Volume 25, Issue 5, January - April 2014
I YASE: IYASE
Iyengar Yoga Association Southeast
IYENGAR YOGA A SSOCIATION
OF THE S OUTHEAST http://IYASE.org
FUTURE ARTICLES
PRESIDENT’S LETTER
you would like included in
Dear Members,
If you have information that future newsletters, please
It is with great joy that I take up the task of being the president of
send an E-mail to Newsletter
the Southeast association this year. We want to thank several out-
Chair, newsletter@iyase.org.
going members of our board for their many years of service. We
cannot thank Susan Marcus enough. Susan has been the board
RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP IN IYASE AND IYNAUS We encourage all members –
teachers and general members – to renew at IYNAUS.org. If
president for the past two years and she has given many years of
service to our region. Susan has also been instrumental in welcoming new board members and tutoring us along as we learned the ropes. We extend warm thanks to Karyl
you have questions contact
Tych, as well, for her years of service and support to our region and her continuing tuto-
internet access? Send in the
and Marilyn Rubin for their contributions to the board this past year. There are numerous
Membership@IYASE.org. No
rial support as we learn how to fill her post. We also extend our thanks to Dennis Walker
form on the last page.
definitions for the term seva, service. One that recently struck me comes from the Srimad
IYASE BOARD MEMBERS
Aretha McKinney Blevins president
president@iyase.org Chris O’Brien co - vice pres / website chair website@iyase.org Jann Boyer co - vice pres / membership chair membership@iyase.org Becky Estes secretary
secretary@iyase.org Jerry Farmer treasurer
treasurer@iyase.org Mary Ann Travis e - bulletin / pr chair pr@iyase.org Graham Williams
continuing education chair
workshops@iyase.org Rachel Mathenia newsletter chair
liason@iyase.org Tay Strauss
liason to the national board
scholarship@iyase.org Natasha Freeman co - membership chair pr@iyase.org Cassie O’Sullivan co - newsletter chair newsletter@iyase.org Lisa Waas co - membership chair workshops@iyase.org
Bhagavatam and reads ‘rendering service to saintly persons who make no distinctions
between one living being and another and who see every living being as a spirit soul.’ Mr. Iyengar embodies this definition of a saintly person and I know that I speak for the entire
board, past and present, when I say that it is with humility that we render service on the board as a way of extending our deep gratitude to Mr. Iyengar.
The Iyengar community in our region is continuing to grow and expand in great part to the support of our regional studios which hosted membership drives this fall. Membership
is the driving support behind our ability to provide scholarships and learning opportunities for students and teachers in our region. We want to thank the following teachers for
dedicating their time and energy in hosting workshops for our fall membership drive: Suzie Muchnik, Susan Marcus, Julia DeHoff, Jann Boyer, Chris O’Brien, Phyllis Rollins, Nichole
Baker, Rachel Mathenia and Graham Williams. Their depth of service is also greatly appreciated.
In addition to our successful membership drive we also hosted two workshops and broadened the scope of how we host workshops. We hosted our first co-sponsored workshop
with a regional studio this year and had great success. This is a model that we hope to continue to employ in the future and we encourage any studios that are interested in cosponsoring an event with us to be in touch.
We look forward to a wonderful year and hope to hear from you with your ideas and suggestions for how to make our regional association of better service to you!
Aretha McKinney Blevins, IYASE President Iyengar Yoga Centers of Nashville Nashville, TN
Iyengar Yoga Association: Southeast News
1
community spotlight students always surprise you by Tricia Amheiser
Not so long ago, a new student came to class. In talking at the end of class, I found out she was teaching yoga as part
basic poses (including shoulder stand) were possible with
what was there. I thought to myself, “Guruji did without even a mat when he began his yoga practice and these students don’t know what it’s like in a real Iyengar studio”.
of a wellness program in a women’s prison in the middle of
The students were eager to interact as I asked them about
ers, and some run by the inmates themselves.
one part of the prison we had an audience of “eyes” from
Florida. Some yoga classes were taught by outside teach-
Kelly Dann, my new student, invited me to teach. I knew it was something I wanted to be involved with straight away
and classes were due to start again at the beginning of June. I submitted my paperwork immediately and at the eleventh
injuries or problems, and they were all happy to be there. In non-participating inmates. The stares seemed as curious
as they were critical. I had to admit, if I were in their shoes, I would be wondering what would make someone want to come in there, too.
hour, we were “a go!” with not much time to process what I
Class started and I was as happy as I usually am when
than fictional representations of prison life. This was an
any other – almost. They were not used to coming close
was about to jump into. I had no idea what to expect other
I teach. They become a group of new students much like
entirely unique experience.
to observe the teacher demonstrating a particular action,
When I arrived, there was someone waiting at the entrance.
