by Brianna | Sep 1, 2011 | chakra yoga, practice, Yoga
Over the many years that I have been teaching I have spent the majority of my time instructing beginners. I love the challenge inherent to teaching people new to the practice but even more than that I love their openness. Beginners have yet to define what Yoga means to them so they are flexible. If I say Yoga is chanting, they are in. If I say Yoga is breathing, they are in. If I say Yoga is stillness, they are in. What has always seemed strange to me is that many students over time become rigid about their practices. They define Yoga for themselves and are no longer open to new ideas or new styles. To be honest that rigidity makes me sad. Yoga is a 5,000 years old tradition and from my experience every time you try to limit it the practice will expand beyond the boundary you set in the sand. This last week I challenged myself as a teacher and taught Chakra Yoga with the bīja (seed) mantras to beginning students. That basically means that for over an hour my students sang while holding postures. It was a huge risk as a teacher and while I am rarely nervous about teaching on Monday I was. Through that agitation I caused myself to grow, after all the only way to expand a comfort zone is to be uncomfortable. As usual my beginning students were my teachers. From the Root Chakra to the Crown, twenty-two students sang with open minds and hearts and I am proud of every one of them for it. To me the myriad of...
by Brianna | Aug 26, 2011 | Breathing, Healing, practice
Years ago I discovered Rumi during a yoga class and he has been a meaningful part of my practice ever since. If you have yet to make your way to Rumi’s writings I recommend that you get yourself a book. If you are anything like me it will be worn by your hands. Today to mark the start of my personal practice, I blindly opened my book and was struck by this beautiful passage: The spiritual path wrecks the body and afterwards restores it to health. It destroys the house to unearth the treasure, and with that treasure builds it better than before. Rumi I remained still for a moment giving his words room to have weight. After a bit, I turned my focus inward and became aware of my breath rolling in and my breath rolling back out. I added movement for a while playing with my edge. Moving and breathing, breathing and moving, I made my way back to...
by Brianna | Aug 23, 2011 | Affirmations, gratitude
Cooking was my first passion. Even as a little girl I loved it and cooked on my own, oven involved, before I was five. I couldn’t read but I could cook. If you are cringing at the thought of a five year old on a stool creating recipes out of her head just remember it was the early 80’s and things were different then. Plus my parents were trusting hippies who didn’t want to kill my creativity and therefore gave me free range in their kitchen. Just for the record I never burned anything down. I did however make many inedible and elfin sized things. When people tell me they don’t enjoy cooking it is really hard for me to understand because from my perspective there is so much to enjoy. Plus there are very few things that are as simple to do as cooking. It doesn’t have to be fancy. In fact, simple is best. Did you know that most chefs are known for their least complex dishes? My mom’s best friend Pam was the best cook I have ever known. She would give you the recipe. Tell you exactly what she did but it NEVER tasted the same as when she made it. As a little girl I always thought that the ingredient we were missing was Pam and as the years have rolled by I still feel the exact same way. I wanted to talk today about cooking with intention because I think the intention behind the act is often missed. Whenever I cook, whether it is a simple salad or a complex dish I take...
by Brianna | Jul 24, 2011 | Breathing
When one massacres so many the ripple, the effect, is felt. Today, as an offering to those families who are actively undergoing what we can barely think about, I want you take a moment and create a sincere ripple of light. What do I mean by that? Here is a list of ideas to get you started: Hug someone with the intention of truly being present (Hug it Out) Surprise someone with a phone call. Someone you know will start to speak with a smile the moment they realize it’s you (personally I have found that elderly relatives are always good for this). Make your family a beautiful dinner. Nothing fancy, just a meal with a lot of love in it. Do a Big favor for someone with no expectation of return. Play with your children or help out a friend with theirs. Donate something, anything: time, money, clothing, furniture, etc. Buy the guy in line behind you his cup of coffee. Even it is a skinny extra hot three shot latte. Today, take some time to practice living from the space of your authentic awakened heart. Channel an Elephant if you need some more inspiration: Compassion is not reserved for offspring alone in elephant society. Elephants appear to make allowances for other members of their herd. Observers noted that one African herd always traveled slowly because one of its members had never recovered from a broken leg. And in another case, a park warden reported a herd that traveled slowly because one female was carrying around a dead calf. One perplexing report was of an adult elephant making...
by Brianna | Jul 5, 2011 | hugging
If it is their karma to suffer, isn’t it your dharma to help them?’ If somebody falls into a deep pit, is it correct to simply walk by, saying, ‘Oh, it is their karma to suffer that way’? No, it is our duty to help them climb out. Amma (Mother) the hugging saint is coming to Reston. During my most recent training Kim shared the practice of the “Buddhist Hug” with our group. It reminded me of Amma and her teachings. I imagine during the hours upon hours of hugging that she utilizes a practice of this nature to stay present. It is her presence, her willingness to suffer with others that makes her so remarkable. I use this practice now in many of my workshops and classes. I wont’ lie and say students LOVE it. In fact, it can be downright uncomfortable. To say the least getting a group of lycra clad grownups to hug perfect strangers is an interesting experience. However, based on their feedback, I reckon that it is more than worth the effort. Next time you hug someone take a breath and say to yourself: I am stopping. I am here for you. You are here for me. Amma will stand for hours and hours, hugging and loving, loving and hugging, again and again and...
