Twists with a Looped Belt around the Shoulder

Thank you to Emilie for demonstrating how to use a looped belt around the shoulder to experience deeper twisting actions.

Click here to see more
And here to see even more
And here to see even more more

Invocations & Mantras Thanks to Adeline Yoga!

I was searching for a way to listen to the Student/Teacher Chant Saha Navavatu (Invocation to Katha and Taittiriya Upanishads) and lucky me to stumble upon my dear friend Heather's studio blog.

CLICK HERE to listen to various chants and mantras including the Invocation to Patanjali with BKS Iyengar and Geeta Iyengar.

Geeta Teaches the Woman's Class! 12/12/17

I walked into the hall and saw he empty chair....we all knew Geeta was coming. The hall was very loud with excitement. Rayah came in and told us not to talk as much before class because then it takes longer before real learning can begin.

Geeta has a fire within that comes out in her teaching. She taught us about abduction/adduction related to positioning of the limbs and rotational aspects. Geeta is a master at teaching us how poses relate to one another. She emphasized the importance of doing poses in stages.

My notes do not do this class justice. Her teaching is so profound, that writing notes is very difficult because she draws you so deep into the experience that trying to recall is not the point.

Prashant begins celebrations leading up to BKS Iyengar's 100th Birthday

The red carpet was laid out bright and early at the Institute this morning to celebrate BKS Iyengar's 99th Birthday. People packed in upstairs, in the main hall, in the lobby and outside. RIMYI was savy enough to put screens and speakers in each area so all could partake. We did a few basic asanas focusing on deep exhalations. Prashant says that these need to become habit especially in modern-day society where stress is high. Do exhalations anywhere, anytime to help the mind excavate and evacuate clutter.

Tonight we celebrate with friends, music, food, yoga and dance.

Click here to listen to the entire class or you can read my notes below. My notes are not word-for-word as I often write my thoughts down as well as quotes.

Rayah's Intermediate I class 12/9/17

Rayah rocks! He had a blast teaching his Intermediate I students in the upstairs hall. He had everyone laughing even to the point of almost tears. Good to see the teachers at RIMYI having so much fun with students. He also worked them hard for sure! He divided the women and men into two parts each doing different poses, this was so that limited props were taken out, it worked quite well.

Advanced Pranayama at RIMYI with a focus on exhalations 12/8/17

This was an amazing pranayama class! Geeta had instructed Nawaaz to teach long exhalations. I did not take the class so I was able to take good notes except it was dark so my handwriting is a bit sloppy. This class was extrememly calm, kind, and inspiring. Even though I did not take the class, I was essential rocked by these words into a deep peaceful state.

Woman's Class with Abhijata! 2017

After 36 hours of traveling, I was too excited to sleep. I watched the cloudypurple sunrise and my favorite birds, then headed to practice at RIMYI. It is amazing to watch others practice, already so many learning opportunities on just Day 1.

Day 2 was the Woman's class and we were all eager to see who was teaching. Abhi!!!
I sat right up in front, Abhi was teaching with a plastic dowel like the end of a broom. So, of course, she was using it to firmly adust people. She specifically worked on my Adho Mukha Svanasana drawing lines from my outer neck to shoulder to make space there. And, wacking my outer upper arm bones to get them in (my outer forearms too). Another line was drawn at the top of my outer elbow to lift up. She also used to plasic rod to adjust a student's forearms by putting the rod under them and lifting them up.

We did some interesting work with Parivrtta Trikonasana and Parivrtta Parsvakonasana tucking the hand under the foot.

The class was definitely hard especially right out of the gates with jetlag. We were all happy and it's not very crowded which is nice.

Enjoy the sequence!
Love,
Kelly

Contraditions in Concepts: How to Open the Door to Creative Evolution in Action

Eyal writes here about contradictions in concepts that we are taught by our teachers. Why does one teacher say an action or adjustment and another teacher say the opposite? How do we decipher among confusing or contradicting applications?

At RIMYI, the teaching is always changing, instruction is dynamic, and learners are taught to break out of patterns of how things 'should' be in order to live moment to moment through the exploration of yoga. Guruji was so special because he had a way of breaking habits in order to explore unknown territory.

