January 2009 yGuide Yoga Newsletter

Introduction

December is just a blur and I find myself amazed that it is already January 10, 2009. Time really does just fly by! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. The start of the New Year always makes me think about going back to basics as I reflect on various aspects of my life. One practice flow I am always drawn to at this time of year is the Ancient Tibetan Rites. This practice helps me to bring back my balance after the rush, too much food and travel of the holiday season. I have included some brief instructions and a link to a PDF of the flow below. Also, learn about Aromatic Neti Salt and the use of essential oils in jala neti from a paper I researched and wrote in December.

Table of Contents

1. Ancient Tibetan Rites
2. Aromatic Neti Salt from Into The Scented Garden

Ancient Tibetan Rites

The Great Yoga Poses II collection includes the Five Ancient Tibetan Rites. The rites are a five-pose yoga sequence that is based on observations of a British army officer, Colonel Bradford (an assumed name), when he was living in a Himalayan monastery. The rites are now famous and are practiced around the world as they are said to be "the fountain of youth" for their anti-aging properties. LINK TO PDF

Principles

The five rites consist of different movements synchronized with your breath, to stimulate and balance the seven principal energy centers in your body. We know these energy centers in yoga as chakras. You can think of the chakras as being energy centers with a spinning vortex. As you balance the spinning of the vortex, your life force becomes more directed and stronger. The rites are designed to normalize the speed of each chakra’s spinning, so that they are spinning at the same rate and are working in harmony with one another, thus improving our health and aging process. The rites do help our bodies as we stretch our muscles and joints, and improve overall muscle tone. However, the focus of the rites is on our energy centers.

Medical research can support the benefits of the rites with convincing evidence that the aging process is tied to hormone regulation. The rites are said to normalize the hormonal imbalances in the body and therefore they hold the secret to lasting youth, health and vitality. The rites stimulate our energy system to get the energy moving from our core outward to our extremities. The theory is that your kundalini (spiritual energy) is stored at the base of your spine and that the five rites enable us to access that energy in an easy and efficient manner.

Key points to remember as you practice the Ancient Tibetan Rites:

• Start with 3 repetitions of each exercise and gradually increase the number over time.
• Perform each exercise up to 21 times, as the Tibetans believe the number 21 is a perfect, mystical number. According to the Tibetans, doing more that 21 times can cause the rites to lose effectiveness.
  The routine can take from 10-20 minutes.
• Do it daily if you can. It is a great way to warm up for other yoga poses.
• You should never feel exhausted. If you begin to lose your breath that it is an indication that you are low on oxygen and should slow down.
  Maintain an emphasis on synchronizing your breath with your movement, not on speed or number of repetitions.
• Have fun!

Contraindications If you have any of the following conditions, consult your medical professional before practicing the rites:

Chronic fatigue syndrome
Multiple Sclerosis
Dizziness
Neck pain
Enlarged heart
Parkinson’s or other Parkinson-like disease
Heart disease
Pregnancy
Heart valve problem
Seizure disorders
High blood pressure
Ulcers
Lower back pain
Vertigo
Meniere's disease
Weakness, stiffness or pain in the shoulders or legs

If you have any questions as to whether or not you should practice these rites, consult your medical professional.

LINK TO PDF

The Ancient Tibetan Rites are included in our Great Yoga Poses II Collection. Click here to view the collection.

Aromatic Neti Salt from Into The Scented Garden

Recently, I wrote a term paper for a college course I was taking on “Plants, We Eat, Drink and Smoke Them”. The assignment was to interview and write about a business that produced products that used plants. I immediately thought about a product I use every day, Into the Scented Garden Aromatic Neti Salt. Conveniently, I was visiting in California and I had the opportunity to visit Into the Scented Garden and interview the owner, Dorothy Severns. The interview provided insight on what inspired her to create Aromatic Salt for jala neti and the process she went through to determine what essentials oils should be in the aromatic blend. This is a product that I am passion about, because it has helped me so much with my own allergies and keeping me healthier with my frequent air travel. If you wonder about jala neti and how you can enhance its benefits, read my paper by clicking here.

Click here to view the Aromatic Neti Salt products.

November 2008 yGuide Yoga Newsletter

Table of Contents

1. Pranayama Practice
2. Cleansing Your Nasal Passages with Jala Neti
3. Book Recommendation

Pranayama Practice

Let's review a couple of pranayama techniques which may or may not be familiar to you. Even if you are a regular practitioner of pranayama, it can be beneficial to take a moment to revisit the techniques, because sometimes we can have additional insights during a review.

Ujjayi Pranayama

This breath is known as the psychic breath as it leads to subtle states of mind. The Sanskrit word means "victorious". The breath is a tranquilizing breath as it soothes the nervous system and calms the mind. It is also a warming breath as it heats the body. This breath is profoundly relaxing and can help to relieve insomnia and aid recovery from a cold.

