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  • Adventures in Mysore India,  Social Media,  Teaching Ashtanga,  Uncategorized,  Yoga Philosophy,  Yoga Sutras

    Teaching Ashtanga and the Benefit of Doubt

    June 20, 2018 /

      I will never forget when I went to a Kino MacGregor workshop and a woman, who comes to Ashtanga, seriously like once a year, told Kino that I was her teacher.  I was standing in line for a picture. Kino was turned towards me and the woman had her back to me. I looked Kino dead in the eyes, and shook my head back and forth, “NO”. Yes, it is super sweet that she felt so connected to me those two or three times I taught her that she considered me to be her teacher but I was not going to take responsibility for anything she was doing in…

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    Shanna Small

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    APP Goes To Mysore: 3 1/2 Hours Without Pain & The Medium Girl

    October 18, 2016

    March 24 Sharath Mysore Conference Notes

    April 29, 2014

    A.P. P Goes to Mysore: Everything is Energy. Energy is God

    November 2, 2016
  • Social Media,  Teaching Ashtanga,  Uncategorized,  Videos,  Yoga Philosophy,  Yoga Sutras

    Trigger….Unhappy

    June 14, 2018 /

      The video above talks about how Facebook makes money by triggering your negative emotions.  By placing posts on your page, that you are likely to engage with for a long time, they can make more money from ad placement. Because of the uncontrolled mind, the best way to do that is through negative posts. They are not the only ones of course.  All news channels do it. Bloggers do it. Our egos do it. Yes. Keeping you in a triggered state solidifies the ego. In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, yoga is defined as, “the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind.” Facebook does not want you to do…

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    Shanna Small

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    In Support of Negativity on The Internet

    June 8, 2016

    Social Media and the Freedom to NOT Hear Your Speech

    September 10, 2018

    Ask the AYP: Cultivating a Home Yoga Practice

    December 15, 2017
  • Teaching Ashtanga,  Uncategorized,  Yoga Philosophy,  Yoga Sutras

    To Be of Service

    May 24, 2018 /

    “Do what you can to uplift and enlighten people, but never forget your path.”-Babaji, At the Eleventh Hour by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, Ph.D. “Practice becomes firmly grounded when well attended to for a long time, without break and with all earnestness.” Yoga Sutras of Patanjali 1:14 When many practitioners become teachers, studio owners, and activists, they slowly, over time, stop practicing or practice very little. This is the worst thing we can do. As leaders in the community, we need the practice more than ever.  When dealing with customers and students, we absorb their energy. We are effected by their stories.  The stories and experiences of our students and community,…

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    Shanna Small

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    Ask the APP: Not Enough Strength for Ashtanga?

    May 26, 2014

    Advice For Yoga Teachers on Motivating Students

    May 7, 2014

    Yoga Backsliders & Yoga Failures

    December 10, 2015
  • Ask the AYP,  Teaching Ashtanga,  Yoga Philosophy,  Yoga Sutras

    Yoga and the Path of Forgiveness

    May 19, 2018 /

    Why do people love Ashtanga? It works. It heals. It has changed their lives. In the science of Yoga, firsthand experience is seen as the highest proof. 99% practice, 1% theory. Every day people are having the firsthand experience of how this practice is a catalyst for positive change in the world. This practice can work without our commentary.  It can work without being announced on social media. It works in the wee hours of the morning when people silently come together in Shalas. It works in home practice rooms where lone practitioners practice to the sound of their loved ones moving around them. Yoga gives its gifts to anyone,…

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    Shanna Small

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    Ask the AYP: What is an Established Yoga Practice?

    February 1, 2018

    Ask the AYP: Cultivating a Home Yoga Practice

    December 15, 2017
  • Adventures in Mysore India,  Saraswathi,  Teaching Ashtanga,  Uncategorized

    Why Practicing with Saraswathi Jois Is So Awesome

    May 7, 2018 /

    You may have noticed that you didn’t receive a post in your inbox last week. That was because I was in Charlottesville practicing with Saraswathi! When I saw she was going to be 4 1/2 hours away, I signed up immediately. I totally hate that I missed all my opportunities to practice with Guruji and I was not going to make that mistake again. When I told my 70 something year old mother in law that I was going to to see a 76 year old woman who was on a world tour teaching yoga, she was a bit surprised.  Many people that age have trouble getting around even much…

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    Shanna Small

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    Tough Yoga Practices: When Doubt Touches the Heart

    October 27, 2016

    “There are some people who know yoga very well, but often these aren’t the popular teachers” Sharath

    February 11, 2014

    Yoga Sutras For Modern Day Life: Staying Focused During Yoga

    March 24, 2016
  • Adventures in Mysore India,  Alignment and Injuries,  Ashtanga Adaptability,  Teaching Ashtanga,  Uncategorized

