by Donna Farhi, Beyond Methods: Yoga as Self-Inquiry Relationships with yoga students can take many forms: from a clear cut and dried professional boundary between teacher and student that has never extended beyond the perimeters of time spent together in a class, intensive, retreat or teacher training; to the less distinct delineation that happens when a student also happens to be a personal friend; to that of a peer exchange that takes place at a collegial level in which there may be a … [Read more...]
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The Teachers Contract
Cultivating Unshakeable Peace & Wellbeing with iRest Yoga Nidra: An Interview with Fuyuko Toyota
by Neal Ghoshal Ten years ago I had the great pleasure to meet Fuyuko Toyota. We were both assisting our teacher Donna Farhi on a long 21-day training and I was immediately drawn to Fuyuko for her warmth, her humility and humour and her deep, compassionate wisdom. Over the three weeks, we developed a beautiful appreciation for each others' teachings, and a delightful friendship which has only deepened through the years. Now we are like brother and sister on the Yoga path! It has … [Read more...]
Yoga, the Digestive Fire & Health
by Swami Karma Karuna, Anahata Yoga Retreat Fire is a force of nature. It is used for survival, however, if it is over-activated it can destroy and if it is under activated it goes out. Often fire is associated with flames but this is only the most physical aspect of the fire element. In the yogic view, fire is a powerful and transformative energy existing in the macro cosmos and the micro cosmos. The digestive system is the inner fire within the physical body that sustains … [Read more...]
Can Yoga Help with Better Sleep? A Q&A with Mark Stephens
by Lucinda Staniland In a restless world, sleep has become something of an elusive creature. Increasingly few of us get enough deep, restful sleep and as a society, we're starting to see the consequences in our declining physical and mental health. My personal experience of sleep has changed dramatically in recent years. After a lifetime of watching TV, using computers and being exposed to artificial lighting in the evening, I started to become conscious of how profoundly this affected my … [Read more...]
What Does it Mean to be an Awakened Heart Warrior in Troubled Times?
by Kara-Leah Grant, The news isn't getting any better. Extinction is looming for 1 million plants and animals, thanks to human activity, says the UN. Trump's Administration heralds melting sea ice as opening new opportunities for trade. And global beverage giants continue to bottle New Zealand's water at aquifer-destroying rates. Storms are worse. Refugee numbers are climbing. Our rivers are increasingly polluted. We've cleared 75% of our forests, and a whopping 95% of our wetlands. … [Read more...]
Proprioception: Some Practical Tips to Reconnect the Disconnected
by Sonya Simpson, Early in my yoga teaching career, I guided a group of five website developers in a corporate ‘one-off’ that a young, confident business owner from Sydney arranged. He called it a chance for his staff to do ‘something different’. Within the practice I guided a tall lanky man with an awkward gait through a chilled, gentle practice. He was clearly uncomfortable on the yoga mat. I got the impression that he felt anxious being with me, a stranger, in the small studio … [Read more...]
The Powerful Benefits of Yoga for Teenagers
by Charlotta Martinus, TeenYoga “All of my friends smoke a spliff every day and/or take medication, either to help them sleep, or to combat anxiety or depression or for ADHD. Those drugs get shared around and sold, especially during exams.”Niall, age 17 In an uncertain world, young people are turning to coping strategies that are available to them. The medications that are designed to support those with anxiety and depression are not licensed for use among those under 18 years old and even … [Read more...]
How to Claim Back the Freedom of your Body with Interoceptive Awareness
By Sonya Simpson, Interoception, sometimes considered the 8th sense, is the felt sense or mindfulness of the body, and Interoceptive awareness is the ability to process the signals you receive from your body. Some examples of this are; levels of energy and how to respond, pain and what to do with it, and sickness and its interpretation. Well-developed interoception has been shown to increase resilience [1], help with emotional regulation [2], improve health and wellbeing [3], support pain … [Read more...]
Slowing Down & Cultivating Interoception at the Hauora Yoga Conference
By Kylie Rook, New Zealand’s first Yoga Conference, Hauora, far exceeded my expectations. It was really great to see that the New Zealand Yoga Community is already on the G-O S-L-O-W wagon in terms of building interoception, improving vagal tone and allowing students to find what feels right for them. In many cases, this means letting go of the arbitrary alignment cues and even ‘classic poses’ to guide the students into a more felt experience and a deeper understanding of their own … [Read more...]