Practice for the Week of May 28-June 3

For the past two weeks, we have been practicing bhavana, the cultivation of positive and uplifting attitudes.

Through yoga we learn to cultivate positive feelings, even when we feel downhearted, discouraged, or frustrated.

Doug Keller writes:

"Hatha yoga poses call forth feeling: they give voice to noble feelings through movement, disposition of muscle, breath and bone. Backbends evoke exuberance; standing poses express strength and daring; forward bends counsel quietude and patience. Each pose is like a gesture of a yogic attitude; each pose reaches deeply into the heart and pulls up greatness, leaving you feeling cleansed and uplifted - not just physically but on a deeper, more emotional level than you would think physical exercise could reach. Each posture brings forth an experience of an inner yogic feeling and restores you from the wear and tear of life."

Douglas Keller, “Like Breath and Heartbeat,” Darshan Magazine 127-128 (1997): 15.

Our practice for this week is to develop awareness of the ways in which yoga asanas and breathing cultivate our feelings.

Doug Keller teaches yoga classes and trainings in the Washington, D.C. area at the Health Advantage Yoga Center in Herndon, Virginia and at Willow Street Yoga in Takoma Park, Maryland, as well as at other locations in the U.S. and Europe. Doug will be teaching a weekend workshop at the Holiday Manor studio August 10-11.

Click here for more information and how to register.

Practice for the Week of May 21-27

Last week we introduced "bhav", a Sanskrit word meaning the "state of being", and "bhavana" meaning the conscious cultivation of a positive attitude as a yoga practice. Sometimes it's difficult to cultivate a positive attitude, particularly during times in which we are stressed out, frustrated, or downhearted.  In these circumstances, it becomes even more important to practice bhavana.  Swami Anantananda, a teacher in the Siddha Yoga tradition, defined bhavana is the practice of "pretending the truth"... kind of like "faking it until you make it".  Bhavana is the cultivation of attitudes of compassion, grace, serenity, etc, even if we don't feel that way in the present moment.

One of my favorite ways of "pretending the truth" is to pretend that I am already enlightened, and that everyone else is, too! It helps me to see the world in a new way.

Many affirmations from the yoga tradition, quotes from our teachers and traditional mantras are bhavanas. 

"Practice... all is coming." Shri K. Pattabhi Jois
"The heart if the hub of all sacred places; go there and roam." Bhagavan Nityananda
"Wake up to your inner courage and live the life of your dreams." Swami Chidvilasananda
"Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace."  St. Francis of Assisi
"In yoga, no effort is ever lost or wasted." Bhagavad Gita
"I Am That" Traditional mantra
"Open the window in the center of your heart and let the spirit flow in and out." Rumi

Practice for the Week of May 14-20: Bhavana

Bhav is a Sanskrit word which means (among many other meanings): coming into existence, state of being, or becoming.  In the practice of yoga, bhav is one's attitude or state.  Sometimes we informally refer to the "bhav" of a yoga teacher, student, or studio, as the "state of being" of that place or person in terms of whether the state is perceived to be peaceful, non-peaceful, devotional, worldly, etc...
Bhavana means "cultivation"... to "cultivate, assume or practice an attitude". 
Some examples from the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali:

2.33  Vitarkabhadane pratipaksabhavanam ||

Thoughts contrary to the yamas and niyamas are to be countered by taking the attitude of the opposing point of view in a debate.

1.33 Maitrikarunamuditopeksanam sukhaduhkhapunyapunya
vishayanambhavanatascittanirodhah ||

Undisturbed stillness of mind is cultivated by practicing an attitude of friendliness toward those who are happy, compassion toward those who are unhappy, delight in those who are virtuous and dispassion toward those who are wicked.

Our bhav (attitude) gives meaning to our experiences.  If we cultivate an attitude of sarcasm, dismissiveness and negativity, then our mind becomes colored by those negative feelings and our experiences become trivial and unworthy.  If we cultivate an attitude of reverence, devotion, compassion, and deep feeling, then our experiences become meaningful and uplifting. 

