Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Saturday, March 13, 2010
What Have You Learned?
A friend of mine asked me these very good questions about my recent trip to India and I wanted to share them with everyone. I hope they are of interest to you. If you are inspired or can think of any questions related to your health and nutrition path, send them to me via email and I will answer the best I can. Join my fitness newsletter and get free fitness tips monthly at:
www.trainertroy.com
So...India. Lots of Lingams, Yoni's, too, I would imagine? So many Lingams and Shiva temples, they are all really a blur at this point. I had no idea such ancient places still were accessible to people. Temples that predate recorded history, an ancient trading port with Rome, just amazing. You really feel and see the effects of time on the planet.
Was it worth it? It changed my life and as was explained to me, expanded my circle of safety as Gurudev teaches, to include more that I feel safe with. I do not know about that analogy as to me it feels more like my ideas of what make me feel safe were destroyed and that what safety means was re defined.
Would you go again? All I could say when I was getting on the plane was, I will never come here again, and now all I want to do is go back to Bapuji's temple at Kiyavarohan for forty days, but not for awhile. I would like to be in that holy spot, there was one other Ashram in Pondicherry I would like to go to again and study, but I really want to see North India which is supposed to be so different. We were in the oldest part of India down south and not much has changed in eons.
What did it teach you personally? Very good questions. I answer this in my next newsletter.....sign up for free delivery at:
www.trainertroy.com
www.trainertroy.com
So...India. Lots of Lingams, Yoni's, too, I would imagine? So many Lingams and Shiva temples, they are all really a blur at this point. I had no idea such ancient places still were accessible to people. Temples that predate recorded history, an ancient trading port with Rome, just amazing. You really feel and see the effects of time on the planet.
Was it worth it? It changed my life and as was explained to me, expanded my circle of safety as Gurudev teaches, to include more that I feel safe with. I do not know about that analogy as to me it feels more like my ideas of what make me feel safe were destroyed and that what safety means was re defined.
Would you go again? All I could say when I was getting on the plane was, I will never come here again, and now all I want to do is go back to Bapuji's temple at Kiyavarohan for forty days, but not for awhile. I would like to be in that holy spot, there was one other Ashram in Pondicherry I would like to go to again and study, but I really want to see North India which is supposed to be so different. We were in the oldest part of India down south and not much has changed in eons.
What did it teach you personally? Very good questions. I answer this in my next newsletter.....sign up for free delivery at:
www.trainertroy.com
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
To Tomorrow
I have so much resistance to merging my meditation with my Yoga which is what we are learning to do, but tonight I got a good explanation that it is and was never separate. Which of course I knew subconsciously, but was struggling with for some reason. We have a great teacher who hits the nail on the head, he hits it hard, but he always nails it.
Today we had the gift of Gurudev leading us in guided yoga, so powerful. I felt that his words were a healing salve for my body and soul. His energy was radiating out like a white light.
This afternoon, four hours on four postures. Tonight was the most fun I had in an anatomy class, we played a guess what is wrong with this posture game. Things are relaxing and sinking in. It is fun everyday to wonder what Gurudev will be talking about in the morning.
To tomorrow, cheers.
Today we had the gift of Gurudev leading us in guided yoga, so powerful. I felt that his words were a healing salve for my body and soul. His energy was radiating out like a white light.
This afternoon, four hours on four postures. Tonight was the most fun I had in an anatomy class, we played a guess what is wrong with this posture game. Things are relaxing and sinking in. It is fun everyday to wonder what Gurudev will be talking about in the morning.
To tomorrow, cheers.
So Far So Deep
So far things are amazingly challenging, both in thought, body, and spirit. But through challenge we are forced to stretch deeper and come out stronger. I am practicing everything I have learned on the mat in my personal Yoga practice but off the mat here. I have been faced with challenging ideas (seen to me as being in a new posture on the mat) and had to know when to press forward and when to pull back, know my edge and go there then 'soften' in the conversation. I am physically exhausted from sitting, eating and talking and doing slow motion postures. I am learning new cueing for postures, different ways of doing or getting in and out of the postures and reasons for mis alignment. The postures are where I have always learned the most both on a physical and metaphysical reference.
Hearing the Guru talk is why I came to the training. I feel like his words and method of transfereing experience and knowledge speaks directly into my heart. Today we were blessed with a posture flow directed by Kamini, his daughter and prana (energy) flow directed by him. His directions were a direct connection to our energy bodies and as he spoke we unfolded. I actually could sense when my mind was trying to get me to some movement and when my energy body was guiding me. At then end I was able to use the new breathing techniques and body locks to keep my energy in and not drift off away from everything. Beautiful. I can not wait to share with others the best I can.