The staff processed my identification and checked everything that I brought in, including my yoga mat. I was issued a number and given a panic button – then I thought, “Here I go!”
The prison is a collection of low-rise buildings that seem to
stretch on without ending. There were barriers to the side barely seen in my peripheral vision. The buildings are func-
tional at best and there is a feeling of space without being pleasing in any way. The sky felt incredibly close and wide
as there were no obstacles to the line of sight; no trees, just fences of razor wire and cinderblock buildings. Inmates go
between buildings and communal areas in single file. The
or to adjusting the alignment of their feet. Many of these
women’s stories were tragic, but on the mat they were transcendent with each success.
Every class had “naughty students,” ones that were not concentrating or ones that wanted to be noticed. But then there were others who were notable by their presence
alone. An older lady had arthritic hands and knees but she kept on exercising. She said she was “in remission,” and I
was stunned by her energy and the depth of her practice. Another student, a younger lady, put herself in the back corner of the class. She was clearly nervous, yet was able to
achieve a lovely Chatoosh Padasana, gaining height at the hips and her chest vertical like an old pro.
areas where they group together did not necessarily have
There were some regulars in class, and some were just be-
where we taught, but they were noisy and not useful.
success can be based upon a letter Kelly read to the class
air-conditioning, and fans were available to use in the areas
The equipment was minimal: foam blocks, mats, some meditation cushions, but no straps. Some were donated,
and some supplied by a grant via another teacher, Anne
ginning their yoga experience. Evidence of the program’s from a former attendee. The student found a part of herself on the mat that inspired her to continue her practice on the outside, and now has plans to enter a teacher-training.
Gill, of Gainsville, FL, who is now an Iyengar teacher in
In teaching we aim to help the students to become more
dents and sometimes we had to be creative, but most of the
freedom they can achieve regardless of what surrounds
training. There were enough props to make do for the stu-
acquainted with themselves and to give them a taste of the Continued on page 10
2
I YAS E
asana column
our body and using that information wisely is how we prog-
SOLVING A COMPLEX AND ENGAGING PUZZLE
ress, on all levels, from the gross to the subtle.
by Sharon Conroy
While tracing the effects of each action I give my body hap-
As I said in an earlier article, after I
pens quite readily now, that certainly wasn’t the case in the
attended my first Iyengar class in
beginning when I was still struggling to establish a home
1986, it took me nearly two years to
practice. During that period, it was very difficult to even lo-
establish a home practice. Not long
cate the body part the teacher was asking me to find. And,
after that, I told John Schumacher
once I was able to do so, I was simply trying to create an
how helpful I was finding a particular action he’d taught in
action I’d been given in class- to confidently lift my inner
a workshop. “It sounds like you’ve discovered a missing
elbow in adho mukha svanasana or reliably roll the inner
puzzle piece” he replied. I liked his metaphor and adopted
knee to the outer in utthita trikonasana. It never occurred to
it as my own. When we practice a pose, whether at home
me to look for the effect of an action beyond the area where
or in class, we’re working to solve a fairly complex and very
it was taken. Only later, after years of practice, could I trace
engaging puzzle. As we search for an ideal alignment in any
the pathway an action took and see what effect it had in
pose, we are simultaneously working to resolve the eccen-
another part of my body. From my experience, that ability
tricities of our own body in that pose.
comes gradually as a practice matures.
