tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76684244542937725322024-03-13T22:34:56.623-07:00Amy IppolitiAmyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-80015729877508715462010-08-29T19:23:00.000-07:002010-08-30T14:37:57.374-07:00<iframe style="width: 100%; height: 30px;" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http://amyippoliti.blogspot.com/2010/08/so-you-think-you-are-not-changing-world.html" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" >So You Think You are not Changing the World? </span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" >My Journey Into Yoga</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" >Part 1: The Beginning</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">It was 1986. I was an exercise-obsessed 16-year old working at the front desk of a New York City fitness studio in exchange for unlimited classes. My mother and I used to go to classes together in an over keen attempt to stay thin, fit, and healthy.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">On the day they added a yoga class to the schedule, my mom took notice right away, and asked me if I wanted to go with her to see what yoga was all about. At the time we both knew yoga to be totally far-out, and WAY fringe, but I was open to anything and agreed to try.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">The teacher’s name was <a href="http://www.lifespiritradiance.com/oonajamalagon.html">Oonaja Malagon</a>, and she was not at <span style="font-style: italic;">all</span> like the other fitness teachers at the studio. To me, she was super cosmic, mystical looking, and <span style="font-style: italic;">way</span> mellow. I was intrigued. Back then in the 80’s, most yoga was all “flow n’ glo,” meaning you would be instructed to come into something like warrior 1 pose, hold it (flow), and then immediately drop into child’s pose (glow) to rest from the “effort”.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">At the end of the practice, Oonaja lead us through a guided body scan for savasana. I was lying next to my mom on a towel (this was before sticky mats!) and drifting off to the soothing sound of her voice, as she meticulously encouraged us to relax each part of the body. “Relax your jaw…relax your neck….relax your shoulders…relax your solar plexus, relax your abdomen….”<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">And then…<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">“Relax your genitals…”<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">I woke up.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">And more, “Relax your anus…”<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">Oh my God.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">I opened my eyes and turned to look at my mom. I mean I was 16, so in my head I was doing the Beavis and Butthead thing: “She said anus, heh heh heh…”. And my mom was holding back laughter. We got such a kick out of it after class, (and to this day actually) having never heard anything like that in our fitness classes before!<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">Needless to say, we loved Oonaja, and loved yoga, and I kept going to Oonaja’s classes, eating up all the asanas, the self-inquiry, and mostly the feeling of engaging in a connection to something bigger than myself, which was helping me make sense of who I was in the world.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">One day Oonaja disappeared and I have never seen her since. Thanks to social media and google, however I just friended her on Facebook and plan to message her with some long overdue appreciation.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">It’s funny how many of us think we do not make a difference in the world with the small things we do each day…or that the seemingly fleeting interactions we experience have much merit. Yet, there is no question that both my mother, who urged me to join her that day, and Oonaja, who was my very first yoga teacher, helped to set me on a life long path, a path that as a teacher myself, is now planting seeds in others lives, for generations to come.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">No matter what you do, your very existence is changing the world.</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:arial;" >Stay tuned for Part 2 of this story…</span><br /><strong style="font-family: arial; font-weight: normal;"><br />I’d love to hear your thoughts and stories of your own "yoga firsts" so please leave a comment below.</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" >About Amy Ippoliti </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">An author, teacher, leader, do-gooder, and entrepreneur, Amy enjoys bridging the gap between ancient yoga wisdom and our modern lives. She has been studying yoga since 1986, and became one of the first certified Anusara Yoga teachers in 2000 after being to drawn to Anusara yoga for the artistic, heart and community centered teachings. Amy apprenticed closely for many years with Anusara founder John Friend on his national tours, and currently chairs the Anusara Yoga Curriculum Committee. Amy is widely recognized for her down-to-earth teaching approach, lucid instruction, and for assisting her students in achieving personal breakthroughs on and off the mat. </span></span><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">This story is also posted at <a href="http://www.elephantjournal.com/2010/08/so-you-think-you-are-not-changing-the-world-amy-ippoliti/">Elephant Journal.</a></span><br /></span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-86346876858905788542010-08-07T21:11:00.000-07:002010-08-25T07:59:29.267-07:00Why you need to eat SUPERFOODS!<iframe style="WIDTH: 100%; HEIGHT: 30px" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=%20http://amyippoliti.blogspot.com/2010/08/why-you-need-to-eat-super-foods.html" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:85%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">If you have been following me on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Amy-Ippoliti/44006858694">facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/Amy_Ippoliti">twitter</a>, you know that I lah-ove to talk about, consume, and get people pumped about eating <a href="http://www.wildspirityoga.com/superfoods.html">superfoods</a>. There are so many reasons to get into them. </span></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br /></span><div><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><b>The Highest Reason to Eat Superfoods is Two Fold</b></span></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:85%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TGr5OqL4k5I/AAAAAAAAAUw/fWSQ3uG7Qmk/s1600/Wet+Grass.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5506487524651471762" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 160px; HEIGHT: 220px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TGr5OqL4k5I/AAAAAAAAAUw/fWSQ3uG7Qmk/s400/Wet+Grass.jpg" border="0" /></a>1. So that you can be the most highly functioning-badass-warrior-able-to-serve-the-world-and-make-it-a-better-place, all while feeling amazing.</span></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span></div></div><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:85%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">2. Many times the sustainable harvesting of super foods (which grow in highly pristine, bio-diverse places on the planet), actually supports the environment, keeping rain forests standing, and natural ecosystems intact, while providing much greater prosperity for </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">local tribes, entrepreneurs, and farmers. Much more savory than soybean fields and cow pastures resulting in drought and climate change!</span></div><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><b>My Story</b></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span></div><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">In 2007, our community lost a dear Anusara yoga student and friend. Her name was Deb Lavender. She was an avid yogini, an outdoors woman, she was fit and ate organic, and she was prosperous in her career. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><br /><br />She was only 47. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><br /><br />Deb passed away after a 6 year fight with cancer. When Deb was in hospice it occurred to me, that something was very much not right about this fate. She was a yogini, successful in her career, ate organic, and was an accomplished and fit outdoors woman. It occurred to me that Deb's story was not unique. </span></div><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">You always hear that stress is the #1 killer. And as a yoga teaching professional, it is my job to help people learn how to be happy. We' have been on the happiness train for over a decade getting happy, and we have figured out how to eat organic and stay fit. So I wondered why this was still happening and seemingly increasing in frequency? Air pollution and radiation exposure, yeah, I could see that.<br /><br />However, what came to me was that supplementation was lacking. And so I pursued an informal education on all supplements. I discovered that every single nutritional organization in the world now recommends supplementation for a healthy diet, even one that is all organic, free-range, vegetarian or even raw.<br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-family:arial;">What I Discovered</span><br /></span>Deb's passing led me to scour the world, talking with the best naturopaths and nutrition experts, and I came upon this the buzz word, "superfood". Wikipedia says: "</span><span style="font-size:85%;"><b style="FONT-FAMILY: arial">Superfood</b></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"> is a term sometimes used to describe food with high </span><span style="font-size:85%;"><a title="Phytochemical" style="FONT-FAMILY: arial" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phytochemical">phytonutrient content</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"> that may confer health benefits as a result. For example, </span><span style="font-size:85%;"><a class="mw-redirect" title="Blueberries" style="FONT-FAMILY: arial" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blueberries">blueberries</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"> are often considered a superfood (or </span><span style="font-size:85%;"><a title="Superfruit" style="FONT-FAMILY: arial" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superfruit">superfruit</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">) because they contain significant amounts of </span><span style="font-size:85%;"><a class="mw-redirect" title="Antioxidants" style="FONT-FAMILY: arial" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antioxidants">antioxidants</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">, </span><span style="font-size:85%;"><a class="mw-redirect" title="Anthocyanins" style="FONT-FAMILY: arial" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthocyanins">anthocyanins</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">, </span><span style="font-size:85%;"><a title="Vitamin C" style="FONT-FAMILY: arial" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_C">vitamin C</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">, </span><span style="font-size:85%;"><a title="Manganese" style="FONT-FAMILY: arial" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manganese">manganese</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">, and </span><span style="font-size:85%;"><a title="Dietary fiber" style="FONT-FAMILY: arial" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dietary_fiber">dietary fiber</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">.</span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">Eaten consistently, superfoods will help you meet the recommendations of the U.S. government's 2005 Dietary Guideline, supplying you with nutrients and minerals that are typically missing from American diets.<br /><br />It is no surprise that the indigenous people who live in the places where superfoods grow have zero cases of degenerative diseases like cancer, heart disease or diabetes. Statistically, they perish from snake bites or machete wounds which occur from the outside in. Meanwhile here in the States and in Europe, our people (and our pets!) are dying from the inside out.<br /></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">If you ask me, if given the opportunity, I'd rather eat out of the rainforest or other pristine places and join those who are thriving from bio-diverse wild foods, vs. mono crop foods grown in overly tilled soils. Of course growing your own food is a great idea too, however as a supplement, you will benefit immensely from superfoods.<br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-family:arial;">What's in it for YOU?</span><br /></span>How about increasing your energy levels, brightening your eyes, getting that "glow", keeping you regular, increasing your recovery time from exercise and sports,</span><span style="font-size:85%;"> </span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;">and giving you the antioxidants you need to fight free radicals all day long?<br /><br />Back in 2007, I started eating Superfoods in mass quantity and I have to say, I FEEL much more uplifted in my moods, more inspired, and I notice a difference in the luster of my skin, hair, nails, and energy. People worry about the price of such foods, as they are premium quality. And they way I see it, I'd rather pay a small amount over time for these precious foods now, then inflated hospital and doctor's bills later!</span> <span style="font-size:85%;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:85%;"><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold;font-size:100%;" ><span style="font-family:arial;">How You Can Get in on the Buzz</span><br /></span>After class, I am often bombarded with questions from students wanting recommendations on juicers, products to help their digestion, and superfoods they can throw in their smoothies. I am always so delighted that people want to get educated, want to know more, and mostly that they want to have radical health, regularity, and radiant beauty for themselves and their families.<br /><br />So, to make it easier, to get this info out there, we have now created a special page on my website dedicated to superfoods and juicing where you can find my juicing and smoothie recipe ideas, the specific superfoods I recommend, juicers, and more. Please enjoy this page and spread the word! <a href="http://www.wildspirityoga.com/superfoods.html">http://www.wildspirityoga.com/superfoods.html</a><br /><br />May you thrive, not just survive, and change the world while you are doing it!</span><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span></div></div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-22968068731500935922010-08-03T20:43:00.000-07:002010-08-06T10:40:53.634-07:00The History and Birth of the Anusara Yoga Immersion<iframe style="WIDTH: 100%; HEIGHT: 30px" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href= http://amyippoliti.blogspot.com/2010/08/history-and-birth-of-anusara-yoga.html" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The very first Anusara Yoga Immersion took place in the fall of 2002 in New York City at Virayoga with myself and a group of 52 eager yogis. When we finished, the idea quickly caught on through out the DC area, and in California, until John Friend made it an official pre-requisite for Teacher Training in Anusara yoga. Now the Immersion is a household name not only in Anusara yoga but in many schools as a way of fully immersing students in the method before learning to teach it. It was always my intention for it to spread like wildfire, to shift the paradigm of huge teacher trainings (with unqualified trainees) so that ultimately the students of yoga would be served with the finest teachers, and have the opportunity to experience the most comprehensive dip into the yoga lifestyle one could imagine!</span></span></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I have never published the letter I wrote to the NYC community the day I decided to cancel the upcoming and long awaited Teacher Training and replace it with this new funny thing called "the Immersion". You see, our community was STOKED to start teacher training, and I had it on the calendar. But now I was "negging" on them and offering them this thing they had never heard of, and they wanted a certificate! So this was a BIG deal. </span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I offer this letter to you now, as it was originally written, after all these years as an offering of history, and to relish and reflect on where our kula (community of the heart) stands today from having shifted a paradigm that was firmly rooted, but now has been reborn!</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Enjoy!</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Georgia, serif;font-size:16;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFjtRYFqqmI/AAAAAAAAAUo/E3ol8MsnEro/s1600/AnusaraImmersionGraduatesAmy+Ippoliti.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501407827612838498" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 296px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFjtRYFqqmI/AAAAAAAAAUo/E3ol8MsnEro/s400/AnusaraImmersionGraduatesAmy+Ippoliti.jpg" border="0" /></a></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">The TT graduates (a.k.a, the Banyans!) who made it through the very first Anusara Immersion.