EMILY PERRY:: ELEMENTAL

THE YOGA SUTRAS: SAMSKARAS + OUR EXPERIENCE

I.6 "[These five vrittis are] right knowledge, error, imagination, sleep, and memory"

I.7 "Right knowledge consists of sense perception {pratyaksa}, logic, and verbal testimony"

            ~The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, By Edwin Bryant

According to the Yoga Sutras,  yoga is concerned with the stilling of the fluctuations of the mind (I.2: Yogas citta-vritti-nirodhah: Yoga is the stilling of the changing states of the mind). These fluctuations, the vrittis, are are our thoughts, memories, experiences— the workings of the mind— and are recorded in the mind (the citta) as imprints, or samskaras.

How we experience the world is therefore dependent on these samsakras: they color our view. They are the glasses through which we view the world and compare our experience, giving us a frame of reference.

One type of vrittii mentioned in the sutras is right knowledge. Now what does Patanjali mean by that? Right knowledge would be considered a positive vritti, one that could lead us on the path towards samadhi (meditative absorption) in a more sattvic way. That is to say, while all vrittis eventually cease on the path to samadhi, these positive ones are more helpful on the path. Right knowledge would be something hat helps us see the truth of the nature of reality, instead of keeping us stuck in the old imprinting of our experience. Right knowledge can come from direct experience~ what we know to be true from experiencing it in our bodies. Patanjali is telling us to trust our experience in the world through our bodies, not just the mind (or citta).

These samskaras, this patterning, therefore frames our view of the world, and our experience of it. So if we change our samskaras, make them inactive or burn through them, release them, that frees us up to change our point of view. We can have a new way of being in the world, of walking our path, of living our experience.

And, if we consciously work toward replacing the negative mind chatter (vrittis) that keeps us locked into our habitual patterning, we can further move toward being free to experience the moment as it is, as opposed to experiencing it through filters of the past.

In essence, the path of yoga is unique in that it not only gives us tools to release samskaras (old patterning), but also ways to prevent forming new negative ones. This is why yoga helps us feel lighter and more awake and open to the present. Why we feel just a bit more free, just a bit more calm, with practice.

NEW OFFERINGS!

I have a new post up over at Elephant Journal, all about using tonic herbs to support a successful meditation practice (if there is such a thing...). And as usual, you can always find my pieces at Elephant over in my sidebar.

I will be adding new public classes starting next week: Tuesday/ Thursday at 9 AM starting on Decemeber 13th over at a new studio space, Pleasure Point Yoga. This class will be all levels, and the space is so beautiful, I can't wait to see you there! First class there is this Saturday at 4 PM for you locals~ we would love to see you!

Starting January 2nd, I will teaching Monday-Wednesday-Friday at 9 AM over at Santa Cruz Yoga, where I teach Tuesday and Thursday nights— this will be a level 2-3 flow, and full of fun challenge!

Hope to see you in class soon!

TONIC HERBS + YOUR PRACTICE

{Photo: Kthread}

My latest post is now live over at Elephant Journal Wellness: "3 Tonic Herbs Every Yogi Should Know About". Come read about the ways in which herbs can support your sadhana, or practice! Please leave a comment if you'd like!

Have You Read This?

I have a new piece up over at Elephant Journal, an online magazine about yoga & so much more!

The article explores the Dai Mai (or Belt Vessel) energetic channel, and how twists open and release energy.  I hope you enjoy it!

HOW TO ALIGN OURSELVES FOR MORE ENERGY

In my past life, there were so many situations, relationships, & demands on my time that drained me of my energy.  And while I still have many pots on the stove at once (so to speak), I have garnered many tools over the years that have helped me feel less drained & more fulfilled.

Our energy is a precious commodity~ let's spend it wisely.

There are a few simple steps you can take in order to reclaim your energy & do more of what you love!

1. NAME YOUR ENERGETIC VAMPIRES

Go ahead- make a list.  You know the things I mean~ they drain your energy at just the thought of doing them.  This list may include relationships, roles you play, jobs you perform.  

Be bold and clear here, and name names.

2. LOCATE THE LEAK, THEN SEAL IT OR RELEASE IT

What specifically is draining?  Try to nail down the specifics.