There are times that a teacher in-
Guruji tells us that we “culture” bud-
troduces an action, and I know al-
dhi, the intelligence, through our prac-
most immediately that it’s an impor-
tice. Over time, we begin to see more
tant missing puzzle piece. At other
clearly. Then, with the help of smrti,
times, it’s not so clear. But, either
memory, we become able to puzzle
way, if I have faith in the process
of practicing and trust the teacher, then as a dedicated student, I need
out what actions will best serve us in
our efforts to move towards a more
Purvottonasana by Tricia Amheiser
to work with the action on my own to see whether it will be of benefit or not.
In the first 12 years of my practice, I was able to study at
RIMYI only three times. However, since 2005, I’ve been fortunate to study with the Iyengar family annually. Perhaps
the most important thing I’ve come to understand is Guruji’s desire for each of us to see how and where the actions we
give our body play out. When we remain blind to the effects of these actions, he says we’re working mechanically
and not learning. Year after year, I’ve heard Guruji make
this point in many different ways. And, when he sees his
body’s eccentricities.
ideal alignment and address our
In the early years, I was fortunate to have four senior teach-
ers come regularly to New Orleans to work with our bur-
geoning community: Gabriella Giubilaro, George Purvis,
John Schumacher, and Patricia Walden. They each had a strong practice, and I knew that I was being given excellent
clues. I could also see that my understanding of the poses was gradually increasing, and, at the same time, it was
very clear from the corrections I received where I needed to work.
senior students practice in what he considers a mechanical
In 1988, Gabriella spent a good bit of the week she was with
times, irritated, even angry. After 26 years of practice, I now
several blankets in dandasana. However, despite my ear-
way, he becomes, at times, very discouraged, and, at other
us trying to get me to lift the sacrum and take it in as I sat on
understand why. Seeing the effects of the actions we give
nest attempts to do what she told me, nothing moved. My
Iyengar Yoga Association: Southeast News
3
pelvis felt stuck. And, it worried me that I didn’t understand why. While I trusted that Gabriella saw clearly what I needed
to do, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t do what she asked. Every day, with
an encouraging thumb
on my sacrum, she would with increasing passion beg me to “Go up!! Go up
and in!!!” Like any excel-
lent Iyengar teacher, she Maha Mudra by Tricia Amheiser
was persistent.
When Gabriella departed, I had a bruise on my sacrum to remind me where to work and instructions to only practice
the concave stage of the seated forward bends until she
returned a year later. That was some of the best advice I’ve ever received from a teacher. Gabriella had given me the clues. Now, the work was mine.
Over the next year, working at the ropes as she had ad-
vised, I learned to lift the pelvis off the legs and make it upright in the utthita stage of seated forward bends. While
I was making progress, I still wondered why this movement of the pelvis forward was so hard for my body. I didn’t know, but I trusted the teachers with whom I studied and tried to follow their clues in my practice.
I began to work with Patricia in 1989, and while her corrections targeted the same area, she used different words.
For the first few years, she asked me again and again to
“take the inner thighs back.” Later, she began to ask me to “spread the skin below the buttocks, at the top of the back
thighs.” Although, I could see that my inner thighs were go-
ing forward and could feel that the skin at the top of the back thighs was not spreading, no matter how much I tried to change it using the actions she gave me, nothing happened.
an answer to this question. Then, one day in 1996, when I was simply going about my
daily life, I realized all at once that I gripped my buttocks. And, as I observed myself over the next several hours in
various activities, I saw that I gripped the buttocks not just
occasionally but all the time. It was something that I did unconsciously, a pattern my body had clearly adopted many
years before. In fact, gripping the buttocks is something that I can now see everyone in my family doing.
When I practiced later that day, I saw immediately that this
was a monumental discovery that could revolutionize every pose I practiced! If I gripped the buttocks full force, it was absolutely impossible to take the inner thighs back. After 10 years I finally understood why I could never implement the
excellent clues I’d been given by my teachers. I didn’t need
to DO something. Rather I needed to UNDO something! It had never occurred to me that the missing puzzle piece might be something I needed to avoid doing, to undo. Now
that I understood the source of my difficulties, how would I go about changing the situation? I felt inspired and couldn’t wait to get started.
When I consciously stopped gripping the buttocks full force,
I could easily take the inner thighs back. And, as I learned to
release the buttocks a little more, I could spread the skin at the back upper thighs from the inside out. Slowly but surely, my forward bends were changing.
