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The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is practice. - Vladimir Horowitz We’ve all been there. Perhaps we heard from a friend about the wonderful benefits they’re getting from practicing. Or maybe we’re inspired by an influencer’s incredible poses. Maybe we’ve practiced before but it’s been a while and we feel creaky or out of shape.
Starting a yoga practice can feel intimidating. Being consistent with it can feel impossible. Yet, in Yoga Sutra 1.14, we’re told “practice becomes firmly grounded when well-attended to for a long time, without break, and in all earnestness.” That means to feel established in our yoga practice, we not only have to be consistent with our practice for some time, but we also have to do it with our whole heart engaged. So how do we develop the habit of practicing yoga when we’ve been consistently inconsistent? How do we even start to practice yoga? I think this Sutra offers some ideas.
What we aspire to at 5KY is to cultivate an appreciation for the deepest, most powerful benefits of yoga. I believe it is these benefits that will inspire you to return to your mat again and again. Physical accomplishments, once mastered, will eventually wither as time passes. But these inner accomplishments become grounded through regular practice, done for a long time, and in all earnestness. That is what will inspire us to continue coming back for more.
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 Photo by Matt Nelson on Unsplash To go beyond is as wrong as to fall short. - Confucius In yogic philosophy, there are three gunas or qualities that combine to form everything that exists. Tamas is characterized by inertia and heaviness. Rajas is characterized by activity and movement. And Sattva is characterized by lightness and harmony.
All three of these qualities have a part to play. Tamas is the fertile soil for change and creates the conditions needed for life. Rajas invigorates life, excitement, and passion. And Sattva allows us to achieve balance between Tamas and Rajas and develops clarity and peace. Sattva can be described like a spinning top. Outwardly, the top may seem like it's not moving but actually, it spins so quickly it balances itself on a thin spindle. When Sattva is balanced, Rajas and Tamas are balanced as well. When Tamas and Rajas are out of balance, we have trouble feeling Sattvic. An imbalance of Tamas manifests as dullness, apathy, delusion, and/or depression. A person who has given up on themselves and the world has too much of the tamasic quality. An imbalance of Rajas manifests as anxiety, attachment or addiction, agitation, and a sense of egoism. A person who is constantly jumping from one thing to another or desperately hanging onto patterns that do not serve them has too much of the rajasic quality. Yoga creates balance between Rajas and Tamas to develop a pervading sense of Sattva. This is why experienced yoga practitioners feel uncomfortable explaining yoga as simply relaxing. Yoga creates balance between activity and inertia. A yogi experiences relaxation and vitality at the same time. Summer is in full swing now and energy is high. We may find ourselves slightly rajasic - accepting all the invitations, making too many plans, doing more than what’s within our capacity. Perhaps in winter, or even now after so many months living with the uncertainty of the pandemic, we find ourselves tamasic, hibernating at home and not prioritizing things that create feelings of peace and well-being within ourselves. This is where the gift of yoga comes in, as it is chock full of practices that help balance our energy levels. As you know, yoga is not only practicing yoga poses but is about the unity we create within our lives. In service of this, I offer these balancing practices for your energy levels.  Photo by □□ Janko Ferlič on Unsplash Empathy nurtures wisdom. - Suzy Kassem You may have read on our blog before that we select our themes for each month well in advance and yet somehow, the themes seem to so neatly align with what actually materializes. So when we selected our themes for May of 2022, which revolve around prenatal yoga and nurturance, I had no idea I would be celebrating my very first Mother’s Day as a mother to a newborn son this month as well.
