rigorouse austerities

"Exceptional mental capabilities may be achieved through genetic inheritance, the use of herbs as prescribed in the sacred texts, recitation of incantations, rigorous austerities and through that state of mind which remains one with its object without distractions (samadhi)." 4.1 Desikachar translation

Iyengar translation of sutra 4.1: "Accomplishments may be attained through birth, the use of herbs, incantations, self-discipline or samhadi."
Iyengar specifies that this is about different means of spiritual accomplishment.

Well my well-being in the world is contingent on my spiritual growth. So this is an important sutra to me personally. I don't think I'm genetically more capable than anyone else to pursue a spiritual life. Then again this disease, I genetically inherited, made me reach a bottom in self-reliance pretty quick, so maybe thats a sort of genetic predisposition?! First good thing ever about this crappy disease. The use of herbs... just the thought scares me so much I move to the next part of the sentence. Recitations and rigorous austerities seems to be the way for me. Not, that I have any power in myself to "be" rigorouse, but since I've just showed up on the path, I seem to be given "rigorous austerities" in my everyday by my greater power. In no way, does it become a rigid path, but a frame of stability in my practice, that grant me so many gifts, working meditation, prayer, contemplation, yoga-asana-practice, inventory (yamas and niyamas) in my every morning, my every evening and precious contact to a loving fellow-journey-mates in between, just makes a jenni-variant of rigorous austerity happen in my life. Grateful for this.

This week I'm moved to adjust asana using breath - I seem to correct too much when I think "muscle power". As a teacher give room and place for working towards moving with conscious contact to the inner body. I've started to read mr. Iyengars book "light on life" and was inspired here. I love how my master starts us up in sitting pose, and when the body is seated, he says "now, wait for the inner body to settle" It makes so much sense and is a very concrete experience for me.
Namasté
Jenni

espresso asana experience!

90 days "with asanas on a chair" celebration!!
soo what did it bring to the celebration?
I found out that I mostly just did preparation work for kapotasana but I never aimed to reach a certain variant of this pose, or even start to pursue it. From day one, it started out as a "follow up" from this summers intense yoga-work. I had troubles breathing (at the Orvieto retreat)with ease and in several other poses fought with stiffness in my shoulders. Soo, this was my motivation to start. To loosen up in shoulders and get to breath in the chair-variant of this pose...
But
I had only done it for a week or two before I noticed it had kind of an espresso-effect to me - it wakes me up! And it's reliable. If I don't have energy to do my daily practice I can always convince me to lay in kapotasana on a chair - and when I come out of it - I'm in "bring it on" mood :-)
Another great benefit is that I found out how much my ribs "sack together" in my ordinary work-life. Like an accordion that nobody played on :-( so vitalizing and pure melody was created through the kapotasana with chair pose - some days I even felt my abdominal muscles stretch - I didn't think that was possible!!!! I mean, pregnancies no strength what so ever...
I became longer, lighter and more straight out of this practice!

To take care of my back, I used a pillow, especially when I did the asana as the first thing in the morning practice, or when I was tired and had -not a back pain- but something in that direction. The asana was most suited for me, to do in the afternoon and after a "warm up", not as the very first thing. But I got too awake to do it as part of my practice in the evening, so many days I did the kapotasana on chair, when I got home from work, and than my practice later in the evening.
It was the perfect thing to start out with, with the tiny exception that my back was.. well let's call it overwhelmed. To do this I started with just laying still with my arms straight and a bit hanging, and after a minute -when my breathing is smoothe and easy- I reach for the little "plank" between the feet of the chair. Grabbing this plank is an "oh-have mercy" moment - but this is part of being set-free, for me.

I can highly recommend anyone to go ahead and use the chair as a tool in the hunt for clear perception and deepening experience on the way through change to freedom :-)
love jenni

The body, mind and soul are one

Sutra 2.46 "Asana must have the dual qualities of alertness and relaxation." (Desikachar translation) I’m given the understanding that sthira can be understood as; alertness, firm, steady (without tension) and sukha can be understood as ease, delight or relaxation (without dullness or heaviness). So I’m given a guideline to my asana work. Sthira points in the direction of sneaking up on my limitations and enjoying the steadiness as a gift, not as me doing it. When I try to produce stability it often turns into rigidity… addiction to habits (unflexible, one form as the only right one). Asana lets me experience that stability is already there and I just have to show up alert. Sukha points me towards the peace and ease there is to experience when I am in this stability and firmness. Sometimes I find myself clinching my teethes even though it makes no difference what so ever for the asana, except my attitude gets (or is) locked and hostile (remember driving a car for the first time, my shoulders wore sour and my face...).

