Living my Sadhana in Chester NS

Pune, India, Week IV - Vidya

2012-01-29T02:02:00.000-04:00

My husband John has joined me. This is our final week in Pune coming to a close. In two days we begin our pilgrimage north east beginning with a 5 hour drive north east of Mumbai to Aurangabad area where we will visit the Ellora and Ajunta caves http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmQP69exo1o

We have hired a car and driver for two days for this section of our journey. On Wednesday evening he will drop us at a train station where we embark on a 15 hr overnight train trip to Varanasi. We will spend 3 days in Varanasi and then another overnight train trip to Agra where we will be picked up by a car/driver to tour the Taj Mahal, Fort Agra, find a shower :) and finally drop us in the Temple city of Vrindavan where we will stay at a spiritual studies institute and spend two days visiting temples. Our last train trip to Delhi is a short one, arriving in Delhi mid day for two final days of site-seeing and maybe some shopping before flying home.

No idea how easy or difficult it will be to post during these next 12 days but pictures will come.

I am sorry to say goodbye to Pune. This city has so much to offer. I will miss the yoga immersion and my friends whom I have stayed with this past month. I will not miss the pollution and look forward to respiratory recovery!

Prashant Iyengar said that only after profound spiritual knowledge can true meditation (dhyana, samadhi) come. This has been a journey of seeking, to deepen my knowledge - vidya, of yoga and of spiritual life and studies - svadyaya, of discipline - tapas. Onward now to further deepen my spiritual knowledge in this tradition, as we continue on this journey. Ohm nama shivaya, ohm nama Ganesha.

Shanti, shanti, Leigh

Pune Lake house

2012-01-29T01:20:00.000-04:00

Portrait of Pune, India

2012-01-29T00:45:00.002-04:00

Pune, India, Week III - Go with the Flow

2012-01-18T05:30:00.003-04:00

Mid way through week three and I've come down with a head cold. Almost inevitable with the pollution and exposure to so many other people, especially all the yogi travellers who tend to be more vulnerable to germs and pass them around like school kids. So I am taking a rest day and using this opportunity to blog.

This week at RIMYI is officially back bending week. A week where we open our chests and hearts and lift ourselves up and up. A little manipura chakra, anahata chakra, vishudi chakra required. Monday evening Geeta Iyengar discussed the throat and the tongue in sirsasana/headstand. Surprising to find I was indeed thrusting my tongue forward rather than allowing it to release back into the throat. How did she know that? Wonderful subtle class. How does Geeta make back bending so soft and subtle? We spent a great deal of time on standing back bends, dividing the buttocks horizontally into three parts. The middle moves in, the lower draws down towards the back of the thighs. The skin over C-7 moves downwards. Once we moved on to Urdhva Dhanurasana/Upward bow pose we were already there, floating up. Well, for the first few... Geeta also spoke a great deal in this class about studying with her father guruji BKS Iyengar. How at eight years old she was merely doing the poses and by adolescence she had begun to "see", that she has a life long imprint of the study. Interesting karma, both burden and grace to have one's father be your guru...

Last night Prashant Iyengar taught us the difference between action and conduction. We learned to set our intention and conduct ourselves in asana. He also spoke of spinalyzing the poses. Saying he was teaching Spinology, Spinosophy and Spineics. He spinalyzed our minds in Trikonasana.

Last Sunday went to Laxmi Rd to the Gandhi Khadi shop to purchase homespun cotton for John's shirts. This is special cotton hand spun according to the economic and cultural philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. Lovely stuff. Then to the spice market and purchased fresh coriander seeds, fresh mace husks, aromatic cinnamon bark and .dried figs. Promise pictures to follow of large baskets of dried tumeric, chilli's and herbs. I have been lazy about going some place that I can transfer my photos on-line.

John arrives late this Saturday and I look forward to our time together in Pune as well as our coming adventure. We will be travelling to Aurangabad to visit the Allora and Ajunta caves and then train to the holy city of Varanasi. From there we will visit Agra and the Taj Mahal followed by two nights in Vrindavan, city of temples. Then Delhi where John departs for home and I go on to Dehradun for three more weeks or fly home with John depending on whether or not I have straightened out my visa. Yup.

They say the British invented Bureaucracy and India perfected it.... I'll let you know as I take this unwanted journey into "the system". Going with the flow on this one. "The harder we grasp the more we suffer" Dalai Lama.

I am also making smaller posts on Face Book. For those who receive this by email if you follow me on FB you will receive more on day to day events.

Shanti, shanti, Leigh

Pune India Week II - Entering the River

2012-01-03T03:50:00.000-04:00

India, the country that brought us Buddha, pajamas, bungalows, shampoo, Gandhi, email and is revitalizing our stale fashion and music sensibilities. India is cool... Daily exposure to poverty, death and disability; wealth, music and fashion; religion and spirituality, in a city that has grown, since my first visit in 2002, from 2.5 million to 5 million in population. The increased density is palpable. I thought it was crowded in 2002. A rapid and tumultuous river of life that I must bolster the nerve to enter daily... The cultural initiation is to cross the street without leaping out of your skin. One has to surrender to the slipstream like a fallen leaf and float across on the diagonal amidst honking horns and vehicles that come close enough to clip you if you hesitate.

The attraction to this well educated successful and densely populated city is the Ramanai Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute. Ramamani was Guruji Iyengar's now deceased wife. She died in the mid seventies before the Institute was completed. On the same property as their home, now in the heart of the city, having been engulfed by the expanding population many years ago. RIMYI draws as many as 300 students daily to the practice of yoga. With morning and evening classes, open practice time - used largely by the foreigners, and five medical classes a week. The Friday evening class taught by Geetaji had 180 people in it. Our mats were overlapping!! I thought I had already experienced the maximum number of people doing yoga in a room but this was something new. In the Wednesday women's class we were told to stand two to a mat but when the German woman living in South Africa who was next to me stepped over to my mat I told her to get off :) In the end there were enough mats and space for all of us.

Due to circumstance ( a yogi friend and Professor at Converse Collage South Carolina passed through Pune last weekend with 14 eastern religion and yoga studies students and I met up with them) I was appointed by RIMYI administrator Pandu to give them a tour. Inspired to do my research I can share with you that the Institute was designed on three levels representing the outermost to the inner most sadhana (practice), eight columns representing the eight limbs of ashtanga yoga and 88 steps for same. It is 71 feet in height 7 + 1 = 8. The 7 spaces between the eight columns symbolize the 7 kosas or sheaths of consciousness from the anatomical body to union with Atman. Pictures are not allowed to be taken at RIMYI or I could show you a metaphysician's private library not even Harry Potter sets can rival. The medical classes are fascinating, how I wish I could take photographs! In the evening I make notes and draw diagrams.