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Top row, left to right:</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> Me, Sara Thorson, Tracy Toon, Christy Nones, Chloe Gottlieb, Lizanne Hinkle, Lynn Hazan, Nancy Mercado.</span></span></span></p><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Bottom row, left to right:</span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> Christina Hatgis, Beate Chee, Kiriaky </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Binihaky</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">, Julie Dohrman (assisting!), Hilary </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Weissberg</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">, Dana Covello, Anne Libby, Adriana Araiza and Cat McCarthy.</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;">______________________________________________________________</div></span><br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">October 25, 2002</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Dearest friends,</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I am writing this letter as an expression of some recent contemplations and insights I've had about the future of Anusara Yoga in our community and the way in which we think about learning this yoga, and ultimately teaching this yoga. I realize that this letter may disappoint some of you and for some it might be sensational news. However after thinking seriously about what is possible for myself as a teacher, and what is best for the long term education of our community, I have made some significant shifts in what VIRAYOGA will be offering for teacher training.</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">In the last few weeks before the weekend workshop "All About Anusara", in late October, I sat with myself and mulled over a growing feeling I was having, consulted with friends, past trainees and both John Friend and Douglas Brooks. With guidance and full support from John and Douglas, I came to the very pivotal decision that a paradigm shift is necessary in how we all as a yoga community approach teacher training. Based on the urgency of what my heart was feeling, in 48 hours we came up with an entirely new program to offer. Thanks to Lynn Hazan's programming expertise and Elena Brower's support, the Immersion came into being. At the weekend workshop, as some of you know, I made the announcement. This letter is a summation of what I told the group.</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The great news is that I believe this change will very positively affect the future of learning at VIRAYOGA in the sweetest of ways. I believe that this will benefit each one of the rapidly growing number of yogis who have shown such tremendous interest in learning Anusara yoga and becoming teachers. </span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">In past trainings I've offered, the emphasis was on a beginning a middle and an end. When the end had come, there was an idea that now the graduates would teach Anusara style yoga and would receive a certificate to do so. Most of the participants would inevitably realize that they had in fact just completed an immersion into yoga and that the journey of yoga had just begun! Others, who had simply wanted to take their practices deeper, found themselves in a teacher training, learning to teach others, when in fact they really just wanted to learn more about yoga.</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">What has become clear to me now is that somewhere along the line, the process of cultivating a practice of yoga and teaching it has gotten reversed. Rather than immersing ourselves first more deeply in Anusara, in the yoga, in the process of really imbibing these teachings, and </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">then</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> going toward a teacher training, we have been starting from the teacher training! Then we try to teach from a place of knowledge, but with out all the wisdom and experience behind it! </span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">This is not to say that the past trainings I have offered were of no use, far from it! It is simply to ask ourselves, what is it that we really want?</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">My proposal is that we start from the most basic and sweet desire to first immerse ourselves into this yoga, a yoga that because of its sophistication takes time to discover and absorb. Even after 5 years of literally parking myself next to John Friend, I will always be in a state of amazement at how much I don't know. I have learned from Douglas that there is such a beauty in not knowing, in ignorance, because it means that I am OPEN. In contrast, arrogance is where there is a fear and insecurity in not knowing. When we admit that "we don't know", the possibility of what we are capable of is truly endless and the opportunity for huge transformation presents itself. </span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">So, rather than doing a teacher training in a yoga that is still in reality quite new, I am asking that you each take this opportunity to step into the process of commitment and practice and really deepen the yoga before thinking of teaching it.</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> To immerse yourself in the experience of this yoga means being seen and seeing, it means allowing yourself and the community to embrace your gifts, talents, strengths and weaknesses and for you to step into these strengths and weaknesses and hone your skills. With this shift in thinking, I realize that it would be a disservice to accept any one of you into a TT program with out first having spent the time building a lasting rapport. I am committed to being around to get to know you and learn about who you are and for you to get to know me. This, I believe is the way to truly create professional yoga teachers and meaningful relationships that will withstand the dance of life's many offerings.</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">One of the things to let go of when we make this paradigm shift is the idea that getting a certificate is what's really important. I invite you to see teacher training, not as a credential that you rack up, but truly as a practice. As Douglas said, "a practice is not just an activity, it's an expression of who you are". When the time comes for you to take the seat of being a teacher, you will be hired on the basis of what you know and who you are, not what you have on the wall, as he says. In my years of teaching yoga I have actually never been asked to present my certificate to anyone who has hired me, in fact I couldn't even tell you where my certificates are right now because I never use them! I have always been hired based on recommendations from teachers, students or friends, even in the most corporate of gyms! </span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">What we as a staff at VIRAYOGA have decided is best, is for us to offer a totally new opportunity for those of you who have so enthusiastically come forward wanting teacher training in the last year. I realize that this is a shift in what was on our website and emails and that you may very well be disappointed, but I know in my heart that this is what will ultimately bring the most integrity and truth into our community.</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Having immersed yourself in Anusara in this way, and with the knowledge that the process will continue on and on, when the time is right, a teacher training will be a culmination of your efforts and study, not the beginning of the journey! Doing it any other way, would be like walking down the aisle with someone you think you love. Or looking at real estate - on paper the house looks great, but it's the feeling you get when you are inside the house and have examined it that makes or breaks the decision. </span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Immerse yourself in the exploration of this yoga, before you attempt to teach it. What you have on paper (the hours you've acquired, your past trainings, your education) is not what ultimately matters to me. It is the relationship that I have with you, it is the chance for me to see you do a bunch of yoga and the wisdom of time together. </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The Anusara Immersion will give us all that opportunity to establish a new depth of commitment to each other, and ourselves where ever you are at in your practice.</span></b></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">We are raising the standards, because we believe that integrity and dedicated learning is crucial. The Immersion is a pre-requisite, and simply another way of preparing for teacher training down the road. Other ways to dive deeper, include coming on retreat, making the time to study with Douglas and John, and attending other Anusara teacher's classes here in the NYC area. </span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">We hope that you will join us in this new journey, because your enthusiasm and love is contagious. I feel so privileged to be in your company, it's astounding. </span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:Arial;color:#663399;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span style="color:#000000;">I HIGHLY encourage</span> <span style="color:#000000;">each of you to call me personally or write me at </span></span></span></b><b><u><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;color:#3333ff;">amyoga@mac.com</span></span></u></b><b><span style="font-family:Arial;color:#663399;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> <span style="color:#000000;">with your thoughts, feelings, disappointments, ecstatic outbursts or suggestions.</span></span></span></b><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Thank you for your continued commitment and for literally going with the flow (the meaning of the word, "Anusara"), as I myself grow and step into this new change.</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Saprema </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">(with divine love),</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Amy Ippoliti</span></span><span style="font-size:10;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;color:black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><i>To learn more about the Anusara Immersion with me, and the amazing gift of $200 off I am offering until midnight tonight (August 4th!) visit <a href="http://www.wildspirityoga.com/Immersion_2010_Amy_Ippoliti.html"><span style="color:#3333ff;">http://www.wildspirityoga.com/Immersion_2010_Amy_Ippoliti.html</span></a></i></span></span></p>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-90405993961503088242010-07-29T10:16:00.000-07:002010-08-02T20:09:26.546-07:00The Old Days...Some Stories of Anusara's Youth<iframe style="WIDTH: 100%; HEIGHT: 30px" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http://amyippoliti.blogspot.com/2010/07/old-daysstories-of-anusaras-youth.html" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Recently I dug out the old photo albums from my first retreat with John Friend up at Inner Harmony 11 years ago. First off, I just have to address the shock appeal thing - like, the "OMG, we have aged so much!" factor. Looking at old photos, our tendency can be to long for those younger years; the wrinkle free skin, the thick heads of non-grey hair (well, except John, who went grey really early!), the white teeth, and the lean, strong bodies.</span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"></span></span><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">That said, when I flipped through th</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">e albums this </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">morning, I saw all of that youth and I have to say, I did not have that sense of longing. In fact, I did not m</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">iss the youth I saw in my friends, in John, or in myself one bit. Looking at my own picture, I actually kind of winced! Why? </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Because I just like myself so much more now! </span></span><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHNtPBA-8I/AAAAAAAAATg/o86gWQ4Kixo/s1600/JohnFriendAmyIppoliti1999.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499402797004684226" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 263px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHNtPBA-8I/AAAAAAAAATg/o86gWQ4Kixo/s400/JohnFriendAmyIppoliti1999.JPG" border="0" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> <div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">John and I in 1999 at my first Anusara retreat and teacher training.</span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><br /></div></span></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span><br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499402389873274258" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 265px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHNViVUrZI/AAAAAAAAATY/RHvbGWhnN-4/s400/AmyIppolitiDesireeRumbaugh99.JPG" border="0" /></span><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Desiree Rumbaugh at age 39 and me at 29, spotting each </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">other in Rajakapotasana, </span></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">back in </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">the days before </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">good yoga underwear! 1999.</span></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><br /></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underlinefont-family:Georgia, serif;" ><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499405292477441154" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHP-fYFZII/AAAAAAAAAUA/Px0bL3HWA7U/s400/JohnFriendKrishnaDas1999.JPG" border="0" /></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underlinefont-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499428344459418738" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 265px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHk8Ss33HI/AAAAAAAAAUQ/rKZWp2FgTlI/s400/BetseyD990001.JPG" border="0" /></span></span></span><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Above: Martin and Jordan Kirk had just gotten together! Relaxing at kirtan with Krishna Das and John. 1999.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Below: Betsey Downing at 50 something, in Bhairavasana using "the self-maneuver". 1999.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">From our time together, I believe deep seeds of trust, love, bliss, and a desire to become more of who we are has taken root over time, and the flowers and fruits are now emerging - so to me, everyone actually looks MO</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">RE </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">radiant, more shri, more wise, more exquisite. I love to look at my friends and colleagues as who they are NOW.</span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Georgia, serif;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHNtPBA-8I/AAAAAAAAATg/o86gWQ4Kixo/s1600/JohnFriendAmyIppoliti1999.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499404683176668066" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHPbBjda6I/AAAAAAAAAT4/qlHXD69Y9GI/s400/JohnFriend+teaching+9.jpg" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499403405656518450" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHOQqa67zI/AAAAAAAAATo/PYtRYZdz3bo/s400/eGroup+14.jpg" border="0" /></a></span></span><br /><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">2001, Look closely and you will see Christina Sell, Sundari, Darren's mom, Noah on the left, Heather Werheimer, John Seelye and I in the back, Suzi Hurley and others...</span></span></div><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I feel blessed every day to have had the opportunity to do my teacher training with John in a room full of only 50 people, to have practiced one-on-one in Texas with him, and to have spent weeks on the road practicing with just a few of us. I remember one week when I did not sign up early enough for the advanced Intensive in AZ, I asked John if I could come and just be there in case someone did not show. Never wanting to shut anyone out, he said yes, AND that I could come practice during the break with him, Desiree and Sianna. Needless to say I bought the plane ticket.