1/16/09

Songs to myself and to you!

The storm gods, the gods of light, of sky, dawn, and wind, the angels, the saints, the demigods and demons, all gaze at you in amazement.

You, your form: seeing you the worlds tremble and so do I.

As you touch the sky my breath stops. (adapted from the Bhagavad Gita)
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The heated horse recognizes the taste of cold water
When he comes down to the stream, falling from the mountains,
And when I ride to you, to reach down to your lips, I recognize the delight
of living on earth (Raimaly-aga in Chingiz Aitmatov)

_


This moment is the life you have. You are a source of wonder. You are the dream. You are a reflection of God.
Use your life well.

The world is Heaven, if we choose to make it so.

Pranayama: sit still, breath into the full expanse of your lungs. Follow your exhale to its final end. Rest in the pause at the end of the exhale. Receive the next inhale as a gift. Fill your lungs with that gift. Rest on the crest of the breath. The exhale till you are completely empty. Pause and then begin again.

1/15/09

shoulders!

I'm back. November and December had lots of distraction. Here is the yoga of returning to this commmitment. I don't know what to write, I don't know what to say. My mind says "you don't have anything to write." But I come to the page. I come back to my yoga and offer you a pose or two for the day:

Zombie Arms and Pulling Straps

Zombie arms: 1) lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Reach your arms straight up to the ceiling holding a block between your hands . Now allow your shoulder blades to roll to the sides of your back as you lift the block as far toward the ceiling as possible. Keep your arms extended toward the ceiling and drop your shoulder blades back down to the floor. Repeat 5 to 10 times. 2) Press your low back and lower ribs firmly into the floor. Keep your awareness in the grounding of the back of your body as you rotate your arms in the shoulder socket and as if you were going to set the block on the floor over your head. It is more important to keep your low back and lower ribs on the floor than to set the block on the floor. You can make the move more challenging by extending the legs along the floor.

Pulling Straps: 1) lie face down on a bolster or folded stack of blankets. You want a long and narrow lift that extends from your lower ribs to your hips (i.e. the bolster is longwise under your torso). 2) lift the legs parallel to the floor either with the toes touching the floor or with the toes pointed and legs extended. 3) Lift the head and chest, gazing at the floor, so that the head is just above the level of your shoulders. 4) Reach your arms forward along side your ears, then sweep the arms back toward your sides in a 'snow angels' motion. Keep your spine steady and your abdominal muscles engaged as you sweep the arms foward and back 6 to 8 times.

Happy Shoulders!