I experience in this sutra-work, that asana often can be replaced with “my actions in life”, and thereby I can apply the wisdom of the sutras on every action that is in my life. And now I have a guideline for actions in Jennis life :-)

Iyengars translation; "Asana is perfect firmness of body, steadiness of intelligence and benevolence of spirit." He writes that this sutra is the "how" asanas should be "understood, practised and experienced."
Asana "should be done with a feeling of firmness in the body; goodwill in the intelligence in the head, and awareness and delight in the intelligence of the heart"
One way I experience this is that my joints are still, my thoughtlife is loving and accepting of whatever experience I have in the sutra, including my non-ability at certain times. And when I experience the stillness, firmness and my mind is loving and tolerant then there is very little noise from the ego :-) and the awareness and delight of the heart (that I suspekt is always present) can be experienced.

Iyengar continues; "when this is done a rythmic flow of energy and awareness is experienced evenly ...throughout... the body". I can relate to this from two very different experiences. When I work the sun salutations, I sense this rhythmic flow and being full of awareness and feeling complete, whole. This is a very dynamic, rhythmic experience, but I have the same experience when I do a sitting, sometime I experience this rhythmic flow throughout all of me, and sense of being complete and… “getting together” or with Iyengars words: "A pure state of joy is felt in the cells and the mind. The body, mind and soul are one."
This week the balance between sukha and sthira is my working guideline.
I will be travelling for some time (taking part of a yoga-teachers retreat) so I will write the next couple of sutras in hand and transfer them to you when I get back. Maybe I can get one more online before leaving, maybe not :-)
Love, kindliness, tolerance and light
Namasté
Jenni

observing with awareness

2.13
Ok
So they have slightly different take on this one… Iyengar connects the sutra with the teaching of karma – what you send out you get back, and he writes about past and future lifetimes. Bouanchaud digs into the self-observation, he talks about how to get free, from this circle (the karma-circle that Iyengar focuses on, as I read the text). In my reading, Desikachar clarifies; why to do yoga, or the promises of yoga, my motivation for even attempting to work with self-observation. “As long as the obstacles prevail, they will affect action in every respect- in its execution, duration and consequences.” In “home made easy karma-language” as long as you keep doing what you don’t like (actions influenced by obstacles) you will be doing what you don’t like. Hmm, probably to tired to write stuff like that. But this is the beauty of it all, to me. To just write this, even though I’m tired, there is not much “pride” to get by putting my name on the text written when I’m tired. But there is loads of possibilities for self-observance to get, by seeing me write in different moods and wants.

I love that Bouanchaud asks us to consider how the action we’re about to take might affect my quality of existence, my perception and how I spend my time and pleasure in my daily life.
It’s a lucky day if I have time to consider this before every action :-) But that is probably not the idea. Nothing would get done.
I’ve been listening to a guide, he talks about awareness, if we use the power to be aware instead of the thinking, when we do the observation, another kind of truth will avail itself to us.
Maybe this is what Bouanchaud means when he writes that we analyze events “by observing them as we live them”. It’s all happening in the now.
Love and Namasté
Jenni

awareness into every asana

2.10
Desikachar: “When the obstacles do not seem to be present, it is important to be vigilant.”
Vigilant, according to Webster: “alertly watchful especially to avoid danger” so this reminds me of my spiritual suggestion of “It’s not what I don’t know that will kill me, it’s knowing something for sure that just isn’t right…” But it also set free the power of alertness (sthira) that I’m given, to work in any situation, to train it! Not only when danger is present, but also when every obstacle seems to have been removed. I wonder what I might find. It reminds me of serendipity – the art of unsought finding – curiosity of what I might find, if I’m as alert when there is no special focus and direction on the alertness, as when I have a focus (the bear in front of me:) This gives me the focus on “sthira” alertness, awareness, firmness. It confirms me to keep on with my self inquiry practice, that sometimes can seem to be about petty-crap (sorry) but the little flame needs to be put out on a daily basis, so that I can do it with a glass of water, and don’t need to call the fire department (thanks Bouanchaud for that metaphor).
In yoga, I get to feel the magic of awareness at another level, when I’m not in the big Ardha Chandrasana and perhaps only move my arm up and down. A conscious contact is revealed in the awareness. Sometime I would love to explore the difference between conscious and aware.
And I bring Casal and Bach to yoga-class this weekend.

