The Yoga Bridge, Week 12, The Eight Steps of Yoga Applied to Swastikasana

20 Jan 2014 Leave a comment

by Jason in YOGA Tags: , , ,

On Monday, at noon, I attended a level one yoga class. This was my third time to a level one class. The year before, I could mostly attend multilevel classes because of the lack of courses offered and time conflicts.

This week I thought it was informative how the yoga teacher tried to apply the eight steps, limbs, of yoga to swastikasana, the basic sitting pose. The instructor coached us into the correct posture for swastikasana. Now close the eyes and go inward. Then she began to talk about the eight steps of yoga as applied to swastikasana. Printed on the south side and west side upper corner of the room near the ceiling are the eight limbs in Sanskrit. She told us about 1) Yama and 2) Niyama as something we need to work on. Lifestyle, Yama has five principles, non violence, freedom from greed, chastity, truthfulness, and freedom from desire. Lifestyle, Niyama was cleanliness, contentment, study of ego. Then, the 3) posture, swastkasana, 4) breathing, focusing on the inhalation and exhalation without stopping, and 5) detachment to the external world, try to ignore the senses. 6) Concentration, not moving in the posture and going inward. 7) advanced concentration, not our skill level and finally, Super advanced, 8) when you lose the sense of your separate existence. Nothing else remains except the core of one’s being, the soul.

The Yoga Bridge, Week 11, Sit bones? What? Excuse me, do I have sit bones?

12 Jan 2014 1 Comment

by Jason in YOGA Tags: , , , , , , , ,

sit bonesWhen I was ten, in the fourth grade, we talked about stars and planets in science class. Everything was in the book. It wasn’t until I was a middle aged adult at the Miami Science Museum and Planetarium, Coconut Grove, Florida, where an employee showed everyone Jupiter through the roof top telescope. The Miami Science Museum and Planetarium had opened the observatory every first Friday of the month, probably still going on. Then, without the telescope, the naked eye, he showed us other planets that were visible in the night sky. All this time, they were right there and I had never noticed. Sad. But I have enjoyed them ever since. I guess what I find so fascinating is that when I look up to the stars and planets, I feel that I am part of the universe and the 9 am to 5 pm work routine, Monday thru Friday, human life plays, a very small place in the universe.

Swastkasana, basic sitting position, my first time. The instructor called out to me, ” Where are you sitting on your sit bones?” Up til that point, I have been sitting everyday of my life. This was kind of a revelation that I had sit bones and somehow position matters. “Sit bones, I have sit bones?”, I thought to myself. I couldn’t find them. I had never thought of them. I looked at other people in the class. I wanted to know if they knew anything about these sit bone things. At that time, everyone was turning inward and getting ready for the Invocation to Patanjali. Just like the stars and planets, and sit bones, I was very out of balance. A drone.

Today, I am very conscious of how I am sitting in Swastkasana. I am very conscious of how I stand in Tadasana. I know that I am not perfect but I still try my best; however, I am closer to being balanced. A declaration, I am no longer seeking profit. I have enough. I had my first delicious vegan meal on Friday in Hollywood, Florida, Hara. I ordered a book on vegan-ism.