Time change – Yin Yoga 29th April

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Yin YogaThere is a slight change to the scheduled Yin Yoga class on Tuesday 29th April.

The class will be at 6:45 pm ( finishing at 8 pm) just for one week while we sort out the schedule.

This class will be in the first floor room at 72 Berkeley Street ( buzz 1st floor/front)

Next “My Healing Space” Workshop – 14 May

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photo by Jude Murray - all rights reserved

Next class – Wednesday 14 May 2014

6:30 pm – 8:30 pm at In The Moment

Yin Yoga – Mindful asana practice. Working with the deeper connective tissues and energy channels.

Mantra – Using sound, chant and specific words and phrases to explore the power of vibration and intention

Meditation – Seated mindfulness practices, breathing, visualisation,

Yoga Nidra – A deep guided relaxation technique, often translated as “Yogic Sleep”. Longer than the usual relaxation in class, usually 20 -30 minutes. We also work with “Sankalpa”  – a resolve or affirmation, and a visualisation. Deeply healing.

 £10

Readings and Mantras from My Healing Space 5 Feb

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Our mantra was

OM Gam Ganapataye Namah

OM and salutations to Ganapati (Lord Ganesha, remover of obstacles)

Our reading was from Courtney A Walsh

” Dear Human: You’ve got it all wrong. You didn’t come here to master unconditional love. That is where you came from and where you’ll return. You came here to learn personal love. Universal love. Messy love. Sweaty love. Crazy love. Broken love. Whole love. Infused with divinity. Lived through the grace of stumbling. Demonstrated through the beauty of… messing up. Often. You didn’t come here to be perfect. You already are. You came here to be gorgeously human. Flawed and fabulous. And the to rise again into remembering. But unconditional love? Stop telling that story. Love, in truth, doesn’t need ANY other adjectives. It doesn’t require modifiers. It doesn’t require the condition of perfection. It only asks that you show up. And do your best. That you stay present and feel fully. That you shine and fly and laugh and cry and hurt and heal and fall and get back up and play and work and live and die as YOU. It’s enough. It’s Plenty.

New – Mantra, Meditation & Yoga Nidra

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I have news of a couple of changes to my yoga classes at In the Moment, starting in April (which is almost upon us)

The Tuesday evening  classes remain as constant as ever and continue at 6:15 pm every Tuesday evening until I drop, so panic not 🙂

So what IS changing?

As of the beginning of April I will no longer be teaching a weekly Yin Yoga class on Wednesday evenings.Awwwww 🙁 – I know!!!!! But it seems my passion for the practice doesn’t seem to be widely shared, so time to try something else.

I am going to be offering a  MONTHLY, two hour, workshop style class kicking off a whole range of offerings called “My Healing Space” . This class will feature Yin & Yang yoga sequences, plus mantra, meditation and the ever popular Yoga Nidra. Each workshop will have a seasonal focus.

This class will be on the FIRST Wednesday of every month, and if it proves popular then I will take it up to fortnightly, but in the meantime classes will be on the following dates

Wednesdays 3rd April
1st May
5th June

6:30 pm – 8:30 pm at In The Moment

The cost for this two hour class will be £10. Those using their six class ticket will pay an additional £3 for the class.

So, just what is involved?

Yin & Yang Yoga – Mindful asana practice. Working with the deeper connective tissues and energy channels.

Mantra – Using sound, chant and specific words and phrases to explore the power of vibration and intention

Meditation – Seated mindfulness practices, breathing, visualisation,

Yoga Nidra – A deep guided relaxation technique, often translated as “Yogic Sleep”. Longer than the usual relaxation in class, usually 20 -30 minutes. We also work with “Sankalpa”  – a resolve or affirmation. Deeply healing.

Spring Words

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Guest blog by Lorna Penney

Hello, I do hope that all is well with you on this bright and beautiful spring morning.

I walked in Pollok park yesterday and it was gorgeous to see snowdrops, crocus, a buzzard and hear a woodpecker drumming. I am really feeling the movement out of my own deep, dark Wintry, Watery depths as the rising energy of Spring, of Wood, becomes available in and around me.

This linking of Winter to Water and Spring to Wood comes from the correspondances provided by the Five Element System of Dynamics, which is used by a whole range of practitioners  Acupuncturists,  Herbalists, Yoga Teachers, Massage therapists, Psycotherapists and so on, it provides a nuanced, detailed description of the relationships between our internal nature and the external nature outside of us. It is a beautiful system, that although rooted in the work of the ancient healers of China, is extremely contemporary in the way it supports a ‘fractal’ or ‘holographic’ view of the universe as does current quantum physics research, making it extremely practical and useful as a way to meet the challenges and demands of out busy day to day lives as modern people.

