Where: The event will occur at Mensch Mill Conference & Retreat Center, in the beautiful mountains of Berks County, Pennsylvania.
http://www.menschmill.org/confer.asp
86 Camp Mensch Mill Road
Alburtis, PA 18011
When: October 22nd from 10am until October 24th at 11am, 2010
Cost: $170 per person. There are currently 9 spots left and they are going fast, so if you want to come, register soon.
How to register: Contact Shanti here: shantiayp at gmail dot com
For more information see this post here: http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=8292𑨈
Hope to see you there!
Love!
AYP Level 2: Intermediate Yoga: The Next Step
September 27, 2010 to November 15, 2010.
This is an 8 class pre-registered program, Monday evenings from 6:45-8:15pm, starting on September 29, 2010. Cost is $120 per person and includes two books: “AYP Asanas, Mudras and Bandhas” and “AYP Samyama”. Completion of the AYP Level 1 class is a prerequisite for this workshop.
Classes are hosted by:
Tri-Yoga Calgary
1138 10 Ave SW
Calgary, AB
403-875-1519
AYP (The Advanced Yoga Practices) is an open and integrated, eight limbed system of yoga designed to help unfold natural ecstatic radiance (kundalini). In the Level II workshop practitioners will learn how to enhance the practices of Deep Meditation and Spinal Breathing Pranayama with mudras and bandhas, and will learn how to surrender to the Divine flow while moving Silence outward using the practice of Samyama. We will also learn more about the deeper aspects of tantra, the interconnection between the eight limbs of yoga as well as an intermediate level asana sequence. The Level I workshop is a prerequisite for this workshop.
To register click on the AYP Level 2 link here: http://www.tri-yogacalgary.com/registered-classes-workshops/
AYP Level 1: Beginners Yoga: Finding Inner Silence
September 29, 2010 to November 17, 2010.
This is an 8 class pre-registered program, Wednesday evenings from 6:45-8:15pm, starting on September 29, 2010. Cost is $120 per person and includes two books: “AYP Deep Meditation” and “AYP Spinal Breathing Pranayama”.
Classes are hosted by:
Tri-Yoga Calgary
1138 10 Ave SW
Calgary, AB
403-875-1519
AYP (The Advanced Yoga Practices) is an open and integrated, eight limbed system of yoga designed to help unfold natural ecstatic radiance (kundalini). The techniques act directly through the heart, mind, body, breath and sexuality. Each Level 1 class begins with a lesson in yoga philosophy, followed by a beginner asana sequence, pranayama practice and then deep meditation. Everyone is encouraged to go at their own speed in taking on new practices and much attention is devoted to developing skills in “self-pacing.” The aim of these classes is to assist every practitioner in becoming self-sufficient in yoga. This class is suitable for students new to yoga and is a prerequisite for AYP Levels II and III.
To register click on the AYP Beginner Level 1 link here: http://www.tri-yogacalgary.com/registered-classes-workshops/
A new set of pre-registered AYP Level 1 classes are set to begin July 7th.
Classes are on Wednesday evenings from 6:45 to 8:15pm at Tri-Yoga Calgary, 1138 10 Ave SW, Calgary – 403-875-1519.
Cost is $120 and includes 2 books: AYP Deep Meditation and AYP Spinal Breathing Pranayama
AYP (The Advanced Yoga Practices) is an open and integrated, eight limbed system of yoga designed to help unfold natural ecstatic radiance (kundalini). The techniques act directly through the heart, mind, body, breath and sexuality. Practices taught in the Level 1 Classes include deep meditation using an efficient universal mantra, spinal breathing methods, asanas, and an integration of hatha, kundalini and tantra techniques all used to steadily cultivate inner peace and enlightenment through daily practice. Each class is woven together with a lesson in yoga philosophy. Everyone is encouraged to go at their own speed in taking on new practices and much attention is devoted to developing skills in “self-pacing.” The aim of these classes is to assist every practitioner in becoming self-sufficient in yoga.