And, my backbends were changing, too.
I’d always been corrected in backbends for pushing forward with the
groins and abdomen. And, while teachers often ask us to lengthen
the buttocks and take the tailbone
in as we’re moving into ustrasana
What was going on? My teachers had told me where I need-
or coming up into urdhva dha-
couldn’t I get this? I felt very frustrated. At the same time, I
overdo those actions, that for a long
ed to work. I was a dedicated student and practitioner. Why felt deeply connected to the Iyengar tradition, and I trusted
my teachers. Even though I felt a bit discouraged and uninspired, I continued my daily practice. What could I do to
change things? Another 6 years passed before I received
4
nurasana, it was so easy for me to
period of time, I worked with a block between my thighs. Could I keep the inner thighs and the block mov-
ing back, as I lengthened the but-
Sirsasana by Tricia Amheiser
I YAS E
tocks towards the legs and took the tailbone forward. With practice, I became able to maintain this double action, and
my poses improved. However, as I worked in this manner, I began to notice that my right foot almost always turned
out whenever I pushed up in urdhva dhanurasana. And, I remembered that I’d been corrected on this over the years
in classes. I tried using a block between my feet, but I never managed to get very far with that approach.
Then, I noticed something important. Now, that I wasn’t gripping my buttocks so tightly and was attending to them in ev-
ery pose I practiced, I could see that the right buttock bone was closer to the midline than the left. That was it! That was why the right foot turned out. Now, that I
I’m seeking, progress not perfection! Over the 26 years I’ve practiced, I’ve noticed two things. First, the most important unsolved parts of my body’s puzzle
are often the hardest for me to see and, once I do clearly see the problem, its solution is often found somewhere oth-
er than where it manifests. Second, it’s often something that I need to undo, rather than do, that will allow me to make
headway, to progress. And, while it takes time to learn “to do,” it can take even longer “to undo.” to abstain from whatever action is getting in the way of my progress. Although
seems to be easier to access initially than vairagya, as Guruji says they are equally important-
“A bird cannot fly with one wing. It needs
had some clarity about why the foot turned
two wings to fly. To reach the highest spiri-
out, I could try to find some actions that
tual goal, the two wings of yoga, abhyasa
would spread the right buttock bone and
and vairagya are essential.”
take it as far away from the spine as the left one.
Together, abhyasa and vairagya become
a critical double action, and, in his com-
For the past 18 years, I’ve explored a lot
mentary on Sutra 1.16, Guruji goes on to
of different ways to correct the imbalance.
say-“If through abhyasa we activate and
I scrub my feet apart in uttanasana, and other standing forward bends, to spread
the buttock bones, turning the volume up
purify our energy, through vairagya we
Lolasana by Tricia Amheiser
on the scrubbing action for the right side. In paschimottana-
sana, urdhva prasarita padasana, sirsasana, and sarvangasana, I often work with a strap on my ankles that keeps
my feet about 9’’ apart. On the right side, as the buttock
bone moves in towards the midline, the strap has a tendency to become slack. To spread the buttock bones evenly, I hit the ankles out into the strap, doing so more on the
right side. Also, about two years ago, I began to use an action that I’d been taught in Pune. I actively extend the inner
disentangle ourselves from involvement in
even the subtlest manifestations of the phenomenal world.
The creation of energy alone, without control or restraint, cannot lead to freedom.”
The senior teachers with whom I worked told me what I
needed to do. Their corrections were the “clues” that Geetaji talks about. They showed me what area of the body wasn’t
behaving properly, and the work of figuring out how to go about correcting the situation was mine.
and outer feet towards the toes. These actions intelligize
No one could do this work for me, and it took a long time to
tendency to hyperextend the knees as they take the back
unconsciously gripping the buttocks. And, I’ve worked an-
the inner foot forward, rather than just pressing it down, I
bring greater balance to the buttock bones by encouraging
reliably. Even though the right buttock bone is still closer
certainly a lot more work to do, I’m already enjoying the
My forwardbends are deeper and more balanced, and my
“I give you the clues, the work is yours!” How committed are
the whole leg and are particularly helpful in dealing with my
make any real headway. It took 10 years to see that I was
calf into the bone. I’ve also found that by actively extending
other 16 years, to release the buttocks more completely and
can keep the right foot down in urdhva dhanurasana more
the right one to move away from the midline. While there’s
to the midline than the left, I’m definitely making progress.