As I write this, snow is falling outside fast and spring feels a long way away. At the moment, I am pregnant - in my third trimester to be precise - but the end of this pregnancy seems far away as well. I am being guided, and always have been, by the Divine Mother within me. She shows me how to prepare myself and my surroundings for the profound shift that is about to take place. All pregnancies are different and I have been extremely fortunate to (so far) have had a very easy pregnancy. Much of this is the luck of the draw. But fortune always favors the prepared and I cannot dismiss the effect yoga has had on my body and mind in preparation for this shift into motherhood. What I have heard and observed is that parenthood is about creating best laid plans and simultaneously, the ability to adapt to the unexpected. This is essentially what yoga embodies and teaches. Yoga has taught me how to be in tune with my body, how to advocate for what it needs, and how to adapt circumstances to create ease and stability in my bones and muscles. Yoga has taught me the correct way to breathe. Practicing yoga has integrated this way of breathing into my entire being. It has prepared me to retain the fullness of my breath during moments of fear, anger, and sadness and let go of as much as possible, in preparation for the next breath . . . the next moment . . . the next chapter. Yoga has taught me that I am not my mind; that I observe my mind only. It has taught me that all phenomena I experience are a way of transcending the limitations of this flesh-and-bones body, into the experience of the Divine Mother, which is truth, knowledge, and bliss.  What brought you to yoga? I have a really good friend who told me she thought I would really enjoy yoga. Not just for the physical benefits but for the spiritual and emotional growth you can experience through it. So she brought me to a yoga class and I loved it! That was about twelve years ago and ever since then, I’ve kept coming back. What is your approach to teaching? I think that if you’re going to plan or build a really good, solid class, you have to first know who your students are and what they need. Even if you don’t know them personally, you have to know what they want out of their practice and build from that foundation. My approach is to come into the moment, notice your breath, have a purpose for breathing, bring movement into your breath, and then practice different poses with the breath - always remembering that the most important thing you’re doing is linking your breath to movement. And then, ending a practice with a really nice, long savasana. Also, I try to give the message that you take the practice out with you in the world. It’s easy to come to a class, practice, then walk out the door and forget about breathing or mindfulness but that’s what I ultimately want to teach, is to use the practice throughout the day. Why did you choose to teach at 5KY? When I met Erin, I really and truly felt some kind of magical connection to this space. Erin taught exactly the way I wanted to practice and the way I wanted to teach. I was impressed with how much she knew, for example the chanting she does. I felt a connection. I felt this was a place that taught the way I’ve always believed in practicing and how great it would be to be a part of this community as a teacher. There’s such a good feeling here. This studio isn’t just the walls and the colors and the props. It’s the energy and the emotions that permeate the space that matter and makes me feel like I’m at a place that fits. What makes your soul sing? Feeling connected to people and to the wider world. My soul sings when I see that other people feel good and are happy. My soul sings when I know there is love out there in the world to be felt and to be given. When you have an opportunity to share that with people, it’s a beautiful thing. You can find Karen at 5KY on Fridays at 10:15 AM.
 There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature - the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after the winter. - Rachel Carson I think if yoga were a season, it would be spring. Both the arrival of spring and practicing yoga are regenerative. As more and more research emerges, there is good evidence that yoga and meditation have some anti-aging benefits, such as lowered inflammation, increased gray matter in the brain, and protection for our chromosomes.
Just like spring, this regeneration is not just physical. Yoga (and the arrival of spring) brings profound emotional - even spiritual - regeneration. How do we feel after a yoga class? Lighter, less encumbered by stress, and as if we are seeing everything with new eyes. But one of the things that makes me saddest when talking to some yoga beginners is that they think it’s too late for yoga to have these positive effects on them. That could not be further from the truth. I’ve taught yoga to people of all ages, from 7 weeks old to 77 years old.  Photo Credit: Photo by Sweetyoga Justine on Unsplash Perhaps home is not a place but simply an irrevocable condition. - James Baldwin A beautiful thing has arisen since covid-19 has changed the world. Many of us are evaluating how to simplify our lives. Increasing simplicity is one of the gifts of yoga.
Although many of our students crave the setting, structure, and community that a yoga studio provides, some of our students are embracing the ability to practice yoga with their favorite teachers from home. In fact, we’ve welcomed students “at the studio,” who are streaming yoga classes online from their homes on multiple continents, in multiple states, in the suburbs of Chicago, as well as right down the street. Streaming yoga classes online has allowed us to open ourselves to a new mode of accessibility. After all, accessibility is the cornerstone of our studio. Although we've had our challenges, I think we’ve excelled at providing the same sense of community and welcoming that we pride ourselves in providing at our classes in person, to those of our students joining us for yoga online. That is the benefit of a small studio: personal attention. We get to know our students, their goals, and their yoga practices in the intimate class sizes we provide. However, without some forethought, I think taking yoga classes at home can cause students to miss out on some of the benefits a yoga studio provides. So if you’re interested in taking online yoga classes at home or just want a peaceful retreat, here are some tips for creating the ideal environment for your at home yoga studio.  