Credit: Woven - Montauk Beach

Finally March has arrived and we can begin to wake ourselves up from our long winter’s nap. In March, we clear away the clutter from the windy cold winter to allow the new green sprouts to show their color. We plant seeds for what we want to grow and blossom this spring and summer and prune the last of the dead limbs. What remains? What are we bringing forth into the new year to nourish the seeds and tender green shoots? And who are the people in our lives that will support us on this journey?

Yoga is a tradition passed on through a lineage of teachers
One often knows you as a student or teacher based upon your teacher. Our teachers are our guides not only on our yoga mat, but also through our life. And we must choose wisely the company with which we surround ourselves. These are the people who support us through good times and particularly through challenging times.

This month, Senior Iyengar Teacher, John Schumacher, shares with us his wisdom on how to navigate the ubiquity of teacher training programs and the growing number of yoga teachers. We must be skillful in deciding with whom to join on our path towards self-discovery.

Kate Hallahan, Co-Director of the Charlottesville Yoga School, offers us a lecture from one of her teacher training classes on teaching yoga for Women’s Health.

And we welcome one of the few teachers certified to teach Ashtanga Yoga, by the late Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, David Garrigues, to our community. Look forward to upcoming downloads with David.

We are honored to help provide a community in which some of the most experienced teachers in the world offer their teachings through new media.

Thank you for helping to build the bridge with iHanuman and for participating with us into our 5th year.

Enjoy the first breaths of spring air this month. And feel free to share with us your experience with your teachers and teacher trainings.

Contact Us or Leave a Comment on Our website.

We LOVE to hear from you.

Namaste,
Sara Miles Pope Agelasto
Managing Editor and Co-Founder, iHanuman.com
Love. Service. Devotion. Yoga

New Feature: The Yoga of Teacher Trainings with John Schumacher
Featured Free Audio: Teaching Women’s Yoga with Kate Hallahan
New Featured Teacher: David Garrigues, Certified Ashtanga Yoga Teacher
Upcoming Free Audio and Video: Eoin Finn on Yoga, Mysticism and The Nervous System

Linda DiCarlo in Shoulderstand Credit:Projo.com

Inverted Poses are some of the most beneficial poses yoga can offer. This is obvious to seasoned yogis and why shoulderstand is referred to as the Queen of Asanas and Headstand is referred to as the King of Asanas. Because we spend most of our time on our feet, inversions offer us the opportunity to turn things upside and allow gravity to work its magic in the opposite direction. I often say that I cannot imagine someone who lives their entire life without practicing an inversion.

Shoulder stand, says BKS Iyengar in his formidable Light on Yoga is

“one of the greatest boons bestowed upon humanity by the ancient sages…It is a panacea for almost ALL ailments…It is no overstatement to say that if a person regularly practices Sarvangasana he will feel new vigour and strength, and will be happy and he will feel the joy of life.”

One of the reasons this pose has such a beneficial impact is because of its direct stimulation and regulation of the thyroid and parathyroid glands located in the throat region. The thyroid gland regulates how quickly the body uses energy. An imbalance in the thyroid can lead to either an overactive thyroid or an under active thyroid. Shoulder stand, in particular, helps to balance the hormones regulated by the thyroid gland. This pose is recommended to practice at least once a day (unless contraindicated – contraindications include high blood pressure, headache, menstruation, neck or shoulder injury, pregnancy or diarrhea. Shoulder stand is considered an intermediate yoga pose and should not be practiced without proper guidance or experience.) However, it is important that you learn how to practice these poses correctly and with needed support to avoid injury. Please enjoy our video of Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher, John Schumacher, teaching the proper set up and alignment for practicing Supported Shoulder stand.

Credit: Lululemon Athletica

Love is in the air this month. And if it’s not, we need to ask ourselves, ‘Why not?” There have been many a February in my life where I did not have a significant other and often felt lacking and inferior in the days leading up to Valentine’s Day. What I discovered is that sense of lack was usually due to missing self love. I had not learned to love myself, so how could I expect to someone else to love me?

Now, even though I am married to one of the best men in the world, self-love is still the most important love for me during February and every other month of the year. I have found that loving myself often leads to something greater. It allows me to love others and to share myself with not only my significant other and family members, but members of my greater community.

In honor of the month of love, iHanuman offers the members of our community a free heart meditation from one of the most well-loved teachers in the world, Erich Schiffmann. This meditation session comes from a recently released workshop recorded in Yellow Springs, Ohio. We hope you will practice this meditation, get in touch with your true self and share the free video with your friends.

We hope you will continue your commitment to yourself and practice yoga more fully this month so you can bring your love and light into the world.

What other ways will you Love Yourself this month?

Contact Us or Leave a Comment HERE on Our website.

We LOVE to hear from you.

“Thank YOU for helping to build the bridge with iHanuman.”

