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| Hola, I'm Claudia |
WHERE ARE YOU FROM?
Buenos Aires, Argentina. The land of tango, good stake, and beautiful women.
WHY DOES YOUR BLOG HAVE TWO ADDRESSES?
Cause I had no clue what I was doing when I started. You can reach it at ClaudiaYoga.com or at Earthyogi.Blogspot.Com.
I AM A BEGINNER YOGI, WHERE DO I START WITH ASHTANGA?
Here are 32 suggestions on how to get started. And here is my book, now for 99 cents in Kindle at Amazon. You can also contact me in the comments and let me know if you would like me to answer any questions.
Follow me on Twitter or friend me in Facebook.
HOW MUCH DO YOU SPEND ON YOGA PER YEAR?
Here is my cost break-down, year by year, since 2003. I don't have written records dating from before 03.
DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES, MAGIC, COINCIDENCES?
Of course.
HOW DID YOU START BLOGGING ABOUT YOGA?
Of course.
HOW DID YOU START BLOGGING ABOUT YOGA?
Like most blogs mine started as a way to share notes on the practice but very quickly turned into a community gathering and service to fellow yogis on the path.
In the beginning yoga was a new discovery and so was the blog, but as the years went by I started to notice that it helps others to have a place where to share information, learn, and discuss things openly and freely.
Once that realization dawned on me I started creating posts that gave clear pointers as of what benefits yoga brought into my own life, and not just the obvious ones, some very practical ones as well, for example: how I lost 30 pounds since starting yoga, or things I wish I knew before I started practicing.
On my second trip to Mysore while studying at the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute I went as far as creating what I always wished I had on my first trip, a comprehensive –yet with a mom-and-pop- feeling to it- Guide to Mysore For Yogis. I figured it would be good for people, when the time comes, to know how to travel safe, what to pack, how much it would cost, and general information about the shala and the Mysore experience.
Hey, I even wrote a book on 21 things to know before starting an Ashtanga Yoga practice!
DO YOU HAVE AN ACCENT WHEN YOU SPEAK ENGLISH?
Yes, a very elegant one.
IS IT SAFE TO TURN YOURSELF INTO A PRETZEL?
Well, so far I have not died. But I am ALWAYS cautious and never push. I just "find my edge". Life is pretty good these days. I blame it on yoga.
HOW IS YOUR OWN PRACTICE?
My practice is described here in detail. I basically practice asana, and the limbs leading to meditation every day 6 times a week, no moon days and no Saturdays. On Saturdays sometimes I do the castor oil bath.
I am very much looking to have a rounded practice that includes all limbs of yoga, not just the asanas or poses, and have done many investigations on pranayama (or breath extension). For example: here are 32 suggestions on how to start paying attention to your breath, as a preliminary for the fourth limb of yoga. And here are some changes that happened to me after the practice of pranayama became a steady part of my life.
I also focus on pratyahara (or withdrawal of the senses), here is 10 things to know about it, focusing or concentrating and finally ‘falling into meditation’. That is right, we cannot meditate, meditation happens, when the practice is followed. If you are interested in the eight limbs of yoga, here are 8 things to know about them, in a 'keeping it real' kind of way.
Ever since I attended Vipassana Meditation retreats I was very much sold on how important it is to develop a meditation practice. I do realize that this system is somewhat lacking on the physical part, but if the yoga is taken care as it is with my practice when at home, then Vipassana provides an excellent setting for meditation, here is 9 reasons why I think it is a great system. Issues came up in conversations which I addressed as for example: How can anyone find 2 hours a day to meditate?
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SONG?
Right now it is "Lazy Sunday" by Andy Samberg from Saturday Night Live, you can find the video on Hulu. It makes me laugh. Every time
WHAT BOOKS DO YOU RECOMMEND?
Right now it is "Lazy Sunday" by Andy Samberg from Saturday Night Live, you can find the video on Hulu. It makes me laugh. Every time
WHAT BOOKS DO YOU RECOMMEND?
I devour literature on yoga constantly, and write comprehensive reviews of books I believe would help people on the path, my favorite books so far are “Teaching Yoga” which is a book that needs to be read not just by teachers but also students of yoga, you can see why I think that in this post, there is also “The Art of Adjustment”, a wonderful book y Brian Cooper who draws on over 10 years of conducting teacher trainings and teaching how to adjust the primary series of Ashtanga. It has helped as I clean up the series and I bet it can help you too. See the "Book and DVD Review" portion on the right of the front page, you will find all my reviews there.
Then there are books on the big K, and by big K I mean Krishnamacharya of course, the grandfather of all yogas you see out there these days. Here is a review of His Life and Teachings. He, Krishnamacharya, was the teacher of B.K.S. Iyengar and Jois and Mohan, Ramaswami, Devi, and they in turn influenced all those famous teachers you see out there, they all come from the lineage of Krishnamacharya. Take for example Beryl Birtch (the woman behind Power Yoga), she is teaching and adapting the primary series of Ashtanga and calling it Power Yoga. I think it is a blessing she called it that because that term fired the imagination of many people in the west who are now practicing some version of Ashtanga perhaps even unaware.