Applied home practice is the key to dig through instructions and find out how to cultivate actions. For example in Tadasana, I have been focusing on cutting the inner heels back to help roll the fronts of the thighs in and to spread the sacrum.

After a few years of doing that action, I was instructed to cut the outer heels back, which Geeta taught at the 2015 Convention. At first I was caught off guard and thought "this is not what I learned." But I stopped being resistant to change and opened my mind to try it. I realized that I was over-doing cutting my inner heels back. That action was making my inner knees go back too much. This was happening in Tadasana, Uttanasana, Adho Mukha Svanasana and Inversions. Coincidentally, I was in the midst having inner knee pain...ding ding! Time to change. Time to apply what is needed to counteract this over-act and Geeta's teaching was right on target.

Now, I am focusing on cutting my outer heels back to bring the inner knees forward, this is going to help my knee pain because the knee ligaments and ankle bones are more aligned. It is harder to roll the inner thighs in while cutting the outer heels back....Ah-ha, the excitement to be challenged was sparked! When counter-actions become more complex, the fascinating building blocks of Iyengar Yoga help ignite infinite knowledge of exploration.

Iyengar Yoga teachers have a special way of instructing how to rejuvenate and balance practices so we are not stuck doing the same things over and over. This is the art of evolution!

Let us continue to erase the chalkboard of the mind and explore with open-intelligence and an open-heart to embrace intuitive guidance that projects us to discover unknown territories beyond preconceived notions. This is creativity in action!

IYASCUS Video Collection

I stumbled upon this video collection, most of the videos work, some do not. Good reference tool!

http://iyascus.org/library/video/

Target Practice: Akarna Dhanurasana with John Schumacher

Ready to shoot some arrows! Akarna Dhanurasana time! Enjoy this informative video of John Schumacher teaching & thank you to roadstobliss.com, see the website for more videos full of applicable direct actions.

A Sequence for Peace by Patricia Walden

1. Savasana (corpse pose; can be done supported on a bolster or blankets)

2. Supta Baddha Konasana (reclining bound angle pose; can be done supported on a bolster or blankets)

3. Supta Virasana (reclining hero pose; can be done supported on a bolster or blankets

4. Prasarita Padottanasana (with head support; wide-leg standing forward bend pose)

5. Uttanasana (with head support and legs spread apart; standing forward bend pose)

6. Adho Mukha Svanasana (with head support; downward facing dog pose)

7. Viparita Dandasana (supported by a chair with head support; inverted staff pose)

8. Viparita Karani Sirsasana (headstand inverted state pose; if you are unfamiliar with the Viparita Karani version of this pose, do regular Sirsasana)

9. Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (supported bridge pose)

10. Viparita Karani Sarvangasana (Shoulder stand inverted state pose, can be done supported on a chair; if you are unfamiliar with the Viparita Karani version of this pose, do regular Sarvangasana)

11. Antara Kumbhaka Pranayama (with a very short Kumbhaka on the inhalation)

Jarvis Chen's List of Iyengar Videos in Remembrance of Guruji

Thank you to Jarvis Chen for creating this list of videos as a remembrance of BKS Iyengar on the one year anniversary of his passing.

 

 

Mary Dunn Teaches Paryankasana

I have heard many stories of Mary Dunn. When people talk about her, the inspiration she gave and received reflects within the eyes of the teller. Mary Dunn continues to inspire teachers today with her insightful imprint on path of Iyengar Yoga.

Backbend Preparation Videos by Jonathan Dickstein

In these videos, my friend Jonathan demonstrates effective ways to prepare the body for backbends, enjoy!

BKS Iyengar & Geeta Iyengar Chant the Invocation

Click here to listen to BKS Iyengar chant the Invocation

Click Here to listen to BKS Iyengar followed by Geeta Iyengar chant the Invocation. Plus, you can listen to other Mantras as well.

Lois Steinberg & Geeta Iyengar

The Magic of Progress

Haaaa! I stumbled upon this photo that was taken sneakily behind my back just 3.5 years ago and compared it to a recent photo. What a shock!