fruits of the practice.
backbends are more stable and aligned. And, that’s what
Continued on page 10
Iyengar Yoga Association: Southeast News
5
sutra column THE UNIQUENESS OF SAMADHI and the Path of Good Practice B y G ary J aeger Nothing in Yoga comes easily. Just as learning to do asana
an object of one’s inclination (I.39). We can know it’s de-
ing the point of yoga. In fact, the difficulties of coming to
free from its [turnings],” and that it “occurs when the mind
well requires a disciplined practice, so too does understandunderstand what yoga can really do for us far exceed the
difficulties of asana. This is the case, in part, because yoga
theory is abstruse. The Sutras themselves are nothing more
scribed as, “complete absorption of the mind when it is becomes just like a transparent jewel, taking the form of whatever object is placed before it, whether the object be
knower (grahitr), the instrument of knowledge (grahana), or
than short little clues, while the traditional commentaries
the object of knowledge (grahya) (I.4).”1 But understanding
terpret those clues. A greater difficulty, however, lies in the
a state of samadhi.
draw heavily on complicated philosophical systems to infact that samadhi, the end point of yoga, is an experience
unlike any other, and as such, what it’s like to be in a state
of samadhi cannot be explained by making comparisons to other experiences we have had.
To make this clear, consider a thought experiment designed
by the contemporary Australian philosopher Frank Jackson. Imagine for a moment that you’ve spent your whole life in
a black and white room and have never seen the color red. Let’s also imagine that while living in this room, you’ve studied everything there is to know about the science of color
perception. You understand red objects have certain sur-
face reflectance properties that appear red to color-sighted individuals, and red light has a certain frequency allowing
it to fall on a spectrum alongside other colors. You even understand red is more like orange than green, but you’ve
never had the experience of seeing red for yourself. Under these conditions, can you really know what it is like to see red?
Jackson’s point is not only that you can never really know something until you experience it. He also aims to show us
there is more to experience than just what can be explained in terms of physical or material facts.
Similar things can be said about the experience of being in samadhi. We can know from reading the Sutras, for in-
stance, that samadhi is reached by fixing one’s mind upon
6
all of this does not amount to knowing what it is like to be in
Patanjali’s explanation of samadhi is like Jackson’s thought experiment. It assumes there to be a dualism that distin-
guishes two different types of entities. For Jackson, taking his lead from the early modern French philosopher Rene Descartes, the salient distinction is between the physical
or material, and the men-
The sallient distinction for Patanjali ... is not between the material and mental, but rather between prakrti and purusa.
tal. The salient distinction
for Patanjali, who takes his
lead from Sankyha philosophy, is not between the material and mental, but rather
between prakrti and purusa.
Prakrti does include everything that is material, but it
also includes our individual consciousness (citta). Roughly, as Patanjali sees
it, citta is just a material apparatus for making sense
of the world, a world that is
also utterly material. Because citta is animated by purusa (or pure consciousness), we assume the two to be identical. This, however, is a big mistake.
It is such a big mistake that Patanjali identifies it as avidya or the type of spiritual ignorance which is the root of all affliction (II.4). Because prakrti involves all things sensuous,
I YAS E
and since we identify ourselves with our sensations, we
a process of uniting and disuniting. By focusing on each
and pleasures comprised of those sensations. Once we
finally, as Guruji explains in his commentary on the Sutras,
presume we are prakrti and are constituted by the pains identify with purusa, prakrti (and all the suffering that goes
along with it) become ‘other’ to who we really are.
Knowing this is all well and good, but it does not tell us
what it’s like to have consciousness that is free of all sensation and judgment. If this is so, why bother studying the sutras? For one, they can put us on the path of good prac-
tice that will eventually lead to the disuniting of purusa and
prakrti. Guruji has studied the sutras well and has set this
path down for us. His method, for instance, teaches us to
observe ourselves in asana and not just to perform asana.