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underlinefont-family:Georgia, serif;" ><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499427402333001298" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 262px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHkFdAbllI/AAAAAAAAAUI/FXIP1ox0gQQ/s400/BetseyD99.JPG" border="0" /></span></span></span> <div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Hippie Chiquita, Sianna Sherman in 1999</span></span></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">With no planning ahead, I arrived at the workshop from the airport with no place to stay and made a quasi announcement saying I was looking. Sianna came forward and generously offered to share her bed in the room she was staying. She herself would be spending the week taking notes, confined to the ledge of the studio that held only 38 people along with Desiree, also perched on the ledge. So every day I would make an attempt to get in, and on the days I failed, I would go back to the house, get the family dog and walk over to the studio so I could listen to the teachings through the window. Then at lunch we would bend with John, just the three of us. That was when John helped me first balance in handstand with out the wall, spot people in viparita shalabhasana, and bend ridiculously deep into paschimottanasana just by puffing my kidneys.</span></span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">We shared our first Mahashivatri together that week, and I met Darren Rhodes and Christina Sell for the first time. One of the best moments was the invocation chant where we all put on sunglasses while our eyes were closed, so when John ended the chant he looked up from his namaste, shocked to see us all in shades. </span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underlinefont-family:Georgia, serif;" ><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499429824713459170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 264px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHmSdE8BeI/AAAAAAAAAUY/O8sgsSY4wiE/s400/JohnFriendNaimeJezzenyKD19990001.JPG" border="0" /></span></span></span> <div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Da Boyz! Krishna Das, Naime Jezzeny, and John, 1999.</span></span></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">We used to play jokes on John all the time. And he would play them on us too. Like the time he showed up after Savasana head-to-toe in a superman suit complete with musical accompaniment. We would just laugh so hard.</span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">During the summers in 2000-2001, I had moved from New York City with my boyfriend to Stone Ridge, NY which meant we could get to John at Gurumayi's ashram in only 45 minutes. I would go 2-3 times a week so I could take his public 90-minute classes and also practice with him for 2 hours during the day. During the day we'd do things like Abisheka (ritual bathing) of the Hanuman murti, hang out in the Amrit Cafe eating Dosas and talking with Douglas Brooks, have darshan with Gurumayi, meditate and 'get stoned' from the shakti in Baba's temple, and then do epic practices at Ashirwad, the hatha yoga complex that John helped design. Apart from Ashirwad, we were forbidden to wear tank tops which would expose our shoulders, or cross the road with out using the underpass. My boyfriend and I would have these silly fantasies of streaking across the road with nothing on but a leopard-striped fur thong, just for fun. Naughty! </span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">At night I got to see John lead a normal public class that was less than 2 hours long, so I learned a lot about how to condense Anusara from "workshop mode", as I was accustomed, into a regular class. It was here that I met Jimmy and Ruthie Bernhaert, Noah Maze, Jayendra and others. Those were the days!</span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underlinefont-family:Georgia, serif;" ><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499434849895292850" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 182px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHq29Vpn7I/AAAAAAAAAUg/Ujk6ZzALBf8/s400/ElenaDouglasAmyIppol.JPG" border="0" /></span></span></span> <div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Elena Brower, Douglas Brooks and I at Vira Yoga, NYC, in 2002</span></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">It is powerful to be with a community for this long. To grow and expand together, to learn from each other, to make mistakes and be forgiven, is truly like family, with out the blood connection. And yet, this feeling of family is ever present now whether one has been practicing Anusara for years or has just begun. </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I like to think that the "spirit of Anusara" is always available to anyone, because of the foundation of love and Grace that was created during Anusara's early days. I believe that spirit is still generating and will last for many generations to come.</span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underlinefont-family:Georgia, serif;" ><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499404374894258514" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TFHPJFHNKVI/AAAAAAAAATw/3Q-SyljBSsw/s400/AmyIppolitiJohnFriend2000.JPG" border="0" /></span></span> <div style="TEXT-ALIGN: center"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline;font-family:Georgia, serif;" ><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">2001, with John</span></span></span></div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-67915203597212314492010-07-22T20:20:00.000-07:002010-07-23T11:30:32.566-07:00My Immediate Reaction to the NYT Article on Anusara and John Friend<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><iframe style="WIDTH: 100%; HEIGHT: 62px" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http://amyippoliti.blogspot.com/2010/07/my-immediate-reaction-to-nyt-article-on.html" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></span><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Yes, I just read the NYT and subsequent bloggage. Overall it is simply a excellent that John Friend and the school of Anusara were featured in such a prominent paper. Clearly Anusara is enough of a movement to merit that kind of attention. Having grown up with the NYT on the breakfast table daily, and having been interviewed myself for magazines and articles, I know how easily quotations can be taken out of a larger context. I won't get into all the things I want to say about some of the quotes just now...however, what stuck with me is how this article has stirred up the age-old, conversation about the "commercialization of yoga". (oooh! Hide, run away!)</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> </span><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Here are my two cents on the subject...</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Can I be frank?</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I would love to see the people (who are freaking out) get over themselves around all the concern over "the commercialization of yoga". What good is doing yoga in a cave and not letting people know about it? What good is one yoga weekend in Podunk, when that teacher goes home and there are no more teachings? Enter Yoga DVD's or an internet yoga class which can hugely help these students stay connected! </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">We are all marketers at heart - whenever we give teachings, we are shifting people's minds. Guess what? That is the definition of marketing! I have always LOVED that </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="DISPLAY: inline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">John Friend is a model of prosperity, abundance, ethical, and sustainable business as a yogi, while at the same time able to go SO FULLY DEEP into the topics of spirit and oneness. Isn't that combo what we all want? </span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="DISPLAY: inline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="DISPLAY: inline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Not to mention, if yogis actually made and had money - OHHH AH OH WOW! (insert double rainbow guy inflection) what a world this would be. Think about it, since yogis generally do not use money to harm, be corrupt, or overly consume - think of all the causes and charities the yogis would give to if they were making more than $35K a year!! The world is in dire need of this kind of contribution. I want to make this kind of contribution.</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="DISPLAY: inline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="DISPLAY: inline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I say keep marketing, John. You go! </span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="DISPLAY: inline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(51,51,51);font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="DISPLAY: inline"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Nothing but love and a whole lotta shri from me on this topic.</span></span></span></div></div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-74623215772035841202010-07-05T22:00:00.000-07:002010-07-06T23:22:25.985-07:00Living in the Paradox<iframe style="WIDTH: 100%; HEIGHT: 62px" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http://amyippoliti.blogspot.com/2010/07/living-in-paradox.html" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe><br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><td><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Amy-Ippoliti/44006858694?ref=ts"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491031222396624578" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 25px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 25px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TDQPzdWHnsI/AAAAAAAAAR8/sMRZeZDbBXw/s200/facebook-icon.jpg" border="0" /></a></td><td><a href="https://twitter.com/Amy_ippoliti"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491032693188867922" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 25px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 25px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TDQRJEeUN1I/AAAAAAAAASM/4Ee6Rlxgg5Q/s200/icon_twitter.gif" border="0" /></a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">For a whole month I have been enjoying being home in Colorado, getting caught up in my office, bonding heavily with my cat, </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Jaya</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, and hosting lavish raw foods dinner parties in my home. Not too shabby.</span></span><br /></p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">My practice and application of Yoga allows me to embrace the paradox of, on the one hand, living my life fully, enjoying nature, the garden, and keeping company with great beings, while at the same time feeling deeply the space of heart break. Millions of gallons of oil are still gushing from the floor of the Gulf of Mexico, my friends along the Gulf are in sorrow at losing their ocean habitat and lifestyle, not to mention the effects of climate change tangibly being felt around the</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"></p></span></span><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490837115113647954" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 132px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TDNfQ7XhL1I/AAAAAAAAARM/dziIcs6A-gU/s200/mexico_gulf.jpg" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490836847032673058" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 146px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TDNfBUsCIyI/AAAAAAAAARE/H3vPm-fpon0/s200/Gulf_Turtle_Rehab-FLJR106-0.JPG" border="0" /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">planet. With all this AND the world economy continuing to be in shambles, it can be easy to want to give up, blame, or become a total grump.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> Lucky for us, yoga philosophy has answers if we are willing to listen.</span></span><br /><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Many of you know the theory of the </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Kleshas</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> or "stains" which are aspects of our humanity that are unsightly, flawed, or </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">vikrokti</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> (broken). When I have been hurt, to help myself heal, I have sometimes made a decision (usually a limited decision) about the way life is, who I am, what I'm capable of, about men, or about women, </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">yadda</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">yadda</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, that has </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">become part of the fabric of my belief system. We have all done this at one time. And so we use that fabric to build a tent to hide ourselves under. Meanwhile the life we really want to live is outside this tent! At our dinner party the other night we decided that to get "the gold" out of the hurt we have experienced, the process of a conscious yoga practice can help us turn that fabric into something </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">new and fabulous - a garment that we wear which holds the wounds of the past, but n</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">ow has taken the form of wisdom.</span></span> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490835557396087266" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 231px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 321px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TDNd2QatgeI/AAAAAAAAAQ0/iWjkvZsEIJI/s320/lakshmi1-550x768.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">This is turning your </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">kleshas</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> into </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Lakshmis</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">. The great Goddess </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Shri</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, or Lakshmi wears her blood in the form of her hot red sari. </span></span></div><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">So instead of limiting </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">ourselves to those beliefs we made created when we were especially broken, we can choose to wear the fabric not as a tent to hide beneath, but morph into the fabric of a NEW and totally breathtaking outfit!</span></span></div><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The oil gush in the Gulf right now is a </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Klesha</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> on our ocean of catastrophic proportions. <i>To be </i></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><i>transmuted into a Lakshmi, every single person on the planet must pledge to take more personal responsibility for </i></span></span><a style="TEXT-DECORATION: underline" href="http://www.takepart.com/aninconvenienttruth" shape="rect" linktype="link" track="on"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(153,153,255)">energy conservation</span></i></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><i> and to take the time to </i></span></span><a style="TEXT-DECORATION: underline" href="http://www.nrdc.org/" shape="rect" linktype="link" track="on"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(153,153,255)">speak up regularly</span></i></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><i> to demand clean energy legislation in their country.</i> </span></span></div><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Together I believe we can turn this tremendous wound into wisdom, and help mother earth find a new gown to wear, worthy of the princess she is!</span></span></div><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Join us this July and from here forward on </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Facebook</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> for the </span></span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=191028581542&v=wall&ref=ts"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(153,153,255)">July 30 Day Yoga Challenge</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(153,153,255)">.</span> This month we are dedicating our challenge to the Gulf </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">waters, people, and wildlife who are hurting right now with practical direct things you can do to make a difference. The challenge is </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">to practice your yoga daily, with the A/C in the OFF position, (or if you are a hot yogi, practice with the heater in the OFF position), for 30 days!</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The corresponding green challenge is to simply get into the VITAL habit of unplugging any unused appliances, lights, cell phone chargers, or other electronics when not in use! I can't wait to hear about how bendy you all will get with out A/C this month.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> </span></span><br /><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490836365807713906" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 133px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TDNelT_D_nI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/7_MmQiKypC8/s320/AmyIppoliti.jpg" border="0" /></span></span></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Off to </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Telluride</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> this weekend for the completely GREEN-run </span></span><a href="http://tellurideyogafestival.