Develop (or Hone) Your Home Practice
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
2M ago
We all LOVE our yoga class. Even when it is a lot of work, we know we feel better afterward. It is a time we can get away, have a moment to focus ONLY on our self, and have a chance to connect more deeply with how we move and how we feel. Wouldn’t you also LOVE to have that experience at home? Class is only once or twice a week, when you are in class you are subject to the plan and sequence of the teacher. Sometimes that is perfect for YOU, and sometimes not so much. To take the platform of learning from your class to a practice at home tailored just for you is where a lot of the magic of ..read more
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The Relevance of a “Guru”
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
3M ago
December 14th is the birth date of BKS Iyengar, and 2023 would have been his 105th. He was a man who started yoga practice with his guru, T. Krishnamacharya, as a sickly teen of seventeen and continued until his death at 96. He was one of three main teachers that came from Krishnamacharya’s lineage to share different aspects of the practice and develop their own followings throughout the world in yoga : his son, TKV Desikachar with Viniyoga; Pattabhi Jois with Ashtanga Yoga; and BKS Iyengar with Iyengar Yoga. In Iyengar Yoga, the specific practice we teach at The Yoga Place, we do honor BKS Iy ..read more
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Learning to Learn in Yoga
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
4M ago
When was the last time you walked into any classroom and thought “thank you teacher for that piece of knowledge, but I think I will just do my own thing?” We walk into a classroom to learn, to open our mind, to engage with a subject that maybe we don’t know everything about. So, maybe this is the thing with a yoga class, we don’t see it as a classroom, but as an exercise space, a space where whatever happens happens and “learning” is not really the goal. We go to “do” our yoga, not learn something about yoga. This language and approach absolutely matters. Iyengar Yoga classes stand out for man ..read more
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Iyengar and Vinyasa
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
6M ago
4 week Special Series – Wednesday Mornings From Oct 25 thru Nov 15 – 8-9:30am “Children and youngsters do like this method (vinyasa practice) and thoroughly enjoy it since it gives them quickness, agility, speed, and variety. In the late 40s, Guruji (Krishnamacharya) abandoned it. In my case, as I had to teach in schools, colleges, as well as the cadets of the National Defence Academy, I followed it wherever and whenever it was appropriate. In the Institute (Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Institute in Pune, India) even now we do continue to teach this method in children’s classes and once in a whi ..read more
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The Hands and Feet of Yoga – Foundations and Sensations
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
7M ago
When we think of yoga, the first thing that comes to mind is the whole body in posture, doing a pose. However, as a teacher, and specifically as an Iyengar Yoga teacher, we are taught to look closely at all aspects of a pose, particularly the foundation of where it begins, and even at the smaller spaces of sensitivity that can get missed by gross or overtly physical movement. For me, the hands and the feet of postures are fascinating as foundations to so many of our poses. But also, their positions and movements say so much about what else might be going on in the body, known or unknown to the ..read more
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The Sprouts from “Embrace Yoga’s Roots”
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
7M ago
We have concluded our Summer Book Club with our online discussion. In general, I think that readers were challenged, but curious about the work suggested in “Embrace Yoga’s Roots” by Susanna Barkataki. I know that for me the reflections and ideas within the workbook format will continue. At the very least, I think everyone who read could agree that work is necessary. Yoga in the West has separated itself immensely from the roots and culture of the subject. The “look of yoga” in the West is a far cry from the spiritual and universal subject matter it claims to be teaching. But the “HOW” of the ..read more
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Liberation!
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
7M ago
“Yoga has always had liberation as its aim. Liberation has multiple meanings. Often in its early usage in yogic texts as kaivalya it is referring to freedom from illusion of the cycle of suffering that humans experience. Liberation is the awareness of our true nature as always already interconnected to everything else. It is the realization of no separation between oneself and others…In the West, we often take the opposite view. Liberation is seen as an individualistic expression of self where our desires run rampant. This is not the kind of freedom that yoga promises.” Embrace Yoga’s Roots ..read more
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Leaning into Reconnection
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
8M ago
Now that we have learned ways that Western Yoga has separated itself from yoga’s roots, Susanna Barkataki leads us into the path of reconnection in Chapter V, Part 1 of Embrace Yoga’s Roots. “Cultural appreciation seeks to connect with cultures different from one’s own from the inside out. It respects the codes, values and practices of the culture. Cultural appreciation can happen when one enjoys or respects the culture of origin. Instead of harming or taking, one learns with humility, gives back and uplifts the source culture.” Embrace Yoga’s Roots – pg 144 How do we acknowledge our privileg ..read more
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Accomplice over Ally – Equity over Diversity
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
8M ago
Image provided by – Interaction Institute for Social Change | Artist: Angus Maguire. Parts 3 and 4 in Chapter IV cover some interesting clarifications on terms and the roles played in Western Yoga communities. The levels of being an ally to an accomplice and knowing how equity is different from just diversity are important distinctions to make as we reflect on how we show up or act in our society and community. For many of us, the role of “ally” is comfortable and doable. We can see places where we might support or speak up to create change in society and community with our votes or the places ..read more
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Power and Privilege in Yoga
The Yoga Place Blog
by Jennie Williford CIYT
9M ago
Stock photos used on this blog show the tendency toward white centering when searching “warrior pose” for images. Chapter IV in Embrace Yoga’s Roots by Susanna Barkataki takes us into “Reflection” on the power and privilege that show up in yoga communities. Being that the Western Yoga community is dominated by middle to upper class white women, reflection on and acknowledgement of this fact is important to then know how to begin to transform it toward a more equitable and diverse space. Barkataki begins the chapter with defining 3 types of power. (pg 96) Power Over – “external power control ..read more
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