To sign up for the classes click this link here: http://clients.mindbodyonline.com/ws.asp?studioid=9301&stype=-8&sTG=23&sVT=13&sTrn=100000002
If you want to try an AYP class out before committing to an 8 week registered class there are AYP drop-in classes at 10am every Saturday morning at Tri-Yoga Calgary. These are “karma classes” meaning they are by donation only and half of each donation goes to the Drop In The Bucket charity helping to build wells, sanitation systems and schools in Africa. Hope to see you in the studio soon!
Love!
Starting on Saturday May 8th there will be drop-in AYP classes hosted at Tri-Yoga Calgary www.tri-yogacalgary.com from 10 -11:15am every Saturday. These are karma (by donation) classes that feature an asana practice followed by spinal breathing pranayam and deep meditation practice.
All donations go to the Drop In The Bucket charity: http://www.dropinthebucket.org/
Bring your yoga mat, water, loose clothing and the intention of leaving the class feeling better then you did when you arrived. Look forward to seeing you in class!
Love!
These days when someone says the word “yoga”, most people think of asanas (yoga postures). They think of classes that stretch the body, increase physical flexibility, help people to lose weight and get into overall better physical condition. But is there more to yoga then this “asana” thing? Are asanas the whole of yoga? In a word, no. Asanas are but one of eight limbs of yoga as laid out by the Indian sage Patanjali, author of “The Yoga Sutras”. So yes, they play a part in the yoga whole, but they are certainly not the whole.
Recently in Western society, yoga has become increasingly popular, millions of people in western societies are taking yoga classes every week, and statistics show that there are millions more who have a desire to do yoga but have yet to step foot in a studio. But the more popular yoga becomes the more people are beginning to realize that what they may have been looking for from yoga, they are not getting from the majority of yoga classes. Sure, if your goal is increased flexibility, some weight loss and better physical condition, yeah, you may be getting what you are looking for from your asana class….but, if you are looking for practices that address the spirit, if you are looking to end personal suffering, if you are looking for enlightenment or liberation, then chances are not very good that you are finding what you are looking for from your yoga asana class.
The body and the mind are not two separate things. The body-mind is one thing. If the mind is polluted, so will the body be. The body is a reflection of the mind. So trying to perfect the shape of the body does very little if we are filling the mind with garbage. It is not reasonable to expect that if you can learn to control the body you will then automatically be able to control the mind…. and the mind is the source of all suffering. In life, things go from subtle to gross, not gross to subtle. The world is physically built of tiny atoms and molecules, so to expect that we will solve all our problems by working on that which the atoms make up, is not logical. We must work from the root of the problem upwards…. we must work on the atoms before we work on that which they create. To go the other way is a lost cause.
Traditionally, asanas were done so that the body could be comfortable when sitting for pranayama (breathing exercises) and meditation which are two of the other eight limbs of yoga. The Sanskrit word “asana” even means “seat”. It has been well known for centuries that the core practice of “yoga” is meditation, not asanas. The reason for this is because the practice of meditation is what will liberate us from the suffering of this world…asanas alone will not. It is good to keep the body healthy and in good repair as it is the vessel through which the Divine in us is manifesting, but just keeping the body in good repair is not going to take us all the way to liberation, to enlightenment. To liberate ourselves from suffering we must work on the root of the problem, which is misidentification…… thinking (and believing the thought) that we are something that we are not. We are not our bodies. We are not our thoughts. We are not our beliefs, our ideas or our personalities. We are pure consciousness manifesting as form. Doing yoga postures alone as spiritual practice is not going to help to break the mind’s habit of misidentifying with an external “reality”.
What yoga postures WILL do is help to create a more purified vessel making it easier to access the Divine within. They will help us to correct physical energy blockages creating open channels for the smooth flow of prana (life force) coursing through our nervous systems and they will allow us greater comfort in our physical lives. We are not our bodies (consciousness does not vanish upon the death of the physical body) but the human nervous system IS the vehicle used to access the divinity within all of us. So it is important to treat this body like the temple it is and to keep it in good repair. Without this body we would not have the opportunity to realize our selves as Divine.
