Mat & Beyond Yoga Studio

Insights

Abhinivesha

Recently in my advanced teachers training program with Manoj Kaimal, I have been exploring the kleshas or obstacles that have to be looked into and refined in the quest to receiving states of clarity. Patanjali in the second chapter of the Yoga Sutras lists five kleshas; the last of which is…

Bless the contrast

As we go through many life experiences..some pleasant, some unpleasant, some that make us ecstatic, some that causes us to see our own capacity for rage and hatred; as we sift and sort through our emotions and try make sense of it, come to an understanding of it.. We come…

Sky lessons

So, I confess that it was not love at first sight for me with the sky. I am naturally an ocean person. But since I am not one of those who lives by the beach or goes away on holiday every couple of months, the sky slowly grew on me..I have…

Flexibility is Underrated

I was just leaving after teaching a yoga class this morning when this line by a student struck a chord.. "Flexibility; not of the body, but of the mind, is underrated!! In the world today".The words ran so true especially in this era of rising fanaticism, hardening stances, rigid beliefs,…

The search.. For myself!

I am the first to admit that as far back as I can remember I have been a seeker. I have no idea what it was that I was looking for, all I knew was that there was this void inside me that I was constantly trying to fill. This sense…

Cultivate your inner connection.

At this point in my life, 16 years since I started my yoga journey.. The greatest gift that I have received through the practice is my connection with myself.. the beautiful practice of asana draws you into its magical flow; offering you comfort, release, insight, understanding, Offering you the greatest relationship…

Pratyahara – What do we feed on?

When my students seat themselves in class, the first thing they are guided to do is to shift their minds from whatever it is caught up with to the space and the energy of the studio, to their bodies, to their breaths. So though it seems like a very standard…

Seeing the bigger context

Growing up, my dad and i were never given to long conversations, but what stands out for me is one of his guiding principles to see the "big picture"..which could be a big stretch at times!..So though there were circumstances in my moms life that were very challenging, and later…

Make the Time

As a yoga teacher I have the privilege of meeting so many students..and one of the most commonly heard reasons for not coming to class is lack of time. And I find myself wondering.. How can anything else be more important than making the sacred time and space to connect to…

Faith

Over the last couple of days I've been having conversations with a couple of good friends (you've already been warned ok that i write about stuff...life:) it centered around suffering..one was sharing with me how much she had suffered in her childhood and even while growing up and another was sharing…