yoga humor, yogini style, yoga personality, yoga tips - Y is for Yogini

meditation for wholeness { 40-day meditation }

(artwork credit: milliande.com)

whole /hohl/ : (noun) a thing that is complete in itself

You have heard many times that you are already whole, that you have everything you need. Yet many of us continue to feel more akin to doughnuts or swiss cheese — we experience holes in ourselves.

This meditation, inspired by and with its foundations in Osho's "Meditation for Fear of Emptiness," is my own answer to not only recognizing that we are complete, but feeling it, too.

1. Begin in Balasana (Child's Pose).
2. Rest your forehead on the ground comfortably.
3. Rather than the usual hand/arm positions for Balasana, bend your elbows and place your palms flat on the ground in alignment with your head. Like a full-body prayer or bowing pose.
4. Breathe naturally. Be reverent. Be present.

(Duration: Start with 3 minutes, then 5 minutes, working your way to 11 minutes per meditation.)

"Enter into your own womb and just be there. No technique, no mantra, no effort — just be there. So every night go into that space...within three weeks one day suddenly you will see such blessings arising, such an upsurge of energy, such a joyous quality to your being." — Osho (from Courage: The Joy of Living Dangerously)

Practice for 40 days and/or anytime you need grounding and the ecstatic reminder that you are, indeed, whole.

 

With love + aperture-free doughnuttiness,

breath awareness meditation { fill yourself up with light }

Feeling full of uck, muck, and yuck? I know, me too. Whether it's Mercury in Retrograde, the discombobulating seasonal shift, or that damned spring-ahead nonsense, strange things are afoot at the Circle K (please tell me you've seen Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure). Instead of plunking ourselves down in these swampy sensations, this is when we most need our yogic tools to set us free!

This Kundalini Breath Awareness Meditation is just what the yoga doctor ordered. With practice, it will bring you:

• BALANCE
• LIGHTNESS IN YOUR HEART
• AWARENESS + AN INTIMATE UNDERSTANDING OF YOUR PRANA
• EXPANSIVENESS + A SENSE OF CONNECTION WITH THE COSMOS

 

{ HOW TO }

1. Begin in Easy Pose.
2. Hands may be pressed together at the heart in Anjali Mudra (see cute stick yogini above) or rested on the knees in Gyan Mudra.
3. Close your eyes and turn them softly upward to your third eye/brow point.
4. Inhale, watching the breath without trying to change it. Feel it filling you up from navel to brow.
5. Exhale, and let it all go. Release anything that doesn't serve your highest you.
6. Continue inhaling and exhaling naturally. Breathe in light; you are unbounded and luminous.

 

{ NOTES }

• begin with practicing for 3 minutes. Yogi Bhajan recommended anywhere from 3 to 62 minutes for this meditation.
• practice in silence so you can focus on your breath.
• as Yogi Bhajan said, "Let the breath breathe you."

 

You'll experience a vast transformation if you practice this for 40 days, but if you can't, just do what is possible. Meditations are always there for you to pick up (for 1 day or 100) whenever you need them.

 

How awesome is stick yogini's do-rag turban?!

instant heart chakra opener { simple 40-day kundalini meditation }

artwork credit: ann marie maxwell { w/color + text additions by YIFY }

This meditation is as easy as pie — pumpkin, apple, sweet potato, your pick. Sometimes the simplest things can be the very most powerful, bringing great shifts in energy and spirit.

Why work with the heart chakra? When it is open + balanced, we are:

• COMPASSIONATE
• ACCEPTING
• LOVING
• CENTERED
• PEACEFUL
• GRATEFUL
• CONTENT

1. Close your eyes.
2. Inhale deeply through pursed lips, whistling as you fill yourself with air, "Whewwwwww."
3. Exhale deeply, chanting a long "Laaaaaaaaa."