I make use of this system in a range of ways both within my personal practice and in my professional offerings and am continually inspired, ignited and supported by the breadth and depth of its potential applications.

I am currently preparing for offering my extended Spring Workshop and I thought you might enjoy hearing about some of the ‘correspondances’ that are going to be explored in that space, so that you can connect to your own Spring Awakening more fully. I often feel the strength of the seasonal transition from Water / Winter, to Wood / Spring more dynamically / dramatically, than any of the other seasonal transition points of the year. I notice how this is echoed in the vibrancy of the nature around me too; the fierce singing of the birds’ dawn welcoming as they catch the breath of Spring, is so different from the way the greet Winter’s dawns; the sudden sight of delicate snowdrops and crocus thrusting up and out of their secure Winter space to become visible in the crisp bright frosty, possibly snowy, above ground world, always feels such a powerful invitation for me to likewise come in to visibility with the seeds I have held in my depths over the dark quiet days of Winter, with my delicate vulnerability in place.

The season of Spring and the energy of Wood is about putting plans in to action, definition, turning our attention outwards from the depth of Winter’s descent…..when our Wood energy is in balance we are able to stand in the breadth and depth of our own unique vision of life, we hold our benevolence close and are able to initiate our actions with confidence and precision; we have the momentum to see things through to completion. When our Wood is out of balance we can be frustrated in ourself and at the same time frustrating to others, as we can struggle to settle in to any decision, meaning that moving forward coherently and creatively becomes impossible, because we are not able to trust the vulnerability that is the characteristic of this kind of change. By tending our Wood energy with kindness, specificity, commitment and visibility in word and deed, we are able to find the nourishment that enables our roots to hold firm as we grow confidently towards our own uniqueness.

May your transition in to Spring be invigorating, bright and may all you are putting in to place vigorously flourish.

 Lorna Penney (Breath, Body, Voice Teacher-Practitoner) lorna@dynamicalignment.co.uk

I offer Extended Seasonal Workshops at ‘In the Moment’ throughout the year. Dates for 2013’s offerings are –

Spring / Wood 17th, 18th, 19th March

Summer / Inner-Fire 16th, 17th, 18th, June

Summer / Outer-Fire 20th, 21st, 22nd June

Harvest / Earth 1st, 2nd, 3rd September

Autumn / Metal 3rd, 4th, 5th November.

 

 

Remover of Obstacles

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This post also appears at ceibhfhion.blogspot.com

I was teaching class on Wednesday night. It’s a class that hasn’t been very well attended. It is a Yin Yoga class and although my monthly Yin class is well attended by my regular students, this weekly class hasn’t really taken off. There are a number of reasons why this could be: Yoga teachers in general are feeling the bite at the moment; I know I should probably need to do some more targeted marketing; and if that doesn’t work, accept that perhaps Glasgow just isn’t ready for so much Yin and do something that people do want. There are lots of things I can do.

However, I have such a belief in this profound practice that every week, I show up and I “hold” the space for whoever comes. Sometimes there will be five people, sometimes just one. Every time, I remember to teach from the heart, and  mindfully acknowledge why I am there. And I always find that I can take joy in that one person who has come to receive the practice. I also have faith in my passion for and ability to teach the practice, and I have also been teaching long enough to know in my heart that it is not because people don’t want to be taught by me.

But on Wednesday night, when just two people came,  what was in my heart was despondency. This is a tough admission for a Yoga teacher, that we get pissed off like everyone else. That we feel sorry for ourselves like everyone else. That we sometimes feel hopeless. But I have learned over the years, and from the teachers that have taught me, and whose teaching I respect,  that one of the biggest gifts I can give as a teacher is to show that I am human.

As I began the practice, I felt this upwelling of emotion. I was feeling sorry for myself. It is at times like these, that I am thankful for my mindfulness practice, and I was able to do something with what I was feeling, in order to continue to hold the space, and teach.  As my students were attending to their breathing, I was attending to mine, aware that the feelings would pass.

As I sat, breathing, with my eyes closed I was suddenly aware of a bright luminosity and an image appearing before me. I became aware that I was seeing an image of Lord Shiva, the God of the Yogis. But then this image changed to one of his son, Ganesh, the Elephant headed God. It was nice to see him. He and I have not connected for a while, although during my studies in India, we were good friends 🙂

I sat and enjoyed the vision for a while and then realised, of course!  Lord Ganesha is the remover of obstacles.