Students attending RIMYI are both local and international. Foreigners (that's me) make up the bulk of the student population. Recently I had tea with a woman from Italy, another from Germany and a fellow from Chile, such is the nature of things here. I am just grateful that English is the dominant language and ever humbled by the language skills of others. I know of 5 Canadians attending this month. There is always a large group from Russia and others from Germany, Spain, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Netherlands, England, Australia and the USA. This is just a sampling of the range. Classes are taught in English.

I have been assisting in Medical classes 5 days a week, attending classes 6 days a week and daily practice. I also volunteered to do some work on the archives so I have been spending as much as 6 hours a day at RIMYI. The remainder of the time I eat and rest. And shop, but not much time left in the day for shopping. India is exhausting and rest time is essential.

Guruji Iyengar, 93 as of this past December spends time in the morning practice session doing his own yoga practice (yup, no reason to ever give it up) and he is an inspiration to all. This morning he was giving a lesson to his grand daughter Abhi who is a teacher at RIMYI. Abhiji is in her twenties and is being groomed by Guruji to carry on his legacy in yoga. It is wonderful to watch this sacred transference of knowledge lovingly bestowed How wonderful for them both and for all of us to have Abhi carry on the teachings..

I am staying with friends of ours. We met Geeta and Sunder Bhujwani here in 2002 and look forward to seeing them every time we return. John is not here now but her is joining me later this month. Last weekend I went to the Bhujwani's lake house 45 minutes outside the city. The air was much fresher and the view spectacular. They are across the lake from an ancient mountain fortress once belonging to King Shivaji. King Shivaji fought the British and is a much revered historic figure. We spent Saturday evening watching the full moon pass across the mountainous sky. where King Shivaji once ruled from.

Pictures to follow once I have the technology :) Shanti, shanti, Leigh

Pilgrimage to India 2012 test blog

2011-12-17T11:04:00.001-04:00

Testing out my ability to post blogs on my FB page in preparation for posting my India Travelogue.
December 27th to February 29th John and I will be making our 4th pilgrimage to India. Beginning with a month of study at the Iyengar Yoga Institute in the city of Pune, four hours south of Mumbai, followed by a car trip to visit the spectacular Ellora and Ajunta Caves outside Aurangabad. Next we will go by overnight train to spend three days in the Holy city of Varanasi followed by another overnight train trip to Agra and the Taj Mahal; a short drive to Vrindavan, city of Temples for two nights and touring of temples; then a short train trip to Delhi.
After two nights in Delhi we head 240K north to Old Japur in the foothills of the Himalayas for 3 more weeks of Yoga and then home. Whew!
I plan to blog and post pictures the whole way. I hope to convey to you the essence, as much as possible, of our journey.

The picture posted here was taken by John at the Ajuna Market in northern Goa in 2003. This tent market goes on forever, taking you into another world of cross India cultures and arts. We fearlessly entered into this market and gradually wondered how we would find our way back out! No wonder Matt Damon as Jason Bourne hid out here for months with his girlfriend, only to be found in the opening scene of The Bourne Supremacy.

Antaratma Sadhana yoga weekend with Fr. Joe Pereira

2011-09-20T13:12:00.020-03:00

The third annual yoga weekend in Chester with fr. Joe Pereira was a wonderful success. Thanks to Margie and Glen we even got Fr. Joe out for a lovely evening sail.

Close to 40 yogis from as far as Newfoundland, Atlanta and Montreal converged, yukta, in our sweet village to share yoga, delve deeply and open their heart chakra. Below are a few highlights.

Antaratma Sadhana - Fr Joe began with a talk on what distinguishes Iyengar yoga. He spoke of intentionality in our practice - a mindful practice that draws us inward. Antaratma means inward towards the Atman, this is the deepest layer of sadhana (practice). having accomplished Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pratyahya and pranayama the sadhaka (practitioner) moves to the final three limbs of ashtanga yoga - Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi. Fr. Joe aimed to take us to this level of sadhana by way of...
The Agony and the Ecstacy! With each asana sequence this theme remained constant.

Cardiac sequence. Fr. Joe deomstrates in Dwi Pada Viparita Dandasana atrial and ventricular opening. Reference was made to descend the mind from the ajna and visuddhi chakras to the anahata chakra.
The third stage with head resting treats the kidneys.

"The forearm muscles are the "reflector" muscles of the heart and the calf muscles are the second cardiac muscles."

Prostate health sequence. Purvotanasana and Baddha konasana with dowling pressurizing perinium. Ardha yogabandhasana

Anatomy & Yogasana I & II Maui Retreat

2011-03-06T13:18:00.014-04:00

Since 2005 I have been offering the A&Y workshops internationally as well as travelling to Maui HI. This winter for the first time I put the two together as a retreat style program. Located "upcountry" the Banyan Tree House in Makawao is a lovely older plantation style Inn with a beautiful Iyengar style yoga studio. This was the perfect environment for our practice/study, away from the distractions of the beach but only by a short drive, allowing participants to spend afternoons beachside when time allowed.

The group was made up of registered massage therapist-yoga students and a yoga teacher all from Canada. During the course of the week our study progressed from the muscle and bones to the breath and mind body benefits of the asana practice. Throughout the week the topic of samskara's was repeated. Particularly how, with intentionality, we can replace negative imprints with positive in our yogasana practice. As it states on my website home page "Through the practice of yoga we intentionally create an impression or imprint upon ourselves, mind, body and soul, that can affect our samskara's (impressions left by past or current habits that influence our behaviour) and can profoundly influence the direction of our lives". The last day working in pairs participants administered medicinal yoga practices to one another as a way of sealing the experience.

Then we all went sailing/whale watching- that's good medicine!

Fortunately for us my daughter Lyra is a professional cook and she was our fabulous caterer providing nourishing meals prepared with love. Below is a recipe she provided for our supremely yummy dinner one evening.

Papaya Avocado Salsa & Passion Fish

Papaya Avocado Salsa

Dice:
1 small whole papaya
1/4 red onion
1/2 cucumber
3/4 avocado (add last)
Dressing:
1 tsp grated ginger
Juice of one lemon
2 tbs parsley

Salsa is a great accompaniment for a white fish especially marinated in fruit juice.

Passion Fish

Blend together
1 passion fruit
1 slice pineapple
Juice of 1/2 orange
• marinate wild Ono or other meaty white fish for at least an hour in glass (not metal) pan.
• place lemon slices on top (optional)
• drizzle olive oil and bake at 350

Safe and Healthy Forward Bends

2011-02-06T17:06:00.005-04:00

Cooling and calming, forward bends are taught in some form in almost every yoga class. For beginner students forward bends can seem approachable because for one thing, they are not scary. However forward bends can cause or irritate an intervertebral disc injury, reduce circulation to the lower body and bring on a depressed mind state. As teachers, forward bends, especially seated forward bends, require more energy to teach as students become quiet and tamasic, often focused on their physical restrictions and discomfort. This is unlike the standing or back bending asana that invite in the breath and a state of empowerment. Why is this?

