 Everything in life is vibration. - Albert Einstein Yoga Sutra 1.26 स पूर्वेषाम् अपि गुरुः कालेनानवच्छेदात्॥२६ sa pūrveṣām-api-guruḥ kālena-anavacchedāt Unconditioned by Time, Isvara Is the Teacher of Even the Most Ancient Teachers Why do we chant Om in yoga? Why chant at all? As modern science is beginning to shed light on the mechanisms behind the ancient science of yoga, we are learning that vibration - energy - is all around us and within us. After all, didn’t Einstein also determine that matter (e.g. our body) is simply a manifestation of energy in the physical plane?
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 By the time summer is over, do you feel worn out? Cultivate peace, rest, and balance with a guided Yoga Nidra (Deep Relaxation) as you are immersed in the resonant full-body experience of a sound bath.
You will leave vibrating with the grounding sounds of gongs, singing bowls, and chimes played by Evelyn’s expert hands. Your mind and body will be more at ease, as you listen to Rachel’s gentle guidance of your progressive relaxation. Feel your spirit lighten once more, as you let go of summer and welcome the fall season. This workshop is for anyone seeking self-care and deep rest. 5KY All Access Members get 20% off. We recommend registering ASAP as spots are extremely limited and a waiting list for this special event is likely.  Photo by Devin Avery on Unsplash Your focus determines your reality. - George Lucas Sutra 1.21 - तीव्रसंवेगानामासन्नः - tīvra-saṁvegānām-āsannaḥ To the Keen and Intent Practitioner the Goal Comes Quickly In the last two months, we've studied Sutras 1.12 and 1.14. Yoga Sutra 1.12 gives us the two pillars that stabilize us enough to become good at yoga - practice and non-attachment. Yoga Sutra 1.14 explains that practice requires patience, faith and devotion in our yoga sadhana.
This month's Sutra, which is 1.21, covers how long it will take to become a master at yoga and achieve samadhi or liberation. In between Sutras 1.14 and 1.21, Patanjali explains the various stages of non-attachment and how to develop in yoga.  We can't believe it but our little baby is six years old! 💕 When we opened our doors in 2017, nervous and uncertain if the neighborhood would embrace us, we never could have foretold the beautiful relationships we would forge with Roscoe Village, Lakeview and North Center (and other neighborhoods!) residents. We didn't understand how much meaning our job would have to us. How many people we would get to serve within our community - in our studio, outdoors, in schools and many other organizations... even *gasp* online! It hasn't always been easy. In fact, many times it's been downright hard. Your peaceful faces at the end of the practice were what kept us going in the face of adversity. Here we are at the end of a very bizarre period of our collective lives, ready to move forward into the new. It seems, despite the fall weather, we're all ready for growth. So for our 6th Anniversary Weekend, we're offering folks new to 5KY the chance to try out our all-access pass for only $1 for three days! See how good a regular yoga practice makes you feel in three days and grow into better health, a calmer mind and more self-confidence. 6th ANNIVERSARY ALL-ACCESS PASS Terms & Conditions Available for first time students of 5KY only. Get three days of unlimited yoga for $1. The All-Access pass auto-renews at the end of three days at our discounted monthly all-access rate ($115). Cancel anytime. TO OUR REGULAR STUDENTS: please book your spot in your favorite classes the week of September 15th before September 10th. We expect most classes to have a waitlist, so make sure to snag your place before the Open House pre-booking begins. Also, please invite your friends to join us! In the meantime, check out these throwback images from our opening weekend in 2017!
 Photo by freestocks on Unsplash Practice is the most important factor in Yoga. - Swami Satchidananda This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Sutra 1.14 - स तु दीर्घकाल नैरन्तर्य सत्कारा असेवितो दृढभूमिः - Sa Tu Dīrghakāla Nairantarya Satkāra-ādara-āsevito Dr̥ḍhabhūmiḥ Practice Becomes Firmly Grounded by Patience, Devotion, and Faith From Sutras 1.13-1.20, Patanjali outlines exactly what it means to accomplish what we studied last month in Sutra 1.12. As a reminder, Yoga Sutra 1.12 tells us that by practice and detachment, we will reach the goal of yoga.
