Lizzie for Free : a yogi's blog
The Free State of LizArchive for yoga
Say Om While Dying (or Die to OM)
om ity ekaksharam Brahma / vyaharan mam anusmaran
yah prayati tyajan deham / sa yati paramam gatim (BG VIII.13)
If one can remember while dying to utter OM, he/she will go to the supreme goal.
I was always a bit baffled by this verse in the Bhagavad Gita. I thought that Krishna would have said, “utter my name,” but instead he suggests to “utter OM” while dying. I have often heard many of my friends who are Krishna devotees say, “OM is for yogis or Vedantists,” not for Krishna bhaktas, and I have noticed that many of the Krishna mantras do not start with OM as do many of the other deity mantras. But interestingly enough, in the very next chapter, in verse 17, Krishna says, “I am the sound OM.” The sound of the Divine in its essential manifestation, is found in OM, in other words by saying OM you are saying God’s name. I think this verse is giving instruction for how to consciously pull one’s soul out of their physical body at the time of death with the potency of OM.
Krishna is known as the supreme yogi, and the best way to understand his teachings is to immerse yourself in the practices He suggests, as insight is more likely to dawn through experience. My guru Shri Brahmananda taught me to chant the bija mantras in relationship to the chakras. Because of his guidance I practice shavasana as a practice to prepare me for my own death. While lying on my back, I recite the bija mantras out loud, moving through the first six chakras, from the root (muladhara) to the third eye (ajna): LAM, VAM, RAM, YAM, HAM, OM. When I come to the sahasrara chakra I silently chant OM, and this silent chanting of OM acts as a profound launching of my awareness into an expanded reality. After that final OM there is a profound letting go of the physical body-all of the joints between the bones seem to unhinge, tension releases, and there is a feeling of great spaciousness -perhaps it is close to what I can only imagine and assume to be something like dying-my breath stops and along with it thought and sensation-I feel like I am floating bodiless-a freed spirit. This usually only lasts for a moment or so, but nonetheless it is quite extraordinary that the chanting of the bija mantras culminating in that final silent OM can facilitate an experience of kevalam kumbhaka-a spontaneous suspension of the breath and thought, classified in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika as a preliminary level of samadhi. For a short, almost timeless moment we can experience yoga-freed of all desire-feeling whole and complete, needing nothing. You don’t stop breathing in the normal sense, instead you become integrated with the breath to such an extent that there is no need to breathe, no need to grasp the breath and bring it “into you.” To be able to die with ease and a sense of direction is the definition of a good death.
Previous to that final silent OM, with each successive chanting of the bija mantras and focusing on the associated chakra and area of the body, I always feel like I am putting my life, via my body, in order. It is a “cleaning house” kind of feeling, where things that are no longer necessary are let go of and things that were out of place get put back and the “house” is more organized and spacious for it. It also prepares me for the silence of that final OM. I don’t think you can take the short cut ignoring the other chakras and mantras and just lie down and silently chant one OM and facilitate the same kind of experience. If you don’t believe me, just try it yourself. Lie down and inhale, then exhale with the sound of OM and see if the abbreviated experience is equal to the methodical process of moving up through the chakras, dropping each body part in successive order by means of the breath and mantra.
During the death process, each element leaves the body in an organized progression starting with the element of earth in the root chakra and moving upward into water, fire, air and then followed by more subtle forms of ether. The shavasana practice I describe above-the methodical process of successively moving upward consciously through means of the bija mantras-is a meditation on the dissolution of the elements that occurs naturally at the time of death to everyone, although it may occur more consciously to a yogi. This process is referred to in the previous verse in the Gita, where Krishna gives instruction by saying, “closing all the gates of the body and drawing the mind into the heart, then raise the prana into the head” (BG VIII.12). When the prana is in the higher chakras of the head, if we utter the sound of OM at that precise moment, we might be able to aim our soul’s flight out through the top of the head, the sahasrara or crown chakra, and reach our supreme goal-liberation. Shavasana, or corpse pose, can be a practice for that important moment, as the Mundaka Upanishad describes: “OM is the bow, the arrow is our own soul, Brahman is the target, the aim of the soul.”
