Hatha Yoga

In the last two decades yoga has exploded in America—more specifically Hatha Yoga. Hatha Yoga is the physical practice of yoga. The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit language. When translating Sanskrit, often times multiple words are used so you can gain a better understanding of the word. Yoga means “to yoke, join two things together or balance out two polarities”.

It is important to take a step back and realize language was created to bring about a mental construct around something, in an effort to communicate with other beings. Your mental construct may not be the same as mine. It is also important to realize that yoga is older then any modern day religion. Yoga is not a religion, instead it is a tool that can be applied to any and every aspect of life.

Recorded history doesn’t go further back than 3,000 years. The rest has all been handed down orally. The original translation around yoga is said to mean yoking God and human. Where and when the Hatha Yoga part came along is also a bit of a mystery. Some scholars say it was spontaneous movements that came out of meditative states while others say it was learned by watching animals move and imitating their movement. The latter of the two would explain why many poses have animal names.

Classically speaking the yoking in Hatha Yoga is Asana and Pranayama. Asana literally translates as seat. Pranayama translates as extension of life force. There are thousands of interpretations of Hatha Yoga—Empowered Yoga is a contemporary approach. Hatha Yoga was the first form of exercise ever created and works powerfully on balancing out the strength and flexibility of the body. It helps train the mind to be stable which brings clarity and breeds cultivation of wisdom.

Dynamic Self

In Buddhist wisdom the self is viewed as dynamic and alive and not some fixed object of permanence. If the self was permanently unchanging then it would not be affected by thoughts, emotions and concepts so what would it have if it did exist? When we treat ourselves as a fixed identity—we are taking ourselves too serious. We say things like, “I was hurt so bad” We are unable to let go of the past and we suffer for it.

When we are able to view ourselves as always in creation then our fixation on the past will severely be reduced and our possibilities for the future will increase. It is at this point that we can really take charge of our lives. When viewing ourselves in this dynamic relationship the present moment becomes a great opportunity to reinvent who we are. The past becomes easier to work with and the future becomes whatever we want it to be.

Yoga Teacher Training Transformation

Guest Blogger--Liz Freeman who graduated from Yoga Teacher Training this past weekend

The past six months have been the beginning of what is proving to be an incredible journey. A few thoughts about how things have changed in my life:
* At a base level, I've learned that the opportunity to practice yoga exists in my life all around me. It's up to me to choose to practice. I consciously make a choice to practice even more in my life.
* Recently my boss, with whom I've worked for almost three years and have known for five, shared with me that she thinks the past year has been my greatest year of personal growth: I've developed, matured, and become so much more of a resilient person. I have tremendous respect for her, and so this feedback is really very special
* My dear friend, the fashionista, has been one of my greatest yoga teachers off the mat and outside of EY. Simply by throwing away everything in my closet, and then helping me (1) recognize my filters, and then (2) work to break through them, I quickly realized that what I learned about clothes isn't limited to clothes. It applies to the rest of my life. I am recognizing my filters - about all sorts of things in my life - and then breaking through them. It is scary, especially because I have countless ones to work through still.
* I am grateful for the friendships and love and perspectives that everyone in the YTT program has offered. While I will miss the time-intensive weekends, I trust that I will continue to grow as an individual because of what I've learned from others and the relationships that we'll maintain.
* I am not as scattered as I once was. While I still do too many things and keep too busy, I have learned to prioritize. And taking care of me is a priority. And I am slowly starting to slow down. This is a good thing, and I am grateful for each small win.
* In the past two years, I've become better connected with my body and with my mind. It's amazing that I've made it to 32, and just finally beginning to wake up. Thankfully though I am now. And some days, even though it's scary, I'm excited to learn whatever it is next. And other days, I wish I could curl up in a ball and not face myself or the world. It does take courage every single day to open up. I am thankful for having the support and friendship of those at EY - it helps me find this internal courage.
* It turns out, I really enjoy teaching! It is a huge part of my practice. I feel so honored to be able to guide others through a practice, and while I'll never know what each student is going through specifically, I know that each person is on a journey. I know the courage it takes for them to show up on their mat, and I feel humbled that they are comfortable to come to class because all I can offer is support, love and compassion, and it turns out, that really is enough. In turn, their presence and friendship offers me the same.
* I am lucky to have amazing people in my life. In the past several months, however, I feel like I've been taking more than I've been giving in many of my relationships. Recently though I've realized that maybe I'm giving in different ways than I previously have. And it might not be "less," it might just be different. As an example, two of my dearest friends have signed up for (and completed) BNB. They signed up because they've told me they've seen a difference in me - for the better. They loved me then, and they love me now just the same. But they see something in themselves that they want to explore, and it's awesome that they feel comfortable exploring it. Again, it really is about love and compassion. Wow.