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(153,153,255)">Telluride Yoga Festival</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(153,153,255)">. </span></span></span></div><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Sending our big virtual fist bumps to all as you re-vamp your spiritual wardrobes,</span></span><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Amy<br /></span></span></div><br /><iframe style="WIDTH: 99.55%; HEIGHT: 62px" src="http://www.facebook.com/plugins/like.php?href=http://amyippoliti.blogspot.com/2010/07/living-in-paradox.html" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe><br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><td><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Amy-Ippoliti/44006858694?ref=ts"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491031222396624578" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 25px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 25px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TDQPzdWHnsI/AAAAAAAAAR8/sMRZeZDbBXw/s200/facebook-icon.jpg" border="0" /></a></td><td><a href="https://twitter.com/Amy_ippoliti"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491032693188867922" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 25px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 25px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/TDQRJEeUN1I/AAAAAAAAASM/4Ee6Rlxgg5Q/s200/icon_twitter.gif" border="0" /></a></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-49638028597164847612009-10-28T21:50:00.000-07:002009-11-02T22:27:17.366-08:00A Complete Circumnavigation of the Earth in 33 Days!<span style="font-family:arial;"><strong>A Complete Circumnavigation of the Earth in 33 Days!</strong><br /><br />My voyage began with an around-the-world ticket on September 25th from Denver with touchdowns in Washington DC, Rome, Perugia, Florence, Geneva, Munich, Seoul, and Los Angeles, and finally back to a snow storm in Denver!<br /><br />People sometimes glamorize world travel, yet like anything, travel is not always easy and comes with its ups and downs. Precicesly at the moment I would start to miss home or feel the wear and tear of the road, I'd log in to Facebook or open an email and there would be a message thanking me for traveling as much as I do, appreciation for sharing the teachings despite the hardships of travel, and general loving wishes. I must thank each of you who wrote, because these messages came at exactly the moments I needed to hear them, and they meant so much to me. Truly, thank you.<br /><br />The tour kicked off with my 8th retreat to Umbria, and another outstanding week of decadent food, wine, and yoga.<br /><br />After an exciting day in my old stomping grounds of Florence, Kelli and I had an adventure – an overnight train to Geneva! We were greeted in the morning by David Newbery who promptly fed us with fresh juiced fruits and veggies made by 16-yr old, up-and-coming raw foods educator, AJ.</span><br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398192084503399330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Suo7GZomi6I/AAAAAAAAAQc/7j7iC-GT7kg/s320/Kristen+%26+Amy.jpg" border="0" /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />As always it was a total pleasure working with the exceptional Swiss and French Kula in Geneva.<br /><br />After a day of rest, home practice, catching up, and a hot bath, I left for Munich and on to Seoul for two weeks of the Part 2 Immersion!<br /><br />Since 2007 I have been helping to build Anusara yoga in Korea with Tina Park at Jai Center in Seoul. This was my 5th trip to Korea and this year we started a 3 part Immersion which has been rocking the yoga community.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoGDDAPK9I/AAAAAAAAANs/nLRuWHexYj4/s1600-h/a.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398133752772635602" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 265px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 224px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoGDDAPK9I/AAAAAAAAANs/nLRuWHexYj4/s320/a.jpg" border="0" /></a>Our one bi-lingual student, Henna Lew, summed up the Immersion with these words: "It's been truly magical for the past two weeks and has brought so much courage and happiness to a level that some of us have not experienced in our entire life until today!" </span></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398134195228467346" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 222px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoGczR7YJI/AAAAAAAAAN0/KxuT0Qmi-e4/s320/b.jpg" border="0" /></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398143648509779090" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 241px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoPDDf03JI/AAAAAAAAAPM/M6cNI7wPeks/s320/c.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">It has been a total honor to teach so much this year in Korea, because like anything into which we put our love and energy, a great vibration is created. It is wonderful to feel such a deep bond with a group of women who speak completely different languages than I, and who live in radically different cultures. Because of their dedication and eagerness to learn, the student’s transformation from Part 1 to Part 2 has been astonishing. Check out these shakti-filled sisters!</span><br /></p><p><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoIFmY2HDI/AAAAAAAAAOE/igKnkjwjAso/s1600-h/d.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398135995654085682" style="WIDTH: 293px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 205px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoIFmY2HDI/AAAAAAAAAOE/igKnkjwjAso/s320/d.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoILYgu1hI/AAAAAAAAAOM/77PY8EgRvk8/s1600-h/e.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398136095008282130" style="WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 207px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoILYgu1hI/AAAAAAAAAOM/77PY8EgRvk8/s320/e.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><p><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoILYgu1hI/AAAAAAAAAOM/77PY8EgRvk8/s1600-h/e.jpg"></a><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">I have been learning Korean with Tina and the women, and enjoying the challenge. Because it is so difficult, I just end up laughing at myself a whole lot.<br /><br /><strong>Trip to the DMZ</strong></span><span style="font-family:arial;"> </span><br /></p><br /><p align="left"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398142467317962562" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 239px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoN-TNwF0I/AAAAAAAAAPE/-9knmQ4xxTM/s320/3.jpg" border="0" /></p><div><span style="font-family:arial;">A few of us also had the great fortune of touring the DMZ (De-militarized zone, the 4 kilometer wide boundary that divides North and South Korea), which was a hugely eye opening and moving experience for me. The DMZ has had almost no human contact for over 50 years. Consequently, the whole stretch of this 4 kilometer-wide zone has reverted back to nature, attracting rare and otherwise extinct species of birds, animals, plants, and insects.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial, serif;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Arial;"></span> </div><div></div><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398208733415710626" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SupKPfqnn6I/AAAAAAAAAQk/13yzWUyOcus/s320/WildlifeDMZ.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">When these two countries reunite, all of the Korean peninsula will have this gorgeous wildlife preserve to enjoy – a gift to come out of the separation.<br /><br />What was most uplifting about being there was seeing the art work on the South Korean side which was full of hope, as well as real structures such as a Freedom Bridge and a fully functioning train station that was built complete with train tracks that extend across the DMZ toward North Korea. Even though there is technically no use for this station, it was built as a vote of confidence and as a gesture toward the reality of the need for transportation across once reunification occurs. “Fake it till you make it, build it and they will come”, I always say!<br /></span><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoNPXP5r8I/AAAAAAAAAOs/CsMrShOz-Ho/s1600-h/5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398141660946870210" style="WIDTH: 272px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 183px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoNPXP5r8I/AAAAAAAAAOs/CsMrShOz-Ho/s320/5.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoNUOtRLJI/AAAAAAAAAO0/jCpb5afliqc/s1600-h/5.jpg"></a> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoNvpDkwjI/AAAAAAAAAO8/RK1pLE2WvQY/s1600-h/4.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398142215482819122" style="WIDTH: 260px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 183px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoNvpDkwjI/AAAAAAAAAO8/RK1pLE2WvQY/s320/4.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong>Ribbons of Hope</strong><br />In this photo, are the ribbons we placed containing our written prayers for unification.</span><br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398164236168363570" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuohxagIfjI/AAAAAAAAAPc/qP70uZ7NRAQ/s320/P1040086.JPG" border="0" /> <span style="font-family:arial;">At this stage on the tour you can see below Elizabeth (who has been assisting me on all three of my Asian tour stops this year) and I having a tough time smiling, as we were still absorbing the heaviness of the reality going on at the border.</span></p><p> <span style="font-family:arial;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398139048452621506" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 239px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoK3S8vBMI/AAAAAAAAAOU/5Gs_IFRtwr8/s320/1.jpg" border="0" />We were also joined by om time Immersion graduate, Bill Carver from Durango, CO who will be traveling in Asia until January and joining parts of the Korean Immersion.<br /></span><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398139248374232258" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 242px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoLC7twtMI/AAAAAAAAAOc/7lzsnrvApEE/s320/2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">On our tour, we were taken into “The Third Tunnel”, one of 4 tunnels the North Koreans started digging under the DMZ to eventually invade Seoul. It is said that they began excavating at the end of the war, but the South Korean army discovered the 4 tunnels throughout the 70’s to the 90’s before they could be used.<br /><br />Along with a slew of young soldiers, we entered the South Korean tunnel that had been built by the army in order to access and then block the North Korean passageway. We then came upon the spot where the North Koreans had stopped digging before they got caught, an actual narrow tunnel that was designed to dispatch thousands of soldiers in an hour's time. Total erie alert!</span><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoLRwgB84I/AAAAAAAAAOk/J0NXvg1j4t0/s1600-h/6.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398139503061889922" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 271px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 181px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SuoLRwgB84I/AAAAAAAAAOk/J0NXvg1j4t0/s320/6.jpg" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;">Everyone had to put on these ridiculous helmets, which I was convinced were a gimmick, but when I heard all the tall people’s helmets hitting the top of the tunnel repeatedly, I realized they were a needed commodity. We are smiling in this picture because, despite the heaviness of the actuality, the young soldiers were so jovial inside the tunnel, we couldn’t help but smile. At one point I was questioning the light-hearted vibe jokingly, and Tina said, “Yeah, what’s with the party attitude in The Third Tunnel?” Well, this was their educational field trip from hard training – they were as much tourists as we were!<br /></span><br /></p><span style="font-family:arial;"><p>Overall, it was an unforgettable experience for me. The fact that such a separation exists, and that so many people are intentionally isolated from the global community (the North Koreans have no cell phones, internet, or cars!) is totally wild.<br /><br />Whenever there is separation, there is a lack of relationship and therefore isolation and then delusion, and when there is a lack of relationship or isolation, there is NO YOGA.<br /><br />On the ribbons we set out on the fence of the DMZ, we placed our prayers for unification. It has been too long to hold such a stance of separation and hope is very much REAL.<br /><br />In our lifetime, may we be witnesses to the DMZ’s dissolution, may all the fascinating nature that has emerged be left standing as a symbol of rebirth for the entire planet, and may North Korean citizens be welcomed lovingly into the International community with peace and harmony. May it be so. May it be real.<br /></p><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong>Los Angeles</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">The day after the immersion, I had one of the longest Mondays I've ever had - I left Seoul at 12:08pm on Monday and arrived in LA on Monday at 10:15am, "earlier" than I had left! In three short days, I managed to sleep off dangerously drowsy jet lag (thank you Tanya and Beate for driving me around the first day!), I saw 11 different friends I have not seen in years, got a much needed and ecstatic facial at <a href="http://www.jurlique.com/">Julique</a>, had productive meetings, and got my toes wet in the Pacific. It was too short, so I will make sure to go back to LA soon, and stay much longer next time!<br /><br />As I write this from the plane, I return to the first major blizzard back home in Colorado, the final stretch of my planetary circumnavigation!</span> <p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398209008664480226" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SupKfhDCieI/AAAAAAAAAQs/gulWb9QQpWg/s320/Winter+in+Denver.jpg" border="0" /></p></span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-51321789147637404442009-10-21T07:07:00.000-07:002009-11-02T22:20:26.287-08:00Yogi Highlight - Eric Ryan!<div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Sun9qfTKA3I/AAAAAAAAAMs/IKGkjh_NGYg/s1600-h/Eric+Ryan+-+Head+Shot.jpg"><span style="font-family:arial;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398124534778430322" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 249px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 175px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Sun9qfTKA3I/AAAAAAAAAMs/IKGkjh_NGYg/s200/Eric+Ryan+-+Head+Shot.jpg" border="0" /></span></a><span style="font-family:arial;"><a name="_MailAutoSig">Every so often a student comes along who, in a relatively short period of time, seems to deeply transform and radically shift their vibration after committing to a dedicated practice and study of Anusara yoga. It is always such a lift to keep company with those who, despite the fear of the dark side, go inside to honor their own truth and show up for their lives and the people around them in a higher way. I've created this new blog series to put the spotlight on some of these great yogis in hopes of inspiring, and highlighting what is possible when we enthusiastically devote ourselves to our own self study and evolution!</a></span></span></span></div><span style="font-family:Arial;"></span><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 5px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 5px">The first yogi I am featuring, is Eric Ryan from New Jersey. Eric is known all over the world now for his radical transformation in the last two years since studying Anusara yoga. Since I met him, he has been with me on the mat on Martha's Vineyard, in Italy, Chile, Colorado, Pennsylvania, New York and Massachusetts. When I met Eric, I found him to be bright and kind, yet there were clouds cloaking his full light from shining. He was less fully engaged, less social, and more withdrawn. He could not push up off the floor in Urdvha Dhanurasana, his handstands were enthusiastic, but his alignment was not refined, so his stamina would burn out like a flame in seconds and he'd be down. His athletic background made him competent on the mat, but he would not pause long enough to sync with me and so he'd rush in and out of poses, and over-effort many times.<br /><br />Watching Eric soften, open up, channel his greatness, and embrace being part of a kula (community of the heart), has been a total blessing for me. Each new workshop or part of the immersion, his light would come through with more clarity. His poses, out of no where, started to unfold. For example, within only a year and a half he went from "can't push up" in urdhva dhanurasana to demoing drop backs and dwi pada viparita dandasana and nailing it on the first try.