The Paradox of Less is More Brahmacharya The more literal translation is ‘no sexy times’. Yup, good ol' chastity. However, this concept is quite layered. As times progress, so must the concepts of ancient yet viable practices. If they are to remain relevant, they must be adapted to address the needs of the day. Thus, into its richness we dive! An applicable way to frame Brahmacharya would be a “moderation of appetites”; tempering our desires in order to conserve energy. ...
Blog-a-yama: Part Three
Vanity vs. Sanity, The Truth of It All... The third yama I’d like to dive into is Satya - the yama of truth. This is the one that asks us to be truthful first with ourselves, and then with the rest of the world. Maybe you’ve been in the following scenario. You’re having a cluster f*ck of a day. To ease the insanity, you go online and post a picture that is in no way related to the absolute gong show you’re experiencing, or if it is, it has been heavily censored, making it more PG. The ...
Blog-a-yama: Part Two
How happy can hurt so good.... The next Yama I'd like to discuss in the blog-a-yama series is Ahimsa - the basic translation of this word is “non-violence”. It is the practice of not harming oneself or others. This seems like a pretty straight forward concept. Don’t punch yourself in the face, and don’t punch the guy next to you. Treat your neighbour, as you wish to be treated. Despite the obvious invitation to avoid physically harming others, there is also the ...
Blog-a-Yama: Part One
...Attached to you... When I did my first Yoga Teacher Training, what made me fall madly in love with Yoga, even more than I already had, was the discovery of the Yamas - the precepts or guidelines used in this ancient practice that offer “how to’s” on how to navigate the gong show of life. However, because they are from ancient text, they can come across as not terribly approachable or applicable to an iPhone, internet, modern medicine type of lifestyle. Ergo: BLOG-A-YAMA - not a Yama ...
9 Things Your Yoga Teacher Wants to Tell You….But Doesn’t
Yoga teachers see a lot. Body language, furtive glances, the way a person carries themselves speaks volumes. We also hear things - assumptions about yoga or yoga teaching that make our eyes roll. Here are nine things your yoga teacher desperately wants to tell you but won’t. Hopefully we put aside this silliness and get to the good stuff like connecting to ourselves and others; 1) “You teach yoga, you must be sooooo relaxed!” Any time I encounter this assumption, I resist kicking ...
Mentorship Program
We Were Not Meant To Do This Alone: Mentoring for Yoga teachers It was a searingly hot July Day in 2016. The type of humid day that feels like you’re swimming through the air. I sat down in a cool cafe, sweaty, hollow, exhausted by the spinning wheels in my mind and the constant pounding of my feet on the pavement. My brain was yelling at me; There has to be a better way! There has to be a better option than running all over town to different studios, desperately seeking guidance from ...
Tapas
....the ones that change your life and don't leave you hungry. I was visiting with a friend the other day. My buddy was exasperated, telling me about a loved one who wanted to do what they wanted, when they wanted, however they wanted. They didn’t feel like they were embodying that ubiquitous, rather glib catch phrase “living my best life”. In my friend’s frustration they exclaimed, “Do you know anyone who lives like that!? I don’t. We can’t just do whatever we want, whenever we want! What ...
