MEDITATION IN THE HILLS-- by raghav shunglu

                                             

Being alone has the greatest joys that life has to offer. We feel our most essential elements and understand the self only when we spend time with ourselves and train the mind to agree. Sometimes all one needs is to close their eyes and-- to let a certain calmness and stillness descend starting with the head, ears down to the tip of the toe.

When I think of the cold Serene landscape of a hill, the gentle rumble of the river right behind my green garden, I sit there quiet and still on this one o' blessed morning-- sunny and bright sun that set me up with fire and blessed my chilly bones with fire.

I don't know how to define a meditative state, but I have learnt over the years, to channelise my energy and dissolve my thoughts by focusing on the breath, the only key to that eternal truth. The only bodily process that connects us from the time we are born to the time we pass on, above and beyond.

To meditate, is to focus on the breadth and experience that stillness of the mind, body and soul. It starts with the body and sets with the temple of dusk.Then when the morning light hits my wooden doors, it awakens me from the dangerous dungeons of darkness and fills my day with a blissful shine.

Meditation in the hills is Serene. The call of the birds, perched atop a hill dotted with pines and a variety of twigs and wood. To cross over to the inner realms is made easy by the perfect gateway to escape-- the vibrations and energy of a magical mystical mountain.

In the ancient land of mountains, abode of gods and goddesses, sheltered and preserved is a way of life. To really feel and internalize this is to train the ear to hear natures call. It is something like the gentle whisper of trees to one another or the far heard cries of villagers who sound like a pack of soulful youth, calm and at ease with their sensibilities and the environment around them. It is that state of perfect harmony that is present in nature, Shakti that one can feel because of the eternal element in certain places which one can feel, but not often explain.

I was once in Himachal in a part of Kullu where there was a hot spring and glaciers as it was a watershed region. I woke up in the morning and went to take a 'dupki', following which I sat on the soft green slopes outside the 'kund'. I saw the mountain tops and the peaks, scattered here and there and engulfed in ice along different rock formations. I closed my eyes and sat there. Still. Quiet. Appreciating the cold breeze lapping against my face and the sound of someone tapping my shoulder woke me up. I was surprised to see my friends had come to look for me after 10. I realised that 4 hours had gone by and they had been looking for me for quite some time.

We then walked into the woods where we befriended a woodcutter who took us for a little tour of the jungle, only to find a peaceful spot where we lit a fire and enjoyed the company of those around us. 

Such is the power of the meditative state. To be happy in every bit of life. To enjoy every moment and smile, and yet being aware that happiness and joy will come and go. But all that remains is the mountains, grand and majestic and unmoved by the forces of man. To live in the universal respect of nature, is what man needs to learn and practice. For a day will come...

P.S.- Raghav is an avid traveller, a storyteller and yogi who picks his bags up and dissapears more often than not. He vociferously advocates sustainability and can meditate for hours on end during his travels. Political Science from Hindu College and an MBA are not the only feathers in his cap many will agree, as he quickly rustles up food to die for!

Mindfulness: Isolation of ‘The Now’

Often we may find ourselves in situations where we are thinking about something which is not happening in the present moment but rather something that we are expecting or anticipating. To put it simply, how often have you found yourself in a situation where you are having lunch and thinking about what to cook for dinner? Or thinking about what a wonderful weekend it was on a Monday morning?
Now, let me paint you a picture. What if you choose to not think about dinner and just savour the lunch on your plate right now. Or if you choose to not de-motivate yourself about how you are hating Monday morning by simply not contrasting it against the wonderful weekend? What if you choose to live in the present? The minute you choose to live in the present, you have practiced what is called mindfulness.

Mindfulness, as described by the dictionary is a state of active, open attention on the present. The thought of thinking about the NOW or the present doesn’t seem complex or even difficult, yet the practice of mindfulness in today’s day and age is dropping exponentially. Schools are teaching children to be goal driven; and many learning organizations in the world are teaching their clients to be target oriented and focus on the return on investment. However in the process of doing so, we are missing a very important element and that is the NOW. Having said that, there is nothing wrong with being goal driven or ambitious but one must not let that govern our every action.

Ekhart Tolle, in his book ‘Power of Now’ quoted “Time isn’t precious at all, because it is an illusion. What you perceive as precious is not time but the one point that is out of time: the Now. That is precious indeed. The more you are focused on time—past and future—the more you miss the Now, the most precious thing there is.”