Beginning with looking at the more obvious annamaya kosa outer structure, tight, short hamstrings and gluteus maximus restrict forward flexion at the hip joints where we want the forward bends to initiate from. Not only are the hamstrings (sometimes known as the screaming hamstrings) extremely sensitive for many newer students to yoga but when short hamstrings pull on the ischial tuberosities forcing the pelvis into a posterior pelvic tilt the lumbar spine is consequently forced into hyperflexion. Add to this the beginners mind desiring to reach the finish line, in this case the feet, and a forced, painful pose ensues. What we want to see is an anterior pelvic tilt and, for those who are hyperflexible, the navel moves in and up towards the spine.

Now when we explore the pranayama kosa of this same pose what do we find? The flexed lumbar and thoracic spine are convex making the anterior trunk into a cave. The chest and abdominals are shortening. Can this person breathe? The diaphragm muscle is pierced by three structures, the descending aorta, the inferior vena cava and the esophagus. When the anterior torso is in a concave shortened position these structures become occluded (pressed upon causing them to close or partially close) resulting in reduced blood flow to the lower body and decreased return of venous blood to the heart. In addition pressure on the esophagus leads to heart burn and a hiatal hernia. The manipura chakra of personal empowerment is being compressed and the anahata heart chakra is closed and dropping hence a depressed mental state ensues.

How do you ensure students enjoy the cooling calming benefits of forward bends without experiencing the negative side effects?

1. To begin with seat students with short tight hamstrings on just enough height (firm blankets work well) that they can lift upwards from the base of the sacrum, creating a normal lumbar curve.

2. From this point, help them find their hips and how to bend from here and not from the waist. Holding down the tops of the thighs and bobbing forward a few times, keeping the torso firm and lifted, can help with this.

3. Use a belt to help them reach their feet or foot. This also will help keep shoulders from climbing up around the ears creating unnecessary shoulder tension. For students with very tight short hamstrings this may be their full pose in an upright torso position. And the healthiest position for their spine.

4. Next focus on lengthening the front torso while coming forwards. An instruction might be “Inhale and lift the lower front ribs to bring the collar bones forward” followed by “exhale and fold from the hips”. “Keep the arms drawn into the sockets” will also help to keep the chest open.
5. To understand drawing the arms into the sockets I sometimes have student’s supine on the floor and, with arms reaching towards the ceiling, I direct them to move their shoulders into the floor.

6. Discourage students from focusing on a finish line and encourage them to stay present in the process.

I find instilling in students that yoga is not goal oriented and that there is no finish line more necessary in forward bends than any other asana. It must be the sight of those feet seemingly so within reach that makes this concept the most difficult to grasp in these asana. But when I explain to my student’s the benefits for practicing the asana as I prescribe they listen and respond once they know there is a reason. With the correct adjustments and support if needed forward bends are transformed from distressing to meditative. The result is students breathe more fully, do not strain their backs and find their bliss.

Namaste, Leigh

A Healing Weekend with Father Joe

2010-09-17T09:52:00.017-03:00

For the second Fall season we were joined by Father Joe and forty seven participants for a September weekend of nourishing yoga Iyengar method Kripa style. Father Joe who has founded and operates over fifty addiction rehab and HIV/AIDS treatment centres across India travels annually to the west to treat us to his yogic approach to healing illness and his message of love. All as part of his annual fundraising efforts.
Father Joe states that his mentor Mother Theresa is his left hand and his Guru BKS Iyengar is his right. By their guidance Father Joe, a bhakti yogi practices his karma work.
Please enjoy these photographs, a glimpse into our weekend of connecting with the Atman through yoga asana, pranayama and philosophy. Together we again raised over $6000 for Kripa Foundation by practising yoga!
Thank you Father Joe.
Namaste, Leigh

Cuban Yoga Association 20 year celebration

2010-07-07T07:37:00.004-03:00

May 24th 2010 the CYA - Cuban Yoga Association held their 20 year anniversary. Over 70 Cuban yogis attended this event held in Havana. It was a historic landmark for yoga in Cuba and an emotional for all.

The students of Chester Harbour Yoga (the Sadhana Centre) raised $150 to sponsor this CYA event. With this money a hall could be rented and a lunch catered to the many attendees who traveled from all over Cuba to be in Havana for this celebration of yoga in Cuba.

Yoga Maestro Eduardo Pimentel, president of CYA organised the day. Congratulations everyone on a wonderful gathering.

Cuban Connection - Iyengar Yoga in Cuba

2010-04-15T13:36:00.039-03:00

A few years ago I had a whim to “cruise the net” for Iyengar yoga in Cuba, to my delight the name Eduardo Pimentel and the Cuban Yoga Association popped up. I found an email address for Eduardo and sent him a friendly inquiry in English regarding Iyengar yoga in Cuba. I soon heard back from Eduardo, also in English, and we continued to correspond. I was very interested in travelling to Cuba and thought it would be wonderful if we could meet and if I could offer something useful to his community, we discussed my teaching my Anatomy and Yogasana course to his teachers and how we might do this in English and Spanish (and Sanskrit and Latin). I was living in the United States at the time so this vision remained in the realm of fancy for more than two years. On returning to Canada this trip became reality.

My husband John and I recently returned from 14 days in Cuba (pronounced Cooba). I made all our plans myself, mostly on-line booking our hotels through a British agency and finding our Havana casa particular (a sort of Cuban B&B) on a Cuban website. We began our trip flying into Varadero and heading first for four days at the perfectly sandy beaches of Varadero. I booked us at the Internacional Hotel, with a fifties mob history and past hang out of Frank Sinatra and Lucky Luciano’s crowd, a lobby built with Italian white marble and a glamorous showroom who needs aqua caliente! I chose this hotel for its small capacity, history and positioning directly on a beautiful beach. And yes we did not have hot water for two days but we loved this quaint old somewhat run down establishment. Blissfully my email did not work in Cuba so resigned to recline I opened my book and, listening to the ocean swells breaking on the white sandy beach, drifted off into a novel.

On our second day I visited a massage shack and introduced myself in Spanish to the woman masseuse, explaining that I am a professora of massage therapy in North America. I enjoyed a massage and offered to instruct Anna and her colleague in some more advanced techniques and two days later I met with two massage therapists ready to learn. I brought my picture of a person with Spanish labels for major body parts and gave them a two hour neuromuscular therapy lesson. It was great fun sharing with these Cuban women.

Day five we headed to Havana (pronounced Abana) for eight nights. We took a public bus from the town of Varadero into the city and from here our prearranged taxi met us. Edilzon was our driver, he is a Havana English professoro turned cabbie for the better income it provides. On another day he gave us a two hour city tour filled with stories and history, everything revolves around the Spanish American war, the 1959 Cuban revolution and The Special Period. There are many monuments to war heroes from these landmark events. Surprisingly Gandhi and John Lennon also each have a park dedicated to them.

