Shine Your Light

A few years ago at a San Francisco Yoga Journal workshop I attended led by David Swenson, I heard a quote that has stuck with me.  In the middle of attempting a forearm balance he said “There are fears that keep us alive, and there are fears that keep us from living.”

Writer extraordinaire Michelle, of 210 days of waves, posted this article today  “What’s the Meaning of This?” at workawesome.com.  As I read through it, I was fully taken down memory lane.  I vividly recall the thoughts I use to have about how “stuck in the rat race” I felt.   I wanted out but I liked the paycheck.  On the flip side, I knew I wasn’t living my full potential.  I also felt the longer I stayed in the corporate environment, the dimmer my light became.

What was holding me back?  Me!  I use to think I could never teach yoga because I was afraid to do it.  I was afraid of failing.  I was afraid of speaking in public.  I was afraid I wouldn’t know enough.  I was afraid of looking stupid.

Well, today I have my own yoga business teaching in-home private & corporate yoga full-time —just like Michelle’s article states.  It’s humbling to know I will never know everything there is to know about yoga in this lifetime.  I also know that we are each unique individuals and stumbling along the way is how we find our shine!

I fully admit my fears were pinning me down and sucking the life out of me.  I’m not sure I knew this fully at the time, but now I know it enough to never let it happen again.

Take the time to read What’s the Meaning of This? and maybe rethink what you’re doing today.  Are you shining from the inside out?  What’s your passion?  What’s holding you back from living it?  Remember “there are fears that keep you alive (i.e. like the instinct to get out of a burning building), and there are fears that keep you from living”.

Eventful, Energetic, Ecstatic

In celebration of Yoga Day USA today, I am ecstatic to report abellaYoga’s donation-based yoga class raised over $1,000 for Soles4Souls.  The class was held in the historic ballroom of Gadsby’s Tavern Museum in Alexandria, VA —the exact place where Presidents such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson once danced.

35 people showed up for the 80 minute power vinyasa flow.  It truly was a spectacular turn out.  Prior to the event, I was thinking I’d be thrilled if 20 people show up for this yoga class on a cold Winter Saturday morning.  Well, the sun shined and people came.  People showed up who had never tried yoga.  Many of my City of Alexandria yoga students participated.  A yoga teacher/friend of mine drove from Rockville, MD as well as a friend from D.C.  A bunch of my Arlington, VA neighbors took up the front row.  And mixed in the middle were some former yoga clients and old friends I hadn’t seen in years!

We flowed, breathed and definitely sweated with the intention of doing something good for others.  Of course, each participant was doing something good for their own well-being but the connecting thread was “others”.  So I concluded the class with the following quote from the Dalai Lama. 

The True Meaning of Life:
We are visitors on this planet. We are here for ninety or one hundred years at the very most. During that period, we must try to do something good, something useful, with our lives. If you contribute to other people’s happiness, you will find the true goal, the true meaning of life.

P.S.  If you wish to give to Soles4Souls, it’s not too late.  Visit soles4soulsfundraising.org/abellayoga

Namaste

“There is in each of us so much goodness that if we could see its glow, it would light the world.” Sam Friend

Namaste, often said in many yoga classes, is a gesture of respect.  Yoga teachers bow and say it to the students.  Students bow and say it to the teacher.  In India, rather than being spoken, it’s simply a physical gesture with the palms together at the heart (heart/anahata chakra) or forehead (3rd eye/ajna chakra).  Here, at least in the United States, the physical gesture is combined with the spoken word.

Namaste is a Sanskrit term.  Broken down “Nama” means bow, “as” means I, and “te” means you.  So taken together, Namaste literally means “I bow to you.”  It has many translations such as “The divine in me, honors the divine in you.”, or “The light within me, bows to the light within you.”

So when I stumbled upon this quote “There is in each of us so much goodness that if we could see its glow, it would light the world.” I immediately thought this could be used as another translation for Namaste.  Why not?