On reading Tolle’s explanation of now, we realize that if we isolate the now or the present, from our past experiences or our future expectations, then what we are left with is the mere experience. To put simply, when we experience a particular moment, we can’t help but associate it with the various past experiences we’ve had. Our past experiences form a strong basis of understanding for any other experience. When we listen to our favourite childhood song, we enjoy it because we’ve enjoyed it as a child and have fond memories associated with it. But what if the experience of listening to that particular song was isolated to just this moment, free from the bias of childhood, free from the attachments we’ve build around it. Then in that moment we enjoy the song as it is and we realize that the song still makes us happy because of its own beauty and melody and not because how it made us feel at some point in the past.

Elizabeth Gilbert in her book ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ mentioned a really interesting anecdote about a friend who on visiting a beautiful place exclaimed  "It's so beautiful here! I want to come back here someday!" This may sound very funny to many, but small gestures like choosing to take pictures in a particular moment stem from a similar thought – ‘it’s so beautiful that I want to click a picture so I have a memory of it when I’m away from here’. But the irony of this is that in that particular moment we are at the place at that time, yet we choose to think about the future and how we ought to remind our future selves that we were in this moment. By thinking about the future or the past, we have removed the sheer beauty of that particular moment and reduced it to a mere association of our past mental archetypes. Being fully present in the now and absorbing the complete essence of mindfulness would entail isolating the experience from the past or future and looking at it from a non-biased stand point.

The practice of meditation and yoga has been proven to inculcate mindfulness in people. There are numerous studies which are being done to show the benefits of mindfulness. In fact mindfulness has been proved to be so helpful that a prison offering Vipassana meditation training for inmates found that those who completed the course showed lower levels of drug use, greater optimism, and better self-control, which could reduce recidivism.

When we meditate or during asana or pranayama practice, we are practicing what we call complete awareness. You would find it very difficult to hold a pose if you are thinking about what happened at work or what to make for dinner, instead you would be thinking about which muscles to relax, how to exhale and guide your breath into the tight areas of your body. You don’t realize it but in that moment you are fully aware and present. In that moment you are thinking about nothing but the now. And that is how my practice helps me inculcate mindfulness.

Another really interesting aspect about our mind and our brain is neuro-plasticity. The more we practice mindfulness the more our brain gets organized to continue practicing mindfulness. The neurons which are at work and the electrical signals which flow through our brain get hard-wired in our brain to repeatedly perform the same kind of transaction. And hence when people ask me if they can learn to be mindful, I answer with a loud YES. One can always learn to be mindful. Initially it may take effort and sometimes forcefully applying effort itself may inhibit you from being mindful, but one must always remember, being mindful is not an action, or a forceful thought-process, it is the mere isolation of one’s past and future from the now. It is that act of experiencing the moment as it is; knowing that it will not have any implications of on your future and is separate from what you have experienced in the past. This moment, the NOW, lies outside of time. 

P.S- A trained behavioral psychologist , Priyanjali started her yogic journey with Kriya Kundalini Yoga, followed by Ashtanga -Vinyasa training at Yogakul. After completing a course at Sivananda Vedanta centre in New Delhifor Sivananda Yog, she attained her 200 hour Hath yoga teachers training at Shrimath yoga, certified by the Yoga Alliance International.Priyanjali has worked with leadership development consulting and emotional intelligence training, which she combines with her yoga practice and teaching.

DEEP HOUSE YOGA

Deep House Yoga

In my first post, Meditation in Motion, we had talked about many different aspects of sound, movement and expression that come alive as the mind moves inwards. The idea itself may seem intellectual, airy-fairy and impossible to fathom for a person who is so caught up with deadlines and exams that honestly one would not make the effort to move of of one's comfort zone( this used to be me a few years back!)so we wondered what if we set the stage for you and gave you a little nudge that said, 'Hey! Why dont you try this?" And it could be the doorway that allows you to step away from this mechanical- mundane existence that weve been so used to. As we deliberated, the plan fell into place effortlessly just as all wonderful things that are meant to be.

This month (and hopefully many more!) KYOGI is collaborating with Beeja, an organization that promotes organic spices and a holistic way of life as well as Food Illustrated, a wonderful blog that holds your hands through the ins and outs of life in its most natural form.

Together we bring you Calcutta's first DEEP HOUSE YOGA experience which will be held on 22nd of September, the venue being one of the city's best kept secrets. Join us in this rendezvous in candle light and an old world charm enmeshed in modernity that is house music.

So many asked us, what is..Deep House Yoga? And Mrinalika Bhanjdeo, the proprietor of Beej, had some interesting things to say... 

