Begin each day anew

Sister Wendy Beckett of Norfolk, England, Art Historian, well known for her PBS and BBC television art series and books couldn’t have said it better. It is my daily mantra that I keep taped in front of my PC monitor:

Human Failure

“ We cannot control our life. If we are set upon doing so, we have abdicated from peace, which must balance what is desired with what is possible. As Hokusai shows so memorably, the great wave is in waiting for any boat. It is unpredictable, as uncontrollable now as it was at the dawn of time. Will the slender boats survive, or will they be overwhelmed? The risk is a human constant; it has to be accepted—and laid aside. What we can do, we do. Beyond that, we endure, our endurance framed by a sense of what matters and what does not. The worst is not that we may be overwhelmed by disaster, but to fail to live by principle. Yet we are fallible, and so the real worst, the antithesis of peace, is to refuse to recognize failure and humbly begin again.”

Look at the painting: The Great Wave of Kanagawa, by Katsushika Hokusai, 1831 and meditate on this. Then begin each day anew.

Might not be a bad idea to practice Paripurna Navasana. The Boat Pose. Our will, our center, our core, call it what you will, is our guiding light. Keep it strong so that you are better able to live by principle and be able to distinguish what matters and what does not.

Peace.
The Kitchen Yogi.

Circulation begins and the love for yourself kicks in…

Circulation begins and the love for yourself kicks in…

Yes, we were snowed on again and out shoveling this beautiful coating. During these days we should try to focus on warming up, you’ll be surprised of the benefits!

What exactly IS a warm up and why do we need it?

Is it the boring, less exerting part of the practice that can’t possibly help you get fit?
NOOOOOO, it is the part where your circulation begins to increase and your mind begins to focus and your patience and love for yourself kicks in…think of it as the sturdy foundation on which you will build your practice.

Some may still think it is still just “general stuff” and that you can do anything to get it over with before beginning the REAL stuff?
NO again, because while an overall warm up is always necessary, there are specific areas of the body that must be targeted should you desire to take your practice into other deeper poses, and even without a specific pose in mind, you do need to get into your steady breath.

Here’s one good personal example:
I decided to add Visvamistrasana to my practice. I researched a few texts and online sources and came up with a master plan. I am very fortunate to have a friend with whom I love to work on new poses. We analyze them together. It is a great way to enhance your practice, but back to Visvamistrasana……With Jenn’s help, we planned out a series of prep poses, a warm up if you will, but geared just to this asana. Turns out that this “warm up” is a great practice on its own and often I don’t even get to Visvamistrasana, I just go through the prep.
Guess what? Even though I don’t always assume the asana, doing the prep keeps me in shape so that when I do desire to practice it, I still can. There fore we have a perfect example of the journey being more important than the actual destination.

So, next time you are warming up, put as much concentration and effort in it as you do in your quest to master whatever asana you are striving for at the moment, and keep it up. The warm up just might be the key to unlocking the power you need, both mental and physical, to master that elusive asana.

SAHAVAVATU SAHANAU BHANAKTU SAHA VIRYAM
KARAVA VAHAI TEJAS VINAVA DHI TAMASTU
MA VIDVISHA VAHA-I-I OM SHANTI SHANTI SHANTI.

Next time, the translation. Bet you know at least some of it!
Peace

The Kitchen Yogi

"Warm Up" this Winter

For those of us living in climates that have temperature changes, it is great to be at peace with all kinds of weather and to have the knowledge to deal with both extremes.

Cold is pertinent right now... Dressing in layers is a great way to start. Perhaps your yoga practice space isn’t as warm as you would like it. Modify and make sure YOU are warm; you can always peel layers off if you like.

In general however, we sometimes forget to warm up for our asana practice. The warm ups are not a waste of time, as they warm up our minds as well as our joints/muscles and enable us to put our focus on our breath and off our “to do” list.

Here’s a favorite from the Kundalini tradition to really get you going:

• Sitting in Sukhasana, place your hands on your knees with palms down.
• Leading with your chest and chin, begin to rotate your rib cage as if it could circle over your knees.
• Moving in circles in one direction for 3 minutes, and then repeating in the other direction, will awaken that dormant energy
curled up at the base of your spine.
• In addition, this motion will really warm you up.
• Pay attention to the grounding of your sitting bones. Try not to let them come up from the earth.
You can gently press on the knee of the side that is coming up and alternate on the other side as is necessary.