For many practitioners of yoga, the time spent in shavasana is taken as a time to rest from the exertion of the asanas. But when the practitioner begins to investigate the significance of shavasana, he/she will realize that it provides a tangible opportunity to consciously practice dying and even to experience samadhi. When we practice dying, we can become liberated from the fear of dying, or abhinivesha, which is an obstacle to yoga, and move towards a good death and the ultimate attainment of the supreme goal, which is cosmic consciousness-maha samadhi, liberation from samsara-no need to take another birth.
-Sharon Gannon
Customise your ride: practice safe, practice smart
how to strengthen your practice in any yoga class
In the midst of the yoga backlash of articles that mention the many ways yoga can harm your body, one of the key elements of the practice seems to be overlooked. Yoga is ultimately about empowerment and self-responsibility. Being with yourself on your mat, not concerned with the person next to you or what the teacher may be pushing you to ‘do’ with your body, is a big challenge for the ego, but an endeavor with large rewards. The truth is, only you know what is safe and available for your body on any given day, so developing skillful listening, listening to your breath, to your inner teacher, is essential to a safe practice.
This workshop will be challenging for any practitioner, perhaps physically, perhaps mentally, as we look at the role of habit patterns and the ego . We will deconstruct postures into their building block components to ensure that any class you go to is a chance to feel energized, positive and well balanced.
Investigation of standing postures, twists, balances, backbends and inversions will ensure that whatever practice space or class level you may find yourself in, you not only survive, but thrive.
3 hrs, 30£, early bird special price until 1 week before workshop.
April 1, 1-4pm
www.indabayoga.com
AVERSION TO INVERSIONS: a workshop
Sunday, 4th March 1-4pm
with Lizzie Reumont
As the late, great James Brown said, you gotta get down to get up!
This yoga workshop focusing on inversions will put the funk in your trunk as we work together to root into the earth first through our feet, then through our hands, to expand ourselves in all directions.
Inverted postures of yoga can be some of the most challenging, but also the most rewarding. This open level workshop invites the practitioner to take on the challenge of seeing things from a different vantage point and diminish the fear associated with turning our bodies (and minds) upside down. Becoming aware of the challenges, concepts and emotions that arise during the practice, we will work independently, with partners and in small groups to instil confidence and technical knowledge needed to practice inversions safely.
Reversing the aging process! Stimulate intuition and clarity! Become enlightened (or boogie down trying). But seriously, get over yourself (your ego, that is) and explore what happens when roots expand into wings…and you take flight.
This workshop is appropriate for those who have a fear of inversions as well as those who practice inversions regularly but could benefit in building a more stable foundation and proper alignment. We will focus on headstand (sirsasana), handstand (adho mukha vrksasana), forearm stand (pinchamayurasana), crow(bakasana), side crow(parsvabakasana) and flying pigeon (galavasana)
£30 for 3 hours
£25 earlybird before February 28th
Present and Embodied
Daily life in a big city can sometimes feel somewhere between a race, a juggling act and balancing on a high wire. The cacophony of sounds, smells, and visual stimulation can mean that the moment the mind kicks into gear, the body does its best to keep up, and this doesn’t allow for time to connect with the sensations in the body as we move through our daily life. As a result it can feel like the ground has been pulled out from under us – unstable, disconnected or just plain unaware of the relationship we have with our bodes throughout the day. As a result, the breath can become shallow, our posture held by tension, our physical actions on auto-pilot. Its no wonder that we live without a presence in the body, the mind holds so much tension there that it makes it an unpleasant place to be. But what does it mean, to not be present in the body?
When we find ourselves disassociated from the sensations in the body, unaware of the earth beneath us and the sounds, smells (and moving vehicles headers straight for us), we are not embodying the human experience.
What does it mean to be present and living in the body; to embody the human experience?
To Embody:(v)
To be an expression of or give a tangible or visible form to (an idea, quality, or feeling).
Provide (a spirit) with a physical form.