Sutras 1.13 and 1.14 discuss what it means to practice. Practice of yoga is defined as continuous effort to calm the fluctuations of our mind, as explained in Yoga Sutra 1.2. Sutras 1.15 and 1.16 describe what non-attachment is. It is a state of renunciation that is achieved through the application of our willpower. (Iyengar, 65) Ultimate renunciation occurs when we are no longer affected by the qualities of nature, which are known as the three gunas in Vedic philosophy. In other words, “one is no longer controlled by the dramas of the world.” (Shoshoni, 9)  Photo by Guilherme Stecanella on Unsplash Make your heart and mind friends and you will have peace of mind. - Suzy Kassem This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Sutra 1.12 - अभ्यासवैराग्याअभ्यां तन्निरोधः - Abhyasa Vairagyabhyam Tannirodhah Peace of Mind Comes Through Practice and Non-Attachment You may be wondering, “wait a minute…we skipped from Sutra 1.3 to 1.12!” It’s true. If I covered every Yoga Sutra in this series, it would take us 16⅓ years to get us through them all.
Luckily, these threads are so terse (and when read one after the other become like poetry) that we can conveniently condense the Sutras between those formally in our exploration within these discussions. So while we are specifically looking at Sutra 1.12, we’ll also take a look at Sutras 1.4 - 1.11. In Sutra 1.4, Patanjali mentions that when we are not experiencing yoga as explained in the first three Sutras, we are convinced that our True Self is whatever our mind thinks we are. This perception of ourselves is usually derived from our experience of the world through our senses. Sutras 1.5 - 1.11 describe the five types of thought forms the mind has which cause us to identify with our senses. These thought forms can be painful or pleasant.  Tuesdays & Thursdays 7:00-7:50 AM Want to kick start your summer days in just the right way?
Stop by gorgeous Gallagher Way (right next to Wrigley Field) on Tuesday and Thursday mornings for a free yoga class with us. You'll be on your way by 8 AM, feeling strong, loose, and calm. Ready for anything the day has in store for you! Tuesdays are a vigorous flow, designed to get your heart pumping and challenge you a little bit. Thursdays are a treat to wind down your week with a gentler flow. All levels are welcome.  Photo by mahamudul hasan on Unsplash Love is always the answer. - Sivakami Sonia Sumar This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Sutra 1.3 - तदा द्रष्टुः स्वरूपेऽवस्थानम् - Tada Drastuh Svarupe Avasthanam Then the Seer Abides in Its Own Nature Now we come to the result of practicing yoga. Abiding in the spirit’s nature. What is the spirit’s nature? What is the spirit?
The spirit animates the body and mind. It uses the body and mind to participate in nature. “The spirit is like a constant light. It has no name. It does not feel pain. It has no likes or dislikes. Right now within you, there is an exuberant spirit taking delight in watching the world. Whenever you are completely involved in what you are doing, you experience the creative and timeless nature of the spirit.” (Bhakt, 7) We experience the spirit’s nature when our mind is calm. Our spirit’s nature is love. This Sutra really is as simple as that!  Photo by Rohan Makhecha on Unsplash Muddy water, let stand, becomes clear. - Lao Tzu This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Sutra 1.2 - योगश्चित्तवृत्तिनिरोधः - Yoga Citta Vrtti Nirodhah Yoga Is Calming the Fluctuations of the Mind This is a very simple and powerful yoga sutra. In fact, Swami Satchidananda wrote, “for a keen student, this one sutra would be enough.” (Satchidananda, 23) Again, let’s break this apart word by word to understand it better.
We’ve already discussed yoga extensively in the previous sutra. It is both the process and the end result. But Patanjali defines yoga further than that in this sutra.  Photo by Wesley Tingey on Unsplash Just where you are – that’s the place to start. - Pema Chodron This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Sutra 1.1 - अथ योगानुशासनम् - Atha Yoga Anuśāsanam Now Is the Guide for Yoga The reason the Yoga Sutras take a lifetime (or even longer!) to understand fully is that many of the Sanskrit words contain multiple meanings. The richness of this approach means both that the essence of Yoga is expressed as succinctly as possible and that the process of understanding their meaning is the path toward Yoga itself. In that way, the Yoga Sutras are both philosophy and instructions (Satchidananda, 23); they give both the why and how in one breath.
To truly understand a Sutra, the student must devote successive readings to it. There is an unfurling process, as the student deciphers its meaning over time in conjunction with the student’s lived experience. This is why the aphorism, “when the student is ready, the teacher appears,” also applies to the Yoga Sutras. The lessons to be learned from this text develop in the student’s mind over time, finally becoming fixed when life gives the aspirant a chance to practice and then comprehend their meaning. So let’s start on the most surface level - the literal meaning of the Sanskrit words - and then delve deeper. |
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