March Equinox 2010 yoga

Yoga means union. Hatha yoga prepares for meditation with position, breath, and flowing transitions.

This is your yoga. You start with strengths and weaknesses. Ability and blocks. Your yoga path to wholeness is unique. Respect it. Your way might vary from the teacher or anyone else present. I'll show you my way; you find and go your way.

Three stages in each pose

1. First is to envision the pose and how you intend to manifest it: the steps and the goal.
2. Second is to do it, to take the position.
3. Third is to attain the benefit. You identify and release any tensions that aren't required for the pose. You let go and give it up, relaxing so that the pose seems to hold itself, a moment or more out of time. With each breath in you gain strength. With each breath out you could find yourself stretching, bending, reaching a little farther into the pose. Mind clears.

When ending, even if you lose your balance, see if you can return to the starting position (or the next position) slowly, mindfully, with grace and poise.

List of poses

Seated

1. Roll neck. Eight angles clockwise. Keep looking and facing forward. Bend neck forward, hold, and return to center. Repeat the bend/holds at and between the hours of 12, 3, 6, 9, and back to 12. When finished, pause before repeating bend/hold between 12 and 9, then rotating counterclockwise slowly. Allow time to feel the stretch of each angle, the pain of tension and possible relief at letting go.

Standing

2. Stand. Center skull well over spine. Balancing hips over feet, bones hold the upright position. Much muscle tension can be released. Previous meditation sessions gave a good intro to qigong standing. I'd like to add the dynamic center concept. If pushed from any direction, you won't jerk. In other words you are always ready for potential movement and never really stop. You are poised in motion equally ready for any change.
3. Align with a line of force from nadir at center of earth to zenith overhead. Picture a shoebox around each foot. From within, focus awareness on the corners of each simultaneously: upper left, upper right, lower right, lower left. I learned this as an Alexander technique, where head leads. From center, hara, perform clockwise rotation of entire column. Feel in each foot, then knees, hips, navel, heart, top of head. When smooth, raise hands for three more rotations. Pause and rotate counterclockwise.
4. Shimmy tingle shake it up, trying to keep every part in motion. Start as wild, big and loud as can be. Gradually refine motions to fine vibes, yet everything still shimmer simmering. Finish in stillness, stop.
5. Balance in Tree or Eagle or toe stand. Optional.
6. Twist, wrapping hands and arms around your body, first to right and then to left. Optional.
7. Bend sideways from waist, extending right arm down to right side, raising left arm up over head, keeping all movement in the sideways plane, neither forward nor back. After a few breaths, slowly return left arm down to side as body straightens up. Repeat to the left side.

Seated

8. Chant AouM. MuoA.
9. Tense and release. Starting with feet, curl toes, bend arches, contract calf muscles, and continue holding each part of your body firm on up: knees, thighs, hips, abs, back, shoulders, arms, wrists, hands clenched. Contract your neck and especially squeeze your face, eyes, mouth together. Then gradually let go from the inside out.
10. Rotate foot from ankle with right leg raised. Reverse direction. Repeat rotations with left leg raised. Raise both legs and rotate both feet clockwise five times and counterclockwise five times.
11. Breath with alternate nostrils. Raise right hand to forehead placing index and center fingers between eyebrows over inner eye. Breathe in and hold. Little and ring fingers press on left nostril, closing it as with right nostril breathe out, pause, breathe in and hold. Release left nostril fingers as press thumb to right nostril, closing it as with left nostril breathe out, pause, and breathe in. Hold and repeat the alternations as long as need be.

Standing

12. Aura gong. Down ... up pop.
13. Reach hands in back of waist, thumbs down, fingers touching middle of backbone. Keeping lower body erect, from hips bend forward with back arched, head up.
14. Let arms fall, dangle until hanging loosely before slowly returning to standing position.

Grounding

15. Sit down on ground, bending legs in front, ankles together, moving knees apart until soles of feet meet in prayer position. Keeping torso erect, straighten arms, reaching hands to encircle feet. Let thighs and calves release, allowing knees to float down. If desired, raise and lower knees moving legs as wings of a butterfly.
16. Child moves arms back and down to the floor, while drawing knees together, pushing head forward to kneel. Point toes backward, rounding back and bending head near the floor.
17. Raise up on knees, clasping hands straight-armed in back. Lift hands. Arch back.
18. Release and arc hands forward and up to prayer position above. Lean back and hold. Forward and hold.
19. Jump up with a push from hands on the floor.

See also Season and 12 solstices and equinoxes. Back to March equinox 2010 schedule.