There will be no class on Christmas Day 25th Dec 2011. We resume on Boxing Day 26th Dec 2011.
Have a wonderful Christmas everyone!
Namaste!
Michelle
Sent by DiGi from my BlackBerry® Smartphone
http://nirmayayoga.blogspot.com/
( Tops will run about 250- 280, pants will run you up from 370-400, depending on design after shipping charges and tax, will quote upon placing of order) The pants will last you about 5 years easy, so do the tops while still looking new.
http://shop.lululemon. com/products/clothes- accessories/women-tanks/Spin- Me-Tank-80050?cc=6467&skuId= 3417322&catId=women-tanks
http://shop.lululemon. com/products/clothes- accessories/women-tanks/Scoop- Neck-Tank-30792?cc=9525&skuId= 3431799&catId=women-tanks
I am thinking of bringing in on a trial basis some Lululemon Athletica(company based on Canada) yoga wear to be housed in Nirmaya Yoga. Please have a look and if you'd like to order any tank/pants, please let me know, I will get back to you on a price quote.
Lululemon has been a super all time personal favourite of mine, they make yoga wear and also running apparel. I purchase mostly their yoga wear, I have their deep breath tank, and 2 signature groove pants. The last groove pants I had was given to me in early 2008, and guess what, it still looks new today, just like the day I got it, even with usage up till 3 times a week the least, I wear it to teach classes. It's also reversible and has a different pattern on the each side. Isn't that amazing flexibility? I love the deep breath tank as it is unlike Nike or Fila or Adidas designs who have sports people in mind, Lululemon caters to yoga instructors and yoga students alike. I always get asked what I'm wearing when I sport the deep breath tank, even by a body pump female instructor. I would like to bring Lululemon to Nirmayans, if the response is good.
Lululemon tank tops can leave you a dent of RM250-RM280 in your wallet, but trust me, their performance is of amazing measures. I have washed my deep breath tank top like a gazillion times, and it doesn't shrink, doesn't fade and stays in shape, and I'll let you in on a little secret, LUON material(signature material of Lululemon) doesn't stink after a sweaty class. You can even go about your groceries after without worrying. I say it's an investment worth putting your sweat into.
Lululemon pants can run you up to about RM370-RM400 depending on exchange rate. But these pants are good for 5 years. So that's RM74 a year, or RM6.20 a month for a pair of pants which hides the tummy, tucks and lifts your derrière and makes your legs look toned and amazing. Trust me, Lululemon pants is my go to pants when I want to make sure I look good. Did you know they even look good for outings? Canadians and Americans alike(where this brand is huge over there), they will buy and wear Lululemon to work because it's soooo comfortable yet form fitting, hugs all the right curves and pulls everything upwards without constricting you. I swear by it.
My favourite tanks are deep breath tank, embrace tank, full eagle tank, deep v tank, whisper tank and scoop neck tank....Which are yours? Let me know... :)
I would like to again encourage all of you to have your own mats, due to hygiene issues. For a limited time, I'm have 4 new mats for sale at Nirmaya for a special price of RM65. It's a standard mat, non waxy with good enough traction, boasting 6mm thickness, just nice for Nirmaya Yoga practice. It comes in a few shades of green and one grey.
Otherwise if sold out, you would need to get a standard mat from Fitness Concept(the grey colour one is a very good one) from either Gurney or Queensbay's outlet. That retails for RM69.
Please message me if you'd like to reserve to buy one of the mats from Nirmaya and this applies to a first come, first serve basis.
Namaste!
Buy now, don't wait till the time runs out!
Looking forward to having new faces at Nirmaya Yoga. :)
Love and Light,
Michelle
He is very excited to share with us, his flying experience and to show you what it's like to fly. It is an informal way of cultivating the love and interest in Acroyoga while spending time with your fellow Nirmayans. Let your 10th Sept morning be the day you want to wake up for and wake up to, there's no better way to enjoy your Saturday morning than fly! How many people can say that about their mornings? :) We estimate the jam will run about 2 to 2.5 hours, starting at 8am.