Iyengar: “Subtle afflictions are to be minimized and eradicated by a process of involution.”
Bouanchaud: “Recognizing inherent impulses eliminates the causes of suffering at a subtle level.”

clear, bright and steady (1.34)

“The mind also attains serenity through prolonged exhalation and holding the breath.”
The first question I always ask me is: Is this my experience?
And here I have to go with Yes! If my mind is really messed up I add a sound to my exhalation(not positive phrases, never really been my thing). I recognize my truth in the words “An agitated mind disturbs breathing. Calming the breathing process, therefore, can quiet the mind.”
I have a grounding feeling in my exhalation, and grounding has a quality of peace to me.
I’ve heard, that serenity means having one thought at a time :-) which I can relate to… In Merriam Webster’s definition, serenity has qualities of clear, bright and steady. It sounds like a description of ujjayi breath, or the yoga breath (wonder what you call it in English…) to me, or a good headstand or when a pose transcends just doing it and… becomes. Clear, bright and steady.

Bouanchaud writes that traditionally the exhalation and suspending breath after exhalation symbolizes humility and sacrifice. Yes, I recognize this as well. It’s been a helpful (living prayer) to unclench my claws of attachments – to let go into the exhalation, and experiencing the rich filled emptiness afterwards – humbling in the best of ways. And “I” don’t have to do it – if “I” wait long enough it gets done through me :-)

So, for the classes I plan to focus on clear, bright and steady. Through focusing on breath, especially exhalation and suspending breath after exhalation. Beauty!
Namasté
Jenni Saunte

Christine on sutra 1.34
Kate on the sutra...

one asana at a time, one breath at a time 1.32

(in my bed – slowly lightening up in body and mind :-)
Ok, god morning again :-) Obstacles will show up, but this sutra promises me that they don’t have to fill up the whole horizon. It reminds me, of my favourite practice! To take one thing at a time, one breath at a time. My kids have heard me say it, so many times, they are now telling me; “mom, we can only do one thing at a time” – I just love that!
I actually consider myself to be really good at multitasking; it’s the kind of game that stimulates the inner logistic structuralist in me… But I get to see how every structure I build carries its own destruction in itself.
I go crazy trying to do more than one thing at a time, for a longer time. Especially if it’s things from different areas in my life – like reading a theoretical text, while making dinner and pretending to look at what my youngest daughter has to show me – man!!! I just go nuts (irritated and controlling). Today, I usually don’t do any kind of work after picking up the kids and to they are in bed. For me that’s practicing one thing at a time.
A friend offered me the idea, to meditate on whatever I was doing, adding a mantra and offering my full attention to it(pure yoga I guess :-). So, when I was bicycling my mantra was kind of: “I’m bicycling, I’m bicycling, this is it, it feels like this, I’m in it right now, like this, bicycling” and I did that, as often as I remembered. It was amusing, but I got tired as well.
No thoughts, what so ever, is a true blessing!!!
This is also how teaching yoga is for me. I almost always have an idea and a plan what we’re gonna do, but when I start to teach I forget everything else and I am fully present in whatever asana we unfold. So for me this asana reminds me to let go of past, future and be right here and now – paying full attention and awareness (sthira) to one asana at a time, one breath at a time.
It all fit! I just took a lovely class at a friend and I was so grateful to get to have time to connect in every movement, especially in the start – so this I want to pass on :-)
Christine on sutra 1.32
Dharmayoga on sutra 1.32...
Namasté
Jenni Saunte

