Welcome to the Living Practice – April 2002

 

Letter from the Editor

Yoga and Medicine by Sam Dworkis

How to Lead a Spiritual Life by Neel Kulkarni

Website review by Dr. KEV

Pregnancy Yoga by Debbie Grossblatt

Monthly Music Review, "Where Music and Silence Meet" by Paritosho

April’s Pose contributed by Yoga Journal – Warrior Two Pose

Attention LA Students who Study with Megan

A Note From Yogaeverywhere

Yoga eVents and More

Past Issues of the Living Practice

 

Namaste Lovely Viewers,

Thank you so much for all your loving support and attention. You influence me so deeply. It’s the old pebble in the lake metaphor; we inspire each other … “I wish to receive the Living Practice Newsletter for free. I am interested in yoga…a teenager's life is not easy and yoga has helped me work through that.”  

 

As a yoga instructor, my role is just to circulate the teachings, from my heart to yours. The Living Practice has been an excellent vehicle to continue that flow. I am so grateful that so many of you have remained directly involved with the Living Practice. A special welcome to Paritosho who will be contributing our monthly music review and June E Moon providing attractive and practical Yoga Mat Bags for your yoga practice. Also thank you Debbie, Janet and the Philadelphia Area Yoga Teacher Association.

 

All my love and blessing to you and your families,

Megan

 

Yoga and Medicine by Sam Dworkis, MS, LMT 

For years, there has been a raging debate regarding holistic and alternative approaches to health and healing versus more conventional western, or allopathic approaches to medicine. Although many people feel strongly about one approach or the other, many are confused as to what holistic and alternative medicine is.

 

Holistic and alternative medicine is currently defined as “non-traditional” systems of health care; such as acupuncture, homeopathy, chiropractic, herbal medicine and yes, even yoga. Holistic and alternative medicine centers on a cooperative relationship between a person and “healer” leading towards optimal attainment of physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual aspects of health. Holistic and alternative medicine looks at the whole person; including scrutiny of physical, nutritional, environmental, emotional, social, spiritual and lifestyle values. Holistic and alternative practitioners, including yoga teachers, emphasize education and responsibility to achieve balance and well-being.

 

In contrast, allopathic or western medicine has traditionally emphasized a strong doctor-driven relationship that focuses upon accepted science, differential diagnosis, prescriptive medicines, regular checkups, and when necessary, surgery in order to attain healing. In this model, ill persons are often encouraged to comply with physician directives without challenge.

I am “into” yoga and have been seriously practicing and teaching for over a quarter-century. But don’t get me wrong. I strongly believe in allopathic western oriented medicine. I believe in regular medical examinations, taking prescriptive medicines, and even when necessary, undergoing surgery. In fact, having had MS for the past nine years has afforded me deep appreciation of all western medicine has to offer.

On the other hand, I also profoundly value what I have learned about taking personal responsibility from my yoga practice. To me, yoga comes nothing close to resembling a religion; but is instead a series of exercises designed to accommodate my body’s changing flexibility, strength, and endurance as it presents itself at any given moment. What I love about this approach, as a teacher is that it adapts to meet the specific needs of individuals and has nothing to do with competition or even “trying” to do yoga.

It teaches me how to be proactive. That is, I learn how to pay attention to the messages my body is giving me and how to do something different when what I’m doing doesn’t feel right. In other words, when I’m doing a series of yoga exercises and if I’m doing something that feels uncomfortable or might lead to injury, I’ll do it differently. Yoga teaches me to make changes in my life in order to maximize benefit and to minimize liability.

This approach to yoga therefore becomes a microcosm of life. If my body’s not feeling right, I find myself wanting to make appropriate changes in life-style or become more proactive in physician-assisted intervention in order to improve my health. I find myself wanting to do additional research and wanting to explore additional options to become more involved in my health-care management.

Fortunately, the relationship between allopathic physicians and patients is in transition. As such, attitudes toward yoga that helps teach a person to become proactive and self-responsible are quickly becoming recognized as another component of conventional medicine.

 

Sam Dworkis, MA, LMT, is author of ExTension (Simon & Schuster 1994) and Recovery Yoga (Random House 1997).

 

How to Lead a Spiritual Life or How to be Spiritual by Neel Kulkarni
Spirituality - Article 2
Salutations to Lord Ganesha.  In the 'Spirituality - Article 1' (posted in January’s Living Practice  we saw what is meant by Spiritual Life or Spirituality. Let us, now, go into ways of Spirituality.

