You may have noted that it has been a while since my last post about Teacher Training.  I’ve been meaning to post, but have been busy with life transition as a result of the training.  This shift implies putting my energy into the new patterns of my life and the updates here was one place I waited on until other items were in order.

I am coming into adaptation of the new energy of my life.

First off, I am really excited to be of service in teaching a new Spirits Awaken morning Kundalini Yoga class!  If you are new to yoga/kundalini yoga this is a great class to pick up because we are going to cover all the basics/building blocks.

I’ve completed my 40 day Meditation to Conquer Self Anomosity.   It was a powerful experience to complete this.  One thing I learned about myself was that there was a part of me that truly felt, and sometimes still feels, as if I am unable to do “good enough.”  This is the self anomosity part, the meditation brought this piece of me to my waking consciousness, and in doing so I am able to move through this perspective.  I am way good enough, in fact I excel at most everything I do.

I did have an irony associated with completing this practice.  The day after the last day of the 40 day meditation I had a teacher training class.  However, the roads from here to Chicago were terrible and I was unable to make it for safety reasons.  I was really upset about not being able to be there.  I felt like I some what let the class and my teachers down, even though I knew it was for my own safety.  I became angry, you guessed it, with myself.  It was really challenging for me because the group energy provides a sense of security to assist through the transformation process we are all taking on together yet individually.  It was with some kind discussions with my wife Jamie that I was able to overcome the feelings I felt that day of disappointment with myself for not going.  At the end of the day God placed a dangerous road in front of my to get to Chicago, so that I wouldn’t go, He has His reasons for this, and mySelf must simply roll with it and accept them.

You know this group energy is interesting, just prior to Christmas was the Solstice celebration in Florida.   Severa of my fellow class mates attended along with our instructors.  I wanted to go, but it simply was not in the cards this year.  I am hopeful for next Summer Solstice.  The interesting thing is that in the days leading up to Christmas, one day I felt an enormous amount of energy running through me, as if I were doing a bunch of Kundalini Yoga, and the next I became really tired.  It seemed to me as if since a part of my group consciousness (our class) was experiencing Solstice, that in fact a part of me was experiencing it as well.  Which was very cool.  If we take this perspective and extend it to Humanity as a whole, just imagine the good we can do for one another!

I am very excited to get back to class this coming weekend!

There is lots of great work ahead, I’ll be sure to keep ya posted

Sat Nam

Beginning in the new year I’ll be teaching a Spirits Awaken Morning Kundalini Yoga Class, as taught by Yogi Bhajan at the Perfect Knot Yoga Center on the near east side of Madison WI.

A morning practice is a cornerstone to growth and development.

Class canceled due to low enrollment.

Kundalini Yoga helps:

• Strengthen the nervous system
• Improve mental balance and reduce stress
• Increase flexibility and improve the circulatory system
• Expand lung capacity and strengthen the glandular system
• Eradicate emotional blocks that manifest as muscle tension
• Deepen the mind, body, spirit connection

All this before the demands of your daily life are upon you.

Beginners are most welcome to attend as well as intermediate. And if there are some advanced students out there who would like a group to practice with in the morning, then this course is for you.

It was challenging getting enough people to sign up in the morning class at this time. Check back later and I will be sure to release a new teaching schedule.

Sat Nam

Exercizing the Human Nervous System with Kundalini

For this week’s Spirits Awaken Yoga class I am planning a special set, in honor of an out of town guest, (welcome Sim.) We will be focusing on our human nervous system.

All forms of yoga work the nervous system, which is one of the reasons why so many benefits exist from practicing yoga. One of the reasons I am partial to Kundalini, aside from simply being drawn to it, is that through the practice correlations are made between the seven chakras and seven core nerve plexus.

This chart is from the Kundalini Yoga Experience book, one of my favorites.

1st chakra - Coccygeal
2nd chakra - Sacral
3rd chakra - Solar
4th chakra - Heart
5th chakra - Phanyngeal
6th chakra - Hypothalamus
7th chakra - Cerebral cortex

So by working with any pose or kriya we work to stimulate the nerves of the corresponding chakra and nerve centers.

This weeks class will take some extra care to open the heart nerve center.  Strong circulation of impulses through the heart is very important for nerve vitality.

looking forward to the set,

Sat Nam

Hershel

In honor of my recent visit to Golden Bridge, and class with Gurmukh, class this week will focus on a Liver Cleanse Kriya “Let the Liver Live”

I was very blessed to have been guided through the rather challenging set from Gurmukh. A commonly known thing is that the liver is responsible for the detoxification of the human body, alcohol is a common forign element that is detoxified with the Liver.
Gurmukh mentioned that the Liver tends to be the holding ground for all body toxins. And as such negative energy tends to get amassed in the Liver.

With the transition from Winter into Spring we find ourselves at a prime time to detoxify the body, and thus the work at hand with this lovely Kundalini Yoga set.

Liver Cleanse Kriya (Yoga Set)

In order to help facilitate the health and detoxification of the liver, we have got to stimulate the organ. This kriya places the body into positions that allow for natural pressure to be placed on the liver and excentuated via pranayama.

This set also helps to stimulate the nervous system.

During one of the asanas my body began to shake after holding the posture for a decent amount of time. The shaking, I believe, was the result of the detoxification process occuring through my system. This helps to build the system back up properly.

Liver Cleansing- Body Maintenance

So the liver is super important for a person’s health and well being, but WOW do we take it hard on our livers. I mean, I went to college, the balance of our social gather’s have alcohol integrated into them in some shape or form. Any alcohol consumed promotes strain on the liver.

In I perfect world I’d tell ya this and you’d all work to reduce your alcohol consumption. But, that may not be a realisitc approach at this point of time, though you could give it up for Lent.

So, that leaves the choice of performing regular maintenance on this important body organ. And by my view on things Kundalini Yoga, and specifically the Let the Liver Live kriya, provide the optimal means to achieve this healthy maintenance of the liver.

Here is to toxin free bodies!!

Be well

Hershel

How exciting is it that we as humans can work on developing intuition!

Intuition is one of those things that is ellusive to describe at times, yet is known to be a powerful asset for people. There are times when we simply get feelings and thoughts that tell us the proper course of action to take. We don’t necessarily know where the impulse came from, but we know it is there.

We have several descriptive names for it, women’s intuition, mother’s intuition, a gut feeling what ever you want to call it, it exists.  And through Kundalini Yoga we have one means of exercising intuitive prowless.

The Intuition center is closely connected to the Pituitary Gland, or Master Gland.  It is often called the Master gland for it is responsible for regulation of other areas of the endocrine system.

So for our 5th installment of Spirits Awaken class we will be focusing on stimulating our pituitary glands and our center of intuition.  We are going to start with an exercise to charge our magnetic fields, then follow that up with some Power Center work, (helps pull up the gut instict.)

There will be an pose that is very potent at pituitary gland stimulation and immediately after that we will take on a fun exercise to help polarize the magnetic field, or aura once again.

be well

Hershel

PS- this kriya is taken from the Kundalini Yoga Experience book