Garuḍāsana - Part One

Garuḍāsana is a challenging and beautiful pose.  In its best form it embodies the paradox of effort and the ease of surrender.  It provides us with an opportunity to practice noticing and accessing the flow of energy created in our body as we stand, twist, and balance.   It can increase our physical strength and improve our poise while co-creating an emotional balance.  It facilitates the joining of our body, breath, and mind at that sweet spot between effort and ease where we can spread our wings and ride the wind – on and off the mat.  “The large birds of prey – the falcon and the eagle – who soar so majestically achieve this mastery in flight by surrendering to the currents of the air, with only a few movements of their wings.” [1]  

“Garuda, though often translated as “eagle,” is actually a mythical bird. . . a magical species who are often described as ‘outrageous’ because of their extraordinary ability to fly and fly and fly …and never land.  They never have to land because they never get tired.  And they never get tired because they ride the wind.” [2]

Phonetic pronunciation:  guh-ru*-dah-suh-nuh  *u as in “put” [3]

garuḍa = Eagle (mythical bird)

āsana = Pose

Execution of the Pose [4]

·         From tadāsana (mountain pose) find a focus point (drishti) somewhere in front of you.  Keep your gaze fixed on this spot throughout the posture.

·         Shift your weight to the right leg.  Step the left leg out (abduct) slightly to the left side, and keep your toes on the ground.

·         Inhale to create space in the spine and keep the pelvis square.

·         Bring your hands to your hips, and roll your shoulders open as you exhale and bend both knees. 

·         Be sure that your body weight falls straight down from the spine and that your knees do not extend out beyond your feet. 

·         Flex your hips as if you were going to sit in a chair.

·         Lift your left foot off the ground, and cross your left knee over your right leg above the right knee, keeping both knees bent.

·         If possible, hook your left foot behind your right calf.

·         Keep your tailbone extended toward the floor and your ribcage and chest

     lifted and open.

·         With every breath in, reach the crown of the head upward.

·         Maintain length in the entire spine from the low back to the neck.

·         Keep your body weight balanced with your hips reaching back and your spine perpendicular to the floor.

·         Inhale and stretch your arms apart out to your sides.

·         Exhale and cross your arms in front of your chest by moving your right arm over your left arm above the elbows.

·         then bend your elbows so the backs of your hands come together in front of your face. 

·         If you can, comfortably, press your palms together, essentially wrapping your arms.

·         Bring your hands in line with your gaze.

·         Continue to focus on your breath – the smoother and steadier the breath, the steadier the balance.

·         Breathe into the space between your shoulder blades, feeling your shoulder blades move away from each other with each inhalation. 

·         Be sure to drop your shoulders away from your ears.

·         To exist the posture, inhale and slowly unwind your arms.

·         Uncross the left leg and place the foot on the floor.

·         Inhale and straighten the right leg.

·         Prepare to reverse the order for the other side by returning to tadāsana.

Benefits

·         Loosens and strengthens ankles and hips

·         Loosens wrists and shoulders

·         Releases tightness between shoulder blades and across sacrum

·         Cultivates confidence through balance

·         Improves concentration

·         Strengthens legs

Cautions

·         Ankle injury

·         Shoulder injury

·         Hip Replacements

·         Students with knee injuries should avoid this pose, or perform only the leg position described in the Beginner's Tip below.

Beginner’s Tip [5]

Beginners often find it difficult to wrap the arms around until the palms touch. Stretch your arms straight forward, parallel to the floor, while holding onto the ends of a strap. Follow the rest of the instructions stated in step 2 above and keep the strap taut between your hands.

Beginners also find it difficult to hook the raised-leg foot behind the standing-leg calf, and then balance on the standing foot. As a short-term option cross the legs but, instead of hooking the raised foot and calf, press the big toe of the raised-leg foot against the floor to help maintain your balance.

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[1] Swami Sivananda Radha, Hatha Yoga, The Hidden Language, (Timeless Books, 2007), p. 181.

[2]  Cyndi Lee, Basics – Eagle Pose (Yoga Journal, March, 2011).

