from the Sanskrit vira, meaning hero, and Bhadra, meaning friend.  Let’s do a practice dedicated to being strong and friendly heroes.

Continue reading “Let’s Turn Worriers into Warriors”

Let’s Practice Baddha Konasana and Upavistha Konasana.

These two poses settle our awareness in the base of the torso and pelvic floor. The hips and the  muscles surrounding the hips as well as the abdominal organ all benefit from these poses.  Stiffness in the hips and the leg muscles surrounding the pelvis present quite a challenge to becoming adept in these asanas. A lot of anxiety and difficult emotions seem to live in the pit of our core. All yoga poses work on so many levels; but these two especially seem to magically help relieve confusion and fear, which seems to originate or reside in the belly.

By lying down with the legs up the wall we can investigate our resistance with the support of the floor and the wall.  When practicing them seated we must work strongly to lift the spine; while also working to lift the chest making it broad and expansive. Showing back-bone while remaining open-hearted is just what we all need in difficult times.

Continue reading “Be Open-hearted, show some Back-bone”

All of us who have studied for years with Laurie are accustomed to various projects around the abdomen (and the feet and hands!). This sequence is intended to show how the abdomen can be the engine at times but also the grateful recipient of actions in other parts of the body.  Abdominal control can also bring the sense of ease and relaxation within a pose that is mentioned in one of the very few yoga sutras that mention asana.  That sutra appears below, along with a relevant (and interesting) sutra from the yogic “superpowers” chapter of the sutras.  

YS III.30 By samyama on the navel plexus of the body comes knowledge of the arrangement of the body.

YS II.47 Such posture should be attained by the relaxation of effort and absorption in the infinite.

Check back to our earlier post ” More than a little stretching” for a pdf of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, and a quick click to buy Light on the Yoga Sutra’s of Patanjali by BKS Iyengar.

Continue reading “Be an engine for action, and a grateful recipient”