This is a long way from samadhi, but nevertheless it is a type of training for it. We learn to focus our consciousness on the experience of doing the pose.
of these in turn, we make them ‘other’ to who we are until they are as one. It becomes clear that the differences
among grahitr, grahana, and grahya are superficial; they are all just prakrti. And it is not until we see the unity of prakrti that we can distinguish all that comprises it from purusa.
All of this is a long way off, but it reminds us of why we ought to be mindful in our practice.
Gary Jaeger Intermediate Junior 2 12South Yoga jaeger.gary@gmail.com
More precisely, this training teaches us that the path of good practice is both about joining together and cleaving
apart. As beginners, when we first come to asana, we tend to identify with the intense sensations caused by all the stretching and gripping. We make no distinction between
these sensations that assail us, and who we are as prac-
titioners. Learning to observe the body is a way of fixing
the mind onto the body, which then becomes an object of our knowledge (grahya). In coming to unite the mind and body in this way, however, we also come to realize that the mind and body must be distinguished before they can
be united. In making the body the object of our focus, we come to see it as something ‘other’ from us.
It might seem like once we come to realize the mind’s distinctness from the body, the process of disuniting is over
and the process of reuniting can commence. It only seems
this way, however, because of our western perspective. We have been taught by our philosophical and religious traditions to think in terms of mind and body. If we take up
Patanjali’s duality of purusa and prakrti, the path of good practice becomes much richer and more complex.
Not only must we focus on an object of knowledge, but
also in time we must learn to focus on the faculty of knowing, and finally on the mind itself. Each of these requires
2013 Assessment
CONGRATULATIONS on all of your hard work and dedication!
Introductory I Susan Brower, Susan Carter, Enrique Cayeiro, Helen Chandler, Carmen Coyle, Leanne Cusumano Roque, Marilee Dejacimo, Katy Groves, Gail Heaton, Holly Korab, Linda McReynolds, Inge Mula Myllerup-Brookhuis, Orli Rudolph, Lisa Waas Introductory II Joanne Boccassini, Julia DeHoff, Stephanie Foxman, Susan Friedman, Howison Hollenberg, Kathy Oshaughnessy, Marilyn Patton, Mary Ann Travis Intermediate Junior I Doerthe Braun, Casey Love, Rachel Mathenia, Tedrah Smothers
Iyengar Yoga Association: Southeast News
7
workshops 2014 Apr 11 - 13
Weekend Workshop with Manouso Manous Stillwater Yoga, Atlanta, GA (406) 607-9090 stillyoga@mindspring.com www.stillyoga.com
Apr 13 One Day Workshop With Linda Di Carlo Rosemary Court Yoga, Sarasota, FL (941) 952-5280 rosemarycourt@yahoo.com www.rosemarycourt.com Apr 25 - May 1 Gather at the River with Patricia Walden, Women’s Intensive for Advanced Practitioners St. Joseph’s Abbey, St. Benedict, LA (504) 331-0177 sharon@greatwhiteheron.net May 2 - 4 Weekend Workshop With Dean Lerner Studio OM, Jackson, MS (601) 209-6325 nicolebakeryoga@comcast.net www.studiomyogaofms.com May 16 - 18 Workshop for Teachers & Experienced Students with John Schumacher Unity Woods Yoga Center Berkley Springs, WV 301-656-8992 annick@unitywoods.com www.unitywoods.com May 16 - 19 Teacher Training With Past Certification Chair Mary Reilly The Yoga Center @ 8th Street Studio Charlotte, NC (704) 996-7460 atphyllis204@bellsouth.net www.8thstreetstudio.com May 16 - 18 Teacher Training Weekend with Rebecca Lerner Yoga Rose, Hallandale, FL (954) 456-6077 yogarosa@msn.com www.yogarosa.com
8
Aug 1 - 3 Weekend Workshop with Matthew Sanford One Center Yoga, Asheville, NC (828) 225-1904 sarah@onecenteryoga.com www.onecenteryoga.com Sept 5 - 7 Weekend Workshop With Mary Obendorfer and Eddy Marks One Center Yoga, Asheville, NC (828) 225-1904 sarah@onecenteryoga.com www.onecenteryoga.com Oct 3 - 5 Weekend Workshop With Simon Marrocco One Center Yoga, Asheville, NC (828) 225-1904 sarah@onecenteryoga.com www.onecenteryoga.com Oct 17 - 19 Teacher Training Weekend with Dean Lerner Yoga Rosa, Hallandale, FL (954) 456-6077 yogarosa@msn.com www.yogarosa.com Nov 6 - 9 Weekend Intensive with Gabriella Giubilaro Yoga Rosa, Hallandale, FL (954) 456-6077 yogarosa@msn.com www.yogarosa.com Nov 21 - 23 Weekend Workshop with Roger Cole One Center Yoga, Asheville, NC (828) 225-1904 sarah@onecenteryoga.com www.onecenteryoga.com
