Monthly Archives: October 2016
Schedule for Week of October 31, 2016
Happy Halloween!
Here we are at the end of October. I can hardly believe how fast this year has flown by. Last week flew by especially quickly for me and I failed to post summarizing brahmacharya. Oopsy. Look for that post Tuesday and a post about the last of the yama, aparigraha, on Thursday.
Also this week, I’ll be hosting a Yoga for Better Balance workshop on Saturday at Morton Center. We won’t do any “scary” balance poses despite it being Halloween week; rather we’ll take the fear out of balance by focusing on the principles that build the foundations to make balance more accessible. That’s at 10 a.m. on Saturday. Investment is $20.
Here’s where I’ll be the rest of the week.
Monday
- 4 p.m. Yoga at the Museum (Art Museum of Greater Lafayette)
- 7:15 p.m. Yin Yoga (Community Yoga)
Wednesday
- 9:30 a.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
- 7:15 p.m. Restorative Yoga (Community Yoga)
Thursday
- 5:45 p.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
- 7:15 p.m. Yin Yoga (Yoga Balance/Morton Center)
Saturday
- 10:00 a.m. Yoga for Better Balance Workshop (Yoga Balance/Morton Center)
Please note: The correct time for the Saturday workshop is 10 a.m. (not at night as originally posted here in error)
Hope to see you!
Stay spooky,
Debra
Schedule for the Week of October 24, 2016
This week, we’ll continue the journey through Patanjali’s 8 limbs of yoga with a review of the fourth yama, brahmacharya.
On Thursday, there is no Yin class at Yoga Balance but it’s back next week. The Yoga Basics series at Community Yoga wraps up with a class that puts all we’ve learned together.
Monday
- 4 p.m. Yoga at the Museum (Art Museum of Greater Lafayette)
- 7:15 p.m. Yin Yoga (Community Yoga)
Tuesday
- 9:30 p.m. All-Levels Yoga (McAllister Recreation Center)
Wednesday
- 9:30 a.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
- 7:15 p.m. Restorative Yoga (Community Yoga)
Thursday
- 9:30 a.m. All-Levels Yoga (McAllister Recreation Center)
- 5:45 p.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
Saturday
- 9:45 a.m. Gentle Stretch Yoga (Cancer Support Community – Central Indiana)
Sunday
- 9:30 a.m. Yoga Basics (Community Yoga)
- 2 p.m. Yin Yoga (Dragonfly 360)
Hope to see you this week!
Peace,
Debra
#ThoughtfulThursday: Asteya
Earlier this month, we started looking at the eight limbs of yoga as outlined in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras with the first of these eight limbs, the yama. The yama, ethical behaviors for social harmony, allow us to contribute to the health and happiness of the world in which we live.
The yamas are broken down into five principles: ahimsa (non-harming) and satya (truth), which we’ve reviewed; asteya (non-stealing), which we’ll cover today; and brahmacharya (right use of energy) and aparigraha (freedom from greed).
Asteya
Asteya, the third of the yamas, is translated to mean non-stealing. While we’re most familiar with stealing in terms of physical items, asteya refers to more than that. Non-stealing means not taking anything that isn’t freely given, including ideas, energy, emotions, time, and attention. We should respect others and be grateful for what we have.
We not only can steal from others but also from ourselves. The root cause of the compulsion to steal is insecurity, the lack of faith in ourselves to provide for our needs. We need to recognize that we are enough. On the mat, that can mean letting go of how we should look in a pose and forcing our bodies into shapes that they’re not meant to obtain. Goals are fine but we should be fully present in each pose and create a sustainable practice. So the next time you’re on your mat and your inner critic pipes up, just take a breath and remember to be happy for what you can do now.
Peace,
Debra
#TimeOutTuesday: Satya
Last week, we started looking at Patanjali’s eight limbs of yoga with a look at the first limb, the Yama . Our focus was on the first of the five principles of the Yama: ahimsa. Today, we’re focusing on the second principle: satya, or truth.
Truth. Seems simple enough, right? While the truth seems straightforward, oftentimes it’s not. Think of two siblings who are trying to get out of trouble by blaming each other or two witnesses to the same event who have two totally different accounts of what happened. Each person was has their own version of the story, sometimes because one of them is lying but sometimes because of bias. What seems true for each us is shaped by many factors — our culture, our family life, our language, our thoughts, our emotions… and on and on.
So how do we get to unbiased Truth? Through self-reflection. Becoming aware of our biases can help us see past them. Noticing our conditioned responses can help us break patterns of behavior that hide the Truth. When we can quiet our minds and think less, it gives us the opportunity to open up to hearing the real Truth and accepting it for what it is rather than what we want it to be. If we can all find the Truth within ourselves, we can stop acting out of fear and ignorance.
Yours in peace,
Debra
Schedule for Week of October 17, 2016
This week, we’ll continue the journey through Patanjali’s 8 limbs of yoga with a look at the third Yama: asteya.
Also coming up this week are a Playing with Props workshop (Saturday) at Yoga Balance and the continuation the Yoga Basics series at Community Yoga with a focus on inversions and back bends (I promise it won’t be scary).
Monday
- 4 p.m. Yoga at the Museum (Art Museum of Greater Lafayette)
- 7:15 p.m. Yin Yoga (Community Yoga)
Wednesday
- 9:30 a.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
- 7:15 p.m. Restorative Yoga (Community Yoga)
Thursday
- 6 a.m. Sunrise Vinyasa (Community Yoga)
- 5:45 p.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
- 7:15 p.m. Yin Yoga (Yoga Balance/Morton Center)
Friday
- 9:30 a.m. Vinyasa (Community Yoga)
Saturday
- 10 a.m. Playing with Props Workshop (Yoga Balance)
Sunday
- 9:30 a.m. Yoga Basics (Community Yoga)
- 2 p.m. Yin Yoga (Dragonfly 360)
Hope to see you this week!