MJ Lounsberry What brought you to yoga? I was first introduced to yoga when I was 4 and watched Inhale with Steve Ross with my dad on the Oxygen channel. I practiced yoga frequently as a kid and then infrequently as I got a bit older and became more dedicated to competitive sports. My time was filled with school and basketball, track, soccer, etc. practices. In 2014 I moved to Chicago for college and that’s where I met my yoga teacher, Suddha Weixler, who has run The Chicago Yoga Center since 1984, he was also teaching yoga for credit at my university, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (Suddha has since retired from teaching at the school). After taking Suddha’s yoga course at the school a few times, I decided to become a teacher as well, and embarked on my yoga teacher training course with Suddha at the Chicago Yoga Center. I have been teaching ever since! What is your approach to teaching? Through movement and breathing I am interested in teaching how to deepen the awareness of the mind and the body and discovering the profound peace in silence and stillness, and enter the space beyond your ideas to discover your true authentic happiest self. I’m interested in creating unique and fun Hatha Yoga sequences to create an enjoyable and fun yoga flow. Why do you choose to teach at 5KY? I choose to teach at Five Keys because of the studio's beautiful energy and community. The space is calming and grounding and I love teaching and practicing yoga here. Erin and Rita have cultivated a truly magical yoga studio and I feel so fortunate and humbled to be a part of Five Keys. They care about the little things, like fresh flowers every week, the best kind of people. What makes your soul sing? Besides practicing and teaching yoga, my soul sings when I’m painting, gardening, playing basketball, skiing, surfing (most adventure sports), and cuddling with my sweet cat, Prince.  A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination. - Nelson Mandela Last month, I wrote more broadly on the seven major Chakras, including how they are related to anatomy and physiology, and their emotional aspects. This month, I’ll delve into one Chakra in particular, which so neatly aligns with February’s celebration of love. The Anahata Chakra, or heart Chakra is the fourth and therefore, central Chakra of the central nervous system. Swami Satchidananda actually recommended that when working on the Chakras, we focus only on the higher Chakras (from the Anahata up to the seventh, which is called the Sahasrara). The lower Chakras will figure themselves out if we focus on the higher ones. The reason for this suggestion is that the lower Chakras are related to the movement of energy downward (apana), which when focused on has the tendency to lower our own energy. Focusing on the higher Chakras has the tendency to raise energy. This Chakra has a special place for me. As I mentioned last month (and in other places on this blog), before I began going deeper into yogic philosophy, I was centered entirely in my head. My own teacher, Sonia Sumar, has a very heart-centered approach, which has opened me up to my entire body. Sonia often mentions that the heart is the very first organ formed in utero, even before the brain. And that perhaps this is a message about where to lead our lives from. That’s not to say that the head is unimportant but that the heart should lead the head and not the other way around. So in service of the heart, I offer you this primer on the Anahata Chakra.  If you want to know more about the Anahata Chakra, join Laura at her Chakra workshop on February 13th about this very topic! Explore the heart through yoga with us on Valentine’s Day with a heart-centered beginner’s practice or bring a loved one to practice Partner Yoga with Asra.
 Molly Black What brought you to yoga? I discovered yoga when I needed a space for movement and healing. I always turned to yoga when I was feeling down and fell in love with it more and more. I’ve now been practicing yoga for 13 years. What is your approach to teaching? My approach to yoga is Mindful movement, I invite my students to set intentions before each class and tune into their breath as well as teach them how to use the practice to anchor them into the present moment. Why do you choose to teach at 5KY? I chose 5KY because I was inspired by the teachers. Their approach to teaching and their kindness was comforting and inspired me in my own teaching and practice. What makes your soul sing? Helping other people grow in their Mindfulness practice.  Yoga is the path, and the chakras are the map. - Anodea Judith One of the best aspects of yogic philosophy for me is the integration of the head and the heart. Having spent so much of my early life “trapped in my head,” delving deeper into yoga both challenged me to get out of my head and into my body (or heart) and liberated me from experiencing the world in only one dimension.
By that I mean yoga is a pathway toward more heartfelt living but is grounded in real, physical experience. As westerners, we sometimes forget how much knowledge the western medical world has only learned relatively recently, has been passed down in eastern medicine for centuries. It is always a big treat to talk shop with other eastern medicine practitioners, such as Chinese medicine, shiatsu, etc., because so many of the concepts overlap with the traditional Indian view of medicine and the body. I am always flabbergasted by how similar the energy channels in Chinese medicine are to their Ayurvedic representation. Now, in western medicine, we are learning that there are subtle channels of communication in a living body that have been unobservable in cadavers. Only recently has western medicine started to realize the wisdom that comes from eastern traditions. It is this way with the Chakras too. It would be understandable if a person thought that the Chakras were woo-woo. It’s true that some unscrupulous people pretend that simply placing the correct rock over the area of a chakra will act as a panacea. These people do eastern medicine a disservice by simplifying what should be the personal study of a lifetime to something you can pay someone else to unblock in a few hours. |
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Five Keys Yoga, LLC ∙ 1818 W. Belmont Ave. ∙ Chicago, IL 60657 ∙ (773) 857-1763 ∙ namaste@5keysyoga.com