All we ask from you is your Saturday morning, for you to be open to new possibilities and a suggested donation of RM50 per person. If you have non-Nirmayans interested to attend this jam session, the suggested donation is RM60. RSVP required.
Namaste,
Michelle
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'ChelleQ
As you all know, parking is first come first serve basis, and is limited to about 8- 9 cars maximum which come in first. So I would encourage the most of you to carpool or even take turns to carpool.
However, in the event that the parking in the compound is full already, please proceed to the corner house along Cheeseman Road, which is 2 Cheeseman Road, also Nirmaya yoga property, and park on the grass, or in front of the gate also is fine, so no worries. It's the house with 2 brown gates. The other option is to drive a little further down Kennedy Road, take a first left turn into Phillips road, where there is a roundabout playground open grassy area, feel free to park there, and walk a little to Nirmaya Yoga, a little pre-warm up before class. Try to refrain against parking along Kennedy Road, as this might provoke complaints from the neighbours, and cause unnecessary friction. Thank you for your understanding. :)
Lastly, do try your best to come on time for the classes. I am willing to wait about 5-8mins for late comers, however if any later, it would be slightly unfair to others already there, we all want maximum practice time, don't we? :)
See you all in class! :)
Warm regards and Namaste,
Michelle Quah
Sent by DiGi from my BlackBerry® Smartphone
This 24th n 25th July 2011, I will be away at University. No classes will be conducted on these dates. Replacement classes to follow.
To those who have purchased vouchers from ILD website, please make ring/text/email me before you drop in for class so I may prepare necessary items.
Thank you and Namaste!
Sent by DiGi from my BlackBerry® Smartphone
Dear Yogis everywhere and Nirmayan Yogis, we are on I Love Discounts for the latest promotion by Nirmaya Yoga.
Have a great week ahead.
Pls call me at 0164911685 to confirm your attendance for class, those who have bought the vouchers from I Love Discounts! website.
Love n Light,
Michelle Q
Today we will learn the secrets to flight, including your lifting gear and your landing gear when practicing the sun salutions in Ashtanga inspired yoga.
I hope today's lesson will be beneficial to all and bring more light towards this myth of 'I'm too heavy, or I'm not strong enough' to fly.
Fly high.
I currently offer 4 classes in a week, you are free to pick and choose any day you would like to attend, according to your package.
You will now be able to choose between these 2 packages:
1. RM75 a month per person (RM150, payable for 2 months) - entitles you to choose a maximum of any 2 classes in the week.
2. RM85 a month per person (RM170, payable for 2 months) - entitles you to choose a minimum of any 3 and above classes in a week.
If at any point, if you do decide to drop in for an extra lesson, other than your package, pertaining to package 1, which you might want to make, it will cost you a nominal fee of RM10.
If you want to bring a friend to try, newbie drop in rate is RM15. mat(s) will be provided.
I will not restrict the days you choose, for example, if you buy package 1 which entitles you to any 2 days in a week, and say week 1, you choose Monday and Saturday, but unable to make those days for week 2, feel free to pick Thursday and Sunday. I'm giving you the flexibility of choice here. Just for info, I'm counting Monday to Sunday as 1 calender week.
The revised class schedule is such:
Monday & Thursday - 7.15pm
Saturday - 9am
Sunday - 5.15pm
Also, if you'd like a copy of a receipt of your payment, pls let me know, I would be more than happy to help you out.
I hope this new structure fits everyone better.
Namaste!