Close your eyes and let the cool music waves flow through your body, as you take in a deep breath.  Immerse yourself in the ebbs and flow of the minimalistic music and let your breath guide you as you move in different forms while focusing on your mind, body and soul.
The idea of merging music and yoga is one that captures the interest of both, young professionals and adventure seekers alike.  It creates a powerful synergy between your body and mind where you are calm and focused and at the same time feel a rush of adrenaline that charges your body and syncs the mind with the breath where they all merge as one.

Deep House Yoga takes basic yoga practices a step further, by creating an opportunity for full-body contemplation in an environment that otherwise may feel incongruous to meditation and reflection. But the unlikely combination works as people who enjoy dance, music and the ambience of a nightlife can come alive and seek spirituality through it.  While it's no substitute for a regular yoga practice, Deep House Yoga brings a welcome change of pace from a traditional wooden, airy studio.

The bigger picture for these classes focusing on integrating the mind, body, and spirit towards a wellness based approach in living,where ones active lifestyle or niche fitness interest is no reason not to enjoy practicing the way you like.

Lets revolutionize the way we look at what it means to be fit, happy and centered in our busy day to day lives!

PLaylist: https://soundcloud.com/tashablank/sets/tasha-wanderlust

About the Organizers; 

https://www.facebook.com/beejorganic

https://in.linkedin.com/pub/anahita-kayan/a0/719/78b


P.S.- We hope to see you there...and incase you havent registered look out for our next secret venue.
For queries; email - www.kyogiwellness.com

Love and Light,

V.

Chandra Namaskar for a peaceful World Yoga Day!

The Chandra Namaskar or the Moon Salutation is representative of the Ida nadi which is the feminine energy force. On the other hand the Surya Namaskar as we all know dates back to the ancient vedic period and is representative of the Pingala nadi which is the masculine energy force. Surya Namaskar starts from the right and ends on the left warming up the entire body preparing us for the entire day, but through the course of the day ours bodies get extremely fatigued and over stimulated. That’s when the Chandra namaskar walks in.

 The Chandra Namaskar starts from the left and ends on the right, it should preferably be practiced at the end of the day to have a cooling effect on the body as it is only done 4 to 5 times at once .

Both Chandra and Surya Namakar are extremely important and compliment each other since both of them are representative of the two energy forces. Nadis's are subtle energy channels in the body. The  Pingala Nadi  is associated with the solar energy with sun-like nature and male energy force whereas Ida Nadi is associated with the lunar energy with moon-like nature or the female energy force. These energy forces are so powerful that they cannot exist in isolation and need each other to balance out the energy forces just as all the world is made in duality, day-night, hot-cool, high and low, similarly the two forces of energy have masculine and feminine characteristics.

What makes Chandra Namaskar different is the fact that it is feminine in nature. Shakti who symbolizes the feminine principles being power, energy, movement and change is a part of everything around us. Imagine a world without the feminine energy force, everything would stagnate. Where would life begin from?  Who would be sensitive to our problems? will there be emotions like  love, care, affection, warmth ,comfort  gentleness, empathy, patience ? Would anyone understand your  thoughts without you even having to say it? As we all know the only thing constant in life is change and Shakti manifests change. 

Practicing this Chandra Namaskar will bring out the best in best in you, leaving your body and mind relaxed  at the end of a long and stressful day . So remember, next time one wants to relax and have  a good time, a few Chandra Namaskars will do the trick .

Steps of Chandra Namaskar

1. Tadasana: 

Mountain pose-Stand with your feet together, toes, heels and inner   thighs touching each other. A long and deep breath in, taking the hands over the head, interlocking the fingers, index finger pointing up, stretching the hands and lengthening the spin . We will stay in this posture and align every movement with the breath.

         Benefits: Tadasana helps increase height. It stretches the arms, chest, abdomen,

                        spine and legs.

2. Chandrasana: 

Side stretch pose-Taking a long and deep breath in we will stretch towards the the left making sure the torso stretches to the side and doesn’t tilt forward or backward. There will be a contraction on the left hand side and expansion of the right hand side. Breathing out and coming back to the center the same will be repeated on the right hand side.

  Benefits: Stretching increases the flexibility of the spine, arms, rib- cage.Stimulates 

                  the liver, kidney and spleen function.

3. Uttkata Konasan: 

Goddess pose/Victory pose: Jumping into goddess pose with the feet 3 to 4 feet apart, the toes will be pointing outwards with thighs parallel to the floor, we will lower the thighs widen the legs keeping the forearms 90 degrees to the arms, back straight , hands firm ,palms facing you .

