What to look for in a yoga teacher, By Cara Butler In this final instalment of conversations with my teacher, Carlos Pomeda, I asked what advice he would give someone seeking a ‘Teacher’ or ‘Guru’ in these modern yoga times. Witnessing so many schools and lineages of yoga facing serious allegations and having terrible abuse exposed, I believe that discernment of your teacher is something to take very seriously! With SO many yoga trainings on offer, with huge variance in … [Read more...]
Yoga May Not Cure Disease, But It Can Help Us To Live Joyfully With Our Illnesses
by John Guthrie, Yoga Aotearoa | International Yoga Teachers Association of New Zealand The whole notion of disease is an interesting subject. Those of us who take on yoga as a part of our lifestyle can easily find ourselves striving to be absolutely whole and well; after all, why shouldn't we? To have a strong healthy body fit that enables us to integrate the various limbs of yoga is a noble endeavour indeed. But is perfect physical health always a guaranteed result of a yoga practice? And … [Read more...]
Time to Thrive: How I Learned to Take Deep Care of My Body, Heart & Mind
by Kelly Fisher, Time to Thrive Our lives are so out of synch with nature; it's no wonder that sub-par health and even chronic degenerative diseases are the new norm. Diabetes, autoimmune disorders, adrenal issues, thyroid conditions, weight issues, menopausal issues, post-partum issues, insomnia, perpetual exhaustion… the list goes on. Chances are you know someone who suffers from at least one of these things, and maybe a few of you know someone for each of the above. Even those of us who … [Read more...]
Hybrid Yoga Styles: Do They Enrich Yoga or Dilute It?
by Jo Stewart, Garden of Yoga A quick google search will turn up all kinds of yoga hybrids—think Bungee Yoga, Antigravity Aerial Yoga, HIIT Yoga, Beer Yoga, Vinyasa + Vino, Doga, Meowga, and Goat Yoga—and these are just a small sample of the pun-tastic world of hybridised yoga. While I might wonder how yogic some of these combinations actually are, my own classes could be on that list. I’ve also been to, and thoroughly enjoyed, hula hoop yoga and SUP yoga workshops at festivals. I’ve … [Read more...]
Why Yogis Need The Deep Lessons of Karma Yoga
by Ram Davies, Sivananda Yoga Centre I was lying in bed in an apartment in South Beach, Florida, reading Meditations and Mantras by Swami Vishnudevananda, when it dawned on me: I don’t enjoy where I am and what I’m doing. Straight away I put the book down and emailed a yoga teacher that I had trained with the previous year. I asked him if I could stay at the ashram for a four month period as part of the karma yoga program. I heard back from him the following day, quit my job, and booked a … [Read more...]
Why ‘Ambivalence’ Is The Most Powerful Word I Know
by Lucinda Staniland I've been using the word 'ambivalent' a lot recently. I like the sound of it. I like that it acknowledges complexity - of myself and of the world. I like that it doesn't lock me, or anyone else, into a box. Take getting married for example. My partner and I were married in January 2017, and for me, it was a classic experience of ambivalence. In fact, it was during the preparations for our wedding that the word 'ambivalent' became a core part of my vocabulary. I … [Read more...]
A Yoga Poem to Brighten Your Practice: Parivritta Janu Sirsasana
By Leza Lowitz, Sun and Moon Yoga Poems can be a window in to the powerful, but often subtle, transformations that occur as part of the practice of yoga. This poem, taken from Leza Lowitz's collection, Yoga Poems: Lines to Unfold By, is a delicate exploration of the physical and spiritual dimensions of Parivrtta Janu Sirsasana. Also check out Leza's recent article, Living Your Gifts: Six Steps to Awakening a Yogic Heart. Parivritta Janu Sirsasana revolving knee to head Deep in the … [Read more...]
How Yoga Helped Me Combat Depression & Heartbreaking Loss (Without Medication)
By Adrienne Smith, Power of Your OM It is estimated that by the year 2020, anxiety and depression will be the leading cause of death - over heart disease and over cancer. Yikes! While anxiety and depression can come from legitimate chemical imbalances that require medication to curb them, medical researchers are finding that cultivating awareness of our thoughts and the physical state of our being, in combination with medication (if necessary), will prove a better defense to anxiety and … [Read more...]
Can You ‘Make Up’ a Yoga Pose?
by Kara-Leah Grant Recently I read a post on social media which went something like this: Here's so & so teacher making up a new yoga pose for you. WTF? Since when were yoga poses - asana - 'made up'? Since they began being taught through intellectual understanding rather than embodiment, that's when. Yoga postures are a physical result of an energetic process. They emerge from the flow of Prana within the body. Or here's another way to put it. Yoga is a state of presence. In that … [Read more...]
Teaching Yoga? You Must have a Home Yoga Practice. Here’s why
by Kara-Leah Grant Recently on social media, a yoga teacher was talking about the difficulty of fitting in going to yoga classes with her busy schedule, and admitted that her home yoga practice was poor. This teacher displayed zero awareness of the importance of a personal practice for anyone who teaches yoga. She's trained as a yoga teacher. Which implies that the yoga teacher training she completed didn't hammer home the importance of a personal practice for those who teach yoga. She's … [Read more...]