Edilzon dropped us at my prearranged casa particular where we found the owner had already rented it to another and we were suddenly without accommodation. I made (I was very cross) the owner drive us and our luggage the few kilometers into Old Havana (Havana Viejo) as in my research I learned of many small hotels and knew we could find something at least for that night while we worked out our housing dilemma. The hotel Valencia concierge found us another casa right in Havana Viejo up many stairs… It was lovely but would last only two days as it was already rented to someone coming from Greece and we would have to move again.

Havana is an astonishing city, full of music and dance and noise and colour with brightly painted old buildings abundant flowering trees and the ubiquitous classic cars Havana is known for. We walked forever daily never ceasing to find interesting lane ways, intricate cast iron work, artist’s private galleries and museums. In the Viejo district the streets are narrow, many cobbled and the buildings are beautiful, many decrepit though many now being caringly restored. Most buildings are 3 to 6 stories tall and above the street level most are residential. There are numerous old mansions now in possession of the government and turned into government owned hotels, banks, offices and museums. There are many inexpensive restaurants; dinner for 5 CUC pesos or less (or more if you wish) and all have live Cuban music performed by house bands. Hotels can be costly averaging $160 CUC per night with a casa particular more likely $30 to $50 per night. One CUC also known as a tourist peso costs $1.12 CD. It takes over 24 Cuban local pesos to buy one CUC tourist peso. Cubans mostly use local pesos but some Cubans also use CUC’s, if they can get them, for certain purchases. It is a complex tiered economy.

Our second day in Havana Eduardo came to visit us and we had the most wonderful meeting, after two years finally we came together. I brought him copies of yoga books and a picture of Guruji Iyengar.

After two days in our first casa we moved to a casa of questionable cleanliness, still in Havana Viejo only up five flights of steep dark stairs, this place made me cry so we went out and found another casa and moved again (twice in one day!) also in Havana Viejo up four flights of stairs. That night I had terrible food poisoning and was up the entire night graphically ill. I was up at 6:30am when my alarm went off; it was the day I teach the Anatomy to the Havana yoga teachers. I was exhausted, dehydrated and still feeling ill. I knew Eduardo had gone to a great effort to make arrangements for us to hold our lesson at a church that had an LCD projector. I needed this projector to help me teach the anatomy to Spanish speaking yogis with the aid of images. In Cuba no one owns a projector, they belong to institutions and it was the result of much work that Eduardo had found a facility with one we could use and he brought 15 teachers plus two doctors together to spend this day. Canceling was out of the question. I drew on the teachings of both Krishna guiding Arjuna on the battlefield and Geeta Iyengar “It is your duty”. I pulled myself together to go teach. I taught for four hours straight, temporarily revived by my love of teaching and my joy to be sharing this time with this dedicated group of teachers. The two physicians had been invited as they are Eduardo’s yoga students and he wished for them to learn more about this aspect of yoga. Eduardo interpreted my teaching and the many questions asked and I had my drawing of the major anatomy labeled in Spanish. I was starting to pick up a few words “levantar el pecho” and sometimes Eduardo would speak to me in Spanish by mistake. It went wonderfully well. After four hours I collapsed and we all went back to Eduardo and Else’s for a celebratory lunch. It was a wonderful gathering but I ate little that day.

We were back in our casa by three that afternoon and after such a long morning and many flights of stairs I settled in for a nap while John went back out to attend an architectural event. He had not been gone long when a knock at the door revealed our landlady come to collect our six night’s payment. She did not speak a word of English, desperate with fatigue, I sat at the table with her with my Spanish book and for almost an hour we had a delightful exchange, at least I think it was delightful and she seemed very happy but I’ve almost no idea what we spoke of.

Yoga maestro Eduardo Pimentel began his study of yoga from a book in the seventies and began teaching ten years later. He has over the past thirty years travelled to the USA and India to further his study, meeting Mr. Iyengar and receiving permission to teach his method. Eduardo has published a book on pranayama in Spanish and is currently working on a translation of the Bhagavad Gita with a fascinating commentary comparing the philosophical struggle of Arjuna to that of the 20th century Cuban. Eduardo would have been a boy of ten during the 1959 revolution. With few resources Eduardo has established present day yoga in Cuba and has even brought yoga to high security prison inmates. I spent two days with his students in Havana and more time with Eduardo. I was deeply touched by how, without a host of commercial yoga studios, locations to teach from, yoga paraphernalia, yogi celebrities, financial remuneration or recognition this earnest community thrives. A number of years ago a group of American yogis brought mats, blankets, blocks and belts to the Cuban yoga community. At home now my yoga students are contributing to a fund to help sponsor the Cuban Yoga Association 20th anniversay to be held this May in Havana.

Two days after the anatomy workshop I taught over 25 of Eduardo’s students in his small home studio. It was wall to wall students, many from the day before plus more earnest yogis eager to learn from a visiting teacher. I was able to expand on some of the work we had covered at the anatomy workshop and Eduardo and I again shared the floor with Eduardo deftly translating my teaching into Spanish. After two hours we switched and Eduardo became the teacher and I joined the group as one of his students. Eduardo teaches with firm kindness and humour. It was such an honour to spend this time with Eduardo, his wife and fellow yoga teacher Else and the Cuban yoga community.

After eight nights we reluctantly left Havana to return to Varadero for our two last days on the beach. These all-inclusive hotel scenarios neither of us had ever done before and we were a little reluctant but as our flight went through Varadero it made sense to spend time beachside. All-inclusive is an odd culture and is less like a trip to another country than it is simply a flight to a beach however we enjoyed the mix and having booked it all myself we had the adventure of arranging all of our own transfers etc. Adventure indeed, on our earlier trip from Varadero to Havana on the public bus I saved our seats while John took care of the luggage, this plan ended in John almost not getting on the over-full bus and me, under siege for the empty seat next to me, ranting mi esposo! mi esposo! loudly to a nerve racked bus driver who soon realized he was not leaving without my husband.

Cuba is an enigma, take the tourism industry; hoards of relatively wealthy foreigners enjoying the leisure time money can buy vacationing in this communist country would seem to be in conflict with Castro’s ideology. During the dismantling of the Soviet Union in 1989 Cuba, during what is considered the beginning of the Special Period, lost it’s major trade partner, buyer of sugarcane exports and provider of petroleum imports. Consequently Cubans nearly starved. This necessitated a revolution in agricultural practices and the evolution of tourism. Although food supply continues to be an issue, tourism has been a huge success and a clever move as it is a huge source of foreign currency. All resorts are at least 51% government owned. Still the tourist economy is in sharp contrast to local life. Today Cuba has a strong trade relationship with Venezuela and gas in Cuba costs less than one CUC peso per liter.

At our final hotel/resort we were upgraded without charge to a peaceful beachside bungalow suite where I could easily have lapped up another week of surf, sun and salsa.

