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Yoga

Teacher in Focus : Deepti Martolia

April 9, 2020

“Come…lose yourself to Dance while finding yourself through Yoga..”
Deepti Martolia

A yoga teacher, an artist, a dancer – Deepti Martolia was born and raised in the mountains of Uttarakhand.

Her pursuit of Yoga dates as far back as her adolescent days and eventually she trained to become a teacher in 2009. Her classes focus on breath, flow and alignment along with the balance between control and surrender – transcending into a mind-body connection nourishing the soul.

In 2014, inspired by the fluidity of movement, symphony of breath and body, and her passion for yoga and dance, Deepti conceptualised and created this unique style – Lyrical Yoga – a blend of yoga and dance. She is also a trained contemporary dancer.

Deepti conducts classes, workshops, courses and retreats with the belief that when you immerse in the path of yoga you commence the journey towards self-inquiry.

She seeks to inspire people to walk into the path of yoga, and be a facilitator – guiding as many – towards leading a happy, healthy and peaceful life.

In her own words, Deepti describes her relationship with Yoga and Dance as “losing herself to dance while finding herself through yoga”.

For more information about Deepti and her classes, visit her on instagram: Yoga with Deepti Martolia

 

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RIMYI Experiences

Teacher In Focus : Bhavana Mooteri

April 7, 2020

Divya, Bhavana and me 4 years ago at Bellur.

I met Bhavana for the first time when we attended the inaugural yoga workshop in Bellur.  Over the course of the workshop we got a chance to connect quite a bit.  It was a special time for all, as we were meeting Iyengar practitioners from all across the world.  We spoke quite a bit about our personal yoga journeys and even ended up staying in touch.

Bhavana has been practicing yoga since 2009.  She worked in the corporate strata for 15 years before she finally gave in to her passion and decided to devote herself full time to yoga.  She did her TTC from the Sivananda Ashram in Kerala in 2015.  In 2016 she went to RIMYI for a month to learn under the masters of Iyengar yoga.  She does workshops and retreats as well.  And now you can find her classes on line!

For more about Bhavana and her classes visit https://www.yogawithbhavana.com/

 

The entire gang for the workshop. Can you spot Bhavana and me?

 

 

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Yoga

Savasana – The Corpse Pose

March 27, 2020

‘Verse 32 of the First Chapter of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika states: ‘Lying upon one’s back on the ground at full length like a corpse is called Savasana.  This removes the fatigue caused by the other asanas and induces calmness of mind.’ (Light on Yoga, p 422)

And we’re finally at the end of our Immunity Sequence.  In the past few weeks many of us have incorporated these asanas into our daily yoga routines and it’s been incredibly gratifying to see everyone stick to yoga routines and, quite frankly, make the most of a bleak situation.  I do feel that once we’re through this #21daylockdown, we will see that our individual actions actually did make a difference.

Svasana is also called the Mritasana.  Sava and Mrita means a corpse.  Your main objective in this asana is to simulate a dead body.  A dead body has no movement, and no thoughts (wherein lies the challenge).

It helps to:

  • Calms the nervous system.
  • Reduces blood pressure.
  • Relieves anxiety.
  • Restores balance.
  • Facilitates healing.

 

Contraindications

No contraindications!  Anyone and everyone can and should practice the savasana.

 

Busting the Myths

Savasana is everyone’s favorite posture.  It’s often treated as a posture where your body rests.  However, in this posture your mind is also supposed to remain still.  And this is what makes this posture the most difficult.   Read on for some practice pointers…

Practice Pointers

  • Initially you may fall asleep during savasana.  This just means that your body needs more rest.  Once your body get the adequate amount of rest, you will be able to bring a meditative quality to your savasana.
  • In a one hour class you must make sure to stay in savasana for at least 10 minutes.

 

Stay tuned for more from our Yoga to Boost Immunity Sequence.

[ddownload id=”8170″] the Daily Yoga Practice Checklist.

Follow Amrutha Bindu Yoga here.

Follow Medha Bhaskar here.

Follow me (Pragya Bhatt) here.

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Wellness

Viparita Karani – The Inverted Pose

March 26, 2020
Legs up the wall pose.

Looks deceptively simple, but isn’t.

 

There’s a general consensus among modern yogis that Viparita Karani or Legs-Up-The-Wall Pose may have the power to cure whatever ails you. (Yoga Journal)

 

In Sanskrit Viparita means ‘upside down’ and karani means ‘doing’.  It is practiced widely as a restorative posture.  When I started practicing yoga, I considered this an easy asana, specially the supported version.  The full import of it is just starting to set in.

It helps to:

  • Regulate blood pressure.
  • Treat cardiac disorders.
  • Treat stress-related headaches, including migraines.
  • Gives relief from swollen feet.
  • Relieve nausea.

Contraindications for Viparita Karani

This is an inversion and as such should be avoided if you have serious eye problems such as glaucoma.

Busting the Myths

Although this is actually a restorative and relaxing asana, the final pose is quite difficult for beginners and those with stiff backs.  Read on for some practice pointers.

Practice Pointers for Viparita Karani

  • You can do this asana with your legs on a chair, or even on your bed!
  • It’s a little unwieldy to get the buttocks close to the wall to get the legs up, but there is a technique (see video).

Stay tuned for more from our Yoga to Boost Immunity Sequence.

Download the Daily Yoga Practice Checklist.

Follow Amrutha Bindu Yoga here.

Follow Medha Bhaskar here.

Follow me (Pragya Bhatt) here.

 

 

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Yoga Asana

The Sarvangasana Cycle

March 24, 2020
Steps of the Sarvangasana Cycle.

It is one of the greatest boons conferred on humanity by our ancient sages.  (Light on Yoga p 212)

What is the Sarvangasana Cycle?

Sarvangasana is the Shoulder Stand yoga pose. I’ve written about the etymological structure and why it’s called the ‘Mother of All Asanas’ in this blog. It’s an important posture in the Iyengar style of yoga, practiced every day except during the menstrual cycle. Iyengar yoga practitioners practice the sirsasana – sarvangasana – halasana sequence every day. The Sarvangasana Cycle can be practiced once you’re reasonably comfortable with the alignment of the Sarvangasana.

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