Krismas In Kovalom

Dear Katie and Friends at City Yoga,
Happy Solstice and other Holiday Greetings from southern India.

As many Ashtangis already know, there are times in our practice when we just have to be willing to sit back for a while and take it easy - ahimsa for the body - for ourselves. It's often a discouraging to do so because, at least in my experience, a big part of me is driven by seeing improvement in my practice. So when the body rebels from time to time and decides it needs a break I have needed to be ready to hear that message and be willing to accept it. That's where I am again now in my practice. For many of us in the Ashtanga community injuries seem to come and go. In India (as elsewhere) it is common to meet people practicing Ashtanga and begin sharing stories about injuries, past or present. Currently I have overcome an 'issue' with my left knee only to have had to completely modify my practice in order to respect a complaint from my left shoulder. This set-back is personally frustrating because I have wanted to stay as healthy as possible while here - afterall, it IS India. But at the same time this injury offers me an opportunity to reflect on how fortunate I am to be able to enjoy Ashtanga at whatever level of accomplishment or modification. There is also the metaphorical element of things happening on Indian time. the hotel room I stay in promises hot water (24-7), but the first four days the water heater was broken - "no problem sir electrician coming, fixing." Well, yes, I had hot water four days later. Many mornings I wake up and there is no water at all (the hotel 'boy' forgets to turn on the pump and fill the resivoir on top of the hotel so all of the rooms have water). "No problem sir, now pump running, few minutes water coming, no problem." In the bottom line is our ability to 'go with the flow' and accept what is. Whether this is an interruption with a daily routine or an interruption with a yoga practice. In both cases the most important thing is not to lose track of the focus on the breath, the bandhas and the dristi. Then there is total enjoyment of the present moment. I don't think it's particularly easy but it is the constant challenge. always lessons to be learned.

Looking forward to practicing with you all soon.

Jai Mata Ki,
Lars

The Antidote to Holiday Stress

Restorative Yoga - Sunday 12.23 at 5:15pm

Feedback from a student after our last restorative class: "Sunday, after the class, I felt “lighter, softer”. This seldom is the type of feeling I have. Generally, I hold everything tightly and with control, putting large amounts of effort into activities. So, soft and light felt very good. Also, my mind and body were working together, I had time to feel a pose, be that pose. Generally, I can be “distracted” for any number of reasons.

< The next night >Monday’s class was very “full” (of distractions…), but somehow, it was easier to stay within myself, to let my mind and body work, lighter and softer again."

For more information on the ways that Restorative Yoga works click here.

Happy Solstice!

From Wikipedia:

The winter solstice occurs the instant when the Sun's position in the sky is at its greatest angular distance on the other side of the equatorial plane as the observer. Depending on the shift of the calendar, the event of the Winter solstice occurs sometime between December 20 and 23 each year in the Northern hemisphere, and between June 20 and 23 in the Southern Hemisphere, and the winter solstice occurs during either the shortest day or the longest night of the year. Though the Winter Solstice lasts an instant, the term is also used to refer to the full day and night (24hrs) within which the event occurs. Worldwide, interpretation of the event varies from culture to culture, but most hold a recognition of rebirth, involving festivals, gatherings, rituals or other celebrations. Many cultures celebrate or celebrated a holiday near the winter solstice; examples of these include Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, New Years, Pongal, Yalda and many other festivals of light.^[1]

Mastering the Basics

Here is the current Mastering the Basics class in there sixth week - they are doing awesome! Sign-up's have already begun for the January session, which starts on January 7th - and as usual meets on Monday and Wednesday nights at 7:15pm. For more information about our MTB course click here.

Eating to Support Your Yoga Practice

This is an excerpt from an article written by Guy Donahaye from the Ashtanga Yoga Shala in NYC. To read the full article click here.

If you look at the ancient texts on yoga they recommend a minimal diet of a little rice, a few vegetables, some mung dal (lentils) and ghee (clarified butter). The assumption here is that the practitioner is spending most of the time sitting in meditation or study and otherwise minimalising activity. However, a diet like this may not be sufficient for someone who has a stressful job or is physically very active.
What is perhaps most important to note is that food and eating are there for the purpose of nourishing the body which has an inate healthy apetite for what is beneficial. Unfortunately, in our modern society, divorced from the rythms and influences of nature, our apetite has become completeley disturbed and confused and all kinds of unhealthy eating habits have resulted.
We no longer know what is healthy to eat, how much to eat or when to eat. We use food for the sake of pleasure instead of nourishment, we eat excessive amounts and we eat all the time. The foods we choose are produced in all kinds of artifcial ways and many kinds of chemicals to stimulate the taste buds and encourage us to eat to excess.
Apart from the influence of food on the body, we find that food influences our mental state to a very high degree and we can thus divide food types into three broad categories:Food which promotes a healthy, calm, focused state of mind.Food which stimulates and disturbs the mind.Food which makes the mind dull.
The right kind of food is called sattvic food, when eaten in appropriate amounts and at the right time of day, this kind of food generates the ideal state of mind for practicing yoga and a healthy body. Characteristics of this kind of food: natural, fresh, organic, easy to digest.
Food we find stimulating may contain caffeine, chillies, refined sugars etc. Although in appropriately small quantities these substances may have beneficial effects for producing certain results, when used in excess they have extremely negative consequences for our system.
Other types of food we use for "relaxation". These foods, full of preservatives and other mind-dulling influences are taken to give a certain "comfort", but also result in very negative consequences for the human system.
In adiition to the types of food consumed, negative consequences result from excessive eating and eating at the wrong times.It is impossible to give a general diet which will suit all individuals. Students will need to develop a sensitivity to what foods are beneficial and which ones harmful. A student who also has a job which involves a lot of physical work will need a more protein rich diet than one who's work is sedentary. One who's work requires great mental effort, or who is exposed to great stress may also require more food.It is a general reccommendation for yoga students that they follow a vegetarian diet, however, for those who have a long history of meat eating, changing to this way of eating overnight may not be possible or advisable. If you are a habitual red meat eater and are wishing to transition to a healthier way of eating, you may start by first substituting white meat or fish and gradually reducing the frequency of meat eating. Equally, if you eat white meat you may transition first to fish and so on.As you start practicing yoga, you will notice that your eating desires slowly change. If you listen to your body, the transition will be healthy and happy.

