Yoga Limbs Breakdown

Quoting Rolf Gates again, 'The limbs of tapas, or action, bind us to the moment. They are actions taken or not taken in the present. The yamas do away with those negative actions that create remorse about the past and fear about the future. The niyamas take the energy freed up by the yamas and channel it into actions that promote health in ourselves and others. The asana simultaneously teach us to stay with the matter at hand, while deconstructing the personality flaws that induced us to hide out in our imaginations in the first place. Pranayama trains the mind to concentrate on one point while further refining our physical and emotional health. Consistent practice of these four limbs teaches us to live in the moment.'

Surf's Up!

Day before yesterday I was watching the film Surf's Up, guess I was feeling like some cartoons verses all the dramas I had been viewing recently. Was visiting my mom and thought I would look through her 'kids' dvd section (since the only 'kids movie' i currently only is just Tangled and Ive viewed it too death!) and I saw this movie sitting on her shelf. It was released in 2007 but i was boycotting it because at that time in my life I did not have an appreciation for animated films. So I was testing it out, and 1. I feel inlove, I MUST! own this movie!. But 2. and why I make this post is there was something very yoga in the film that really inspired me.

The 2 second premiss of the film is this young pengiun from Antartica (sp) 'Cody' fell in love with surfing as a hatchling when 'Big Z' - the world's greatest surfer in the film- came to Antartica and inspired Cody and became his hero. So when Cody was 17 or so he went to this made up penguin island were Big Z hailed from and went to join the surfing compitition. Now as far as the penguins knew at the time Big Z had a surf accident years ago and died, but Cody finds that his hero is actually alive and just in shame and hiding.

So at this point he is excited but then hurt that his hero isnt what he thought, and cody was just obessed with winning this Surf compitition, but wanted to know surfing from Big Z. Big Z starts to teach Cody but he wasnt learning 'cool' 'winning' stuff so got impaticent and careless. big Z in one scene was showing cody how to make a surf board was teaching his that every carving stroke of the board was important, have to have long smooth steady even strokes, going with the grain and focus on not 'making the board' so much as 'finding it' is the half a log. Cody just started hacking away and low and behold the thing broke in the water within 2 seconds.. so later he takes the slow approach and ends up making a winning board.

Phase 2 after the board was made Cody wanted to rush in the water and learn to start surfing, so Big Z kept him on the beach and was teaching him surfing, how to paddle and stroke, etc. Big Z was also teaching him how to hang loose and hang upside down and to have fun, but Cody just got angery that he wasnt in the water and pulled a practical prank on Big Z, trying to be a pill. Cody laughed and Big Z asked is he was havign fun adn Cody being smart alec_E said yes and then Big Z said: 'well then.. YOU PASS!" and they got on their boards and got in the waves.

Side stepping for a minute, I personally never saw the original 'Karate Kid', growing up i only saw 'The Next Karate Kid'.. however a few years ago I did see the Jackie Chan and Jaden Smith version (which that kid is the cutest little boy in the entire world, its a good thing he has amazing parents or else i would make it my goal to try and adapt him because is is sooo adorable!) But anywho.. in this film jackie Chan has Jaden coming over everyday to learn Karate and for days on end all he does all day is take his coat on and off.. and again he got really P.O.ed at Jackie Chan for not teaching him, but then we see jackie have him go through the motions with an invisible jacket and we see that those movents become his karate foundation moves.

Back to the penguins, Cody and Jaden are the same as Big Z and Jackie.. both boys are learning what they want and finding that karate and surfing are not jsut about the physical moves but its about head and mind and spirit, a lot like, you guessed it.. YOGA!

I have a lot of students wanting to learn more or do more, or people often ask me to show them 'cool moves', but Yoga is not about one arm stands to show off to your buddies, the asanas, the physical moves are such a teeny tiny part of yoga. Its all about mind and spirit! About growing beyond our previous environmental 'brainwashed' limitation (i say brainwashed because we all are,whether that is good or bad I am not here to judge, but we are all programmed from birth our speech and sense of taste what music we like, what sports we view, how to sit or slouch, etc...) But to start to be what we want, or just accept where we are, there is no right or wrong. Its not about action but  about your attitude and mindset. Learning to just BE! Either accepting things as t hey are and learning peace and happiness, being content, or changing what we want to and then learning to accept things and learn peace and happiness and being content!