freeing power of yoga, the search for being at ease, flow in the breathing

1.31
So, last week I celebrated, with my students 30 weeks anniversary with the sutras – wow! these weeks just floated by in a wild tempo….
Bouanchaud writes that many people come to yoga to free themselves from suffering. This sentence becomes, for me, some days yoga is freeing me from suffering, body and mind, yoga get to symbolize conscious contact with a greater perspective and an opportunity to practice “let go” and surrender.
This sutra tells me, that the symptoms that tell me, there is an inner obstacle, are (again I put Desikachar/Bouanchaud, since I get rich by using both their translations):
- mental discomfort/suffering
- negative thinking/depression
- inability to be at ease in different body postures/physical restlessness
- difficulty in controlling ones breath/disturbed breathing, mental dispersion
Desikachar makes it clear to me that now I have the obstacles and the symptoms, we are moving towards the answer yoga has to offer to me.
Personally I relate and recognize to them all, right now it’s dispersion, having so many fantastic projects in my life, that I sometimes... well my awareness is spread out. Choosing yoga, prayer and meditation first makes everything else into a loving proportion, and helps me focus.
To my teaching, this tells me, that the student that shows these symptoms may gain even more by his or hers yoga. Since awareness can set us free. I don’t see me as a therapist in any way however. I think yoga can support healing for them, but outside help is a fine contribution. I’m kind of “pro hospital -for the broken legs-teacher"! :-)
I’m inspired to do classes about the detaching, freeing power of yoga and about breath – the search for being at ease in all postures. Soo a little swing, and a little roll and rotate might support the freeing powers, and focusing on gravity might support the letting go – detachment, vairagya. And always getting into the sense of flow in the breathing, to get to experience “being at ease – sukha”
Read Dharmayoga on sutra 1.31 here!
and christine...
Namasté
Jenni Saunte

the God sutras...

Namasté
I’ve had some problems writing about the sutras the last two weeks. Of the 196 sutras, I’m now at the place where God is mentioned. (ca.7sutras…) So instead of just giving up completely, I give you one of my other inspirations these days, Edward De Bono: "You cannot dig a hole in a different place by digging the same hole deeper" I like this; I recognize some of my more futile attempts to change :-)
In yoga we have been working with awareness and serenity.
And I’ve found a new place I love, for yoga in cph: www.koebenhavnsyoga.dk
I’ve hold some courses there and I find it to be a great, peaceful place for yoga.
Namasté to you all
Jenni Saunte

This week...awareness

Last week was all about “letting go”, vairagya, we worked with it by working us into the poses and than surrendering into what is and how it felt.
The classes were good for me. I prioritized to take extra time to the ending relaxation and took my students on a “letting go- mountain journey”, it was nice. The 15th sutra told me that; “At the highest level there is an absence of any cravings, either for the fulfillment of the senses or for extraordinary experiences”. It was rewarding to se that spiritual pride is just as big an ego booster as “I’ve got the biggest car…” is.
This week sutra 16 tells me that; “When an individual has achieved complete understanding of his true self, he will no longer be disturbed by distracting influences within and around him”. What a great promise!!!
And I recognize my truth. So we will work with sthira, (awareness, awakening, stability and steadiness). By focusing on what is, I often have received the gift of connection to my inner truth and distance from outside- and inside- “stories”.
Breath, heart and spine – keeping it simple, that’s my take on this.
Namasté
Jenni Saunte

steadiness and I'm soo free!!!

Before I write about my “sutra-work” I want to state that cleaning up the past, making amends, is a major freedom-maker!!! Yes what a relief! Big kick today.
I get to look at what a long time daily practice does for me with sutra 14, it says that; “(the state of yoga-serenity, peace) can be reached by longtime correct practice, without interruptions, with a positive attitude and eagerness.”
I ask myself is this my experience, yes it is :-)
I get to discover how a longtime daily practice has built an inner perspective that puts everything else in right proportions. I don’t feel like I’m the one doing it though… I’ve tried so many times to get a stable daily meditation/yoga practice, and always failed. This time (now for 4 years) I’ve stopped looking up, thinking that I’m the one doing this, I’m just the one showing up on the mat. I don’t think to much about how long this will continue, I just look at today. One of my teachers tells me, that just like the body cannot live from food it eat last week or could eat tomorrow, the spirit (or consciousness if you want) cannot live of practice done yesterday or tomorrow…
I like that; it’s so tangible that I get it.

