Meditation

  On the twelfth day of xmas, yoga gave to me: Twelve minutes of savanasa, Eleven yin poses, Ten yamas and niyamas, Nine types of yoga, eight limbs of yoga, seven forward folds, six back bends, five deep breaths, four warrior poses, three woven blanket, two sturdy blocks, and a yoga mat in a shoulder bag. This week, we celebrated the coming holiday– Christmas. We celebrated by reflected back on all the gifts yoga has given us–beyond just a great mat and some time to rest our legs up the wall. Some great poses to use while reflecting and discussing include seal (sphinx), stick (staff), butterfly (bound angle), rock, hero, and cow face. You could have a gab fest While in poses, we discussed “yoga and you”, including: how yoga has...

This week we had a class on the Niyama “Tapas”. Tapas is loosely translated as austerity. It means doing things, sacrificing things, in order for a higher good. It’s hard for all of us to live in the middle-class 21st century without wanting everything we see…. yet we know that having everything will just mean more waste in the world. We know it is harmful to be materialistic. It is better to give up the physical comforts in search of a higher existence where we can know true happiness and peace without the bodily comforts. Kundalini yoga teaches one to give up bodily comforts because a lot of the poses require tapas! You hold poses for long periods of time (5-10 minutes), and meditate for even longer (upto hours!)! Our practice in this...