Michelle
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Yoga Trance Dance
Friday 20/5/2011 (8-930pm) @ RM45/session Created by Shiva Rea, this is experience in the mat-less universe using music as a guide. We move thru space effortlessly - rolling, spiralling & flowing as one & opening to Yoga in a new way. No experience in ance necessary as we are all born knowing how to move. Lasya Tandava workshop Experience Lasya (softness) & Tandava (power) in Flow Yoga. Taking time to align with a deeper awareness in our body as we soften & open, expand & empower, creating correct foundations so we can melt into the moment & flow down the river of asana bliss! Lasya: The gentle & graceful movements of Lasya with its feminine & fluid energy represent the soft & tender aspects of existence. Tandava: The vigorous & powerful movements of Tandava symbolise the cosmic cycles of creation & destruction, as well as the daily rhythms of birth & death. During this workshop we explore the many layers and elements which make Yoga whole, from standing in Tadasna/ Mountain pose, which enables us to feel space and lengthening in the spine to inverting the body and standing on our hands with a calm and clear mind. Students are encouraged to draw upon their own life experiences and work with their own softness and power during this workshop. Register & pay before 15 May 2011 Both Trance Dance & WOrkshop at RM130 |
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As of June 2011, there will be a restructure of classes and fees, please stay tuned.
Namaste,
Michelle Q
Sent by DiGi from my BlackBerry® Smartphone
A student of mine, Ernest, asked me what is the real purpose we do yoga? I asked him if he wanted the yoga truth or superficial answers. So I ended up telling him that yoga is actually teaching us the art of dying. Wait, let me reassure those of you reading not to navigate away from this blog just yet. It’s not morbid. Yoga is not morbid, in fact yoga teaches us how to live, so we can die in the most graceful way. A dying person will fight, fighting what is certain and imminent, yet a dying yogi would be meditating on AUM, which would be most appropriate, it is said that the atma(soul) will merge with pure consciousness and not be reborn. Yoga teaches us to live in the moment, as the saying goes, the present is a gift. We live life often not to the fullest, but yoga teaches us to be in totality with the moment itself, to be fully conscious of the moment, and not seek out anything more. I mean sure, yoga won’t make you a rich man, but yoga will give you the greatest wealth of spirituality. We suffer from creating attachments, and we are attached to attachments, we don’t know how to live without them, and yet everybody says they want to be happy, this is not possible. What makes us happy, equally makes us sad, have you ever noticed? Because it is an exterior stimuli, thus anything exterior is “not real” and therefore can be taken away. Everybody is so afraid with death, but death is always with us, it is within our breath, the moment we were born, death was also part of it. Birth and death are no two separate things, if you notice the pauses between the breath, there is a calm, dead, quiet silence, where you “die” for a second or so, where there is no breath in the body, and we are merged with our higher self. Each breath we take is a risk, we actually don’t know if the breath will come back each time we exhale. Life ends with an exhale, and begins with an inhale. So death is within us, not something exterior. It is said in the yoga scriptures, that everyone is born with a predetermined number of breaths in this lifetime, and so not to exhaust that number too quickly, we slow down our breath, pray, we may live longer on earth.
A wise old woman once told me that the relaxed state is the most beautiful state of all, but do not let these words imprint the thought of wanting to be beautiful, that is not the focus. The most relaxed state brings out the most natural side of us, and what is organic, is at in its purest form. I have a friend who always is uptight, and very edgy. But one day, I was fortunate enough to catch this friend of mine at the reflexology centre and had his head laid back on the comfy massage chair, he was resting, the deeply relaxed kind, I had never seen him wear ‘natural’ before, at that moment, only did I see a pure natural side to him I had never seen before previously, I wish I didn’t have to put a definition to what I saw, but for understanding purpose, I was moved by such ‘beauty’. I saw an innocent child in that seat, for that split second. For that moment, he had no barriers up, he was like a hollow bamboo allowing purity to flow right through him. I really wish I didn’t have to define that moment, because anything with a definition becomes “ugly”. It loses its original value. Osho teaches one such type of inner relaxation technique; to simply sit quietly, and allow the lower jaw to hang softly open, and breath a shallow breath throw the mouth, I tried this, and what I noticed is the that upper palate of the mouth will lift up towards the cranium, and thus creating a blissful effect, a centering energy as it lifts towards the crown of the head. It somewhat resembles the Shambavi mudra in yoga.
That's all for now,
Light and love, namaste.