AYRI in the USA

Even though I had been practicing Ashtanga Yoga for three years in the fall of 2001, I was kind of clueless about what was going on.. or maybe I just wasn't ready. But I was living in Virginia and could have easily gone up to NY to do one of those weeks with Guruji. But like I said I was apparently kind of clueless - and pretty much didn't even know it was going on. By the next summer it seems I sort of had caught on with the system, and upon moving to Spokane July '02 registered myself to attend the five day workshop in Seattle put on by David and Satya. (At that time I did not know them at all.) A friend of mine who I had rowed with (and hadn't seen since the "96 Olympic trials)and whose husband was the rowing coach at UW was going to let me stay at their house. So I had a place to stay and a yoga class each morning for a week, and didn't have a job... so off I went. My first day was less than stellar - I have to admit that upon seeing my two friends from the glory days of rowing and consuming a glass or two of wine I was LATE arriving to the venue where our beloved guru of Ashtanga Yoga was going to be teaching for five days. When I finally found the place, there were seemingly hundreds of pairs of shoes filling the anteroom of a community college gymnasium. The owners of those hundreds of shoes were already partaking in surya namaskaras as I sneaked into the very, very, very back row. After I was finished berating myself for being such an idiot - is seems out of all those 250 people, I was the only one who couldn't make it there on time - practice went along as usual. Because I was in the back row, Saraswathi was walking around and helping us bind etc.. Sharath was in the middle, and Guruji was in the very front. After we finished, as we were laying in Savasana, I noticed that people were starting to get up and go stand in this line, that ended at the three of them sitting up in the front of the gym. As clueless as I was I apparently had enough sense to go join the line and wait for my turn to meet this great teacher face to face. I wasn't sure about the kneeling at someones feet, or kissing their feet or whatever it was that everyone was confidently doing, but I continued to wait. When it was my turn I went over to him and sort of semi prostated myself at his feet, too shy to actually touch them, and then just went the easy way and gave him a hug. His smiling eyes, and his bear hug made me forget all my self-consciousness, and then he looked at me and said "you're here?". He must have thought I was someone else, but then of all things, then he thanked me! Wow, meeting him face to face is such a gift.

Well anyways, as the week wore on I was able to make it there on time. I slowly started to make my way toward the front of the room. One day I unrolled my mat right next to a woman named Fiona Stang who I went to high school and college with back East - which was really remarkable. I became more comfortable with the line, the kneeling thing, and began to look forward to that big hug. Since that time I've gone to see our teacher two other times and now (besides going to India) you all can too! He will be in the AYRI center they have built in the US - this March! I highly encourage you to take this opportunity!

'Tis the Season...

From all of us here at City Yoga we wish you are warm and peaceful holiday season! It has been an honor to share the gift of this practice with you over another year, and we look forward to many more.

During the month of December our classes are as regularly schedule except for the following cancellations, and special classes:
Sunday 12.16 @5:15pm Introduction to Second Series with Katie (please pre-register)
Sunday 12.23 @5:15pm Restorative Yoga with Katie (All-Levels)
Monday 12.24 @9:00am Beginners Flow with Judy(Level 1)
Monday 12.24 @10:30am Ashtanga Inspired Holiday Flow with Katie (Level 2/3)
Monday 12.24 Cancellations: 5:40pm and 7:15pm
Tuesday 12.25 Studio Closed
Monday 12.31 Cancellations: 5:40pm and 7:15

Check the website for special New Year's Day classes, January's Karma class and new classes being offerred in 2008!

Lokaha Samasta Sukino Bhavantu, (May all beings ...

Smiles From Mysore

Dear Katie and Friends at City Yoga
1) My Mysore milestone
2) Shala steps at 4:45 AM
3) Guruji
4) Saraswati
Say Puri!

The shala is surprisingly crowded again. I say surprisingly because it will be closed from 14 December until 5 January and so most of the advanced and semi-permanent people have already relocated to Goa and workshops there with teachers like Sharath, Rolf, Tim Miller and so many others. I have begun starting at 5AM to stay with the early group and their heat. Before the sun comes up these last two weeks the mornings are a comfortably cooler 60 - 65 degrees but the shala is energetically and physically steamed with the 30 - 40 early folks. As the morning progresses, the temperature heats up outside but inside the shala the intensity decreases and there is noticeably less heat in the room. It's very interesting. I really love the early morning starts and hope I can continue them when I get back home. Took more pics today in the shala because I wanted to get one with Saraswati but each time I've tried she has been busy with her afternoon class. Today she was in the office with Guruji and when I asked if I could have a photo with her she said "sure, you are my good student". Only two more practices left for me in Mysore. It's sad. There's so much I know that I will miss when I have left. Planning the return trip already.
Hugs from Mysore, Larsy

Interview with Saraswathi from Namarupa

NE: What advice can you give to Ashtanga Yoga teachers who want to teach this method over a long period of time, as you have done?

SR: You don't want to change the method. What you learn in Mysore with us is what you should teach in your place. Guruji has told us so many things; you can't go changing it. If you follow Guruji's method, definitely everything is coming spiritual. It will change minds; everything will change. People like it the way it is - that's why it is spreading everywhere. For forty years nobody has taught like hiim. But in old age - seventy years, eighty years - you keep a few asanas and make them your regular practice. Just do primary, that's enough, but don't stop. You look at the people and see what is suitablele for them. You can choose what their practice should be. Even a very big man can do Surya Namaskara with the correct breathing - you can make him try. Soon it will be much easier for him. If you can't do Surya Namaskara, you can do simple asanas, with breathing and mula bandha and drsthi. Even sick people can do the breathing. Eventually they will feel happy ad their bodies will become light. So many people tell us Guruji has changed their lives with Ashtanga Yoga.