[3] Stick figure instructions, pronunciation and translation provided by Mikelle Terson, Asana Learning Deck, http://www.yogablossom.com/

[4] Kathy Lee Kappmeier and Diane M Ambrosini, Instructing Hatha Yoga, (Human Kinetics, 2006), p. 95.

[5] http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/785

Transformation Through Love - The Practice of Bhakti Yoga

Just as a flower gives out its fragrance to whomsoever approaches or uses it,

so love from within us radiates toward everybody

and manifests as spontaneous service.

~ Swami Ramdas

Bhakti Yoga is a type of yoga described in the ancient yogic texts. It means “an intense love for God” and is often called the yoga of devotion. In the practices of Yoga, the term “God” is the God of your faith, whatever and whomever that may be. As we all travel toward the nation’s day of Thanksgiving, it is the perfect time to stop, breathe, and find some ways to practice love for God. One of the simplest ways to come to an understanding of bhakti yoga is through self love and care and through a devotional attitude of treating others the way we would like to be treated.

Some ways to practice Bhakti Yoga: Prayer; Chanting; Contemplation; Reciting mantras, sacred texts, or verses from the bible; and Song. Bhatki yoga can also manifest in community participation and service through devotion to others.

Of these practices, maybe we are all most familiar with Prayer: “Prayer is a simple but very effective way to connect with the Divine. Swami Rama said there are two kinds of prayer: ego-centered prayer and genuine prayer. In ego-centered prayer we approach God to petition for favors. Genuine prayer, on the other hand, comes from within.

“In this inner sacred prayer, Swamiji said, we do not pray to an external divine principle, ‘but to the highest principle within ourselves --- not for any external favors or gifts but rather only for the strength to face and resolve with serenity all of the many problems that fill our lives. Such prayers, which are completely selfless and pure, are always answered.’

“Genuine prayer includes gratitude. As Meister Eckhart said, ‘If the only prayer you say in your entire life is ‘Thank you,’ that would suffice.’ Upon waking up before you get out of bed, give thanks for a new day and for all you have --- even the simplest things, like clean water, sunlight, laughter.”

“The timeless path of divine love is as alive and relevant today as it was in the days of the ancient sages. Through this path, we can transform our everyday life from the mundane to the sacred, from the trivial to the profound. But cultivating the principles of love, compassion, gratitude, surrender, and selfless service, we can prepare our hearts and minds to receive the grace of unconditional love and wisdom. Then we become the instruments of the Divine, and everything we do is an expression of love and devotion. Our lives become a joyful celebration.”

On Thanksgiving Day, consider this bhatki yoga practice for making your day a day full with prayers of every kind: Begin the day with gentle love, care, and attention for yourself; then, extend that love to your family and friends and you will have practiced devotion to God. Spend the day in celebration and Thanksgiving for our abundance of blessings mixed in with our sorrow and hardships. Sing, read scripture, create the altar of the Thanksgiving feast table, tell stories, share poetry, hug each other, laugh, listen carefully, enjoy being together. End the day with your prayer of gratitude.

Safe travels and much love to you all,
Jonie
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Inspiration for my thoughts and the quotes included here are from my own contemplation on the upcoming holidays and the timely article in Yoga International magazine's Winter 2010-11 issue (on newsstands), Yoga of the Heart, Transformation through Love, by Irene Petryszak. Namaste.

Unfolding

I want to unfold.
Let no place in me hold itself closed,
for where I am closed, I am false.
~ Ranier Maria Rilke

When I want to get better at life, I practice Yoga.

I recently took the Gallup Organization’s Strengthfinder test, a free offering with the book Now, Discover Your Strengths, by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton. It is interesting that one of my five greatest strengths is Intellection: “You like mental activity. You like exercising the ‘muscles’ of your brain, stretching them in multiple directions.” I then look curiously at that label in correlation with the focus of my current Yoga practice. Right now, my practice (and, my struggle) is getting out of my head (and, out of my bed at 4:30 a.m.) daily and really tapping into the physical body.

It is so easy for me to pick up a book and read, think, muse and use that information to make sense and applications in the labyrinth of the world we live in. It comes less natural, at this point in my life, to set aside time for physical practice. Part of that natural selection results from the last several decades of mind training with de-emphasis on body concentration. It’s easier and simpler to stay with the known strength.

