Well, we had another fun day of backbends and arm balances with Desiree yesterday. After class we went to Whole Foods for lunch and then to Lululemon and then to REI and then home and then to the airport. It was a fun and mellow way to end a very full weekend.
One of the things I really like about having guest teachers is that students get a chance to see how one method can be presented in a lot of different ways. There is an interesting dance in teaching Anusara Yoga between "what is the method" and "what is the particular teacher's teaching style".
Over the years I have always found it very helpful to show the teachers that I am training in the method that difference and to train students to be discerning in mine or in anyone else's class between what is Anusara Yoga and what is a teacher's take on Anusara Yoga or a teacher's personal teaching style. Hopefully the one method is being presented with consistency as well as difference. That is the aim.
That aim for the classroom mirrors our larger philosophy, in fact. (There is One Spirit that takes on a multiplicity of forms in order to know itself fully and express itself joyfully. ) We really celebrate differences and want the method to find a variety of expression so long as it does so within a certain set of boundaries. Des, Andrew and I had a really interesting talk about how every method will always have traditionalists/purists and will always have creative, mad scientist/artists who push the boundaries and keep us expanding the form and that each type is important to health and longevity of the system. If we only have traditionalists we run the risk of being dogmatic, zealous, stagnant. If we only have mad scientists we run the risk of becoming diluted or undefined or so diverse as to have a lack of unity. Really, we need both.
I think there may also be a third type that I would call a synthesizer who pulls from other methods and experiences and diciplines but brings it back to the method. (Like how my association with vinyasa methods this year has influenced my style a lot lately and how my studies within Iyengar Yoga influence my presentatin and understanding of our method. But I digress.)
Also, my friend Darren Rhodes and I talk a lot about the dance between "Perspectives" and "Principles" and how important it is when we teach (and when we take classes from any teacher) to be clear within ourselves and to be clear in our presentation (or in receiving teaching from someone else) what the difference is. This is also knowing the difference between Anusara Yoga philosophy and our personal philosophy. And staying clear on these distinctions is work that is never dull.
It was a really great weekend. I enjoyed seeing how everyone responded so delightedly to Desiree and her teachings and perspectives and how respectfully, skillfully and authentically she presented her story, her experiences and her knowledge. She is really such an inspiring person, practitioner and teacher.
Okay then, on with the day. Lots to do.
Showing posts with label lots to do. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lots to do. Show all posts
Monday, September 14, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Monday Morning
I really had a great time at the Immersion this weekend but wow, was I tired last night. I got home and was really wiped out. Kelly and I ate dinner and did a short program of chanting and meditation and then I went to bed at like 8:30. I must have really needed it- I went to sleep quickly and woke up this morning at 6am feeling rested and ready for the day. I love sleep.
We practiced lots of supta padangusthasana work in the asana portion of class yesterday with an emphasis on outer spiral in the top leg and took that into standing poses, vasisthasana, sarvangasana variations. Everyone really did a good job and held a strong focus for the duration. Really, these long practices are not only physically intense, but the require so much mental attention and the ability to stay with a process as you move through a rainbow of emotions during the practice. I feel like this weekend brought some really good asana breakthroughs to the group, which is inspiring.
We spent the last part of the day talking about the Tattvas some more and the magical mirror of Maya. Once again, not easy to consider such topics after a long haul of asana and at the very end of the weekend but people really stayed with it and didn't spiral into massive amount of confusion. Confusion is really an interesting state of consciousness to observe in oneself and in others. In my experience and in my observation, it takes on a momentum all of its own many times. Confusion often starts with"I do not get that" which is not confusion at all. It is simply a lack of understanding. Shortly thereafter, however, confusion enters in and adds all kinds of upheaval and drama to what was simply a lack of understanding.
Now pause the story - Disclaimer-- I AM NOT CRITICIZING HERE. I am simply stating a phenomenon I have observed in myself and in those I have taught over the years.
Once confusion is present in an individual it often spreads to the group and creates a energy all of its own. It is like a smoke screen that obscures access to discriminative intelligence. It is a heightened state for the nervous system and really, at this point, you cannot teach anything, you cannot learn anything, you have to clear the smoke first, you have to settle yourself or the group. Chronically confused people are often unaware of how their confusion actually perpetuates itself and impedes their learning process. As a teacher, for me it is palpable when confusion enters a group and the level of anxiety is increasing due to its effects.
