The Teacher’s Journal

It’s been nearly a week since I made my last post, and what a week it’s been!

Just as the moon slipped into the balsamic phase and Saturn made it’s station, my daughter gave birth to her daughter. I was so grateful to be a witness to this miracle of birth……what a moment. I’ll remember it for the rest of my life.

I’ve been facilitating pre-natal yoga for about 5 years, however this was my first opportunity to witness the techniques in action. Personally, I didn’t begin my yoga practice until after my children were born, so I don’t have any first-hand info to share. However, my daughter practiced yoga thruout her pregnancy and her experience of childbirth was 180 degrees different from my own. (No doubt modern-medicine had an impact as well as the presence of an enlightened doula/midwife)

Watching my daughter I was amazed at her composure & her acceptance during the powerful contractions of late labor. She appeared to be under control and quite present thruout those slow minutes of ‘discomfort’. I, however, found myself tense, tight, and frightened for her. Clearly, her long-standing yoga practice supported her, while my even longer yoga practice kinda went by the wayside during this highly emotional time!

Afterward, I spoke with her well experienced doula and asked her if she saw a difference between mothers who practiced yoga and those who don’t.
” Absolutely!!”, she replied. Their labors were shorter, the delivery’s were easier, and they were more composed. The doctor agreed.

I am thrilled to have been present for the miracle that is my 1st GrandDaughter. I am so proud of my daughter, that she could be so willing to trust the process and be present for this event. Yoga teaches us to be more present in our bodies and to be fully connected to the Now, regardless of what is happening. Suffering, negativity, and pain are all minimized when we can Be Here Now. At the miraculous moments of birth, the ‘now’ is the place to be.

Perhaps when I return home to my students I’ll initiate a workshop, Yoga for Grand Mothers!

Happy Mother’s Day.

Om shanti, shanti, shantihi.

It’s a Girl!

I get a lot of students asking me for yoga techniques to help with sore feet. It seems to be quite a common complaint.

My first suggestion is to tell them to begin to pay more attention to the shoes that they wear and to try going without shoes for longer periods of time.  There’s really no reason to wear shoes at all when one is home, is there?

Then I show them various massage & acupressure points to help relieve some of their pain.  The fun really starts when we stand up and begin to really notice just how we stand.  Where (on our feet) do we carry our weight?  Are we balanced on our feet?  Do they turn in? or out?  Then, we walk around the room and pay even closer attention.  What part of our foot touches the ground first when we walk?  What part comes next?  And so goes the inquiry………

Yesterday, I stumbled upon an article on the Internet and had a good giggle while reading it.  It seems I am not alone in my conclusions about shoes. Click on this picture to read more.

What happens when you integrate astrology into the yogic practice of self-observation without judgement?

Self-inquiry is a spiritual practice that directs our energy and our attention inward. It’s a particular form of self-discovery that encourages one to first recognize and then drop the social mask (also known as the persona, personality, or ascendant) and practice authenticity in every moment. (rather than productivity or some other external goal). In, The Path with Heart by Jack Kornfield, he describes a Buddhist practice of sitting quietly and repeatedly asking yourself, “Who am I”, over and over until you reach a point where something in the body/mind relaxes (?) and a subtle shift in consciousness happens. It’s one of those things that you have to experience for yourself and hard to describe.

Svadhyaya is one of the niyamas (from Patanjali’s 8 Limbs of Yoga) that encourages us to look at ourselves, clearly, without prejudice. It’s a challenging task and requires constant practice. Kripalu Yoga is the methodology that i practice. It brings the physical and energetic bodies into the mix by developing a heightened sense of awareness to sensations, breath, thought patterns, and spontaneous emotional expression.

Astrology attempts to find meaning in the natural order of the cosmos. Everything has it’s own time, it’s own season, and every minute that passes is unique. Astrologers observe both long term & short term trends and relate that information to the present moment. In addition, astrology also adds mythological, archetypal, & psychological dimensions that are extremely personal and relevant.

Natal Astrology looks at an individual (or oneself) thru a lens that has no prejudice. The natal horoscope does not see: gender, race, religion, economic status, socio/cultural differences, sexual orientation, political affiliation or any of the ways in which we categorize ourselves. What the natal chart does describe is our ‘energetic’ makeup and the timing of unfoldment. The ‘how’ is up to us. There are many ways to manifest the potential of our horoscope. It’s the energy pattern and the timing that are pre-determined. All else is free will. When approached with equanimity and non-judgement the natal horoscope becomes an impartial map of possibility with a built-in clock to help one connect to the present moment more intimately.

Yoga & Astrology have co-existed harmoniously in various cultures for eons. Each discipline recognizes the value & contribution of the other. Across the centuries, astrologers have continued to relate the movement of what is above to the movement of what lies below. Whereas, at the same time the yogi’s were discovering what lies without, also exists within. They both agree that here & now is important.

Yoga provides us with the tools to help us be with that moment in peaceful co-existence. Astrology helps us to understand the characteristics of the our particular ego-state and the nature of the obstacles that impede our path towards a higher consciousness. Yoga helps us to smooth out the obstacles, minimize the ego drives and approach life’s challenges in peace. Astrology provides us with the nature of the ever-changing present moment. Yoga practices train us to respond to the ever-changing moment with acceptance. Astrology, when properly understood, can advance us towards spiritual awakening. Yoga does the same.

