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Will Doran Yoga
Newsletter - February, 2007 _____________ <<< ☼ >>> _____________ Dear friends, Thank you once again for your interest in reading my supporting words. It is my deepest wish that they may help you to connect to the light and love that is the center of your core essence. Finding that essence requires looking at all aspects of your life and aligning it with your highest image of who you want to be. This month’s newsletter addresses this effort as a way to develop a loving self perception that knows that all life is designed to be a process of self discovery and creative expression from this highest place of awareness. Can you imagine a world that is grounded in the knowledge that we are all part of a sea of interconnectedness and innate goodness? Let’s start with holding ourselves in an image of love and light and then let the ripple effects or our expanding consciousness transform the world! In this issue: Alignment Applied Yoga: Aligning With Your Higher Purpose Notices:
____________________________________ Yoga Philosophy: Alignment What has drawn me most to yoga is the way it has taken the concepts learned in my philosophical and spiritual studies and has made it more real to me in the way I think, act and am "being" in the world. It has helped me to ground into my humanity, honoring my physical being and humanity as something to be embraced as a sacred gift for learning to connect to my heart and its interconnectedness with Spirit and the divine. It has taught me to recognize the different layers of who I am and how that relates to seeing the same process of spiritual refinement in all human beings, no matter how advanced they are in revealing their inner light. It has become clear that having being gifted life is an opportunity to learn to live from the inside-out realization that the divine exists in all things regardless of conscious awareness. Learning to discover it for ourselves is the reason we are here. Accepting my physical body and all its needs, vulnerabilities, pleasures and pains has taught me that there is no mistake in our being created in the material world. My life has value as it is; it is not something to endure or to be lived waiting out the clock until the game is over and I get to go home to my reward in heaven. No, there is something powerful to be learned in aligning my intention to live from my higher self awareness and fine-tune the manner in which I relate to all aspects of being alive. It is in the learning to align with our inner vision and core essence that the work produces the refinement of body-mind-spirit and comes to know it as all being good. Working with yoga students I frequently give instructions on how to properly align the physical and energetic bodies to achieve an optimal result. I offer instruction on how to place the feet and hands, ground the line of force downward, spiral it in, expand outward, still the mind and observe. These all foster concentration and clarity leading the student inward. As they feel the effects of different placements of the body and the flow of prana, the life force that courses in and through us, they train themselves to be receptive to the wisdom of the body and a controlled and responsive mind. Such instruction helps to elevate the art of yoga beyond the basic benefits of the physical practice as students move from an externally-oriented perception of themselves to a focus inward. This strengthens the capacity to feel and adjust from a point of inner vision which in turn radiates outward in a calm and loving demeanor. This learned skill of sensing what is happening in the present moment and then make adjustments to enhance the experience is where the alchemy lies in the art of yoga. When one learns how to listen to the wisdom of the body, to quiet oneself from the inside out, and then take action to its highest height one can apply this knowledge to life experience off the mat. To understand alignment better, both physically and behaviorally, we have to look at it from an energetic level and the power of thought. In a physical pose, or asana, we work with placing our anatomy so that the skeletal and muscular structure line up in such a way that the body feels strong and stable in its expression. To get to this place of optimal physical alignment we first have to be aware of the attitude and mental alignment that we bring into the pose. If we can put aside self-judgment and deprecating thoughts we can open to the presence of grace within and let the proverbial inner light shine. Even with physical conditions that can limit movement and range of motion one can bring awareness to the placement of the body that honors our intention to do the best we can with what we got. On the other hand, if we deny that our mind affects the quality of our pose – of our being in the world – we loose the opportunity to go deeper into self awareness and the fullness of our expression; we act from the outside-in, rather than the inside-out, and in doing so establish limitations before we even begin. One can test this by simply saying "I can’t do that" and watch the result. Then send the opposite message to the body by visualizing your success and see how aligning the mind with your intention affects your strength and the effectiveness of your efforts. The most beautifully expressed pose is seen internally before it is even attempted, then it is brought into being. If the mind isn’t on board the effort is never as bright or complete as it could be, regardless of the limitations that one is working with. The quality of mind effects the quality and direction of the flow of energy and the physical expression. This statement is relative to the execution