Synonyms: incarnate – personify – incorporate
We are organic, sentient beings with a great capacity to express joy and a matrix of other emotions. These emotions are then organised and critiqued by our minds that, when not controlled, can trump the senses, spiralling us out of our bodies and into another dimension; one where we miss all the clues that the universe offers us in connecting into ourselves. Whether we feel our heart racing due to fear, or peaceful and grounded in body and mind, if we don’t know how we feel in our body, we are more likely to injure ourselves in mindless ways. What is more detrimental is the potential for build up of emotional blockages in the body that manifest as physical stress patterns, in some cases even leading to disease.
Asana is a wonderful time to check in with oneself, in mind and in body. Rather than letting the mind wander during surya namaskar or picking at old nail polish in paschimottanasana, instead focusing on the sensations in the body, it becomes possible to explore how the body and mind interact. How does standing on one leg feel, and what happens to your thoughts when you fall, or master the posture? Sitting with bent knees, with feet open and hugging the hips do you feel open and joyous, or frustrated and stiff? Does standing on your hands make your heart race, or do your legs feel like lead? Asana practice holds so many important clues about what is happening emotionally if we are open to listening in.
Asana practice is not intended to injure the body, yet so many people end up pushing themselves beyond their boundaries because they aren’t living in the body. Instead, their minds govern how far they will push themselves for achievement, and often this ends in physical injury. These injuries can take months, sometimes years to heal.
Shtira Sukham Asanam, from book ii number 46 of the yoga sutras suggests that we should be stable and grounded, at ease in our seat. Our seat is ultimately our body, our mind, our relationships with ourselves and all of animate life. In a city, we can learn to stay present by checking in with our selves in the midst of the sensory experiences all around. How we feel in our bodies and our minds enables us to live more consciously with all other animate life forms, to connect with our emotions while settling the mind. We can embody a seat of stability and ease- all we have to do is slow the mind and be present, to take the time to bring ourselves back into our body.
Sublime Sunday with Joo Teoh
After a much needed 2 hour nap with Louis, I had a rare opportunity to practice in Joo’s class at the Life Centre in Notting Hill. With 16 of us squeezed into the loft studio, I was surprised how easily Joo, at well over 6′, navigatbottle space and led the group through a lovely gentle dynamic flow that seemed to make the most of the room.
There were plenty of options for all levels of practice, and enabled the whole body, first piece by piece, then as an integrated unit, to expand and release overworked muscles. Joo himself has a gentle, calm mannerism that enables the practitioner to explore their own practice in the confines of the class.
If you are looking for a softer dynamic practice on a Sunday afternoon, make sure to check out Joo’s class. He’s limiting his teaching at the moment due to his other profession in branding ( where he’s currently involved with the Olympics 2012), so get there early as the room does fill up.
Thanks for the warmth, Joo!
Lizzie’s Class Schedule February 2012
CLASS SCHEDULE(see below for restorative class dates at Indaba)
PREBOOK: WORKSHOP MARCH 4
Aversion to Inversions at Indaba Yoga Studio 1-4pm (postponed from February 5th due to snow)
FEBRUARY 2012
Monday:
6:30-7:45pm Life Centre, Islington
Tuesday:
12:45-2:00pm Life Centre, Notting Hill
Wednesday:
9:30-11am Indaba Yoga Studio, Marylebone
8:15-9:30pm Life Centre, Notting Hill
Thursday:
6-7:15pm Indaba Yoga Studio, Marylebone
Friday:
9:30-11:00 Indaba Yoga Studio, Marylebone
4-5:30pm Indaba Yoga Studio, Marylebone
Saturday:
9:30-11:00am Indaba Yoga Studio, Marylebone
Restorative Sundays at Indaba (covering for Netta Imber):
10:00-11:30am
Sunday, February 26
Sunday, March 11
Contentment…but not in our practice?
Today I got am email from my friend Norman in response to my post about my learnings from the 30 Day Yoga Challenge.
