Sweet Vinyasa: Intimacy with what is. 10.22.12

Inspired by our upcoming Crib event, the theme today was intimacy. We nourished ourselves with the feeling tones of willingness and wonder, and tried to loosen our grip on what we "know".

We endeavored to touch Freedom as taught by Ravi Ravindra "freedom not for ourselves, but freedom from ourselves", and playing to find our centers as THE center.

windshield wiper

supine side waist stretch

eye of the needle with hip rotation play
twisted root
other side

supine gratitude meditation
OM for abundance

supported reclining Buddha over bolster

sukasana

malasana
cowboy negociation with heart opener

uttanasana with hamstring stretch
tadasana

shoulder shrugs and rolls
uttansana variation

lunge salutes with blanket support

downdog
plank
baby cobra
locust locust variation

downdog
lunge
warrior I
pyramid
warrior III
pigeon
three leg dog
other side

balasana

windshield wiper

savasana

sit
OM
Namaste

Sweet Vinyasa: Holy Waters Within. 10.15.2012

We've been playing in the manipura and using practices to notice, feel, and connect to the jewels within. Riffing off this, there is a particularly striking example of tuning to the magnificence within in the Darshana Upanishad 4.53 (as brought to me by Ravi in his book 'the Spiritual Roots of Yoga', p. 55). We used this verse as the inspiration for the class today and used the swadisthana as our main area of focus:

"the tirthas of your body
infinitely surpass those of the world,
and the tirtha-of-the-soul is the greatest of them:
the others are nothing beside it."

windshield wiper
supine pada gustasana and twist with strap

easy side plank

cat/cow
balasana

balasana variation

plank
downdog play
uttanasana
uttithatadasana
tadasana
VAM

lunge
twisted lunge
hammock
low crescent
other side
vinyasa with baby cobra, locust, and locust variation

crocodile

all fours pelvis rotation

plank
downdog

lunge
hammock
exhalted warrior
warrior II
trikonasana
pigeon
three leg dog with revolved dog option
other side

vinyasa with locust and locust varation

supine windshield wiper

bridge
heart meditation

twisted root

savasana

sit
OM
Namaste

Sweet Vinyasa: Practicing Surrender: 10.8.12

In my recent practice of surrender and closer looking I have come to love Ojai and Lulu Bandhas more than ever. And I'm learning to enjoy my life for real.

windshield wiper

cosmic rest with gratitude meditation

eye of the needle with internal and external rotation

happy baby
supine wide angle stretch

cat/cow

easy side plank

balasana with earth offering
OM

plank

downdog play

uttanasana
uttithatadasana
tadasana

YAM

lunge
warrior I
pyramid
lunge
three leg dog
plank
sphinx
downdog
other side with baby cobra and locust

downdog
uttanasana
gorilla
uttithatadasana

shoulder shrugs
shoulder rotation
standing neck stretches

tadasana
LAM

lunge
warrior I
eagle arms
eagle
warrior III
standing splits
pigeon
vinyasa with locust variation
other side

supine
happy baby

twisted root

savasana

sit
OM
namaste