Westerners are very strong people - when they start, they keep going.

From the Fall 2007 issue of Namarupa, excerpt from an interview of Saraswathi Rangaswamy, the daughter of Sri K.Pattabhi Jois by Nick Evans.

Neti Pot How To

2 Girls for Every Guy...

Dear Katie and Friends at City Yoga, Just like the Beach Boys remind us in 'Surf City', the Mysore shala has the same ratio: "Two girls for every boy". (Sometimes it's three to one.) Today is Sunday and the first day of the yoga practice week. This class and the last on Friday are led classes. I don't particularly like the led classes since we all start well together, but by Navasana things begin to fall apart (Saraswati has a long five count in each of the repetitions). And just before the finishing asanas, it's a scramble just to keep together. But the led classes do allow a head count for the current population. Sixty-one in the shala this morning. Among the people I have met, therer are representatives from the following countries: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Jordan, Japan, Korea, Norway,Russia, Scotland, Sweden, Taiwan and Thailand and the USA. Two things unify this unique group, Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga and English. Some of these people are just beginning an Ashtanga practice and work with Saraswati one-on-one in the afternoons. Others are very advanced and there's every level in between. If you don't know where to stop during ypur practice, Saraswati will tell you when to sit and watch during the led class. Many of the people here are teachers. Some will return to where they live and teach until they've saved enough money to support them being here for another six months. Others, like myself, are only here for a few weeks. Whatever the reason or the duration, it is undeniably an experience of a lifetime. I'm already past my half-way mark in Mysore - time flys when you're having fun. Om Shanti, Lars

Happy Thanksgiving from Mysore

Happy Thanksgiving! A few of us are getting together on T-Day for vegetarian potluck. Today marks three weeks in Mysore and have only two more before going further south. It's going fast. I haven't been adjusted by Saraswati at all this week. Just help in drop-backs. I wait, but there are many more people now than last week and she just keeps moving around and gets the drop-backs for sure and if time (so it seems) she will come and assist in other poses. It's all good. My knee is getting better. I can take Ardha Baddha Padmatonasana with no pain again. The massage guy's work is effective. I've also been following some advice from Gregor. Speaking of Gregor, there's a woman here who goes to his shala in Australia. She says 'he's just such a lovely man and his wife is a dream'. Stay warm, Love from Mysore, Lars

Rick Davis Sculpture

Have you noticed our really cool bike rack embellished with om signs and yoga figures? Well they are creations of Rick Davis - you can check out his new website at http://www.rickdavissculpture.com/.

What happens in Mysore after morning practice?

Dear Katie and Friends at City Yoga,

As so many of you lucky Ashtangis have experienced recently with David's Immersion Workshop, a regular daily practice is the 'best' teacher. Still there is no substitute for a knowlegable teacher who can give sensitive adjustments and personalized attention to your particular body during those practices. That is the beauty of Mysore style learning. I'm becoming more settled into a routine here. My practice, as I may have written already, begins about 5:15 AM. So generally I am leaving the shala around 7:30 AM when the last batch of students are just beginning. because I am able to take extra breaths in poses I want to explore more deeply or repeat poses when asked by Saraswati. And if you want specific help you need to wait until she can get to you. There is no need to rush through and no one says you're going too slowly. During the rest of the day there are several options. For those who just want to do the complete tourist thing, lying beside a hotel pool and listening to their i-pods that's a possibility. Exploring the city of Mysore is a culturally and visually interesting touritst-type activity - although exhausting and not something you need to do daily. Although I have my favorite places that I enjoy returning to, where I always notice something new. In the spirit of deepening the yoga experience, there are an abundance of classes in which to participate. They vary in cost to completely free to quite pricey - there's something worthwhile for every budget. I am taking a Sanskrit class from a young Sanskrit teacher - it meets 4 days a week. After learning to write and read the Devanagari script for an hour we have chanting with the same teacher to emphasize correct pronounciation. Our chanting is from the B Gita, the Yoga Sutras, shlokas for Bhajan and some shanti pat mantras. On the days we don't have that class I meet with his teacher who is a Professor of Sanskrit (she has a lovely south Indian singing voice) and we chant from a variety of sources. The second class is completely free. There are some yoga students who have gone there, perhaps for months becoming years. That class is like going from my 4-day a week Kindergarden-level course to a college-level course. It's very inspiring and humbling at the same time to see yoga students from all over the world in a small room in an ordinary home in an older part of Mysore chanting these verses accurately, by heart. There are also classes in the local language - Kannada, Ayurveda, Ayurvedic Massage, Yoga Therapy, Yoga Philosophy, the Yoga Sutras and South Indian Cooking. All of them are taught by current or retired teachers and doctors. There's always something to learn. After a nap or two during the day I try to have a light early fruit dinner and be asleep by 8PM. It's gotten cooler here in the morning and I am glad that I packed a sweatshirt. Although the temperature is a probably a comfortable 60 degrees it is chilly especially after a hot practice. Hoping you are all well. Continue your practice and all is coming. Lars

Free Rice

This site is interesting: www.freerice.com. By participating in the vocabulary quiz with advertisements on each page, you raise money for the UN World Food Program a little bit at a time. The user wins by improving their vocabulary, the advertisers win by getting their ads seen, and the World Food Program gets support. By my calculations (assuming 20-30 milligrams per grain) they managed to donate around 1.3 to 1.9 tons of rice yesterday.

It took me very little time today to get up to 1500 grains, and it's good fun. The words actually get quite hard. My vocabulary level hovers around the low to mid forties.

Here's another interesting site. http://www.poverty.com/internationalaid.html

Did you know...

