As usual when I return from an oddesy I go into a sort of black hole and I don't want to come out. It's laboreous. I ventured out to the grocery store today and was struck by the sterile atmosphere in the land of plastic bags and tomatoes that don't taste like tomatoes. I miss the veggie woman who always gave me a free handdful of something. But, it is so convenient and so easy to shop here. I get in my large car and drive home with my booty, stuff for veggie soup. My mood matches the day -slate gray. The weatherman has warned us to stock up on provisions because there might be snow flurries. The house is messy and there are loose ends everywhere like tenticles - scraps of paper with emails and names and phone numbers, representing people most of whom I will never see again, my Auredevic food chart, no I won't be giving up limes or spicy food, 2 pair of not flattering bloomers, the Pune blankets i lugged home, why?....to hang on to something which can never be captured by possessing any thing.
I'm off to listen to Geeta on a DVD. lk
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Sunday, December 13, 2009
What Have I learned in Pune?
1. If you prctice 3 hours a day what you have been taught in class you do improve.
2. I am terrible at forward bends and it is ingorant to push myself beyond "my limit" if I'm unable to maintain the extension, sacrificing the entegrity of the pose.
3. Americans appear to have a huge number of excellent teachers compared to other parts of the world and our students shine.
4. We are lucky at BKS. Some students I've met here don't know how to use the ropes or other props because their studios don't have them and have not had the benefit of studying with senior teachers on a regular basis.
5. There is nothing to fear in coming to Pune. I've had a lot of help from the senior Indian teachers who are wonderful.
6. Yoga is not a physical exercise and it's goal is not to make us fit or remove aches and pains. The reality of life is pain. (Geeta says this frequently. )
2. I am terrible at forward bends and it is ingorant to push myself beyond "my limit" if I'm unable to maintain the extension, sacrificing the entegrity of the pose.
3. Americans appear to have a huge number of excellent teachers compared to other parts of the world and our students shine.
4. We are lucky at BKS. Some students I've met here don't know how to use the ropes or other props because their studios don't have them and have not had the benefit of studying with senior teachers on a regular basis.
5. There is nothing to fear in coming to Pune. I've had a lot of help from the senior Indian teachers who are wonderful.
6. Yoga is not a physical exercise and it's goal is not to make us fit or remove aches and pains. The reality of life is pain. (Geeta says this frequently. )
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Thursday
Well we are without the Iyengars cuse the are gone til Wednesday to a wedding. So I'm going to the Kare spa where I intended to go when I arrived.
Classes are wonderful and I love all the Iyengars. Geeta does scare me a bit with her yelling and punitive ways but she is a brilliant teacher, if only I could understand everything she says.
I saw Laurie Blakeney yesterday and she gave me a big hug.
A woman got reamed out for being in a class she was not supposed to be in yesterday. She said she had misunderstood Pandu. Geeta went on an on about how she was not being honest, etc. Another woman was repremanded repeatedly for letting her sacrum kick forward even thoiugh she was as tiny as Paula. I had cleverly positioned myself out of Geetaji's range of vision on that occasion, but I suspect Geeta is a reincarnation of the goddess Kali and has 1000 eyes only 2 of which we can see.
I got singled out in class the other day but Geetaji was not mean. We were doing Maha Mudra which is very difficult for me. I hardly go forward at all when I do it. So she kept saying ,"hold the strap closer to the foot" and so I did. This was not wise on my part because it made my back round and I was probably red in the face and I know I was straining. Geeta told Eddie to take me to the horse and she had me sit facing the back of the chair seated on a bolster and a blanket or 2 with my legs spread and my feet on bolsters. My upper arms were on the back of the horse and my dorsal could not round. My sacrum was against the horse. I then did jalindara banda. She did not seem angry and did not say "WHO IS YOUR TEACHER"? I will never comprimise the integrity of the pose againby going too far. Eddie said she was not talkinfg to me when she said hold closer to the foot and I should have known that. it was fear that made me go too far. I was happy to go to the horse and I've been practicing on it ever since.
