Zephyr Yoga Podcast

Udana Vayu is the upward-moving, ascending and radiant life-force from the top of the heart and base of the throat. As it is active primarily in the region between the heart and the head, it is said to bring Prana from the energy centre, Anahata Chakra through Vishuddha Chakra to Ajna Chakra. Udana directs the flow of Prana from the lower to the higher planes of consciousness manifesting a hearts...

This Meditation will utilise Surya Bhedi breathing which is a (Solar Ignition of Energy) breathing technique. To use this technique you will need to use Vishnu Mudhra, inhaling through both nostrils. Then, block your right nostril and exhale Bhastrika Pranayama (strong inhale and exhale but focusing on the exhale) twice. Then block your left nostril and exhale Bhastrika Pranayama twice. And repeat...

This Yoga practice will offer you strong standing poses and abdominal strengtheners mixed with Pranayama Kriya practices.  When the two opposing energies Pran and Apana Vayu are balanced it is said to awaken  Samana Vayu. Samana Vayu is the direction of Prana that is a concentrating, absorbing and consolidating force that digests and assimilates incoming energy. The function is...

This meditation is all about expelling the energy that does not serve you and finding 4th power of the exhale. We will use Kapalabhati Kriya, Kumbhaka on the inhale and exhale and brining some focus to our meditation with Prana, Ganesh and Apana hand mudras to guide awareness.  You will find this meditation very therapeutic as you focus on letting go, releasing and practicing the art of surre...

This meditation will use different Pranayama Kriyas to heighten focus on the inhale pattern Pran Vayu, and to utilise Prana to heal, inspire and transform.  We are going to focus on  PRAN VAYU , which is the movement inwards (drawn in) of the fundamental energising force of our vital energy. The easiest way we can receive Prana is through the inhale, however we can receive Prana fro...

Prana  is life force Vayu  direction of winds This class weaves dynamic asana with breath centric movement using different Pranayama Kriyas and ratios to cultivate a greater connection to Prana and a heightening focus on the inhale pattern. Building strong standing poses, with lateral relief to open pathways to effectively receive Prana and utilise it to heal, inspire and transform. Weav...

The Tantric text of practice, Gheranda Samhita, states that there are 5 Stages of Prana 1. Activation  2. Churn  3. Consolidate  4. Ignite  5. Direct Which implies that when we practice we need to make an intention, so that the Prana we cultivate can be directed to something useful. Through Yoga gaining Self-Knowledge and through Tantra we master Prana power we can effectively...

The last of the Kleshas is Abinivesha, the fear of loss, change and death. The fear of change and death is a suffering deep within our instinctual subconscious, Fear is hardwired for self-preservation, reacting to avoid changing circumstances, being out of control, loosing something we are attached to and staying in denial of our unavoidable end at all cost. This deep-seated involvement with duali...

This session we are focusing our practice on the 4th Klesha which is Dvesa: Avoidance of previously experienced pain and suffering experienced. Just like last session focusing on  Raga , we saw that not all desire is bad; desire to quench your thirst, to feed your hunger, the desire to get our fundamental needs met to feel safe, to be loved, to belong and connected to as well as the desire fo...

A weird and wonderful paradox we have is the gift of a conscious mind that wants to escape itself and find itself at the same time. Yoga provides tools to skilfully manage the unmanageability of being human, yet guides us with more meaning, fulfilling a greater purpose of embodiment. In our practice of Yoga we come across obstacles that stir up negative thinking, emotional distress, inst...

Kleshas are fear based, mental-emotional afflictions that cause persistent distress, pain and suffering. The first  Klesha is Avidya , which is our blind spots, our lack of awareness or misapprehension in what we are seeing. Asmita is the second Klesha meaning egotism, the “I – AM – Ness” of the ego falsely identifying by its distorted sense of self seen through Avidya. It is said t...

Georg Feuerstein “Yoga is an art and spiritual science of disciplining your body, mind and breath.” We practice Yoga to form an intimate relationship with the mind and body by shaping the breath. We open to sensation and cultivate the light of insight which in turn stills the mind and body to attain the state of Yoga. In the  previous practice , we mapped out a simple practice for complicated...

Action in Sanskrit is Karma. Karma carries the notion the fruit of your actions, comes back to you, you can’t escape the consequence of your actions. There is always a cause and effect, for every action has a reaction, for every choice has a consequence. The cause behind your current situation is your past Karma. This way of practice is seeing that life is not just happening to you, it is hap...

Yoga is skill in action with loving awareness that awakens our embodiment to an intention set in every practice. An Intention is an aspiration or energy that draws us to love, truth and creativity. What matters to us most? An intention, whether it is a New Year’s intention or a daily intention you set as a commitment to your care in every gesture, grace of movement, sensation, emotion and thought....

atha yoga anushasanam  – The first Yoga Sutra. Now begins the instruction of the practice of Yoga. Now, Now and Now…We get to begin again. With confidence and authority Patanjali suggests, within the Yoga Sutras, a practical format to guide students into the quest to discover the nature of the mind, the nature of Self, the relationship with consciousness embodied and the path to liberation. T...

In our practice it is important to connect to our Prana – Vital Energy, Life Force that is intelligent, healing and inspiring. It is filled with boundless energy and power. Increasing Prana in our practice creates Agni – Fire, to burn bright and hot. This is the desired experience of creating heat for positive change called Tapas. What we put in the fire receives this Prana, the Agni transforms it...

To be or go beyond the range or limits of, to surpass… not bypass  this human experience, but embrace our humanity and reclaim our power to go beyond, to rise above our stuff, to cut across karmic ties, to excel and share our unique insight, gifts, talents and skills, to leave behind that which doesn’t serve us and outshine our core false beliefs of ourselves. This is the...

This is where personal potential is fully realised after basic bodily and ego needs have been Self-Fulfilment. This means that there is full realisation of one’s potential and of one’s true self. Ultimately, it is said what you truly are is pure consciousness embodied. Spanda  or vibration of the movement or wave of consciousness – physical essence of consciousness Our practice is to attend t...

We as the competent students of Yoga ( Adhikaras ) devote and dedicate our time to a practice regularly and honour the teachings by adhering to the suggested path essential to achieving the desired State of YOGA! According to the Yoga Sutras 2.29, to practice Yoga the student follows the 8 limbed path.  8 Limbs of Yoga 1. Yamas 2. Niyamas 3. Asana 4. Pranayama 5. Pratyahara 6. Dharana 7. Dhya...

We tend to fight against fear, guilt, shame, anger, sorrow. We tend to resist what we perceive as negativity or things we don’t like, situations that create a change we feel may cause dis-ease or an undesirable outcome. This consumes so much energy and brain space, ruling our lives from a place of fear base beliefs. There is a slogan that states what we resist, persists. Creating a tug-a-war with...

In last weeks practice we started the journey through the 7 stages of Yoga with Self Awareness. This is where our light of intelligence (Prajna) and our intuitive Wisdom (Buddhi) gathered insight into what is arising in practice in the form of thought, emotions and sensations. In our practice we were consciously shaping the breath to guide the mind to recognise the tr...

The first stage of Yoga is Self Awareness. This begins the invitation to change, to be present and to be conscious. If you think about it, most of our day is spent unconscious, lost in thought and entertaining the Doer-ship of our existence. This first step engages our light of intellect (Prajna) and our innate wisdom (Buddhi) to dissolve the veil of ignorance (Avidya) and expand our perspective t...