With your unlimited monthly membership, not only do you have one guest pass per month, but you also have one free Spokane Youth Yoga class that you can use for your child or give to a friend. The pass expires at the end of the SYY current session. If you would like more details let us know. Also have you seen their new Spokane Youth Yoga website?

My'sore in Mysore

Dear Friends,
After three weeks, the newness is beginning to wear off and things out of the ordinary seem quite normal. India is certainly a country of contrasts. Diwali Festival just ended (although I was warned that in a week there will be another grand night of firecrackers - again). I believe it was the night of 10 November - the last night of the Festival of Lights - that the firecrackers began at 6 PM and continued literally (and excessively) non-stop until around 2 AM. The noise was so constant and loud that neighbors in the house next to my bedroom window turned up the music they were playing and then were shouting at each other in order to be heard above the resulting din (gunga). The owner of one of the places where I eat meals said that the growing number of Indians working in the IT sector has produced this new affluence in the south resulting in bigger and bigger spending on events such as Divali.

Food in the south is mainly vegetarian and it is delicious. I did see a local place that advertised Fried Chicken. Just about a mile from where I am staying is a major intersection where you can find a Domino's, Subway and a Pizza Hut. I haven't seen a burger place yet. Visiting schools is quite an event. They have been very welcoming and generous with their time. Usually I meet with the Principal first, chai is served and we talk for a while then other teachers are summoned to meet me and we talk some more. Then we start off to visit the classes in which I have expressed an interest. I am escorted to evreything. The escort(s) stays with me all the time. At times they become bored with the lessons observed and suggest that we can leave now, but I insist on staying through to the end.

The students are eager to speak with me when given the opportunity. In class they are completely engaged in the topics. Sometimes they are called to do board work, at times they are simpley asked to explain a theorem or a technique. When the teacher has asked a question in class generally all hands shoot up to hope to get called upon to answer. When given a problem to solve, they get on it immediately trying to be the first to offer a solution. They use no calculators (log and trig tables are allowed) and they know plenty of short-cuts and quick-tricks to manage the arithmetic needed in either algebra, geometry, trig or calculus. All of the students wear school uniforms except for those in what they call junior colleges (this is grade 11 and 12 here and the students have a tough syllabus). I have purchased some books used for those grades to indicate the curriculum studied.

I have yoga class starting at 5:15 AM and I am finished by 7 AM. Schools don't begin until around 9:30 AM. The weather is pretty constant. About 80 each day cooling to about 70 - then the Indians put on scarves and sweaters. It's humid and I am still adjusting to that. Other things like cows loose on the streets (also ponies, goats, dogs) competing with ox carts, bicycles, pedestrians, mini Indian cars, larger SUV like vehicles, ornately decorated trucks, scooters, motorcycles and flower festooned, smoke belching 2-stroke auto-rickshaws amid a cacaphonous variety of horns and the way everything seems to mesh with little altercation makes life here even more unique. Everyone drinks filetered water - if they can afford it. I have a 20 Liter bottle delivered for 50Rs (about $1.25).
Wishing you could all have the opportunity to be here and enjoy the experience.
Lars

More lessons from Mysore...

Dear Katie and David and friends at City Yoga, Deepavali (or Dewali) celebrations started last night. Lots of firecrackers. My neighborhood sounded like a war zone. Friday is a moon day so no practice, but Friday is usually a led class day so Thursday is the led class this week. The led classes begin at 5am. I usually wake up at 3:45am to have time for a small coffee at home and some time to wake-up the 'system'. Maybe it was the explosions last night or that I needed an extra hour's sleep, or whatever, but anyway I forgot to set my alarm. So this morning I awoke at 4:50am leaving only 10 minutes to make it to the led class. Somehow I managed to get there before 5am. I was so grateful to Guy and Holly, who have been my practice neighbors this past week, since they 'kinda' saved a spot for me. I was able to get my mat out and street-clothes off and ready by the time Saraswati entered the practice room. Whew! For me it wasn't the best practice ever, but, fortunately, I was, at least, able to catch my breath and started practice in a calm state of mind. Nice challenge for Yogaschittavrttinirodah. Friday and Saturday are yoga holidays. Because of the extra day off in a row, some people have scheduled overnight excursions to areas of interest nearby. I have my Sanskrit and chanting class on Saturday morning and my first Ayurvedic massage scheduled on Saturday afternoon, so I'm staying here. There is so much to see and do here in Mysore that I'm not sure that I will bother arranging out of town adventures. There are a couple of local men that I have become friends with; we enjoy just sitting and talking over a coffee or chai, and of course, a sweet or two. This morning after practice, I was invited to participate in a short puja at the Ganesha Temple. The young priest was very kind and explained the significance of all the aspects of the ritual. There is a beautiful Krishna Temple, up the road from the shala, where some of us go for a short meditation sit in the afternoon. Enjoy your time with David. Om Shanti, Lars

Thank You Heather and Benjy!

Thank you Heather and Benjy for giving us such a beautiful and inspiring experience. Thank you everyone who came. We will see Shantala again next fall!

Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect. - Chief Seattle

More reporting from Mysore...

