Sunrise, Support, and the Spine: Teaching Yoga on the Grassy Knoll: January 4, 2021

The unconditional support of a yoga practice is as dependable as the rising sun. Thank you, thank you.

I'm living less these days in my nervous system, and more with my full body. With just a slight shift of attention to my whole spine, I feel access to more information, because, after all, the brain and spinal cord that make up the nervous system are just a part of the entire spine.

Expansive awareness. Life is feeling like more than just my nervous tension. And for the first time in a very long time, I'm feeling like life's more than my anxiety disorder.

Of course I have moments. And I"m sure there will be more. But this self imposed definition of myself, bestowed rather proudly, by the way, is such a cop-out, you know. It reeks of entitlement, and is an excuse for moments of bad behavior.

In truth these outbusrts are approximately 10% anxiety and 90% to Hell With It All. While I’ve achieved some mastery over anxiety, part of me clings to it as a way to feel safe, ironically. Believe me, in moments of high strung-ness nobody wants to be around me. I can rest in my own quiet little space and nobody will bother me.

The yoga practice supports a sense of safety. Attention to the spine and to the breath, and even your big toe will take you out of your own mental entrapments. With some practice, it translates to a new way of being in the world. A place where I can sit quietly from a place on inner security, and be part of and commune with. Life feels, well, like, alive, and connection this beautiful planet and all who inhabit her becomes the new normal.

Here’s our sequence this morning. It was 100% channelled.

seated central channel meditation

seated twist with eagle arm

cat and cow
dolphin
downdog

malasana
uttithadasana
uttanasana
tadasana with prayers to the world meditation

downdog
three leg dog
twisted lunge
warrior II dance
peaceful warrior
low lunge
half hanumanasana
standing splits
tree
eagle with bow modifications

half happy baby
savasana

sit
namaste

Health, Love, and Rock and Roll