Namaste,
Sara Miles Pope Agelasto
Managing Editor and Co-Founder, iHanuman.com

New Feature: Heart Meditation and New Video Release from Erich Schiffmann
New Featured Teacher: Evan Harris, Co- Owner Ashtanga Yoga Shala
Upcoming Releases: Free Audio and Video with Eoin Finn, John Schumacher, Kate Hallahan and More!

In yoga or the Hindu Tradition often associated with yoga, one would invoke the Elephant God, Ganesh. Ganesh is the God of Wisdom. He is the remover of obstacles and brings the confidence and strength needed to embark on a new endeavor. ( For a short lesson on how to chant a meditation in honor of the God Ganesh, watch this video from one of our favorite yogis, MC Yogi. )

And then be inspired by some classical Indian Tabla Music and Teachings with a free podcast for this months’ feature.

Looking for a way to start the new year off right?

Join me for 90 days of yoga. Starting on the winter solstice and for the next 90 days until the Spring Equinox, we will be sharing with you some sequences, teachings and downloads to inspire your yoga practice into the new year.

Try iHanuman Yoga Teacher, John Schumacher’s, Live Yoga Class recordings, from Fall 2010.

Join iHanuman with a Teacher Page for the New Year and share your experiences with our growing community of teachers and students.

What are some of the ways you will inspire and nourish your yoga practice in 2011?

Contact Us or Leave a Comment on Our website.

We LOVE to hear from you.

“Thank YOU for helping to build the bridge with iHanuman.”

Namaste,
Sara Miles Pope Agelasto
Managing Editor and Co-Founder, iHanuman.com

New Feature: The Yoga of Sound with Loren Oppenheimer – Classical Indian Tabla Player

New Audio Downloads: John Schumacher’s Live Classes Fall 2010 are Now Available!

Coming Soon: Live Video Workshop with Erich Schiffmann

Our feature this month is a discussion with Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher, John Schumacher. John tackles the question, ” Can Yoga Save the World?”

Kate Hallahan, has provided us with some of the answers as she gives us an introduction to the yoga sutras. (She is also mentioned in the December Yoga Journal for her donation-based Guerilla Yoga Project!)

iHanuman Yoga Teacher, Sara Avant Stover, interviews Yoga Activist, Seane Corn on “How to Get Off the Mat and Into the World.”

Enjoy our gifts to you this holiday season. We hope you will share them with your friends. With all of the hustle and bustle that can surround the holy-days, one way to stay grounded, in addition to your regular yoga practice, is to take the focus off of ourselves and help those less fortunate. Isn’t that what St. Nicholas did?

Let us know how you plan to save the world with yoga this month!

Contact Us or Leave a Comment on Our website.

We LOVE to hear from you.

“Thank YOU for helping to build the bridge with iHanuman.”

Namaste,
Sara Miles Pope Agelasto
Managing Editor and Co-Founder, iHanuman.com

Want to know what I think? Read about it on my iHanuman Teacher Page.

New Feature: Free Podcast “Can Yoga Save the World?” – Senior Teacher John Schumacher

Featured Teacher Complimentary Audio: Kate Hallahan Introduces the Yoga Sutras

FREE Audio Download: Get Off the mat and Into the World with Seane Corn

Our feature this month is an interview with Prenatal Yogini, Jen Fleisher. Jen also recorded a pre-natal class for our Karma Collection. We have lots of new classes in our download store, including the Spring and Summer classes from John Schumacher and we have many new teachers and contributors to iHanuman to share with you.

We are so thankful for all of the teachers, students and friends who have helped iHanuman make it through our 4th year this fall! We hope you will continue your fantastic support into our 5th year. Tell your friends and don’t forget to let us know what you are grateful for this month.

Contact Us or Leave a Comment on Our website.

We LOVE to hear from you.

“Thank YOU for helping to build the bridge with iHanuman.”

Namaste,
Sara Miles Pope Agelasto
Managing Editor and Co-Founder, iHanuman.com

New Feature: Prenatal Yoga Class and Interview with Jen Fleisher, RYT

New Featured Teacher: Jennifer O’Sullivan

Featured Audio Downloads: John Schumacher Spring and Summer Live Classes 2010

One of the poses that tends to be a staple pose in my daily yoga practice is Uttitha Trikonasana or Extended Triangle Pose. Why? This pose is like Downward Facing Dog in that its gives a forward bend, a back bend, a twist AND a side stretch. About the only asana it does not replicate is an inversion. And it’s the side stretch thant enlivens every aspect of my being – physical, emotional and spiritual. I could spend hours in this pose trying to get more length in the sides of my body, particularly the lower torso.

Lately, I practice this pose with the help of my dear friend the wall which allows me to keep BOTH of my shoulder blades evenly against it as I inhale, extend, exhale and lower down. Try it. If I am being completely honest with myself, some days I can barely get my lower hand to a block. I usually pause and place my hand on my shin and with each inhale lengthen the torso and draw the sternum up towards the sky and with each exhale take the shoulder blades back against the wall and down the spinal column.

