Yoga is the Uniting of Consciousness in the Heart.
-Nischala Joy Devi
I’m three weeks late on this newsletter, but who’s counting? After finishing up the remodel and expansion of our Whitefish location, I have been allowing myself time and space to EXHALE. I am feeling the pieces falling into place, as they usually do when I can surrender enough to allow what is to be. That sense of surrender and ease is SO much easier said than done, though! And always easier in hindsight. Big changes often lends to conflict and high-emotions and I recognize now just how easy it is for me to slip into chaos and lack of awareness during these times. Having now opened three studios, I have become familiar with the cycles of fear and self doubt, insomnia, and general feelings of failure and unease that have categorized these time periods for me. It’s so interesting how easily big changes can slip me right into negativity, worst-case-scenario-thinking, and obsessive thought loops! Even with all the yoga I have done and continue to do- I’ve found that… I’m still human. I’m so glad to be out of that tunnel again, and into the light of trust and gratitude. It’s amazing what time and space (and travel/unplugging) can do for mental health.
I love YOGA so much because it is an inner constant companion- within the practice there are infinite ways to access a sense of truth, comfort, and contentment. These are things we tend to reach for outside of ourselves in the forms of substances, shopping, sex, and any kind of distraction we can get our hands on. But with yoga, we no longer have to reach outside of ourselves- what a relief!!
Yoga invites us to begin again every single moment. Every time we lose that connection to source, to elevated consciousness, to seeing and being with clarity and love, we can make the choice to get back on track. One of my teachers recently shared that we shouldn’t measure the success of our practice by how long we stay connected to truth and a higher state of being, nor of course what kinds of shapes and poses our bodies can make. BUT by how often and how swiftly we can choose to begin again. The same is true for meditation- we don't measure meditation as successful by not having a busy mind, but by the level of COMMITMENT to noticing negative thought loops and then coming back to something tangible like the breath or sensations of the body.
Now that I am feeling more settled after our remodel and I’m getting my feet back beneath me, I would like to share a few yoga nuggets I have been practicing recently. Give each a try and let me know what you think!
Three practices to try
“I am loving awareness.”
I am LOVE-ing awareness.
And I AM loving-awareness.
In this mantra, we are LOVING our awareness. We are loving the seer, the one who sees, the one inside of us who is aware of it all. We are also LOVING everything that we are aware of- other people, our bodies, the earth, the sky, the table, the cup of soup, the person who wronged us, the person we’ve become hyper focused on that we can’t seem to forgive, etc.
And I AM loving-awareness. Who am I? Loving-awareness. I am an awareness that is loving. And I LOVE my awareness. And I love everything that I am aware of. Check out the LOVING AWARENESS meditation track here. It’s one I regularly practice just after my movement and breath practice. Ram Dass says in it that he “rides the wave of this mantra” into his heart. This is Bhakti Yoga. <3
Another is Nadi Shodhana Pranayam.
I recently traveled out of the country to Fiji (18 hour time difference and about 30hrs of travel each way!). I spent hours and hours of plane rides practicing this kind of breathwork. It provided regulation and balance through all this travel. The breath is ALWAYS available to us. Everywhere we go, as long as we are alive, we can activate and direct our breath in ways that help increase prana (life force) and vitality. Try doing an alternate nostril breathing practice with a long pause at the top of the breath in. This is like floss/drano for the whole nervous system. And remember you can do this EVERYWHERE, not just on your mat.
Lastly, I have recently embarked on a deeper study of the Yoga Sutras with my teacher Kia Miller. If you’d like to read the sutras, please check out any of these books. I highly suggest The Secret Power of Yoga, but choose a version that resonates.
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by Swami Satchidananda – This is a great entry level book.
The Secret Power of Yoga by Nischila Joy Devi – This is a lovely translation from a woman’s perspective.
The Path of the Yoga Sutras by Nicholai Bachman - This is one that I have used in teacher training programs in the past. Very user friendly.
The Yoga Sutras are a foundational philosophical text. The beauty of the sutras, is that they offer us a roadmap of the human being, particularly of the human mind, and how to change the orientation of the mind, from seeking pleasure and avoiding pain in the outer world, to attuning us to the inner ecosystem, awakening the source of vitality within. The sutras give us a step by step process into this inner world.
I think that’s all for now! I am so grateful for each of you. I love our community so very much. I’ll be back in the studio this week, and more regularly in November. I’m planning to teach much more in the new year, which I am very excited for!
Much love,
Holly
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