Do Yoga Today!

The abellaYoga Soles4Souls donation page is live!  A small donation is a great way to do some karma yoga today.

Karma yoga is yoga of service.  Service is helping others.  Donating helps others!

If you are attending the free class I am teaching on January 23rd (Yoga Day USA) in Alexandria VA, please make your donation in advance via www.soles4soulsfundraising.org/abellayoga.  All event details are also available here.

So why wait til Jan 23rd, Yoga Day USA, to do something good?  Do some karma yoga now!

Yoga Sutra Enthusiasm

There are two essential reading requirements for all Yoga Teachers:  Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and The Bhagavad Gita.  For over 7 or 8 years I’ve picked up various copies of the Yoga Sutras and honestly I just didn’t them.  Overwhelming, boring and lost were all adjectives I would use to describe my reading experience and lack of understanding.

During the Summer of 2009 I had a shift.  I discovered Nischala Joy Devi’s “The Secret Power of Yoga” and could actually follow her translation.  Then I had the privilege (thanks to Beloved Yoga in Reston, VA) of attending a 2 day Yoga Sutra workshop with her and that’s when things started to click.  Though this book is written from a feminine voice (which is rare in the Yoga Sutra world), don’t let it fool you.  Yogis (males) and yoginis (females) alike can benefit from Nischala’s thoughtful approach and application of the Sutras in daily life.

Additionally just before Christmas, I ordered “Inside the Yoga Sutras”.  This translation had been recommended to me multiple times, but I was skeptical.  I love it!  I am now completely happy with the Yoga Sutra books I own – well I love two of the four.  Though I figure I must have all of them for some reason -right?

Part of the yoga process is finding what works for you.  In my case, finding Yoga Sutra translations that resonate with me are part of my yoga journey.  Now if I could only fall in love with The Bhagavad Gita.  As the Buddha said “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear”.

My New Year’s Resolution

I always set business and personal goals for each year but I can’t recall every really setting a “core” resolution that I felt whole-hearted about.  Thanks to my good friend Michelle, who moved from Del Ray Alexandria, VA to Santa Cruz, CA nine months ago, I have a New Year’s Resolution that my life will revolve around for the next 210 days.

Here’s how it went down and how I came to select a 2010 resolution:  On Christmas Eve, Michelle called to say “I’m going to surf 200 continuous days in 2010″.  Over the next few days I started thinking I should support her challenge on the East coast.  What can I do? We talked a few days ago and she updates me that 200 consecutive days could be unrealistic with the power of Mother Nature, work, travel, etc. so she changed it to 210 days of surfing in 2010.  And she set up a cool blog:  210 days of waves.  Hmmm…

At first I thought, I should commit to 210 days of yoga the first 210 days of 2010.  Given yoga really encompasses asana, meditation, philosophy/reading, ethical principles to live by (yamas & niyamas), etc. 210 days of yoga seemed too easy.   Honestly, I already do something yoga-related every single day.  I’m a yogini so I live yoga as well as teach it 5 days a week.  To truly step up to the 210 challenge, I decided to turn my aspirations of daily meditation into reality.  I am committing to 210 days of meditation and I’ve set up a new blog a) to keep me honest, b) because Michelle did and c) to try something new (daily blogging).

If you’ve been an abellaYoga blog fan for a while, you’re probably thinking “don’t you already meditate?”  Yes I meditate but not consistently.  I sit about 4 days a week for anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes.  So what does “210 days of meditation for 2010″ mean to me?   The answer is here.

Follow our 2010 journeys:  210 days of waves / 210 days of meditation The ride may be bumpy but we’ll do what it takes.  July 29, 2010 is now only 209 days away.

2010 Yoga Trends

Almost two years ago I read a list of 10 predictions for yoga in 2008.  As we look forward to 2010, I believe they’re still very accurate.

