A Chairde,
Announcing our final yoga term of the year at Thrive, and my final yoga classes in Greystones for the foreseeable future! Nooo! Beginning this Sunday we will have a five week series of Hatha Flow 5pm and Soft Stretch 6:30pm classes. These practices will revolve around the theme of wintering, with a yogic philosophy exploration of five different hand mudras in practice.
If you're looking to balance the sleepy and low energies of winter with an intentional cultivation of heat, movement, community, and mindful strength, Hatha Flow might be the practice for you. If you need a dedicated time and place to rest and breathe; to tend to your body, your emotional wellbeing, and cultivate space in mind and body, then consider signing up to the slightly later Soft Stretch class. As always, both practices are all levels friendly ~ so come as you are, find what feels like relief, and enjoy the precious ritual of taking time for yourself in supportive and loving company.
Currently I have only three full term spaces available in Hatha Flow, and four available in Soft Stretch. If you would like to save your spot for our last term, please let me know! The dates are November 15th until December 13th, every Sunday. Drop in options will also be available throughout the series but these are dependant on space :)
Our theme word 'Wintering' is a popular one now a days. Katherine May's wonderful book of the same name teaches about repair, consolation, and acceptance in difficult times. As the world get colder around us and our inclination for going outside and 'seizing the day' likely falls flat, the body can begin to feel a natural and healthy instinct to tend inward and rest. If we deny ourselves this rest, enormous psychological and physiological resistance can unfold ~ manifesting as sickness, irritation, stress, even procrastinate despondency. However, if we over indulge in our winter fatigue; wake up late, miss the sun, stop exercising - then energy in the body can become blocked... which leads to the same issues. So, finding your balance is key ~ and that will surely look different for everyone!
My grand thesis on wintering can be summed up simply in a sentence... I think we should be shouting it from the rooftops:
You do not need to earn rest. You do not need to earn rest.
Yoga can serve as an exceptionally helpful tool for navigating winter fatigue (or seasonal affective disorder). It helps, of course, that we practice inside ;) But in truth yoga philosophy allows for, and calls for, attention above all else. Acceptance of where you are. That's why we sit quietly for five minutes before we start moving in class. From that initial pause to cultivate awareness and acknowledgement, the subsequent asana (poses) can be felt by you and modified to serve you in a more authentic way. Do you need more heat? Are you feeling resistant? Do you need less pressure? Grab a prop? You have autonomy over how you move and how that movement makes you feel in yoga. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise! When we start accepting responsibility for our happiness on the yoga mat, it's easier to move like that in our day to day life. And then ~ ah, the power!
Just as we set intentions at the beginning of yoga, we can work to physically embody those intentions via hand mudras. This is an element of yoga that is often bypassed in western practices, and I'm excited to dive into it in this series! A mudra is yogic gesture, an intentional seal, that's said to conserve energy and punctuate a sankalpa (positive affirmation). It is symbolic and powerful. We will be looking at the following five hasta mudras in this series:
It's understood that the hands are enormously powerful transmitters of energy; they are natural extensions of the heart and circulatory system. Each of the five fingers in yoga is associated with a natural element.
1. The Thumb - Symbolic of the Fire element
2. The Index finger - Symbolic of the Air element
3. The Middle finger - Symbolic of the Space element
4. The Ring finger - Symbolic of the Earth element
5. The Pinky finger - Symbolic of the Water element
Our first hasta mudra this Sunday is the foundational Chin Mudra, a gesture that seals the energy (prana) which would normally be transmitted out into the environment, and circulates it back through your body to nourish and restore. A perfect practice of wintering. The index finger (air) touches the thumb (fire) to metaphorically represent a pause in these extroverted and active qualities; allowing for concentration and reflection. When the hands are placed on the knees in this mudra, there is yet another seal of energy that allows a pranic circuit to flourish and stimulate the channel of energy (gupta nadi) that is linked to your muladhara chakra - the root and safety centre. You may feel calmer, more supported, and receptive to healing.
After our mudra practice we will flow together as normal, interweaving the philosophy of chin mudra as we go. Expect an earthy, grounding practice this Sunday ~ we will work on the feet, hips, and legs in both practices, and cultivate a lightness and receptivity through mindful movement.
I hope to see you there!
Le grá,
Macha