This is also great to use with young students in a guided meditation. Pretend to stir up all sorts of wonderful, healthy things to eat as we “grind” or “stir” the ingredients.
This also helps incite laughter, another wonderful warm up.

Try it. I think you’ll find this will warm you up!

Sat Nam.

Lizard on the Rock (Grhago dhikaa Zilaa)

Grhago dhikaa Zilaa (Lizard on the Rock)

Children love to hear stories and love to practice yoga with a partner. The combination of the two is golden. As a facilitator, take yourself into your child’s mind as you weave a tale of sunny deserts with colorful lizards full of adventure!

Let the children’s inevitable contributions move your story into places you never dreamed of. Lose your inhibitions as you guide them through a fanciful meditation while they rest in savasana or padmasana.

Then when the story is done, demonstrate this combination of balasana (child’s pose) as the rock (bottom) and a modified matsyasana (fish pose becomes the lizard on top). Be sure to stress the need for a signal between the partners to maximize the experience and avoid injury; a whisper of “let’s stop” or a tap on the leg to initiate a slow release from the posture. To minimize the weight on “the rock”, “the lizard’s” bottom may rest on the floor.

Warm your hearts with the “desert sun” on a cold January day then rejuvenated, pass on your heart’s warmth to all your friends and loved ones.

Joining Hearts

Think of your heart as the center of universal peace. Why not extend the peace you have in your heart to those in need by sharing your yoga practice with everyone? Novices and skeptics, lovers and friends, long time practitioners and those who think they “can’t do yoga” because of age, infirmity or injury; YOU know that this unlikely group will benefit from each others’ knowledge and experiences. Share your love of yoga in all its aspects with EVERYONE.

It is so uncommon these days to experience multi generational gatherings yet it is exactly this type of gathering that is so beneficial to our understanding of how “ONE” we are in the Cosmos. Clear a space in your home or locally. Should you be a Yoga Instructor, you could hold a special workshop, but don’t let your lack of experience cause you to shy away from organizing a practice, just practice what you know. Share what you have. Keep it simple.

Partner yoga can be a great way to start. There are so many easy ways to gently physically connect with one another and share healing touch that with a little preparation all can benefit greatly. Just let go and follow the goodness in your own heart. Partner Yoga can be as simple as joining hands in Tadasana.

One of our favorite partner poses is Balasana (Child’s Pose) combined with Matsyasana (Fish Pose), as the “Fish” is truly opening their heart while draping their body over the “Child”. Try it. The first partner assumes Balasana in whatever depth is right for them. The second partner backs up to them back to back with their legs extended and slowly with elbows on the ground so they are able to control the weight, lays down spine to spine on top of the Balasana partner. Partner number two is now in Matsyasana. As with all partner poses, be aware of the ability of your partner and have signals to time your pose. Always enter and exit the pose slowly with intention. Children love this pose. (More about that in the next blog.)

So for today, make a new friend with a partner pose.
Share. And share, and then share some more; because it is only in giving that we are truly able to receive.

For more information about Partner Yoga:
Partner Yoga: Making Contact for Physical, Emotional & Spiritual Growth
Cain Carroll & Lori Kimata, N.D.
www.rodalebooks.com

La Coeur de Votre Corps (The Heart of your Body)

Think about it: Coeur, the French word for HEART is the root of the English word Courage. Have the courage to reach out to everyone this Valentine’s Day.

Our hearts ARE at the center of our bodies. This organ at our center is not only the center of our circulatory systems, but metaphorically is considered the center of our very being, spiritual and physiological.

It beats when we are energized, happy, afraid, excited. It beats ALL the time from our conception until our death. It can beat with pulsing, radiant love or it can beat with anxious terror. How do we keep in touch with our heart’s rhythms? Through our breath of course! Take a minute today and actually feel your heart at different times. Get in touch with YOUR center and what makes it react. Help others do the same.

While you are at it, get in touch with your inner child and bake some cookies for your favorite people young and old and then take it a step further and bake some more for your not so favorite people and see what happens. Amazing the power a beautifully decorated and wrapped cookie possesses. Have the courage to present these presents. Whether you are thanked or not, matters not. I think it is probably safe to say that all will be grateful whether they tell you or not and that’s what giving is all about isn’t it?