"Certified Yoga Teacher: Illumination or Illusion?" by PatBurke

"Certified Yoga Teacher: Illumination or Illusion?" by Pat
Burke : "Values Clarification
Our market-based culture routinely ascribes
authority beyond one's level of expertise. A football player offers advice
about tires, an athlete with no background in nutrition makes food
recommendations, and an actress who has never studied yoga produces an
instructional video. Someone who taught high impact aerobics and kick
boxing last month is presumed to possess sufficient expertise to teach
yoga. The American inclination to pre-suppose mastery of Eastern spiritual
traditions without ever practicing, or humbling oneself before the
teachings is a reflection of our culture's trend toward instant
credentials and immediate gratification. On a subtle level, it reflects a
bias of cultural superiority. Clearly, 16 hours is sufficient time for an
American to study before calling oneself a yoga teacher. As
the West embraces the contemplative spiritual traditions of the East, we
stand as critical links in the chain. Yoga, derived from the root word
'yoke,' means to join or connect. Like many Eastern traditions,
it is an integrating science because it encompasses the body, mind and
spirit. When the practices are separated and compartmentalized, by
definition, union is lost. Through the yamas and niyamas,
yoga teaches truth and non-violence. Applied to the postures, this means
that a person practices the pose in full integrity, to the degree that is
appropriate for his/her body, without attachment. The poses should be
performed at a level that is comfortable and steady. Applied to life, this
means that a yoga practitioner is truthful. The fitness industry and the healthcare industry are two prime players in an
economic system which was built on manifest destiny and an attitude of
entitlement, not spirituality. Yoga and other Eastern traditions stand on
the precipice of being swallowed up in this' grand canyon of materialism
as they are incorporated into the American way of life. We have the
opportunity to study practices that were once privileged, and have endured
for 6,000 years. Will we minimize the spiritual teachings of the East or
will we revere them and give them safe passage? History will record how we
enter the millennium together.

Pat
Burke is the director of Earthsong
Yoga Center, 186 Main St #14 Marlboro, MA� 01752 and the founder of
the Massachusetts/New England Yoga Alliance. The Alliance provides free
information and referral to all traditions of yoga. For more information
please call 508-480-8884 or email at pat@earthsongyoga.com�
or visit her website at www.earthsongyoga.com."

The True Nature of Health by B.K.S. Iyengar

Ofspirit.com has a nice excerpt from BKS Iyengar's new book "Light on Life".
Link

The True Nature of Health
by B.K.S. Iyengar
Most people ask only from their body that it does not trouble them. Most people feel that they are healthy if they are not suffering from illness or pain, not aware of the imbalances that exist in their bodies and minds that ultimately will lead to disease. Yoga has a threefold impact on health. It keeps healthy people healthy, it inhibits the development of diseases, and it aids recovery from ill health.

But diseases are not just a physical phenomenon. Anything that disturbs your spiritual life and practice is a disease and will manifest eventually in illness. Because most modern people have separated their minds from their bodies and their souls have been banished from their ordinary lives, they forget that the well-being of all three (body, mind, and spirit) are intimately entwined like the fibers of our muscles.

Health begins with firmness in body, deepens to emotional stability, then leads to intellectual clarity, wisdom, and finally the unveiling of the soul. Indeed health can be categorized in many ways. There is physical health, which we are all familiar with, but there is also moral health, mental health, intellectual health, and even the health of our consciousness, health of our conscience, and ultimately divine health. These are relative to and depend upon the stage of consciousness we are at, which will be dealt with in chapter 5."

The Yoga fad in Japan

Interesting article about what is happening with yoga in Japan.

Link: "Never slow to pick up on the latest fads, Japanese now into yoga have created such incredible demand that there're not enough teachers to sate their needs. Some people are already claiming to be fully qualified yoga instructors less than a year after taking their first lesson.'What's become so hot in Japan is not yoga, it's just some sort of pseudo-exercise that involves striking poses,' Ken Harakuma, operator of the IYC yoga studio in the Tokyo suburb of Ogikubo, tells Shukan Bunshun. 'Many instructors out there want nothing more than their students to be able to strike up a few poses. Theses instructors get their students twisting their bodies in all sorts of directions, so rather than being a healthy pursuit, it could end up causing major physical damage. And it's not just the students, either. The teachers are putting themselves at risk, too.'"

Anusara Yoga

Anusara Yoga website.