Adios for now Cuba
mucho gusto, Leigh

If you would like to contribute to the Cuban Yoga Association please email me at leigh@thesadhanacentre.com

Viparita Karani - simple inverted pose

2010-01-29T10:09:00.003-04:00

Guruji Iyengar states we need to get upside down

at least 20 minutes a day for our health. This can

be as simple as taking the legs up the wall. In

viparita Karani, legs up the wall pose, we assist the venous blood return to the heart by letting gravity do the work. This is wonderful for varicose veins and lower limb edema. This pose also allows the heart to rest, not having to work as hard to pump blood from our veins upwards to the heart, for this reason this pose is both relaxing and rejuvenating. Try this pose either first thing in the morning or at the end of your work day. If even 5 minutes are spent with the legs up you will find your second wind.

To do this pose you can lie on the floor or even your bed. Sit with one hip close to the wall, lower a shoulder towards the floor and roll your legs up the wall. Scoot in close enough that your buttocks and thighs are supported at the wall. If you have tight hamstring muscles in the back of your legs you won't get in as close as pictured here. Once up, press the inner thighs towards the wall and stretch up through the inner legs. Arms either overhead as shown or beside your trunk, palms up. Use the minimum amount of effort to maintain this. If your feet become cool you can bend your knees for awhile and then take your legs back up again.

This pose is absolutely contraindicated (this means no-no) if you have COPD, congestive heart failure or other heart disease. This can be practiced by those with high BP as long as your BP has been regulated with meds or by other means.

“Reminisces on Wright”

2009-09-22T10:02:00.001-03:00

Free Presentation and “Reminisces on Wright”

4:30 to 5:30pm Sunday, 71 Duke St , Chester

Please join us this Sunday 27 September for a relaxed and informal discussion of anecdotes about Frank Lloyd Wright, the most famous architect of the 20^th century, by an author, scholar and teacher who knew and researched him, from 4:30 to 5:30pm at The Sadhana Centre, 71 Duke St , Chester (look for the Chester Harbour Yoga and Massage Therapy sign).

We are privileged to play host this weekend to H. Allen Brooks, esteemed architectural historian and Professor Emeritus, UToronto. Prof. Brooks focused his research and writings on the two most influential and widely regarded architects of the 20^th century, literally writing the book(s) on them. He is credited with coining the term “ Prairie School ” to describe Wright (1867-1959) and his contemporaries, and later went on to create and edit the 32 volume Archive containing more than 32,000 drawings and designs by Le Corbusier (1887-1965).

He has been invited to Dalhousie University for a public lecture on the occasion of the 25^th anniversary of the Honorary Doctoral degree awarded him by the School of Architecture . Prof Brooks will spend a few days enjoying all Chester has to offer and, by request, is taking this time to discuss his visits with Frank Lloyd Wright in the 1950s. Please email RSVP or questions to John Pece at whitedogdesignbuild@yahoo.com .

His 1981 book Writings on Wright: Selected Comments on Frank Lloyd Wright brings together scholarly and lay writings to focus on both the vast reality and vast myth of Wright. Reviewers stated it was “a relief from doctrinaire fulminations with which the literature on modern architecture abounds,” (an unintended ironic example of just such fulminations?) and that it “remind(s)…readers that the best writing about Wright has not issued from the confines of academic architectural history.”

Thanks, and please join us and Allen, our guest, for this relaxed, accessible and enjoyable conversation about Frank Lloyd Wright.

John Pece and Leigh Milne

MTANS Spring AGM

2009-05-05T08:05:00.007-03:00

Last weekend was the Massage Therapy Association of Nova Scotia AGM. I presented Yoga Self-Care for Massage Therapists. Yoga has saved me as an RMT and I love to share this news. Participants had the opportunity to experience yoga as bodywork to correct shoulder, chest and arm pattern's frequently found in RMT's and to enjoy yoga as a practice for restoration and recovery from work fatigue.
Healer heal thyself...

Humpback Whale Aloha from Maui

2009-03-02T19:44:00.008-04:00

Raphiell took me whale watching in kayaks and this is what we saw! This is a mom, baby and male escort; being with the whales in the warm waters of the South Pacific is such bliss. I am grateful for my annual Maui A&Y yoga workshop and teaching NMT classes at Aloha massage school, in this way I find myself on Maui in whale bliss.

God is in the details

2009-02-24T22:43:00.012-04:00

Maui Anatomy & Yogasana Feb 2009

2009-02-24T18:56:00.026-04:00

This was the third annual A&Y workshop on Maui. Every year around this time RMT's, yoga teachers and apprentices gather to inquire deeply into the structure of the human form. We paid special attention to how the musculature cooperates, 'yoking' to create movement from the foundation up and finding harmony in apposing forces. Our group included two RMT's from BC combining yoga and CEU study with our Aloha
spirit. Thank you to Nadia of Maui Yoga Shala for hosting us again this year at her lovely studio. So
conducive to our yoga to hear the ocean swells as background music and the fragrant Maui air. I
am so grateful to be able to offer professional level courses on Maui every winter. After 2 months of my Maui life I now look forward to returning to my Atlantic home in Chester.

I just wanted to say thank you for such a great workshop! I learnt so much in those 3 days and you are a great teacher, speaker and presenter. Sorry for all the questions but you really got me into that "student mind"!Karin , yoga teacher, personal trainer

Yogasana: Chair Bharadvajasana:

2009-01-07T12:07:00.000-04:00

Bharadvajasana: (from a chair) Sit in any firm chair. A dining chair will work well. Plant both feet on the floor hip width apart and turn towards your right. Take hold of the back of the chair with both hands. Inhale and lengthen the spine upwards by lifting from your breastbone, exhale and twist from the lower ribcage to the right. Press your right hand into the back of the chair to help twist. With each inhale become taller, with each exhale turn a little more. Turn your head last. Exhale to come out of the pose and now turn your legs around to the left. Taking your left hand to the back of the chair. Repeat as described above. Hold 30 seconds and repeat each side two to three times. The twists stretch the small back muscles that run along the spine, as well as the QL muscle, a strong square muscle on both sides of your low back that can limit rotational movement and cause back pain. This pose is great for golfers.