A big impression was formed in my mind as well when I met Ramaswami in 2011 (a student of Krishnamacharya for over 35 years). I took his workshop on the YOGA SUTRAS (the bible of yoga) and found many surprising and new things.
DO YOU HAVE POSTS ABOUT ASANAS OR POSES?
Yes, I share tips and things I learn on my own practice which you can find categorized by pose in the “labels area”, just as an example, for prasarita padotanasana recently I had a post called “Is it cheating” which posed the question on whether it was OK or not to push the floor with the thumb while in the pose, you can read the post so it all becomes clear. I have also shared countless tips about dropping back, which is the area where I am putting most of my focus now as it is my frontier…
If you are visiting NYC you might also want to practice with Eddie Stern at the Ganesh Temple. I practiced with him and his very dedicated assistants for a year and it transformed my practice, sending me deeper into it.
In NY we are also blessed to have countless very professional and great teachers like Guy, Christopher, Zoe, Greg, Lori, Amy, and many others. Email me if you would like more info. If you are staying in Brooklyn, there is also Ashtanga Yoga Brooklyn.
I visit Mysore, India as often as possible, and practice at the source at the KPJAYI with Sharath or Saraswati (grandson and daughter of Guru Sri Krishna Pattabhi Jois). Countless blog posts talk about the experience of visiting and there is nothing like it, here are the stories brought about by my second visit and here are some stories abouot the third trip.
If you are thinking of starting an Ashtanga Yoga Practice Here are 33 Suggestions. You can also check out my book.
When in Buenos Aires, Argentina, I always go to Pablo Pirillo's studio. Pablo is a very dedicated and serious student. The shala is on a terrace of a private house in the mids of Palermo Soho, a very trendy neighborhood with lots of cafes and artists. A treat.
I attended Yoga Teacher Training at Centered Yoga in the island of Ko Samui, Thailand and highly recommend the experience. Paul Dalaghan is a certified Ashtanga teacher, and a very down to earth, focused practitioner, he also puts a lot of emphasis in pranayama as taught to him by his guru and pranayama authority Tiwariji at the Kayvaliadhama institute in India.
May the practice of yoga bring you peace and happiness and everything you desire up to freedom!
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Now...
ABOUT ME
Hello, I am Claudia and I blog daily here at Claudiayoga.com.
I am interested in yoga as a path to presence, to being right here, right now, devoid of delusions and with full truth. I love how yoga makes me honest with everyone but more importantly with myself.
My first blog started back in 06, but in 08 I transitioned into blogger. Before that I worked in the corporate world for a very long time until yoga "recruited" me and changed my life for the better. Below is a brief recount of my yoga experience.
In the spring 2000 I took one of my first yoga classes at a local gym. At the corpse pose (savasana) I found myself crying and later realized that a big hip release during practice had helped me release and old emotion, hence the tears. I noticed that there was more to yoga than just exercise and decided to pursue it.
From then on I started taking classes of every possible style, everywhere. I visited Jivamukti, Integral Yoga, Bikram, different styles of Hatha, Vinyasa, Anusara inspired, Sivananda. I visited Indra Devi's institute in Buenos Aires and went to yoga in every international city I happened to go to through work (London, Madrid, Paris).
In 2003, I visited the Ashram of Swami Sivananda Radha in British Columbia. This was my first encounter with the deeper meaning of yoga. At the ashram we helped in the kitchen, ate breakfast in silence, journaled, prayed, gathered as a community and shared our human troubles, sang and danced. We also performed asana and looked into the deeper meaning of them. For the first time I found myself wondering about the relationship between my balance in, say, mountain pose, and the balance in the world around me. I could not believe that a person could do spiritual work at 8 AM, and continue to do so at 10, and at 12 and into the afternoon, and in the evening closing the day with darshan, or chanting. This is when I realized that a life can be dedicated to the Divine, and that everything we do is sacred.
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| A typical Vipassana Meditation Hall |
In 2004 I heard about Ashtanga Yoga for the first time.
At a workshop for "warriors and wizards" in 2005 I committed in front of 250 people to start and up-keep a daily yoga-asana practice. The yoga teacher in the back applauded. She was the only one. The presenter asked me if that was "realistic", I had barely just heard of ashtanga yoga then, but I suppose deep inside of me already knew I was to get into it. I said yes.
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| Utthita Hasta, by the Hudson River |
In 2007 I felt ready to do the leap and started practicing asana daily. Also at the end of that year I took a workshop with Manju Joiss and my curiosity to visit India grew exponentially.
In January of 2008 I went to the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute in Mysore, India, and met the guru himself, Sri Krishna Pattabhi Jois. Saraswati -his daughter- placed me in Mari D for the first time and started dropping me back, a journey that I continue to this day.
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| Graduation Day YTT |
In the summer of 09 I attended my first Vipassana meditation retreat, and became an advocate for their technique, how down-to-earth the system is, and how they keep it real, no fluff, just meditation, as the Buddha taught it.
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| With Sharath Jois on his 2011 Tour of NYC |
As I am updating this today, I find myself in Mysore on my second trip to the source, and studying with Sharath Jois. I am very grateful.
I continue to return to Mysore to study with Sharath and Saraswati.
In gratitude to the Divine Mother, Claudia.
Follow me on Twitter or subscribe at: ClaudiaYoga.com