Amazon.com: Books: Surya Namaskara

Amazon.com: Books: Surya Namaskara: "Book DescriptionSurya Namskara,or salutation to the sun,is an important yogic practice which dates back to the ancient vedic period when the sun was worshipped as a powerful symbol of spiritual consciousness. From it's esoteric origins Surya Namskara has developed into a practice of twelve postures which weave together to generate prana(subtle energy),aiming towards the purification and rejuvenation of the practitioner. This Book discusses in detail the full practice of Surya Namaskara, including the surya and bija mantras, points of concentration and extended guidelines to aid both practitioners and teachers. An in-depth physiological study of Surya Namskara supports it's present day use as a powerful therapeutic practice.About the AuthorSwami Satyanada Saraswati is an authority on Yoga and more than anything else the popularity of his other Books Kundalini Tantra,Asana Prana Yama Mudra Bandha, Nawa Yogini Tantra,Prana/Prana Yama/Prana Vidya,Meditation From The Tantras, Sure Ways To Self-Realisation (All the Titles available on Amazon.com)more than prove his prowess in his intense knowledge and the easy to understand language style. He is the Founder of Bihar School of Yoga, the only school of it's kind."

Amazon.com: Books: Yoga Mala

Amazon.com: Books: Yoga Mala: "Review'A treasure . . . Jois's discourses, at once authoritative and devout, [describe] the philosophy of yoga and the spiritual implications of its practice . . . For those who walk the Ashtanga path, this is the real thing.'-Yoga Journal"

Amazon.com: Books: Moola Bandha: The Master Key

Amazon.com: Books: Moola Bandha: The Master Key: "Book DescriptionMoola Bandha - the Master Key is for those dedicated yoga practitioners researching for the master key to unlock the abode of maha kundalini. Little has been written about the ancient practice of bandha, which is regarded as an important aspect of both hatha and kundalini yoga. Moola Bandha is a simple yet dynamic practice with profound physical, mental and spiritual benefits for the practitioner. The text focuses on the theory and practice of bandha. The physical, pranic and psychotherapeutic effects are explored, including the relationship between moola bandha and acupuncture. A concise practical section includes both preliminary practices and advanced techniques to enable the practitioner to pursue this sadhana to the utmost, thus awakening the primal energy within. Includes the drawings and diagrams.About the AuthorThe Author realizing the limitations of drugs and traditional psychotherapy to cure the psychiatric and psychologically disturbed patients pursued his search for a more practical and effective method to reintegrate the mind and the body, moving through the normal healing techniques of acupunctrue, naturotherapy, massage and herbalism and culminating in the discovery of yoga. Under the guidance of Swami Satyanananda Saraswati, he gained profound insight into the mechanics of the mind, depression and neurosis as well as the yogic technique to alleviate much of the suffering. Moola bandha emerged as one of the main componenets of Swamiji's teachings, prompting Swami Buddhananda Saraswati to an intensive theoretical and practical study. The outcome of this search and it's implications for modern man are to be found in this book."

Amazon.com: Books: Dynamics Of Yoga

"Most of the Books on Yoga tend to emphasise the more tangible, physical potentialities of applied yoga, such as asana and pranayama. However the vast potential of pyscho-physiological therapy: it's unlimited scope on the spiritual path: it's unequalled utility as a way of life which leads to happiness in the trying circumstances of the fast changing modern world: and it's bright future as the culture of tomorrow-these aspects of yoga have not yet been explained in detail. This Book is small token of the dedication to the cause of yoga and an attempt to explain yoga and yogic techniques in a clear and unambigious language.It is a humble attempt to tear asunder the veil of mystery surrounding yoga."

Forrest Yoga class 6/9/2005

Today we learned some interesting Forrest mods from Pigeon:
From pigeon with right leg forward, turn to your left and place your hands on the floor, and lean forward, I prop myself on my forearms. Where I feel this is in the right hip, and it opens parts of this are that regular pigeon doesn't seem to touch. For pigeon with the left leg forward, you will be turning to and then leaning to the right. Another modification of this we did last week involved being in forward pigeon and reaching the torso to the foot of the forward leg.

Then there was something called "Yogini foot on the shoulder pose". Imagine your right foot on your right shoulder. I can't get into this and its not easy, so in class we modified this into a hip opener with the ankle of one foot on the knee. Lay down with both knees up, then place one ankle on the other knee, sit up and sweep the arm of the side where the ankle is up on the knee across the body and move the elbow past the knee, at this point your arm will be going cross-wise across your body. This is actually just a prep pose to open the hip to be able to get into the full pose with the foot on the shoulder which the teacher showed us after we were done. Since men generally have tight hips and can't get into this, that's why its called "Yogini foot on the shoulder pose".

Power dead bug. From dead bug the two loose ends of the strap are draped over the feet in opposite directions, and the loop end of the strap is behind the neck. Be careful with this as it involves the neck. You can draw yourself deeper into the pose by pulling the loose ends of the straps. Ah, nice!

I love Forrest for all of the very useful things I learn, its approach to strengthening the body, and lack of repetition like one might find in something like Ashtanga.