Michelle Q
It reminded me that every single movement begins with the hips, exactly the same way you would want a car to turn, you have to turn the wheel first in that direction, but first you have to willingly turn the steering wheel. And for those long 10 agonizing days or so, my "steering wheel" had problems turning. Excuse my analogy, but I think it's a simple way to put how the body moves. I could barely squat because the pain went straight to my sacro-illiac joint and picking up things was the same case, climbing in and out of bed I had to use arm strength to support my body instead of swinging my hips off the bed as usual. I mainly had to rely on arm strength to move around and get things done. Even sitting became a problem. Even now, there are slight murmurs of discomfort in my lumbar area, but much better than in the beginning. I'm not asking for empathy but merely reminding you to be grateful for a healthy body and never take your abilities or priviledges for granted. Easier said than done, but try.
This Thanksgiving, be thankful for all that you have, accepting the blessings you have, not hankering for things/goals you don't have. Just be thankful, be filled with gratitude for all that is bestowed upon you. Eminate love and send it out the world this Thanksgiving.
Love and light,
Michelle Q
And the moment her voice came on, it was anything but pleasant to my ears, she sounded like she was in a rush, and less then welcoming. I was about to switch off her audio track, when I chided myself, because I remembered that it's never about the teacher, but really about my own personal attitude towards my practice. Yoga begins with an attitude. Beyond everything else which goes on in your day, it's the attitude which you bring to class, so I consciously made a wide awake decision to accept the audio teacher's unpleasant voice and go with the flow. The first couple of minutes were the hardest, I struggled not to run to my player to turn off the audio track but another little voice in me spoke up, I was reminded that it's not how we fast we can run away from the unpleasant experience but how we deal with it, which makes up our yoga practice and that inevitably affects how we deal with similar discomforts in daily life. Yoga builds character. In yoga we are taught that all experiences are only temporary, the pleasant and unpleasant. Although some Swamis would strongly digress by saying that there is no pleasant or unpleasant, there is only remaining unattached and aloof, merely watching the experience. Osho says, be the experience, be in totality with the experience. More often than not, we end up fleeting the unpleasant situation, and not learning a single thing from it. Pain/irritation or unpleasant/unfavourable experiences can be our greatest teachers, if you want them to be, emphasis on "if you let them". In a heavily sedated society of the comforts of a good life, we are taught the "fight or flight" response to an unfavourable situation. Osho says don't fight, because you are only fighting yourself, fleet from it and you have missed the lesson intended for you to learn. So I stopped fighting the irritation, and neither did I flee from the irritation. I stayed with it, I nurtured an astounding amount of acceptance of the unpleasantness but most importantly, acceptance for myself, to accept just the way I am. And with that new found acceptance, I had reaffirmed self love, a feeling of the world inside me, and me inside the world and I couldn't ask for anything more. I can't find any better way to describe it. It's a beautiful feeling.
By then I was already half way into the audio track, and really riding the breath, there was no longer any irritation for the voice, but only a purity which was left in it's wake. I found that through acceptance, we transcend, transcend ourselves, and become closer to our inner true selves, the Atma, where bliss is possible. Throughout my practice that day, like any usual practice, I was using the Ujjayi breathing(it's the Darth Vader breath you hear rather audibly in class). There were points in my postures where I could feel vastness of space in my upper back, and midback. I wish there was a word in English to describe the feeling of wonderful spaciousness. My breath had gone straight into to my upperback, I was no longer thinking about the physical part of my posture but had become the breath. Each breath I took, I was breathing into pure space. To an extent, this feeling of openness and fluid space equally scared me too. I could really only hear myself "being breathed by the great Breath" as Sally Kempton puts it, I couldn't agree with her more. To me, my breathing sounded like inner roars of the ocean, and I wondered if I was still on earth but I knew better of course, that's the experience of breath, a journey inwards. As some would teachers say, the only way out is in. There's a fulfilling state of calm when we manage to breathe seamlessly and fuse that with yoga postures. I can only describe the "texture" of the breath as weightless and expansive. At the end of the practice, I am filled with such gratitude for the lesson I learned, just being bringing and keeping the right attitude towards my practice. So to wrap that up, yoga starts with an attitude, and "ends" with character building.
That's all for now,
Lots of light and love,
Namaste.
