Salamba Defined
Salamba translates from Sanskrit as “supported” or “with support.” In yoga asana practice, it signals the use of props (like blocks or straps), the ground, or parts of the body for stability. For example, salamba setu bandhasana is a supported bridge pose. Practicing with support can make functional alignment more accessible while enhancing both safety […]
Śavasana
Śavasana, aka corpse pose, is how most of us spend the last few minutes of a movement practice. This state of dynamic stillness allows our systems to integrate all that we’ve experienced in the movement, the breathing, and the mindfulness of our practice. The first yogic text to say much about the body, the Hatha Yoga […]
Trying Softer
What if the path to transformation isn’t accomplishing more, but cultivating receptivity? Not trying harder, but trying softer. We live in a culture of progress, momentum, striving. And yet, sometimes the deepest work isn’t something we do, but something we allow. The last time something was canceled, did you feel a flicker of relief? Embodied […]
Pratipaksha Bhavana Defined
Pratipaksha bhavana means “cultivating the opposite.” Practically this looks like making a different choice when habitual patterns no longer serve us. Of course, we first have to realize that something we are or aren’t doing is not serving us anymore! This idea of pratipaksha bhavana is given in the Yogasūtra of Patañjali, the first text to gather […]
Tapas Defined
Tapas is the energy of transformation, our inner fire.
Sthira Defined
The Sanskrit word we’re looking at this time is sthira. This is one of 2 qualities the Yogasutra posits as necessary for asana practice.
Pranayama Defined
Let’s explore the Sanskrit word pranayama. Prana is our life force energy, and pranayama includes various ways of working with the breath to affect change in our prana.
Bhakti Yoga Defined
Today we’re exploring the Sanskrit word bhakti. Bhakti (pronounced Bach tea…now there’s a visual!) can simply be defined as devotion to God.
Chikitsa Defined
A common term in Ayurveda (the sister science to yoga), chikitsa, is the transliteration of the Sanskrit word often defined simply as “therapy.”
Kosha Defined
You may have never heard the word kosha before, but it is the basis for yoga therapy and addressing imbalance.