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A couple weeks ago, I put my car into storage and started riding my bike. Now, I am not what you’d call a good bike rider. My ass hurts, my thighs ache, and grease somehow gets smeared all over my calves. Small children on tricycles pass me on the street.
While my body may be used to yoga, riding a bike challenges me in a completely different way. Muscles get tightened rather than lengthened; cardio work is a main component rather than a by-product. And although riding a bike is undoubtedly good for me, it is very humbling and hard.
As I was riding [read more...]
Last week, I took a roadtrip with my boyfriend. He struggles with anxiety and is working towards flying on planes. In the meantime, we drive. He hasn’t been to Los Angeles for several years, so this was a pretty significant adventure. The prospect of leaving terra firma and adventuring into the wilds of the United States held the potential for serious discomfort.
We had our moments, of course. All evolution requires some growing pains. There were times with then anxiety would come on, and he would have a choice: open to possibility (that he would live through this [read more...]
Shanti means “peace.” This chant feels full of yearning and sadness to me, as most of us are when we’re struggling to find shanti. [read more...]
I had a crazy inspiration for this song. But who wouldn’t expect The Great Removal of Obstacles to have a great sense of humor? I had way too much fun with this [read more...]
This is one of my father’s favorite song. During one of my visits home, I corralled him into the bathroom and made him sing it with me for posterity. My father was the one who taught me how to harmonize (or at least, how to try!) when I was little. [read more...]
Circle of Soul taught me this song back in New York City. We would improvise the harmony lines together so the song was different every time. I recorded this in a fantastically resonate shower. Calling The Elements: Earth, Wind, [read more...]
I arrived early to my Tuesday class, so asked some of the students if they had any inspirations for the practice. “Levitation,” replied one particularly cheeky monkey. “Inversions!” another cried. “I may get in trouble for this,” said a third, “but I’d like to do abs.”
Alright, I thought. Levitating, inverted abs it is.
Challenge is an inherent part of any arm balancing themed class. After all, a solid core connection is essential for any standing on the hands, and that invariably winds up being, well…hard. You need to connect to the arches of the feet, then follow the inner leg line of [read more...]
Ajna Chakra, located at the third eye center, opens us to element of light. In addition to literally seeing, this chakra draws us into the power of visualization, imagination, and abstraction. We literally connect to a higher frequency (Vishuddha was the frequency of sound, Ajna of light) and our experience moves further beyond the tangible plane.
Suddenly, our world is much larger. We can use the power of our imagination to understand experiences beyond our own. Though the understanding of images and words, we can visualize our place in a greater context. Our sight is both external and internal. The [read more...]
I learned this chant while on a yoga retreat from my friend Julie Blumenthal, who has the most marvelous voice. I created the hamony line myself. This was recorded in a bathroom with kick ass acoustics. Om [read more...]
Guru – the dispeller of darkness. It’s a wonderful song for the wintery time of year! I originally sang this song with the musical group, Circle of Soul in New York City. I learned both the melody and harmony line with these fantastic ladies. [read more...]
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