But in my humble opinion, the less one says, the more impact there is. Less is always more. So by right, I shouldn't be saying so much in this blog, but I can only try to adapt so much to the changing times. There should be pauses, silences between instructions, when students find their own voice, their own inner guide, it's not about what I have to say, but what the student has to listen to their personal teacher, most often that little voice in the back of the head, or for the intermediate student, perhaps their breath. The intermediate student will then perhaps back off from the pose or any present bad pain, or go further into the pose depending on the depth and length of the breath, thus the breath basically becomes their inner guru, as I always say, I can only suggest, but you know your body best.
When I see the alignment of posture, I think of two things, one is how the body moves in accordance of the midline of the body and two, how the body maintains the natural skeletal organisation when in postures.
For example, when one is holding Warrior 3, one engages the inside of the standing leg, because that is closer to the midline of the body, to get a better image, draw a line from the centre of your forehead all the way down to your navel. So muscular energy wise, one will engage the thigh of the standing leg, and energetically shift energy towards the inside line of the leg, as anatomically, the larger leg bone is on the inside, providing better stability. From a skeletal view, the hips have to stake over the heel of the standing leg, and chest remains higher than the hips while in Warrior 3. The same observation can be made if you study the organisation of the skeletal bones, I mean, have you REALLY noticed that your hips will always have to stack over your heels, and chest is always above the hips, while in a simple standing position, if otherwise will always cause discomfort.
Another example would be Cobra pose, when viewed from the front, one would need to keep both legs zipped up closer together instead of extending beyond the front view line(legs taken wider then hip width) of the body which places undue strain to the lower back, especially if you don't engage the uddhiyana bandha(the navel energy lock). Thus the legs have moved closer to the center line of the body, just by drawing the legs together. Yoga in this sense can mean bringing your limbs closer to the core of the body, while mantaining a dynamic tension holding a certain posture, keeping the limbs working in harmony with the center line of the body. Muscular energy wise, you would need to engage both sets of thighs to fully lift them off the floor, pressing the big toes down and front of your feet downwards(where your shoe laces are meant to be), to sustain your posture in equinamity. Then you would need to energetically lift the sternum to feel like someone is supporting the head like a bouy floating on the water surface. Have you REALLY noticed that your hands or wrists are always hanging below your shoulders in a simple standing position. The same is replicated in Cobra pose, where I would remind you to stack the shoulders over the wrists, and not have the wrists anywhere else. I hope I'm making sense and not confusing you.
So speaking of energies, even if you don't do any yoga, you have definately come across subtle energies which can affect us dramatically. A simple hand shake or a simple friendly hug can determine the sort of person you're dealing with. Some hands I shake feel very dead, like no one's home, just like an empty shell, and they transmit a negative energy, their hands generally feel heavy, cold, and are aurically closed up. I cannot read any positive energy from there. Individuals who are self absorbed tend to not emit any welcoming energy from their hands for obvious reasons. Same thing is readable from a hug. We all have the ability of an energy radar chemically and energetically embedded in our skin, it's only whether you have chosen to listen to it, or not. Some are more sensitive and observant, some less, or not at all.
Coming back to a bit more on breathing, have you noticed why most monks/religious teachers speak quite slowly? It's not because they're old, think slowly, or feel like they need to make a point by speaking slow, but rather, their breathing is slow and deeped, it's so paced, that there is no way for the brain-mouth connection to move fast. It is impossible to speak quickly with slow deep breaths. Try it. You would also notice that when a person is angry, he speaks fast and loud, because his breathing is short, shallow and irregular. Do you see a connection between breath and movement now? When breath moves, the prana(energy) moves. Which brings us back to the basis of vinyasa(flow), when the breath moves, the movement follows. Hence, if your breathing is faster, your movements should move at the same speed as the breath. If breathing is more quiet, the movement is generally slower and graceful. It does not mean slow breath or faster breath is better. There is no competition here, merely you gotta listen to the pace of your breath. Embody your breath.