Hearing the Guru talk is why I came to the training. I feel like his words and method of transfereing experience and knowledge speaks directly into my heart. Today we were blessed with a posture flow directed by Kamini, his daughter and prana (energy) flow directed by him. His directions were a direct connection to our energy bodies and as he spoke we unfolded. I actually could sense when my mind was trying to get me to some movement and when my energy body was guiding me. At then end I was able to use the new breathing techniques and body locks to keep my energy in and not drift off away from everything. Beautiful. I can not wait to share with others the best I can.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
2nd Full Day at Yoga School=Phew!
Well, another beautiful and full day here~ Started with a great practice at seven a.m. and a beautiful talk with Gurudev and some powerful sharing. I asked him if what I thought I was understanding that by learning the Yoga tools that we are learning I can connect my higher self and my physical self together and use them as one was right. He responded by telling me there is no higher self and no physical self, that all is one but yes that I could raise my energy with these tools.
This afternoon spent four hours learning and practiced listening to Prana and breathing techniques along with Bhandas, or locks in the body to keep our energy inside instead of it leaking out and use it to strengthen.
Tonight we talked about the principals of Karma for two and a half hours. My head hurt and while I can intellectually understand what the theory of Karma is, I do not think that I have enough proof to confirm or deny this as a law of the universe. I do know that my Christian background disagrees and holds firm to the idea that what separates man and the animals is the ability to freely choose our actions. That on a daily basis we have the choice of good or evil, and depending on the choice we make our consequences result in actions and we and others pay the price of those actions. After all we have a justice system built on deciding if the choices people make are right or wrong. We do not have a karma court that decides if someones karma let them to the point that brought them to the jail. We judge them on the choices they have made. We were told not to try and believe in Karma, that it needs to be tested in our lives and if we are open to it, we will see that it is the way things are.
I wanted to be open to the Karma idea and was fine with the discussion as it went from deep to silly and then even deeper, until it was finished with the statement that it did not matter if I believed it or not, that is the way it is. LOL, guess that is my Karma, to be confronted with this......
Missed the Oscars, Karma...Phew!
"Karma" literally means "deed" or "act", and more broadly names the universal principle of cause and effect, action and reaction, which Hindus believe governs all consciousness.[11] Karma is not fate, for man acts with free will creating his own destiny. According to the Vedas, if we sow goodness, we will reap goodness; if we sow evil, we will reap evil. Karma refers to the totality of our actions and their concomitant reactions in this and previous lives, all of which determine our future. The conquest of karma lies in intelligent action and dispassionate reaction. Not all karmas rebound immediately. Some accumulate and return unexpectedly in this or other births.[11] We produce Karma in four ways:[12]
This afternoon spent four hours learning and practiced listening to Prana and breathing techniques along with Bhandas, or locks in the body to keep our energy inside instead of it leaking out and use it to strengthen.
Tonight we talked about the principals of Karma for two and a half hours. My head hurt and while I can intellectually understand what the theory of Karma is, I do not think that I have enough proof to confirm or deny this as a law of the universe. I do know that my Christian background disagrees and holds firm to the idea that what separates man and the animals is the ability to freely choose our actions. That on a daily basis we have the choice of good or evil, and depending on the choice we make our consequences result in actions and we and others pay the price of those actions. After all we have a justice system built on deciding if the choices people make are right or wrong. We do not have a karma court that decides if someones karma let them to the point that brought them to the jail. We judge them on the choices they have made. We were told not to try and believe in Karma, that it needs to be tested in our lives and if we are open to it, we will see that it is the way things are.
I wanted to be open to the Karma idea and was fine with the discussion as it went from deep to silly and then even deeper, until it was finished with the statement that it did not matter if I believed it or not, that is the way it is. LOL, guess that is my Karma, to be confronted with this......
Missed the Oscars, Karma...Phew!
"Karma" literally means "deed" or "act", and more broadly names the universal principle of cause and effect, action and reaction, which Hindus believe governs all consciousness.[11] Karma is not fate, for man acts with free will creating his own destiny. According to the Vedas, if we sow goodness, we will reap goodness; if we sow evil, we will reap evil. Karma refers to the totality of our actions and their concomitant reactions in this and previous lives, all of which determine our future. The conquest of karma lies in intelligent action and dispassionate reaction. Not all karmas rebound immediately. Some accumulate and return unexpectedly in this or other births.[11] We produce Karma in four ways:[12]
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Back in Yoga School
First full day of year two of my Masters in Yogic Studies at the Amrit Institute in Ocala Florida.
Yoga practice started at 6:00 a.m. with an intense Yoga Nidra session.