</span></span><br /><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span style="font-family:arial;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395094215721937714" style="WIDTH: 218px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 158px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/St85mtHe6zI/AAAAAAAAALk/cUvRvZ7b1UI/s320/Eric+Ryan+-+Amy+Assist.jpg" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395094031672463986" style="WIDTH: 164px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/St85b_eq0nI/AAAAAAAAALc/gnMAVBLJsbM/s320/Eric+Ryan+-+Amy+Assist+2.jpg" border="0" /><span class="Apple-style-span"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395094453997508050" style="WIDTH: 226px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 164px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/St850kwzldI/AAAAAAAAALs/ZkiIomcuQYY/s320/Eric+Ryan+-+Backbend.jpg" border="0" /></span></span></span></span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">He slimmed down significantly. His skin tone and overall luster energetically started to glow</span><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span style="font-family:Arial;"></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"><span style="font-family:Arial;"></span></div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: left"></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398078046722623538" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 180px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SunTYhy8iDI/AAAAAAAAAL8/NYGwEKzvStQ/s320/IMG_0513_2.jpg" border="0" /></span><br /><br /><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Sun-48BZFpI/AAAAAAAAAM0/ouUYBvYUsK4/s1600-h/Eric+Ryan+-+Ganesh+Tattoo.jpg"><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Suo1pbfrThI/AAAAAAAAAP8/n9uhpxlM_GQ/s1600-h/Eric+Ryan+-+Assisting.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398186089228488210" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 190px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 277px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Suo1pbfrThI/AAAAAAAAAP8/n9uhpxlM_GQ/s320/Eric+Ryan+-+Assisting.jpg" border="0" /></a>Eric became a true friend to all of us, became an official Douglas Brooks groupie, and over the course of the Immersion a spectacular tattoo of Ganesh evolved on his upper back followed by Kali alighting on his foot! I have not seen it yet, but apparently there is a third addition - Hanuman in flying form holding the mountainside of Sanjivani herbs, now on his chest.<br /><br />Congratulations, Eric. You've worked hard, your adhikara (studentship) rocks, your devotion is appreciated, your service to the greater good and the kula is our greatest blessing, and your presence is an inspiration! Keep on evolving! </span></div><div align="justify"><br /></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><b></b></span><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;"><b></b></span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;"><b></b></span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;"><b></b></span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;"><b></b></span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;"><b></b></span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;"><b></b></span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;"><b>Words from Eric:</b> </span></div><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Suo4YBrlHFI/AAAAAAAAAQU/lsjw6org1do/s1600-h/Eric+Ryan+-+Ganesh+Tattoo.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398189088776199250" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 195px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 307px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Suo4YBrlHFI/AAAAAAAAAQU/lsjw6org1do/s320/Eric+Ryan+-+Ganesh+Tattoo.jpg" border="0" /></a>My first Anusara Yoga class was also one of my first yoga classes. It was a workshop with Amy on Martha’s Vineyard in 2006. I was pretty clueless and had to watch other students to have any idea what the poses were. I felt awkward and clumsy but something clicked and I knew that this was something I wanted more of.<br /><br />What really attracted me was the sense of welcome I felt. Folks asked :“How are you?” and I sensed that they actually cared about the answer. The quality and depth of my every conversation and interaction improved; as did my sense of connection to my heart and the community.<br /><br />The Fall of 2008 was calamitous. The economic collapse caused me significant dislocation and demanded reappraisal of what I had held as precious. My marriage seemed irreparable, and there was the passing of loved ones. I arrived in Umbria raw and grieving. The kula was a lifeline and I felt like a drowning man. The kula took care of me with loving support, acceptance and hugs.In Umbria Amy spoke about the Immersion as the next step for those who wanted to deepen their understanding of the Anusara philosophy and system of alignment. I felt ill prepared for such a big step but I hungered for it.<br /><br />I asked Amy: What would I have to do to be ready for the Immersion?<br />I expected a checklist: Practice 10 hours a week. Kick up into handstand at the wall. Urdva with straight arms… etc.<br /><br />The answer that Amy gave was: It is just a breath away.<br /><br />I could no more refuse her invitation than I could stop my own breath. I returned home and amped up my class schedule, trying to get prepare. The Immersion proved to be more than I could have hoped for. Here were people who had chosen the same path I had. My sense and appreciation of the kula deepened and enriched me. The authenticity of the connection among us was profound and powerful. It inspired confidence and effort. I found that by trusting my teacher and living and breathing my commitment that the boundaries of my asana practice were expanding. Asana also became more playful. Even falling out of a pose became an occasion for laughter and joy.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398084949586610370" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 210px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 290px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SunZqU9-CMI/AAAAAAAAAMc/jp2IWE22wmE/s320/n20207973_32744907_4476493.jpg" border="0" />One of the things I have experienced along the way is that progress is seldom linear and it can be frustrating to me when I think that I am about to finally “get it” and then “it” decides to dance out of my reach. I often feel as if I am actually going backwards. This is the time to take a “step towards the teacher”. Sometimes that teacher is the universal principles of alignment, sometimes the asana teacher standing in front of you at the studio and sometimes it is the teacher that is in each of our hearts. In all cases taking a step towards the teacher results in the teacher taking two steps towards you.<br /><br />It sounds mundane; but the commitment to scheduling chunks of time for yogic exploration and restoration is an affirmation that this is the path I have chosen and this is the path that I am on. Even the act of marking my calendar with a future event is making an important choice that renews my commitment to my practice and to ordering the rest of my life so that it is in support of that practice. Then, when challenges come, I look at the calendar and think: Well, this month may be a bit of a bumpy road, but the middle of next month I get to be in the company of some amazing beings and then the Shakti will really pulse! </span><p><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></p><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5398081386427076034" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 232px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 187px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SunWa7KiTcI/AAAAAAAAAME/MFqUSUBSg58/s320/9629_1153819000775_1086667383_30423246_6398618_n.jpg" border="0" /></span></span> <p align="center"><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></p><span style="font-family:arial;"><p>I have immense gratitude that I stumbled in to Anusara. I am also deeply grateful for the teachings of John Friend, Douglas Brooks, Amy, and all of my other teachers and I am grateful for the support of the kula. May it continue to expand and enfold.</p></span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-87663469195534299362009-08-04T20:52:00.000-07:002009-08-13T09:08:55.017-07:00Why Keeping the Rainforest Standing Benefits You, Your Loved Ones, and the Future of Planet Earth<p align="center"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SnkDEr95hbI/AAAAAAAAALE/cqzz66GpTdc/s1600-h/amazon-rainforest-home.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366323810045363634" style="WIDTH: 461px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 218px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SnkDEr95hbI/AAAAAAAAALE/cqzz66GpTdc/s400/amazon-rainforest-home.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></p><p align="left"><br />This recent <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/25/science/earth/25tribe.html?_r=2&emc=eta1"><span style="color:#3333ff;">New York Times article</span> </a>reaffirmed my choice two years ago to dedicate time and energy to the Amazon Herb Company and <a href="http://www.wcupa.edu/aceer/"><span style="color:#3333ff;">ACEER Foundation</span></a>. Since I was a girl, I have always had a passion for the rainforest and animals. For as far back as I can remember, innately I could feel the vital importance of our interconnection on planet earth, and I was determined to be an advocate.</p>With just 28% more devastation, the Amazon will reach its tipping point, and all those centuries of growth, the world's main source of oxygen, a stable climate and cooler temperatures would go out like a flame. <b>We are rapidly reaching that point, but there is a solution!!</b><br /><br />I encourage you to watch this inspiring <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhEw9wnpw2U"><span style="color:#3333ff;">video</span> </a>by the Cousteau Society about what is happening in the Amazon these days. Then, consider participating as a consumer of the life-enhancing super foods available through Amazon Herb Company. No other organization or business is making such a powerful impact in the Amazon, preserving almost 1 million acres thus far, and helping tribes like these all over the Amazon to get their legal land titles and deeds, so their land is protected.<br /><br />Recently Peru repealed laws that were passed which would open up 70% of Peru's Rainforest to oil exploration. Public appearances were made in Peru by Amazon Herb's founder, John Easterling and his wife, Olivia Newton-John speaking about the importance of the rainforest. After all the media attention surrounding the company's work and Olivia's involvement, public opinion turned and these laws were repealed!! <span style="color:#3333ff;"><a href="http://sanjivani.amazonherb.net/PeruUpdate.aspx"><span style="color:#3333ff;">Read </span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><a href="http://sanjivani.amazonherb.net/PeruUpdate.aspx"><span style="color:#3333ff;">story</span></a>.</span></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>This is great news, and there is more. Each of us has the power, through our purchases to help keep the forest standing. The circle of benefit is genius - by supporting our own health and well being, we support the tribes. With the tribes supported and prosperous, the land is protected. With the land protected, the whole Earth continues to have a stable climate and we can breathe again.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SnkD8hD-35I/AAAAAAAAALM/xRLJ5NnhiMg/s1600-h/zamu_bottles_case.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366324769190764434" style="WIDTH: 288px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 249px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SnkD8hD-35I/AAAAAAAAALM/xRLJ5NnhiMg/s400/zamu_bottles_case.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><br /><p align="left"><br />Contribute to the circle of healing by supporting your own health, the health of the tribes, and therefore the safety of everyone on the planet. It is simple, drink ZAMU and eat Amazon Herbs. The secret behind Zamu™ is the synergy of all Rainforest ingredients featuring camu camu - the exciting Amazon 'feel good' fruit. Sustainably harvested in the Rainforest, the camu camu berry and other ingredients in Zamu™ are scientifically recognized for their beneficial properties.<br /><br />With every delicious sip of ZAMU™ you are flooding your body with life-enhancing nutrients that support a positive life experience. Order a 4-pack Box and other vital superfoods from the Amazon <a href="http://sanjivani.amazonherb.net/Default.aspx" track="on" linktype="link"><span style="color:#3333ff;">HERE</span></a><span style="color:#3333ff;">.</span></p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#3333ff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"><i>If you are interested in becoming an associate messenger for this good news and earning referral income, contact us at drinkzamu@me.com.</i></span></span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-35569665656042455772009-06-25T09:45:00.000-07:002009-08-13T08:59:59.923-07:00Asia tour 2009<span style="font-family:arial;"><strong>South Korea</strong> </span><br /><div><div><div><div><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkOxKAb7SNI/AAAAAAAAAI8/hcNdVJlxW_8/s1600-h/1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351315567720220882" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 406px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 302px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkOxKAb7SNI/AAAAAAAAAI8/hcNdVJlxW_8/s400/1.jpg" border="0" /></a>In May, I traveled to South Korea for the third time to teach at Jai Center, a yoga studio dedicated to building yoga community in Korea. This time we offered the first ever Anusara Yoga 100-hour Immersion, to a group of extraordinary students from all over Korea and the world.<br /><br />The immersion was translated from English into Korean by my dear friend and yoga teacher, Tina Park, who is bilingual and also grew up in Korea. Because of Tina's skills, and a 15 year friendship that makes us totally in sync with translating, the teachings penetrated the room, creating a synergistic cross pollination of cultures and backgrounds which linked the hearts of the Western and Eastern students in a profound way.</span><br /></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351316017697215858" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkOxkMuzVXI/AAAAAAAAAJE/_NhGYdOV7xo/s400/2.jpg" border="0" />In addition yoga is really growing in Korea, so to be sharing these teachings feels really remarkable when you consider that only 50 years ago South Korea was desecrated from war. Out of so much destruction, in such a short time, Seoul has totally re-created itself and is now a thriving modern city full of life, culture, and urban prowess. This energy of rebirth, re-creation, and perseverance truly permeates the culture in Seoul and that shakti floods the practice and the energy in the yoga studio, a total inspiration and a metaphor for our own yoga and personal expansion that we experience in the Immersion. It was profound to be a part of such a meaningful week with everyone.<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkOxxI7ltuI/AAAAAAAAAJM/QeLX_dw3VKI/s1600-h/3.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351316240015406818" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 313px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkOxxI7ltuI/AAAAAAAAAJM/QeLX_dw3VKI/s400/3.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div><div><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:arial;">The Immersion was so powerful for the students that we decided to offer an additional Part 1 in<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO5f5g17SI/AAAAAAAAAJk/WiQOh9fyeYQ/s1600-h/4.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351324739911937314" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 386px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 249px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO5f5g17SI/AAAAAAAAAJk/WiQOh9fyeYQ/s400/4.jpg" border="0" /></a> August so that more students throughout Asia can begin the Immersion cycle that will continue through spring of 2010. With the challenge of bringing US teachers over to Asia consistently, it is rare to be able to take the whole 3-part Immersion with the same teacher and the same group throughout. My immersion graduates are always so thankful for the experience they gained by doing the complete program with the same group and same teacher. If you have every wanted to visit Seoul or wanted to take a 3 part Immersion in this way, now is the time to jump on this training, August 28-September 6th, 2009. To register visit <a href="http://www.jaicenter.co.kr/">Jai Center</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;">. </span><br /><br /></div></div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO6Zt1821I/AAAAAAAAAJs/B6B3wn4GKqo/s1600-h/5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351325733211659090" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 266px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO6Zt1821I/AAAAAAAAAJs/B6B3wn4GKqo/s400/5.jpg" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />There will be a 4-day break in between long weekend sessions so you can see, and experience Seoul and assimilate the teachings. And one of the wonderful benefits of translation is the natural pause that occurs while the English is being translated - it gives you time to take amazing notes and really take in the teachings. And very exciting, we will be preparing the ground for John Friend who will be visiting Korea for the first time in April of 2010!