So today we dedicated our practice to TRUTH.  Acknowledging this asks that we try to be ourselves: that we breath honestly, we do the poses truthfully and we start peeling back the layers of truth in our lives.  So right now bring all your attention to yourself and let your body be calm as you go into your own heart where truth is always waiting.  Know the universe is on your side and that you are doing your BEST!

So we start with what is UNTRUTH.  When we aren’t honest we feel unsteady, anxious, uprooted.  Who wants that?  Instead truth influences us in amazing ways:

1. One of the most beautiful qualities of the truth is that it is very grounding.  A sense of calm enters our life.

2.  The truth reveals, there is something that is uncovered, a place of freedom, something is discovered (we have nothing to hide).

3.  Truth transforms, once you move into the calm, it begins to reveal the beauty based in your heart then you shift to your best life ever! 

LOWERING OUR DEFENSES: FINDING CONNECTION

SEPTEMBER 14, 2008:  Have you ever started to feel defensive because you were feeling a little bit beat up?  Have you ever felt like other people or the world was out to get you? Have you ever felt like the weather outside was out to get you?  (It has now rained hard for 2 days straight).  Well what happens is we start to get more and more afraid or defensive and start looking for the worst, we look for folks to be against us, we look to put up our fists instead of opening our arms. The good news is…

·         Yoga brings us from disconnection and fear to connection and love

·         Through our practice the intelligence of our minds connects with and joins the wisdom of our bodies

·         This connection, being part of the circle, the universal team is the force the power we find on the mat

·         Practicing yoga can help us to feel part of a larger community. It reminds us we’re all on the same team, wearing the same jersey.

·         As we step onto our mat we can be assured that other men and women are doing the same thing all over the world

·         When we breath together we remember that we are all breathing the same air as one another, our ancestors and those that come after we’re gone

When we practice we are simply exploring ALL humanity in the form of ourselves.  We can become the world’s GREATEST EXPERTS on anger, impatience, frustration, as well as joyfulness, patience, clarity.  We become extremely wise and sensitive to all humanity simply by knowing ourselves.  This develops within us gratitude and understanding for OTHER people.  In the poses there is no need to defend ourselves against others because we’re all playing a different but vitally important position on our team just like on any team there is diversity in positions available.  Today let’s really value our contributions and try to identify with others rather than comparing or fighting them so we can experience the grace of our interconnectedness and make the world a place of harmony and peace!   Love, Silvia 

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever does.  -Margaret Mead

EMPOWER YOURSELF! SELF RELIANCE

SEPTEMBER 12TH, 2008:  Why do you practice yoga?  Really everything we do brings us back to our own true nature which the yoga sutras says is joy!  This is chapter 1 verse 3, United in the heart, consciousness is steadied, then we abide in our own true nature, joy.

In practical terms it means that we do the practice to help ourselves heal and come back into our own strength.  This feeling of SELF RELIANCE.  Anything is possible.  It all really relates to self-empowerment.  Four sweet quotes that are favorites of mine along this theme I share here for you to enjoy:

• Empowering is achieved by encouraging self-reliance and providing education, discipline, and learning opportunities for the child. You are empowered to try, therefore to make mistakes and still be fully accepted. Your interests are met with enthusiasm; the importance and joy of hard work are recognized and encouraged. Failure is treated lightly, while curiosity and integrity are held in high regard.
• Self-reliance is the only road to true freedom, and being one's own person is its ultimate reward”
• God loves to help him who strives to help himself.
• If it is to be, it is up to me.

EVERYONE NEEDS COMFORT

SEPTEMBER 11TH, 2008: 

POWER TO THE PEACEFUL: CHOOSE PEACE

SEPTEMBER 10TH, 2008:  I know some folks reading this will say, Oh no not peace, again!?!"  That's cool.  I thought that a long time ago too.  But somewhere between "it's not my job" and "I can't really make a difference" I changed my mind.  So I will keep talking about peace until that day that all people everywhere live in peace.  With all my heart, I hope that day is soon...