Home to Chester December 3rd 2008

2008-12-15T12:33:00.013-04:00

Dear friends and yogis, this is the last installment of emails pertaining to my recent Letters from India. In light of the recent violence in Mumbai and your letters of concern I want to let you know my family flew out of Mumbai Monday night and we have made it back safely to Canadian soil. Although Pune is four hours from Mumbai the “six degrees of separation” rule was apparent in how events and tragedy had directly touched the families of local Indian yogis and our neighbour’s lives. On Sunday evening we attended a classical music concert in Pune which began with observing a minute of silence in honour of lost lives.
Some of you have mentioned to me that you have planned trips to India and you are wondering about the current atmosphere. We traveled by hired car to Mumbai and after visiting BCE Buddhist caves in Lonavla, arrived early enough to have a light meal at the Leela Hotel, popular with the yogis. From the time we entered the Hotel lobby we were treated as if we were precious honoured guests by all of the staff. Mumbai airport has very high security now. The military jeeps mounted with weaponry directed at the crowds outside were a little shocking but not entirely unwelcome by us. Inside we were willingly subjected to five layers of security requiring questioning and luggage checks. Patel, the minister of Maharashtra has been ousted as a result of comments he made following the attack and there is much news and talk now about both India and Pakistan needing to clean up their internal fighting. Remember that Le Meridian in Islamabad, Pakistan was also attacked by terrorists in September. So if you are traveling to India soon be prepared and plan to read more about this.
It is strange to come home and find the media here has already moved on.
Will I go back? Yes, absolutely. I love the diversity of India, the ideas, philosophy, the people and most of all the opportunity to study yoga at its abundant source. Safe journey. Namaste, Leigh

Letters from India, Nov 24th 2008

2008-12-15T12:03:00.010-04:00

End of week three approaches and this will be my last letter from India as internet time must now be spent on changing our meals on our flight etc. Internet is either much more challenging here than it used to be or my expectations of E-access have increased considerably. I’m so grateful to be able to relax in our apartment while I compose these letters. Due to internet access, some of you will receive all three letters at one time.
This has been a courageous week of back bends and I am feeling wonderfully open; a great antidote to the chest cold and “Pune fever” I had late last week. Geeta and Prashant are both weaving the theme of yoga kriya’s into their teaching. Focusing on the cleansing (body, mind & breath) aspect of the yogasanas by demanding we stay with our breath and mind throughout. “Make body, mind and breath like sponge and water.” Prashant continues with the alpha and omega of Trikonasana, and I experience the deep wringing action of uddiyana in Trikonasana. Geeta has us becoming taller and taller in Urdva D, telling us this pose is all about the arms and legs as she has us stare at the pictures of her father bordering the walls.
Pranayama was mostly savasana this week as many people are coughing due to the heavy Pune air. It was enlightening as Geeta spoke at length about savasana and the difficulty of finding stillness. We kept our focus on keeping space at the back of the throat.
A VIP came to RIMYI this week to take private lessons from Guruji. A federal minister, received one on one time with Guruji during our women’s class. I love the way the Iyengar’s do not close everything down for a VIP but instead require they fit into the existing schedule. When we came out of class a dozen militia in camouflage cradling machine guns were standing around waiting. A bit astonishing!
This coming week is pranayama week, what a delicious way to end a month here. The month of classes will end with a Saturday morning and we hope to make a side trip to the Lonavla Buddhist caves before making our way to Mumbai for our Monday night flight home. We have all had an exceptional time inspite of air quality, consequent colds etc. My daughter has fallen in love with India the people and the food and looks forward to coming back here to this culturally rich country again one day. I am so grateful to have made this trip as a family, to share an important part of my life with my husband and daughter. Together we can randomly stare in any direction, between the elephants, the traditions and the modern development it is like gazing out through all of time. Like RIMYI, something you can only know through direct experience. Ohm Shanti

Letters from India, Nov 18th 2008

2008-12-15T11:51:00.010-04:00

The word asana, mean’s “seated or sit” and I have found that over the years I can sit longer and more comfortably than many of my non-yogi friends and family. Helpful when flying for 17 hour stretches. Boarding the packed plane in Newark for a non-stop to Mumbai I had to laugh at the accompanying soundtrack. Hundreds of passengers, mostly Indian, vying for overhead luggage bins and shuffling seating arrangements all to the cheery music of “A Charlie Brown Christmas” courtesy of Continental airlines. The absurdity starts now, I thought to myself. And whenever the intensity of India starts to wear on us we just start humming this tune for some comic relief. John is enrolled in the intermediate classes in the smaller room above. He is the only foreigner in most of his classes. It’s great to compare notes together. He has a different teacher from the institute almost every class and Abhiji, Gurujis granddaughter at least one class a week. In many classes they follow a similar version of what we are doing in the advanced classes or at least some sections of sequences are similar. For me, Geeta’s classes are intense, with very long holdings this week of Padottanasana, and lot’s of excruciating paschima namaskarasana – forced to watch my whining mind, more pain inflicting than the relentless ache in my shoulders; reminded of a favourite quote “Do you want moments of pain or a lifetime of pain?” - Mr. Iyengar. “Heyum Duhkham Anagatam” Yoga Sutras II.16. RIMYI is an institute for yoga education, in the advanced classes we are here to learn all we can about yoga (not just to do) and about ourselves which always happens in challenging situations (of which many are offered here J). Geeta tells us “When the brain is quite you are able to do more” and this, like most truth’s, can be applied to everything. Our small apartment is the third building back on a lane way, slightly removed from the noisy busy street. Indians are not adverse to noise and the constant horn honking by day, fireworks at night and television’s blasting from open windows are a constant invasion to rest. We are surrounded by trees and at first light the bird call sounds are like deep jungle noises, intense like everything else here. Some morning’s the neighbouring Hare Krishna Mandir begins chanting at 4 am. Power outages are frequent and unpredictable, sometimes twice daily. What we consider to be exotic house plants grow wild here, twenty foot philodendrons twisting up tall flowering trees. It has been almost 3.5 years since my last trip here and the changes are profound, most noticeable; one of the notorious new shopping malls has gone up almost directly across from RIMYI. Body Shop, Swatch and Guess are all in Pune now. We stick to the old, shopping on Laxmi Road for beautiful cotton shirt material to take to John’s tailor here in Pune. I am mostly bringing home props, purchased at RIMYI for wall ropes, bolster covers, blankets and long straps I hope to have dyed here. Lyra attended another cooking workshop and John and I went to the popular grocery store that caters to foreigners. I am amazed how it has expanded carrying delicacies from around the world; it is filled with Caucasians, Koreans, and Japanese as well as Indian shoppers. I buy Edam cheese, butter cookies, auyervdic soaps. Outside a man without legs on a trolley smiles kindly at me and waves. When I look for him as we leave, wanting to give him some coin I don’t see him until we are already in our ricksha. He has moved down the sidewalk, again he smiles generously and waves me goodbye as we head off for home. The auto rickshas here are three wheelers that can seat three passengers. They have handlebars and pull start motors and the drivers, like everyone else here, are fearless. It makes me think about the west, how much energy we put into regulating ourselves for safety yet how scared we all are. On Thursday we visited Father Joe who was here in Pune for the week at his Pune Kripa location. The Pune Kripa is the only of the 26 locations that houses women as well as men who are participating in an addiction recovery program. Normally based in his Popti location, Fr. Joe was here participating in training young Priests and Nuns and introducing them to his work. A Jesuit Priest of Indian Portuguese descent, Fr. Joe is a senior Iyengar yoga instructor; close to Guruji and he was very close to Mother Teresa. We joined them for a seated pranayama and meditation led by Fr. Joe. He gave an inspiring talk on pratyahara, dharana and brahmacharya (of essential importance to this young group), how pranayama and meditation can aid by offering something new rather than the feeling something has been given up - brahmacharya. He spoke at length and beautifully. We joined in a silent chant Ma Ra Na Tha (like the) meaning I am with God. Fr. Joe has agreed to come to Chester NS in mid/late Oct 2009 to lead one of his wonderful yoga workshops. John and I are both thrilled to be hosting him. Thursday evening was pranayama with Geeta, during the final savasana I found myself in a seemingly pure state of meditation, observing bands of colours come and go and it was not until class officially ended that I became aware that anything else existed. Lyra, John and I visited the Aga Khan Palace where Gandhi stayed while he was under house arrest from 1942 to 1944. I have not seen it since 2003 when it was under renovation. It is a beautiful old Palace with detailed wedding cake moldings; a museum of Gandhi’s life and work and the resting place of his ashes. John purchased a book by Gandhi “Discourses on the Gita” in which he explains the meaning behind his translation in response to questions he had received. John joked about having Gandhi sign it. We pressed the inside page into the damp earth at the foot of Gandhi’s samadhi (resting place) Ma Ra Na Tha. It is the end of week two.

