More about Yoga

Yoga: Connection
Yoga means “to bring together” or “to yoke.” It is about connection: connection with our body, our heart, our mind, and our spirit. Connecting our inner world with the world around us. Connecting with other human beings. Connection is the foundation for peace, kindness, healing, and for deep well-being.  Dis-connection can bring much suffering. When we’re disconnected, we close our hearts to our own experience, to the experience of those around us, and to the world beyond.

Connection is the foundation of my work.  My goal is to help students meet and get to know their own bodies, regardless of the shape and condition they are in. Starting from a place of accepting our bodies as they are, I help students build strength, resilience and flexibility. By working with a range of poses, we cultivate the body’s intelligence and wisdom.

This exploration helps keep us curious and vital at heart.

Few yoga students look like the young, smiling yogis on the cover of Yoga Journal, but each and every one of us–regardless of size, age, physical strength or infirmity–can learn to be at home in our bodies. Some students who come to yoga are walkers, swimmers, dancers or former athletes; others have been sedentary, with little history of being physical. Some students are flexible; others are stiff. Some are dealing with chronic issues in their bodies. No matter where you are on this continuum, yoga offers the opportunity to connect deeply with yourself. 

Yoga practice is not about getting the poses “right.” It is an invitation to find the balance between effort and ease. It is an opportunity to become embodied–to live fully and richly in the body. As your practice deepens, your internal sense of stability and steadiness will grow. A growing thread of awareness will start to emerge, an awareness that lasts well beyond each class, when you are off the mat. You will feel less ambushed by life’s normal ups and downs. Your sense of peace and equanimity will increase, along with your well-being.

Iyengar yoga

is a system of hatha yoga developed by BKS Iyengar of India. It is an innovative approach to yoga that emphasizes correct alignment. Iyengar yoga develops strength, increases flexibility, enhances stamina and improves balance. Iyengar developed this precise system of yoga to help cure himself and others of physical ills. Still actively practicing yoga in his nineties, Iyegnar is known internationally for his teachings.

Hatha Yoga

Yoga offers a lifetime of learning, far beyond the postures practiced in class. Mastering these postures, or asanas,  is only one aspect of yoga. There are actually 8 Limbs (or steps) of Hatha Yoga that address the breadth and depth of being a human being, how we relate to ourselves, others and the world around  us.

The 8 Limbs of Yoga, according to the great sage Patanjali  are:

Yama: Universal morality
Niyama: Personal observances
Asana: Postures (poses)
Pranayama: Control of the breath (prana)
Pratyahara: Control of the senses
Dharana: Concentration of inner perceptual awareness
Dhyana: Meditation
Samadi: Union with the Divine

If you would like to learn more about yoga, I recommend the following books: 

The Tree of Yoga   B.K.S Iyengar
Yoga  The Path to Holistic Health     B. K. S. Iyengar
Light on Yoga   B.K.S. Iyengar
Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali  B.K.S. Iyengar
Yoga Mind, Body & Spirit    Donna Farhi
Yoga A Gem for Women  Geeta Iyengar