I wrote:
The word in sanskrit for contentment, or satisfaction is santosha. One of the niyamas, santosha is about being satisfied with things exactly as they are; not requiring any more or any less, instead, maintaining that everything is exactly as it should be… It’s so easy to find fault in ourselves and others, and often much more challenging to accept wholeheartedly what is. This is true whether contemplating the asana practice, assessing how well one has done one’s job, accepting the opportunities available at any given time, or one’s limitations. We are all doing the best we can given our current life situations, and, try as we may, it is impossible and debilitating to compare ourselves to anyone else. We are all unique.
To which he responded:
I’ve recently read ‘Sivananda Buried Yoga’ where the author – Yogi Mammoyanand – says this: “Contentment is a virtue when it is applied to material greed. The niyama of contentment does not actually apply to the spiritual desires of the aspirant. To ascend in the realms of spirituality, contentment is only a hindrance. A yogi should always remind himself “neti-neti” (this is not yet it, this is not yet it)’”.
While I haven’t yet read Sivananda Buried Yoga (though did just purchase it on Amazon, so expect a review soon), I can’t help but imagine that contentment on the mat and from a spiritual perspective would be a effective tool to stay in an uplifted, present state of mind – a state of needing nothing.
In my own practice I have certainly benefitted from the reminder that going deeper into an asana won’t necessarily make me a happier, more blissful being. The concept of santosha has also aided me tremendously in unconditional self-acceptance. That is not to say that I’ve become complacent, it’s just to say that in a culture so rife with expectation, self-critique and judgement, the idea that we can embrace fully who we are, and how we practice on and off the mat is refreshing and beneficial to many.
Perhaps being content with things as they are slows down or even grinds to a halt svadyaya the fourth of the niyamas, meaning self-reflection or self study. It may even present an obstacle to the practice of faith and devotion, the fifth niyama, ishwara pranidhanad. My interpretation, however, is that
because santosha supersedes svadyaya and ishwara pranidhanad in the list of niyamas, it is given that santosha is present when practicing both self-study and devotional faith, much the same way that ahimsa (non-harming) is present when practicing satya (truthfulness). Is it
Just a case of semantics, or is the spiritual practice of yoga meant to keep one in a state of non-attainment (Neti, Neti). Or perhaps non-attainment is the true state of santosha- ruling out all conscious observation and still being content. What is your interpretation?
Jivamukti Yoga Focus of the Month: February: Comfort in the City
Sthira sukham asanam PYS II.46
The connection to the Earth should be steady and joyful
Connection implies a relationship; Earth includes all of manifestation-all other beings and things; steady means consistent; and where there is joy there is a feeling of ease and comfort. Most people aren’t comfortable in their bodies, with their feelings, in their jobs, in their relationships or with the other people and situations they encounter daily. The cause of this discomfort lies in how uncomfortable we make the lives of others. Since we all would like to be more comfortable, more at ease with ourselves and others, it might be helpful to look into practical ways that we could bring more comfort into the lives of others and in turn benefit our own lives.
To the yogi comfort does not mean seeking pleasure and avoiding pain. Whatever we want for ourselves we can have if we are willing to provide it for others first. No lasting happiness can be had for ourselves by depriving others of happiness. So if we want to be comfortable then we should do our best to provide comfort for others. As we reach out to comfort others we discover the universal shared sources of lasting comfort, and we dispel the illusion that shortsighted self-centered pleasure will result in lasting comfort for ourselves or others.
Often when we experience pleasure it is fleeting, because instead of enjoying the moment we become worried about when it will end. When we find ourselves in a painful situation we try to get out of it. But comfort is available to anyone at anytime-it can be found in the midst of pleasure or pain-if one is willing to look deeply into things. The yogic concept of comfort is that ease comes from an inner condition, untainted by outer circumstances. We could call it portable comfort-because you can take it wherever you go! The familiar example is the yogi lying on a bed of nails-in utmost comfort. How does he do it? What’s the trick? No trick, unless you call magic a trick. But magic is just a shift in perception. Yogic practices are magical practices designed to help you to be able to shift your perception of yourself and others in any given moment under any circumstance and in any situation.