(photo from AYRI.ORG)

Dear Katie and friends at City Yoga,
Mysore ... it's worth the price of admission. Although I wouldn't want to be here when it's at the 250 - 300 level of practitioners. Now there are less than fifty. Among them a couple from Olympia, a guy from Victoria and another from Nelson; small world. This morning there were only about 35 in the shala. It's hard to know exactly since some start at 5AM and others come later, on the half hour. My start time is 5:30 and I have been arriving early and when I enter the shala's foyer, Saraswti motions me to come in so I really start around 5:15. The air is moist and warm most of the time. I brought a travel alarm with a thermometer and I have not noticed it less than 78 degrees in my room. This makes for me a very easy warm-up. I share the ground floor of a house (the family is upstairs) and have a short walk (about 53 steps) from my front gate to the shala. Everything urgently necessary is within easy walking distance of the shala. The local people are wonderful; friendly, helpful and very outgoing and the food is fantastic. Papayas are in season as are pomegranetes, local apples and the ubiquitous bananas ( maybe five different kinds). Part of the reason there are so few people here now is that Guruji is not usually adjusting during practice (I've only seen him once - the day I registered) and Sharath is off teaching workshops in Japan, Hong Kong and later in Goa. So Saraswati is running the morning practices by herself. But, I haven't seen that it is a problem. She has an eagle-eye and watches everyone closely. It's hard to hide something from her watchfulness. After my first Mysore practice last week, she asked me as I was leaving if I did my back-bending. I said yes and she said "but no dropping-back". I said no. Then she said, with a smile, "from Monday, you are waiting and dropping back. Any pose you want help, you wait, I will come." Friday, the end of the week here (Saturday is a holiday) and Sunday, the beginning of the week, are Led Primary Series days. So today was "my" Monday and I was a bit apprehensive about the dropping-back. However, as I practiced this morning I observed her assist a man taller and much heavier than I. Saraswati is a small woman, but very strong. She uses no props, only her hands at your hips and away you go. She softly led me into the activity. My down and back up went well. Afterwards she said, with a twinkle in her eye, "Tomorrow you are doing two times." The time difference from here to there is 12 hours plus 1 1/2 hours ahead of Spokane time. So, when you-all are starting a Monday night class in Spokane I am just finishing my Tuesday morning practice and sending greeting home via the closing mantra. Afterwards I head to the coconut stand opposite the shala entrance for fresh coconut water and early morning chit-chat with folks from all over the world drawn here by the same ashtanga magnet. Hare Om, Lars

Karma Class Tonight!

If you have any old bikes (including kids bikes) in any state of repair, you can drop them off at the studio tonight (and take class at 5:30pm). The folks from Pedals 2 People will be there. We hope to see you then!

First report from Mysore...

Hey Katie,
Registered yesterday and saw and spoke with Guruji.First practice today. Saraswathi asked me if I was "a beginner or you practice?" I told her practicing 4 years. She said, OK you come at 5:30.Only about 30-35 people practicing. Plenty of room. It's muggier than inSeattle. I was dripping after fourth surya A.She gave me one adjustment. As I was leaving there were still a few practicing (I wasn't the last one out) but she nabbed me and said "you didback-bending?" I said yes, she said "Dropping back"? I said no, BUSTED! She said "Monday you wait, I will help. Any pose you want help you wait, I will come". So, the myth that they don't toiuch you if you're only here for a month is false. She spoke very kindly to me and reminded me thatFriday and Sunday are Led and start at 5AM.Met a woman from Olympia after the practice. Trying to get my bearings and fill up a long open day. It's hot and humid. My room is about 100 yards from the shala.I might be here for 5 weeks, and then to Lino's.That's it for the first Mysore report. I'm learning lots of what to do and what not to do for/if there are other trips. Despite all my attempts to get details, there's nothing like actually being here. Some of that internet advice is just bogus.Take care and say hello to everyone at City Yoga.
Love,Larsy
Listen to the NPR story about mysore... (thanks Judy)

Shantala - This Sunday Night at 7pm

Chatting About Chanting
with Benjy and Heather Werthheimer

by Stephanie Gailing

As more and more people turn to yoga and the inspirations of Eastern wisdom in their quest for peace and understanding, the traditional Indian style of devotional chanting known as kirtan (pronounced “KEER-tun”) has been growing in popularity.

Notable among the talented musicians who are sharing this ancient art with modern day audiences are Portland natives Benjy and Heather Wertheimer, who perform as Shantala. Through their live kirtan performances and their latest CD, The Love Window, they take audiences on heart opening musical journeys, layering beautiful vocals with rhythmically transformative instrumental sounds. Benjy has studied Indian classical music for over 20 years with some of the greatest masters of the tradition, including Ali Akbar Khan and Zakir Hussain, and also tours and records with Krishna Das. Heather is an accomplished singer, songwriter, guitarist and yoga teacher with a soul-stirring voice who also performs with virtuoso guitarist Michael Mandrell.

I have been blessed to have attended a kirtan with Benjy and Heather and to have had the opportunity to learn more about their experiences of and insights into devotional chanting.

What happens during an evening of kirtan?

Heather: We often open our kirtans with a musical meditation before we start singing, which might involve Benjy singing an invocation in the classical Indian style or playing the esraj, which is like an Indian violin. Then the group sings OM together and we start doing call and response singing. We often teach the Sanskrit words to the group in advance, especially if they're complex, and we explain something about what the words mean. If there are a lot of people chanting for the first time, I explain something about the process and encourage them not to be self-conscious about their singing. I suggest they sing to whatever they love.

When we're chanting, we increase the tempo of many of the chants, and the energy of the group rises with it. Eventually, Benjy breaks out into a drum solo. When the chant ends, there is the most serene and delicious silence. The energy of the chant then moves deeper inside us. You can feel it in the room. Those are the sweetest moments.

Benjy: One short way I sometimes describe it is as the yogic equivalent of really rocking gospel music!

What role does mantra play in kirtan?

Heather: The chants, the mantras, we sing are praising the names of ancient deities. It is said that chanting these names evokes the qualities of the names themselves. People have been chanting these names for thousands of years. I believe that chanting them is like stepping into a river that's been flowing forever. We get taken along in the current. Whether or not you know exactly what they mean, chanting these sacred names is transforming. The practice leads to change, a heightened awareness of love, which can be either rapid or gradual.

The chants we know are in Sanskrit. The Sanskrit language is incredibly old and is made up of sounds that are considered to be sacred, primal sounds of the universe. The sounds themselves can have an energetic impact on the physical and spiritual levels.