Keeping this all in consideration, where do the asanas fit into a “full” yoga practice. How much asana practice is needed/necessary? Well, asanas are not “necessary” in order to come to a place in life where suffering no longer exists. Asanas are not needed in order to come to a place of living as unbound awareness. Only a meditation practice that cultivates inner silence is required for this. But, that said, if you are inclined to do asanas as part of your spiritual practices, how much asana is appropriate, where should they fit into our daily routine and what asanas should we be doing?
If you are inclined to include an asana practice in your daily yoga routine, all that is necessary is between 5 and 10 minutes of practice before we sit for pranayama and meditation. It is ok to extend that up to about 30 minutes if the bhakti (desire) is there, but much more then this and the focus tends to drift from sitting practices towards body manipulations and the balance will be “off”. There will be too much external focus happening and not enough going inward. 30 minutes of asana practice is about as much as anyone should do before sitting to do pranayama and meditation.
Asanas are best practiced at the beginning of our yoga routine (whatever that entails), as they help to loosen the physical body making it more comfortable to sit for a half an hour or so in a static position while we do our breathing exercises and our meditation practices. Asanas also help to loosen the nerves and open energetic pathways of the body so that we can gain the full benefits of our sitting practices. This is why the best sequence for our yoga practices is to do between 5 and 30 minutes of asana practice, depending on our bhakti, followed by about 10 minutes of pranayama and then about 20 minutes of meditation. This is a basic “full” yoga routine.
What kind of asanas are the most appropriate for preparing for our sitting practices? This is generally up to the practitioner and their personal preference, but in general it is good to include a forward bend, a backward bend, an inversion posture, a spinal twist and a rest period at the end. Using a routine that has each of these elements in it will be the most effective. Here is a basic routine recommended by Yogani at the “Advanced Yoga Practices” website: http://www.aypsite.org/asana.html. This is a sequence that I personally teach in all my beginner yoga classes, a sequence I have had great feedback on and one I can recommend from personal experience as well.
The AYP asana sequence begins with a warm-up in which we massage the body and direct the flow of blood from each of the extremities back into the torso. We then come to a kneeling seat in which we take the time to find a comfortable rhythm with the breath….a rhythm we try to maintain throughout the rest of the asana practice. This is followed by “Janu Sirsasana” or “seated head to knee”. This posture helps to stretch the spine, shoulders, hamstrings and the groin. It helps to stimulate the liver and kidneys, helps improve digestion and is good for high blood pressure, insomnia and sinusitis. Energetically it stimulates prana to move into the spinal nerve, the “sushumna nadi”. The next posture is “Paschimottanasa” or “seated forward bend”. Physically this posture helps to relieve digestive problems like constipation, and helps with problems like sciatica. Energetically this posture stimulates the Manipura (solar plexus) chakra. Paschimottanasana is followed by “Salamba Sarvangasana” or “supported shoulderstand”. This is an inversion posture that improves blood flow to the brain, improves pancreatic secretions, helps prevent hernias and urinary disorders, and stimulates the thyroid, all while strengthening muscles in the arms, shoulders neck and thighs. Energetically this posture stimulates the Vishuddha (throat) chakra. Next we flow from the shoulderstand directly into “Halasana” or “plow pose”. This posture helps to increase flexibility in the spine as it opens each and every spinal disc and stretches each vertebrae making this pose great for people with arthritis or neck/back stiffness. It also activates the liver, spleen and thyroid gland, stimulates the abdominal organs and is great for those experiencing headaches, insomnia, or high blood pressure. Energetically this posture pulls energy from the Muladhara (root) chakra up to the Vishuddha (throat) chakra and stimulates each of the chakras on the way up. The next posture in the AYP sequence is “Yoga Mudra” or “the seal of yoga”. This posture directs blood flow upwards massaging the lower bronchioles of the lungs. This posture is very good for anyone with any form of lung issue and also helps with gastric problems as