Rainy NYC...delicious

2010-06-09T18:07:00.001-07:00

And we're off! We arrived in NY a few minutes early (thank you Jet Blue!) to a lovely rainy summer evening. Our daughter will marry her soul mate on Sunday afternoon in a park in Brooklyn.

As we (my sweet soul mate) and I bravely endure the cab ride from JFK to Manhattan, our hearts are full.

Posting these thoughts on my Blog is an experiement...

More soon.
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Patanjali's Yoga Sutras

2010-02-02T22:30:00.000-08:00

I'm working my way through Patanjali's Yoga Sutras (interpreted by Mukunda Stiles)as part of a Master Yoga Teacher training program. Day ten of this project finds me in Book 1 (of four) and verse 11. It reads,
"Memory is a vacillation of knowledge created by not allowing the objects of sensory experience to escape." My first thought was of something I have heard from many wise people: try not to dwell on the past.

I'm reading a Sutra a day and trying to weave a contemporary interpretation into my own practice…as well as into Yoga classes that I may be teaching.

Today I offered the above Sutra and encouraged my students to 'excise' as they exhaled. The work was meant to help them purge nonproductive memory from their body, mind and spirit.

I am intrigued with Patanjali's Sutras. My hope with ths daily reading project is to become intimately connected to the work.

As I ease away from this day, I'm grateful for the opportunity to study, practice and teach Yoga. I'll exhale messy memories and leave space for mysteries yet to be discovered.

Thank you for reading my Blog:)
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And We're Off...the mat

2009-09-29T17:13:00.000-07:00

A little bit of science:
The Limbic System in the brain is responsible for (simply stated) affect or emotion. To quote Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor who wrote the fascinating book, ‘My Stroke of Insight’[1], “It is interesting to note that although our limbic system functions throughout our lifetime, it does not mature. As a result, when our emotional “buttons” are pushed, we retain the ability to react to incoming stimulation as though we were a two-year-old, even when we are adults.” Hmmm… So, are we lashed to emotion with no hope for an evolved sense of reason?

A little bit of Sanskrit (ancient language of yoga): samskara, avidya
From a yogic perspective, the yoga master (my humble opinion) T.K.V. Desikachar wrote the following in his book, ‘The Heart of Yoga’[2], “Now what is this avidya that is so deeply rooted in us? Avidya can be understood as the accumulated result of our many unconscious actions, the actions and ways of perceiving that we have been mechanically carrying out for years. As a result of these unconscious responses, the mind becomes more and more dependent on habits until we accept the actions of yesterday as the norms of today. Such habituation in our action and perception is called samskara. These habits cover the mind with avidya, as if obscuring the clarity of consciousness with a filmy layer.” Further, “The goal of yoga is to reduce the film of avidya in order to act correctly.” So, we do have an option for control over emotional responses.

Tying Science to Sanskrit:
If our limbic system truly does not mature, then we must craft appropriate response methods. Here’s where yoga comes in: learning to move the body (physical asana practice) in preparation for stillness in the mind. Our yoga practice teaches us to breathe more completely (you just took a big breath—yes?) and therefore the mind has a better chance of receiving fabulously oxygenated blood and might then offer us a reasonable response to external stimuli. We don’t have to do the same things, react in the same old ways just because that’s the way ‘it’s always been done’. As a consequence of more complete breaths and a rested, healthy body, possibly the old samskara will be replaced with new ways of thinking, acting and living. Yippee! Add some chocolate and the whole thing just makes good sense…

Highlights from the recent Yoga Journal Conference at Estes Park, CO:
Vedic chanting with T.K.V. Desikachar, his wife and Sonia Nelson.
Being surrounded by the pulse of yogic science, expansive meditative vibrations, profoundly substantial presenters and really good food.
Snow (quite a departure for a yogini from the Sonoran Desert).
Judith Hanson Lasater’s sacroiliac and hip joint sessions (keep the sacrum—generally speaking—at a 30° outward tilt instead of ‘tucking the tailbone’.) DON’T TUCK! DON’T TUCK! http://www.judithlasater.com/
The overwhelming feeling of being grateful for making the choice to practice, study and teach yoga.

Pondering
Incense that is ‘cruelty free’. Really? Recently, I was shopping for some incense and noticed a product label that asserted that their product was/is ‘cruelty free’. What about other incense products? Just wondering…

Great things about Phoenix summers:
Laundry on the clothesline dries in a flash
Community yoga around the pool
Students who don't leave for the entire season
Monsoon smells

Life is good:
This yogini-Blogger is a 200 hour Registered Yoga teacher with the National Yoga Alliance and is currently pursuing her 500 Hour teacher certification through Inner Vision Yoga’s stellar teacher training program.
http://www.innervisionyoga.com/

Inspiration:
There is nothing that does not inspire me. My husband and daughter move me beyond belief; my students warm my heart.

Cathy delights in teaching yoga in a variety of places in the Phoenix Metro Area, including:

Metta Community Yoga Center
http://www.mettacommunityyoga.com/

She also offers group and private sessions in her home studio. Several workshops are scheduled in November and December.

Om. Yum. The two are intimately connected;)

[1] The Penguin Group, new York, NY, June 2009
[2] Inner Traditions International, Rochester, VT, 1995

Bhakti Musings from the Mat

Rainy NYC...delicious

Patanjali's Yoga Sutras

And We're Off...the mat