Restorative Yoga Class

This week I will be teaching 2 restorative yoga classes.
I am often surprised why these classes do not "fill to the brim", with a waiting list.
It seems like this is just what most of us need and yet we resist this practice of active relaxation.
Why? Well probably because it is hard... it is hard to get ourselves to say yes to this practice of being still, open, receptive and surrendering into what seems to go against the grain and yet is so fundamental to our wellbeing.
Judith Lasater says," in a chronically stressed state, quality of life and perhaps life itself, is at risk. The body's capacity to heal itself is compromised, either inhibiting recovery from an existing illness or injury, or creating a new one, including high blood pressure, ulcers, back pain, immune dysfunction, reproductive problems and depression".
In these two classes I hope to give students skills and choices when choosing to create a 10 minute home restorative yoga practice that will enhance daily life on many levels.

OVERWHELMING ABUNDANCE

From Yoga Journal, December 2009.
In 2006 Cami Walker was suffering from recently diagnosed multiple sclerosis when her spiritual teacher challenged her to give a gift every day for 29 days. The gifts could be anything- a pretty shell to a child building a sandcastle, money to a person on the street , a word of cheer to a friend-as long as they were given with consciousness and intention. This experience of reaching out to others, which Walker chronicles in her book 29 GIFTS, HOW A MONTH OF GIVING CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE, resulted in what she describes as a fundamental shift in her mindset, imbuing her with a deep sense of freedom and joy that affected her experience of her illness.
"It turned my life around completely," she says. "I now see I am a small part of a much greater whole, rather than the self contained, deserted island I felt like before. She also says "Yoga teaches us that we are not here to live in a vacuum. We are here to be of service to each other and have a common experience." -Charity Ferreira

When I discovered this book and Cami Walker on the internet, I decided to commit myself to the task of "29 days of giving" and see what that experience was like. It meant going beyond ways I normally give and being very mindful in that. I will let you know what I learn. In the meantime if you are interested go to 29gifts.org to see what it is all about and maybe take up the challenge.

"The Window In"

Everyone seemed to enjoy the readings from this chapter this week.
We laughed as we heard familiar descriptions of what the mind does when it drifts and settles somewhere!!! ... a difficult conversation we had 10 years ago, or a fantasy about the man sitting next to us at a meeting or a retreat. The breath is the one thing that can be a touchstone to come back to. "I am sitting here, on my yoga blanket, breathing in and out", or "I am sitting here in my car stuck in traffic, something I cannot change, and I am breathing in and out." We can let ourselves pause and accept what is without reacting, without entertaining ourselves with fantasy and veering away from reality.
What are we saying to ourselves when we are in a difficult yoga pose..??? Are we in conflict with what is? Are we trying to steer away from what is real in this moment? Did we get hooked in a drama?
The point is if we are always caught up in our fixed reference points it will be very difficult to see things from a fresh perspective and we will miss seeing things as they truly are. We will miss the reality that with every breath we are changing.

Leaving Behind Your Gut Instinct?

How often have you experienced a gut feeling, a sense of knowing, a bodily intuition about something and then proceeded to ignore it? I think we all have. In that moment we may want to go with our "executive ego" as D. Farhi calls it. We have a plan, and even though our heart may be telling us something deep from within, we are not willing to let go of our what our intellect says.
The body and mind are meant to work in harmony with each other. Yoga asks us to learn to relate to the body-mind and the movement of life force. Life force is the energy behind our organs of perception, the shape of our structure or posture, our rhythm and the way we move. Through yoga we can access our own natural wisdom, we become more conscious and "internally literate". Isn't that what Socrates said when he spoke of knowing oneself?
The next time your body gives you a subtle message, practice listening. Trust your inner wisdom.
"To know your life is to know intimately what you are feeling." -Stephen Levine