I work with “sthira” the principle of steadiness, awareness and perseverance in every asana, exploring this concepts in micro-form, the asana to get to know more about the macro-form; life…me… the world, lets be ambitious!!! :-)
Namasté
Jenni Saunte

humming bird

I’m so grateful for my strong back. It carries me safely (I am safe and protected) into the big backbends and I’m not a kid any longer. This morning I woke up with a weird feeling, a pain, in my body. I went to a yogaclass at a friends place (Hamsa) I usually don’t have much time to take classes, just give classes and minding my daily practice, but today I needed to fill up. It was nice, I tried to move on with my day afterwards, but my body stopped me; telling me to pay attention. So I did. It was summing, or humming filled with presence, life. Nothing should be altered or changed, just some stillness and experience of the moment.
We have made a new blog to this semesters course-project in “knowledge management” I’m so glad to work together with two students this semester, it’s a lot of fun and play.
My head is filled with ideas for the summer-retreat and also some ideas for the event about being new – Easter Monday.
Namasté
Jenni

Classes

This week, my classes have been more “pedagogically correct”. I mean, I’ve looked at what we’ve been doing and followed up on some asanas and adding whats missing. But there was a theme of different kinds of sun salutations, another was hips and flexibility. But my favourite was yesterday, I let my colleague decide what my theme was going to be, she told me to work with feminine and masculine attitudes towards the asanas.
I found that I connect the masculine with the principle of abhyasa and the feminine with the principles of vairagya. More on, I found that I somehow connects the masculine with the inhalation (the active force) and the feminine with the exhalation (the passive force). I haven’t got a clue about this. I haven’t used the thoughts of masculine and feminine since I studied “bodymind” with my masters. I have to search books, friends and colleagues to see how they do it, what do you think?
I can clearly see how much integrity and attitude work there’s going on in my classes! It’s beautiful! The hunched old lady that is so much into her breath that she finishes her asana far behind all the others, but everyone loves to get to do stuff in their own time, following their own breath, it was beautiful! So much accept of the self and the other “selves” in the same room. It was a good to see how aware we all became of our own attitudes and what effect they have on us. How our attitude forms the reality that we sense. I think there is more for me to get there!

Serendipity and yoga

I think that “unsought findings” is one of the great promises in yoga. Since yoga work so much with the present and with awareness (sthira) we are bound to find something. Maybe that’s the essence of body consciousness, the sum of unexpressed knowledge and the unsought findings?
I find so many new experiences by working with yoga, when I succeed in letting go of my ambitions, my “I want”, my evaluations “I mean/this means” and my expectations “I cannot”.
When I surrender to the next inhalation or exhalation, I truly find experiences in myself I never knew existed. Get to the matter, an example. Some years ago, I played with my sense of moving my back muscles standing upside down, I suddenly found that; in order to lift my legs calmly up in any variation of a headstand; I use my but as a counterweight to my legs. I didn’t set out to find this, but it was there. Every yoga practise gives me unsought findings, in myself, my body (anatomy and physiology), my spirit, philosophy and life. And many of these findings/experiences can be applied to completely other parts of my life. Love it when one part of my life can enrich another or in this case give me some words to explain my experience.

Motorbikes, yoga and spiritual unity!!!

Some of my first lessons, of being in the present, I learnt by driving two wheels.
The goal can only temporary be in my mind, most of the driving, (traveling) I have to be 100% here and now. Pure yoga!
This was some valuable lessons in awareness (sthira), to keep my eyes on the road, the sense of the wind (all the calculations of when and where the surprises would/could come), the feeling of the engine. Yes, riding was a god lecture. Mainly, the journey is the goal, which brings me back to yoga (gets me thinking of the first 4 sutras of Patanjali). How great to have a vehicle that can tilt!! How great to ride a vehicle that demands so much of its driver, so the driver has to be here and now. Usually these things annoy me, but now I can see the greatness. It’s with pleasure I tell my students to be thankful for the hurting feeling in the scalp(hihi), when they learn to stand in a headstand, it’s good for you, it talks to you, you are supposed to respect and listen to this feeling ;)
Hope to learn this thing in other parts of my life! Isn’t it great, when totally different parts of your life melts together, and gives unity! I love it.