Expanding and contracting…
In the summer of 2000 I went to my first Anusara®yoga class. Every friday that summer, my friend and teacher Christina Sell and I would hop in a truck (we both drove old Toyota trucks at the time) and roll down the hill to Scottsdale, Arizona to study with Desiree Rumbaugh. At the time, Desiree was the only certified Anusara®yoga teacher in the area, not to mention one of the first certified teachers in the method. She had this super sweet studio in an old elementary school and she taught back to back classes on Friday mornings.
We would roll out our mats for the morning, take the seat of the student and begin the experimental journey of applying the Universal Principles of Alignment on the mat and in our bodies. If you know either Desiree or Christina, you know neither of them have a slouchy practice. So as you might guess, after a yoga basics and advanced class with Desiree, our bodies were sore and tired and we would laugh at how hard it was to even turn the steering wheel. I LOVED how strong I got. I LOVED how in tune with my body I got. I LOVED how my practice advanced. I LOVED how it made more present at work and in my relationships. The principles were infusing their way into all aspects of my life.
This began my personal journey towards teaching and applying this beautiful method of yoga into my life and on my mat. I would study for years with Desiree and to this day with Christina. Fast forward to 2007. After thousands of hours on my mat, dollars invested, miles of travel, videos, reviews, mentors and a weeklong test, I would earn my Anusara®yoga Teacher Certification. Five years later in 2012 I would take a short hiatus from my affiliation with the method after learning of inappropriate actions taken by the founder. This past December I went back. The organization restructured to be led by a Board of Teachers from all over the world. The infrastructure was refreshed with new life. Many teachers left as I did. Some have returned, others haven’t. All the while, we teach from a shared place. It’s fun to watch how life pulses in this way.
Anusara is a beautiful word that breaks down to Anu = with and Sara = current. The translation is, “to step into the current of grace”, “to align with the current of grace”. My experience is that when I lean into the revelatory power of life whether it be through experience of great highs or extreme lows, I transform and grow. The thing I LOVE so much about Anusara®yoga is how each class is meant to be infused with yoga philosophy, alignment and the intention of the heart. This has been a constant in my teaching since 2001 when I first started subbing and teaching at the local YMCA. To me I was always inspired how every class was directly applicable to life off the mat. The Five Universal Principles of Alignment™are:
- Open to Grace
- Muscle Energy
- Inner or Expanding Spiral
- Outer or Contracting Spiral
- Organic Energy
While these principles are universal in nature, they initiate a more refined approach to anchoring our attention and awareness and create greater opportunities for experiencing physical freedom. They are dynamic and express a kind of pulsation or spanda. Spanda is a sanskrit word used in the yoga tradition to describe the pulsation of our breath, the beating of our heart, the ebb and flow of life and the same pulsation that exists in stars that emits light. When I started to recognize my own light pulsing in this way, so many things clicked. Everything is dynamic (like nature), it’s all a phase (like raising a child), we are dynamic and ever-changing beings. Let’s not limit ourselves with old thought patterns or outdated stories or labels. Let’s live into the moment.
Start now with this 4 minute exercise to open your breath and tap into something greater. This is a practice I use when I feel constricted or closed off or when the field of resistance gets think. Let’s be honest, it happens. This is a simple, quick and powerful way to shift into an expansive experience. Try it.
- Set a timer on your phone for 3 minutes.
- Close your eyes.
- Allow your attention to land on your breath.
- Expand your inhalation and exhale so they are even with volume and length.
- If your awareness wanders, come back to your breath.
- When the timer goes off, let your breath return to its normal rhythm.
- Place your hands together in front of your heart and bow.
Bow to the light that pulses within you. Or simply find gratitude in the pulsation and gift or your breath, for it is your life force.
-----
Rachel Peters is a yoga teacher, yoga health coach, lifestyle and habits expert, easeful living advocate, and lover of wild places. She leads others towards Embodying Ease through a yearlong wellness & lifestyle journey to dissolve perfectionism, embody daily habits that promote mental clarity, overall ease, and deeper connection to life on this wild ride of modern living. Learn MORE today!