Outside affecting the Inside

I just finished reading an article in Discover magazine entitled, “Are we still evolving?” I love to read about evolution and how organisms change. If you asked me if we are still evolving, I would say, “Of course we are!” I was surprised to read that there are certain scientists who think evolution has halted. It appears that recent studies of human genomes reveal that not only are we still evolving but we are evolving at an accelerated rate.

It appears that the accelerated rate may be due to the increasing size of the population among other factors that largely deal with the environment we are living in. My brother is an evolutionary biologist and studies how DNA changes due to environmental factors. He uses insects within his work and says that DNA is DNA. If DNA changes in insects due to environmental factors then it changes in human DNA. I have learned from him that the same exact species will develop differently when it lives in different environments. The outside environment affects the inside.

This makes me think about our environment — our homes, places where we work and the company we keep. How all of this is affecting the way we are evolving and changing inside. It really makes you stop and reflect on your environment. Are there things that I need to change in my environment? How can I create an environment that promotes healing and love to all those that are in it or may enter it?

Runner's World

About a year ago a writer from Runner’s World magazine contacted me about a workshop I was leading entitled, “The Balanced Runner”. Over the past year I have had several writers from Runners World come down for workshops. They discovered the deeper essence of what yoga can do for runners.

This past summer I went up to Runners World headquarters and lead a workshop to several staff members on Movement Principles for Runners. Most of those in attendance had been practicing yoga yet not with the awareness of the movement principles. Just before Christmas I had an opportunity to record nine exercises for www.runnersworld.com which can be found on their website.

This experience over the past year reminds me of something I say often while teaching. It is not what you are doing as much as where you are when you are doing it. When we move our body we can be completely connected to our body and let go of the cognitive aspect of our brain. By focusing on what we are feeling verses what we are thinking we can come into a deeper connection with our mindbody—running can be a meditation.

Any movement whether in the gym, yoga room or running can be viewed as therapy and healing if it is being done with principle. If it is not done with principle it tears the body apart. Running can get a bad rap. There is nothing wrong with running although there is something wrong with running on an imbalanced structure. Learning the movement principles can be the difference between being sidelined with injuries and running into your nineties.

Dropping Performance

Six years ago I went to a Vinyasa workshop with Rolf Gates. Rolf had just recently published his book, “Meditations from the Mat”. He was a powerful teacher and quickly becoming well known throughout the yoga world. When I arrived for the workshop the yoga room was buzzing and it was mat to mat. You could not even see the color of the floor—mats were touching. People were dressed in their most fashionable yoga gear while intensely warming up. I felt like I was back in an ice hockey locker room prepping for a big game.

When Rolf walked in he was calm and collected. Before he began the class he asked some profound and simple questions, “Can we drop the performance mode? Can you empty your cup and allow me to guide you through a practice?” The intensity of the room dropped and everything grounded down into an non egotistically awareness—it was a profound shift. Rolf’s wisdom still rings in my ears. There are many people who come to the physical practice of yoga with a performance based and competitive mind. You can learn a lot about yourself if you can see this aspect of yourself. The part of your mind that wants to perform, wants to be better then those around you and wants to win.

At Empowered Yoga we emphasize challenge over competition. A challenge is born within your heart—it is a quest for inner excellence. When you compete it is about the ego, there are winners or losers and the motivation is many times not so pure. When your motivation shifts to challenge we broaden our view. Our practice becomes a simple question, “Am I doing my best?” If the answer is yes then you are always a winner and there are no losers. Paradoxically this shift from competition to challenge inspires others to let go of egocentric motivators. Paradoxically my body is stronger, more flexible and graceful when I am operating from challenge. Fear constricts us and a competitive mind is a mind that is based in fear.

75 to 25

Saturday afternoon I was sitting by a pool in Costa Rica then hours later I am in freezing temperatures. I went from one polarity to another. This is metaphorical for being on retreat and then in the blink of an eye, being back in your real everyday life.

In my last class Saturday morning I gave some helpful hints on reentry into society after a retreat.

1. As soon as you land into your respective airport notice your surroundings and the speed at which everything is moving.
2. As you are picked up by family and friends notice your heightened awareness and let this awareness see people with a greater sense of openness and appreciation.
3. No one else was on the retreat so don't expect those in your life to be any different. You are the one who is different. (Non-judgemental of course)
4. Don't speak too deeply about your experience. Just tell people it was life changing.
5. Realize that without a daily practice you too will fall back into the speed and potential unconsciousness of life

What makes a retreat powerful is incorporating the teachings into daily life. If you have never been on retreat make it a goal to someday attend one. They can be truly life changing.