There is a reason why Tantra yoga students are taught to equalise the length of the inhalation and the length of the exhalation. Tantra is a branch of yoga which is founded by a school of thought whereby when you unite male and female, they re-enact the same union Lord Shiva and Goddess Shakti which was the precursor to a new world. As the yoga scriptures go, they were once united, and then the Goddess left her seat of home(the third eye center of consciousness) then walked 7 steps down, (thus creating the path of 7 chakras in our spine) in her wake, then She lies dormant at the base chakra, coiled underneath it waiting to be awaken and reunited with Lord Shiva, and when that happens, a new world is born again, or in Tantra, a cleansed soul will be revealed, of pureness and light. According to Osho, he says that the Tantrica students are taught how to make love for hours without having orgasms, reasoning that when the inhales are equal in length and depth as the exhales, there is no expanse of energy, it stays within the field itself, but because of shortened, shallow breaths, the result is wastage of energy, and the energy needs to channel outwards, to rebalance the flow, thus resulting in an orgasm.
That's all for now,
Lots of light and love,
Namaste.
They listen to their body's energies and go with that flow, they need not much of external correction has I teach them self internal correction, how to go beyond the physical, but to listen to the feeling inside, of what feels good and what feels right. They will seek out an internal correction to go deeper into a pose, to use the organic energy within them, i.e. energetically lifting the sternum. Of course a certain amount of muscular energy is used to sustain the posture. Two students may be doing the same posture, but when one is doing internal correction, he will feel stronger, steadier, more receptive and definitely more centered. He will find an equilibrium between the body and breath. In my opinion, an asana should be held with the least amount of effort and energy to achieve "perfection", because only then would you be breathing fully and correctly. I always say, if you can't breathe, you shouldn't be in that posture.
Speaking of breath, I was not well about a month ago, and even myself as a teacher and practicing yogi, I realised that only in times of illness, only do we realise how precious the breath is. I was having a mild flu, and within that 7 days of the flu rising and subsiding, I was struggling to take my usual breaths, let alone deep breaths. I was humbled by a mere simple flu. I have to admit, I myself, was surprised at how tremendously important the breath became. But when we are fit and well, we never bother about the breath. Just like how we mistreat the body and never notice the tell tale signs of disease until it's too late. Or maybe I'm getting way ahead of myself. My point is that we should never take the breath for granted, it may go out, but who knows if it will come back? Each breath you take is a risk, as Osho says. So don't tell me you have never risked anything in your life before. What a pun, isn't it? In some way, having my flu taught me how to appreciate the gift of life, the ability to feel healthy, to be thankful towards my family and friends and for all that I have.
I take a few more moments of your time-space to share with you my experience of something deeper, about 6 weeks ago. I got up the next morning, and wrote it down.
"I settle in, and listen to my heartbeat, it's loud enough to be heard by only me. I let my body settle, and just as I begin to relax, my hand jerks for no particular reason, stirring me. Stretching out a little further to point my left toes, I feel the dynamic tension stringing all the way diagonally across my right arm. Odd. A certain feeling of rest and awareness present at the same time. I listen to my heartbeat again. Then my leg jerks once, as though shaking off a bug. I relax a little deeper, and my awareness is heightened, like an eagle perched high over the cliff watching it's prey, but nobody will be sacrificed today. I continue to watch my inner thoughts, and some answers are made crystal clear to me. The awareness continues to grow, it scares me, but I let it. Every movement I make is an offering toward my consciousness, adding on to the heightened perception of my mind's eye, which is by now so very awake, I am relaxed, but extremely aware of a feeling inside me, an aliveness I have never ever felt before. It scares me. As I try and put a texture to it now, recalling now, I can't. It has no form. I am completely awake in relaxation. I don't know how else to describe it. My passing thoughts settle for a moment on the stranger I had met earlier. I let it pass. But what really freaks me is, the sound of a motorcycle honk, I heard it come as though it was from a distance, the sound of the honk being "pulled", or slowed as though it was going through a semi-permeable medium of some sort, and taking it's time to reach my senses. The sound was slowed down. I feel light headed, slightly worried almost. I turn my head to the left to rest against the soft cotton fabric, and as my ear touches the pillow, I hear the friction of skin against fabric, again, in slow motion, even while it's happening. I drift in and out of this state for the rest of the night".