The enlightened yogi doesn’t view the world as coming “at them” and they never see themselves as a victim of circumstance or being victimized by others. An enlightened yogi is comfortable with all beings, in all situations and under all circumstances. In order to begin to acquire these types of skills a necessary first step is to develop compassion, for truly the best way to uplift our own lives is to do all we can to uplift the lives of others. Yoga practices provide us with practical ways to expand our perception and try to see the world through the eyes of others, touch the Earth with their claws, or hooves or roots, and understand how we could, through simple acts of kindness create a more comfortable city for ourselves and others.
I have lived in New York City’s lower East side near Tompkins Square Park since 1983. I remember when I moved from Seattle, Washington to New York City-New York City was not what I had imagined it to be. I think my ideas had been influenced by movies like Breakfast at Tiffany’s-so it was a big surprise to me when walking home one day to see police on horseback galloping down Avenue B, which was a dirt road at the time, in hot pursuit of someone, who would then detour into the park and be lost in the tent and cardboard village which had colonized it-covering most of the green lawn space. I forget exactly when it happened, but sometime during the 1980s riots broke out in the park, which resulted in the city removing all of the makeshift housing and closing it.
One day as I was leaving my building a film crew from some network news show stopped me on the street to interview me. “How do you feel about what the Mayor has done-closing the park? Are you outraged that as a citizen your only access to nature as been denied?” My reply was not what they had expected. I said, “I am glad the park is closed. Look at it: anyone can see that the park is happier-the trees are fuller and look more at ease and the birds and squirrels you can bet are relieved that they don’t have to deal with all of us people day in and day out. I think that there should be places in densely populated urban areas like New York City which are off-limits to human beings and are kept as wild places for our fellow inhabitants of the city-the many birds and small mammals and of course the trees, bushes and flowering plants.” We tie up our dogs, keep birds in cages, poison foxes and shoot bears in New Jersey-why is it that we human beings think that only we have the right to roam free? We make life very uncomfortable and miserable for monkeys, rats and cats in laboratories, and cows, goats, chickens and pigs on farms. We rationalize our exploitation and cruelty toward animals as a necessary evil, the terrible price that must be paid to ensure human health, happiness and comfort. And yet we are still self-centeredly complaining about not being rich, happy or comfortable enough.
Perhaps we could start taking responsibility for the suffering around us and see that we actually do have the power to bring more happiness, joy and comfort into the world for ourselves and others. In whatever circumstance, wherever we live, the secret to our own comfort is to be kind to others and do what we can to make them more comfortable; then our own comfort will be ensured.
-Sharon Gannon
Take your yoga practice off the mat and into the world by providing more comfort for others. Here are a few ideas:
. Veganism. Eating a vegan diet is undoubtedly the most powerful way that we as human beings can contribute to creating a kinder and more comfortable world for ourselves, other animals and the planet.
. Animal Rights. Respect non-human animals as fellow Earthlings, not as a lower life form existing to be enslaved and exploited by us. Don’t perceive animals as exploitable. Extend rights to all animals by not participating or supporting any type of animal exploitation, be it for food, clothing, research or entertainment.
. Provide fresh water for feral cats and other wild animals-put a pan of clean water on your balcony or fire escape or on the sidewalk next to the stairs of your building or in a park or vacant lot nearby your house.
. Feed a colony of feral cats and alert a local TNR (trap neuter release) organization that will help these cats. You may even want to take a training from them to learn how to provide a more comfortable life for a feral city cat. Trap Neuter Release programs are humane, effective solutions to outdoor cat overpopulation. TNR involves spaying and neutering feral cats, returning them to their territory and providing for their long-term care with shelter and food. Urban Cats (www.urbancatleague.org) and Neighborhood Cats (www.neighborhoodcats.com) are two such organizations based in New York City that can provide information and education to anyone (world-wide) who is interested.
. Walking dogs-your own, or take one lucky dog out of a shelter for a 20 minute walk-this is certainly a way to uplift someone’s life.