Firstly, we should understand that each human being is already leading a sort of Spiritual Life. Because, each human being is automatically in a constant search of permanent joy, and the permanent joy comes only from Spirituality, as we already saw. (Note: state of Permanent Joy is called as Yoga or State of Yoga Or Union in our articles.) However, what we mean by Spiritual Life in this article is the life or practice or way that shall lead to the Permanent Joy 'in an efficient manner'.

Let us call the way of Spiritual Life or practice as Path.  This is also called as Yoga or Yoga Practice.  For example, Karmayoga meaning Path of Action.  All Yoga Practice is any combination of one of more of the following:  Karmayoga (Path of selfless work), Jnyanayoga (Path of Knowledge or intellectual analysis), Rajayoga (Path of Meditation), and Bhaktiyoga (Path of Devotion to GOD). Hathayoga (Body-Mind exercises) makes all these practices efficient. The name given to a particular combination of these practices depends on the path that prominent.

In the later articles we shall describe each of the above path. However, it is necessary to understand two things. Firstly, before one takes up a practice, one should know the basics of that practice clearly. This is called Jnyana or Informative Knowledge. After obtaining the Informative Knowledge, one has to actually practice or lead a life according to the Knowledge.  This is called as Sadhana or Spiritual Practice. After sufficient Spiritual Practice, one gets Experiential Knowledge which is called Vijnyana.

Secondly, though all practices or paths are different in the initial stages of Spiritual Practice, nature of all practices becomes one towards the end of Spiritual Practice. That is a person who follows a Path of Selfless Work and reaches the Spiritual Realization, has already followed a path of Knowledge or any other path for that matter. Thus, a perfect Karmayogi is also a perfect Jnyanayogi, a perfect Bhaktiyogi, or perfect Rajayogi. They all mean the same at the end.

Neel Kulkarni, born in India, has studied Yoga in Classical Style for over 31 years and taught for over 24 years in many countries and to variety of audience. He completed his Health and Yoga studies in 1999, and opened his Yoga School, which gives many types of Yoga Classes including Hatha, Meditation, Chanting, Philosophy, and Sports. Neel holds B.S. and M.S. in Aerospace Engineering from an International Ivy League and has worked as Computer Consultant for 21 years in many countries.

 

Website Review by Dr. KEV
The International QiGong Academy of Amsterdam has online translations of,
and study groups for, Patanjali's Yoga Sutras.

 

Namaste,
Dr.KEV
yogaclass.com/

Find all the best yoga sites linked at: yogaclass.com/links.html
 

 

Pregnancy Yoga by Debbie Grossblatt
Yoga is for everybody and is now appearing everywhere. This is evident by looking at any yoga directory (e.g., www.YogaEverywhere.com on the web and seeing the tremendous number of classes being held in towns and cities across the USA . What is also interesting about this five thousand year old system of healing and self-transformation is the growth in the number and types of special classes for the diverse populations that are actively seeking the benefits of yoga. On any well-rounded class schedule, you may find yoga for children, teenagers, the over fifty population and gentle yoga for seniors to just name a few of the special population classes. This article focuses on one unique population because these students are not just doing yoga for themselves; they are also doing yoga for their unborn child. Pregnancy yoga offers benefits for the mother-to-be and the unborn child both physically and mentally.

Yoga is the perfect activity for pregnant women, and with proper modifications from a trained teacher, students can safely participate for the whole term and shortly after the delivery.  Reminder: Pregnant women should consult with their physician to make sure it is safe to participate in a yoga class or any form of exercise during their pregnancy.

Pregnancy yoga classes should include instruction on greater awareness, the usage of the breath, relaxation techniques and the use of gentle but specific postures to prepare the body for the extraordinary journey ahead. Sometimes overlooked, but very important, is the support that women experience by being in a group with other pregnant women. All of these yogic
tools will help women give birth without strain, resistance or fear. Yoga will help women to feel fit and strong, confident and well prepared as they enter this phase of their life.

In one small study involving Iyengar students, it was shown that the coping methods of these yoga practitioners were more active and varied than for the typical person and improved their physical, physiological and psychological well being. What tool could be better for an expectant mother than an increased ability to cope since her body is undergoing tremendous physical
changes within a nine-month period? Yoga provides that tool and more.