<br /><br /><strong>South East Asia</strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong></strong><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO7NaBrr6I/AAAAAAAAAJ0/N8ueskhI2WY/s1600-h/6.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351326621245353890" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 196px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 282px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO7NaBrr6I/AAAAAAAAAJ0/N8ueskhI2WY/s400/6.jpg" border="0" /></a>Touring in South East Asia this year was a record high on many levels. More students than ever came out for Anusara Yoga. I taught in Singapore for the first time and loved it, we had our usual epic yoga marathon in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and we culminated the tour with a fabulous Therapy Retreat in <a href="http://www.kohsamui.org/">Koh Samui Thailand</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;">, where I taught our group daily therapeutic yoga. We were all mercilessly pampered by amazing spa treatments that abound on the island.<br /><br />Anusara Inspired teacher, Elizabeth Linton, a graduate of my 100-hr Anusara <a href="http://www.wildspirityoga.com/immersion.html">Immersion</a> </span><span style="font-family:arial;">and <a href="http://wildspirityoga.com/teacher_training.html]">teacher training</a> </span><span style="font-family:arial;">in Denver, joined up on the tour to assist me. She was a total trooper and added so much to the tour. The students truly benefitted from all the added attention and we had a blast traveling and hanging out with the kulas all over South East Asia.<br /><br /></span></div><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351328896727678834" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 299px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO9R228f3I/AAAAAAAAAJ8/Wg5E8x-qPTs/s400/7.jpg" border="0" /></div></div><p><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></p><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO9eafLFgI/AAAAAAAAAKE/8rlUJQowMxA/s1600-h/8.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351329112450078210" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 245px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO9eafLFgI/AAAAAAAAAKE/8rlUJQowMxA/s400/8.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><div></div><div></div><div>We did a lot of great eating in Singapore! </div><div></div><br /><div></div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO-jcbKreI/AAAAAAAAAKM/o5naNFmatNo/s1600-h/9.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351330298381118946" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 299px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO-jcbKreI/AAAAAAAAAKM/o5naNFmatNo/s400/9.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Riding the "Flyer" in Singapore </div><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"></span><br /><br /><p><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO-u7wnvPI/AAAAAAAAAKU/ccSTclJDQiE/s1600-h/10.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351330495771163890" style="WIDTH: 303px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO-u7wnvPI/AAAAAAAAAKU/ccSTclJDQiE/s400/10.jpg" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:arial;"> </span></p><p><span style="font-family:arial;">Celebrating <a href="http://www.anusara.com/">John Friend's</a> 50th birthday with Durian Cake and the Malaysian Anusara Kula.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><strong>Retreat on </strong><a href="http://www.kohsamui.org/"><strong>Koh Samui</strong></a><strong> </strong></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong>at </strong><a href="http://www.absolutesanctuary.com/"><strong>Absolute Sanctuary</strong></a></span><span style="font-family:arial;"> </span><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></p></span><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO_cCkG-vI/AAAAAAAAAKc/1O99g3RZbGE/s1600-h/11.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351331270691846898" style="WIDTH: 303px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO_cCkG-vI/AAAAAAAAAKc/1O99g3RZbGE/s400/11.jpg" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO_nVR4zMI/AAAAAAAAAKk/LiklEZ76930/s1600-h/12.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351331464694254786" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 299px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO_nVR4zMI/AAAAAAAAAKk/LiklEZ76930/s400/12.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO_yEdTokI/AAAAAAAAAKs/lus9wZxCwHE/s1600-h/13.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351331649157308994" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 299px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO_yEdTokI/AAAAAAAAAKs/lus9wZxCwHE/s400/13.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><p><span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO_8GxtR2I/AAAAAAAAAK0/OrGoerrs0gg/s1600-h/14.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351331821578438498" style="WIDTH: 303px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkO_8GxtR2I/AAAAAAAAAK0/OrGoerrs0gg/s400/14.jpg" border="0" /></a> </span></p><p><span style="font-family:arial;">Following the retreat a few of us got to go to some of the islands by boat. In this picture we are sitting in the ocean where multi colored rainbows of fish did auspicious pradakshina around the Goddesses. This does not even capture the majesty of it!</span></p><p><span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkPAH1WaPiI/AAAAAAAAAK8/abccnslx-tE/s1600-h/15.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351332023058972194" style="WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 280px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkPAH1WaPiI/AAAAAAAAAK8/abccnslx-tE/s400/15.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Thanks to everyone who helped make my tour in Asia so gorgeous, especially <a href="http://www.tinapark.net/">Tina Park</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;"> (Seoul), Elizabeth Linton (from somewhere else), Sumei Shum, <a href="http://www.lynnyeo.com.sg/">Lynn Yeo</a> </span><span style="font-family:arial;">and Monica Lee (Singapore), <a href="http://www.vincenttamyoga.com/">Vincent Tam</a> </span><span style="font-family:arial;">(Kuala Lumpur), <a href="http://www.absoluteyogasingapore.com/teaching-team.php">Jeanne Chung</a> </span><span style="font-family:arial;">(Singapore/Koh Samui) and Joung-ah Ghedini-Williams (Bangkok)!<br /><br /><a href="http://visitor.constantcontact.com/manage/optin/ea?v=001m_bG3MRszj_76YTG_jtcpA%3D%3D">Click here</a> to join Amy’s free Yoga Prowess Newsletter<br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Amy-Ippoliti/44006858694?ref=ts">Click here</a> to add Amy on Facebook<br /><a href="https://twitter.com/Amy_Ippoliti">Click here</a> to follow Amy on Twitter</span> </p>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-64047005578804886932009-06-24T18:20:00.000-07:002009-08-13T09:01:11.468-07:00Why Yoga Retreats Rock<p>An article by <a href="http://www.wildspirityoga.com/">Amy Ippoliti</a> and <a href="http://www.anandaapothecary.com/">Tarah Cech</a> </p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351306608154252498" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 399px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 235px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/SkOpAfc8FNI/AAAAAAAAAIk/v9Z-IOZdFuU/s320/Absolute_Amy_Sumei.jpg" border="0" /><br /><p></p><br /><p>Hi my name is Amy Ippoliti, and I am a yoga retreat junkie. It started back in the 90’s in Utah after my first taste of a retreat with <a href="http://anusara.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=49&Itemid=82">John Friend</a> up in the mountains. Thanks to John, I now have an addiction to yoga retreats.<br /><br />In yoga, we start with the premise that as individuals we want to take care of our health, emotional well-being and develop a deeper connection to spirit in order to serve our families, community and the world more fully.<br /><br />With today’s fast paced culture it is easy to lose sight of what is most meaningful in our lives. Distractions abound, and the use of abundant forms of communication technology leaves us little time for restoration, relaxation, and rejuvenation, let alone basic free time. Over time, lack of attention to what is most important leads to depletion, stress and “dis-ease”.<br /><br />In the ancient yogic text called the Upanishads, it is stated that one must first be able to put food on the table and take care of survival needs before asking the bigger questions in life. So once one finds a certain degree of success, the opportunity to go to the next level arises. Most yoga students have achieved this basic level of success and have made it to the yoga studio to discover more.<br /><br /><b>What is so different about a yoga retreat?</b><br /><br />Imagine waking up in an exotic location, strolling along a garden path to join a group of like minded friends for a vibrant organic breakfast that has been prepared for you by someone else, and then making your way to a gorgeous outdoor yoga studio where your favorite teacher is waiting to guide you in an extended blissful practice.<br /><br />With out you having to think about it, as you are on the mat, your room is being freshly cleaned, your bed made, and an exquisite lunch is being prepared in the kitchen.<br /><br />Following lunch you relax in the hot tub or receive a healing spa treatment, and like magic the gardens are being optimized by the staff, the yoga studio is being swept clean, and a nourishing dinner is on its way.<br /><br />You invest your leisure time in contemplation of what really matters, setting intentions for your life, turning obstacles into opportunities, and visioning your dreams while keeping company with other great beings who share the desire to live out loud, on purpose and with celebration.<br /><br />Your afternoon practice supports you in integrating the wisdom of a great lineage of teachers into your experience both on and off the mat, and you leave class feeling more inspired, hopeful, with a lighter load, and more open to possibility.<br />The days continue in this way, and by the end of the trip your spiritual gas tank has been filled to the brim, your battery has been recharged, you realize that you are truly supported by friends on your journey, and the world awaits your excellent contribution and the higher frequency you can now share.<br /><br /><b>What’s not to love?</b><br /><br />If you want to become a retreat junkie like me, there are a variety of fabulous trips to choose from with beautiful teachings, in gorgeous locations globally. Visit <a href="http://wildspirityoga.com/retreat.html">http://wildspirityoga.com/retreat.html</a> to begin dreaming your next adventure now.</p><br /><p><a href="http://visitor.constantcontact.com/manage/optin/ea?v=001m_bG3MRszj_76YTG_jtcpA%3D%3D">Click here</a> to join Amy’s free Yoga Prowess Newsletter<br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Amy-Ippoliti/44006858694?ref=ts">Click here</a> to add Amy on Facebook<br /><a href="https://twitter.com/Amy_Ippoliti">Click here</a> to follow Amy on Twitter</p>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-3707197159110992702009-01-25T21:46:00.000-08:002009-01-26T22:57:28.232-08:00Amy, and some Boulder Yogi's, Take a Look at the Economy<span style="font-family:arial;">Constant exposure to the media creates a wave of fear that rocks the web of our culture. I am not an economist, and certainly there are many reasons the economy is in need of a high-colonic right now (sorry for the imagery!) - there is a lot of understandable contraction. However fear it seems, is the one of the biggest causes of the constipation. Yogis have always lived as an example, whether through living green, being kind, or showing up for our own self inquiry. Now more than ever, we can do so many things to transcend the fear, be positive lights for the world, bring prosperity and abundance into our lives and those around us, and help assist the flow of shri (abundance and resourcefulness) back into our economy! To help have a better attitude during these times, I started re-applying some tried and true principles to my life, and already I am seeing a difference in the amount of fiscal flow around myself and others around me!<br /><br /><strong>The Yogi's Guide to Economic Transformation</strong><br />Some things to keep your spirits up and ride the wave of the economic transition:<br /><br /><strong>1. Ride the Wave </strong><br />Recognize that this is a contractive ("nimeshic") part of the cycle or spanda of things. As with anything challenging, breathe and move through it, trusting in the passage of time to ride out the cycle.<br /><br /><strong>2. Turn off your TV</strong><br />We often think the world will fall apart if we ourselves do not watch the news. The world does fine "falling apart" with out us! I admit the news since Jan. 20th must be a vast improvement, but keep yourself uplifted in general by reducing your news feed and becoming more conscious of what you are ingesting - you'll be of much more help that way!<br /><br /><strong>3. Keep giving to Non-profits and charities</strong><br />In challenging times it is important to put into motion the causes that will create the future you want. Therefore the quickest way to help clear monetary constipation is to keep it moving and flowing! The more generous you are, the more space you create for generosity to flow back to you. Donating up to 10% of your income to your favorite organizations will not only empower you, but return to you tenfold! A small good deed will over time become mega-magnified. Here are some organizations to which I regularly donate: </span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><a href="http://www.nrdc.org/"><span style="color:#333399;">http://www.nrdc.org/</span></a><span style="color:#333399;"><br /></span><a href="http://www.natureconservancy.org/"><span style="color:#333399;">http://www.natureconservancy.org/</span></a><span style="color:#333399;"><br /></span><a href="http://www.conservation.org/"><span style="color:#333399;">http://www.conservation.org/</span></a><span style="color:#333399;"><br /></span><a href="http://www.aceer.org/"><span style="color:#333399;">http://www.aceer.org/</span></a><br /><br /><em>"It's as if our Asana practice was the conscious attempt at creating challenging and stressful conditions so that we might practice "YOGA" with greater ease when those conditions arise in our day to day life. The current Economic Situation is like a really deep Hanumanasana for someone with tight hamstrings like me. The opportunity here is to maintain the YOGA of spacious mind, open heart and easy breathing....which then creates the causes for more of the same in the future!"</em><br />~Mathew Gerson, CEO and founder, <a href="http://www.econsciousmarket.com/idevgold/idevaffiliate.php?id=154_0_1_9"><span style="color:#333399;">eConsciousmarket.com</span></a><br /><br /><strong>4. Be Resourceful</strong><br />Part of living abundantly is also about being "squirrely", which is distinctly different than being an uptight scrooge! Even if you think you do not have it, pay yourself first by consistently putting 10% of your income into a savings account (or stash) and commit to not spend or touch it. Put this money away and you will naturally adapt and learn to live off the rest. Naturally you will be encouraged to find ways to earn more if you need it. Just this one act alone of putting money away BEFORE you spend it, sends a message to the universe that you can handle "containing" money, and like magic more than enough comes back to cover your expenses plus more.<br /><br /><strong>5. Reduce Stress by keeping up your health and wellness routine</strong><br />I recently lapsed in having my regular bodywork done. After I finally got back into it, I was so glad did - it shifted my whole being! When stress and uncertainty are in the air, living in angst or thinking fearfully is crippling. Now more than ever it is critical to keep up your mind and body by practicing your yoga consistently with the kula, meditating, staying fit, getting massaged and pampered, and keeping regular wellness appointments. The barter system is also alive and well, so get creative and trade where you can.<br /><br /><strong>6. Keep up your Yoga Studies, Retreats, Immersions and Keep Company with the Best</strong><br />Through meditation, positive affirmation and yoga you can more easily shift your energy to creating internal wealth and wellness. By keeping company with the best, our spirits stay uplifted. Retreats, Immersions, and trainings are investments that provide infinite returns, without fail. Our internal reality is what actually creates our external reality or circumstances (not the other way around). When you are with the kula, it is so much easier to find others who are positive and elevated. I'm pretty stoked to be going to Costa Rica with John Friend this March just after leading our retreat in Chile!