by Kara-Leah Grant, avid promotor of home yoga practice. It’ll change your world (because you are your world).
So my gorgeous and most-wonderful man left on Thursday for six weeks. And on Friday I had a brilliant idea.
Six weeks!
42 days!
I’ll do a specific Forty Days of Yoga practice while he’s away!
Perfect!
Now what will I do… how about one of my old favourites, a Heart-Opening Kriya (see below for a PDF of this kriya) I learned many moons ago? Nothing like a little heart-opening to prepare for my man’s home-coming. 🙂
Yes folks, this is one simple step you can take to open your heart chakra – practice this heart-opening kriya every day for forty days.
What do I mean by heart-opening?
I mean you will feel lighter, more connected to life, more connected to people, giddy with joy at times, kinder, softer and happier. At least – that’s how I feel when I practice it on a regular basis.
That’s the simple step – practice the heart-opening kriya. It’s not easy though… no, no, no. Even I, who has years of experience at practicing yoga daily, can still find it difficult to do the simple things.
Yes, Day One of my new Forty Day practice and I had serious mat resistance.
I didn’t want to go anywhere heart-opening at all. My mind filled up with a hundred reasons why I didn’t want to do this particular practice, why I didn’t want to start a specific Forty Day practice and why I didn’t want to write about the process.
I listened to my mind churning it’s bullshit. And got on my mat anyway. I’ll start with sun salutations, I reasoned. I need to warm up my body. That’ll do. That’ll be enough.
Did my sun salutations. Felt good. Did a few standing leg splits, standing forward bends, dancer’s pose… hmmm. Feeling great. Ready to sit down now. Hero’s pose. Opening through the shoulders and neck. Hmmm… got some tension there. Know what would feel really good?
Heart-opening Kriya.
That’s what.
So I did it.
And as soon as I started, I’m wondering;
Why the hell was I resisting this? Why did I not want to do this? This is going to be so damn awesome!
By the time I’d finished, I was in blissed-out grace… oh I love this series. It really does open the heart! Wow!
And I only did 1 minute per posture. If I’m going to do forty days in a row… I must be able to build up to at least 3 minutes per posture. What would that feel like?
So here’s the commitment folks, and I invite you to join in with me.
For the next forty days, I am going to do Heart-Opening Kriya every single day. I’m starting with one minute per posture, and will slowly increase the time. I’ll likely do other yoga as well, because that’s just the way I work. But this will be my anchor, my must-do every single day no matter what.
I’ll write about my experience every ten days or so, letting you know how I’m getting on, plus I’ll write about it daily on the Forty Days of Yoga Facebook Page, so like that page if you want to get those daily updates.
If you want to commit to your own forty day practice, either of Heart-Opening Kriya, or something different, leave a comment below. Make your public declaration and be specific – what practice are you going to do and what day are you starting? I started on Sunday August 18th.
Look forward to having you along for the ride!
I am new to yoga. I do not know what I will be doing, but unrolling and getting on my mat for the next 40 days in a row is my commitment.
Hey Rhonda,
Congratulations! All you have to do is unroll your mat, step on to it, and begin to breath with awareness. That’s often the hardest thing to do. There’s something magical too about not knowing what we’ll do – it allows us to connect to our inner guide and see what’s required – which can change every day. Enjoy your journey, and stay tuned for my updates. Keep updating us as well!
Many blessings,
KL
Well done! I love reading about your journey and am amazed how it coincides with my own. I have been working on the Depak Chopra 21 day challenge of meditation called Miraculous Relationships. All about loving yourself as much as loving others. It was a perfect addition to my daily practice. Keep up the good work. I think what you are doing is great!
Namaste,
Sheila
You have such a great blog, filled with excellent tips and ideas for both teachers and students alike. I thoroughly enjoy coming back and search for new and useful bits of advice.
Namaste!
A wonderful article! Thank you for sharing your enlightenment, and I know that yoga practitioners both beginner’s and one’s who are seeking a greater challenge will benefit from this article and your advice. Namaste.
My pleasure – more to come for sure. It’s an interesting journey this particular Kriya!
I am about to start a 40 day Sadhana…As I will be caring for my 91yr mother with Alzheimers at her retirement villa in Port Macquarie. I do not feel comfortable to leave her alone during the day hence an early morning practice before sunrise will work with my schedule & hopefully allow me to have more compassion with a more open heart.
Sadly I will not have access to my computer or any WI FI in her retirement villa.
I have done yoga for 15 yrs but would like to know more about your ‘heat opening Kriya postures’
Could you possible email me photos of the postures for me to practice whilst there.
When I return I will be very interested in receiving your newsletters etc.
Namaste
Anne Allan
Hello. What is the heart opening sequence?? Pls 🙂 thankq Hayley
Hey Hayley,
You can buy the 11-Page PDF with instuctions + photos for this Heart Opening Kriya for $US5 here: https://dashboard.tinypass.com/download?did=D9fprl9
Just click the link and then click the $5 and you’ll be prompted to pay. Enjoy!