Category Archives: yoga

‘The future buddha is the sangha’

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Here’s a link to an interview between one of my yoga teachers, Chris Priest, and J Brown Yoga. It covers the recent history of practice, shares anecdotes, looks at the spirit of practice and the importance of practice as well as community. A few of the many highlights for me were:

  • needing to find a balance between our ego letting us do whatever we want (sukha) and our ego being over controlling (sthira); being disciplined with our practice so that there is just the right amount of tension
  • the need to work with a practice that will hold the mind and reveal how the body is related to the mind
  • the use of ujjayi to explore a gross awareness of the subtle with the possibility of refining our awareness of the subtle
  • the importance of the teacher/student relationship to allow the student to be aware of the games their ego plays and be open to the appropriate practice with guidance
  • how the teacher/student relationship has the possibility of making us aware of the games we play
  • the test of our practice is the way our relationships play out and the way we become aware of the mistakes we make and then our ability to deeply learn from our mistakes and move on
  • the accountability of the teacher and the necessity of peer supervision and presence of community
  • ‘viniyoga’ is an approach not a style; it is a system which allows creativity and spirit of practice
  • the future buddha is the sangha – Thich Nhat Hanh:
    • the teachings cannot be carried by a single person, the community needs to carry the teachings; in this way power is shared and individuals are accountable to one another
  • it is important that there is not an one individual around which the community forms and then stands and protects and therefore hides the shadow side of that individual

The interview with Chris starts at about 18 minutes in: https://www.jbrownyoga.com/yoga-talks-podcast

Let me know what you think and if you want to discuss anything that’s covered

Yvonne x

Coffee Pot Philosophy for Menopause?

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I set up this space to meet students and clients who want to talk about yoga practice and its impact on our lives. I wonder if it could be a good place to start meeting with women who are perimenopausal, menopausal and post menopausal? I am finding yoga and the yoga sutras incredibly supportive and informative as I embrace perimenopause and would like to share my experience and understanding with others. What I am being told is that women do not talk about this stage of life. Are we making assumptions about one another? When I mention it to a woman, there seems to be no hesitation in sharing her story.

I have considered a weekly yoga class but bringing yoga in as a daily practice is much more empowering. This can be an overwhelming prospect when life is already packed with work, relationships, family and menopause (in all its stages). So I would like to invite you to join me to discuss our relationship with ourselves and with the one of the most powerful changes we will navigate, using yoga to inform, support and empower. A yoga practice has many parts and you do not have to do it all. Finding one practice that you can embrace regularly is the key.

I am going to set up one session at a time. This will give us flexibility to see if it works for us and if it doesn’t, co-create something that does. I have chosen a topic to give us a container and direction for our first get together. I suspect we will meander and go off on tangents which is absolutely allowed!

  • Topic: Stress, regularity and the menopause
  • Time: Monday 30 November @ 7.30 pm for an hour
  • Cost: £10.00 (full rate) / £7.00 (lower rate)
  • What you need:
    • a drink (optional) and comfy chair
    • privacy
    • zoom link (to be supplied)
  • What you don’t need:
    • any prior knowledge

If you want to come to the session but are unable to, there will be a recording available the following week so do still book in and I will send you the recording. I imagine there will be a flow between sessions as some ideas will generate more discussion and reflection than can be fitted into an hour

Please book online or contact me for information/to book: Contact

Coffee Pot Philosophy

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Thanks for getting in touch about meeting up online to talk about yoga practice and life. I am going to set up one session at a time and we can decide as a collective when to meet next. I feel we need a container or theme for our hour together and each time I will bring selected ideas from the yoga sutras. Here are the details for our first afternoon:

  • Topic: Citta vrttis and the purpose of yoga
  • Time: Friday 27 November @ 2.00 pm for an hour
  • Cost: £10.00 (full rate) / £7.00 (lower rate)
  • What you need:
    • a drink (optional) and comfy chair
    • zoom link (to be supplied)
  • What would be useful but not essential:
    • a copy of the yoga sutras
  • What you don’t need:
    • any prior knowledge

If you want to come to the session but are unable to, there will be a recording available the following week so do still book in and I will send you the recording. I imagine there will be a flow between sessions as some ideas will generate more discussion and reflection than can be fitted into an hour

Please book online or contact me for information/to book: Contact

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