David gave us a small glimpse on how the first chapter of the Yoga Sutras {Samadhi} relates to practice.

The first chapter of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras is called "Samadhi Pada. It explains the significance of yoga and provides guidance in the disciplines of practice and detachment in order to help aspirants to reach the vision of the soul. Samadhi also refers to cognitive absorption, the ability to remain aware and mentally where you are at - basically to focus.   


In our pure self and consciousness we are (each one of us) perfect and pristine.  However, our minds like to self-criticize and thereby build up obstructions to seeing  (being awareness) of our perfection and this leads to suffering.

The good news is that the practice of yoga slowly clears up those obstructions of awareness, leading the mind to a more perceptive and reflective state.

By practicing non-attachment (through yoga) one can stop the fluctuations of the mind (that wild monkey in your head), this is called Nirodha in Sanskrit. Non-attachment essentially is the removal of coloring in our perception and it is most efficient when it transcends the qualities of the gunas (creation (sattva), preservation (rajas), and destruction (tamas)).

A person who practices intensely is closer to nirodha (ceasing the fluctuations of the mind), see Sutra 1.14 "Practice for a long time, without interruption, with consistency and enthusiasm is the firm foundation for restraining the fluctuations of the mind".  Importantly, the ceasing of the fluctuations of the mind start directly in the asana practice when ceasing movements in the asana itself (stillness in the pose) and turning and asana into a seal of awareness.

Faith in the practice, energy, memory (discipline is purifying memory), insight and samadhi (focus) help to attain nirodha.

During the led class on Friday several of us noticed that David extended the duration of time we spent in some poses, for example shoulderstand and headstand.  What was 15 counts for David G paralleled 30-something of mine (hmm....) - which made it challenging / uncomfortable mentally and physically.  Tremendously interesting this practice (as life): being confronted with something that does not fit our previous experience and existing schemes, it's easy to become a bit uncomfortable.  So let's challenge those schemes!

Some of us were then wondering about the idea behind holding asanas for different durations.  David was generous with his answer (this is great about him as a teacher, he really gives a lot).

David’s approach is to stay in an asana a little longer when it gets challenging.  Since it takes some time to get into an asana (especially the challenging ones) take a few more breaths for benefits and change to get rolling (A bit diverting from the topic of breath but also worthwhile mentioning:  Repeat the asanas that are challenging for you!).  Generally, five to eight breaths is good.  For some poses it may also be beneficial to stay even longer (very individual).

Not relying on the count per se gives us the opportunity to tune inwards.  When starting an ashtanga yoga mysore practice  the count of five breaths per pose is an important guide but slowly - as the practice matures - a more inward focus develops (and should develop).  David is not counting his breath during his practice as he wants to focus on the “inward stuff” and not to "how long the asana is taking". Thus,  counting, in a way, distracts us externally. 

Then, the length of the breath is different for different asanas, and thereby the breath is variable during one practice as all the different asanas together span the full extend of the breath. During the challenging poses the breath becomes more stiff (partly reflecting the quality of the mind: Something turns challenging, fear and panic are easy companions, as well as grunting (how about: kapotasana).  Herein, Guruji used to instruct students to “free breathing”. 
Moreover, the finishing poses are meant to rejuvenate the body, in this light a longer visit with shoulder and headstand makes sense then.

Another important notion is that there should not be any more movement / fidgeting once in the asana, the idea is to cultivate as much stillness when in the asana as possible.

Wanting to share my yoga notes from the wonderful two weeks practicing under David’s guidance and being among other ashtanga enthusiasts.  May be these notes can help your practice in some way. 

Overall conclusion of my time practicing with David: I want more! Respect and thanks to David and Joy for sharing their resources and providing this fantastic time of learning for us.

Bandhas – always a hot topic, no surprise it came up during this asana kitchen!

David spend some time getting into uddiyana bandha and explaining how it can be better developed and accessed.  One way to develop more awareness for uddiyana bandha is to practice the uddiyana kriya before asana practice or just after headstand. (See here for uddiyana kriya practice)  David kept mentioning that it is very beneficial to practice uddiyana kriya daily.

Then, downward dog is a perfect pose to access uddiyana, especially when bending the knees.  And, all inversions accentuate uddyiana (so next time in halasana - bring the awareness to uddiyana, don't forget to set up the pose first, engaging thighs and legs, inwardly rotating the thighs and lifting through the buttocks)

Ever felt that you are taking it a bit easy at certain parts during the practice? (e.g. you loose focus at certain points during the practice, in certain poses you may not try with all effort, or as the practice progresses you start "pacing" yourself in the vinyasas, ... you may get the point.)

David explained that such observations are very informative about one's approach.  It's good when you notice that you are doing this (loosing focus, pacing, softening the practice, etc.). Don't go about it punishing yourself for your limitations in the practice, e.g. "taking is a bit easy here and there" BUT notice your reaction when you observe that your limitations. Investigate whether you can accept and live with these limitations or whether you want to change them.  If you want to change those limitations, you need to ask yourself what you can do to change the situation. May be you need to change your intention, commitment, perception, something in your life, or may be something else.