Sharath Rangaswamy, grandson of Pattabhi Jois, and now director of the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute in Mysore, India, was in Toronto recently. These are recordings of a conference he held during his visit, thanks to Rochelle and Paul Gold.

In the first video, Sharath talks about Parampara, a traditional Indian cultural practice where knowledge is passed down from one guru to the student. He stresses the importance of finding the right teacher from whom you can learn Ashtanga as it was meant to be.

In the second video, Sharath talks about his beloved grandfather, Pattabhi Jois, or as we all refer to him affectionately as Guruji, and his dedication to the Ashtanga practice.

If you are having issues watching the second video, here is a link to the video on You Tube.
R Sharath Conference 2 on You Tube

Again thank you to Rochelle and Paul Gold for sharing these recordings on YouTube with us.

A great little interview of Pattabhi Jois back from the 70’s. Guruji’s wise words on the practice of Ashtanga Yoga.

If there’s one Ashtanga movie many of us recommend, it’s Ashtanga New York. Filmed in 2001, during Guruji’s visit to New York City, it’s an inspirational portrayal of the Ashtanga practice.

Here’s a trailer to the movie. It’s a must see!

The Bhagavad Gita (Song of the Blessed One)

Of all the great spiritual texts, there’s only one that Gandhi carried with him everywhere. Even though The Bhagavad Gita is not about religion, Gandhi called it his “prayer-book” and its the one he lived his life by. The Gita is a beautiful poem that happens to capture the heart of yoga beautifully. It’s also the one book Guruji and many yoga teachers recommend for aspiring yogis.

Like all poetry, the Gita is best read slowly, from your heart, not your head. Because the setting for the story is a war between two families, it’s often confused with supporting violence. However, the war is simply a metaphor for the war we all fight daily. It’s a reminder that our mind can be both friend and foe and you have to stand up and fight the enemies – jealousy, anger, impatience, doubt – the enemies that prevent our true selves from shining through.

The story is told as a conversation between Arjuna, the warrior representing the good family and Krishna representing the Divine. As Arjuna struggles with having to fight this battle he really doesn’t want to fight, Krishna shares insight on relationship with the Atman (our true self or soul), the Divine and Liberation. He also
references yoga and yogis throughout – and never once mentions asana! The Gita defines a yogi as “the lluminated one”. So… we have to be careful about calling ourselves yogis… most of us aren’t quite there yet, we’re simply “on the path”.

Regardless of what’s going on in your life, the Gita can be your compass, offering direction, comfort and wisdom. One time you be may be called to take action, another time surrendering might seem the better option. It reminds us to take care of the physical body that houses our precious soul ; to fight for our svadharma (our personal path), to love our work and the power we have to make the world better because we bring joy to whatever that “job” is ; and to live life fully but let go of attachment to a specific outcome. even though we may relate this to not caring, it’s really just our mind projecting what we think the fruit of our effort should be. Just being present, giving our best effort and being true to ourselves is enough, the
blessings will come.

Back by popular demand, a third Transition Workshop was held on 08-15-09. Diana reviewed the pull through, along with chakrasana (backwards somersault), and many others. Here are some video clips of what was covered. Interested in more? Let us know and maybe Diana will conduct another workshop!

This clip contains brief demos of chakrasana (backward sommersault), Setu Bandhasana entrance, and traditional headstand entrance and exit.

An excerpt taken from a blog post at Barefoot Bhakti about her visit to Pacific Ashtanga Yoga Shala.

Yesterday, I thought I would jaunt down the street to Pacific Ashtanga. What could be better than yoga directly across from the bay at Dana Point? Plus, there’s something completely decadent about having a yoga studio within walking distance. Not that I walked.

…wandering into Pacific Astanga was like adding the frosting to a cupcake. The studio is presented with so much devoted attention: the altar with photos of Guruji, the beautiful statues, the candles and lanterns, the chanting, and the sheer dedication of the instructor to her own personal practice, was a cut above anything I could ask for.

For the entire original post: Click here to go to Barefoot Bhakti’s Blog

Thanks to Barefoot Bhakti’s for your kind words about our beloved Yoga Shala!

The non-physical benefits of asana (yoga poses) for new (or future) yoga practitioners.

On a recent vacation, I was reading “Light on Life” by B.K.S Iyengar. It dawned on me as I was reading that I didn’t really know what I was getting into when I started my Ashtanga yoga  practice a few years ago. I thought it would be a great way to get in shape and perhaps reduce some stress. My yoga practice has since given me so much more than just physical benefits – but I still have trouble explaining this to non-yogis. And this is where Iyengar steps in to help.

Iyengar often says “the body is the bow, the asana is the arrow, and the soul is the target.” He explains in “Light on Life” what he means by this: “I use the body to discipline the mind and to reach the soul. Asanas (poses), when done with the right intention, will help to transform an individual by taking the person away from an awareness of just the body toward the consciousness of the soul.”

To a new yoga student or potential future yoga student this explanation probably still isn’t of much help in explaining the non-physical benefits of yoga, so let me provide an interpretation based on my experience. At the beginning, yoga poses do cause some pain as we stretch the body in ways it is not accustomed to. But very soon, as the body opens up a little bit, the mind begins to quiet down and we start to feel a little bit more content and a little happier – both on our mats and in our daily lives.

Over time, as we start to gain strength, flexibility and balance, we start to feel a sense of lightness and freedom. In our daily lives, our attachments start to loosen up and our priorities start to shift. Soon, as our focus increases, we start to become more aware of the present moment, worry less about the past and the future. We start to really focus on what’s happening in our lives, here and now and start to gain more gratitude for what we have – no matter how much or how little that is. And that feeling of contentment and happiness continues to grow.

The more I practice, the more self awareness I gain. I feel like I am no longer outside looking in, I am aware of what I am doing with every cell of my body. I perform each asana (pose), each action more from the heart and less from the head. Again, this starts to happen both on and off my mat.

Iyengar captures this feeling so well when he says “We are surrendering our egos…..It must not be just your mind or even your body that is doing the asana (pose). You must be in it. You must do the asana (pose) with your soul.” And this is how what happens in a yoga class on your mat, continues to gradually creep off of your mat and into your daily life.

Think of the physical practice of yoga as a fantastic jumping off point to start the inward journey to finding your best, most beautiful self. I have so much more to learn, but so far, I think the effort invested in my yoga practice has been very worthwhile. I hope this post will help to encourage a few more non-yogis out there to see how a yoga practice can transform their lives from the outside – in. I started with a style called Ashtanga yoga at Pacific Ashtanga in Dana Point, but there are many great teachers and different types of yoga practices out there for you to try.

If you are a yogi and you like this post, please pass it on to some of your non-yogi friends as encouragement