The best advice I was given by the great teacher Simon Borg Olivier was to always have 3 or 4 teachers that you practice with regularly.

This gives you a toolbox of different styles and theories allowing you to connect to a wider scope of the yogic lifestyle while diversifying your very essence within the practice.

Yoga is not meant to limit you in any way. It represents freedom. Be aware of any practice that is being given that is saying this is the only yoga you have to do, this is the best yoga, this yoga is better than that yoga etc. etc…

Competition is not the way forward – collaboration is.

Weave your web. Observe the teachers who inspire you and whom you admire, we can either listen to the defeatist voice which says ‘I could never do anything like that’; or we can say ‘I’ll have what they’re having’, and learn from them as elders and all the teachers who have taught them.

Dip your stretchy toes into as many styles as you can and you will notice along your journey that you will be attracted to a few different teachers styles depending on what your needs are. Bind them together, yoga is UNION after all.

Allow your practice to be as multi yogi’d as the world is multi cultural.

Don’t listen to the Defeatist Monkeys who may tell you that one style is the way to go.  This stunts your growth. Those who want you to grow will tell you to try different styles, different teachers –  to be an explorer and to have your own experience as opposed to following – the best teachers will not want to keep you small and scared as in truth you are a vast and expansive force of nature with infinite potential.

Embody Yoga as Union on all levels, mind, body & connection to the different styles in all languages and from all sorts of teachers. Mash it up. Be eclectic & notice how you grow.

Collaboration, not Competition

SatNamNamasteShantiShanti

Navel-gazing: Understanding Bodies Through Yoga

 Aside from being a meditative practice good for the mind and soul, yoga is an equally highly physical activity. Asanas are carried out as a means of improving the body’s capability of sitting in long poses of concentration. The strength and flexibility that are gradually built overtime make the body more enduring and open to higher levels of meditation. Through each movement, a yogi also develops a heightened sense of awareness of their body and a deeper understanding of themselves.

In Patanjali’s yoga sutra 3.30 he says, “By samyama on the navel centre, knowledge of the arrangement of the systems of the body can be known.” Quite literally, many take the wise sage’s words to mean focusing on the navel region and strengthening it. By doing so, Shape Magazine explains that building core strength is just like laying the foundations of a house. It’s intricately connected to the major muscular regions of the body and acts as a baseline fitness for most of the movements that you do. You can’t fly into a crow pose or flip into a handstand without having stability in your midsection.

The core also plays an important role in the different planes of movement which are sagittal (forward and backward), coronal (left and right), and transverse (rotational). Yoga Journal states that these three anatomical planes teach a person the ways the body can move, as well as signal the imbalances in the body which is really important for creating body awareness. When you mirror Utthita Trikonasana (Triangle Pose), which moves along the coronal plane, you might find that one side is more stable or more flexible than the other. This information tells you to make a more conscious effort of building up the weaker side of your body so you can ultimately introduce more balance. People tend to favour practicing on their dominant side. Knowing where you move in space also keeps you centred and prevents running the risk of injuries.

That being said, body awareness doesn’t just apply to your own. Michelle Bartolo Yoga previously mentioned that teachers must practice what they preach. They need to develop their own personal practice in order to effectively teach their understanding to the class. Part of an instructor’s training is to adjust their students which will not be possible if one does not have a proper understanding of the body’s capabilities. It is not good custom for a teacher to force your arm into a twist if your face is already showing signs of extreme discomfort.

The same concept can be applied to the increasingly popular practice of partner yoga which has different styles of its own such as acroyoga. San Diego-based instructor Abby Vernon says that it really helps couples connect physically and on a deeper level. In this style, two people can embody the primary goal of yoga which is union. Both bodies need to touch and communicate in order to be in sync. Foxy Bingo recommends massaging each other as well, which you can do after each class as a way to strengthen the bond even more. Think of it as a trust-building exercise where you surrender yourself to your partner and let them attend to your needs. In partner yoga, you have to employ the same trust especially in weight-bearing poses.

Lastly, remember that navel-gazing has other connotations, too. One of those is about the subtle body or the nadis where the energy flows. Patanjali was also speaking of navel-gazing as a mode of introspection in which you try to quiet the mind, rid it of unnecessary thoughts, and reach a place of calmness.

Post written by: Ismael Boaz

I’m finally sitting down to start writing about a hot topic that’s been brewing in my head & heart for many years.

Allow  me to delve right into the topic of  the multi billion, multi currency ‘d (I made that up 😉 ) world of Yoga Teacher Training Certifications vs Guides who have been practising for years & love to share their practise & what it did for them. The ‘ones’ who provide you with a toolbox that you can carry wherever you travel to; some may encourage you to stretch it worldwide. There is such high truth in Pattabhi Jois’ quote stating, ‘Yoga is 99% practise and 1% theory.’

Its my matter of opinion as a teacher &  that’s what the student needs you to have. That comes from your self practise. Getting on your mat each day, even when you don’t feel like it and dealing with what arises. Your opinion translates into your experience in the posture, the kriya, the breath.  That is your authentic voice during your classes. We have become such a conditioned society relying on others to tell us how to do things, including how to live our lives. NO one can do this work for you. What’s rewarding is that if you do the work your utmost REAL self will shine through and the only way you’ll be able to live is the way YOU want to.

I’d like to share one of my personal experiences that happened just last week in my Sunday 8am morning class @Bhakti Yoga Shala.

A woman walked into the class and was instantly hesitant as she was expecting to receive the class & teacher listed on the website as it had not yet been updated. I could feel her resistance & hesitation to stay. I lightly reassured her that I could work with where she’s at. She stayed and by the end of the session her body released some intense emotions. This woman was so grateful to me & I do appreciate that gratitude but I also believe I was holding something very similar to her which was currently present in my self practise. In her stance of resistance to love & feelings of fear she taught me just as much as I gave her. It’s a cyclical exchange, I don’t work magic alone.