Just how does yoga work to prepare a woman for birth? According to Francoise Barbira Freedman and Doriel Hall who co-authored Yoga for Pregnancy, "The main focus is not on the birth itself. It is on your health and contentment, as your body undergoes many natural changes associated with pregnancy and birth. As the baby grows, yoga is used to strengthen, tone, make space and relax. There is specific training of the muscles involved in the birth. Deep
breathing and exercise increase their elasticity and allow these muscles to be pre-stretched. The student will learn to recognize, isolate and activate different muscle groups, so that they can be used more effectively during birth. The aim is to achieve a gentle birth through yoga practice. All of the parts of the body not involved in birthing are trained to remain relaxed. Control is focused, specific and internal. It results from yielding to, and engaging actively with the contractions."

Recently one of my students confirmed that knowledge of yogic breathing is essential to a peaceful birth. This student was not able to attend her scheduled Lamaze class because her baby decided to arrive early. So she used the yogic breathing techniques she learned from me to ease her way through the delivery. She personally thanked me for this unique tool that we had practiced in every class.

There is so much more to say about yoga and pregnancy but I would rather leave you a bit curious so you can find out for yourself. Seek out a competent and patient teacher who has been trained to understand the psychology and physiology of the process and has certification in pregnancy yoga so that he/she knows about the modifications and contraindications of
the postures. Also check that the studio is equipped to handle students for all three trimesters. Chairs, mats, bolsters, pillows and blankets that are found in fully equipped Iyengar studios are great for the practice of pregnancy yoga.

If you cannot locate a class in your area there are many excellent books and videotapes on the market to do a practice at home. I can recommend the book Yoga for Pregnancy by Freedman (see the quote in this article) and Yoga for Pregnancy by Sandra Jordan (available in the Lotus Boutique at our studio). For video enthusiasts, "Prenatal Yoga" with Shiva Rea shows you all three trimesters using three different models.  This video is absent of complex instructions but shows you what to do with great safety in mind.

Debbie has studied yoga since 1991 and is affiliated with Susquehanna Health and Wellness in Timonium, Md. She graduated from the Integrative Yoga Therapy teacher training in 1997 and interned with two local nursing homes and the International Association of Yoga Therapists in San Francisco. Her classes focus on precise biomechanical alignment, increased strength and
awareness as well as the management of stress.

 

Monthly Music Review, "Where Music and Silence Meet" by Paritosho

This month I recommend "The Essence" by Deva Premal. Learn more, listen to a sample track and to purchase "The Essence". By the way, it is Cher's favorite music for practicing yoga, and I promise, you will love it too. 

 

As founder and owner of www.prabhumusic.com Paritosho works to offer quality meditation and music CDs on the internet.  She is also a member of the management team for Deva Premal and Miten, two musicians bringing meditation and joy to their music.  In past years she has arranged tours for meditation and music.

 

April’s Pose contributed by Yoga Journal – Warrior Two Pose
Virabhadrasana II can help you experience the dual energies of being on your edge but in a state of calm and focused clarity.
 

 

Attention Yoga Students in LA that study with Megan

I am leaving SMY schedule beginning May 1^st. I have not found a new location to teach yet. I am available for private or semi-private yoga instruction currently, so if you have any ideas or would like to schedule classes in the greater Los Angeles / Santa Monica area please eMail me. I love you all and please stay in touch. Thank you for trusting me and honoring me with your presence. I will keep you posted on a new location when the time comes. Please continue your yoga practice. I will always be in your heart as you are in mine.  God Bless You, Megan

  

A Note from YogaEverywhere

Please know that we are graciously welcoming financial support from our viewers. Gary and I would love to build a few more sections in the website for you to use and enjoy.

 

Also please support our advertiser and teachers in our directory, classifed section and through out the YogaEverywhere site. With their interests and your generous support and attention, we can continue to circulate the Living Practice more easily and share yoga everywhere.

 

Let us give a warm welcome to the following yoga teachers joining YogaEverywhere’s Teacher Directory...

 

All Hearts Hatha Yoga with Carol Klammer,  in Norwich, CT

 

Purple Yoga Hawaii with Cathy Louise Broda and Glen Butcher,  in Honolulu, HI

 

Back Bay Yoga Studio,  in Boston, MA

 

Beacon Light Yoga of Boston, director Angelena Craig, in
Boston (Allston Village), MA

 

Viniyoga for Well Being with Michele Hoffman,   in St. Paul and Minneapolis, MN

The Yoga Room of Nashville with Nancy Kirkland , in Nashville TN

 

Namaste' Yoga & Chiropractic,  in Puyallup, WA 

 

Joy of Yoga Studio with Kelly Mcgrath, in  Montreal, Quebec, Canada

 

It is our intention to recognize the new teachers joining our directory and encourage you to visit them when you are in their neighborhood. After all, yoga is everywhere!

 

With love,

Megan, Gary and Rose