Patanjali Ashtanga Yoga

ASHTANGA YOGA

Eight members Unity

Because This is subtle, invisible and immaterial, the sages have spoken of its accessible form, and it is by progressive degrees that this form will be...

- Avhadûta Gîtâ ll.15

Although the word Yoga can have many meanings, we'll call it change, because now something will finally change, something we're not used to, and the conviction that life conceals an immense mystery, but that it's possible to access it with simplicity of mind. Through openness to what is. Pure existence, eternal and universal, yoga reaches the human heart, whether we see it or not. Ashtanga Yoga has its origins in the Sanskrit texts expounded by the sage Patanjali, who was the first to systematize the path of classical yoga. These are the stages that structure the logical progression through which the practitioner passes before reaching the state of yoga. They are all interrelated, and can be practised simultaneously. The first five limbs (external support) are the foundations of the last 3 (internal practice). The first two limbs, Yama & Niyama, are crucial, and are often the most neglected. Without them, the practice is meaningless, and doesn't allow the process that yoga practice is supposed to bring about - an upward inner transformation, towards the opening of consciousness.

1 - YAMA

Inner purification (awareness of conditioning)

AHIMSA

Awareness of our violent thoughts

SATYA

Truthfulness, sincere self-examination

ASTEYA

Awareness of the desire to possess

BRAHMACHARYA

Awareness of life energy

APARIGRAHA

Awareness of mental concepts

2 - NIYAMA

external purification (awareness of action)

SHAUCHA

action without personal gain

SANTOSHA

satisfaction through acceptance of what is

TAPAH

determination to seek the source of consciousness

SVADHYAYA

seeking association with truth

ISVARA PRANIDANA

surrender to the divine (love)

3 - ASANA

Physical purification (body awareness)

4 - PRANAYAMA

Subtle purification (developing breath awareness)

5 - PRATYAHARA

Sense withdrawal (conscious use of the 5 senses)

6 - DHARANA

Discernment

7 - DHYANA

State of being (meditation)

8 - SAMADHI

State of unity, totality, liberation (pure consciousness)

THE BASICS

Everything is based on the Samkhya (enumeration system or order of manifestation), a system founded on observation and experience. This is the foundation of the psychology of transformation in yoga, and clearly describes how creation manifests through the individual soul. Taking Samkhya into account is a necessary part of any holistic approach to health, which also includes Ayurveda (the science of life), and Jyotish (the science of light or Vedic astrology). Yoga represents the practical application of this approach.

Yoga covers infinitely more than the purely physical aspects to which most people are accustomed, such as the postures (Asanas). This teaching, known as Ashtanga Yoga or the Eightfold Path of Unity, is expounded in Patanjali's Yogas Sutras, to which all yoga schools refer, and is not to be confused with Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga developed by Shri K. Pattabhi Jois.

COURSES & SCHEDULE

INTERNAL PURIFICATION

It's certain that it won't stop there, but it's obvious that with the right practice, with the emphasis on quality rather than quantity, it creates an essential openness to a transformation of the psychology of yoga. Doing too much is often counterproductive. Breathing, posture, gaze, Vinyasa, as well as the eight limbs of Ashtanga Yoga described by Patanjali, make this practice a tool, worth practicing this art correctly, which will become a priceless jewel.

An essential aspect of internal purification concerns the six poisons that surround the spiritual heart. In the yoga shastra, it is said that God dwells in our heart in the form of light, but this light is covered by six poisons: Kama, Krodha, Moha, Lobha, Matsarya and Mada. these are desire, anger, delusion, greed, envy and laziness. When yoga practice is sustained with great diligence and dedication over a long period of time, the heat generated by it burns away these poisons, and the light of our inner nature is revealed.

QUALITIES

Breathing is central to the practice, but most students think that breathing is simply breathing in and out with an audible sound called Ujaï. The fact is, when we ask them to focus on the breath according to their understanding, they are reminded of how demanding this process is and how much attention it requires. But is this enough? The process requires much more than saying that the breath is central to the practice. Once we put all the elements in place, we see that it's a much more involved process than it first appeared.

It's a conscious choice to put the breath at the center of the practice. If you start with poor-quality breathing, don't even think that it's going to improve - in fact, the opposite will happen. Because by putting the breath at the forefront, and allowing all other actions to become secondary, this creates an inner environment on which it becomes possible to approach all other aspects of the practice. It imposes a rhythm that should be slower than some would wish, but it's mainly a question of taking the time necessary to ensure that practice doesn't become enslavement, but becomes at the service of the individual, at the risk of undergoing what should in fact become a moment out of time, without expectation, of appreciating every moment and leaving space for what is.

The posture (Asana) supports the breath, but the breath (Pranayama) also supports the posture, which in turn supports the state of mind to a quality necessary for the more subtle application of the gaze (Pratyahara) the withdrawal of the senses, which is more accurately in purpose the conscious use of the 5 senses. Together, these three elements constitute an opening to deep concentration, conducive to the quality of (Dharana). Continued support of this process TRISTANA becomes the quality point for sustaining (Dhyana) the state of meditation. This is the practice, as long as the quality of each thing is carried out without one taking precedence over the other, to get to the rightness of the moment and remove any idea of attaining any kind of perfection, which would generate opposition to the meaning of the practice, and which will bring to light the whole meaning of Yama and Niyama. Study means understanding our involvement in conscious actions and appreciating the process.

The wonder and amazement we feel when we witness that from diligent application of this method, transformation of the quality of action involves being more closely anchored in Yama principles.

“When we pay attention to our actions, we are not prisoners of our habits”.

- T. K. V. Desikachar

Any unnecessary action is a source of distraction
Any aggressive thrust is incompatible
Remain physically in your truth
You can't do more than your current capacity allows
One leaves the practice full of energy
You generally feel completely satisfied, both during and at the end of practice.

This implies committing oneself totally, with one's whole person, to the qualities, but developing the right effort. This is achieved with intelligent, step-by-step application, less effort is needed. In other words, effort that reduces effort.

Our teaching is organic, dynamic and direct, while offering practitioners the soul of yoga's energy. Many exercises and concepts will be shared to help everyone become autonomous in their own practice. We truly believe in the power, benefits and transformative effects of practicing yoga through the body in a natural way.