<br /><br /><strong>7. Continue to eat well and fortify yourself</strong><br />I read somewhere recently that in a downed economy sales on SPAM go through the roof. Now is not the time to compromise on nutrition! If I could narrow down the thing I am most grateful for, it would be my health. It is my health and vitality that allows me to move in the world most vibrantly and to be of the most service with my energy. Keep eating super foods, organic produce, and go for the beans and rice! My personal favorite supplier of raw, organic rainforest super foods is Amazon Herb Company. Not only is their food outstanding, but they are one of the few superfood companies that are proving to everyone that the rainforest is more valuable alive then cut down! Check out their new Pure Camu Rainforest Blend that is sweeping the nation, <a href="http://sanjivani.drinkzamu.com/"><span style="color:#333399;">ZAMU</span></a>.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;"></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><em>"While the old economy is dying there is a new one emerging. The old crops are gone, new seedlings need to be tended. I love pouring what money and time I have like water onto the seeds of a beautiful and peaceful emerging world. Some of my favorites - local farmers, small independent stores, small clothing companies, local environmental organizations, public radio and service groups. Instead of stopping the flow, I'm finding that digging into the corners, there are a lot of resources that have been lying dormant and are ready to be made useful by being given away or activated. Let the crumbling dishonest and corrupt businesses dissolve from lack of attention and turn toward what you love. Keep the flow going into the places you want to nurture!"<br /></em>~ <a href="http://www.ellintodd.com/"><span style="color:#333399;">Ellin Todd</span></a>, Anusara Yoga Inspired teacher, Boulder, Co<br /><br />Nothing can stagnate forever - we are made up of pulsation (spanda). I'd like to think that a breakdown like this is our opportunity to become that much more conscious of everything we do, say, and choose, and a time to allow old ideas and habits to pass on and for new creativity and ideals to be born. How am I choosing to view the current economy? Not just in transition, but in TRANSFORMATION! How am I choosing to view my own personal economy? As prosperous and abundant as ever - because I believe in the promise of Shri - there is always more. </span>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-2271693659138584402007-11-29T14:35:00.000-08:002007-12-04T22:34:32.779-08:00Get Your Grace On Tour hits FLORIDA, JAPAN and NEW ENGLANDIt has been an inspiring month touring in Florida, Japan, and Massachusetts and I am filled with hope for my own refinement and that of our culture. I was in Japan for two weeks of assisting John Friend in Tokyo, and teaching in Osaka and Kyoto. <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.anusaraasia.blogspot.com">John Friend's blog </a>really says it all.<br /><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5138396053190806290" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" height="246" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/R08__Gm1CxI/AAAAAAAAAE0/-xQQRoSndFA/s320/gazo+055.jpg" width="335" border="0" />John Friend's blog<a href="http://anusaraasia.blogspot.com/">http://anusaraasia.blogspot.com/</a>really says it all if you want to get a sense of the impression we all got from being there. Some of the photos on the blog I shot while I was assisting - I loved being behind the camera and capturing moments of their intense focus, commitment and comprehension of the teachings. While we are there, a highlight was celebrating Yasushi Tanaka, who has been serving the Japan Anusara community for the last three years, also our translator, who became certified in Anusara Yoga on the last day of John's workshops, in front of the whole kula. We are praising him in this picture out in a park in Tokyo while practicing.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/R09AW2m1CzI/AAAAAAAAAFA/M5vZRzohQP0/s1600-h/DSC_0762_1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5138396461212699442" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/R09AW2m1CzI/AAAAAAAAAFA/M5vZRzohQP0/s400/DSC_0762_1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Then we just got plain SILLY:<br /></div><div><a href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/R09Ak2m1C0I/AAAAAAAAAFI/YlcJb2B7yHI/s1600-h/DSC_0766.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5138396701730868034" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/R09Ak2m1C0I/AAAAAAAAAFI/YlcJb2B7yHI/s400/DSC_0766.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div>In Florida I trained with John on energy and psychic touch, taught in Jupiter, Miami, and finally the Omega Conference inFt. Lauderdale. The highlight of the conference was meeting the directors of Karma Krew<a href="http://www.karmakrew.com/">http://www.karmakrew.com/</a>and teaching a wild and windy class by the ocean to 180 enthusiastic hip opening yogis! And of course, doing karaoke with the kula in South Beach is an event I will never forget. In this picture, I'm backing up John on air keyboard as he belted out "Light my Fire", by the Doors.<br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/R09A4mm1C1I/AAAAAAAAAFQ/tzB8JyfYjGo/s1600-h/IMG_2222.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5138397041033284434" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/R09A4mm1C1I/AAAAAAAAAFQ/tzB8JyfYjGo/s400/IMG_2222.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br><br><br /><br><br><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div>The last stop was Kripalu, where we had an auspicious gathering on the full moon, the first snow, and the anniversary of my Nonnie's passing.I was assisted by Bill "Inner Body D." Dorrigan from Colorado and Jody Domerstad from New Jersey. </div></div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-9390739994072567612007-10-16T09:24:00.000-07:002007-10-16T10:29:09.041-07:00Amy in Paris<strong><font size="4">Paris in Autumn 2007</font></strong><br /><br />There is something about Paris that connects me right in to the diverse nature of the Universe.<br />Even when I have fleeting thoughts of never returning there again, I end up planning another trip before I even leave. <br /><br />Walking down Vielle Du Temple every day toward the Seine to Rasa Yoga, my senses are heightened as I am hit with every possible smell, sight, and sound: A shop window filled with pastries that are really sculptures of art, several piles of dog-doo to avoid, a whiff of perfume from the woman who just walked by, the sound of a baby crying over the drone of church bells ringing cacophonously, the sight of a woman throwing open the doors to her ancient balcony and stepping outside to greet the day, men and women lined up eating at the sidewalk brasserie, the nasty smell of urine, a noisy Vespa squeezing through the narrow street, footsteps on the cobblestones, and wafting aromas of French bread.<br /><br />The depth of experience in Paris is so rich, the people are so full of life, it is truly international,<br />and every nook and cranny on the streets is filled with some magic secret discovery bekoning me to slow down, and "check it in". Even when I am melancholy in Paris, usually a stroll across the bridges linking I'lle St. Louis with the land does the trick. Inevitably there are musicians on the bridge singing the exact words or rocking a solo that was just the thing needed to shift my mood.<br /><br />There are layers of great beings to get to know in Paris, and I happily reconnect each year with my Parisian family though big dinner parties on roof tops and in flats, and celebrate it all with the growing Parisian Anusara kula when I teach at Rasa Yoga.<br /><br />This year we were blessed to have students from New York City, Boulder, Finland, Geneva, London, India, France, Singapore, and Germany. I was as usual, completely blown away by the evolution of everyone's practice and harmony as a kula, in just 15 months since I was last here. Anusara is no longer a seedling in Paris's soil, it is a beautiful<br />plant about to totally bloom.Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-55660592546904825772007-10-12T09:31:00.000-07:002008-06-22T07:33:16.405-07:00Amy In Italy 2007<strong>September 19th, 2007<br />Flying to the Motherland, Italia</strong><br /><br /><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-0_E59dgI/AAAAAAAAAEc/uPsY831xciY/s1600-h/IMG_0294.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120510297085146626" style="WIDTH: 269px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 215px" height="201" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-0_E59dgI/AAAAAAAAAEc/uPsY831xciY/s320/IMG_0294.JPG" width="245" border="0" /></a><br /><div><div align="left">This is my 9th trip back to Italy. Over the weekend I will be teaching in Rome, the fall equinox will occur, along with a massive Global Mala, a yogic celebration of raising collective consciousness that will take place all over the world.On September 21st - 23rd, more then 35 countries, hundreds of yoga studios and thousands of yoga practitioners worldwide gathered as a part of the Global Mala Project. </div><div align="left"><br /></div><p align="center"><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-lgU59dOI/AAAAAAAAACM/hIHkCG02faw/s1600-h/unknown2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120493276129752290" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 254px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 206px" height="241" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-lgU59dOI/AAAAAAAAACM/hIHkCG02faw/s320/unknown2.jpg" width="337" border="0" /></a></p><div align="left">The purpose of the Global Mala Project is to unite the global yoga community from every continent in the world. This is a world-wide experiment into the power of meditation, "forming a "mala around the earth" through collective practices based upon the sacred cycle of 108. Our workshop will be representing this participation on behalf of Rome. I can not think of a better time to be in Italy, teaching yoga, or getting in touch with my ancestry.<br /><br /></div><div></div><div>This trip will be the first time I have ever taught yoga to Italians. It is so wonderful to feel so deeply connected to a place, to a country. I only wish I could speak better the language with more skill.My translators do a great job. But is is different teaching in Rome, compared to times I've had translators...I feel understood in a way that transcends language.<br /><br />The kula is full of life, the challenges of city living, and mostly full of love. It is clear that Anusara Yoga has taken hold in Rome, and I try not to be too blown away by the amazing irony of interconnection - that with out my doing, Anusara lives in my country of origin!<br /><br /><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-mBU59dPI/AAAAAAAAACU/24OlktE9JmY/s1600-h/unknown.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120493843065435378" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 248px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" height="234" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-mBU59dPI/AAAAAAAAACU/24OlktE9JmY/s320/unknown.jpg" width="307" border="0" /></a>The weekend closes with the Global Mala celebration, complete with expressions of how we imagine the world, and108 repetitions of our Invocation. It is the first time we have ever chanted it that many times in a row. Being High is an understatement.It is a bliss-fest. </div><div><br />The weekend closes, I meet my mother in the center of Rome, for three days of sightseeing and then it's off to Umbria. We are joined by my sister and our genealogist, Iuri, and head to Perugia for what will be three full days searching for Ancestors in Citta Di Castello, and laughter that does not stop.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-mlE59dQI/AAAAAAAAACc/OH8lz8qdzIs/s1600-h/100_0593.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120494457245758722" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 162px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 145px" height="195" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-mlE59dQI/AAAAAAAAACc/OH8lz8qdzIs/s320/100_0593.JPG" width="265" border="0" /></a><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-mvE59dRI/AAAAAAAAACk/1QdhbD1Pc0Y/s1600-h/P1020815.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120494629044450578" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 118px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 148px" height="193" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-mvE59dRI/AAAAAAAAACk/1QdhbD1Pc0Y/s320/P1020815.JPG" width="208" border="0" /></a><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-nFU59dSI/AAAAAAAAACs/hRYCQKrhFy4/s1600-h/clip_image001.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120495011296539938" style="WIDTH: 195px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 148px" height="166" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-nFU59dSI/AAAAAAAAACs/hRYCQKrhFy4/s320/clip_image001.jpg" width="224" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Our final night is spent celebrating my sister's 40th birthday at Locanda Del Gallo the night before our retreat begins. We enjoy Jimmy's amazing cooking and hand picked figs by the pool.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-oNU59dTI/AAAAAAAAAC0/GANoq_EQd7w/s1600-h/DSCN1349.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120496248247121202" style="CURSOR: hand" height="291" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-oNU59dTI/AAAAAAAAAC0/GANoq_EQd7w/s320/DSCN1349.JPG" width="197" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div><br /><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Anusara Yoga and the Art of Rhythm<br /></span></strong></div><div></div><p align="left"><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-osU59dUI/AAAAAAAAAC8/unlDBIJNNY4/s1600-h/IMGP1318.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120496780823065922" style="WIDTH: 189px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 301px" height="301" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-osU59dUI/AAAAAAAAAC8/unlDBIJNNY4/s320/IMGP1318.JPG" width="182" border="0" /></a><br />From Australia, France, Istanbul, Afganistan, Hong Kong, and the United States, the yogis in our group slowly trickle into the silence of Locanda Del Gallo on the arrival day. It is clear that this group carries a tangible euphoriaand a desire to live life in a profound way. I am blown away with the instant familiarity and ease with which the group interrelates and also amazed at the level of musicality in the group when we begin the rhythm classes.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-tCE59dWI/AAAAAAAAADM/Ki99Y4_4864/s1600-h/IMGP1509.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120501552531731810" style="WIDTH: 279px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 186px" height="195" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-tCE59dWI/AAAAAAAAADM/Ki99Y4_4864/s320/IMGP1509.JPG" width="296" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-1sk59dhI/AAAAAAAAAEk/kT8xLe0jWlE/s1600-h/IMGP1512.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120511078769194514" style="WIDTH: 235px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 185px" height="193" alt="" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-1sk59dhI/AAAAAAAAAEk/kT8xLe0jWlE/s320/IMGP1512.JPG" width="288" border="0" /></a><br />It had been colder with some rain leading up to the retreat, but when the group arrived, the sun came out and temperatures rose. We spent each break sunning by the pool and swimming. People got tan and it was October!<br /><br /><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-tYU59dXI/AAAAAAAAADU/tlKQgRJcEA0/s1600-h/clip_image002.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120501934783821170" style="WIDTH: 275px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 196px" height="196" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-tYU59dXI/AAAAAAAAADU/tlKQgRJcEA0/s320/clip_image002.jpg" width="293" border="0" /></a><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-teU59dYI/AAAAAAAAADc/UJcVuyHjGhA/s1600-h/clip_image003.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120502037863036290" style="WIDTH: 235px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 194px" height="211" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-teU59dYI/AAAAAAAAADc/UJcVuyHjGhA/s320/clip_image003.jpg" width="296" border="0" /></a></p><p align="right"><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-teU59dYI/AAAAAAAAADc/UJcVuyHjGhA/s1600-h/clip_image003.jpg"></a></p><p align="left">The highlight was the Anniversary of St. Francis of Assisi's death. St. Francis is easilythe most popular saint to have lived in all of Italy, and his home in Assissi is only 40 minutes from Locanda Del Gallo, so his presence can be felt palpably in this land. To be here in the fall, known as the time of Dakshinayana, the southern path of the sun, is especially powerful, as this is literally the time of honoring our ancestors. The practice that morning is a vibrant expression of respect, honor, inspiration and vibrancy as each student honors the gifts given to them from those who walked before us.<br /><br />Kelli Davis has brought her healing and radiant necklaces and earrings so by the end of the week, most of the women students are adorned in gorgeous jewels. </p><p align="left">The week culminates with an ecstatic wine tasting of 8 different wines of Italy, and a huge celebration of life ensues, well into the dinner hour. Much wine is consumed, yet no one gets drunk. Just happily buzzed, as it should be in Italy. <br /><br /> <a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-upE59daI/AAAAAAAAADs/P4KAnPFUVKo/s1600-h/clip_image005.