it helps to strengthen the digestive system. Energetically this posture helps to open the Anahatta (heart) chakra and also stimulates the Ajna (third eye) chakra as it directs prana up the sushumna nadi (spinal nerve). Next, we move onto our stomachs for “Bhujangasana” or “cobra pose”. This posture helps to strengthen the lower back muscles as well as the core muscles, specifically the transverse abdominal muscles. This posture stimulates the adrenal glands, helps normalize irregular menstrual cycles and at the same time helps with gas or constipation problems. Energetically this posture stimulates both the Svadhisthana (navel) and the Manipura (solar plexus) chakras. After Bhujangasana we move into “Salambhasana” or “locust pose”. This posture is one of the best postures for anyone with problems with carpal tunnel syndrome or anyone with tendonitis of the elbows. This postures constricts the flow of blood to the lower arms and then allows the blood to rush back in when the posture is released. This helps to stimulate proper circulation in the wrists and elbows. This posture also helps to strengthen, compress and open the spine. Next we move into our “spinal twist” posture called “Matsyendrasana”. This posture stimulates the pancreas, liver, spleen, kidneys, stomach, and both the ascending and the descending colons. It also helps to adjust and realign the vertebral column. Energetically this posture helps to “spiral” prana upwards from the root through all the chakras but it is particularly stimulating to the Manipura (solar plexus) chakra. From here we come to a standing position for “Uddiyana Bandha” or “abdominal lift”. This is not necessarily an “asana” and more falls into the category of “bandha” which means “lock”. This posture is done mostly to stimulate the upward flow of kundalini energy from the Muladhara (root) chakra as it has a “vacuum” effect on prana located there. We then move into “Anuvittasana” or “standing back bend”. This posture helps to stretch out the abdominal muscles, strengthen the back/spine and stimulate the lungs. Energetically this posture helps to open the Anahatta (heart) chakra. We then counteract this backbend with a forward bend….”Uttanasana” or “forward fold”. This posture increases flexibility in the lower back, the hamstrings and the calves, it reduces fatigue, stimulates digestion, creates space between the vertebrae and helps with asthma, high blood pressure and osteoporosis. This posture is also an easy inversion posture as the head is lower then the heart and it increases blood flow to the brain. We then end the asana portion of our practices with “Savasana” or “corpse pose”. This posture allows the body to rest and release any tension and allows the energetic obstructions in the nervous system that have been loosened by the practice to release/dissolve before we move into our sitting practices.
So, with all this in mind, continue to do your asana practice as you feel inclined to, continue to keep the physical body healthy and in good repair, but remember, if the goal of your spiritual practices is to liberate yourself from suffering, if the goal of your spiritual practices is to become enlightened, asana practice will not take you all the way. It will help in many ways, but the whole gamut of yoga practices is necessary for realizing the self as The Self.
Love!
This article was commissioned by www.livingunbound.net
Posted on 24 March '10 by CarsonZi, under Blog Posts. 2 Comments.
On Wednesday April 7th there will be a new set of AYP Beginners Yoga Classes starting at Tri-Yoga Calgary www.tri-yogacalgary.com
See here: http://blissedyoga.com/?page_id=31 for more info on time, location.
See here: http://blissedyoga.com/?cat=6 for more info on the class description.
And to register for the classes visit: http://clients.mindbodyonline.com/ws.asp?studioid=9301&stype=-8&sTG=23&sVT=13&sTrn=100000002
There is only room for 20 people so tell your friends and make sure you register early! Hope to see you then!
Posted on 3 March '10 by CarsonZi, under Class Schedule. No Comments.
Many of us know what it is like to feel addicted to something. But what often comes to mind when the word “addicted” is said, is a mental picture of a junkie, strung out, trying to find a way to score his next hit. In reality, most of us are addicted to something in one form or another. Addictions are not limited to substances like heroin, crack or methamphetamine. We can be addicted to money, to television, to our job, to sex, to lying to ourselves, to our thoughts and to hundreds and hundreds of other things, situations and concepts. Addiction comes in all flavors and varieties and we have all suffered from them to one degree or another.