I am kind of lookinf forward to the birthday on the 14th but I hear we have to sit for ages oin our dress up clothes , which are HOT and the Iyengars won't allow fans for some strange reason. I nearly melted at the Philosophy talk last week and my back was hurting and it was only an hour! I plan to arrive early and try to sit against a pillar.
I am knocking myself out to try and find a nearly dead dog with the mange so I can feed him and give him a worming pill every day. I got stuck withn this task because Doris, my friend from Canada, had taken care of him and asked me to take over. He lives in a garbage dump next to the park. It seems futile somehow because when I go nobody will be there to carry on.
I'm visiting an orphanage/day care center next week. My friend Ricardo from Spain adopted a child from there for $200.00 per year. It's like the kids from Slumdog Millionaire. They are givrn medical care and food. The older ones are given schooling. The ones with a parent stay in the creche during the day so mom can work.
I have an appointment to talk with Prashant about philosophy. He said anyone could ask to talk with him so I did. LK
Classes are wonderful and I love all the Iyengars. Geeta does scare me a bit with her yelling and punitive ways but she is a brilliant teacher, if only I could understand everything she says.
I saw Laurie Blakeney yesterday and she gave me a big hug.
A woman got reamed out for being in a class she was not supposed to be in yesterday. She said she had misunderstood Pandu. Geeta went on an on about how she was not being honest, etc. Another woman was repremanded repeatedly for letting her sacrum kick forward even thoiugh she was as tiny as Paula. I had cleverly positioned myself out of Geetaji's range of vision on that occasion, but I suspect Geeta is a reincarnation of the goddess Kali and has 1000 eyes only 2 of which we can see.
I got singled out in class the other day but Geetaji was not mean. We were doing Maha Mudra which is very difficult for me. I hardly go forward at all when I do it. So she kept saying ,"hold the strap closer to the foot" and so I did. This was not wise on my part because it made my back round and I was probably red in the face and I know I was straining. Geeta told Eddie to take me to the horse and she had me sit facing the back of the chair seated on a bolster and a blanket or 2 with my legs spread and my feet on bolsters. My upper arms were on the back of the horse and my dorsal could not round. My sacrum was against the horse. I then did jalindara banda. She did not seem angry and did not say "WHO IS YOUR TEACHER"? I will never comprimise the integrity of the pose againby going too far. Eddie said she was not talkinfg to me when she said hold closer to the foot and I should have known that. it was fear that made me go too far. I was happy to go to the horse and I've been practicing on it ever since.
I am kind of lookinf forward to the birthday on the 14th but I hear we have to sit for ages oin our dress up clothes , which are HOT and the Iyengars won't allow fans for some strange reason. I nearly melted at the Philosophy talk last week and my back was hurting and it was only an hour! I plan to arrive early and try to sit against a pillar.
I am knocking myself out to try and find a nearly dead dog with the mange so I can feed him and give him a worming pill every day. I got stuck withn this task because Doris, my friend from Canada, had taken care of him and asked me to take over. He lives in a garbage dump next to the park. It seems futile somehow because when I go nobody will be there to carry on.
I'm visiting an orphanage/day care center next week. My friend Ricardo from Spain adopted a child from there for $200.00 per year. It's like the kids from Slumdog Millionaire. They are givrn medical care and food. The older ones are given schooling. The ones with a parent stay in the creche during the day so mom can work.
I have an appointment to talk with Prashant about philosophy. He said anyone could ask to talk with him so I did. LK
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Since Tuesday - Temporarily Down
Not to worry. I should be back on by Monday (at least that's what I have been told). Had a wonderful tea party Saturday night. L
Monday, November 9, 2009
monday 11/9/09
I'm going to the dentist tomorrow, the one Lois S recommended, Dr. Pingale. Doris and I went to the famous batik shop today and on numerous errands. I am having a tea party on Sat and I ran all over town with Doris looking for a good bakery. Ordered an egg free chocolate cake for the vegans. The cook is making rice pudding and some sort of carrot snack for the health food folk who don't want cake and are on a lactose free diet.