    The Gift of the Local Ashtanga Teacher

    April 26, 2018 /

    From Christina Sell’s Blog Post, the Process Works   “Q:What is the definition of an expert? A: Someone who lives out of town. Given that the majority of the teaching work I do these days involves me getting on a plane to go teach, I enjoy the “expert” status that comes along with being a teacher from “out-of-town.” I figure that means that the students are typically a little more patient with my long-winded explanations, detailed demonstrations, and slow-paced teaching style than they might be if it was Wednesday night class and we shared the same zip code.  “ TRUTH This phenomenon is so interesting to me. People who argue…

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    Shanna Small

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    A.P.P Goes To Mysore: Keeping the Mind Stable Under Any Conditions Is Yoga

    October 25, 2016

    Yoga For When the Pain Speaks

    February 24, 2016

    Practicing in Mysore

    December 18, 2013
  • Teaching Ashtanga,  Uncategorized,  Yoga Philosophy,  Yoga Sutras

    Inspiration and Coveting

    April 13, 2018 /

    The line between being inspired and coveting is a thin one. You can tell the difference by how you feel. Inspiration, well, makes you feel inspired and lit up. Coveting what someone else has makes you feel dejected, anxious, envious, jealous, angry and frustrated. On my mat, I tend to be inspired when I am working with a new pose or I am watching people do poses I have not been given. I tend to feel like I am coveting after I have been working with a pose for a long time and I still can’t do it. The difference is expectations. When I have expectations that I can do…

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    Shanna Small

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    Yoga Pose of the Week: Vatayanasana

    May 17, 2015

    Yogi’s Attitude Towards Pain

    November 26, 2015

    Yoga Sutras for Modern Day Life: Get Up and Change The Channel

    August 26, 2015
  • Alignment and Injuries,  Ashtanga Adaptability,  Pose How To,  Teaching Ashtanga,  Uncategorized

    Coming up with an Injury Strategy

    April 6, 2018 /

    It happened. That thing that you have been so careful to avoid. The thing that you have taken hours of yoga anatomy and alignment courses to avoid. You have an ouchie. An injury. What to do? If you are mindful, patient and compassionate with yourself, you can continue your yoga practice.  However, you have to be really honest with yourself. If you: Are an all or nothing type of person Hate modifications Refuse to modify in front of others Feel like you are not doing a full practice unless you are doing “everything” Have an inhumanly high pain tolerance to the point where you only feel things when it is…

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    Shanna Small

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    Yoga Conference Highlights from Sharath’s Stockholm Visit

    October 7, 2015

    Yoga Pose of the Week: Vatayanasana

    May 17, 2015

    Pose of the Week: Urdhva Dhanurasana

    June 18, 2015
  • Teaching Ashtanga,  Uncategorized,  Videos,  Yoga Philosophy,  Yoga Sutras

    Yoga: The Cure for Phantom Life Syndrome

    March 30, 2018 /

    When students get stuck on a pose, I often use a camera to record them and play it back. Sometimes we think we are doing something and we are not.  We practice yoga through the veil of our own samskaras. Samskaras are pathways that, we take so often, that they become second nature to us.  If we have always felt or been told that we were lacking, flexible, weak or strong, our perception of what is actually going on can be skewed. Injuries can also skew our perception. Sometimes, what we perceive in our bodies, is not really what is happening. An extreme example of this is Phantom Limb Syndrome.…

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    Shanna Small

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    Why Practice 6 Days A Week or Every Day?

    August 11, 2018

    Yoga Sutras For Modern Day Life: When You Have Doubts About Your Yoga Practice

    October 19, 2015

    Pose of the Week: Ubhaya Padangusthasana

    February 8, 2016
  • Reblogs,  Teaching Ashtanga,  Uncategorized

    Words on the Teacher/Student Relationship

    March 22, 2018 /

    I just listened to magnificent podcast by spiritual teacher, Shambhavi, on how to relate to a spiritual teacher and I wanted to share her words with you.  In my opinion, one of the biggest obstacles to the teacher/student relationship, arises from concepts we have inadvertently picked up from religion. This idea that, a teacher is a perfect being, is not a part of the culture that yoga was birthed from. Even a cursory reading of any of the great epic stories, from that culture, reveals that the yogis,teachers, gods and goddesses were not perfect. Yet, they were still considered to be masters.  They are still being revered. Why? They possess qualities…

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    Shanna Small

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    Is Ashtanga Yoga a Balanced Practice?

    September 29, 2015

    Check This Out: Conference Notes From David Garrigues

    January 2, 2014

    Is Asana The First Limb of Ashtanga Yoga?

    January 31, 2014
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