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120503322058257826" style="WIDTH: 232px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 168px" height="240" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-upE59daI/AAAAAAAAADs/P4KAnPFUVKo/s320/clip_image005.jpg" width="326" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-xWE59dbI/AAAAAAAAAD0/l1I5XbntjYU/s1600-h/clip_image006.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120506294175626674" style="WIDTH: 252px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 221px" height="225" alt="" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-xWE59dbI/AAAAAAAAAD0/l1I5XbntjYU/s320/clip_image006.jpg" width="296" border="0" /></a><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-xbk59dcI/AAAAAAAAAD8/Zc6xGZmLK80/s1600-h/clip_image007.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120506388664907202" style="WIDTH: 233px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 221px" height="223" alt="" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-xbk59dcI/AAAAAAAAAD8/Zc6xGZmLK80/s320/clip_image007.jpg" width="285" border="0" /></a><br /><br />On the final day, we come together as an ensemble and play for the Locanda staff. Bala, the husband of one of our participants who dropped in on the last day. After the performance and only three hours of being here, Bala sums up the whole retreat, tapping into the essence of every teaching that was covered, the essence of the retreat itself, and the essence of Umbria. We are left with the feeling that with enough collective intention and awareness, someone like Bala can tune in so profoundly to energy, that they can describe experience so accurately.<br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-yKk59ddI/AAAAAAAAAEE/RMjYQNQehvs/s1600-h/clip_image008.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120507196118758866" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-yKk59ddI/AAAAAAAAAEE/RMjYQNQehvs/s320/clip_image008.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />The travel day begins with teary goodbyes. This group got close fast, and so much was shared and celebrated. There was a sadness knowing this group would never configure quite like this ever again. As the last taxi pulled away, Locanda became totally silent again for a time, the weather shifted and the cleansing rains came pouring in for the night. My heart was happy but heavy as I felt the rains were washing away the old stories no longer necessary, taking on the bright optimism of our radiant group, and the land was making its transition.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5120508153896465890" style="CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/Rw-zCU59deI/AAAAAAAAAEM/qHBf1v-pYtg/s320/clip_image009.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br />I am sitting in the brisk evening sun of autumn on a lawn chair, wrapped in my new hand-woven cashmere shawl, made by Renza, the weaver down the road. I'm surrounded by lavender and rosemary bushes and the sun is getting ready to set. It is a few days later. A new group has arrived with a different rhythm of its own. I am resting before flying to Paris. I am grateful to be alive, for the tranquility of Umbria, and for the work I get to do. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><img style="WIDTH: 451px; HEIGHT: 229px" height="273" alt="Italy Retreat 2007" src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v141/Groovinuniverse/GroupPhoto.jpg" width="541" border="0" /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>Ciao!<br />Amy </div>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-39350949157156178132007-07-13T15:06:00.001-07:002007-07-27T14:18:18.465-07:00Hidden Talent and Potential - What Gift are You Hiding from the World?<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/9oxTy7KIAaA"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/9oxTy7KIAaA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><blockquote>Someone very special just recently shared this video with me of Paul Potts, a car phone salesman from England, who won a major talent competition for singing Opera. Paul had been bullied in school and struggled with self confidence all of his life, but he always had his voice - if only anyone would listen! At 36, on national television, his voice is finally heard, and his talent is at last unveiled to the world. Check this out, and ask yourself - what gift am I waiting to unleash on the world? And what am I waiting for?</blockquote>Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-7524062805599385932007-06-17T07:56:00.000-07:002008-06-22T07:25:32.093-07:00Get Your Grace Tour Hits Asia!Welcome to my blog. Someone suggested I have a blog for the Asia tour to keep everyone updated on my travels. Well, Asia was so captivating, I never got around to blogging until my last night here, in Tokyo. So I hope a summary of the whole trip will do!<br /><br /><b>KOREA</b><br />I arrived in Seoul, Korea after a wonderful weekend teaching in Arcata, CA with the community lead by certified Ansuara teacher,Robyn Smith. When I first got off the plane in Seoul, I felt a surge of recognition and familiarity at arriving in Asia. Somehow all my years in New York, living in such a diverse culture, where so many Asians had made NY their home, it actually felt like home. But it also felt like 37 years was a long time to wait to finally come to this land, and I was overwhelmed with gratitude to be able to travel. I was also struck that our planet is so big and so abundant, that there are still places I will never see in this lifetime.<br /><br />In Korea, I was hosted by Tina Park and family in their wonderful home. I taught at the beautiful Jai Center to a very sweet group of yogis. Tina and Jaya did such a great job translating for me - it can take me sometimes twice as long to teach because of the translation, but the students are so sharp, I often only had to teach things once for them to absorb it! Korean is a really lengthy and round-about language, so it takes forever for them to say even something simple like "Move your thighs back". <br /><br /><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnVRyJtgrHI/AAAAAAAAAAM/L-_amzww8ZY/s1600-h/Image-75A9FACC0F5911DC.jpg-thumb_269_202.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnVRyJtgrHI/AAAAAAAAAAM/L-_amzww8ZY/s320/Image-75A9FACC0F5911DC.jpg-thumb_269_202.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077054076972215410" /></a><br /><br />At first the students were very shy, but after a day or so of connecting hearts, the students felt so comfortable that they would gather in really close when I was demonstrating and even touch me to feel the different parts of the body I was talking about to absorb the teachings. Overall the yoga struck such a chord with the students and many wonderful heart connections were made. <br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnVSYZtgrJI/AAAAAAAAAAc/BepRbNI6wa0/s1600-h/Image-75A756AA0F5911DC.jpg-thumb_269_202.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnVSYZtgrJI/AAAAAAAAAAc/BepRbNI6wa0/s320/Image-75A756AA0F5911DC.jpg-thumb_269_202.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077054734102211730" /></a><br /><br />Ty and Shubhendra Rao, from Delhi, performed two off-the-charts concerts. One was in a funky tea house, the other at Jai Center. The Koreans went wild for the Indian Music. <br /><br /><b>HONG KONG</b><br />Off to Hong Kong for the weekend for the first ever Yoga Conference in Asia. There we met up with Krishna Das, Desiree R., and a bunch of other yogis like Shiva Rea, Andrey Lappa, Cyndi Lee, Duncan Wong, etc...The sky scrapers and harbour were breath taking. I was fortunate to catch some teachings with Geshe Michael Roach and was very inspired by his take on the third sutra of Patanjali. He summed up the third sutra ("Then the seer abides in her own true nature") as basically successful time management! In other words, when you know your true nature, and you know what you want, you can expand time, and manage time in a way that allows you to accomplish as much as you want. Very cool take.<br /><br />Witnessing the conference, it struck me that Yoga's roots began in Asia, travelled West, got reborn, and now Yoga seems to be migrating back East. It was strange and kind of wonderful to see the collective yoga culture of the US being shared in Hong Kong, and having all the familiar yoga faces, sounds, colors, products, and energy present there. Being such a part of this culture for the last decade, and realizing the impact of my own transformation via our yoga community here in the states, it gave me great hope that this yoga culture could now begin transforming lives and raising consciousness in a whole other part of the globe. Whoa.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnXoFptgrOI/AAAAAAAAABE/uUxKnQCWyNc/s1600-h/DSCN0437_1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnXoFptgrOI/AAAAAAAAABE/uUxKnQCWyNc/s400/DSCN0437_1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077219338723831010" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><b> MALAYSIA</b><br />Kuala Lumpur was next, for 7.5 hours a day of teaching some of the most dedicated, tireless yoga students I have every taught! They were relentless. If we had pulled an all nighter with the workshop, they would have been totally up for it! We did a therapy training, this time taught in English. There are three wonderful Anusara Inspired teachers in Kuala Lumpur, one of whom was Vincent Tam who hosted me at his studio, Jiva Yoga Center. While I was here, Ty and KD went to Singapore. Here is our beautiful group photo.<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnVbUZtgrLI/AAAAAAAAAAs/j7Q6PuqgzTg/s1600-h/DSC01420_1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnVbUZtgrLI/AAAAAAAAAAs/j7Q6PuqgzTg/s320/DSC01420_1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077064560987385010" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Another highlight of my time in Malaysia was sampling the repulsive smelling Durian Fruit, Vincent insisted! I liked it. The part that was most interesting is the way the fruit smells nasty until you actually consume it. Then you no longer smell it! It reminded me of how, as yogis, we must fully embrace our emotions, the Rasas, etc..., before we can actually transmute them. <br /><br /><a href="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnVfL5tgrMI/AAAAAAAAAA0/WGyunVEeT7o/s1600-h/PICT0078.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp2.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnVfL5tgrMI/AAAAAAAAAA0/WGyunVEeT7o/s320/PICT0078.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077068813005008066" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><b> THAILAND</b><br />Off I went to Bangkok with Vincent for a weekend workshop at Yoga Elements. Little did I know, that four other students from Malaysia also spontaneously hopped a plane and followed us to Bangkok for the classes! It was a great surprise to see them there. Yoga Elements is owned by Adrian Cox, a regular student of mine from Om Yoga Center in NYC, from back in the old days! He had been asking for me to come to Bangkok via email and instant message for a few years, and we finally made it happen! It was great to see him and be part of the fantastic yoga community he has created in Bangkok. In Asia, many people still do yoga to get a tight butt, but Adrian has helped create a yoga culture that wants more from the practice. <br /><br /><a href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnXlHJtgrNI/AAAAAAAAAA8/FCGYf4DtoLU/s1600-h/IMG_4078.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnXlHJtgrNI/AAAAAAAAAA8/FCGYf4DtoLU/s320/IMG_4078.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077216065958751442" /></a><br /><br />I really fell in love with Thailand and the city. This was also my beauty and relaxation stop on the tour! I went all out with the great prices on manicures, pedicures, foot massages and Thai Massage bodywork! Thanks to my awesome host, Joung-ah, Thailand's Anusara Inspired teacher, I was directed to all the best places and also hit the night market for some amazing bargains on silk shawls, and hand embroidered clothes. Having studied Thai Massage many years ago, it was very meaningful for me to visit the motherland of Thai Massage, and receive bodywork there.<br /><br />There was so much enthusiasm in South-East Asia that with the help and encouragement of Vincent and Joung-ah, it is likely that we will be organizing curriculum and studies that would help serve this area and the growing excitement for Anusara. Already Jonas Westring, an Anusara teacher who lives half the year in Thailand, has been instrumental in offering Anusara Yoga to this area.<br /><br /><br /><b>JAPAN</b><br />At early dawn, I got on the plane for a 5.5 hour flight to Tokyo. I spent my first day alone, which was the first time the entire tour that I was able to be silent. I did not eat much that day, since I could not undertand any of the Japanese, but it was a glorious day of walking in the park, watching movies in my hotel room, and resting. It is a good thing I rested, because Studio Yoggy and the Anusara Kula in Tokyo were gearing up for 6 hard core days of learning! After my first day of teaching, I wrote to John Friend: <br /><br />"Greetings from planet Anusara in Tokyo. Is it real? How did all these Japanese yogis learn Anusara so fast? I have never in my 9 years of teaching Anusara seen anything like it. Everything you said was true, but seeing is believing! And then the cute factor on top of it...My smile muscles are so sore."<br /><br />It is true. John had told me about the extraordinary level of studentship here, and it was such a pleasure to teach. The kula there totally absorbed the technical instructions - and they get such pleasure from learning. <br /><br />I also learned some of the Japanese words for yoga terms, such as handstand which translates as "Handostando" (I'm serious!) and Wild Thing - "Waildo Sing". And then there was the ever popular, "Downwaerdo Facing Dogu". This cracked me up in class with my fantastic translator, Yuki, and got everyone laughing.<br /><br />We went to some phenomenal restaurants. One specializing in Udon, another in Sushi, and last night we went to a Tempura restaurant for a 3 hour long meal of Tempura, where we watched the chef preparing one tasty morsel after the next. Here is a picture of him serving us the tempura, and us eating it!<br /><br /><a href="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnXvPZtgrPI/AAAAAAAAABM/dKIP3KPeasg/s1600-h/DSCN0701.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://bp0.blogger.com/_uj4xPiGkpLY/RnXvPZtgrPI/AAAAAAAAABM/dKIP3KPeasg/s400/DSCN0701.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5077227202808950002" /></a><br /><br /><br />As more photos, and emails come in, I will try to post them and continue this blog from now on! Blessings to all,<br />AmyAmyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7668424454293772532.post-19035652974041618552007-02-04T16:35:00.001-08:002007-02-04T16:35:43.819-08:00A celebration of a Magnificent Life, Ernestine PerrieMy beautiful Nonnie, Ernestine Minciotti Perrie, left her body on Friday, November 24th at 3:00pm.<br /><br />Nonnie has been one of the biggest sources of inspiration in my life and to be her grand daughter has been an immense honor. <br /><br />Nonnie was born into a troupe of actors, Italian immigrants who produced and performed plays for the Italian community. It was here that she learned every aspect of the theater. From her training in this lineage, she went on to become an actor, stage manager, Shakespearean scholar, producer, and renowned director of theater productions all over the world. In the 50's, as her career was thriving, her parents, Silvio and Esther Minciotti landed roles in film, including the 1956 Accademy award winner, "Marty". <br /><br />Nonnie lived at a time when women had to fight for their freedom to live according to their passions, and she succeeded. She enjoyed a full life as a wonderful mother, wife, sister, grandmother, friend and director. An avid reader, scholar, and listener, Nonnie always showed more interest in others than in needing to tell her own story (as magnificent as it was!). Everyone felt important and special after being around her.<br /><br />In her last days, her bedside was flooded with visitors. Even though her body was weak and her mind fading, she was always there with wide eyes to greet them and offered a compliment to share.<br /><br />It was a privilege to be with her at the moment she took her last breaths, and to share the final two weeks of her life sitting by her side, soaking in her essence, and sharing sweet goodbyes. She was so full of love.<br /><br />One of Nonnie's many gifts was her hugs, which she was doling out liberally until the point where her arms were too weak to lift anymore. Even then, she continued to hug using her shoulders to squeeze instead. Though we will never feel her hugs in that form again, I can feel her embrace on an infinite scale already, and her hugs will live on through everyone she has touched during her extraordinary life.Amyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197836599932730545noreply@blogger.com0