So how does one overcome an addiction? Most would think that it would be obvious that the solution for a person who suffers from a drug addiction, would be totally different from the solution for a person who is addicted to television or to their job. Nothing could be further from the Truth. There is only one thing that can universally help anyone who suffers from any addiction, and that is a personal connection to Inner Silence. But before we can truly understand what this means and how Inner Silence can help save us from our addictions, it will be important to understand what causes addictions.
What causes us to be addicted to something? The answer to that question is: Misidentification. Thinking that we are something we are not. Believing the thought that we are our body, that we are our thoughts, our beliefs, our ego, our job, our house, our relationships…. that we are something other then the consciousness that underlies all form. This misidentification causes us to feel un-whole and feel like there is a void inside that needs to be filled. We try and fill that void with all sorts of things. with money, with sex, with toys, with drugs, with anything that will temporarily distract us from the reality that we don’t feel Whole inside. In the words of Greg Baer in his “Real Love” series of books, these are all forms of “Imitation Love”. They give us a brief period of relief when we partake, but soon after, we are back feeling un-whole again. And often the next time we partake we need just a little bit more of whatever we are addicted to, to help us feel some relief again. This easily and very quickly becomes an endless cycle….. a cycle that leads into a deeper and deeper sense of despair and hopelessness, as we continue looking for something that will fill that void indefinitely
What yogi’s and other mystics worldwide have come to realize, is that if we can learn to connect to that which we truly are, we can step out of that feeling of un-wholeness into the bliss of Reality…. we can become that which we truly are; Pure Bliss Consciousness.
So how do we learn to connect to Pure Bliss Consciousness? The answer to this is very simple…… Deep Meditation and other yoga practices. The practice of Deep Meditation, when undertaken in a consistent and self-regulated way, will bring us out of the cycle of needing different forms of Imitation Love for relief, and into the Reality that we already are that which we have been seeking all along…. that we have been looking for God with His own eyes. A consistent, twice daily practice of Deep Meditation allows us access to Inner Silence, which as we continue to practice, begins to leak out into our daily lives. We begin to notice that everything is perfect just the way it is…. even the stuff that used to cause us endless suffering, is perfect. We begin to notice that we have more space in our daily lives, and that the things that used to bother us, the things that used to trigger us to run to our favorite form of Imitation Love, no longer bother us so much anymore. We are able to see things from a completely different perspective. A perspective from which we can love things just the way they are, no longer feeling un-whole inside.
Now, you may be saying to yourself, “This guy doesn’t know what he is talking about! How is Deep Meditation going to help me stop needing to have sex or do drugs or work 80 hours a week or watch 6 hours of TV a night? He probably has no clue what it is like to really be addicted to something.” Well friends, nothing could be further from the truth. When I first came to yoga I was addicted to heroin, methamphetamine, methadone, marijuana, sex, anger, fighting, control and just about every form of Imitation Love known to man. When I first started practicing yoga it was right after ending an 8 year relationship, my career, and being forced into bankruptcy, all in the same day, and then deciding I wanted to end it all by trying to kill myself with an overdose of heroin. It took time, and a bit of flailing for a while, but eventually I found the practice of Deep Meditation, and once I did, things started to change, and fast. Within 14 weeks of starting a twice daily practice of Deep Meditation I had downdosed off of my methadone prescription without feeling any opiate withdrawals (which is not biologically possible), I soon lost my desire to fight reality and anything that wasn’t the way I figured it “should” be, I learned to truly Love my ex (and all) unconditionally, I lost my need to have sex several times a day, I lost the desire to change the way my family relates to each other, I became content with my job, I no longer had a temper, and I began to help others find peace and silence through meditation and yoga as well. Now, I can say from personal experience, that everything you could ever want, everything you could ever desire, you already have….. you already are. It is all inside, waiting for you to touch, waiting for you to embrace, waiting for you to Be. Learn to silence the mind twice a day, every day, and soon you too will find that all these forms of Imitation Love that you have been addicted to for months, weeks, years, decades, just aren’t necessary anymore….. that everything is perfect, just the way it is.