As we move through the physical practice we are really learning to condition our minds, to learn meditation and concentration, and how to be in the moment. The goal in the physical practice is to have the student focus solely on the pose they are in, focusing on each muscle in the pose and focusing on their breath in the pose, and with that quieting all outside thoughts in the mid and being there in that moment!

You see when you let go of the idea of 'winning' is when you will win!

Saraphine + Cortana

My Husband has a pet tarantula that he named Cortana after the AI in his favorite game Halo, and this past summer for my birthday he bought me a snamke that I named Saraphine.

For those that are unfamiliar snakes and spiders make rather similiar pets as far as care and up keep. Cortana only needs to be fed about once a month, or longer depending on their own mood, and snakes when grown eat once every two weeks and when they feed they usually only eat one cricket or moth for the spider and one mouse for the snake. They both rarely need water, and they are content in small containers. the type of spider and snake that we own are both also similar to cats and dogs in the fact that they are tame, housebroken, and very loving and affectionate to people.

The reason why I bring them both up today, is I have been very inspired by them and their way of life for quite some time. In yoga it is said that you are not a human doing nor are you a human acting, but we are humanbeings and that we all need to master the art of just being! Nature I have found has already mastered the art of peace by doing just that. Both Saraphine and Cortana know how to just be! They just sit or lay in their little tanks, not eating or drinking more than they need to survive and are content without having more of anything. They do not need fancy homes or do-dads and trinkets to gaze at or play with, all they need is their bedding and they keep just fine.

Yoga is not just about doing headstands or balacing on one foot, its about a way of life. In yoga their are 8 limbs:
The first limb, yama, deals with one's ethical standards and sense of integrity, focusing on our behavior and how we conduct ourselves in life. Yamas are universal practices that relate best to what we know as the Golden Rule, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

Niyama, the second limb, has to do with self-discipline and spiritual observances. Nonhoarding, nonstealing, truthfulness, and moderation are all examples of niyamas in practice.

Asanas, the postures practiced in yoga, comprise the third limb.

It is the first two limbs that I want to focus on. It is here that feel that Cortana and Saraphine have captured what it means to be free, by just having these two things as their way of life.

 Now for us we have grown up quite differently, aside from the obvious that we are humans and have a higher range of emotions and intellegence to deal with, but we live in a world of 'me, me, me... mine, mine, mine..more, more, more' coming up with phrases like 'it's a dog eat dog world', always fighting to have. So we have the ablity to Just Be, however for most its something that we have to practice to regulalry achieve.

Now I am not saying that we must all go back to living in trees and wearign burlap sacks eating one squirl a day or something, we can have our cell phones and our cars and ours homes, but in having them and gaining them its important that we not lose sight of who we are and what are morals are. its important to take sometime to just breath and be in the moment. Or if you really like to just move then do so witha  mind that has let go. Practice really enjoying and appreciating what you have and who is around you, and practice being content in your own skin and your own life!

Utter peace and happiness is within you to achieve!

Stephanie's Yoga

First of all i do have to say that for those in the Portland/Vancouver area I teach for $6 at Vamonos Studio as well as in home for those who can not make the Tuesday 7.10pm class or the Saturday 10.10am class in the studio, however in home prices will vary.

I teach the Hatha Yoga styles of Ashtanga Vinyasa as well as Iyengar also known as Vinyasa Flow or Traditional Yoga as well as leading Meditation.

Currently i am trying to get my boss Jennifer Shaw to allow me to start teaching Yoga Rave so if that sounds appealing to anyone please email her at jennifer@zumbaforu.com. Currently she is hesitant because she fears that it would not generate interest, so please, please please, lets all ban together to get this invigorating dance-style workout started, great for those into tradition yoga as well as hot yoga, community, meditation, or if you just love to dance, or listen to fun music, or just want an aerobic workout. There is something for all walks of life, all styles of living. For fun check out the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg5bZeLUkB4