We are the ONES who believe that if we teach what we practise those students who need to hear our message will come. It’s energy right? It’s Yogi Bhajan who said don’t strive for what you want but do this practise & all is coming. That’s a hard nut to swallow when you come from the age of “decide what you want and go for it, no matter what, keep going for it.”

But that was an outer way.

Yogi B is speaking of an inner way. He used to call himself a garbage man cause he liked to help everyone take their garbage out. He sounded like a very wise & humorous man.

When a teacher teaches from their practise the realness shines through with exactly what they’re here to give. As the student you should be experiencing this sense of ,”Wow, this teacher is saying everything I need to hear”. Then you know you’ve found your teacher.

Anyone can pay for the paper. I’ve heard that some certifications never fail anyone and that many students don’t have a practise before joining. Anyways, the stories go on and on and I don’t want my opinion to be yours. I don’t want to sit here slashing the certs either as they do play a role, but practise plays a bigger one. Search. Try many different teachers with many different styles. You will feel and hear their practise through what they are sharing. This is a journey worth taking.

So my sound advice to all you yoga teachers, yoga teachers in training & yoga practitioners is to practise. Practise and the journey will lead you to what is meant for you. Find your voice. Don’t be an echo. That voice comes through practise. If you are seeking a teacher listen to their voice. It will be real to you through all they say & do. Don’t stop searching till you find the voice that speaks to your heart. You may find that more than one teacher speaks to you. Even better. Yoga is Union. Mix it up. Make it multicultural. Your world grows bigger that way.

Through my practise I’ve come to realise that when this passion stirs up in me it’s a sign to share it out there. The consistency of how often the subject keeps arising & how I get so involved in it guides me.  The physical sensations are also LOUD. I can feel my body shake, other times it’s the beat of my heart on overdrive or the goose pimples riding up from my toes to my nose. So I learn to listen, then follow.

My advice would be to take all that as a sign people. A sign to follow your heart felt voice as it speaks to you in a language that your body reacts to. Serve it up to the greater good. Something IN there is asking for a way OUT of there. This is practise.

*Thanks for reading & please feel free to share!

Sat Nam Shanti Shanti Namaste

This fall MichelleBartoloYoga will be hosting some classes/workshops while visiting her favourite Island of Malta.

Michelle’s love for Yoga started with Asana and has now moved into Kundalini Kriyas.

Kriyas are a series of postures, breath, and sound that work toward a specific outcome. Practicing a kriya initiates a sequence of physical and mental changes that affect the body, mind, and spirit simultaneously & tend to work on a deeper energetic level especially after having done lots of asana practise.

Its the next level IN.

For any of who have heard the stigma that Kundalini gives you the ‘crazies’,  let us put your mind at rest.

The Kriyas tend to ‘unpack’ any emotional baggage we’ve buried over the years. So yes sometimes things come up that you haven’t thought about in years, but the body has been storing. All we’re doing is unpacking, so you let the emotion rise up and then you let it go. It’s that simple. We tend to choose to suffer way more than need be.

Kundalini unravels any energy that may be blocked at the base of the spine to be sure all energy in your body can flow freely.

But in all cases, kundalini is dormant from birth.

And once awakened, the dormant energy shoots up the spine, causing many important changes. Perhaps the most important of these is opening of the chakras, the energy centres that govern our energetic body. All seven must be open in order for the Kundalini to rise.

Kundalini also refers to a form of primal energy (or shakti) said to be located at the base of the spine. It is often referred to as the ‘serpent energy’ that resides in us all.  It is the evolutionary energy residing in the human body.

An Opportunity to Transform Yourself and the World

Thousands of years ago, in various parts of the world, a major discovery was made – an intelligent mechanism in the body responsible for the process of spiritual awakening itself. In India, the name used for this discovery was “Kundalini.” On the physical level, Kundalini exists as a metabolic system whose purpose is to upgrade the brain and to elevate it to higher forms of consciousness. There is overwhelming evidence that ancient cultures knew about Kundalini and the methods to accelerate it, which can result in profound physical and psychological effects. Due to these effects, and since it is a natural process, Kundalini can be studied and measured just as any other area of science. Learn more about how the Kundalini Experimental Project works and how it will assist in your own process of personal growth – Emerging Sciences

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MBY has been practising Kundalini now for 8 years and finds the Kriyas incredibly powerful at:

• releasing addictions
• restoring hormonal imbalances
• calming the nervous system
• healing trauma
• mental stagnation
• creating more vitality
• boosting the lymphatic system
• strengthening immunity
• Feeling more at peace and bliss
• Increase in IQ level
• Much better sense of sound, color and sight
• A feeling of purification
• Psychic abilities are enhanced
• More compassion and empathy
• Slowed down aging and increase in creativity
• Blissful vibration of energy perceived inside the ears as sound (om)
• You become more magnetic and can attract situations or people into your life with your thoughts
• Increased spiritual connection

What more could one ask for?

This workshop will give you an understanding of the Kundalini lineage along with some Kriyas to take home and practise!

MALTA:

Date: Sunday September 24th 2017

Time: 16.00-18.30

Location: 54 Cathedral Street / Lily Agius Gallery / Sliema

Cost: 40 euros (booking necessary & full payment necessary)

• 20 spaces available

GOZO: 

Date: Thursday September 28th 2017

Location: 203 Triq San Blas / Nadur

Cost: 40 euros (booking & payment necessary)

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MBY is looking forward to sharing her Kundalini practise with you all & hopes you’ll enjoy this practise as much as she does!

SatNam (vibration of truth)