Category: Energy

  • Asana & Pranayama – An Energy Process

    There is a fuctional relationship between Asana & Pranayama. Understading it is useful in putting both Asana & Pranayama practices in context and draws them together into a fuller understanding of Yoga. I’ve been looking for a metaphor to demonstrate this relationship for some time until I remembered to revisit the engine metaphor which I…

  • Jihva Bandha – Tongue Lock

    Bandhas seem like a very popular topic amongst western Yoga practitioners. Bandhas are “locks” that are used to effect the flow of energy in the body. Energetically, bandhas are effective and relevant when there is already a good flow of energy. But bandhas have another quality which can be useful for almos all practices and…

  • Breath & Heat in Yoga Asana

    There are two kinds of heat we can experience in a Yoga asana practice: a peripheral heat and a core heat. A similar (and easier to achieve) experience can be found in food. Spices like black pepper create a peripheral heat that can be felt in the bodies extremities (hot face, runny nose, sweat, etc).…

  • Alchemy of Breathing in Asana

    This post will describe an experiment that will enable you to experience the workings of the fire within. To proceed with the experiment effectively you should be: Comfortable using Ujjayi breathing in your Asana practice. Comfortable with the basic relationship between breath and movement. Familiar with the length of your breath and how it applies…

  • Doshas – Manipulating Fire

    From the many parts that make up an engine, the carburetor ,where air and fuel are mixed together to create a volatile mixture, is most instructive to understanding how a fire can be manipulated. Anyone who has driven a car knows that the engine is controlled using the gas pedal. I am guessing that few…

  • Doshas – Constitution

    Constitution We are born with a certain kind of engine which has a given quality. Some people are born with a small engine (great for driving around in the city, not really suited for long journeys), others are born with race-car engines (great for getting around fast) and others are born with big-truck engines (great…

  • Doshas – Making Fire

    A metaphor that has helped me understand and relate to Doshas is that of an engine. In an engine a mixture of fuel and air is ignited to create controlled explosions of energy. The fire inside the body is a similar mechanism – driven by three qualities called Doshas: Vatta describes a quality of air.…

  • Doshas – Purification by Fire

    Doshas are a fundamental concept in Ayurveda & Yoga. They describe the physical body as a manifestation of spirit and matter. They are very useful tool for assessing health and illness of the body in a way that relates to Vedic philosphy and Yoga tools. They offer a fresh and holistic perspective for personal observation.…

  • Twitching Between Yoga Postures

    I was taught, practice & teach Yoga asana sequences with stops between postures and groups of postures. Stops are an opportunity for me to observe what is happening in my body, to recollect into awareness my experience of postures I just completed, to let my breath settle and to make a conscious choice when to…

  • Romania – Changes in Energy

    I recently returned from a 16 day visit to Romania with Andreea. It was my first time visiting her birth country and meeting her family (we’ve been together for 8+ years). It was an intense and experience filled journey and I am looking forward to much recollecting and writing. I am going to start this…

  • Yoga & Breath – Movement in Breath in Intent

    Intent is another step towards a more subtle asana practice.  As breath can be a sheath for movement, so can intent be a sheath for breath & movement.  My teacher introduced this model as “IBM – Intent, Breath Movement”. Intent comes first – for example “I am going to inhale and raise my arms” is…

  • Energy – Prana

    This was a difficult post for me to write – I couldn’t find a clear way to express my experience of Prana. Prana is one of the Vedic concepts that I internalized (and continue to clarify) through years of practice. My initial attempts to collect my thoughts and express them in writing fell short of…

  • Energy – Kundalini

    Kundalini is a famous myth in the realms of Yoga & Energy – there’s even a school of Yoga named after it.  It is considered a majestic goal of Yoga, but it is by no means the end of the journey. Like Granthis, Kundalini is an obstacle/blockage – actually the king of all obstacles. It…

  • Playing with Fire

    Yesterday, for the first time in a long time, I did an asana (physical) yoga practice at night instead of in the morning. I was reminded, again, of how different my body is in the morning and at the end of a day – it is more supple, more responsive, softer, extended, light. These are…

  • Energy – the Cakra Thingys

    It reads “Chakra” – but that is the correct Sanskrit Spelling. I tread carefully around this topic, because it has already received soooo much attention. I really don’t think it’s an important subject, but it deserves some space and some demystifying in the overall picture. In the previous post we talked about intertwined moon &…

  • Energy – Nadi

    Yoga suggests that we are wired with a vast network of subtle channels – Nadi – through which energy can potentially flow. All Nadi originate in one point – somewhere around the base of the spine. Teachings (for example: Prasna Upanishad 3.6) say that there are over 72,000 channels, 3 of which are endeared by…

  • Energy & Modes of Yoga Practice

    With a framework for relating to energy we can approach and create a framework for Yoga practice. There are 3 modes of practice: CIKITSA: recovery. This mode of practice is associated with dispersed energy. Dispersed energy can be felt as low or unstable energy. Yoga practice in this mode is a relatively soft practice –…

  • Energy – Fire

    My teachers often refer to a model of energy which describes a fire burning inside us, it is the combustion sub-system of our energy system (there are other sub-systems that play other roles). It is said to be located in the abdominal (apana-stana) area – it feeds on air that comes from the chest area…

  • Energy – Quality instead of Quantity

    Starting a new Yoga series of posts. This time the topic of energy is shimmering for me. As always the ideas I bring here are my take on teachings I have received from my teachers. I have made them mine and you are welcome to make them yours. So I’ll start by shattering a myth…