With the obvious economic stresses of the last two years, more and more people need “wellness” guidance – yoga class, meditation practice, nutrition advice and just overall direction on living life to its fullest!  So again, why wouldn’t these be trends for 2010?

“Predictions for Yoga in 2008” was authored by Megan McDonough.  Megan McDonough helps you get clear so you can get positive results. Along with teaching yoga, she’s the award-winning author of Infinity in a Box, a marketing consultant for mind/body organizations including Kripalu Center, and a corporate trainer to companies such as the American Cancer Society.

Awaken

My last blog post reminded me of Nischala Joy Devi’s translation of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra 1.33. This is by far one of my most favorite Sutras, but it’s Devi’s translation that has clicked with me.  It reads:

Kindness to those who are happy

Compassion for those who are less fortunate

Honor for those who embody noble qualities

Equanimity to those whose actions oppose your values

I had the privilege of attending a two-day Yoga Sutra workshop with her in the Fall at Beloved Yoga in Great Falls, VA (about 30 minutes west of Washington, DC).  If you aren’t familiar with Devi’s interpretation of the Yoga Sutras, put “The Secret Power of Yoga” on your reading list for 2010.  Awaken your practice, attitude and life!

Awake

For the fourth night in a row this week, I have woken up at 4am unable to fall back to sleep.  This morning as I lie awake I continue to think about how I just under charged a new private yoga client based on his location & the possible number of attendees.

I finally get out of bed to get a glass of juice.  As I stand and drink my juice, I turn on my BlackBerry and see an email from one of my dear neighbors.  She sent the email to all of my neighbors asking each of us to pray on behalf of a neighbor battling breast cancer (again).

I return to bed with my mind now consumed with how thoughtful the email is and how I can follow through with the simple request of chanting “Dear Lord, please help heal our dear friend Julie”.  The email request that we repeat the prayer/chant/affirmation (whatever you want to call it) three times a day for 40 days.  There’s a lot of significance in 40 days – the Buddha sat under the bodhi tree meditating for 40 days, Moses was in the mountains (or sea) for 40 days, etc.  The references can be endless and very ancient.

As I continue to lie awake, suddenly I realize my financial woe that just minutes before took up my mind is insignificant to a human life.  How quickly my mind shifted from my petty loss.  Instead of worrying about me, I should put that energy into thoughts for my neighbor.

Prayer on behalf of another, a smile at a stranger or simply holding the door for someone are simple acts of kindness that express gratitude for others. To conclude, I ask:  Does the world revolve around us?  Or is it acts of human kindness that connect us to one another around the world?  Back to sleep.

Gift of Calm

Holiday parties are in full swing.  Year-end work projects must be completed in the next week.  Gift buying and wrapping is a sport for many this time of year.  And as if this wasn’t enough to do, life still needs to happen – grocery shopping, gym visits, bill paying, house cleaning, etc.  The reality is this can be one of the most chaotic times of the year.

How can you find calm in the midst of chaos?  Give yourself the gift of calm.  Simply stop and pause.  In the middle of the holiday hustle and bustle, take a few minutes several times a day for yourself to sit tall and simply breath.  An easy mantra I suggest to my yoga students:  breath in calm, breath out stress.  Repeat it five times, matching the each phrase to the appropriate breath (i.e. as you inhale, say “breath in calm”, as you exhale, breath out stress).

The gift of calm gives you the ability to sit in middle of chaos and find peace in your heart and bring a smile on your face. Your “to do” list won’t disappear but you may return to it with greater clarity.

I believe everyone, yogis and non-yogis alike, can unwrap the gift of calm.  Yogis might be a few steps ahead in receiving the benefits since they put it into practice every time they step into a challenging asana class.  Asana and meditation are disciplined practices that challenge us to find calm when resistance arises.

Whether you do yoga or not, is not important.  If you’re reading this, you’re human which means you possess the privilege of breathing.  And learning to pause and breath with full awareness can release physical tension, calm your mind and relax your heart.  These are gifts we all deserve.