That's all for now,
Lots of light and love,
Namaste.
3 weeks ago, I was at my usual chillout spot in Queensbay when the restaurant manager came to say hello. Having exchanged plesantries and name cards, he asked me what yoga is all about. Now this guy was smoking and I assume he drinks too, but nevertheless, I gladly entertained his question. I proceeded to ask him if he had any hobbies, or any particular activity which he liked to do for relaxation. He told me computer games, well, that was a starting point to tell me what yoga is about. I asked him if there was a point or moments when he was playing his computer games when he was totally absorbed in concentration that he was one with the game, in other words, he became the game itself where "he", the doer had disappeared. In yoga, we achieve glimpses of the higher self when we concentrate deeply, called dharana(the 6th limb of ashtanga yoga), then when that concentration is streamed(kinda like when you videos on the internet are streaming seamlessly), it's called dhayana(the 7th limb of ashtanga yoga), when in this state of no-mind, we are lifted into a space called Samadhi(the last, 8th limb of ashtanga yoga). We are one with the Supreme Consciousness. Of course I didn't want to freak the manager out so I just said that when you are one with the game, you have yoga, a union because you are no longer the observer, you become the observed.
The state of meditation is not only exclusive to a Bodhi tree or at your yoga mat. It can happen anywhere, and anytime. Just the other day I was teaching my Nirmaya students to listen to their internal sound, a sound which resonates within all of us, called the Nada, the Inner Sound(refer to Yin Yoga by Paul Grilley). It is done by sealing your eyes and ears completely and touching your tip of tongue to the upper palate, thus cutting off any external stimuli, this exercise also known as pratyhara(the 5th limb in ashtanga yoga). As we continue to practice Nada, our meditative state helps to reveal more subtle sounds, but when we start off, we hear it as a background static sound. But the culmination of this sound is said to be "AUM". Not the word "AUM" which we can pronounce but the sound "AUM" which reverberates throughout the cosmos. I bring this up because I want you to realise that meditation is not held rigid to where you are or how long you can maintain breathlessness.
This is my example, I was in a movie, watching an action film with my two good friends, and there was a moment when I had slipped into a meditative state, without even trying or even thinking about it, all I know is I was concentrating on the movie(perhaps it was Dharana),but yes, beyond the noise and colour from the huge cinema screen and beyond the chips being munched, I was at a point of calm and inner stillness, I was looking at the screen, looking yet, not defining, no attachment whatsoever to what was in front of me. I was detached from the movie, I became the observer. I could hear my own heartbeat, everything started to seem like it was moving slower than it should, and I heard my Nada, that sound within me. It was one of the most interesting moments I had since my spontaneous meditation early this year at a bookstore.
Now, there are 2 types of union. Both are union, only one of which is where you unite with your higher self, and the other you completely lose yourself, both use the mechanics of the mind, they pass thru the mind, only the losing yourself part does not constitute transcendance. In a union, the "I" part of the ego is no longer there. It disappears, one to a higher level, one lower, depending on the yogi's level of practice. When you become absorbed in something, say dancing, we tend to lose ourselves in the thrill. It's so easy to slip out, but it's out the back door. Or in anger, and we do things we would never do while conscious, you slipped out, out the back door, you were not there in that moment of anger, and most people cannot remember what they did when angry especially in crimes of killing, because they had slipped out, they were not present, all using the mind. But when we pull ourselves from the attachment to the certain object/activity or person, we slip out the royal door, or front door, so to speak. We connect with our higher self, the atman, or soul, inner divinity. A certain aloofness is noticed. If you ever noticed, that the traditional yogis or monks have a quality of aloofness, at least it is perceived that way by laymen. But what goes on is that they are in a state of peace, tranquilty, a state of no-mind. They are only watching, and as they continue to watch, all that is around them seems to crumble like ashes, a realisation dawns upon them that the world is not real.(anything which changes is not real, prakriti) Nothing is real except consiciousness(purusha), which is eternal. I have felt this realisation before.