Benjy: One of the functions of Sanskrit is to focus pranic energy, the central life energy that many people know as "chi" in the Chinese tradition. This approach to the spiritual sound of the mantras themselves joins with the beauty of the melodies and power of the rhythms. All together, it makes the practice of kirtan a unique and powerful expression of Bhakti yoga, the yoga of devotion.

Do you have to practice Hinduism to enjoy chanting?

Heather: I believe that kirtan is not at all limited to people who claim to be Hindu. Having knowledge of Hinduism could certainly add a lot of depth and richness to understanding the mantras, as would knowledge of Sanskrit. Yet most of the people I know who love to chant in the U.S. don't identify as Hindus, and they don't know much Sanskrit. I've been a yogi for a long time, but I have strong influences of Buddhism in my belief system. I don't think chanting needs to conflict with any particular belief system because the Gods and Goddesses in the chants are all faces of the One.

Benjy: I struggled at first with chanting to Hindu deities because I identify as a Quaker. Even though it felt really good to me to do kirtan, I wasn't sure how they fit together. I eventually tuned more into the undercurrent of oneness that flows through all of it.

Can you speak more about how chanting may play a role in someone’s spiritual path?

Heather: I see chanting as the yoga of devotion, or Bhakti yoga. There is a conscious intention to open the heart with the love of Spirit. Devotion is a path of immense joy. Our Anusara yoga philosophy teacher Douglas Brooks would say that the goal of yoga is to experience the beauty of embodiment. The goal and the practice are inseparable. The practice of kirtan creates a direct experience of incredible beauty. That's what happens when we praise the creator of the beauty.

Come see David...

This past weekend I went to see our friends in Missoula and took a couple of videos of David. The sound is kind of low, so you may need to turn your speakers up and be in a quiet room. It is just a short clip about bandhas. David will be here a week from Wednesday. The workshop is filling up but there is still room for you!

City Yoga Away Team - Bon Voyage Lars

Most of you probably know Lars, or at least have seen him around the studio, pretty much daily for the last four years. I should let Lars tell his own story (he's a really good story teller), so I'll just give you a synopsis - he was first introduced to Ashtanga Yoga by Dave Oliver when I brought Dave to Spokane in the spring of 2003. Lars had done a few sessions of yoga at Harmony Yoga but was not really finding what he was looking for. When he met Dave, he felt he had found it - and after that weekend he was hooked. He started coming to my classes regularly, and probably hasn't missed many days of practice since. A beginner to Ashtanga yoga at the age of (I'm probably going to get this wrong) but I think 58 or 59 - which I think is inspiring and proves that age is more a state of mind than anything. Over the years I've had the privilege of watching Lars practice, I don't remember this but he said that when he started he weighed about 190 pounds and now is a svelte 155lbs. Something else you might not know about Lars is that he's not as menacing as he looks, he loves rap, gardening, kids and talking. Lars has already travelled to see Guruji once when he was here in the US a couple of years ago. But today he is leaving on a three month adventure to India and Malaysia. He is on his way right now to Bangalore - but first stopping in Singapore, where he has a day layover and has already scoped out an Ashtanga class to attend. The to Bangalore where he will stay for a week with Sree's brother and take classes from a relative of the Jois clan. Then to Mysore! Lars will be in Mysore for one month and then he is off to study with Lino Miele in Kovalam from December 9 - January 4th. I've asked Lars to send us a few pictures and words for the blog so we can follow him and his exciting travels. Lars, give our love to Guruji! Travel safe!

Second Series Class Sunday Night - Why?

It is turning out there that there is a lot going on on Sunday nights at the studio. This Sunday is the first Second Series class that we've ever offered. Learning Second Series in the traditional mysore way is very different than coming to a led class where modifications are taught. Both can be very valuable methods. When we are considering that yoga poses are tools that over time and with practice we learn how to use. Tools that we can become skilled in, just as pranayama, bandha and dristhti are also tools. That the skilled use of these tools presents us with the ability to transform ourselves on all levels, it makes sense that learning and practicing new asanas is a beneficial endeavor. Plus it will also be fun!

Fall flowers...

This was last weeks stunning offerring from Elaine...

Drop Off Your Old Bikes...

Pedals 2 People is has found more space for storing donated bikes.

If you have a bicycle that you are no longer riding, please consider donating it to them.

Here's what they plan to do with bikes.

• Low-to-mid quality bikes: will go to Village Bike Project.
• Medium-to-high quality kid bikes: Will likely be given away to low-income children, either directly through events such as the KHQ Pedal Pals bike drive, or through women's shelters and other organizations that have direct contact with kids.
• Medium-to-high quality adult bikes: Nice bikes will be sold on Craigslist or Ebay to help fund other programs. Others will be used for earn-a-bike or "Create a Commuter" programs. Others will be matched with working-poor through other partner organizations.

Bikes can be dropped off at our garage on the South Hill (near the Rocket Market on Hatch) on Monday and Wednesday nights from 6-8 pm. Contact us at pedals2people@gmail.com for more information and directions to our garage. Or you can call John at 981-3348.

Spokane Youth Yoga

Wow - is all that we can say!

David Garrigues In-Depth Study at City Yoga

Register by 10/17 to receive the early bird discount!

I am excited and honored to welcome my teacher David back to Spokane for this extended stay and special in-depth study. David's teaching is rich and inspiring. His gift as a teacher is the way he elegantly pieces together the puzzle of asana, vinyasa, pranayama, bandha and chanting. Like an usher with a light, David challenges us to more deeply enjoy our practice through its wondrous benefits. During an in-depth study with David you can begin to understand:

• How this system of yoga teaches us to observe conditioned patterns so that we can evolve physically and mentally.
• How the interrelation of asana, breath, and bandhas generate prana, the joyous life force that we are.
• How the Ashtanga practice can teach us to tap our deep well of creativity and thus facilitate healing, growth and transformation towards knowing our true selves.