. Fresh air for cats. If you have a cat, take him or her to the park for an afternoon to enjoy the sights and sounds and to soak up some vitamin D. Put her in a carrying case. The first time you try this, be prepared: she will probably be scared-keep her in the case. Eventually she will become accustomed to this outing-then taking baby steps you can put a halter on her and allow her to come out of the case and walk around. Most cats in NYC never are able to touch their feet upon the ground and never are able to experience being in fresh air and sunlight.
. Provide nutritious food for pets. Don’t feed your cat or dog commercial pet food-prepare their meals yourself using a variety of nutritious and organic fresh foods.
. No more zoos! Living in a cage is no life! Boycott zoos and all places where animals are kept captive to provide entertainment for human beings.
. Free the fish. No more fish bowls/aquariums. Envision a free world, see a world where there is no SeaWorld!
. Plant trees, bushes and flowers. Devote space in community gardens to grow food for wild animals-like plant fruit trees or berry bushes or flowers for insects and birds.
. Feed the birds. Perform random acts of kindness, like: always carrying some bird seed or a few walnuts in your pocket-so when you leave your apartment on your way to where you are going you can surprise the hungry birds and squirrels you pass, who are for the most part ignored by most human beings, by giving them a surprise meal.
. Save the birds. Glass windows can be dangerous for birds. Make them safer with decals, dot patterns, nets or opaque covers and put pressure on architects to design safer building for birds. An estimated 90,000 migrating birds crash into glass windows in NYC every year. Crashing into glass windows is the second leading cause of death to birds next to habitant loss-with US casualties, alone up to one billion deaths a year.
. Leave some places off limits to human beings: encourage your city planners to make natural areas or section of existing parks inaccessible to human beings.
. Limit the human population. Stop having so many children! There are 7 billion human beings on the planet now and this number is increasing by the minute. At this rate of growth the planet will not be able to provide enough basic resources and a comfortable life for anyone. As the human population increases the Earth’s diversity of species decreases at an alarming rate.
Learnings from Lizzie’s 30 Day Yoga Challenge
With the 30 Day Yoga Challenge over, there is a lot to contemplate. Originally planned rather haphazardly to extend outwards into the wider London yoga community and to break myself out of my preferences for certain yoga classes and teachers, far more came up than I imagined. As a result I have learned both personally and professionally, and even made a couple of new friends along the way. Most valuable for me have been the themes that revealed themselves in my practice as well as my personal life during this past month.
SANTOSHA
The word in sanskrit for contentment, or satisfaction is santosha. One of the niyamas, santosha is about being satisfied with things exactly as they are; not requiring any more or any less, instead, maintaining that everything is exactly as it should be. I’ve spent a lot of time speculating on this idea this month, as a yoga teacher and student, as a mother, as a human being. It’s so easy to find fault in ourselves and others, and often much more challenging to accept wholeheartedly what is. This is true whether contemplating the asana practice, assessing how well one has done one’s job, accepting the opportunities available at any given time, or one’s limitations. We are all doing the best we can given our current life situations, and, try as we may, it is impossible and debilitating to compare ourselves to anyone else. We are all unique.
VAIRAGYA
The concept of santosha has a direct relationship with the word vairagya, meaning dispassionate or non attachment. When we are content with what is, it is far easier to practice non-judgement, to remain impartial. When engaged in a critique of a movie, a piece of art, a book, or a yoga studio, there are always aspects that are primarily subjective, based on our own preferences and aversions, but there are also aspects that are more objective. One of the challenges in this month has been discerning the difference between the two and trying to be as objective as possible. As time permits me to read back on these posts, I may well have to glue my jaw back on as I discover just how opinionated I actually was in my writings.
SAMSAYA
The feeling of doubt is one of the nine obstacles to the practice of yoga as set forth in sutra 1.30 of The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Samsaya means doubt, or indecision in Sanskrit. When we are uncertain about our path, who our teacher is, what we want to focus on in our lives, things become fuzzy, and we may end up floundering. For example, if you practice with two different yoga teachers and they each tell you how to practice a pose differently, this may lead to indecision and doubt about how to practice. This has come up often for me as a Jivamukti teacher and practitioner of several different styles of yoga. Lately I have had many doubts about my teaching and bodywork style, and have been indecisive about which way to evolve. This challenge has highlighted some of these doubts as I have practiced with such a variety of teachers and styles of yoga. One thing does seem to be clear, and that is which teachers and styles don’t appeal to me (or is that simply my preferences and aversions rearing their ugly head?).