Yet, sometimes, all of that focused and habitual practice may risk overshadowing and weakening parts of us that are equally important fibers at the core of our true nature. What seems to come naturally might be the result of habits and training over the course of a lifetime and driven by outer circumstances and influences rather than our heart’s great longings meeting up with the world’s great needs [1] in ways that can be sometimes effortless and a little magical. Some of our habits, training, and practices are all part of the practical considerations of living in the real world; and, it is also a great relief to know that if what seems to be naturally available to us is strictly a result of habit and training, then we are offered a window for adjustment and change. There is the opportunity to retrain, to unfold some more, and to develop existing, new, or different habits, talents, and strengths.

So, as though it was a pre-ordained part of the greater plan for my Yoga path of learning, I stumbled into an Ashtanga yoga class. Ashtanga yoga systemizes the physical practice of yoga into set sequences so a practitioner can memorize the sets and then practice without wondering which pose to take up next. That, for a person with the strength of intellection, is, for now, a great gift that balances the physical and intellectual natures. Ashtanga yoga is also a very strong physical practice, intense enough and requiring enough focus that the mind doesn’t have a lot of room to be engaged with intellectual curiosities when the body is in the midst of its practice.

The different styles of yoga offer different approaches and different ways to focus our attention and no one style of yoga is the “right” style of yoga. Each type of practice, when based on the traditional practices and teachings of Yoga, is part of the great patchwork quilt of Yoga practices developed within the larger Yoga community and are each interlaced with principles, advice, guidance, and methodical physical and spiritual practices, all carefully designed with the laboratory of our lives in mind. We are all scientists specializing in the observation and careful experimentation of our individual self in relation to the larger universe of life. Yoga is the melting pot for the best of all religions and all spiritual practices, not to even mention the best of all physical, breathing, and mind training practices. It is full of possibilities for all of us. And, the variety simply affirms the great beauty of Yoga as a set of practices that support each indivdual's personal journey. The style you choose depends on who you are and where you are at any moment in time. [2]

My beginning into the focused study and practice of Yoga, and my training ground for RYT 200, was through the system of Hatha Yoga as taught by Swami Rama of the Himalayas (Himalayan Institute, Honesdale, PA). When I began my focused practice of Yoga in 2007, the Himalayan Institute’s (HI) method and approach to practice nurtured me and provided sanctuary for turning inward; and, it weaved my intellection seamlessly with a strong and flexible physical practice that converged with meditation practices, contemplation practices, and self-knowledge and understanding as the ultimate goal. All of these practices helped bring me back to center and begin a new process in the evolution of self discovery. The HI training laid a strong foundation for a lifetime of Yoga practice. And, even as I experiment with Ashtanga, my practice is infused with and I continue to grow in the teachings from my Himalayan Institute education. These two approaches to Yoga practice have similarities in their family tree and marry well.

Each style of the physical practice of yoga asanas should, somewhere along the way, lead us back to the practices of Yoga where body, mind, breath, and spirit yoke or unite in a way that gives us a sense of equanimity. In both Ashtanga yoga and Hatha yoga as taught by Swami Rama of the Himalayas, the physical asana practice is one piece of the eight pieces that make up the whole Yoga pie. The other seven pieces of the pie are supported by our physical practice; and, vice versa, our physical practice is supported by all the other practices. It is these Eight Limbs of Yoga [3] which provide us with methods and practices that can touch all parts of our life and provide us with practical and methodical ways for learning about our self and our world and learning to navigate the complexities of life. Yoga practice is a tried and true method for unfolding.

When I engage in the methodical physical practices of yoga asana, pranayama, and meditation, my body, breath, mind, and spirit begin to unfold. These direct physical practices then foster and support the unfolding of practices off the mat and cushion, outside the ashram called home, and right in the middle of the mess of life: relationships, engagement with the world, unresolved conflicts, pain, joy, sorrow, peace, anger, love; crashing down of the soul and soaring high again; the mind unfolds; the spirit unfolds; the soul opens up. Everything. Everything unfolds effortlessly through the effort of a committed practice.

