We are so thankful to all of the wonderful Yogis who stepped up to participate in the Wounded Warrior Challenge and Register To Be A Match for a member of the Downers Grove, and now YBD community. Our hearts are so warmed to know that we have so many kind and giving souls that we get the opportunity to spend our time with everyday. The Jan / Feb 2017 Yoga Chicago article pictured here summarizes these Charity drives and what the results were. Namaste, thank you again and see you on your mat!
Happy Monday, friends! Well we’ve managed to get through another Christmas! Whether you absolutely love this time of year or are counting the days until your life goes back to its routine, time continues to march onward. Now is the time for contemplation of the year 2016 and goal setting for the year 2017. What things did you do great this past year? How will you build upon those successes? What were some misses this past year – and what are the growth opportunities you’ve identified? How will you choose to spend your last week of 2016? I just know that there are amazing things in store for you in the upcoming year!
If you’ve been following our blog weekly, you’ll know that we’ve been covering Ashtanga yoga – the eight limbed path of yoga. Below is a quick recap of the previous six limbs that we’ve disussed.
Dharana sets the stage for dhyana, the perfect contemplation of meditation. It is total absorption into the object being focused on. This uninterrupted flow of concentration creates devotion. Dhyana distinctly differs from the one-pointed concentration of dharana in that it is ultimately a state of being keenly aware without focus. In this quiet stillness the brain produces few or no thoughts at all. The strength and stamina it takes to reach this state of stillness is quite impressive. In dhyana we dissolve separateness and experience the deep river of peace.
As you cultivate a consistent meditation practice, you will derive both mental and physical benefits in your life. Modern science and medicine are just now measuring the benefits of this ancient practice to explain how the body physiologically changes and how each of the trillions of body cells are charged with more prana (energy). Increased life force or prana results in joy, peace, and enthusiasm. Below I’ve listed a small percentage of the vast benefits of mediation.
Physical Benefits
Mental Benefits of Meditation
Meditation brings the brainwave pattern into a relaxed state that promotes healing. The mind becomes fresh, delicate and beautiful. With regular practice of meditation:
How do you tell the difference between concentration and meditation? If there is awareness of distraction, you are concentrating and not meditating. The calm achieved in meditation spills over into all aspects of your life. Try practicing meditation during a hectic day at work, shopping for groceries, attempting to return/exchange holiday gifts, or even waiting in a busy queue of traffic!
As you set your goals for 2017, perhaps sitting in meditation each morning when you arise may be one of them! Start small; set your timer for five minutes each day and build from there. Imagine yourself at this time next year after a full year of meditating! You are 100 percent pure potential, my friend! Let’s talk more next year… On behalf of all of us at YBD, wishing you and your family a safe, healthy and prosperous new year filled with love, happiness, success, yoga and meditation!
Happy Monday before Christmas, friends! This time of year can have so much significance for us. Kids home from school. Time off from work. Inordinate amounts of time spent with family. For some, this can be a painful time of year, missing loved ones and dealing with loneliness and sadness. Many, myself included, have a marathon week of getting shopping done, gifts wrapped and staying focused on the many tasks at hand.
If you’ve been following our blog weekly, you’ll know that we’ve been covering Ashtanga yoga – the eight limbed path of yoga. Below is a quick recap of the previous five limbs that we’ve disussed.
As each stage prepares us for the next, the practice of pratyahara creates the setting for dharana, or immovable concentration of the mind. The root of the word is “dhar” which means to hold, maintain or keep. As the sixth limb of yoga, dharana is the practice of holding one’s mind onto a particular inner state or topic. We fix the mind on a single pointed focus, such as breath, the small space above the upper lip, or navel, without allowing the mind to wander through memories, reflective thoughts, bodily sensations.
Through the disciplines of the previous limbs, we’ve definitely begun to develop our powers of concentration. Through yamas and niyamas, we’ve begun directing our attention. Through asanas, we have begun to temper the body and focus on specific and more subtle sensations. Through pranayama, we begin the task of refining our minds. Through pratyahara, we bring our senses under control and are still enough to become more observant of the mind. In dharana, concentration on a single point becomes effortless. You know the mind is concentrating when there is no sense of time passing. Extended periods of concentration naturally lead to meditation or dhyana, which is the seventh limb of yoga.
