As a quick reminder, the niyamas are five personal qualities mentioned in Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras that we’re encouraged to cultivate within ourselves, to help us on our yoga path. In this article we’re looking at the fifth and final niyama: ‘Ishvara Pranidhana’, which means ‘devotion to God/ the divine/ the cosmos/ the universe/ the biggerContinueContinue reading “Bringing the niyamas to life – Ishvara Pranidhana”
Category Archives: Connecting with the natural world
Bringing the niyamas to life – Saucha
The niyamas are the second limb of yoga, as outlined in Patanjali’s yoga sutras. Along with the first limb, the yamas, these two limbs together form the ethical code of conduct that creates the foundation bedrock of the yoga path. If you use the analogy of the tree of yoga, the five yamas and fiveContinueContinue reading “Bringing the niyamas to life – Saucha”
Flowing with the universe
As this year’s five month travel stint draws to a close I reflect back on what I have learnt. Wow – so much! Every time I go away for an extended period of time, I truly do feel like I enter the ‘university of life’, receiving so many lessons and opportunities for growth. Of course IContinueContinue reading “Flowing with the universe”
Unveiling the heart
For the last month, my partner and I have been happily living on the side of a beautiful mountain in a remote part of northern Portugal. The reason for this change of address has been to try out community living for the first time, with a relatively new community venture called Merkaba Community. I’ve beenContinueContinue reading “Unveiling the heart”
Saluting the Sun with a Surya Namaskara based Home Practice
June 21st saw this year’s summer solstice, which was made even more auspicious this year by falling on a full moon for the first time in around fifty years! There’s something very magical about this – a once or twice in a lifetime opportunity to see the ultimate yang symbol, the sun, share the skyContinueContinue reading “Saluting the Sun with a Surya Namaskara based Home Practice”
A short sequence to unlock neck and shoulder tension
With spring comes a desire to surface again, as though from a deep winter slumber. It’s time to uncrick necks, stretch out limbs and take some deep, deep breaths, breathing in new life and vigour. To help you banish the winter blues for another year and embrace the spring sunshine, here’s a little sequence I’veContinueContinue reading “A short sequence to unlock neck and shoulder tension”
The benefits of al fresco yoga
‘Asanas keep the body healthy and strong and in harmony with nature.’ BKS Iyengar. I’ve always been an outdoor girl, so it’s no surprise that I love doing yoga outside, feeling the sun on my skin and a gentle breeze in my hair, birdsong in my ear, blossom nectar tickling my nostrils. And there’s noContinueContinue reading “The benefits of al fresco yoga”
Flying pencils
We’ve spent the last week in the cowboy wildlands of Camargue, where white ponies and black bulls roam the flat marshes in between large saline pools and lakes fringed with whispering reeds, all teeming with pink flamingos, white egrets and grey herons. It’s a strange, enticing landscape, where nature and human influence have conspired toContinueContinue reading “Flying pencils”
Reluctantly moving on
We did it – we finally left the very beguiling Luberon region of Provence. We were trying to for a while, but somehow another beautiful village perched precariously onto the side of a cliff or another ancient-looking footpath kept diverting our attention and we found ourselves lingering for ‘just one more night’. We managed toContinueContinue reading “Reluctantly moving on”
Mistaking the stick for a snake
I am fascinated by the Vedas – these are a collection of four ancient Indian tomes covering a huge range of esoteric subjects, including some of the earliest known references to yoga. It is said that the wisdom that they contain was received directly from the divine by enlightened beings, or ‘seers’, and, for thousandsContinueContinue reading “Mistaking the stick for a snake”
frond yoga with Rebecca May 