Sometimes it does not feel like progress is being made, then it magically dawns! All the times we are hard on ourselves, trying to get better all of the time, when it is happening bit by bit. This is a lesson to notice and cherish the growth that Yoga brings and to pay more attention to little improvements along the way.

The magic of Yoga, it jumps out at us to remind us that dedication shows, not only because the pose looks better, because somehow through fate, luck, a friend... we fall in love with the subject.

It's never too late to start. You are never too bad, too stiff, too lazy to start.

1.1 atha yoganusasanam

"With prayers for divine blessings, now begins an exposition of the sacred art of yoga."

-BKS Iyengar

Iyengar Yoga Therapy Sequence for Ankylosing Spondylitis, Migraines, & Facial Neuralgia

Patting the Head and Rubbing the Belly

Remember the coordination trick of patting the head and rubbing the belly at the same time?

Stephanie Quirk told me this analogy while practicing Medical. Such an ah-ha moment!!!

Here are a few I have been noticing:

I lift my dorsal, my neck caves in

I turn my head, the other shoulder sticks out and hardens

Clenching the hands tightens the neck

I lift my chest, the sternum sinks

I take my left leg into Supta Padangusthasana II and the right hip tightens and does not let the left leg relax down.

These separate actions of separate body parts are starting to click in the mind. My body has not been able to distinguish one area from the other due to stiffness and compensation. One area has latched on to try to help or hinder another area. So now, I am separating these body parts and learning how to create individual and paired actions that are conducive to balance function and space.

Almost like a watch, how all the parts move in various directions to create the entire mechanism.

Diagnosis, finally

Well, it's been a month here and I am finally starting to settling into a routine. Now the focus is on Medical Yoga. Stephanie Quirk has decided to work with me and we are targeting my compressed spinal cord in the neck. We have had to do a bit of experimenting; some poses work, others make me very dizzy. So we are learning which positions compress the spinal cord and which poses make space. After 7 classes, we are really in a good groove and building towards more opening in the dorsal, neck, and hip sockets.

Stephanie has lived in Pune for about 16 years and she is extremely talented. She wants me to work with her instead of Lois so I receive fresh teachings. Linda and George are also working with me and we have a great time together laughing and learning from each other.

Dr. Naik, who is Lois's doctor has diagnosed me with Anklosing Spondylitis. I had a MRI of the entire spine, sacrum, and right shoulder for $300, what a deal! And, Dr. Naik did not even charge me to see him! This condition is usually debilitating because the spinal bones start to fuse together and press on the spinal cord. Since I have been doing Yoga for 15 years, I am able to function very well. If I had not been practicing, I would have trouble even walking. This is a motivator to keep up a long and strong daily practice. Very thankful for my body telling me all these years what it needed. Through Yoga, I have learned how to heal myself step by step while listening to the body's intuition. Many thanks to Lois who has guided me to learn therapy skills.

So far, 11 days without Migraine medication!!!! This is amazing! I have not been able to make it past a week in a long time!!!!!

Surrender to Mother Earth

Sunita, Geeta's sister taught the Woman's class today. She emphasized surrendering to Mother Earth. Especially while in Trianga Mukhaikapada Paschimottanasana and Janu Sirsasana.

Her directions were:

Lift the sacral area/tailbone/low back up before bending forward. Let this area know what your are about to do and prepare this area of the body. Then, lift the navel band up. Now, you are ready to bend forward. It is just as important to go into the pose with preparation and awareness as being in the pose and coming out of the pose. Extend the sternum forward and lengthen the sides of the chest. Do not take the head lower than the dorsal. Keep the abdomen band soft and take it to the legs, touch that area to the legs. Lift the elbows up at first and extend the arms forward. Then completely surrender to Mother Earth. Surrender! Soften the entire back, do not hold the back hard. Surrender! 

Her teaching was strong and held our attention. We had to concentrate on ourselves, not what others were doing. It is so often that our minds start becoming busy. I often think about when we are going to be able to come out of the pose, or that my hamstrings are screaming. To focus on surrendering brought a softness to the mind and I felt more of a grounding effect in my legs. Then, my torso began to follow going down without using brut force. In my classes, we have been practicing breathing into the back chest, now we can start focusing on surrendering to quiet the mind while using the breath as our guide.