Embracing the Energy of Winter

jude — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:32:27 +0000

I am sure there are times in the darkest days of winter when you feel like hibernating! It is a time of hibernation for many animals. Plants die back and trees drop their leaves. Our Ancestors were undoubtedly more in tune with nature’s cycles. Winter would have been a slower time, when energy and valuable food reserves were conserved.

In modern times we are expected to continue to operate at the same frequency and with the same high energy levels throughout the year and in December the pace picks up even more. As we frantically rush around shopping, wrapping, cooking, travelling and partying, many of us can find ourselves low in energy, depressed, stressed or anxious. The truth is, for many of us, the pace of the festive season is simply out of kilter with the natural energy of the season. When it feels more natural to embrace stillness, peace and restfulness, we are encouraged in the festive “spirit” to do quite the opposite and we may end up wondering why on earth we’re not enjoying ourselves!

Yoga can help us embrace stillness in our lives, and to live in a way which is much more in tune with the cycles of nature. And this can lead to us changing how we approach seasonal events.

And when the pace becomes frenetic, our yoga practice can be something we can come back to even if it’s just to take a few moments breathe deeply and reconnect with the peace and stillness within.

On 13th December we will be exploring this and other themes in our Midwinter Stillness Workshop

Yoga In Action

jude — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 12:36:47 +0000

We have just returned from a week on a sailing boat in Cornwall. The plan was to help sail the boat up the West Coast and back to Scotland. However, with adverse weather conditions, we spent the week sheltering up-river.

Being on the sea is an energetic challenge for me. As a strongly air-orientated person, I am much more at home at the top of a mountain where I feel comfortable and free, than on or in the water. Indeed, there were moments when we were on very rough seas where I would rather have been anywhere else and found my mind closing in and my breath becoming slow and rhythmic, trusting in the experienced sailors on board, until it was over.

Yoga is not only what we do on the mat, we can take it into all of our daily life aswell. As an example of this, when calmer seas returned, I realised that I had been practising yoga.

The regular practice of yoga helps us on a number of levels. We can learn to meet fear and adversity with poise and balance and to accept and confidently work with, rather than attempting to resist or control, the awesome power of nature. We can learn to trust and respect the knowledge and abilities of others and maintain energetic balance within ourselves and in our relationship with the world.

In September, we invite you to explore with us the many ways in which yoga can enhance your life by coming to one of our classes or workshops.

Mahashakti Yoga » Yoga Workshops

Embracing the Energy of Winter

Yoga In Action