Peace,
Debra
CORRECTION: An earlier post incorrectly listed a noon vinyasa class at Yoga Balance; that class has been cancelled.
Schedule for the Week of October 10, 2016
This week, we continue the journey through Patanjali’s 8 limbs of yoga with a look at the second of the Yama — Satya, or truth. More on that subject later this week. Come to class or tune in here.
Please note: The Yoga Basics series at Community Yoga is on hold until next week.
Monday
- 4 p.m. Yoga at the Museum (Art Museum of Greater Lafayette)
- 7:15 p.m. Yin Yoga (Community Yoga)
Tuesday
- 7:30 p.m. Moving Beyond Cancer Yoga Demo (Cancer Support Community – Central Indiana)
Wednesday
- 9:30 a.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
- 7:15 p.m. Restorative Yoga (Community Yoga)
Thursday
- 5:45 p.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
- 7:15 p.m. Yin Yoga (Yoga Balance/Morton Center)
Saturday
- 9:45 a.m. Gentle Stretch Yoga (Cancer Support Community – Central Indiana)
Sunday
- 2 p.m. Yin Yoga (Dragonfly 360)
Hope to see you this week!
Peace,
Debra
#TimeOutTuesday: Ahimsa
Welcome back, dear readers. Yesterday I shared an overview of the eight limbs of yoga as outlined in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. We’ll begin to take a closer look at the first of these eight limbs, the yama, and the first principle, ahimsa, in particular.
The Yama
The yama, the first of the eight limbs, are ethical restraints or behaviors for social harmony. The yama allow us to contribute to the health and happiness of the world in which we live.
The yamas are broken down into five principles: ahimsa (non-harming), satya (truth), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacharya (right use of energy), and aparigraha (freedom from greed).
Ahimsa
Ahimsa, the first of the yamas, is translated to mean non-harming or nonviolence. The idea is that we should not intentionally injure or be cruel to any creature or person, including ourselves, through thought or action. Practicing ahimsa means we should act with kindness, friendliness, and thoughtful consideration.
It takes strength to practice ahimsa. Far too often, acts of kindness, compassion, or caring are viewed as weak or undesirable. Training the mind to look for the good in ourselves and others and acting on those thoughts leads to unity. Wouldn’t it be nice if the prevailing attitude was not about “us versus them” but rather “we’re all in this together”?
In peace and unity,
Debra
Patanjali’s 8 Limbs of Yoga: An Overview
If you’ve practiced yoga for any length of time, you may have heard of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras or the eight limbs of yoga. But do you know what they are? Throughout the rest of the year, I’ll be sharing an overview.
The Yoga Sutras
The Yoga Sutras is a yogic text compiled by Patanjali. While there is some mystery around who Patanjali was, the simplified explanation is that he was a yogic sage who compiled the Sutras. What the Sutras are is neatly summed up in a quote from Yoga Journal:
“The Yoga Sutra, widely regarded as the authoritative text on yoga, is a collection of aphorisms, outlining the eight limbs of yoga. These ‘threads’ (as sutra translates from Sanskrit) of wisdom offer guidelines for living a meaningful and purposeful life.”
The Eight Limbs
The yoga that most of us are familiar with in the West focuses on the third of the eight limbs, asana or posture. A brief overview of all eight limbs is below:
- Yama: ethical restraints for social harmony
- Ahimsa: non-harming
- Satya: truth
- Asteya: non-stealing
- Brahmacharya: right use of energy
- Aparigraha: freedom from greed
- Niyama: personal standards
- Sauca: purity
- Santosha: contentment
- Tapas: self-discipline
- Svadhyaya: self-study
- Isvara Pranidhana: union with the Divine
- Asana: physical practice
- Pranayama: regulation of life force
- Pratyahara: withdrawal of the senses
- Dharana: single-pointed concentration
- Dhyana: meditation
- Samadhi: enlightenment
Throughout this week via this blog and my classes, we’ll be taking a look at the first of the yama: ahimsa. Until then, thank you for reading.
Peace,
Debra
Schedule for Week of October 3, 2016
This week, we’ll start a journey through Patanjali’s 8 limbs of yoga. Tune in tomorrow for more on that subject.
This week’s highlights include new Yin (Thursdays) and Slow Flow (Fridays) sessions at Yoga Balance and the continuation of the Yoga Basics series at Community Yoga. This week’s Basics class will focus on standing poses and balance poses.
Monday
- 4 p.m. Yoga at the Museum (Art Museum of Greater Lafayette)
- 7:15 p.m. Yin Yoga (Community Yoga)
Tuesday
- 9:30 a.m. Yoga for Everyone (Community Yoga)
- 6 p.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga – South)
Wednesday
- 9:30 a.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
- 7:15 p.m. Restorative Yoga (Community Yoga)
Thursday
- 5:45 p.m. Classic Yoga (Community Yoga)
- 7:15 p.m. Yin Yoga (Yoga Balance/Morton Center)
Friday
- 12 p.m. Slow Flow (Yoga Balance/Morton Center)
Saturday
- 9:45 a.m. Gentle Stretch Yoga (Cancer Support Community – Central Indiana)
Sunday
- 9:30 a.m. Yoga Basics (Community Yoga)
- 2 p.m. Yin Yoga (Dragonfly 360)
Hope to see you this week!
Peace,
Debra
