Winter's delight

Clear blue sky. An other day with people traveling to known and unknown destinations.

 The sun sets behind the horizon, gives rest to the northern hemisphere. Giving light and inspiration to all beings in the south.

 A beautiful deer, exploring the forest. Maybe looking for a place to sleep.

A winter's night with Kundalini yoga

I know that I promised to write about Pratyahara, but last week I attended a wonderful evening at a  Kundalini yoga centre here in Stockholm.  I just had to write something about that first!

The centre is situated on a small island. We could actually see ships passing by outside the window. Yes, even though it is winter in Sweden... : )

Surya Kriya

The class was working on invoking Surya, the Sun. Bringing light and creating heat in our practice- because it is winter, and we all could need a litte Light in our body and mind.

Heating and Cooling

All the asanas (physical yoga postures) we perform either have a heating or cooling function. We can also change the quality of an asana that normally would be heating by combining it with a cooling breath. That way it would become cooling. It is the same if we have a toning and cooling practice we can increase the heat by using a warming breath.

The pattern of an Asana practice

The usual pattern is that we first bring up the heat, to cleanse our body and mind, to reduce waste, change water and energize ourselves. Then we can finnish the practice with a more cooling and toning approach- to internalize the increased Prana and to build up and nourish the tissues and to create a stable and relaxed mind. Getting ready for meditation!

Of course there are certain practices that are more heating or cooling in their nature.
Therefor we should try to understand the effects of our Yoga practice and know what we can do to balance it, if needed!

Living in a place that is really cold in the winters combined with studying Ayurveda, makes me more aware of the heating and cooling aspects of food, yoga practice, life-style etc. It is more important than you might think!

Live music in Shavasana

We ended the heating Kundalini practice with some soothing music and Shavasana. We were blessed with a teacher who could truly sing.  The teacher played the guitar and sang the most beautiful mantras.

We were all were laying down and could just drift away, along with the sounds of the guitar and the teacher's voice. Once again I was reminded of the incredible power of music!

Sometimes it is easy to forget that it is all just about vibrations. We send them out, they are out there, and we receive vibrations. Harmonius music is a great gateway to open up the heart and mind.

Wish you all a happy weekend with lots of music and sunshine!