Sit in Sukhasana (Easy Pose). Relax your whole body and your face. We are going to get a feel for making the audible sound at the back of the throat while doing Ujjayi breath by doing a little exercise we will call the "ha" thing. Take a nice inhale through your nose. Exhale with your mouth open and say "haaaaa" in the back of your throat. This sound is the sound you want to make when you are doing Ujjayi breathing, except you want to make it with your mouth closed.

Now inhale again through your nose. This time exhale through you nose with your mouth closed and make the "haaaaa" sound at the back of your throat. Practice a few times with your mouth open and then closed to get a feel for making the audible noise at the back of the throat. You should hear an audible noise at the back of your throat that my sound a bit like Darth Vader or a soft snore of a baby. The audible breath shouldn't be too loud, but just loud enough for you to hear it or perhaps someone sitting very close to hear it.

** Contraindications ** If you are suffering from heart disease, do not combine this breath with locking your bandhas or with breath retention.

Click Here to Purchase Poses Available in yGuide Yoga Software with Great Yoga Poses II

Kapalabhati Pranayama

Energizes the mind for mental activity. It can remove sleepiness in preparation for meditation. Purifies the Ida and Pin Gala nadis (subtle passage in which the prana moves). The Ida is the nadi that terminates at the left nostril and the Pin Gala terminates at the right nostril. It balances and strengthens the nervous system as well as tones the digestive organs.
The Sanskrit work "Kapal" means cranium or forehead and "bhati" means light, splendor, perception or knowledge. So it is a practice which brings a state of light or clarity to the frontal region of the brain. Be sure to practice on an empty stomach 3-4 hours after meals. You can perform this at any time of day. You can practice it after an asana practice and before meditating.

Sit in Sukhasana (Easy Pose). Keep your spine straight and your hands resting on your knees in Jnana mudra. Relax your whole body and your face. Close your eyes. Exhale and empty your lungs. Take an inhale slowly and deeply through your nostrils filling your belly 3/4's full with air. Exhale with intention by contracting your abdominal muscles and release the air from your belly. Think of it as a "snap" of the belly toward the spine. Don't strain as you do this. You are forcing your exhale and your body will automatically take care of the inhale. Let your inhale happen passively. Your body will naturally respond to the forced exhale with an inhale. Just let it happen. There should be no effort to inhale. It is spontaneous. Repeat as rapid breaths in succession for 10 breaths. This completes 1 round of Kapalbhati Pranayama. Practice 3-5 rounds. Be sure to use your abdomen and not your chest for this breath work. You can increase the number of respirations from 10 to 20 as your abdominal muscles become stronger.

When you have completed your rounds, release the breath and sit comfortably breathing naturally. Become aware of the feelings you are having. You may feel emptiness and calm.

** Contraindications ** Should not be practiced by anyone with high blood pressure, vertigo, heart disease, epilepsy, stroke, hernia or gastric ulcer.

** Note ** If you experience any pain or dizziness, stop the practice and sit quietly for some time. When the sensation of pain or dizziness has passed, you can try the practice again with more awareness and less force. If it continues, you need to consult a yoga teacher for guidance.

Click Here to Purchase Poses Available in yGuide Yoga Software with Great Yoga Poses II

Cleansing your Nasal Passages with Jala Neti

Fall is in full swing and winter season is just around the corner, so as the season changes, we can all be more susceptible to colds, flu and sinus issues. Jala Neti is also recommended for sinus sufferers, allergy sufferers and frequent travelers. Daily practice of cleansing your nasal passages can prevent sinus congestion and reduce your susceptibility to colds and other respiratory infections. Cleansing your nasal passages keeps the little passageways that lead from the sinuses into the nasal cavity from collecting dried mucus. Dried mucus may obstruct the passageways to the sinuses and create an environment conducive to sinus problems.

With jala neti you use a warm, mildly salty solution to help dissolve and wash away mucus, accumulated dirt, pollen, mold spores, bacteria and viruses which helps the mucous membrane to function properly by freeing the sinus passageway openings. The saline solution is poured into one nostril and then it will flow out the other nostril. I know it sounds contrary to everything you were taught about keeping water out of your nose when you learned how to swim, but adding the salt to the water makes the water more dense and compatible with the mucus membrane. It really does flow in one nostril and out the other quite easily. It may feel a bit strange the first time, but after you have finished, you will notice immediate results.

Into the Scented Garden neti pots and aromatic neti salts are designed to provide you with a comfortable, pleasant and effective experience from nasal washing for better health. There is a starter kit which comes with a pot, small salt and detailed instructions (with pictures) for practicing jail neti.