Enjoy your daily practice, whatever that may be, and the unfolding it can bring.
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Because “No man is an island, entire of itself”: [4]
Thank you to my teacher and friend, Akasha Ellis whose Ashtanga Yoga classes are making my body stronger; for his Kundalini Yoga teachings and practices that are helping me tap into another dimension of Prana; for his committed early morning sadhanas he offers the yoga community; and Mysore. Each nurtures my personal practice and supports my unfolding. You are so real and, clearly, beloved by so many. Lots of love.

[1] This concept comes from Parker J. Palmer’s book, The Courage to Teach, quoting Frederick Buechner’s image of vocation as “the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” In our home, our ashram, we often refer to vocation as the heart’s great longing and the world’s great need.

[2] Article that outlines a plethora of different style of yoga practice: http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/165/

[3] In Patanjali's Yoga Sutra, the eightfold path is called ashtanga, which literally means "eight limbs" (ashta=eight, anga=limb). These eight steps basically act as guidelines on how to live a meaningful and purposeful life. They serve as a prescription for moral and ethical conduct and self-discipline; they direct attention toward one's health; and they help us to acknowledge the spiritual aspects of our nature. http://www.yogajournal.com/basics/158

[4] John Donne's Devotions, 1624.

Blog Spice

Svādhyāya is the concept of self-study. Studying the Infinite that dwells within the finiteness of the individual self. [1]

As I studied this week, not so much for myself as to share information with others in the form of teaching, the study found me reading this passage which, in turn, generated curiosity about my approach in this blog:

“[I]t is in fact dishonest to reduce yoga to some sort of physical training . . .; it is a “world view,” a Weltanschauung [2] that comprehends reality in its totality --- material as well as spiritual --- and provides the foundation for certain practices” intended to enable the individual who commits to the practices of Yoga to assimilate and integrate totally into the reality of the world we live in, and to possibly transcend it. “As for the gymnastic part of it, that is just one prescribed practice among many; the most picturesque, admittedly, but not the most important.” [3]

And so, my studies turned back to the self. It’s been a very safe practice, with this blog, staying with the physical āsanas and using them, from time to time, to flirt with the possibilities that can happen beyond the physical pose. Today the path leads me back to my training and the training of all teachers in the lineage of Yoga tradition: The best teaching comes from your own experience and your own practice. We are all reminded of this through the living breathing words of yoga master and guru, Sri K. Pattabhi Jois that have echoed in our ears since his death last year: "Practice, practice, and all is coming."

The blog will begin to have a peppering of notes and reflections from my own practices. Less safe. More real. The notes will not propose to tell you what you should do with your life or with your Yoga practice because it is enough for me to find my own answers; and, I have great confidence in the teachings of Yoga that encourage each of us to take the practices and make them our own by using our individual life as the great experiment, finding how the practices fit and work uniquely for each of us, and how they assimilate for us into the larger world community. If my notes and reflections affirm, support, aid in your own svādhyāya, or otherwise give you fodder for your life experiment, then Namasté!!

So, these new pepperings, a little bit of blog spice, makes the blog, as a whole, more participatory in the cybersatsanga. Satsanga can be loosely interpreted as our “hanging out together” and sharing conversation and insights to support each other as we travel along this fascinating, interesting, and seemingly endless path called Yoga.

It really is all practice. Your comments are welcome.
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Because "no man is an island, entire of itself": [4]

Thank you to my newfound co-practitioner, colleague, student, teacher, and friend, Dr. Mark Richard McClish, who turned me on to new texts that have me steeped in svādhyāya; and, whose company and conversations during our satsanga lunches are a beautiful gift that spur my mind and my practice.

Thank you to my life partner, guru, and friend, Dr. John David Tatter, who loves watching me grow and has nurtured that growth in so many ways, too many to name. And, thanks for all the literal spices in all the beautiful food you lovingly prepare in our home because you love the art and process of food coming to the table and you love preparing it for our table; and, thank you for doing it because I'm too busy growing to cook. I love you; I love your love; and, I love your food!