When we can get clear on the origin of the energetic loss, we can apply first-aide.

This might mean healing the energetic tear that is allowing us to leak energy, or perhaps letting go of the situation all together.  Try containing your energy with love & compassion for the situation~ maybe next time you spend time in that position, visualize & feel the strength of your energetic boundaries.   Be clear with yourself as to what you are willing to give away.

Fair warning: sometimes being clear leads to change & transformation.  Sitting with a situation and allowing it to metamorphose into something nurturing and rich takes bravery & a little time.

3. ALIGN YOURSELF WITH RASA & LOVE

Rasa is in essence the juice of life~ what gets you excited, what lights you up.  (Read more about my love for rasa here at the Gypsy Girl's Guide).  What is juicy for you?  What draws you to it with an upwelling of love?  Acting on our path, our dharma, is rarely energetically draining in the same way~ and usually that which lights you up will bring with it energy & creativity.

Alignment with our dharma is nurturing, sustainable & joyful.  So here's to cultivating more of what we love, and less of what we no longer need.

:::

 

slowing down for the new year

the holidays are always a great time to slow down here in the northern hemisphere: winter solstice celebrates the return of the light, giving us time to nest, to celebrate the past year, to clear space and get ready for the newness to come.

this christmas eve i made these ravioli- and they were so worth the effort! the recipe is for about eight people, and since there were only a few of us, i have a ton left over for another night.

i love the slowness of making things by hand- everything tastes just a bit richer and sweeter, and the kids get to help create real food. and this whole day of slowing down got me thinking about my word for the year, and what i want to manifest for 2011.  i haven't chosen a word yet, but i think i am close.  i know i want to clean-up my diet a bit more (less honey and caffeine- i drink a lot of tea!), and more green juices and vegan food.  although i don't see myself becoming fully vegan again (i like to make homemade cheese and use eggs in things), i do want to lighten up a bit more this winter.  I am getting Kris Carr's new book for sure, and i will fill you in on the others as i decide on them.

namaste & happy holidays!  have you picked your word for the year? 

evolving

According to Tim Miller, when trying to evolve, we often get stuck in the past.  

It's where we typically get stuck.  We get stuck in the past.  Where did all those conditions for the conditioned mind come from?  They came from the past.  And, you know, if that's what runs you, all those patterns from the past, basically what happens is your future is going to look a lot like your past, because those same conditions are going to be present and create your experience based on that patterning.

 

you can listen to some of Tim's talks here.

on loosing and letting go

the other day, my daughter lost her first tooth. i love watching my daughter change from a kindergardener to a school age girl- and how quickly she has become so self-sufficient.  She is able to read, write, fed herself, make her own art... it is so amazing!

so i am just basking in all that mommy-ness today.    And watching the fall light some in.

the digital Detox- day three~ safari clean up

the digital detox, day "3": i should note here that this is actually going to take me a few days to get to- i have more teacher training this weekend, and so i am not sure how much will really get cleared before monday.  but here's the plan: clean up those bookmarks, make better folders, and delete delete delete- there are many bookmarks that i don't have an interest in any longer.

part two of this will include cleaning up my safari bookmark bar to only include my current favorite reads and sites i check of often.  i want to have a bit better of a work flow going on, and as i am starting a new writing project, i would like it to be clean and neat. 

what are you clearing up over in your life?  i would love to hear! 

The Digital Detox- day two~ the hard drive

{chard, which we are working on growing, in the Life Lab garden at UCSC}

Ah, day two.  so i didn't get to focus today on clearing my feeds, but instead starting clear out old photos and itunes.  i had so many old podcasts and books on tape that i will never listen to again, and i found that i freed up so much hard drive space with podcasts and music alone.  i also moved all the raw video and finished video to my external hard drive (1TB in size), so that was pretty major in the free space department.

i organized my documents and other items, and deleted some old knitting pattern pdfs i had saved (i can get everything on ravelry now if i ever want to make anything i deleted).

i feel lighter already!  I am going to work on the networking tonight- check out Susannah's post on day two about clearing up her google reader, twitter & facebook.  and check out my first post here about day one!