And really, some people go to confusion more readily than others. Some people are way more anxious at the stage of "I don't get that" than others and those people generally jump straight to confusion which often functions as a kind of shutting down mechanism: "I am confused and therefore I am out of the game of trying to understand". And again, I think this happens almost entirely under the radar of consciousness so it is not a critical thing I am saying here. However, if we can learn to be aware of when confusion is beginning to take the reigns of our mind and emotions, we can choose to intervene and self-soothe a bit. We can learn to talk ourselves down, to ask questions that are not backed with so much anxiety and we can learn how to be with "not knowing" and keep our access to the higher functioning of our intelligence so that we can learn.
Wow, so that was quite a side note, I suppose... all to say that confusion never really took the reigns of the group in the tattva discussion, like it so often can. People asked questions, wanted clarity and but with no drama and no apparent anxiety about it. What a pleasure.
Okay- well I have some things to catch up on today and depending on how it all goes, perhaps I will stop off at Matt's Ashtanga class.
We practiced lots of supta padangusthasana work in the asana portion of class yesterday with an emphasis on outer spiral in the top leg and took that into standing poses, vasisthasana, sarvangasana variations. Everyone really did a good job and held a strong focus for the duration. Really, these long practices are not only physically intense, but the require so much mental attention and the ability to stay with a process as you move through a rainbow of emotions during the practice. I feel like this weekend brought some really good asana breakthroughs to the group, which is inspiring.
We spent the last part of the day talking about the Tattvas some more and the magical mirror of Maya. Once again, not easy to consider such topics after a long haul of asana and at the very end of the weekend but people really stayed with it and didn't spiral into massive amount of confusion. Confusion is really an interesting state of consciousness to observe in oneself and in others. In my experience and in my observation, it takes on a momentum all of its own many times. Confusion often starts with"I do not get that" which is not confusion at all. It is simply a lack of understanding. Shortly thereafter, however, confusion enters in and adds all kinds of upheaval and drama to what was simply a lack of understanding.
Now pause the story - Disclaimer-- I AM NOT CRITICIZING HERE. I am simply stating a phenomenon I have observed in myself and in those I have taught over the years.
Once confusion is present in an individual it often spreads to the group and creates a energy all of its own. It is like a smoke screen that obscures access to discriminative intelligence. It is a heightened state for the nervous system and really, at this point, you cannot teach anything, you cannot learn anything, you have to clear the smoke first, you have to settle yourself or the group. Chronically confused people are often unaware of how their confusion actually perpetuates itself and impedes their learning process. As a teacher, for me it is palpable when confusion enters a group and the level of anxiety is increasing due to its effects.
And really, some people go to confusion more readily than others. Some people are way more anxious at the stage of "I don't get that" than others and those people generally jump straight to confusion which often functions as a kind of shutting down mechanism: "I am confused and therefore I am out of the game of trying to understand". And again, I think this happens almost entirely under the radar of consciousness so it is not a critical thing I am saying here. However, if we can learn to be aware of when confusion is beginning to take the reigns of our mind and emotions, we can choose to intervene and self-soothe a bit. We can learn to talk ourselves down, to ask questions that are not backed with so much anxiety and we can learn how to be with "not knowing" and keep our access to the higher functioning of our intelligence so that we can learn.
Wow, so that was quite a side note, I suppose... all to say that confusion never really took the reigns of the group in the tattva discussion, like it so often can. People asked questions, wanted clarity and but with no drama and no apparent anxiety about it. What a pleasure.
Okay- well I have some things to catch up on today and depending on how it all goes, perhaps I will stop off at Matt's Ashtanga class.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Tuesday Night
Well, last night was great fun. Both the 4:30 and 6:00 class were well attended and both groups were attentive, skillful and hard working. I talked a little about resolutions in both classes. Interestingly enough, very few people in either class had made any. I had lots of double dippers but I forgot to write their names down... Terry, Susan, Kelly, Anne, Mike, Catherine, Jesse, Meg, and a few other I cannot quite recall...
