We make a living with what we get;We make a life with what we give.
Meditation Sunday 3rd May 2-3
Community meeting room, Semaphore Library.
Bring cushion, blanket and anything else you might need.
$10
First Class at Shala Om
So it finally came to pass… The first class at Shala Om. Thank you to friends and family for so much support!
As you can tell from the picture, our venue, being the upstairs foyer of the old Semaphore Cinema (now housing the library) has a strange otherworldly charm all its own. Well done and many thanks to Christy for suggesting it. I am also honoured to think that our library itself would not be there were it not for the efforts of my late father-in-law Arthur Mortimer and his tireless advocacy of access to education. Shala Om is being built in his shadow.
It was so rewarding to see the sleepy, relaxed faces emerging from śavasana at the end of class!
Shala Om runs every Thursday night at 6.30 for yoga and 2pm every Sunday for meditation. $10, b.y.o . mat.
Lotus
If there were no words
Would life still be a story?
This is what I see:
Still water reflecting sky
Open, fresh, free
Stretching on forever
On the water an ocean of lotus
Wide green leaves giving life
Soaking sunlight and alchemizing that gold
Into perfect out stretching flowers
Expressions And symbols at once
Dredging from the depths
Through deep intertwined roots
From one earth a manyness of being
Showering sight in revelation
the life contained unseen
Unlocked by reaching down, opening arms
And gazing at heaven
© 2015 Unjay
Image:
The yoga body lie
So, in no way do I fit the modern western ideal of a yogi, let alone a yoga teacher. I know I have less than no hope of teaching for the studio which I go to as a student.
Why?
- I am not a woman
- I am not a young woman
- I am not a lithe, long legged young woman
- I am not an unusually beautiful lithe, long legged young woman
You know the ideal I am talking about. She is on the cover of even well meaning yoga magazines, ideologically sound clothing companies’ catalogues and yoga studio ads.
Even family members ask me things such as, “You’re a big boy to be doing yoga aren’t you?”
It can be difficult to stay focussed on the clear aim of yoga: the acceptance and integration of the body into the self, the Union of physical, mental and spiritual being into an undivided awareness of the divine already dwelling within.
Here are some thoughts of other yoginis on the subject:
Just google “yoga body” and you’ll find your screen flooded with young, white, beautiful women whose lithe bodies are either executing some advanced posture requiring the strength and bendiness of an Olympic Gymnast or are sitting in Lotus, hands in prayer, eyes closed, their enraptured faces evoking beatific female saints who denied the flesh in search of transcendence.
Danielle Prohom Olsen
https://bodydivineyoga.wordpress.com/author/danellapomme/
YJ.com: People often talk about the “yoga body.” What does that mean to you?
SM: The yoga practice as we know it was designed in the East by and for men with short bodies and long limbs. It’s been carried on in the West by women with short bodies and long limbs. Those are the bodies we see in the magazines and Pinterest pictures doing all the cool, pretzel-shaped poses and making them look easy and accessible.
We need to change that ideal. A yoga body, in fact, is any body doing yoga. Can you breathe and be aware of it? Congratulations, you have a yoga body.
Samantha Menzies
http://www.yogajournal.com/lifestyle/partnership-lululemon-congratulations-yoga-body/
We all need to let go and just truly accept ourselves for who we are.
When our time comes and our physical bodies die, do we want to look back and realize we lived our lives trying to change to please others? Or do we come to a point and realize that we are perfect now, we will never be here again and in that moment, we are more beautiful and no one…let me say that again, no one, can steal or snuff out our light.
Rachel Priest
http://www.elephantjournal.com/2013/10/this-is-what-a-real-yoga-body-looks-like-rachel-priest/
Maybe instead of the mirror, the magazine and the selfie, we should simply close our eyes and focus within. This is what the real yoga body does; this is what it is for; this, and not its outward appearance, defines it.
Namaste
What is meditation?
The fact is that you meditate not to attain God, but to become aware that God is within you.
Shree Gurudev
Meditation is the yogic practice of being connected to the deepest part within. A wide range of meditation techniques are designed to help you observe and explore the world of thoughts and feelings, and go beyond to an experience of deep peace and contentment.
What is yoga?
This answer is one I found on the Yoga Australia website..
https://www.yogaaustralia.org.au/what-is-yoga
…As my teacher Madhuri says, “each asana (pose) not looking a certain way”. Photo: Punnamjai
There are many different ideas related to Yoga, where it comes from, what it is all about, and how to practice a range of techniques.
Generally, it is recognised as an ancient system of philosophies, principles and practices derived from the Vedic tradition of India and the Himalayas, more than 2500 years ago. It is a system that recognises the multi-dimensional nature of the human person, and primarily relates to the nature and workings of the mind, based on experiential practice and self-enquiry.
In Yoga, the body, breath and mind are seen as a union of these multi-dimensional aspects of each and every human being. The system and various techniques of Yoga cultivate the experience of that union, leading to greater integration of being, internal peacefulness, and clarity of the mind. It is a system that is designed to cultivate health and happiness, and a greater sense of self-awareness and higher consciousness.
Free Beach Yoga Session Sunday 1st March 2015
Come to a free beach yoga sesh THIS Sunday, 1st March, 9 am.
Celebrate the theoretical end of Summer and beginning of Autumn, and help me complete my teacher training at the same time.
Once I am qualified I will be so expensive no one will be able to come to my classes, so book in now to avoid the bitterest disappointment you could ever imagine.
Bring a towel and/or mat, water and meet at the Angel Clock at the jetty end of Semaphore Road.
Class will be suitable for beginners to intermediate level yogis. Advanced people or teachers will have to restrain themselves and try not to show off!
add your name and email/mobile # in the comment section below to book in
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Classes
Shala Om offers yoga within and around Semaphore.
Classes are suitable for everyone including beginners. The style is Hatha yoga and the emphasis is on restorative and conscious practice with a strong meditative aspect.
Classes run on Tuesday and Thursday nights.
The venue is the Semaphore Uniting Church hall.
Thursdays 6.30- 7.40pm
Thursdays 6.30- 7.40pm
Cost $10.00
for enquiries, phone Unjay 043 1928 663, or email namaste@shalaom.com
Home
Welcome to Shala Om.
But what can that mean, you may wonder.
Well, “Shala” means “house” and is often used to refer to a place in which yoga is practised.
And “Om”…. Well there have literally been thousands of pages voted to describing what Om is. The most succinct and barest idea I can offer you he is that it is the vibration of The Universe.
So Shala Om is a place dedicated to being in harmony with the universe through the wisdom and practice of yoga. This website is dedicated to that purpose.
Use the menu above to explore and contribute to our online community.
Namaste
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