Inspired Teaching

Inspired Teaching

by | Sep 8, 2011 | Wisdom, Yoga teaching 

It’s a worthwhile exercise to stop and ponder what it is that makes a good teacher.
I often pose this question to myself as a teacher of yoga but it obviously is an important exercise for any teacher.
On this trip to the USA, I’ve stopped in to a few yoga classes in various cities so I’ve had the opportunity to “check out ” different schools and teachers. Here are a few observations:
Good teaching in yoga is founded on having a deep and practical grasp of the subject matter. […]

Inspired Teaching

Insignificance

by | Sep 6, 2011 | Being a writer, Philosophy, Yoga practices

Playing with yoga poses in the presence of the giant California redwoods could have us looking rather insignificant.
Are we really?
Some rather famous people seem to have thought so.
“The massive bulk of the earth does indeed shrink to insignificance in comparison with the heavens”. Nicolaus Copernicus
“Everyone needs their memories. […]

Napa

Napa

by | Sep 3, 2011 | Community, Philosophy, Wisdom, Yoga practices

What’s a yogini doing in the wine country of California?
Enjoying herself.
We were very privileged and honoured today to enjoy an impressive tasting of wines at the vineyards in Napa, California founded by Donald Hess. A Swiss entrepreneur, Hess’s sustainable wine producing practices subscribe to the idea, “Nurture the land; return what you take.”
We four were modest in just visiting one winery, and then rather sensible, I thought, in going out to eat in town.
One of my yoga practices that translates so well when traveling is the namaste salutation. […]

Inspired Teaching

Giants

by | Sep 2, 2011 | Nature, Pleasure, Yoga practices

Over the last few days I’ve seen a lot of extraordinarily big trees, from Vancouver Island to our current location in far north coast California.
We’ve driven through forests and walked under towering canopies – today absorbing the mighty presence of California redwoods (sequoia sempervivens), which are said to be the tallest living things on the planet at 300-350 feet tall and 16-18 feet across. Some specimens have been recorded at 360 feet.
These measurements don’t really tell the story; what’s more important is the feeling that the trees evoke, such as, awe. […]

Inspired Teaching

Self-reflection

by | Sep 1, 2011 | Healing, Nature, Pleasure, Wisdom, Yoga practices

There are some coastlines and beaches in the world that would give Australian seaside paradises a run for their money, and this spot that I’m looking out at as I write to you would be one. For sure.

Up until yesterday I’d never really heard of and definitely not seen the Central Coast of Oregon (USA). […]

Inspired Teaching

Go-To Poses

by | Aug 31, 2011 | Families of Poses, Hip Surgery, Yoga practices, Yoga teaching 

Yoga is portable. If you have been attending classes for umpteen years and have not yet made the transition to doing yoga at home, you may not have made that discovery. So, here’s another incentive talk 🙂
Nowhere is the portability of yoga practice more appreciated than when you’re on the road. Even in the most modest lodging, you’ll find space to do a few back-saving postures.

The “hanging partial squat” or “bed chest opener” are so necessary after driving Highway 101 for many hours, as we are on this vacation. […]

Inspired Teaching

Privileged

by | Aug 30, 2011 | Healing, Nature, Yoga practices

I’m on the opposite side of the continent from the battered U.S. Eastern seaboard, afflicted as it has been by Hurricane Irene. I’ve been sheltered for the last two days in the Olympic Wilderness area of Washington State.
My awareness has been opening to include the destruction, even death, on the East coast, even as I take in the awesome magnificence of where I am at the moment.
As a launching pad for appreciating the one-million acre Olympic National Park, I am lodged at rustic Kalaloch with it’s expansive sandy, log-jammed beach. There have been so many first sightings. […]

Inspired Teaching

Good-byes

by | Aug 27, 2011 | Gardening, Nature, Wisdom

Have you got the habit of saying proper good-byes?
My sister passed away 13 years ago. I knew when I left her at her home in Ohio as I returned to Australia that I would never see her again. Everything I had to say I had said in words and embraces over the two terminal months I spent with her. I guess that’s what I call a proper farewell. Emptying out of all the things you want your loved one to receive from you because you may not have that next chance.
Humans are funny creatures, rather deluded really. […]

Inspired Teaching

Chapter One: Don't Know

by | Aug 26, 2011 | Humour, Philosophy, Wisdom, Yoga practices, Yoga teaching 

Yoga teachers have a hard time conveying what this age-old, enormous wisdom system is.
One way to explain it is to pass on esoteric philosophical concepts as they appeared in ancient spiritual texts – difficult to understand and not the real experience of yoga; another way is to take those yogic ideas and water them down or recast them in contemporary terms – and perhaps much of importance gets lost along the way.
In any case, yoga practice can be a subjective experience that is difficult to explain in words. […]

Inspired Teaching

Is Dolphin Watching Considered Yoga?

by | Aug 25, 2011 | Community, Nature, Yoga practices

Yes.
Well, I think so.
I am in paradise here at my friend Joyce’s home which faces the wide calm sweep of the Strait of Georgia.
This morning, I stumbled out to enjoy a waterview yoga practice, and saw pods of dolphins out at sea. They cavorted, careered, and carried on for about 30 minutes, until a cetacean-seeking boat interrupted their antics. […]

Inspired Teaching

WiFi Withdrawal

by | Aug 24, 2011 | Being a writer, Pleasure, Yoga practices

I’ve noticed that the practice of yoga can become addictive for some, especially those personalities who have that little bit of a tendency to get obsessive about things.
That would be me.
When I discovered Iyengar yoga in 1979, I would sometimes attend a couple of classes a day, would attend classes every day, except Sunday, and did a teacher training course only five months after my first class.
I learned a lot. There’s a narrow line between passion and obsession. […]