Outline of My Yoga Workshop This Weekend

I am on the way to Massachusetts to a yoga retreat I am facilitating called "Portable Yoga: A Thousand Yoga Tools To Live your Best Life".

It is my intention to offer the tools I continue to use for my practice because they help, in daily life. Today. In a practical way.

There are many little details that can be absorbed throughout the workshop and I hope people who are coming will benefit.  I am grateful for all the participants making it in on the cold weather.

This is the outline:

Introduction:

Welcome, and congratulations on taking time for exploring the depth of this moment through yoga. Here are a few things to keep in mind as we go through the workshop:

-       Keep hydrated

-       Be punctual for all classes

-       Commit to our weekend so you can get the most out of it

-       Eat very light in the morning (since we will have yoga and pranayama)

-       You can eat a more fulfilling meal at lunch when your digestive fire is at its peak

-       Allow yourself the space and chance to slow down

-       Never force.  Always respect your body.

-       Respect your rhythms

-       Go within while we are practicing so you can access your inner silence and let others access it too.

-       If possible try to evacuate your bowels in the morning

-       We will observe functional speech after we retire at night and until we join together for class in the morning

The First Four Yoga Sutras

1.1 - Atha yoga-anuśāsanam

Now we start the exploration, study, and practice of yoga.

1.2   yogaś-citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ

When you are in a state of yoga, all fluctuations of the mind cease.  We are in a state of integration.

1.3   tadā draṣṭuḥ svarūpe-'vasthānam

Then we reside in our true SELF

1.4   Vṛtti sārūpyam-itaratra

Otherwise, misconceptions skew our perceptions.

Practice

We will explore chapter two of the Yoga Sutras through practice on Saturday and Sunday

SCHEDULE

7:00 – 8:30 AM Breakfast (try to keep it light)

8:30 to 11:30 AM

Saturday Morning Portable Yoga Program

-       Contemplation

-       Portable Yoga Asana Exploration
-    Pranava Japa (Repetition of OM) to find the seat, and to quiet the mind.

-       Practice of Pranayama - Breathing

-       The Mental Muscle of The Yoga Practice

11:30 to 1:30 Lunch

1:45 – 3:45 PM Saturday Talk. Mantra and Silence:

-       Interview and Q&A with James on the Yamas and Niyamas

-       Mantra  - The Gayatri: Why?

-       Sitting In Silence (5 minutes)

3:45 to Dinner Time: Reflection time on your own – Suggestion: Journaling.

5:30 to 7:00 PM Dinner

8:00 to 8:30 PM Saturday Night Program:

-       Chanting

-       Trataka

-       Relaxation

-       Silence (Functional Talk)

8:30 PM Sleep and rest

SUNDAY

7:00 – 8:30 AM Breakfast (try to keep it light)

9:00 to 11:00 AM Sunday Morning:

-       Contemplation

-       Asana

-       Pranayama

-       Recap

-       Questions And Answers

MORNING OF SATURDAY

The Poses

Sun Salutation A

Sun Salutation B

Standing Forward Bend

Triangle

Airplane

Transition

Dandasana - Sited with extended legs

Sited Forward Bend

Transition

Janu Sirsasana (Head to knee)

Transition

Marichasana C modification

Transition

Boat Pose

Transition

Baby Back Bend

Full Back Bend (Wheel)

Sited Forward Bend

Shoulder Stand

Headstand – Or Wide Angle Forward Bend (standing-modification)

Sited breathing

Lotus exploration

Relaxation pose

The Pranayamas

Breathing Oceanic, three part-breathing

Pre-Nauli 

Agni Sara

Jivha Bandha 

Kapalabhati (Skull shinning) it is not hyperventilation, it is a fanning of the sacrum, sacred area. 

Ujjayi: 

Sitali

Rest

The Mental Part of The Practice:

Why?

-       Sharing ideas is the currency of the 21^st century. 

-       When the idea muscle is exercised it sweats, giving it a better chance of relaxing later on, when in need of silence.

-       Ideas are the way out of being stuck

Waiters’ Pads Distribution

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

Talk with James Altucher

The five Yamas of Patanjali  - Restrains

1.         Non-violence, or ahimsa

2.         benevolent truth, absence of falsehood , or satya

3.         Non-stealing, or asteya

4.         Spiritual advancement by learning and practice. Some traditions associate it with celibacy. Or brahmacharya.

5.         Non-appropriation, absence of avarice. Or aparigraha

The Five Niyamas of Patanjali - Observances

1.         Cleanliness of thought, mind and body. Traditionally, this item is listed under Yama; this word means purity. Or Saucha

2.         Happy satisfaction; good contentment. Or Santosha

3.         Spiritual effort; austerity. Or tapas.

4.         Self study. Or svādhyāya

5.         Surrender. Or ishvarapranidhana

The Gayatri Mantra:

Why?

All teachers on the lineage of Krishnamacharya (grand-father of all of our current styles yoga) devote pages and praises to the Gayatri Mantra.

For example: Krishnamacharya himself chanted the Gayatri mantra while holding his breath in pranayama practice

Pattabhi Jois  (as Sharath told us candidly in conference) would sing it one hundred and eight times a day. 

B.K.S. Iyengar recommended it for japa, or mantra singing, to help with concentration.

Swami Sivananda had this to say about it:

"Gayatri is the Mother of the Vedas and the destroyer of sins. There is nothing more purifying on the earth, as well as in the heaven than the Gayatri. The Japa of Gayatri brings the same fruit as the recitation of all the four Vedas together..."

The Mantra:

Oṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ

tát savitúr váreṇ(i)yaṃ

bhárgo devás yadhī mahi

dhíyo yó naḥ prachodáyāt

What It Means:

We meditate on the adorable glory of the radiant sun; may it inspire our intuitive intelligence.

In the Media:

The Gayatri Mantra is the opening song (arranged by Richard Gibbs) for the television series Battlestar Galactica.  Here is the beautiful YouTube video:

Benefits ascribed to the Gayatri mantra include: (as per Virasami Pastor’s book which I found in Mysore, South India)

-       Vitality

-       Light

-       Toleration

-       Strength

-       Riches

-       Reputation

-       Divine Effulgence

-       Material objects

-       Age

-       Countenance

-       Name

-       Fame

-       Breath

-       Juices

-       Food

-       Desired object

-       Nourishment

-       Attendants

SATURDAY NIGHT

-       Chanting Gayatri Mantra

-       Trataka Practice

-       Relaxation

Benefits of Trataka:

2.32 of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika says "Trataka eradicates all eye diseases, fatigue and sloth and closes the doorway to these problems".

Some of the benefits associated with Trataka include:

·      Improves eyesight and vision.

·      Improves concentration, intelligence and memory.

·      Enhances self-confidence, patience and willpower.

·      Calms the mind and provides inner peace and silence.

·      Brings greater clarity in mind and improves decision-making ability.

·      Helps to overcome mental, behavioral and emotional ailments.

·      Provides stress relief and deep relaxation.

·      Deepens the sleep and cures sleep related disorders such as headache, insomnia, nightmares, etc.

·      According to Gherand Samhita (shloka 5.54), Trataka promotes clairvoyance or perception of subtle manifestations.

SUNDAY MORNING: Making the Practice Your Own

-       Contemplation

-       Asana

-       Pranayama

-       Questions and Answers