Nidra being: The literal translation of Yoga Nidra is Yogic Sleep. It is an ancient form of meditation that will take you into the deepest levels of relaxation while still remaining fully aware. When practicing the Amrit Method of Yoga Nidra, your brainwaves drop into the alpha and theta state. As you progressively enter deeper and subtler brain waves you become more relaxed, integrated, expansive and present. Eventually, you completely shift out of identification with the body, mind and ego. In this deep state beyond ordinary waking consciousness, you naturally re-align with spirit, allowing you to effortlessly disengage from restrictive physical, mental and emotional patterning. Here, you are free to create a life that is an expression of higher consciousness, rather than acquired conditioning. (Amrit Institute)
That flowed into a posture series while maintaining the Nidra state of mind. Gurudev talked after for two hours that felt like five minutes it flowed by so fast. We are investigating the principal of managing Nidra in our practice through awareness of it rising and falling. We got to share our transformative experiences since last years training.
So many miracles have been happening for me since I met Gurudev that it is hard for me to comprehend let alone translate into words. But I did share with him how since coming back from India I have felt cleansed and have not wanted to eat fatty food, or restraunt food and that I can not drink alchohol the way I used to enjoy it. Now I can not finish a glass before I get a migrane and do not want any more. I shared how since returning I feel that I can 'hold a space for people' when they are telling me about challenges or upsets in their lives and allow them to relate their experiences and emotions without it negatively affecting me. I feel like by holding a space for love around people their stories travel through me without it attaching to me and I am able to relate to them from stillness with love. Finally I shared how postures are spontainiously coming to me in the middle of the night and how a cat adopted me and is teaching me much about patience and non attachment to material things like my once nice couch.
The afternoon and evening sessions were very eye opening for me. I think I have realized that I relate to the world from a removed perspective and am detached from most of my physical experiences almost to a hinderance. I can easily 'float out of my body' to a different plane as a means of escape, but that is not what meditation, or Yoga is about. I have had a misconseption. Yoga is a discipline, an investigation in to techniques like prana management or breath controll as a means to tie the physical and energy bodies together for a more powerful experience. Not as a means of escaping from the physical world. This is a new awareness and concept for me. Most people identify with the physical experience as a means of relating to their energy self, I guess I approach things in reverse. So my practice this week will be trying to stay attached to my body in a greater awareness of present time and combine my energy experience with my physical. We shall see. Happy Edge hunting.
Troy
Yoga practice started at 6:00 a.m. with an intense Yoga Nidra session.
Nidra being: The literal translation of Yoga Nidra is Yogic Sleep. It is an ancient form of meditation that will take you into the deepest levels of relaxation while still remaining fully aware. When practicing the Amrit Method of Yoga Nidra, your brainwaves drop into the alpha and theta state. As you progressively enter deeper and subtler brain waves you become more relaxed, integrated, expansive and present. Eventually, you completely shift out of identification with the body, mind and ego. In this deep state beyond ordinary waking consciousness, you naturally re-align with spirit, allowing you to effortlessly disengage from restrictive physical, mental and emotional patterning. Here, you are free to create a life that is an expression of higher consciousness, rather than acquired conditioning. (Amrit Institute)
That flowed into a posture series while maintaining the Nidra state of mind. Gurudev talked after for two hours that felt like five minutes it flowed by so fast. We are investigating the principal of managing Nidra in our practice through awareness of it rising and falling. We got to share our transformative experiences since last years training.
So many miracles have been happening for me since I met Gurudev that it is hard for me to comprehend let alone translate into words. But I did share with him how since coming back from India I have felt cleansed and have not wanted to eat fatty food, or restraunt food and that I can not drink alchohol the way I used to enjoy it. Now I can not finish a glass before I get a migrane and do not want any more. I shared how since returning I feel that I can 'hold a space for people' when they are telling me about challenges or upsets in their lives and allow them to relate their experiences and emotions without it negatively affecting me. I feel like by holding a space for love around people their stories travel through me without it attaching to me and I am able to relate to them from stillness with love. Finally I shared how postures are spontainiously coming to me in the middle of the night and how a cat adopted me and is teaching me much about patience and non attachment to material things like my once nice couch.
The afternoon and evening sessions were very eye opening for me. I think I have realized that I relate to the world from a removed perspective and am detached from most of my physical experiences almost to a hinderance. I can easily 'float out of my body' to a different plane as a means of escape, but that is not what meditation, or Yoga is about. I have had a misconseption. Yoga is a discipline, an investigation in to techniques like prana management or breath controll as a means to tie the physical and energy bodies together for a more powerful experience. Not as a means of escaping from the physical world. This is a new awareness and concept for me. Most people identify with the physical experience as a means of relating to their energy self, I guess I approach things in reverse. So my practice this week will be trying to stay attached to my body in a greater awareness of present time and combine my energy experience with my physical. We shall see. Happy Edge hunting.
Troy
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