But being a follower of Osho, he has a "remedy" for union in our state of the world nowadays. It is a fusion of the higher and lower union. He says that for example when you are dancing, be totally present in your dancing, flow with your dance, be the dance, not the dancer. Remain aware of your consciousness, don't slip away, don't be tempted to slip away. Let the dance be your meditation, let it take you higher, to fuse with your consciousness. Try it, do it, and be totally present. In his words, be in totality. Don't miss a single moment of celebration.
That's all for now,
Lots of love and light,
Namaste.
Recently I was coaching a friend through some crisis he was having, and it made me realise why I teach yoga. I love to help people. In my line of work, I meet people from all walks of life, and their life is basically etched to their mats, they bring they personal life, work, relationships, dreams, failures, fears and doubts all onto the mat, and I see it. Because psychology, psychosomatic responses and how we move, and to what extend we are willing to move, is all correlated believe it or not. When I see a particular case in need, I extend myself, and touch wood in all cases, my help is warmly welcomed. When I get my students to the mat, I encourage them to open up, to be receptive to emotions, to feelings, and to sensations. One of the worst things which have befallen mankind is we have forgotten how to feel, in fact, we refuse to feel, we rather numb it however way we can.
Thus, people become disconnected from their own bodies, when someone comes a knocking, no one's home, you get me? The lights are on, you may be physically awake, walking, talking, or moving, but who is doing it? Because no one's really at home. Presence. The word itself conveys a multitude of meanings. But let's not dive that far. You may be "doing" your yoga but your mind might be completely at the Bahamas, or at the next activity you are scheduled for. It takes effort, constant discipline and patience to bring your presence to your practice. When I say disconnected, I mean there are students who don't know where their hips are, or can't figure out which hand is the left and sometimes can't differentiate front or back, some don't even know where their shoulder blades are, especially when they are attempting to hold the pose. Then again, knowing me and my methods, holding the pose is not the point of yoga. Stillness is the goal. A certain amount of let go is necessary.
As I may have probably mentioned before is, I can see students mentally wandering off into oblivion, and those who are just there for the sake of being in class. Sometimes I feel like openly asking them "Do you really want to be here or not?". I'm serious about my work, and I in turn expect students to do likewise. Another note, please try to be on time for class, as walking in half way through class does not show respect to the teacher, or the other students who are concentrating, regardless of who is teaching and what group exercise class it is. Plus, it's distracting. Please, have some respect for yourself and others. That's all I'm saying, not a huge bolder I'm telling you to move right?
The only time I see students let go is probably during relaxation, I know those who are deeply relaxed, those trying to relax but not getting there, those thinking of trying to relax, and those who have found a point of equanimity between the body and the breath. They say that the breath is the bridge towards the inner body. I couldn't agree more. Which is why I focus so much on breathwork and tell you not to compromise the posture by holding the breath. Breath takes you deeper into a posture, opens up energy channels and connects you with your higher self. Did you ever wonder why psychologist/psychiatrists make you lie down instead of sit for their session of deconstructing the problem(s)? This is because when you lie down, we awaken a very primal, very animal instinct to be at ease, to be peaceful, not on defensive mode, thus making their work easier. I mean have you ever seen a sad hippo or a depressed giraffe? Didn't think so. Animals are happy. Happy because they have no ego, no higher intelligence to think and to be conniving in any way. They are their natural selves. They don't pretend to be something else. So I'm trying to say that when we lie down, our defense, our guard is naturally let down, it falls apart, it cannot be held up, there is no way.
You try it, lie down, then try to get angry, try it, try real hard. There is no way. The body and the mind are one. Your primal instincts are awakened to be your natural self. The same reason why if you ever made a complaint to a Customer service department before, like to a Hotel manager, the staff usher you to a comfy room, they get you to sit down first, because you become less angry and lose your defenses. So, don't sit down if you wanna win your case(that's a little tip from me).
That's all from me,
Lotsa of light and love, Namaste.
Michelle Q
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