Now we truly begin to unleash the great potential for inner healing.
On behalf of all of the staff, teachers and management of YBD, we truly wish you a very Merry Christmas!
Happy Mindful Monday, yogis and yoginis! Another Sunday, another snowfall and another day closer to the end of 2016! As we wind down this year, it’s a great time to start to slow down and reflect. Our complete yoga practice provides us with the tools to do just that.
If you’ve been following our blog weekly, you’ll know that we’ve been covering Ashtanga yoga – the eight limbed path of yoga. Below is a quick recap of the previous four limbs that we’ve disussed.
This now brings us to our fifth limb, Pratyahara, the withdrawal of external senses, to rest in your home.
Our conscious breathing sets the stage for Pratayhara, where we transcend sensory stimulation and draw focus inward. We stay fully aware of the five senses, but we observe objectively and therefore the mind can rest. We stop living off the things that stimulate; we dispassionately observe the cycle of stimulation and reaction and are no longer a slave to the senses. No longer functioning in their usual manner, the senses become extraordinarily sharp.
Concentration, in the yoga room or the boardroom, begins as a battle with the distracting senses. In mastering pratyahara, you no longer unnecessarily respond to the itch on your nose or hear the baby crying in the restaurant. You are able to fix your focus on your main objective.
According to Patanjali, the eight limbs work together: The first five steps — yama, niyama asana, pranayama, and pratyahara — are the preliminaries of building the foundation for a spiritual life. They are concerned with the body and the brain. The last three, which we will cover in subsequent posts, are concerned with reconditioning the mind. So it becomes clearer that yoga is nothing more than a process which enables us to stop and look at the habits of our own minds; only in this way can we understand the nature of happiness and unhappiness, and thus transcend them both. Yoga provides an opportunity to ultimately attain enlightenment or the full realization of oneness with Spirit. Enlightenment lasts forever, while a flat tummy can disappear in a week. Trust me, I know of which I speak. The tummy part, that is – I’m still working on the enlightenment part.
Until next week, my friends… Breathe. Sweat. Smile.
Happy Mindful Monday, YBD friends! What a beautiful winter wonderland we have to feast our eyes on today! As we are moving into full throttle in our holiday preparations, it’s a great time to remember to mindfully BREATHE!
We’ve begun a deeper look into Ashtanga or the Eight-Limbed Path of Yoga as expressed in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. In previous weeks, we’ve discussed the first three limbs: the Yamas or the guidelines for social behavior, the Niyamas which refer to how we discipline ourselves, and the Asanas or the yoga poses that we practice together at YBD.
This brings us to Pranayama, the fourth limb, which means breath restraint. The word prana means “life energy” or “life force,” which is the very essence that keeps us alive. And yama means “restraint,” as we discussed in a previous post in more detail. Our breath literally is our life energy, as we animate the mind and body with it.
According to Patanajali, the goal of pranayama is to regulate the breath to make it slow and subtle to facilitate the steady flow of energy throughout the body. It is believed that through control of the breath, life can be prolonged.
Aside from that, breathing techniques and breath control can also be employed to help us to deepen our physical poses as well as calm us down and keep us centered during chaotic, busy or stressful situations. This is something I’m sure we can all use this holiday season!
We’re halfway through our preliminary study of the eight limbs of our yoga practice. The first four limbs refer to the external practice of yoga. Next week, we’ll discuss the internal yoga practice and the remaining four limbs.
Have a great week, yogis! BREATHE. Sweat. Smile!
It’s easy in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season to forget to give yourself the gift of self care. Take 3 minutes out of your busy day to practice Five Pointed Star, and afterwards you’ll find yourself feeling more energized, confident and ready to greet your day with a smile!
Five Pointed Star Pose:
To find even more joy in this posture, you might take it a step further:
Benefits of Five Pointed Star Pose:
“You are responsible of your own space. Your own well being. Your own light. Take care of yourself first! Heal your own heart and cherish your own body and celebrate your own soul. Then go out there and live. Love. Make a difference! Use the magnificence you’ve created by celebrating who you are, bring it out into the world and make it a better place. It all begins with you.” – Rachel Brathen
Breathe. Sweat. Smile. 