{ NOTES }

• this meditation has no notated direction from Yogi Bhajan in terms of timing or posture.
• it seems designed to be done anywhere, anytime, for the duration that fits for you.
• if you feel the need to do it while you are in your car (or anywhere else), do just that. if you can take the time to sit down quietly in Easy Pose and practice this meditation, that's excellent, too.
• i will be practicing this for 3 minutes each day. at the end of each meditation, i will close (as i do with all my meditations and kriyas) with a long "Sat" and a short "Nam."
• you are always welcome to email me with any questions you have or to simply share your experience. i love hearing from you. :)

Grateful for you, the gift of opening our heart chakras, and the healing power of love,

breath meditation series for glandular balance { 40-day kundalini meditation }

artwork credit: hari jot kaur { with colorful additions by YIFY }

This set of three breath exercises balances the Ninth body — the Subtle Body. I practiced it for the first time just one week ago and felt so clear, purified, and radiant that I was certain I'd look down and find myself walking on air.

We work on the Subtle Body so that we may see beyond the illusion of "reality." Yogi Bhajan said that when you master the Subtle Body, you:

• have great finesse
• have powerful calmness
• master situations easily
• are able to walk into a room and intuitively know what is going on 

1. Begin in Easy Pose. Inhale in 16 short sniffs, pulling the navel in slightly with each one. As you sniff, hear the mantra "Sat Nam" { meaning: I am Truth / Truth is my Identity } in your mind. Exhale in 16 parts, again vibrating Sat Nam in your mind. Do this for 5 minutes.
2. Lay down on your back. Stretch your arms out overhead (on the ground) with the palms up. Inhale slowly and raise your legs 6 inches. Exhale, releasing your legs to the ground, and press your chin to your chest. Continue on for 3 minutes. The breath for this exercise should be long, slow, and deep. After 3 minutes, rest for 2.
3. Return to Easy Pose. Fold your arms across your chest/ribs and hold opposite elbows. Inhale. Exhale, bending forward slowly and placing your forehead on the ground. Inhale up slowly. Continue for 3 minutes. Breath is long, slow, and deep.

Notes:

• It is suggested that you cycle through this set three times.
• I have found that one cycle { 11 minutes of activity } is quite powerful.
• See the illustrations above for visual details.
• A timer or phone with a twinkly alarm is very helpful in tracking the timing for each exercise.

Today, I'll dive into 40 days of this amazing meditation series. Join me to work on infinite consciousness. I'm always here to answer your questions and serve in any way I can — even if you find this years from now. :)

Sending you love and the radiance of balancing your subtle body,

primal power { 40-day kundalini meditation }

artwork credit: Ann Marie Maxwell { w/colorful additions made by YIFY }

This one is very, very special. It needs no introduction other than Yogi Bhajan's moving description:

"It is written that one who perfects this kriya can master death and old age. He can learn to transfer prana to another being for healing and even extend that person's life. He will not be affected by his past negativity and no negative thought will penetrate his projection."

Your own Primal Power is there, pulsing, poised to project from your core. It is time we tapped in deeply to our Prana.

1. Begin in Easy Pose with your spine long and tall.
2. Take Gyan Mudra. The palms face up, resting on your knees.
3. Close your eyes.
4. Inhale slowly. At the top of the inhale, contract your Mula Bandha (rectum + sex organs). Pull in your navel center. Hold for a moment.
5. Release these locks, exhaling fully and slowly as you do so.
6. As you inhale, hear your breath in your mind creating the sound "SAT."
7. As you exhale, hear your breath creating the mental sound "NAM."
8. Imagine vast pranic energy flowing into your body from all sides, gathering at the navel point.
9. See yourself bathed in light and projecting light.
10. Continue this inhale ("Saaaaaat"; contract locks) and exhale (release locks; "Naaaaaam") pattern for as long as is comfortable for you. If this is new to you, try 3 minutes.
11. Close on an exhale, with a bow to the primal power within.

I'll be taking this journey for 40 days, practicing Primal Power once a day beginning on Saturday. Please do come along and let me know if you have questions or discoveries to share along the way.