At 4:30 the theme went from resolutions to support. The thing I really love about New Year's is it is a time when many people (At least in theory, not evidenced by my informal survey, however.) are making resolutions. It reminds me of this idea we talk about a lot in yoga that has to do with using the power of the group and the community to help you in your practice. There is this whole idea that you really cannot do the yogic work alone, nor are you intended to. (yes, a case can also be made that no one can do your work for you and so forth and this is also true.) For instance, amongst those who worship Shiva as the Absolute, there is a tradition of chanting Om namah shivayah at certain times of the month. So wherever you live you know you, when you are doing this at the same time as thousands of other people. The idea is that your efforts get pooled together with everyone else who is doing the practice and therefore magnified and the energy available for transformation is exponentially increased.
So really, New Years is kind of like that. But in a lot of ways, so is every yoga class. We can come together to utilize the group's energy, focus and commitment to strengthen ours. And while we are drawing on other people they, in turn, are drawing on us. It is a cool thing to consider. This is why I LOVE group practice. (And you can join us today at 2-4:30 at The Love Shack for the New year's practice....) So anyway- 4:30 all of that went into support as the theme. We worked with muscle energy and did parsvakonasana, trikonasana, parsva uthitta hasta padangusthasana, anantasana and variations, vasisthasana and variations and supta padangusthasana. Fun times.
At 6:00 I had a very tame back bending sequence planned that covered all the basics one needs to do urdhva danuarasana. But then I got going and we were off the sequence (in my mind) by the end of Surya Namaskar and we went into eka pada rajakapotasana back bends. So many people touched their toes for the first time it was just really incredible. I love the look someone gets on their face when they feel their own toe behind their head! People worked so hard and so willingly followed my directions and the result was some really great breakthroughs. I used the theme of the hero's journey and how one must be resolute (link to resolutions!) to keep the hero's heart open no matter what is happening, etc. So we used resolute strength in the legs (muscle energy) to lift the warrior's heart (inner body bright) and bring it into its expression. (Shoulder loop) Again, fun times.
All right then, lots to do before the practice.
At 4:30 the theme went from resolutions to support. The thing I really love about New Year's is it is a time when many people (At least in theory, not evidenced by my informal survey, however.) are making resolutions. It reminds me of this idea we talk about a lot in yoga that has to do with using the power of the group and the community to help you in your practice. There is this whole idea that you really cannot do the yogic work alone, nor are you intended to. (yes, a case can also be made that no one can do your work for you and so forth and this is also true.) For instance, amongst those who worship Shiva as the Absolute, there is a tradition of chanting Om namah shivayah at certain times of the month. So wherever you live you know you, when you are doing this at the same time as thousands of other people. The idea is that your efforts get pooled together with everyone else who is doing the practice and therefore magnified and the energy available for transformation is exponentially increased.
So really, New Years is kind of like that. But in a lot of ways, so is every yoga class. We can come together to utilize the group's energy, focus and commitment to strengthen ours. And while we are drawing on other people they, in turn, are drawing on us. It is a cool thing to consider. This is why I LOVE group practice. (And you can join us today at 2-4:30 at The Love Shack for the New year's practice....) So anyway- 4:30 all of that went into support as the theme. We worked with muscle energy and did parsvakonasana, trikonasana, parsva uthitta hasta padangusthasana, anantasana and variations, vasisthasana and variations and supta padangusthasana. Fun times.
At 6:00 I had a very tame back bending sequence planned that covered all the basics one needs to do urdhva danuarasana. But then I got going and we were off the sequence (in my mind) by the end of Surya Namaskar and we went into eka pada rajakapotasana back bends. So many people touched their toes for the first time it was just really incredible. I love the look someone gets on their face when they feel their own toe behind their head! People worked so hard and so willingly followed my directions and the result was some really great breakthroughs. I used the theme of the hero's journey and how one must be resolute (link to resolutions!) to keep the hero's heart open no matter what is happening, etc. So we used resolute strength in the legs (muscle energy) to lift the warrior's heart (inner body bright) and bring it into its expression. (Shoulder loop) Again, fun times.
All right then, lots to do before the practice.
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