Letters from India Sunday Nov. 9th 2008

2008-12-15T11:40:00.005-04:00

We have been in Pune, India a week now and today, Sunday is a day of rest from the yoga institute. Landing in Mumbai (Bombay) the organized chaos of India is instantly mesmerizing and this being my third trip here I am satisfied to see, among the masses of Indian’s waiting to greet arrivals in the smokey heat of Mumbai, a man reliably holding up a placard with my name on it. As we are three this trip, I hired a car for our four hour drive south to Pune. This was so much more comfortable than a shuttle service which can be anything from a van to a jeep loaded with other traveler’s. We listened in comfort to Indian pop and Bollywood tunes as we peered through the dark at the streets of Mumbai and then later the approaching highway tunnels carved through mountains.
The Institute is more crowded than ever with people from England, USA, France, Netherlands, Germany, Russia, S. Korea, Japan and Israel (I’ve not run into any other Canadians yet). I recall my first trip thinking 90 students was a lot and now with more like 150 students crowding the room for most classes humour is more essential than ever here. Fortunately people are over all pretty good natured about the effort to make enough room and share props and on the occasions when I have lost my mat and props to another because I was helping to put the rope swings back I have relied on the Bhagavad Gita and the premise of karma yoga – to act for the sake of the action and not the fruits… So in this board game of musical mats why should I expect my place to still be there for me because I went off to perform a good deed? And smiling inwardly I am grateful it can all be part of my yoga practice; “the Indian way” something I’ve learned here.
For those of you who practice yoga, Geeta is as sharp and on as ever, in pranayama talking about how the tip of the tongue must rest in the top of the palate or else the throat becomes dry – how does she know these subtle things? And Prashant, focusing on exhalations, cautioning us to make our practice about the mind, not the body. One 2 hour class with Prashant was almost entirely spent on Trikonasana and Uddiyana bandha, which was very difficult but a wonderful lengthening of the spine and rotation would come almost spontaneously. It is always a difficult decision but as every other time I have opted for two weekly classes with Prashant (which means sacrificing one with Geeta) as his teaching is only available here. Geeta focused on chest and upper arms for two hours yesterday in a sequence of intense twists and standing poses that went deep into my thoracic spine and armpit chest and all the way down my forearms.
During practice times the Institute is so crowded, with only one practice time a day now for the many classes now available and with temperatures in the high 80’s (or 30C), I have opted to practice instead from our small apartment. Guruji is there, during classes doing his own practice, and in practice times endearingly instructing his granddaughter Abhaji – this is worth seeing and I plan to go with my notebook and observe. Mr. Iyengar is calm quiet and focused now, addressing only a very few.
There is a feeling of goal oriented direction at RIMYI I have not experienced here before. With Mr. Iyengar approaching 90 and his desire to leave a legacy, in his granddaughter, his children, RIMYI and in his home village of Bellur, fund raising at the institute is at an all time high. Our gift from Nova Scotia, where we raised funds in his honour is much appreciated and I have a personal letter of thank you to bring home. John and I presented Guruji with his BD card and over $12,000 rupees for Bellur with pride and gratitude to all of you who helped us by attending the BD celebration in Chester.
I spent an afternoon in the RIMYI library going over yoga research with Raji and discussing my research work on the Physical Benefits of Iyengar method yoga in Senior Adults. I am already familiar with most of the Iyengar yoga research available and enjoyed our afternoon of discussion and especially the assistance I may receive from Raji, who is more experienced in this field, with my final editing.
Life in Pune is as always intense, the air quality has worsened and the poverty has increased along with the economic boom. With IT based here, increased manufacturing, numerous colleges, a university and many call centres now based in Pune the cost of living almost matches that of the west in housing and textiles. Food is still inexpensive and fabulous. However we find ourselves able to afford less and more frequently pressed by children asking for money. Friends of ours belong to the Optimists society and through them we can make a donation to a school for homeless children but there is no relief from the discomfort one feels around the least fortunate.
Our small one bedroom apartment is working well for us and my daughter Lyra is finding plenty of opportunities to study cooking through classes offered and with our part time cook and to practice making food for us in our small kitchen. It is so different being here with my family (as opposed to a quiet solitary trip of yoga); we are dining out often for the food experience for our culinary artist Lyra and although I covet my quiet time these outings add to the journey. However I do know how tiring Pune can be and the importance of down time.
In the past five years Pune has had 100 new shopping malls built! Think of all that AC! And this is just Pune; now add Mumbai, Dubai, and Beijing etc. Yikes! It is going to take a lot more than recycling in North America but we knew that already…
Today Lyra is attending her third day of an ayurvedic cooking class she joined with some yogi’s from the institute; she is enthusiastically cooking and eating away her time here taking notes on every meal. John and I are having a peaceful lunch with Indian friends at the Turf Club, a weary artifact of the Raj, this beautiful old club hosts horse races during June and July when the rains are too much in Mumbai and horse race crowd moves to Pune. This time of year it is a lovely cool and graceful open air spread of stone floors, massive plaster columns and luxurious spaciousness.
Such a different trip for me from simply focusing only on yoga and the consuming of chai and good books – FYI, just finished “Three cups of Tea” currently on the best seller list and a riveting must read for anyone with both a brain and a heart. How very special to have my family with me. Now I can share what I know of India with Lyra and revisit old friends with John. End of week one. Tomorrow, as someone advised, arrive for classes an empty vessel and continue to be filled by the generous teachings of the Iyengar’s. Namaste, Leigh

Anatomy & Yogasana I

2008-10-21T09:59:00.007-03:00

On the weekend of Oct 17th - 19th 2008 twelve yogi-massage therapists and a yogi-naturopathic physician traveled to Chester to attend my annual Anatomy & Yogasana course. This was the first workshop held at the new Sadhana Centre in Chester. Everyone had a great time as well as enhanced their professional training by studying the Iyengar method alignment in yoga.