11.7.07 Wednesday, 5:30pm - Mysore Practice*

11.8.07 Thursday 10:00am – 3:00pm - Master Class

11.8.07 Thursday 5:40pm - Led ½ Primary Series*

11.9.07 Friday 10:00am-3:00pm - Master Class
WEEKEND PORTION

11.9.07 Friday 6:00-8:00pm - Surya Namaskara*

11.10.07 Saturday 10:00-2:00pm - Primary Series*

11.11.07 Sunday 10:00-2:00pm – Backbending Intensive

*classes appropriate for beginners

Shantala Kirtan at City Yoga

November 4th at 7pm, at City Yoga. Tickets are $15 in advance and CAN be purchased online. ($18 at the door) Children are welcome to attend for free! To check out their music go to their website Shantala Music.We hope to see you there!

Ashtanga Yoga: Practice and Philosophy

Ashtanga Yoga: Practice and Philosphy by Gregor Maehle is one of our favorite yoga books. Lars wrote Gregor an email asking for more information on the trikonasana section, as he felt it was somewhat incomplete. Gregor wrote back that yes there was "a section dropped out of Trikonasana during the lenghty editing process. Sorry about that and it is attached as a Word document". So below is the complete instructions for trikonasana. Thank you Gregor and thank you Lars!


With the feet correctly positioned, let the right hip drop down (lateral tilt) as far as possible, bringing the pelvis towards being vertical to the floor. If the pelvis is left in a horizontal position, the spine has to flex laterally (sideways), which is not intended in this posture. The left hip swings up and out to the left to allow the right hip to drop.

Reach out to the side and then down, imagining staying between two panes of glass that prevent any leaning of the torso out in front. The left shoulder remains on one plane above the right leg. The right hand eventually clasps the right big toe. If you are not able to reach the toe without compromising the posture (laterally flexing the spine), place your hand on the foot or shin. Do not lean into this leg, but keep both sides of the torso and neck lengthening and supported away from the floor. If it is comfortable, turn the head to gaze up to the thumb of the left hand, which hovers above the left shoulder. Keep the neck in a straight line with the rest of your spine without performing an unnecessary backbend in your neck. Otherwise gaze out to the side. Five breaths.

Getting into Utthita Trikonasana we externally rotated the right femur to turn the foot out. Once in the posture, we inwardly rotate the femur until we reach the neutral position. The left thigh, which was medially (inwardly) rotated to take us into the posture, is laterally rotated once in the posture until the leg is again in the neutral position, with the four corners of the foot equally grounded. Check especially that both the outside of the left foot and the base of the right big toe are grounded. There needs to be a subtle balance between grounding the inner and outer arches of the front foot. This will lead to a subtle balance of inward and outward rotation of the thigh of the front leg, which is necessary for the hamstrings to lengthen evenly. Many beginners have a tendency to roll out the thigh to escape the stretching of the inner hamstrings – a tendency, also common in Padangushtasana and Pashimottanasana, that needs to be counteracted if present. Keep the left hip lifted back over the right one as the right groin moves forward.

The underneath side of the torso reaches forward so that the right waist gets the same stretch as the left. Stay in the state of Trikonasana for five breaths.

Lucy and Grace

Philosophy Study Group - One Tuesday Night Per Month

Please join us for a new class, once a month on Tuesday nights at 7:15pm, Judy will be leading a Yoga Philosophy Study Group. We will be studying Patanjali's Yoga Sutra's and their applicability to our modern day life. Please bring a copy of the Sutra's if you have one.

मैत्री करुना मुदितोपेक्सनाम सुखा दुह्खा पुन्यापुन्य विसयानाम भवनातास सित्ता प्रसदानाम
You will begin to more clearly experience yoga when act with friendliness toward happy experiences, compassion toward the painful, elation toward the virtuous, and neutrality toward negative experiences.

Yoga Sutra 1.33

Guest Passes!

Did you all know that with your unlimited monthly membership you recieve a free guest pass? So, next time you have a friend in town, or someone who you have been trying to get to come try yoga, you can tell them that it is on you. You get one guest pass per month, and unused passes can not accrue - so if you don't use it you lose it. Keep your eye out for other benefits from the monthly membership coming soon!

Thank you for the flowers!

Most of you have probably noticed the beautiful weekly flower arrangements set on our alter. I wanted to try to take a photo of each one of them, but didn't think of doing it until too late. The thanks needs to go to Elaine Tober - a very dedicated yogini and green thumb. Thank you so much Elaine - your creative arrangements have beautified our yoga room all summer. These arrangements have been a natural reminder of the cycle of the seasons with early spring blooms, then mid summer roses now to late summer sunflowers. What a gift!

Do you have the funk?

Now...it is possible that most of this is in my head, but I am aware of the fact that a lot of times on the days that I practice and then teach, sorry to be crass, but I definitely have the funk. I also feel like I smell worse since having Grace, which I remember happening after I had Lucy. Anyway since that time I have been in search of a deodorant (sans antiperspirant) that did not make me smell like a magazine, but that works! Alas - I think I've found it. FUNK BUTTER by Oyin Handmades seems to have solved my problem. I ordered a bunch to sell at the studio so we can share in the ridiculously high shipping! According to their website baking soda is their funk fighting odor absorbing ingredient along with micro fine vegetable powders and absorbing clays to keep you cool. A friend gave me a little supply to try out and it TOTALLY works! Yeah for me and well I guess yeah for you guys too!

Thank You Metrospokane!

We were featured on Metro Spokane! http://www.metrospokane.typepad.com/ It's an online chronicle of commentary on city design and regional planning issues in Spokane and the Inland Northwest. Check it out!

Mala Making Merriment

More on the Global Mala Project....

Thank you so much to Yisrael Bisman from Dharma Mala's and all our volunteers who showed up last night to string beads. Our plan was to make 108 wrist malas that will be gifts to the first 108 people who come down to Riverfront Park for the Spokane leg of the worldwide Global Mala Project. In 2.5 hours 11 of us made about 40 so we may have another beading session - if you are interested in helping out let me know.