If you have workshops that you would like included in IYASE newsletters, please submit them through www.iyase.org. Scholarships are available for Continuing Education, Certification and study at Ramamani. Please visit iyase.org/scholarship/ or email scholarship@iyase.org
I YAS E
IYASE sponsored Introductory Level Teacher Training With Kathleen Pringle June 13-15, In Atlanta
The workshop is $250 for IYASE members. Early bird discount registration: send payment of $225 by June 1.
Materials To Be Covered The workshop will cover asana (poses) from the Introducto-
Highlighting a special segment in the next newsletter about your upcoming event. Newslet-
ters come out Fall, Spring and Summer.
Promoting the event on the IYASE website by featuring the workshop in a highlighted box on our events page.
ry I and Introductory II syllabi in the current IYNAUS Manual
Sending out an initial email blast
Beginners – A Preliminary Course and Basic Guidelines for
group announcing and promot-
and from Geeta S. and B.K.S. Iyengar’s Yoga in Action for
to our certified teachers mailing
Teachers of Yoga.
ing your workshop and scholar-
The sequences and instruction are designed to deepen
will then forward you the emails
your understanding of the basic actions of the poses in or-
der to enhance your own practice, prepare you to teach and hone your teaching skills.
About Kathleen Pringle Kathleen began practicing Iyengar Yoga in 1979 and started teaching in 1983. She was certified in 1990 and received her Intermediate Junior III level in 1993. She was upgraded
to Senior 1 by Guruji in 2012. In 1994, she moved to Atlanta and soon after was drafted by the IYNAUS board to join
ship opportunities for it. IYASE
that come to us expressing interest in your workshop. A ‘re-
minder’ follow up email blast will also be sent closer to the date of the event.
Offering a partial scholarship or full scholarship depending on available funds to an interested teacher who has limited
means. IYASE would review and select scholarship applicants.
The participating studio’s role in co-sponsoring:
them when a vacancy came up. Two years later she was
Include a discount-
Chair for a total of 6 years. She was elected in May 2007 by
ber registration fee’
served in that capacity for 4 more years. She is very grate-
crease membership
voted onto the board and served as IYNAUS Membership
ed
‘IYASE
the assessors to the post of Certification Coordinator and
helping IYASE to in-
ful to have been able to serve our community in this way.
and
highlight
rewards
For more information go to the workshop page: www.iyase.org
mem-
of
the
being
a member. IYASE then would be given the difference. (Ex-
co-sponsor a weekend workshop with iyase
ample: If the workshop was $250 for non-members and
IYASE and the Iyengar center of Nashville co-sponsored a
providing scholarships. The workshop split would be based
teacher training with Joan White last November, and it was a great success. Read the benefits below and consider cosponsoring a weekend workshop at your studio.
IYASE will aid in co-sponsoring by:
$200 for members, IYASE would get to retain the $50 difference from any non-member registrants to use towards
on the cost of the workshop for members at $200, so the $50 would be subtracted before the split was made as an ‘expense’ to be reimbursed to IYASE.)
IYASE would also be compensated as part of the traditional
Continued on page 10
Iyengar Yoga Association: Southeast News
9
continued from Asana Column
continued from Co-Sponsor a Weekend Workshop with IYASE
we to the process of practicing in the manner that Guruji
70/30 split, being given a minimum of 5% of the split. The
advises? Do we trace the effects of the actions we give our
body? Have we really confirmed in our own practice that
those actions are working to our benefit? And, if we find that they aren’t, are we curious enough to explore other pos-
sibilities, to find an action, another way of approaching a pose, that better meets our needs?