We’re not going to be perfect in this quest.  In the words of the band Teitur, All my mistakes have become masterpieces.”  Let’s just keep trying, ok? “If peace is really what you want, then you will choose peace. If peace mattered to you more than anything else you would remain nonreactive when confronted with challenging people or situations. From A New Earth, by Eckhart Tolle  "It would be powerful and effective and would make no person or situation into an enemy."

Now I really do believe that most folks agree that a more peaceful world would be ideal. However, its been my experience that a lot of us seem stumped as to how to contribute peace and make the world better.

From a yogic view it is really kind of simple in theory and is known as AHIMSA: 

“If we are to have true peace in this world, each one of us must find it in ourselves first. If we don’t like ourselves, for example, we probably won’t like those around us. If we are in a constant state of inner conflict, then we will probably bring conflict into the world. If we have fighting within our families, there can be no peace.”

When it comes to peace:  Our job is to say yes!, not when, how or maybe.  We must choose peace!   Join me and others all over the world in being a Peaceful Warrior.  As Michael Franti sings, “POWER TO THE PEACEFUL!”  (Visit www.powertothepeaceful.com to learn more). 

And take to heart these inspiring words:  of the Dalai Lama who said, “Responsibility does not only lie with the leaders of our countries or with those who have been appointed or elected to do a particular job. It lies with each of us individually. Peace starts within each one of us.”

UNDISTRACTED ENERGY TO KNOW YOUR STRENGTHS

SEPTEMBER 9, 2008:  "Throughout life, we get clues that remind us of the direction we are supposed to be headed. If you stay focused, then you learn your lessons."  -Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

One of the greatest strengths we possess is the power to focus our thoughts.  The value of the currency of our thoughts is worth more than anything else we can imagine.  If we don't focus our thoughts they will end up scattered leaking energy in all directions.  Pure thought is the idea of being totally undistracted.  Now here's the coolest part:  the energy of our thoughts are like a magnet and they will attract similiar energy.  If you are focusing on what you don't have, on anger, disappointment, fear then you will attract more of this same energy.  We don't have time to waste a single thought on negativity.  What you focus on gets stronger.

You get to choose where you place your attention so pay attention to your strengths. A philosopher said, "In a civilized world, if our strengths are not determined to be valuable, we spend our life shoring up our weaknesses." 

Do Yoga.  Trust Your Strengths.  And in turn Love Everyone. 

PEOPLE ARE LIKE GARBAGE TRUCKS

SEPTEMBER 8TH, 2008:  Life is about how you look at things right?  Today in class I asked you about what your perspective was about what I should provide you in class.  And I asked what your perspective was about what you should provide.  Are these two expectations weighted the same or differently?  Do you expect more from me than what you expect from yourself?  Do you play this pattern out in your other relationships? 

It’s interesting isn’t it that Perception is really just another word for judgement.  And judgment is like cholesterol: There's a "good" kind and a "bad" kind. A friend of a friend calls the bad kind "the enemy of love."  When it comes down to it Life is ten percent what you make it and 90% percent how you take it!  A new favorite story shared by Masters Circle Lee Woods really speaks to this. Enjoy! - Silvia

STORY - PEOPLE ARE LIKE GARBAGE TRUCKS:  

One day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport. We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches! The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And man, he was really friendly. So I asked, 'Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!' This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call, 'The Law of the Garbage Truck.' 

He explained that many people are like garbage trucks.

They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment.

As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. 

Don't take it personally. Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on.

Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets.

The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day.

Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so... 

Love the people who treat you right. 
Pray for the ones who don't. 

DON'T GIVE UP! ENLIGHTENMENT IS HERE NOW

SEPTEMBER 7TH, 2008:  Have you ever thought about giving up, throwing in the towel? Imagine if you quit your job, sell your stuff, give away your money, and go out into the wilderness. Sound interesting? Such is the premise of a movie I love Into the Wild, the powerful true life story of Chris McCandless. McCandless graduated from Emory University in 1990, gave away his savings, burned his money, and stripped down to a change of clothes before winding up in the extreme wilderness of Alaska.

Why would we even want to move away and give it all up? Isn't it because we think if we go somewhere else we'll be happy? Right? Haven't you day dreamed about switching jobs, changing partners, moving into a different home/neighborhood with this grass is greener, I will be better off elsewhere philosophy?