of asana as well as the alignment of our intention and behavior. Whatever we are striving to achieve its outcome is determined by the effort and attitude of our approach. This is true especially of situations that stretch our perceived limitations or resources. One can work on a challenging pose with consistency and steadfast dedication and in time will see results even if the process is long and laborious. If the effort is made with preconceived limitations and no clarity of vision the end result will show this in a less than satisfying outcome. I am constantly amazed and pleased when I attempt an advanced pose and explore the edge of my capability and then work on it with steadfast diligence. I may stumble and fall but by constantly realigning my effort I produce a steady progress, and even more important, a deeper understanding of who I am through my endeavor. The quality of effort is what makes all the difference in the world. Taking action from a place of internal alignment with my highest vision for myself is closely connected to discovering the bigger picture of who I am for the learning in one area spills over to others. What seems to come from this awareness is that every effort to do my best and live my highest vision for myself has an affect on the total sum of my life. Seeing the interconnectivity between one effort and another makes it easier to understand how small alignment adjustments can produce huge long-term results. Giving myself permission to accept the conditions of the moment as being just that, in the moment and not permanent, I align with my effort and move forward, even if at a slow and steady pace. ____________________________________ Applied Yoga: Aligning With Your Higher Purpose To understand alignment as a concept for how to live your life I believe you must first look at the big picture, or metaphysical view of why you are here. It is a good idea to get a clear understanding of what one is trying to achieve before setting out to make it so. From the yogic perspective you must start by seeing yourself and all the circumstances of your life as inseparable from the divine. Everything is an expression of Spirit manifest in varying degrees of energy and refinement. We exist in a sea of interconnected parts that express their uniqueness in swirls within swirls of ever-changing patterns of being. Metaphysics and non-dualistic yogic philosophy, which hold that there is ultimately but one thing making up the totality of existence, teach us to broaden our scope of perception to see everything as varying degrees of vibrating light energy. The more solid and dense the energy the lower the vibration; conversely, the higher the vibration the brighter the light. The yogis call this unifying energy of pure consciousness purusha; we may know it more by the names of God, higher consciousness, or all-encompassing love. The name is not important for the concept is simple: all things were created by and remain an expression of the One. Our calling is to learn to recognize the Source within and amplify the highest vibration of our love expressing it in every aspect of our being. The process is so huge that it actually takes many more than just one life time to complete. Indeed, each life is orchestrated – relationships, family dynamics, culture, etc. – to facilitate the progressive process. What may seem like separation from the One is actually an opportunity to come to know oneself as being connected, in spite of appearances and obstacles. Eventually we will come to see ourselves as love, connected to love, expressing love, steeped in love. This is bliss, complete peace, union with God, Yoga. For those of us raised to perceive ourselves as separate individuals competing for limited resources, removed from the heart of love and light – indeed, taught that we are fundamentally flawed and fallen from grace – it can be a far stretch to comprehend and accept that we are in essence love. To come to this understanding takes a great degree of effort and experience to arrive at an effortlessness love-centered way of being. Countless philosophical schools, spiritual practices, and religions have arisen to help us get a glimpse of this understanding, each encompassing various degrees of clarity and compassion. For myself, the practice of Yoga, or "creating union," has served me the most to pull my diverse studies into focus and produce the clearest results in personal growth and expanded consciousness. The lessons learned have come primarily from stilling the mind sufficiently to allow the inner voice of wisdom and divine recognition to be heard. This "still quiet voice" within is the voice of the soul that knows itself from a far higher vibration and existence beyond this life time. It is not often easy to tune into this inner voice because of the yammering and distractions of the mind/ego-self that knows itself to be vulnerable and transitory. It is also limited in its ability to achieve fulfillment on its own merits for the mind will not bring you to Spirit. Spirit must be experience in its own light and on a higher vibration (presence) than mind. As such, Yoga has helped me to feel and know the presence of Spirit and to shift my perspective more and more towards an understanding that Spirit has created my physical world as a playground, and sometimes even a battleground, for the inner light to know and express itself. A spiritual practice like Yoga includes techniques for making connections to all aspects of our being. Most know Yoga for its work with the body on a physical level which is a wonderful starting point. With a regular practice the student learns that the body becomes a tool for expanding the powers of concentration and mental stillness making it