SHRADDHA
The antedote to samsaya, shraddha means faith; knowing without a shred of doubt that there is something bigger, more supreme than yourself behind the wheel. This is the ultimate form of surrender, enabling the doer to come back to contentment and joy at whatever presents itself. Raised agnostic, I never had any faith until I began practicing yoga regularly, and because of this, my faith is very much tied to my practice. When I have doubts, when I feel I’m slipping into the role of ‘victim’, I use my time on the mat or on the cushion to bring myself back to the many choices available. Knowing there is always a choice is empowering, and working through negative mental subtexts with the optin of letting go is perhaps the most powerful choice there is. This month I have felt frustrated, at times even disconnected from my faith due to the change in practice mode. I have spent more time ‘doing’ yoga than practicing yoga, and it’s time for me to reconnect to my personal guiding light.
There is so much more to write, but I’m not publishing a book, it’s just a little blog post. Having said this, its about to get a few words longer still because I wanted to also briefly mention ASMITA, the ego. We all have one, and more than once I felt mine flair in judgement mode about a teacher’s style or particular yoga studio. I have also spent time questioning ‘who am I’ to judge or critique another teacher’s class. I never intended this to be a critique, but it’s simply a natural progression when taking a yoga class a day at different studios with different teachers to have an opinion about them. Some will resonate, some won’t. Some will be inspiring and safe for the body, some won’t. I guess I feel ok in having published my experiences because I wasn’t doing anything out of ill intention, and at the end of the day we all entitled to our opinions and to have a voice.
I chose the classes For the challenge primarily due to my schedule and proximity, and for this reason I wanted to point out that there are a number of great teachers whose classes I really wanted to attend, but was simply unable to in the course of this month. As a result, I took a number of mediocre classes with teachers I had never heard of. I will continue to take as many classes with different teachers as I can manage, but perhaps I will go about choosing the teachers in a more strategic way, for example, visiting teachers I know and love a little more frequently, and finding new teachers based on recommendations rather than choosing names out of a hat. I would also like to return to the classes I didn’t love, knowing that we all have off days.
Signing off for now, thanks for following my little yoga adventure.
Day 30, Lizzie’s 30 Day Yoga Challenge
Technically, today was the last day of the yoga challenge. Headed to Chelsea for Mollie McClelland’s vinyasa class, when I arrived I got signed in and told which studio to go to. There was no mention that the class was being covered by another teacher, so when I saw Gabi teaching, I wasnt sure I had the right studio. After double checking at the desk, they confirmed the class was being covered. It was nice to see Gabi, but in general it’s always better for a student to be told by the front desk when a different teacher than usual is teaching rather than being confused about whether they are in the right place.
Gabi taught a no frills, accessible Jivamukti class in place of Mollie’s ‘vinyasa flow’. While there wasn’t any strong theme, we chanted lokah samastah sukhinoh bhavantu (may all beings be happy, peaceful and free without acception) and the class was peppered with insights about the practice of yoga and how it relates to life off the mat. I got a few good adjustments and by the end of class momentarily felt like I was home while hearing the harmonium and chanting aum; such a small ritual but imbues the practice with so much resonance (for me). Afterwards, I was on time for Anoushka’s Pilates class without rushing.
I was very mindful today of my lack of control of the big picture. I decided not to rush, even if that meant missing one or both planned classes. I saw my time on the mat under Gabi’s guidance as what was meant to be rather that feeling let down that Mollie wasn’t there. Time at home with my son was spent being completely present for him without trying to accomplish any side projects. This level of awareness meant that today I could spend more time in my body with my breath, and I recognise that to do this every day my expectations of myself may have to be lowered. I’m ok with that, for now, anyway.