Participants could be seen strolling around Chester, shopping, dining and enjoying our peaceful seaside lifestyle. It was such a pleasure to offer this course here in my beautiful home studio; Chester makes such a tranquil back drop to self study through yoga and learning in a relaxed environment. After a full day of yoga study Saturday some participants attended an evening of eastcoast music at the playhouse. Arts, great food, yoga and study made a terrific weekend!

It [A&Y] has completely changed me as a therapist and I am looking forward to taking the second portion. Liseanne MacPherson, RMT

BKS Iyengar 90th BD Celebration

2008-10-02T17:29:00.005-03:00

FOLLOW UP - We raised $300 from this event. Thank you to all who attended as well as others who donated to this cause.
Ohm Shanti

Special All levels Yoga class 10 – 12 $18 yoga
Movie & Potluck 12:15 – 2 pm $10 movie
$25 both

WHERE: Chester Harbour Yoga & Massage Therapy
71 Duke St. Chester NS
WHEN: Saturday October 25th

All money raised will go to Mr. Iyengar’s “Bellur Project”, his birthplace in south India, to build and supply schools and other improvements to this small Indian village.
(All money raised will go with us to Pune in November and be presented to BKS)

Pre-registration required 902-273-9642

Mr. Iyengar will turn 90 this December, a group of over 400 of his students will accompany Mr. Iyengar on a south Indian tour to Bellur, Mysore and other significant lifetime landmarks. For more information visit http://www.bksiyengar.com/

Vegetarian Lasagna

2008-07-07T21:23:00.003-03:00

This is the recipe for the Vegetarian Lasagna I brought to the potluck at Gwen's during the workshop weekend. Enjoy!

Dawn's Vegetarian Lasagna

1 box whole wheat lasagna noodles
6 cups marinara sauce (see recipe below, or use store bought)
1 500ml container low fat ricotta cheese
1 egg
2 cups shredded cheese (such as mozzarella, asiago, parmegean, romano)
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
2 eggplants, cut into circular slices ¼–1/8-inch thick
4-6 zucchini, cut lengthwise into slices 1/4–1/8-inch thick
3-4 portobello mushrooms, thinly sliced
1-2 red onions, thinly sliced

Homemade Marinara Sauce

4 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic
3/4 cup chopped onions
Two 28-oz. cans of diced tomatoes
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil

Directions

To make the marinara sauce, begin by heating the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and stir until golden brown. Add the garlic and tomatoes and simmer for 25 minutes. Stir in the basil and add salt and pepper to taste, then simmer for 10 minutes.

Sauté or oven-roast the vegetables until they are cooked through. Set aside.

Mix together the ricotta cheese and egg.

Preheat the oven to 350°. In the bottom of a 15" x 11" pan, place about 1/2 cup of marinara sauce. Add a layer of dry (uncooked) noodles. On top of that, add about 1/3 of the marinara sauce, about 1/2 of the ricotta cheese, and about 1/3 of the shredded cheese. Sprinkle chopped basil over the top, and add a layer of vegetables. Repeat the process. Finish with a layer of noodles, then top with tomato sauce and a layer of shredded cheese.

Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a knife pokes easily through the lasagna. Remove the plastic and foil and bake at 450° for 10 minutes, or until the top is browned. Remove lasagna from the oven and let sit for 20 minutes. Garnish with fresh basil leaves or other fresh herbs

Yogasana: Parsva Upavista Konasana:

2008-07-07T08:01:00.006-03:00

Parsva Upavista Konasana: Seated side angle stretch. This pose is great for cyclists to stretch out hamstrings and lower back.

Sit on the floor with your legs straight. If you feel like your leaning backwards or your back is curving then you need to sit on a height of one to two folded blankets under your buttocks. Now take your right leg out to the right and your left leg out to the left, creating a wide angle between your legs. Press your thighs firmly down into the floor and stretch out through the heels of your feet, toes pointing upwards. Sitting tall in Upavista Konasana, ascend the spine upwards at the same time as you press your thighs downwards. Now turn from the navel to look at your right foot, rotating the spine from deep behind the abdomen and then lengthen forward over your right leg. Catch hold of your right foot with both hands. If you cannot reach your foot then take hold of your ankle or shin or use a strap around the foot. Continue to rotate and lengthen the front of your spine over your right thigh. On an inhale sit upright, facing forwards before turning to the left side. Hold each side for 1 to 2 minutes and repeat.
This asana is a deep adductor and hamstring stretch. When done correctly it also deeply stretches the Quadratus Lumborum muscles of the lower back during the twisting action.

Rice & Spinach Dish from June Workshop Potluck

2008-07-07T07:51:00.004-03:00

A yogi potluck is a feast! More recipes to come

Rice & Spinach Dish
1 C dry short grain br, basmati white or other rice (cook according to normal ratio i.e. 1 C rice to 1 &3/4 C water)
2 or more C chopped fresh spinach
Balsamic vinegar – about 2 TB
Olive oil - 3 TB
Dill – fresh if possible
2 or more garlic cloves
If dill is fresh use ½ C finely chopped or about 2 TB dry
Feta (I use goat)
Parmesan
Optional:
White beans, prawns, mushrooms etc. anything you like. Precook prawns or shrooms or add shrooms before spinach. I used to add prawns sometimes before I became a vegetarian.
Note: I am making up these proportions as I always guess – the trick is getting the correct amount of Dill and Balsamic vinegar. I use organic ingredients.

Cook rice
Heat olive oil and quickly sauté garlic, add spinach, dill; add vinegar; add any other options if using. Remove from heat once spinach is wilted. If you have much liquid left in the pan, drain it.
Toss in with cooked rice in serving bowl.
Rub feta and parmesan together and toss in rice dish
Enjoy

Yoga Weekend in Chester

2008-07-04T10:06:00.001-03:00

Local yoga teachers Leigh Milne and John Pece, guest teacher Janice Vien (in blue) and yoga workshop participants.

The weekend of June 28th & 29th fourteen people, most from out of town, participated in a weekend long yoga workshop organized by local yoga teacher Leigh Milne. Guest teacher Janice Vien came from Grantham New Hampshire for the purpose of leading this workshop on “Cultivating mindfulness with Iyengar Yoga” and spent four days visiting our area. Other participants spent two to three days in Chester, staying at local accommodations, and dining and shopping in the village. The rainy weather had little impact on this group as Janice reminded us to stay "mindful" and make acceptance of the present moment a part of the weekend practice. In fact, the rain offered a refreshing reason to be indoors! Thank you to the Chester Brass Band for making their hall available to us; and thanks to Kerry Keddy for working around our schedule so that we could enjoy peace and quiet during our studies.
Leigh has another workshop planned for September 12th to 14th with Rutgers professor of Indic philosophy Edwin Bryant. This workshop is open to all who are interested in the philosophy of yoga. To register call Leigh 902-273-9642