Whether Ganesha was indeed appearing before me, or whether the image was a vibrant product of my own imagination is neither here nor there. I was being reminded of the obstacles that I was creating for myself by allowing this negative thinking to take hold, even for a moment. I was able then to move on with my teaching, joyfully, in the knowledge that I had a couple of pretty powerful assistants.

The next day, it also led me to think about  what the other obstacles might be, and not just the practical ones. My sister said to me the other day – talking about her own experiences- that it is often when we finally let go of something that we have been holding on to that we make the energetic space to allow other things to come into our lives. And sometimes when our energies are divided or scattered, then we are not 100% energetically committed to what we are doing at any one time.

So it is a time for clearing some space. I have begun to let go of some things. This isn’t necessarily an easy process. Letting go is never easy, even when it is about ridding yourself of something that is causing you pain. When it is something you love, then making space is even harder. Of course, the divide isn’t necessarily clear. We have all had experience of loving something that isn’t good for us!

This is where Ganesha can be a strong ally. And one of the ways that we can tap into his energy is by chanting.  It is common for a Ganesha mantra to be chanted at the beginning of an undertaking, and often at the beginning of yoga classes in some traditions. A few years ago I undertook a 40 day mantra discipline. Every morning at sunrise I got up, sat in meditation and did Japa – mantra chanting – of the Ganesha Mantra “Om Gam Ganapataye Namah”  I chanted 108 times ( one round of the mala) every day of 40 days.

I had no agenda in chanting. I didn’t hold any mental picture of what I would like to change. To be honest, I was conducting a bit of a personal experiment. And do you know what? It bloody worked! Within weeks, everything changed. Everything that was holding me back. Some would believe that it was intercession, some that it was some aspect of myself that was being manifested. Either way, obstacles were removed. Big time. Even some that I wasn’t even aware of. A reminder, I suppose of “Be careful what you wish for”.

I may or may not do the mantra again (mindful that obstacles may be removed that I wasn’t expecting!) but I  am going to be committed to cultivating that energy that does not create obstacles.

Yin Yoga Every Week!

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Starting on Wednesday 3rd October Jude will be teaching a weekly Yin Yoga class at In The Moment. This is in addition to the monthly class on Tuesday nights.

Wednesdays 8:15 – 9:15 pm

Yin Yoga

Yin YogaYin Yoga practice is designed to focus on the connective tissue of the hips, pelvis and lower spine. These tissues are considered to be Yin tissues as opposed the the Yang muscles.  The postures are generally held three to five (and very occasionally up to twenty) minutes at a time., with most of the postures being practised on the floor.

In “Yinsights” Bernie Clark says “While initially this style of yoga can seem quite boring, passive, or soft, yin practice can be quite challenging due to the long duration of the poses. We can remain in the postures anywhere from one to twenty minutes! Yin and yang tissues respond quite differently to being exercised. You need to experience this to really know what Yin Yoga is all about. After you have experienced it, even just once, you will realize that you have been doing only half of the asana practice.”

For that reason it is great for anyone with a regular dynamic yoga practice and  for dancers, athletes and runners.

Yin Yoga as a style  has  evolved from Taoist Yoga. Hence the term Yin.  I studied Yin Yoga with Paul Grilley, who made the style popular and who  taught well known Yin Yoga teacher Sarah Powers. Paul Grilley studied with Yin Yoga orginator Master Paulie Zink, who  is quite emphatic that Yin Yoga as it is taught is only one small element of a full Taoist Yoga practice which encompasses Yin and Yang practices.

A balanced Yoga practice will endeed embody elements of both. The reason we  teach Yin Yoga and the reason it has become so popular is that many  popular styles of  Hatha Yoga are practiced in a dynamic (Yang) fashion by western practitioners. Yin Yoga is  the perfect complement to a Yang practice or lifestyle. You wouldn’t want to only ever do a Yin Yoga practice but it is the perfect balancing practice for those who do a lot of running around in their lives.

If you want to read more about Yin Yoga then we  highly recommend the Yin Yoga website   www.yinyoga.com  edited by Bernie Clark, author of Yinsights.

An excellent introduction to Yin Yoga is Paul Grilley’s article for Yoga Journal

Yin Yoga Classes at In the Moment

Weekly on Wednesdays – 8:15 -9:15 pm. Starts 3rd October 2012

Monthly on the last Tuesday of every month 6:30 – 8 pm

We also hold regular Yin Yoga workshops where you can learn more about this profound practice.