   Benefits: Strengthens your hips, groin and opens the chest. Strengthens the 

                   quadriceps, arms and upper back.

4. Utthita Tadasana: 

Five pointed star-Straightening the legs, hands parallel to the 

floor at shoulder height.

Benefits: Stretches the sides, improves digestion and strengthens the legs and inner thighs.                                                                                                                                                               

5. Trikonasana: 

Triangle pose- left ankle 90 degree to the left and right ankle 45 degree facing the left hand side, pushing the outer right soul  into the floor for better balance. We slide the left hand towards the left calf ankle or floor, and extending the right hand up towards the ceiling ,making sure that the right and left hand are properly aligned. 

   Benefits: Strengthens and stretches the hips, back, arms, thighs and leg.  It stimulates                     the function of the kidneys.       

                               

  6. Parsvottanasana: 

 Hand to knee pose-Holding the calf or ankles with both our hands we will gradually push 

 the chest forward and touch our nose to the knees making sure we breathe in every 

 movement while doing the asana.

 Benefits: Lengthens the spine and stretches the shoulders,wrists(in the full pose)hips  and hamstrings. This posture improves posture and sense of balance  while stimulating  the digestive system.

7. Ashva Sanchalanasana: 

Equestrian pose-The right leg would stretch back remaining completely straight with left leg bending without changing the position of the legs. Arms will remain straight keeping the hands on the floor, the chest will remian forward, chin up, pushing the hips towards the floor for a deeper stretch in the hips.                                

Benefits: Develops confidence and courage, it massages the abdominal organs 

               and opens out the hip flexors.

8.  Lunge: 

Straightening the right leg, toes of the right foot pointing towards the ceiling with the left leg on the floor; hands in Namaskar Mudra, the body weight will shift from the left leg to the right leg straightening the left leg.      

                                    

Benefits: Better balance, Improves glute activation  and strengthens core.

9.    Ashva Sanchalanasana

10.  Parsvottanasana

11.  Trikonasana

12.  Utthita Tadasana

13.  Utkata Konasan

14.  Chandrasana

15.  Tadasana

As you see there is a repetition of the same postures in reverse order as we move up and back to the starting position.

Note: Since we had been sent a request to post a video and a basic understanding of the Chandrama Namaskar, we decided that there was no better day than World Yoga Day to begin a new and beautiful chapter in our Abhyasa.. 

This article has been written by KyogiNi a.k.a. Nikita Singh, who is a Calcutta based yoga professional and practitioner. As a student of Psychology and an avid lover of animals she has a keen understanding into the inner workings of the human mind and heart.

Meditation in Motion

                                    

“Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle.” 

Even Lewis Carroll, when writing Alice in Wonderland knew how complex and contradictory our world can be and sometimes it is impossible to find ourselves in this maze of madness, rushing deadlines and one where things aren’t what they seem to be. Light, it was discovered, is a wave and a particle, darkness is simply the absence of light, non- living objects are not as still as they seem but under the scanner they house  millions of living organisms and every stone itself has gazillion atoms vibrating and spinning around their elliptical orbits at the same time. Dualities and paradoxes exist as an intrinsic part of nature.

It is safe to say that movement in what is stationary can be proven but finding stillness in movement must be experiential. Movement and Stillness may seem contradictory ideas but Einstein himself believed that ‘contradictory values are complimentary’. A most wonderful experience I had recently, confirmed this very theory. A few days ago, I walked into a Tango workshop in the city. Having never ever done the style, I was overcome by apprehension at first, but the minute I firmed my intention to ‘drop’ my doubts, than the energy began to ‘rise’ (note the contradictory values complementing each other). Our bodies were soon in movement but each of us were centered, our minds focussed and calm.

The experience of dancing Tango was nothing short of an exquisite session of meditation which took us to a place where nothing existed and even time did not have a say. Over the next two hours our expert teacher Nicholas Sandez from Argentina, who was brought to Calcutta by the BTangoConscious group from Mumbai, guided each pair to do something truly unique- i.e. Strengthen our Intention. “Intention,” he said, “starts from within,” as he kept his hand on his heart, “but is transmitted through our bodies, our arms,” the arms being the point of connection with our partner in Tango. His words were ringing in my ears long after I floated out of his class with a body that felt incredibly light; and a mind that was as clean as a slate. I was IN the moment. We later heard that he had had a similar session with the children from the Welfare Society for the Blind in Alipore and not only did they enjoy the session but picked up the steps swiftly as, “feeling the movement,” came easily to them. They were glowing with happiness after the session.