You are not alone, many folks feel like they have to travel to really far off places or do something dramatic to achieve enlightenment.  Now this might be right for certain people, but it is by no means necessary to attaining enlightenment.  Enlightenment can take root anywhere on earth, as long as we seek to open up to a higher consciousness. As long as you want to WAKE UP.

All we need is a powerful intention, and a willingness to do the work necessary to moving forward on our path.

Robin Sharma writes, “People who study others are wise but those who study themselves are enlightened. 

Those we are truly enlightened know what they want out of life, emotionally, materially, physically and spiritually.  Clearly defined priorities and goals for every aspect of your life gives you direction.  Lasting happiness comes from steadily working to accomplish your goals and advancing confidently in the direction of your life’s purpose.”

So may you all use this practice to discover your purpose and gain the strength to work towards it!  But how we view strength is important.  Think of it not as ability or a set of circumstance but as tenacity.  To never give up.  To stay the course!

What I wish for you all is that you can confidently stay in one place, knowing that everything that we need to attain enlightenment is always available right where we are.   Just don't GIVE UP. 

REFLECT THEN FOCUS ON FALL VISION STATEMENT

SEPTEMBER 6TH, 2008:  Well it’s that time again to clean out the closet and prepare to move the summer things and bring out Fall/Winter stuff, right?  You can feel the shift taking place:  the crisp feeling to the air, the lengthening of our nights, kids back to school.  Yoga can help us reflect on where we’ve been and help us make time to design our vision for this last quarter of the year (and beyond!)  Focus this vision on the kind of person you want to be by taking time to revisit your emotional, material, physical and spiritual goals.

So if you’ve been away from the mat let’s begin again this Fall without apology.

STEP 1:  REFLECT

Express gratitude for all you’ve learned up to this point. Every event of this year has offered us lessons.  So whether we’ve had a challenging 8 months or not we can all grow from these experiences. Then say thank you, let it go and say good bye to what is past.  It’s like cleaning the closet we have to make room for what comes next.  This will help us stop being a prisoner of our past.

Instead let’s become architects of our future!

STEP 2:  FALL VISION

Carl Jung once said that ‘your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. 

Who looks outside: dreams;

Who looks inside: awakens.

REMEMBER:  YOUR I CAN IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOUR IQ.

Exercise your mind muscle by saying I CAN.  Don’t accept no or maybe.  Take back your thoughts and own your life. Winston Churchill speaks to this when he said ‘the price of greatness is responsibility over each of our thoughts.”  I believe you can do this!

So take time on the mat to get clear about who you want to be and what you want your life to feel like.  Through this practice you can awaken to your highest potential!  Or as Pantanjali in the Yoga Sutras writes:  “When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all of your thoughts break their bonds; your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction and you find yourself in a new, great and wonderful world.  Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive and you discover yourself to be a greater person than you ever dreamed yourself to be.” 

LIFE ON PURPOSE - A LIFE OF PURPOSE

SEPTEMBER 5TH, 2008: By coming to class today you made a choice, you did something on PURPOSE – what does that mean to you?  And the bigger question is WHY did you make this choice? 

How do you figure out the WHY?  In other words, how do we know our own minds?  An easy answer is to sit in meditation and find out. There is power in silence and stillness.  This reminds us that our minds can hold only one thought at a time.  My Father liked to show slides for fun on a Saturday night at our house so we still to this day have multiple old fashion slide projectors.  They are brilliant!  What I like most is that they can only show one slide at a time.  In these days of picture in picture, scrolling news and 5 things going on in the same screen this is pretty refreshing.  Now think of your mind as a giant slide projector with every thought in your mind being a slide. Whenever a negative slide comes up on the screen, take immediate action to replace it with a positive one.  DO THIS ON PURPOSE.

“Self knowledge is the stepping stone to self mastery.” Buddhist philosophy

In practice we have the opportunity to learn about ourselves and really do things ON PURPOSE.  So we step forward on purpose, breath on purpose, think on purpose (how many times do you let gloomy thoughts enter? Replace them with cheerful thoughts).  Ask yourself right now why are you breathing the way you are?  What insights are you gaining?