Prashant's class was good today and was recorded by Francois and Marie. More emphasis on uddyana banda in all poses.
Unfortunately, there were a couple of brown-outs. Prashant was very cute in his Marlon Brando undershirt (Re: A Streetcar Named Desire). Prashant says that most of us practice sincerely and honestly, but we are deusional about what yoga is. He says we are like a monkey that is given a precious diamond and pearl neclace. The monkey bites the neclace and the precious jewels scatter and are lost because we are ignorant. I would have preferred the analogy of a child rather than a monkey, for a child has the potential to grow and learn and to someday be capable of complex thought. Does he think there is no hope for us? And it would be nice if P told us "what yoga really is" rather than just saying we are ignorant over and over. We already know that! Students need a question and answer session and a couple of lectures in the format of a university class with terms like "Krias" clearly explained and perhaps written on a board. Students also need the opportunity to take notes if Prashant really wants them to understand what he is saying. A simple hand-out would be good as well. As it is, I suspect he is correct in saying many students don't understand.
I do wish I could have snuck into Geeta's class as wel today, but that is a total no-no. Word is she was ON FIRE tonight and taught a brilliant twist class focusing on parivritta parsvakonasana in stages. Drat. I will purchase the dvd and hope it works.
When Guruji came up the stairs and entered the practice room this morning I knelt and touched his feet. He paused a moment to accomodate. He taught again today and had Abby doing Sirsasana and Sarvangasana, pointing out how the bandhas or locks travel from the shoulders through thr ankles at each joint and lift the whole body up taking pressure off the neck. This is congruent with Prashant's lesson about the krias. Abbi's forearms were inside a very narrow box in both poses.
Guruji is a marvel. His skin tone is good and the backs of his legs are toned and muscular. Today Guruji did eka pada setu banda sarvangasana and I had cleverly situated myself so I could see the backs of his legs. They are strong and his skin seems to glow. He is living proof that Patanjali's promises are true. His chest is just as amazing as in the pictures I have of him when he was in his 60's. I like to walk behind Guruji to the prop room and look at his feet and legs when he is in his poses. I can make several trips between my poses to get a prop while Guriji is in ONE pose. He stays in sarvangasana and the backbends forever. I have watched him do backbends on the horse, the tall stool (which I can barely manage for 3 minutes) and other set-ups for long periods of time. Really , I could just sit and watch him for hours, but I have my own practice. He wears tight white pants and a thin gold string around his waist. Did I mention he puts 100 lbs of weight on his thighs in dandasana? There are special pads for the weights to rest on. He also binds his thighs tightly just above the knees with wooden dowels and straps. His cough is almost gone now.
I'm now fond of doing sarvangasana ussing the horse like Geeta and Guruji. It takes care of the pelvic issue. It's nice to do a whole practice of variations of sarvangasana and a few forward bends. One thing I've noticed is both Prashant and Geeta do many repitions of the same poses in their classes and long holds but not so long as to exhaust. If a person is sweating profusely and straining in the sequence, something is not right and it's probably that the krias are not being taught. Rajiv also emphasizes this and at Yoganga we practivrd pranayama and the lifting of the anal spincter in our poses, but never in the US except Karin O'Bannon classes.
Guruji practices more than 3 hours a day. When I leave after the 3 hours I'm allowed in the practice room, he is still going strong. He walks up the steep concrete stairs to the practice room unaided. As a person who did not have parents who provided an example of healthy aging, I look at my teacher and see a different path. The paradigm is shattered and I have chosen a new perception of reality. It's one of the great freedoms of being an adult. Since I've seen it with my own eyes, it's real and true to me. I don't have to see old age as giving up physically, having a round back, swolen joints, and giving in to pain and depression.