The question then arose, how do we float into this exquisite place while dancing rising beyond all calculated steps learnt by rote? Could one really slip into Meditation even while in motion?

What is MIM?

The incredible power of Intention is central to Meditation in Motion or MIM as it is known. Meditation is not simply about sitting stationary with your eyes closed, it is about the core values of the practice which are possibly evoked even when in motion. MIM is a practice which has spanned centuries. To some, it may invoke an image of Shiva dancing on the Kailash Mountains or Krishna rejoicing with the Gopis in Vrindavan. It may point in the direction of the ancient Buddhist tradition of ‘Walking Meditation’ where one walks briskly focussing single pointedly on the breath or one may visualize it as the pristine white twirling Sufi saints over the strains of the rabab. The ancients have established a deep connection between Energy and Movement. Energy arises in the body as a result of thought or Intention and that same Intention drives energy or Prana, creating movement in space. When Energy or the Prana Shakti as it is called, awakens in the body, the body itself is guided deep into Asanas that it thought were beyond its capacity.

Meditation in Motion is simply allowing your external movements to guide you on the inward journey. Movement has been classified by human beings into numerous dance forms, Yogasanas or even martial arts, gymnastics, calisthenics and other practices but the underlying similarity lies in the fact that human beings by all means test their physical limits, their mental will and wish to rise beyond both ultimately. Movement cannot be put into pre conceived boxes and when one discovers that possibility of free flowing movement, we can channel our energies into subtle expressions and gestures, mudras and gestures that unite the mind and body while spilling into our everyday lives keeping us centered amidst the chaos.

How do we start MIM?

Invoking the energy, allowing the mind to move inwards.

1.      Prepare- Start moving Inwards

It is always preferable that one should practice MIM under supervision and under guidance as it allows us to ‘let go’ fully. Most often than not, it is asked of us to keep the eyes closed to avoid getting distracted by external stimuli. Patanjali spoke about Pratyahara in his eight fold path, which essentially means the withdrawal of senses. Thus closing our eyes and simply focussing our breath in MIM brings the mind into the act of Pratyahara, thus, preparing for the meditative state.

2.      Invoke the Energy and Go with the Flow

Once we have taken our awareness to the breath, one should breathe deep to invoke the energy inviting it to take over the body. Let the body respond to the energy from within. Keeping the mind aside, let the energy guide your ever evolving movement. Let there be no hesitation, no ego and an openness with the honest intention to give that movement EVERYTHING you have.  Dance Fitness Exponent Aditya of  Vive La Salsa believes, ‘That when there is a focus, on rhythm , it  allows us to un-focus as a natural flow takes over and then we are truly engrossed, flowing freely, and what we do is seemingly effortless.’ You rise above the movement.

What are the Important things to remember practicing MIM?

1.There are NO mistakes in MIM. Just flow wherever it leads you, steps mean nothing when you are moving towards a higher unified state of mind.

2.Perfection is NOT the goal. On finding inner strength and intuition, one automatically finds a steadiness and perfection in movement which should be the consequence not the ultimate aim.

3.Be free, spontaneous, without any pre-planning, no judgements and open to embracing every feeling or emotion that arises without shying away from it. Just like you dance with abandon when no one is watching, it is the aim of MIM to help you find that dynamic movement with a centered mind so that it would not matter even if a million watched.

4.Trust- Trusting your body to take you though even if there may be times when you feel that you cannot go any further, just let the body move.

5. Dis identification of the body and mind- There may be moments whilst in MIM, you see yourself as third person, neither just as the body nor as the mind or thoughts. MIM helps to dissolve false identity in the same way that deep meditation does. You realize that you are a part of a much larger scheme of things and its humbles you, overwhelms you in a way that makes you see yourself as a large expanse of nothingness and a tiny speck in the universe all at the same time, the seeming contradiction, just like light- you can be both- the wave and the particle.

MIM, some say, ‘is a power non-verbal expression of the sacred.’ This sacred space can be created anywhere, in your room with soft music or when you go running to “clear you head” in the park, or in a Yoga, meditation or dance class. Meditation in Motion allows you to live life, experience all of its challenges, and experience this chaotic, mind-boggling, frenzied world fully, where nothing is real but everything seems to be. We learn to accept the world’s ever-changing nature by find an unseen magic, a steadiness within our heart allowing Meditation in Motion to transform us but only if we let it.