As a Professional Kripalu Yoga Teacher & Astrologer it’s taken me most of my life to bring these two paths together in a way that goes beyond the mental field or intellect. After 30+ years of study and practice I have now reached a point where I can no longer keep them separate. My personal practice and the programs I offer always include the cosmic point of view in an attempt to teach the hermetic principal, As Above, So Below. For those who are ready for the practice of self-inquiry and seek to approach life multi-dimensionally, astrology & yoga together can be quite enlightening.

Om shanti, shanti, shantihi.

Today’s astrological transits show the moon moving thru the sign of Sagittarius with Venus squaring both Mars (2:07pm EDT) and Jupiter (9:36pm EDT). A fiery Sag moon does not bode well for practicing patience. I don’t think today will be The Day.

Patience is more of a Saturnian experience and the fixed signs of Taurus, Scorpio, Leo & Aquarius probably have more of a natural affinity to remaining calm, stable, and unmoving……other aspects of being patient.

The dictionary shows the definition of patience as one who is patient. Patient is defined as:

1: bearing pains or trials calmly or without complaint

2: manifesting forbearance under provocation or strain

3: not hasty or impetuous

4: steadfast despite opposition, difficulty, or adversity

5 a: able or willing to bear

Waiting for a baby to be born might be the ultimate test of patience as well as a few other tests as well! Letting go of control and surrendering to the present moment are ways to bring a spiritual practice to the frustration and endless waiting period of childbirth.

Becoming a grandparent might be another Saturn-type of event since Saturn governs things like: elders, authority, practical wisdom ( as opposed to philosophical wisdom which falls more into the Jupiter category).

So, I’m looking at all my charts and doing what I can to contact my intuition to answer the eternal question: “When??”

I don’t think today’s the day. Time to be patient.

May all beings practice peaceful patience.

OMmmmmmmmmm.

I’m supposed to be packing right now and instead I’ve gotten caught up in this website where you re-create yourself as a South Park character. The choices are many, the decisions confuse me! Anyway, this is what I’ve come up with and you can click on the picture to go there yourself. Have fun!

I need to get myself into ‘travel mode’ now. I’ll probably be offline for a few days until I settle in in sunny southern California.

May all beings live in peace.

Om

One of my favorite bloggers has ‘tagged’ me, which means that I am supposed to answer the 5 questions and then tag 5 others to do the same. Thanks Muse, (??).

These online ‘games’ are an interesting way for bloggers to get to know each other a little better. Not a bad idea actually…..there are some very interesting people out here in the blogosphere.

Today’s post are my responses to the “fluff five”…..hmmm, who picks these names? I, too, would never use the word fluff(y) to describe my blog or my self!

Nevertheless, here goes.

5 Things found in your bag. (I try to travel everywhere as light as possible, keeping clutter to a minimum…..so today I have…..

ipod

keys

loose change

mala beads

biz cards

5 Things found in your room (hmm, which room would that be? how about the one I’m in!……..I like muse’s room)

computer

the ever present cup of coffee

the overflowing bookcase

my favorite photo from Ashes and Snow

another ipod & speakers

5 Things you always wanted to do:

Travel around the world visiting all the spiritual sites on the planet.

Live in an ashram for a while

Hike the Grand Canyon….all the way down, and all the way back up

Lose 10 pounds……….

Write a book (or 2, or 3, or………..)

5 Things you’re currently into:

Cleaning up my hard drives!

Reading fiction and catching up with all my favorite authors.

Re-organizing my life to make room for grandchildren!

Expanding my teaching to new places & to new people

Learning new music on my harp

5 people you want to tag……..hmmm, this is a hard one! Please forgive the blogs that are not wordpress!

http://opalescentwords.wordpress.com/

http://constantstateofflux.wordpress.com/

http://pisces-chronicles.blogspot.com/

http://sahajapower.wordpress.com/

http://raginguniverse.blogspot.com/

Hmmm. Looking over my responses I appear quite boring. Oh well…… what can I say when I’m feeling like I have nothing to say!

Sun’s out……time to bask and practice doing nothing for while.

Om shanti.

For years now I have been opening yoga class with a “check-in”. It’s an opportunity for those who choose, to speak without fear of feedback. It can be a difficult practice and not everyone participates, nor does everyone understand the benefits or meaning of the practice.

I will be turning over my yoga classes to my assistants when I travel later this month. We’ve been having ‘training’ sessions to cover as much as we can before I leave. “Holding the space” for a deep-listening practice can be extremely challenging. And, yet, I want the studio to remain constant and safe for those who attend in my absence.

Over the years of working with deep listening techniques, conscious communication, and silence I have learned a lot. It’s my intention to get it all down in the manual I’m writing for yoga teachers/therapists.

For today, I’d like to call your attention to some words that are best eliminated from your everyday dialogue. They are powerless and ineffective. Nothing of importance gets communicated if these words are in your sentences. And, for now, you’ll just have to take my word for it and do your own research. Let me know what you find. Here’s the list.

COULD

WOULD

SHOULD

BUT

NEVER

ALWAYS

NOT (or any word that has a n’t attached to it)

It’s a short list. However, if you begin to really listen to yourself you will probably find it quite difficult to eliminate these words.

The moon’s in Gemini today….the impulse to connect thru language presents itself. The mental field is active and the communication channels are active.