In the meantime, I thought I'd get you a little information about what a mala is.

The true origins of the use of a circle or string of beads to count prayers and as a device for meditation are lost to history, although most scholars agree that the earliest use of prayer beads comes from India in the 8th century B.C.E. The word mala in Sanskrit translates roughly as 'garland' and is associated with both the Hindu and Buddhist faiths. The tradition of using beads in religious devotion can be traced from there, first spreading to Asia and then through the Middle East and to Medieval Europe. Some Native Americans used beaded belts and bracelets (known as wampum) as a form of money, a device for memory, as diplomatic or ceremonial tools, and to pass on cultural knowledge, rituals and tradition - however they are not known to have used them as a daily devotional tool like the mala or rosary.

Prayer beads are now a near-universal spiritual item, and have variations in most of the world's major religions - from the Christian rosary to the Arabic tasbih. Malas have even briefly entered mainstream consciousness in the form of power beads worn on the wrist by everyone from celebrities to teenage girls. This ancient ritual tool has been used by countless people through the ages to help them attain meditative states, relieve stress and worry and provide a concrete tool for counting one's prayers or recitations in their spiritual practice.

The appeal of malas is easy to understand - pick up any strand of fine beads and roll them through your fingers. The effect is almost instantly noticeable. You feel the smooth surfaces begin to glide and roll, almost by themselves, and as you begin to explore the strand, your mind calms, your breathing slows, and you focus on the simple act of moving from bead to bead. When this simple act is combined with a short prayerful recitation and the intent and focus of a spiritual practice, their true power is revealed.

The traditional form of the mala comes with 108 beads which is occasionally broken into 4 groups of 27 by 3 additional beads (this is more common with Tibetan Buddhist malas) and almost always are terminated by a larger bead with a tassel which is known as the "guru" bead.

Yisrael makes custom made malas, he will hopefully be displaying some of his malas on the 23rd!

September and beyond...

Everyone I've talked to is super busy this September - and it really does seem like there is a lot happening in our community. Lucy is at Plum Tree School for pre-school where she gets to do yoga with Amy from Spokane Youth Yoga, and Grace is keeping busy eating Pirate's Booty and working on her switch from bottles to sippy cups. All these new yoga studios opening ( I think there are four new studios that have opened in Spokane in the last six months), which is just a testament to the growing interst in yoga in Spokane. Most of the Spokane studios are working together in support of the Global Mala Project. Our goal is to have 108 people down there at RiverFront Park on September 23rd. By attending, not only will you be supporting efforts to raise money for children affected by war through War Child - but you will also be supporting the growing yoga community that you are a part of!

For us here there are just a couple of things / changes to note, and to put on your calendars in the upcoming months.

• Maybe you've seen our beautiful new brochures (I call it the City Yoga Manifesto) at the studio. The pictures were taken by Maryellen Cooley who, a long time student of yoga herself, is able to capture the essense of what I think is the feel of the studio with her photos. I am so grateful for her work. Please feel free to take a brochure or two or three. I will be printing monthly schedules with all the dates of upcoming events etc... so the brochure will work as our main explanation of what the studiuo is about, but it does not have any dates on it - so be sure to pick up one of the monthly schedules and/or continue to check the website on a regular basis.
• Schedule changes in September - the main change is that the Sunday 9am class has gone back to a Mysore class, and doors will open at 8:30am. I am sort of unsure of what to do with this class. Because I'm going to be teaching an Introduction to Second Series class once a month on Sunday nights, and a Restorative class also once a month, and because that Sunday morning class isn't one of the most popular classes I'm leaning towards cancelling it altogether in October (and giving myself a weekend morning off). Any thoughts about this? The second change was to the 6:15am class - it went to 6am, but we are going to change it back to 6:15am - keeping it a sixty minute class! Sorry for the confusion if there was any.
• Judy's yoga philosophy study group meets this month on Tuesday,September 25th, right after the 5:40pm class. Anyone is welcome to attend. Please call or email Judy if you would like more information. The fee is $10, so you can use your class cards, unlimited monthly members can take one class per day with their membership, so we would ask that you pay $5 if you attend this class in addition to another class that day.
  
• Karma Yoga Class to Benefit the Spokane Humane Society October 26th.5:30pm


• Shantala is a husband and wife kirtan duo from Portland. I had the pleasure of seeing them when I was in Seattle at David's. They were amazing, and I'm so excited that they will be coming to Spokane. We've been playing their kirtan cd at the studio and a couple other of their instrumental cd's as well. When: November 4th at 7pm - tickets will be $15 in advance and $18 at the door. Tickets will be available to purchase after October 1st.
• Last but not least... David Garrigues In-Depth study November 7-11 - will include classes on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday night, as well as two master classes for teachers and experienced practitioners on Thursday and Friday from 10-3pm and Saturday and Sunday sessions.I am almost finished with the flier so I'll have all details very soon.

Go Anastasia Go!

I wanted to let you all know that Anastasia will be walking this weekend in the Seattle 3 Day Breast Cancer walk. Thank you so much to all of you who attended the three benefit classes at the studio, and to Michiko and Karen for donating their time to teach those classes. In all, we raised $510 through City Yogi's and Yogini's. And, the Karma Yoga Program was born from Anastasia's fundraising ideas.

If you happen to be in Seattle this weekend you can cheer her on - the opening ceremonies are at Bellevue Community College on September 7th, 6:30 am, and the closing ceremonies are at Memorial Stadium at the Seattle Center on September 9th on 4:30 pm.I'm not sure if you can find out the route, but you might be able to if you go to the 3 Day website. Net proceeds from the Breast Cancer 3-Days benefit Susan G. Komen for the Cure, to fund breast cancer research and community outreach, as well as the National Philanthropic Trust Breast Cancer Fund, to provide an endowment for breast cancer initiatives.