When we work this way not only does our body become
more aligned, but we transform the mind. As we search for the median line in each pose we practice and aim to resolve
our body’s eccentricities, there is no question that we are
moving along the path towards the ultimate goal Patanjali’s
split would be 70% (visiting teacher), 25% (host studio), 5% (IYASE- plus reimbursement for non-members). EXAMPLE SCENARIO:
$250 workshop for non-members / $200 for members 15 members register = $3000 7 non-members register = $1750 1 scholarship = $250 (paid for by IYASE) Total registration = $5000 Deduct airfare / room & board for teacher (ex: $500) and IYASE non–member fee (7 x $50 = $350) Total ($5000-$500(travel)-$250(non–member fee)) = $4150
Yoga Sutras tell us we can reach- citta vrtti nirodhah. While I can’t imagine anything I’d rather be doing, as I travel yoga’s path, I try to remind myself often that progress takes time.
continued from Community Spotlight
I.14 sa tu dirghakala nairantarya satkara asevitah drdhab-
them. It feels a bit odd re-reading that last sentence, as I
dation for restraining the fluctuations).
I sense they can access a morsel of emancipation. And,
humih (Long, uninterrupted, alert practice is the firm founI also find it’s important to remind myself of what traits Pa-
don’t know and do not want to be in a position to know – but that is no different for them than it is for me.
tanjali tells us will help us persist in this endeavor.
I am left with surprise and happiness at the warmth of the
I.20 sraddha virya smrti samadhiprajna purvakah itaresam
ting hugs and entreaties to come back. Some stories are
(Practice must be pursued with trust, confidence, vigour, keen memory, and power of absorption to break this spiritual complacency).
Sraddha is trust, faith, confidence. It derives from the same root as hrdaya, the heart, and Guruji says it is intuitional.
Virya is vigour, physical and moral strength, the hero’s
courage. Smrti is memory, recollection. Samadhi is putting
together, meditation, devotion. Prajna is awareness, the
ability to see things as they really are. These five traits, these ways of being, with ourselves and our practice, are
what Guruji calls “yoga vitamins,“ essential supplements we
should each aim to ingest on a daily basis, to integrate into
our lives. And, as we become more proficient at doing so,
not only does it become easier to access each trait, but our understanding of each one gradually deepens along with our overall practice.
Sharon Conroy founded the Iyengar community in New Orleans and is certified at the Intermediate Junior III level. Her email is Sharon@ greatwhiteheron.net.
10
ladies in class. By the end of my brief stint there, I was get-
heartbreaking. But, through the yoga, these women can gain self-knowledge and that’s a liberating thing.
IYASE MISSION STATEMENT
The purpose of IYASE is to build community and facilitate the learning and teaching of yoga based on the teachings and philosophy of B.K.S. Iyengar. We currently do this by: 1. Information dissemination: Newsletters distributed three times a year to members and maintenance of internet presence via both a web site (iyase.org) and the mailing of e-bulletins (e-mails to members and others who opt in). 2. Two Continuing Education Workshops per year within our region. 3. A Scholarship program that includes awards for (1) participation in IYASE Continuing Education, (2) expenses associated with going through the Iyengar Yoga Teacher certification process, and (3) studying at RIMYI. 4. Maintaining the Lotus Fellowship Fund, created in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, that now provides IYASE a discretionary means by which to contribute immediate financial assistance to members in times of serious need.
I YAS E
I YASE
IYENGAR YOGA ASSOCIATION
OF THE S OUTHEAST http://IYASE.org
** We encourage everyone to join or renew through IYNAUS (www.iynaus.org). ** Teachers at Introductory I level and higher are required to renew through IYNAUS. ** This hardcopy registration is retained as a courtesy to those without access to the internet. ** $60 Membership dues are applied for the calendar year. ** Registration between July 1 & Oct 1, $30 for the calendar year. ** Registration after Oct 1st is $60, applied to the next calendar year.