Shanti Peace

December 5, 2011 By Leave a Comment
BKS Iyengar

All thoughts, actions have a rippling effect. Thanks to the great minds of physics, the western world agrees with this ancient eastern concept.

Yogis, through practice, filter the body, mind, consciousness to come to states of peace.

Traditionally they offer these positive vibrations back out to the universe singing, “lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu. Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.” May all beings be happy, with joy and with no suffering. Om peace, peace, peace.

Recently, I heard Steven Pinker, Professor of Psychology at Harvard, present his recent book: The Better Angels of Our Nature. He states that we are living in the most peaceful and non-violent time in the history of humanity. Right away, I wanted to …. more about shanti and yoga…

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Yoga Enthusiasts Worldwide Honor Mr. Iyengar’s 93rd Birthday by Helping Bellur Villagers

December 4, 2011 By 2 Comments
Bellur schoolchildren

Mr. Iyengar will celebrate his 93rd birthday on Dec. 14, and his students around the world will be sending him congratulations and best wishes. A very special way to honor him is by supporting the charitable trust he established to shine a light on and to improve the lives of people in his home village of Bellur, India.

Three special events are being offered this month in Mr. Iyengar’s honor at Iyengar Yoga North County.

Well into the last decades of the 20th century Bellur remained a poor, underserved village, lacking even a school, despite its relatively close proximity to India’s ‘Silicon Valley’. In the Indian tradition of honoring one’s Mother Land, Mr. Iyengar began to assist the lives of people in his home community, particularly children.

In 1967 he built a primary school in memory of his parents, and in 2003 the Bellur Krishnamachar & Seshamma Smaraka Niddhi Trust was formed with a vision to serve the people of Bellur and also those in nearby villages with educational, social, health and cultural necessities. Several projects have been accomplished and more are underway. Learn more about the Bellur project…

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Teacher Profile: Pat McLoughlin

December 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Pat .2

The methodical, analytical science of approaching asana practice that is the foundation of Mr. Iyengar’s system first drew Pat McLoughlin to serious study of yoga. A teacher’s grace and inspiring confidence that Pat could go beyond what she felt were her personal boundaries opened her eyes to a path she discovered she wanted to follow.

And as she began to understand the deeper layers of Mr. Iyengar’s teaching and method she recognized that touching yoga’s real meaning – union of the Self with the Universal Spirit – wasn’t just an abstract dream or idea. The Iyengar system teaches tangible ways to get there, she says.

“For myself, culturing that practice of observation and the reflective quality in the mind has really helped me be less reactive to the stresses that come up in my life and to not be buffeted by whatever’s coming up.”.Read more about Pat’s journey…

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Yoga Helps Teens Manage Mood

December 1, 2011 By Leave a Comment
cobra pose

Have a teen sitting around gaming or texting all weekend? Wishing you could find something cool to captivate their attention? Or a young athlete looking to enhance their performance, focus, and energy? Are your kids asking for a workout that’s easy to learn, requires little equipment, and soothes the restless soul while toning the body? Yoga!

Yoga may help teens curb anxiety, be more resilient and effectively manage anger and fatigue, suggests a June 2011 study out of Harvard Medical School …. Read on about Young Teens Yoga…

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Indian Dance Performance to Benefit Bellur Trust

December 1, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Shalini Patnaik Mark your calendars for 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10 and join us at Iyengar Yoga North County for an evening of classical Odissi Indian dance benefitting the Bellur Trust. World-renowned dancers Shalini and Laboni Patnaik – “The Patnaik Sisters” will perform. Seating is limited so reserve your seats now.

“It’s a rare opportunity to see this dance style in such an intimate setting,” said Carolyn Belko, the director of the Center. “To be so close to the dancers and really see their facial gestures and how their body moves is a special treat.”

The technique of Odissi includes repeated use of the tribhangi, or thrice deflected posture, in which the body is bent in three places, approximating the shape of a helix. This posture and the characteristic shifting of the torso from side to side, make Odissi a difficult style to execute. When mastered, it is the epitome of fluid grace and has a distinctively lyrical quality that is very appealing. Read on about Odissi dance…

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It’s Such a Small World

December 1, 2011 By 1 Comment
[Rio Institute Puja blessing] From left: Nando Correa, Katia Dacosta, Faeq Biria, Antonio Tigre, Mariana Fortes

It’s always a pleasure to recognize connections in our vast but ultimately very small world. Iyengar Yoga of North County celebrates two connections with the recently opened Iyengar Yoga Institute of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Faeq Biria, director of the Iyengar Yoga Centre of Paris, and the renowned teacher of Carolyn Belko, traveled in late October to Brazil and performed a Puja blessing at the new Institute where he also supervises the teacher training program. Joining him there was fellow Center teacher Isabela Fortes, a native of Brazil who also is a student of S.F. Biria.

Isabela, one of the founding members of the Iyengar community in Brazil, said the Rio de Janeiro Institute opening culminates more than a decade of work to bring Iyengar yoga to Brazil. Now based in San Clemente, CA, Isabela will be a guest teacher twice a year at the Rio de Janeiro Institute.

You’ll find Isabela at IYNC substitute teaching occasionally for Carolyn in the upper level classes.

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