L
Prashant's class was good today and was recorded by Francois and Marie. More emphasis on uddyana banda in all poses.
Unfortunately, there were a couple of brown-outs. Prashant was very cute in his Marlon Brando undershirt (Re: A Streetcar Named Desire). Prashant says that most of us practice sincerely and honestly, but we are deusional about what yoga is. He says we are like a monkey that is given a precious diamond and pearl neclace. The monkey bites the neclace and the precious jewels scatter and are lost because we are ignorant. I would have preferred the analogy of a child rather than a monkey, for a child has the potential to grow and learn and to someday be capable of complex thought. Does he think there is no hope for us? And it would be nice if P told us "what yoga really is" rather than just saying we are ignorant over and over. We already know that! Students need a question and answer session and a couple of lectures in the format of a university class with terms like "Krias" clearly explained and perhaps written on a board. Students also need the opportunity to take notes if Prashant really wants them to understand what he is saying. A simple hand-out would be good as well. As it is, I suspect he is correct in saying many students don't understand.
I do wish I could have snuck into Geeta's class as wel today, but that is a total no-no. Word is she was ON FIRE tonight and taught a brilliant twist class focusing on parivritta parsvakonasana in stages. Drat. I will purchase the dvd and hope it works.
When Guruji came up the stairs and entered the practice room this morning I knelt and touched his feet. He paused a moment to accomodate. He taught again today and had Abby doing Sirsasana and Sarvangasana, pointing out how the bandhas or locks travel from the shoulders through thr ankles at each joint and lift the whole body up taking pressure off the neck. This is congruent with Prashant's lesson about the krias. Abbi's forearms were inside a very narrow box in both poses.
Guruji is a marvel. His skin tone is good and the backs of his legs are toned and muscular. Today Guruji did eka pada setu banda sarvangasana and I had cleverly situated myself so I could see the backs of his legs. They are strong and his skin seems to glow. He is living proof that Patanjali's promises are true. His chest is just as amazing as in the pictures I have of him when he was in his 60's. I like to walk behind Guruji to the prop room and look at his feet and legs when he is in his poses. I can make several trips between my poses to get a prop while Guriji is in ONE pose. He stays in sarvangasana and the backbends forever. I have watched him do backbends on the horse, the tall stool (which I can barely manage for 3 minutes) and other set-ups for long periods of time. Really , I could just sit and watch him for hours, but I have my own practice. He wears tight white pants and a thin gold string around his waist. Did I mention he puts 100 lbs of weight on his thighs in dandasana? There are special pads for the weights to rest on. He also binds his thighs tightly just above the knees with wooden dowels and straps. His cough is almost gone now.
I'm now fond of doing sarvangasana ussing the horse like Geeta and Guruji. It takes care of the pelvic issue. It's nice to do a whole practice of variations of sarvangasana and a few forward bends. One thing I've noticed is both Prashant and Geeta do many repitions of the same poses in their classes and long holds but not so long as to exhaust. If a person is sweating profusely and straining in the sequence, something is not right and it's probably that the krias are not being taught. Rajiv also emphasizes this and at Yoganga we practivrd pranayama and the lifting of the anal spincter in our poses, but never in the US except Karin O'Bannon classes.
Guruji practices more than 3 hours a day. When I leave after the 3 hours I'm allowed in the practice room, he is still going strong. He walks up the steep concrete stairs to the practice room unaided. As a person who did not have parents who provided an example of healthy aging, I look at my teacher and see a different path. The paradigm is shattered and I have chosen a new perception of reality. It's one of the great freedoms of being an adult. Since I've seen it with my own eyes, it's real and true to me. I don't have to see old age as giving up physically, having a round back, swolen joints, and giving in to pain and depression.
L
Sunday, November 8, 2009
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