by guest author Anna Coventry, Bubbles and Backbends. Yoga and Hong Kong. An oxymoron or a match made in heaven? Admittedly, being in a class on the 16th floor of a high rise, overlooking, well other high rises, is not exactly the quintessential yoga image, yet the industry here is BOOMING! My desire to ride the Hong Kong yoga wave is twofold. I am both a yoga teacher and an avid practitioner so of course I want to find out more about the people practicing and leading this beautiful … [Read more...]
With so many different styles of yoga out there, how do you know which one is for you? In this section you will find a diverse range of perspectives on the different kinds of yoga practiced in The Yoga Lunchbox community.
Turning Yin – an insider’s look at Yin Yoga
by guest author Jessica Powers While my official Yoga anniversary celebrates the January 2001 DVD sale that got me started, I was doing Yoga back in high school without knowing. In the afternoons I would come in the kitchen door, drop my bags on the table and carry on into the dining room: I only ever managed to get a few steps into the dining room before kicking off my shoes and melting down onto the floor. My knees would fall to either side, the soles of my feet press … [Read more...]
Kundalini Yoga – the Yoga of Consciousness
by guest author Amanda Reid Kundalini Yoga is an ancient and powerful school of Yoga utilising the science and technology, and reaping all the benefits, of Hatha, Raj, Mantra and Laya Yoga. Maintained as an oral tradition for thousands of years to protect the techniques from abuse, this secrecy also created an unnecessary image of mystery which remains today. Brought to the West in 1969 by Yogi Bhajan, there is no tradition of asceticism in Kundalini Yoga, no need to take oneself away … [Read more...]
Why kirtan is one of the most powerful yoga practices you’ll ever do
Photo credit: Pete Longworth by Kara-Leah I want to let you in on a secret. Ok, it's not really a secret, because I'm telling you right? But until I actually experienced this for myself I had absolutely no idea of how powerful this particular yoga practice is. It is the most powerful practice I have done. Ever. … [Read more...]
Why practicing ‘Freedom Yoga’ can work wonders for your practice
by guest author and Wellington Yoga Teacher Bruce Foley The term 'Freedom Yoga' has a very nice ring to it. I immediately attach the emotion 'Joy' to the idea of 'Freedom'. Other associated words that come to mind are 'liberation' and 'self-determination'. That last word leads us towards another more weighty word which is 'responsibility'. Almost verbatim, Erich Schiffman describes Freedom Yoga as: Not deciding in advance what you are going to do, but instead listening inwardly, and then … [Read more...]
Witnessing the evolution of yoga from Vinyasa to Prana Flow to Flow Motion to Your Yoga
I love this video (see below)... it's Sarah Tomson Beyer doing her brand of yoga, Flowmotion - and yes, that's trademarked. But don't get upset about it, because who cares, it's all about the yoga right? And when I watch Sarah, I see such beauty, such grace, such inspiration... and I want to be able to do that, feel that, be that. In my own way of course ;) … [Read more...]
Bhakti Yoga & Kirtan – it’s How Yogis get High
by Kara-Leah The mission of this website is to get everybody in New Zealand doing yoga - but it's really important to remember that yoga is not just about the physical postures called asana. One of the lesser known and yet perhaps most powerful forms of yoga is Bhakti Yoga. This is the yoga of devotion and is often practiced via kirtan - or chants. Take a moment to think of your favourite music right now, and how it makes you feel when you sing it - when you lose yourself and get right into the … [Read more...]
What Style of Yoga is Prana Flow?
by Kara-Leah Grant, Taught by Master Yoga Instructor Shiva Rea, Prana Flow is a liberating, evolutionary, rhythmic, vinyasa flow class that encompasses mudra, chanting, bandha, pranayama, meditation, asana, kriya and a whole lot of fun. … [Read more...]