possible to journey into the inner realms of Self awareness. Shifting from external to inner vision facilitates observation of the diverse sensations and responses that each pose generates and the state of the body and mind while experiencing them. We can expand our sense of Self by asking the question "if I am observing the body and mind, who then is doing the observation?" The question leads to the discovery of our higher being that chooses to incarnate in physical form for the sake of knowing itself as consciousness, love and light, the core essence of God. Higher consciousness is known and expressed through the quality of our being. Shifting our perspective away from a fear-based ego to one that looks for the connections between our self and our surroundings is a good way to make strong inroads. Choosing to suspend judgments and act more from preferences based on the degree of love that is present helps to discern what is healthy and not. Living in the moment and accepting what shows up honors the presence of divinity in all things. Whether it produces joy or suffering ultimately there is an understanding of the outcome our efforts produce. Moving into the heart strengthens compassion and empathy which allows us to see our behavior, and that of others, all as part of the process of Self realization, or not, as the case may be. In the end, we are all on the same journey with the same destination: home. This softer approach towards karma, or cause and effect, strengthens our resolve and empowers us to take responsibility for creating the life we desire. It affects our degree of involvement in our community, families, relationships, and ultimately, our awareness of our higher purpose. Likewise, working to balance out the emotional and behavior aspects of our masculine and feminine sides brings more harmony between the genders and strengths the inner qualities that each embodies. As we grow in our wisdom, we learn to see ourselves as a spark of the Divine, the creator of all that is, and as such, our identity as being an aspect of the Creator, empowered to shape the world and our relationships in which we live. ____________________________________ Notices:
My teaching schedule (February vacation and new changes): Monday: 12:00 noon to 1:15 pm at Olympic Athletic Club in Ballard Tuesday: 10:45 am – 12:00 noon at Gold’s Gym on <<Aurora >> and 97th Tuesday: 7:00 – 8:15 pm at Phinney Center on <<Phinney>> and 65th č Starting in March this class will begin at 7:30 pm & will end at 8:45 pm Thursday: 7:45 – 9:00 pm at Gold’s Gym on <<Aurora >>and 97th Friday: 12:00 noon to 1:15 pm at Olympic Athletic Club (new class starting in March) Saturday: 10:00 – 11:15 am at Phinney Center on <<Phinney>> and 65th Sunday: 11:15 – 12:30 pm at Olympic Athletic Club in Ballard Vacation substitutions and cancelled classes: I will be attending a weekend workshop with Anusara founder John Friend on Friday the 16th through the 18th of February. I’m following this directly with a family vacation from Monday, February 19th through the morning of February 27th. This will affect my teaching schedule as follows: Saturday 17th : Morning class at the Phinney Community Center is cancelled Sunday 18th: Ricardo will sub my class at OAC Monday 19th: Ricardo will sub my class at OAC Tuesday 20th: Trish will sub my morning class at Gold’s Thursday 22nd : Pura will sub my evening class at Gold’s Saturday 24th : Morning class at the Phinney Community Center is cancelled Sunday 25th: Ricardo will sub my class at OAC Monday 26th: Ricardo will sub my class at OAC Tuesday 20th: Trish will sub my morning class at Gold’s
Come join me at the Phinney Ridge Neighborhood Center located at 6532 Phinney Ave. N. on Tuesdays and Saturdays. If you know someone who would like my style of teaching but doesn’t want to join a gym this is the place for them. Drop-in class fee is only $10. Ranch Yoga Retreat date set (June 21st through 24th) Mark your calendars and begin planning your summer now. Each year I lead a yoga retreat on my family’s 650 acre ranch in the Methow Valley. This is a wonderful opportunity to spend time together practicing yoga out in the beautiful stillness of the open country and to let yourself be pampered with down-home hospitality and ranch living. This year we will have both access to the family ranch house (for those who want to sleep inside) as well as a spacious orchard for setting up tents in the shade. Follow this link to learn more and see the picture gallery from past retreats: www.RanchYoga.com. It is getting close to the time to start sending in your deposit to hold a space. Will Doran, Life Coach and catalyst for change If you feel there is a part of your life that is beckoning you but you can’t seem to get there – be it career, personal relationships, connecting to Spirit, or defining your life purpose – I can help you move into your next stage of personal growth and fulfillment. Knowing how to get there isn’t always an easy thing and working with a trained specialist can make all the difference. If you are interested in seeing what coaching can do for you give me a call and we can set up a free trial session. Call at (206) 789-2321 or go online to www.TheYogaCoach.com for more information.
May your days be filled with peace, joy and light. Namaste, Will PS. Please feel free to pass this newsletter on to your friends. Also, if you are interested reading inspirational material and seeing some of my art check out my web site: http://www.expressionsofspirit.com . I just added a new painting entitled "Sparks."
If you wish to be removed from this list send a blank message with the word "REMOVE" in the subject line to wjddoran@comcast.net .
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