May all your Here’s be Now.
Namaste.
This article was commissioned by www.livingunbound.net
Posted on 20 February '10 by CarsonZi, under Blog Posts. No Comments.
Namaste Friends!
Recently I was asked by a friend to explain to him exactly what “Yoga” is. I was trying to explain to him about how Yoga was a great method for learning to end suffering in our daily lives when he asked; “How exactly are some stretching exercises going to help me learn to stop suffering!?” So I figured perhaps it would be a good idea to write a blog post on what “Yoga” is, and how it can help us stop suffering.
The word “Yoga” is an ancient Sanskrit word that means “yoke” or “to join”. But what exactly are we “joining” with the practice of yoga? Yoga teaches us to join the subject and the object, the observer and the observed, the small self with the larger Self. The small self is what most of us think of as “me”….this is our ego, our conditioning, our biases and beliefs….the things we think we are. The larger Self is an unbound awareness or pure consciousness that lies under our “thinking mind” and permeates all of existence….there is nothing that is not a manifestation of Pure Consciousness. When the mind is still, we are able to rest in pure consciousness….and the essential nature of consciousness is Blissful Silence. It is a storehouse of peace, bliss, and creativity. This is why in the Bible in Psalms it says “Be still and know that I am God”….to access the Divine all we have to do is know how to be still.
So how do we learn to “be still”? Well, with yoga practices. But “Yoga” is not what many of us in the West think of as yoga. Yoga is much more then stretching exercises, although it is that too. Patanjali, the Indian sage who wrote “The Yoga Sutras” outlines an eight-limbed path that is Yoga. One of those limbs is asanas or yogic postures/stretching exercises. But there are 7 other limbs! There is much more to yoga then just stretching the body. The word “asana” means “seat”….the purpose of the asanas is to stretch the body so that it is comfortable to sit for a period of time in meditation. Meditation is how we learn to still the mind. With the practice of meditation we learn to go past the thinking mind into that great storehouse of Bliss……Inner Silence. When we learn to still the mind for specific periods of time during the day (with a consistant meditation practice) we find that as we go about our daily lives we begin to react to Life a little differently then before we started a meditation practice. We find that the things that used to really bother us, don’t really bother us so much anymore. We find that we have more “space” to see our mind’s tendencies and we are given the option to not react as we instinctually would. This is the beginning of the end of our suffering. When we tap into that storehouse of peace that is Inner Silence/Pure Bliss Consciousness with a daily meditation practice, we begin to be able to choose to not suffer over things that used to cause us endless suffering. We begin to see that all suffering is an option. As the old saying goes “Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional”. With a consistant daily meditation practice we start to see that all suffering happens when we believe our thoughts…thoughts about Life and the way it “should” be. We begin to see that Life is perfect just the way it is, and that fighting with reality is a lost cause. As Byron Katie says in her book Loving What Is, “When you argue with reality, you always lose – but only 100% of the time”. She goes on to say that “The only time we suffer is when we believe a thought that argues with what is”. And a consistant daily meditation practice allows us to begin to see that “what Is”, is just perfect….how could it be any other way!?
So, yoga is much more then just stretching exercises…..it is a set of practices designed to help us find peace within ourselves….a way of realizing that everything we could ever want, everything we could ever desire, we already have….we already ARE. Everything we could ever need is already inside of us. It is just a matter of getting in touch with, and coming to Know, That which we each and all are….Pure Bliss Consciousness.
I wish you all a Happy and safe New Years….may we all come to Know and rest in our True Nature.
Love,
Carson
Posted on 30 December '09 by CarsonZi, under Blog Posts. 1 Comment.
Class Schedule recently updated!
Click the Class Schedules tab at the top for details.
Email me at carsonzi@blissedyoga.com or call 1-403-606-9464 to register today!
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Hello! My name is Carson and I am a Hatha Yoga Teacher (RYT). I teach a blend of postures, breathing exercises and meditation helpful for finding Inner Silence.