The wall behind the back body gives us a great measuring stick of where we are in space. Once I find the length in the spine with my shoulder blades evenly on the wall, I can begin to access the back bend inherent in Trikonasana. The spine begins its upward opening spiral towards the ceiling, vertebrae by vertebrae, from the base of the sacrum to the top of the head. Trikonasana even becomes a  a magnificent twist. SO,  what is not to love? But don’t take my word for it. Practice along to this video demonstration with Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher, John Schumacher.

I often exclaim that I cannot imagine NOT doing Yoga simply because of inverted poses. I feel so lucky to have discovered yoga during a time in my life when I was strong and somewhat fearless, because I jumped head first ( pun intended ) into practicing inversions and I have never looked back . I often wonder how out of balance I might feel if I did not practice inversions. But I also understand that practicing inversions can not only be scary but require a significant amount of strength. The Iyengar Method teaches us that preparation is required to practice these poses. How do you prepare for inversions?  Standing Poses, Standing Poses, Standing Poses.

Standing poses give you strength and stability to tackle all of the rest of the yoga poses, including inversions.

One standing pose that will put you right on the edge of practicing an inversion is Prasarita Padottanasana – Extended Legs Wide Apart Pose. This pose is also beneficial to practice in the summer because it can have a cooling effect. Practice this pose slowly, pausing with the spine extended and the gaze forward before bowing down and moving the crown of the head towards the floor. Take the stance a little wider than most of the other standing poses and place a block on the floor in between the feet if the head does not reach the ground. Feel the strength in the legs and press firmly into your palms to raise the shoulders up the back towards the sacrum.

After several sessions practicing this pose, begin to notice that the strength in the arms brings lightness to the feet and eventually the heels will lift and finally the toes will lift. Before long, the legs float up towards the sky and you are practicing inversions. We will offer several other techniques for practicing inverted poses in coming weeks. What are some of your favorite preparations for inversions? Below is a video iHanuman created with John Schumacher teaching Prasarita Padottanasana. Enjoy!

People who have never practiced yoga before often ask me to teach them a yoga pose. The Iyengar student in me cannot help but start by teaching Tadasana. People are often astounded by how much integrity and poise there is when conscious attention is brought to the simple act standing. They are amazed at how much attention can be brought to the four corners of the feet, the inner line of the legs, the lift of the knee caps and the release of the tailbone. Once we build the foundation. we move to the upper body and take a deep inhale to engage the abdomen, lift the sternum and lift and roll the shoulders back. After a few deep breaths, folks are usually smiling and inevitably ask for more. And the more I usually offer is the simple act of raising the arms over the head in Urdhva Hastasana, Upward Arms pose.

We extend through our finger tips, palms facing the body and on an inhale, draw the arms first to shoulder height and ensure that the shoulder blades are drawn into the body, which helps to lift the chest. Exhale here and then on an inhale draw the arms over the head, palms facing each other. After a few breaths here, people are surprised by how invigorated they feel. Finally, we turn the palms towards the back of the body to feel the rotation of the outer upper arms inwards. Keeping this rotation of the outer upper arms carefully turn the palms back towards the center line of the body. Again after a few more breaths we slowly lower the arms back down by the sides of the body on an exhale.

These simple actions are often enough to convince people of the benefits of the yoga and I can direct them to an upcoming yoga class or download in our store. For a beautiful demonstration of Urdhva Hastasana, watch Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher John Schumacher, teaching from his home studio in Bethesda.

Often times I tend to think of the vernal equinox as the new year. With all of the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it never feels like the right time for resolutions. But after a couple of weeks or months of cold hibernating weather, I often find the time to really reflect on the previous year and determine what has served me and what has not. Sometimes we host a fire ceremony where we write down that which no longer serve us on paper and burn these items with the intention of losing them for the new year.

As I begin to come out of hibernation, somewhere in the middle of march, my mind tends to shift and it is as if there is more space for new ideas and new growth. It is an expansive time of year. And this is what Chinese Philosophy has written over the years. The Spring is the season of the wood element where everything is expanding and pushing through the earth, staking its claim for its season of growth. In order to do this, one must be firmly rooted on the earth, feet firmly planted on the ground.

One of my favorite things to do is walk barefoot on the earth and as soon as it is warm enough I remove my shoes and feel the earth beneath my feet. It is empowering and energizing. My recommendation is to practice Tadasana as often as you can this spring outside. Tadasana is a pose you can practice anytime anywhere.

Return to your beginner’s mind and enjoy this video of John Schumacher, teaching Tadasana or Mountain Pose from his home studio in Maryland.

Sara Miles Pope Agelasto is a RYT and the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of iHanuman.com. Visit her iHanuman Teacher Page to learn more.