Class description.
Forrest Yoga website.

Salabhasana (Locust Pose)

Have I done this? Probably at some point, on one of those days that made my guts sore.

Salabhasana (Locust Pose)
Locust Pose is an effective means for strengthening the back of the torso, legs, and arms in preparation for the deeper, presumably “adult” backbends.
Grouped among the so-called “baby backbends,” which includes Dhanurasana (Bow Pose) and Sea Monster Pose (described in the Variations section below), it is an unassuming pose that, like other seemingly simple poses, is actually a lot more interesting and challenging than it appears at first glance.
(sha-la-BAHS-anna)
salabha = grasshopper, locust

iYOGA - Minneapolis Yoga Studio

Popping up like coffee shops in early 1990s, yoga shops are springing up like weeds as coffee shops did just over a decade ago. This little place has an ad on Yogajournal.com linked to a single webpage that serves as a website with just enough info to let you know whats going on.

Yoga is the new coffee.

Link

The Sunfood Raw Food diet book

A book on the Raw Food diet that looks very good, by David Wolfe.

Sunfoods beautify the body, mind, and spirit. They carry with them the vitality of health and life - the vibrant Sun energy that nourishes all life on Earth. By taking in the energy of vibrant Sunfood you can overcome any health challenge. The Sun is a transformer. By eating Sunfoods you can improve your life in every way. When your health improves, every other aspect of your life improves simultaneously.

Link

Class notes, Hatha, Wednesday PM

(Teacher SF) I love Ashtanga and Hatha equally, the long holds and free flow of Hatha complement the active sequences of Ashtanga perfectly.

Hatha is great for its slower pace, and getting out of the left brain into the right brain, and the spirituality that is readily present that has to be searched for in Ashtanga. These are the things that excite me about a Hatha practice.

Tonite, lots of new little variations of other things I have learned.

New experiences: From down-dog, lift the right leg, then lift the left hand and touch the shin of the left leg. Not as easy as it sounds. Repeat with the opposite side.

Breath of Joy: I feel I know this one well enough now.

Yoga of Light

Sharron Rose studied with Sitara Devi in India and learned the feminine-based Yoga of Light. Feminine-based is what she says, but from reading the description it looks balanced to me, although I am probably missing something. While over on the other side of the planet learning from Sitara Devi, she says she "also began my studies with Tibetan master Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche. I was thrilled to discover that essential yogic teachings on this ancient path of illumination and integration formed the foundation of the Tibetan Tantric and Dzogchen traditions as well." This looks somewhat similar to Pleiadian Lightwork, PL uses Mudras but does not expound on yoga, having read PL books and practised Pleiadian Lightwork but not Yoga of Light, I can't tell you if the energetic practices are truly alike. This is an exciting discovery, particularly the Egyptian common ground, somewhere in here in the forest of meaningful things, there is cross-pollination between PL and yoga. From Sharron's website:

What you may ask is the Yoga of Light? The Yoga of Light is an ancient science and spiritual practice of physical and spiritual purification and transformation. It teaches us how to perceive and regulate the radiant light and energy of divinity through our physical and luminous energy bodies. Its ultimate goal is the reunion with our divine essence and the transmutation of the very substance of our being back into its true nature as light. The alchemists of ancient Egypt and Medieval Europe and the yogis and yoginis of India and Tibet spent their lives in pursuit of this sacred endeavor. The Egyptians even believed that through this practice, it was possible for a human being to realize their immortal body of light and become a star in the heavens. The Zohar, a primary text of the Hebrew Kabbalistic tradition speaks of this very same transformative process. 'The enlightened shall shine like the radiance (zohar) of the sky, and those who lead multitudes to righteousness, like the stars forever'."

Link.

B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga Center Minneapolis

B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga Center Minneapolis

BBC NEWS - Emmerdale star to take yoga break

Even British TV stars love yoga.

Bracknell, 40, who plays vet Zoe Tate, will leave in the autumn in a dramatic storyline to take nine months off.
'I am looking forward to spending some time with my family and having the opportunity to pursue other projects,' the mother-of-two said.
'I will also be finishing my teaching diploma in yoga which is something I am passionate about,' she added.

Link

Startribune: It's a stretch, but kids love yoga class

Minneapolis Startribune has an article about an elementary school teacher who teaches her kids yoga. From the article:

Jones is a health teacher at St. Paul's Battle Creek Middle School. At the end of every week, she transforms her classes into "Fit Fridays." Sometimes, the students walk. Sometimes they go to the gym. But every other week, Combs' kids delve into yoga. And it's not a stretch to say they enjoy their new twist on health.
"I like it," said Shavell Buckner, 12. "It's relaxing."
Added Use Urhieyovwe, 12, "It helps my body. I feel energized for the rest of the school day."

Link