The practice for the week is to become aware of your bhav and practice bhavana - cultivating positive and uplifting attitudes.

Practice for the Week of April 30-May 13: Dharana: the First Step to Meditation

In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, one of the first texts about yoga written about 2500 years ago, dharana is defined as "a flow of awareness toward an object".  The "object" can be a real, physical object, or it can be something that has no physical existence, such as a mantra or a chakra. 
About twenty years ago I was in my meditation room practicing a form of concentration called Tratak, and I had a profound first experience of the feeling of meditation. I was focusing on a crystal pendant, allowing my gaze to rest on the pendant. After a few moments I was aware of being in a state of unusual clarity, still hearing everyday sounds like the voices of people downstairs and the sounds from outside, but my attention was completely absorbed in the crystal. I experienced a state of extraordinary clarity, stillness and easefulness.  After about 30 minutes, my awareness gradually returned to "normal", but its effects have remained with me for over twenty years. 

      

The practice for this week is Tratak.
Gaze steadily at an object. You will notice that the eyes tend to move around. This is a natural movement of the eyes. Keep bringing the gaze back to the object. Allow the eyes to rest on the object or image with minimal  movement. Notice how the mind becomes still as the gaze becomes still.
Traditional objects for Tratak: unwavering candle flame, crystal, clouds, flower, sand patterns.
Om Shanti!

Practice for the Week of April 23-29 - The Heart is the Hub of All Sacred Places

- The Heart is the Hub of All Sacred Places: Go There and Roam -
This was the primary teaching of Bhagavan Nityananda (1897-1961) who maintained an ashram (retreat center) in Ganeshpuri, India. Nityananda spoke very little, but people received insight and blessings from simply sitting in his presence. Little is known of his early life. It i said that he was orphaned when very young and raised by foster parents. His foster father was a judge and hoped that young Nityananda would also study the law. Instead Nityananda renounced worldy pursuits for the life of a wandering yogi. He ultimately settled in Ganeshpuri, a small village in Maharashtra state in western India, the site of natural hot springs near Mandagni mountain, a dormant volcano. He attracted devotees who built schools and hospitals and created other charitable projects in his name. His modest ashram and samadhi shrine (burial place) can still be visited in Ganeshpuri and even after his death, he continues to inspire deep devotion.

The practice for this week is to contemplate his teaching.

Practice for the Week of April 16-22: The Soft Sound of the Breath

To regulate the breath during the practice of asanas, the technique of ujjayi breathing is important. In ujjayi breathing you constrict your vocal cords slightly as you breathe so that you feel the air as it flows past. A slight hissing sounds often results - the more you constrict your throat and force your breath, the louder the sound. The goal is not to create a lot of sound but rather less sound. With practice and greater control, you should be able to breathe slowly and very smoothly. Then the sound will diminish and you can direct your attention to a subtle indicator: the internal sensation of your breath flowing.

--A.G. Mohan, Krishnamacharya: His Life and Teachings, (Shambhala: Boston, 2010), 24.

quoting Krishnamacharya on breathing and asana.

This week, pay attention to the breath understanding how the quality of the breath reflects the mental fluctuations. Notice how the thoughts become still as the breath becomes more subtle.

Om Shanti!

Practice for the Week of April 9-15: Friendliness, Compassion, Delight and Dispassion

Undisturbed stillness of mind is attained
by cultivating an attitude of

friendliness toward those who are happy,
compassion toward those who are unhappy,

delight in those who are virtuous
and dispassion toward those who are wicked.

--Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, 1.33

Through this practice we overcome selfishness, envy, greed and anger. We strengthen ourselves and develop compassion, forbearance and patience.  We become free from malice. Other people take comfort in our presence.
A yoga practitioner becomes a blessing to everyone, uplifting oneself and others.

Om Shanti!