[1] As defined within the Himalayan Institute Teacher Association’s training program: Self-study is the study of the Self, the Infinite dwelling in the finite. Through mantra repetition, a teacher’s words, and reading, Self-study inspires us to the Self.

[2] A worldview describes a consistent (to a varying degree) and integral sense of existence and provides a framework for generating, sustaining, and applying knowledge. . . . One of the most important concepts in cognitive philosophy and cognitive sciences is the German concept of Weltanschauung. This expression refers to the "wide worldview" or "wide world perception" of a people, family, or person. The Weltanschauung of a people originates from the unique world experience of a people, which they experience over several millennia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_view

[3] Yoga and the Hindu Tradition, Preface, Jean Varenne.

[4] John Donne's Devotions, 1624.

vīrabhadrāsana I – part one

Do you have the patience to wait
till your mud settles and the water is clear?
Can you remain unmoving
till the right action arises by itself?
~Tao Te Ching [1]

vīrabhadrāsana I (warrior I pose) and other warrior poses present wonderful opportunities for us to incorporate “static” practice into our daily yoga.

“There are two ways of practicing an āsana. The dynamic practice repeats the movement into the āsana and out again in rhythm with the breath. In static practice we move into and out of the pose in the same way as with the dynamic practice, but instead of staying in continual movement with the breath, we hold the pose for a certain number of breath cycles, directing our attention toward the breath, certain areas of the body, or both, depending on the goals we have for performing that particular āsana. Dynamic movements allow the body to get used to the position gently and gradually.” [2] Then, when your body is warm, you can practice static poses for strength, stability, and focus.

Complete several rounds of sūrya namaskāra (sun salutation) as a dynamic prelude to practicing vīrabhadrāsana I. As you come into vīrabhadrāsana I, notice your body and your breath, adjust to find a strong and steady stance, soften your gaze (drishti), hold the pose, and breathe. Be the warrior waiting, steady, ready, and unmoving as you wait for the mud to settle, the water to clear, and the right action to arise of itself….

Phonetic pronunciation: veer-rah-buh-drah-suh-nuh [3]

vīrabhadrā = Name of a fierce mythical warrior
āsana = Pose

Execution of the Pose [4]
• From tadāsana, step your left foot back 4 to 4 ½ feet or 1 ½ times the length of one of your legs;
• Turn the left foot 45° forward/in;
• The heel of the right foot should be in line with the heel of the left foot;
• Bend the right knee so your leg is at 90° angle and the knee is directly over your ankle;
• Inhale bringing both arms forward, up, and overhead (next to the ears) with palms facing each other;
• Keep the shoulders relaxed;
• Lengthen the spine by lifting from the floor of the pelvis;
• Engage the lower abdominal muscles;
• Press into the outer edge of the back foot, keeping the arch active and the inner left thigh muscles firm and lifted;
• The back foot is straight and actively engaged;
• Continue to lengthen upward through the spine, and keep the chest lifted and open;
• Find your drishti and maintain your relaxed gaze and your relaxed deep, quiet, smooth breath for 30 seconds to 1 minute, or longer….
• Added option: When you are ready lift the toes of both feet and drop the midline of the body lower --- this action stabilizes the ankles and the knees even more by strengthening the muscles around them, giving added focus to correcting the alignment of these joints;
• To exit, simply straighten the front leg as you step the back leg forward, lowering the arms, into tadāsana;
• Repeat on the other side.

Benefits
• Strengthens the muscles of the feet and knees
• Stabilizes the knee and ankle joints
• Stretches the hip flexors and calf muscles
• Improves balance and concentration
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[1] Translation by Stephen Mitchell, Verse 15.

[2] T.K.V. Desikachar, The Heart of Yoga, Developing a Personal Practice (Inner Traditions International, 1995), p. 29.

[3] Stick figure instructions, pronunciation and translation provided by Mikelle Terson, Asana Learning Deck, http://www.yogablossom.com/

[4] Combined, summarized, and slightly modified from my own personal practice: Sandy Blaine, Yoga For Healthy Knees (Rodmell Press), pp. 55-56 and Olivia H. Miller, Essential Yoga, an Illustrated Guide to Over 100 Yoga Poses and Meditations (Chronicle Books, 2003), p. 64.