Click Here to Review and Purchase Neti Pots and Aromatic Neti Salts

Book Recommendation - Science of Breath, A Practical Guide by Swami Rama , Rudolph Ballentine, M.D and Alan Humes, M.D.

It is perhaps hard for us in Western cultures to think about a book entirely about breath, but this book is written in a very clear, interesting manner as it presents both the Eastern concepts surrounding breath and the Western medical understanding of how our breath works. If you are curious how some of the yogic breathing practices might actually work, this is a book that can answer your questions.
When you are in a yoga asana class, you probably hear the teacher instruct you to use a certain breathing practice as you do your poses and to pay attention to your breath. Your breath is your barometer which tells you how you are doing in your asana practice and it helps you connect the mind and the body. For instance, if you can’t breathe smoothly while doing your asana practice, like ujjayi breath during an Ashtanga vinyasa class, then it is an indication that you need to rest in child’s pose and regain the flow of your breath.
I enjoyed reading this book and it gave me a deeper understanding about the significance of breath in my yoga practice and in my life. As Swami Rama states, “Controlling the breath, is a prerequisite to controlling the mind and the body. “

Click Here to Purchase Science of Breath on Amazon

Newsletter by Leslie Ottavi

October 2008 yGuide Yoga Newsletter

Hips, hips and hips. This month's newsletter is going to focus on opening our hips. We all know our body is an intricate system and so many functions are interrelated so let's begin with a brief review of the pelvic bowl which is comprised of our two hip bones and sacrum. The sacrum is the lowest four main segments of our spine. One purpose of our pelvic bones is to link the spine with the thighs, legs and feet, so it is no wonder that when we do poses to open our hips, we are usually also opening our backs, legs and feet. It also works in reverse, when we open our backs, legs and feet we are usually also opening our hips.

Let's take a look at Janu Sirsasana A, head to knee pose, to open our hips and see how it also opens our back, legs and ankles. First, let's look at a picture of the pose.

Now let's give it a try so you can feel the opening in your own body. Begin by sitting on your mat.

1. Park the heel of the right foot securely in your groin. The sole of your right foot is positioned into the inner left thigh. You thighbones are creating a 90-degree angle. The left leg is straight. Toes pointing upward.
2. Inhale your arms up towards the sky.
3. Exhale forward bend clasping both hands to the left foot. Bring the right ribs forward feeling a gentle twist through the waist as to lengthen both sides of the spine equally.
4. Inhale look up with straight arms and straight spine.
5. Exhale full forward bend, extending your spine out over your left leg. Bring your right ribs forward and keep your shoulders away from ears. Hold for 5 Ujjayi breaths. As you are here, feel the stretch in the right hip and the stretch in the hamstring. You may also be able to feel a stretch in your calf, ankle and the bottom of your foot. Breath into the areas where you are feeling the stretch.
6. Inhale look up and switch sides. Notice the differences between one side and the other.

As in all forward bending positions, we want to avoid rounding out the spine. So the focus is chest to knee and not head to knee. We also want to bring awareness into the right hip. Creating opposing forces of energy, we ground out through the right hip as we pull forward and down through the right ribs. This alignment would be contraindicated for people with sacroiliac problems. In this case, instead of creating opposing forces of energy between the hip and the ribs, allow your hip to travel energetically in the same direction as the ribs. This will minimize the torque which can aggravate the sacroiliac area.

Now, let's try a squat, Malasana. When I was doing my teacher training, we did Malasana for 3-11 minutes. I can tell you that extended squatting really opens the hips and low back. First a picture of Malasana.

1. Stand in Samasthiti in the center of your mat and face the long edge of the mat.
2. Step your feet to a wider stance, more than hip-width, with your toes out.
3. Inhale your arms over your head keeping your gaze forward.
4. Exhale full forward bend taking your hands to the floor in front of you.
5. Take an inhale while you are in your forward bend.
6. Exhale begin to squat by lowering your pelvis toward the floor to a comfortable but strong position. Keep your knees in the same direction as your toes.
7. Inhale your hands into Namaste (prayer position). Feel yourself lengthening your spine out of your pelvis to the top of your head as if someone has a string on the top of your head pulling you toward the ceiling. You should feel a nice stretch in your inner thighs/groin area. Hold this pose for few breaths up to several minutes. You decide!

Squatting opens your pelvic area and hips. It also can help relieve lower back discomfort and stiffness. You can also try this pose with the wall and with a block so that you can relax into the pose. It is a more passive variation than a freestanding pose.

As you do your regular practice, take the opportunity as you a breathing into your pose to really feel not just the obvious areas where you are opening your body, but the more subtle areas too.

Namaste,

Leslie Ottavi