Robin Sharma writes, “People who study others are wise but those who study themselves are enlightened.  Those we are truly enlightened know what they want out of life, emotionally, materially, physically and spiritually.  Clearly defined priorities and goals for every aspect of your life gives you direction.  Lasting happiness comes from steadily working to accomplish your goals and advancing confidently in the direction of your life’s purpose. So may you all use this practice to discover your purpose, Dharma, and work towards it! Take to heart the words of Playwright George Bernard Shaw

“Life is no brief candle for me. It is a sort of splendid

Torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want

To make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it

On to future generations.” 

REMEMBER:  THE PURPOSE OF LIFE IS A LIFE OF PURPOSE 

BOOK RECOMMENDATION FOR YOU

SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2008:  Last week I was reading Robin Sharma's "The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari" and really enjoyed it, especially the 10 Rituals of Daily Living.  I have always believed in the importance of rituals.  I love them! We even have rituals in our yoga (how we set ourselves up in poses, where we put our mat in the room, when we take sips of water). 

WEEDING THE GARDEN OF OUR MIND

SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2008:

CORE STRENGTH - WHY ARE WE AFRAID OF THIS?

SEPTEMBER 2ND, 2008:  So funny how most of us react when we hear or see the word "core" isn't it?  Believe me until I understood the difference between ab strength and core work I had an automatic "oh no not that stuff" response.  I even perfected the I have to take a drink of water, go to the bathroom routine in traditional fitness classes when it came up.  To be honest ab crunches were never a favorite of mine and what kept me coming back to yoga especially in the first few years was the fact no traditional sit ups were performed.  I have now befriended the traditional sit-up and although we are not best friends we are friendly enough.  How did this dramatic turn around happen?  Well two things: (1) I learned that ab and core were not the same and that ALL of yoga is core centric and (2) I bought Shiva Rea's Ab DVD which was fun and because of this the struggle melted away.  So here below is the handout from the 6:15pm class this day.  May you too educate yourself on the difference between core and abs and hopefully you too will find the playfulness even in ab stuff.  Take the risk, find out! Peace, Silvia 

Yoga for Core Strength

Definition:  

"Core strength" is an often-misused term. Core strength and abdominal strength are not the same. One could have very strong abdominals but have no sense of core or inner stability. If we think of abdominal strength and core  energy as one, we risk missing the importance of a true center or core. Abdominal strength is useful and important but core strength signifies a healthy 3rd chakra and confidence in life decisions.  A strong core is linked to healthy emotional and spiritual balance beyond just the physical.

The core, says senior Anusara teacher Desirée Rumbaugh, "is what supports us spiritually in our lives, and physically in our yoga practice. If our core is weak, the ups and downs of life are much harder to take. A strong core makes us more resilient."

Core Strengthening Poses:

·         Pelvic Tilts:  From Bridge Pose and Cat/Puppy

o        How?  Simply lengthen your tailbone to lift your sacrum off the ground while keeping your lower back connected to the earth. If you do this 5 to 20 times slowly with your breath—lift as you inhale, and lower as you exhale—you will feel the benefits of strengthening your lower belly, lengthening your spine, and learning to connect the front and back of your core.

·         Gentle Backbends:  Locust, Cobra, Bridge with block

·         Warrior Poses: Low Lunge preparation with block, High Lunge, Warrior A, Warrior B

·         Twists:   Ardha Matsyendrasana, Side Angle Pose 

·         Stabilizers:  Plank, Dolphin, Dolphin Plank, Down Dog

·         1 Leg Balance Poses:  Crane, Warrior C, Eagle

"If we don't know how to get centered in our core, we're basically doormats for whoever's a stronger personality, we become susceptible to anyone who wants to push us off balance, whether it's a controlling mother or a boss that controls by fear."  - Ana Forrest, founder Forrest Yoga

HOLIDAY BLOG TIME OFF

September 1st, 2008:  I'm back! The blogging begins again.  I was on holiday Aug 27-31 in Ixtapa, Mexico. Missed you all!