Do follow my heart that lives in silence

i cherish when my mind is still

I cherish the point in my yoga practice where I no longer have to tell myself:

"O my mind, you talk too much. Do follow my heart that lives in silence." ~ Sri Chinmoy

Then I am free. It's like shooting stars have just gone off to remind me I am here in this sacred space... 

When I’ve reached this place, I no longer know that I had a goal to get here in the first place.

It is then that I am able to truly see and feel the transpersonal. It is in the stillness that it all comes to me as the primary channel of my experience, making the most sense to me in an energetic form that cannot be described in words. 

ineffable feelings find expression

The ineffable feeling gets articulated within me, from a heartfelt space, in a poetic form. I have been given a gift with this mode of expression. It is what flows through my veins

continue reading

An inquiry into my true nature: Self exploration

life force fuels

On my jaunt through life I have contemplated the truth of my nature. I have always felt most comfortable knowing that there is an ultimate source permeating us all, and at times I have felt a unity with this source. At other times I have felt completely alone. It was my yoga—vinyasa flow, ashtanga & meditation, in particular—that saved me from this quandary and answered many questions for me.

My search, through poetic expression, led me to this present moment as I move into my desires to use their creativity and life force to fuel me.

Taken as an excerpt from my poem yoga, what you do for me, I speak to you, yoga, inside me as you are me: You help me find my pure state of mind, you help me change energy into fuel, you help me find the deepest parts of myself without fear, you help me believe in magic and you taught me how I can do whatever I put my mind to.

In studying the histories of Sankhya-Yoga, Advaita Vedanta and Participatory Spirituality I have found inspirations from each to aid me on my path.

sankhya-yoga

Although Sankhya and Yoga are different systems, they work together and support each other so have been combined together as one unique system called Sankhya-Yoga.

continue reading

how lucky we are… best vinyasa yoga around

San Francisco is blessed to have Stephanie Snyder for yoga

How lucky we are to be able to live in the San Francisco Bay Area and practice the most amazing Vinyasa Flow yoga around!

We have access to classes such as Stephanie Snyder at the Urban Flow Yoga. What a better way to end a Tuesday or Thursday evening, or savor a Saturday or Sunday afternoon.

As the warm yoga room fills with 80-100 people, and the music is playing loudly, you walk in to find yourself in an energetic scene before the class even begins. You find all of the same people there every class because they all know that the special secret to their lives is to attend this class regularly.

If you are one of the regulars you know before starting how you will feel when it's over. It is a given, as this class is a sure thing. You can even begin your experience before Stephanie arrives by lying on your mat, amidst the social chatter, with a towel on your face and feel as if a solo boat on the open sea letting the bliss that will follow enter you in that moment, as if time is irrelevant and it is already happening.

continue reading

Hiking as a path to your self: Living yoga

Living yoga via hiking

Hiking on a sunny day... turning to sunset. It is my favorite time up on the mountain.

image @ Cora Varnes

I can watch the day sunlight culminate from warmth to secretive, from life-giving to artistic. With that change comes a change of heart too.

Hiking is a type of yoga for me, as I pay attention to my breath in the same way as I do on my mat. Living yoga outside of yoga class is the true test of a healthy yoga practice anyway. Hiking is part of having a well-rounded yoga life for me.

If I take an intention with me, it unravels with every step. I can even go through the various chakras as I climb, balanced together with music of the soul. What's most important in order for me to make my hike into a yoga adventure is silence—not necessarily inner silence but literal silence (i.e., no orating any words). This can be done with a partner as long as this is agreed.

Another important factor is breathing through my nose, using what we call in yoga the ujjayi breath. It is done throughout an Ashtanga practice. This breathing is done by making a sound in the back of the throat. Some people like to refer to Darth Vader from Star Wars when describing it.

continue reading

Life is a journey: Don't forget to be inspired

Life is a journey. I intend to make it worthwhile.

Be inspired

With regards to this journey it is not important what the venue, physical activity, or endeavor, or even the goal. What we make of our experience is what counts. What matters is the lessons that remain with us after we have completed whatever it is we do and how we integrate this knowledge in our hearts back into the society in which we live. It is a true life meditation to keep lessons we learn inside us and never let the magic die.

continue reading

Spiritual escape, spiritual bypass

Overwhelmed?

Have you ever felt so overwhelmed that you dropped everything and turned to your spirituality? I know I have. In fact, I have done it for days on end, which led to months and then years.

I added yoga to the mix as well as dream interpretation and psychology. Although it is all good to dig deep into yourself and find all of your secrets, it can be a double-edged sword. Is it part of the path to enlightenment, or it is a danger to avoid?

Yoga addiction

From the start what got me into yoga was the feeling of loneliness and a special group of people to practice with to stir it all up inside me. I think we were all there for the same reason. It was an escape while I was doing it, but it led to my freedom and happiness.

I was feeling bliss as if flying, yet I was also genuinely lost and ungrounded while I was not practicing yoga. I escaped my life and reality and lived in my yoga, always moving, isolating myself more and more from friends and family into my inner world. I was obsessed to meet some end, knowing on some level that the only way to open the door to peace was through this uneasiness and drama that I created.

Stop escaping

With much strength and years I was able to get a hold of the escapist manner in which I was dealing with my life. I realized I mimicked my life in my yoga! I was able to get out of the endless loop

continue reading