Yoga at Ahimsa

We live in a crowded world with too many people, too much work, too much pressure and not enough time and space to just be. There is an overload of sense impressions. The head is full and the mind is restless. The breath becomes shallow, the body lacks vitality. Tension builds up, which acts like an armour to protect us: contracted shoulders, a tight neck and a stiff back with all the related health problems appear. The easiest way to slow down the mind is to work with the body. 

Yoga is not about doing and achieving - It is about undoing, letting go, releasing, allowing, opening, softening. In yoga movement becomes meditation. We direct our attention inwards, experience every breath, every movement, every thought, every emotion. We meet our limitations. We take time to notice what arises. We observe what is happening without competition, judgement and expectation. We let go of the urge to achieve. We stop holding on, we open ourselves to the present moment. The crust is melting. We become soft and still. We feel more alive. We experience a sense of lightness or as one of my students put it: It feels as if the whole body is smiling. In this deep state of relaxation we experience yoga (or union), which can be translated as: "I like myself the way I am."�

Arriving in the present moment we are able to make changes in our lives. In this moment we experience freedom. We take this memory into our daily lives and with it a renewed sense of vitality, confidence and focus.

I got inspired by many great teachers and do not teach one particular style of Yoga. There are many ways of practice and each has its beauty and place. One of my main influences, Swami Satchidananda, put the purpose of Yoga into a nutshell: It is to create ease in the body, peace in the mind and to be useful in life.