Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu

This mantra of blessing for the world and a reminder to live intentionally and for the liberation of all.

The Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu Sanskrit mantra means: (translation courtesy of Jivamukti Yoga)
“May all beings everywhere be happy and free from suffering, and may the thoughts, words, and actions of my own life contribute in some way to that happiness and to that freedom for all.”

It is a reminder to be the change we wish to see in the world by examining our deep-seated unconscious thoughts and beliefs. Thoughts beget words; words beget actions. 

Lokah:  The location of all universes existing at this moment
Samastah: All beings living in this location
Sukhino: In happiness, joy and free from all suffering
Bhav: The divine mood or state of union
Antu: May it be so

The freedom implied in Suhkino recognizes the laws of free will and our equal rights to pursue joy. Knowing we are one with all, our actions can support or suppress the freedom of another. “No freedom can come from depriving others of their freedom.”
This mantra reminds us to take responsibility for oneself; to individually do our part to address our limitations and faults. We own our karma and desire to act from places of greater love.

Per Amma Although this mantra does not appear in any of the existent Vedic branches, it is an expression of the universal spirit. The sloka as a whole reads as follows:

svasti prajabhyah: pari-palayantham
nyayeana margena mahim maheesah:
go-brahmanebhya: shubamasthu nityam
lokah: samasthah: sukhino bhavanthu

A loose translation:
May there be well being to the people; may the leaders rule the earth along the right path;

May the sources of nourishment, the cultural and spiritual leaders have well being forever;
May all the beings in all the worlds become free of suffering;

Join us on Wednesday, June 3rd at 5pm to chant mantra with us for 8 mins to honor the struggle of our black sisters and brothers for liberation from institutionalized racism. Chant to find your voice and part in this struggle.  

Yoga Studio Coronavirus Precautions

Dear Namaste Family,

In light of recent developments in the spread of coronavirus, we have implemented a new protocol to minimize the risk to our students and staff.

• We wipe down all the door handles between classes, as well as the front desk and the pens we use to sign in.
• We had all the blankets washed and all the blocks have been wiped down.
• There are disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizers on the prop shelves for you to wipe the mats and props before and after class as well.
• The bathrooms are disinfected daily. 

Most importantly, we’d like you to wash your hands immediately at arriving at the studio. If you feel at all sick, please stay home.

Things to know about CORONAVIRUS:

Coronavirus spreads with droplets, you cannot get it from the air, unless someone directly sneezes in your face. The virus can stay active 6-12h on surfaces. For the virus to spread, you touch a surface and the touch your nose or mouth. So wash hands often and use hand sanitizer!

If you have a runny nose, you don’t have it - coronavirus causes a dry cough without runny nose.

1. First it sets in at the throat. A dry sore throat feeling which will last for 3 to 4 days - hopefully our immune system fights it off here.
2. If not, the virus will blend into the nasal fluid and drips into the trachea and enters the lungs, possibly, in severe cases pneumonia. This process will take 5 to 6 days.
3. With pneumonia, comes high fever and difficulty in breathing. The nasal congestion is not like the normal kind. You will feel like you are drowning in water. It's important to go seek immediate medical attention if you feel like this.

Be safe, boost your immune system. With regular yoga practice your body switches to the rest and digest mode more readily - which plays an important role in regulating immune function.  

Hope this info helps to reassure you and answers all your questions.

With love,

your Namaste family.

The Heart of Ayurveda by Lea Kraemer

Ayurveda is the longest continuously practiced medical system on the planet! I've been studying it's classical teachings since about 2005 and from the start I loved the idea of Ayurveda as the "Science of Life" because it spoke to the same wholeness and wellness of Being that comes alive in a really good Yoga practice. The root of spiritual psychology is right in the texts of Ayurveda, an ancient system that views mind-body-senses-being as a continuum. 

Yoga and Ayurveda merge very closely in their view of synergistic wellness. A healthy mind and body is one that supports joy, Ayurveda says, and the path for natural healing is in this wisdom. It's an emotional grounding that is one of Ayurveda's most welcoming aspects. You know how after a Yoga class the patterns of our lives can just start to naturally shift? Without force, the way we eat our lunch, or the way we think about scheduling the day, or even how we arrange our houses, just start to shift a little and it feels like things fit in place in a better way. I always hear students talk about this as they come in and out for classes  .... saying things like how their diet changed after a few months of Yoga ..... or how they notice the calm sound of their voice when they are speaking to their child. When our life-style practices spring from consciously observing our own tendencies, inherent reactions and even our vulnerabilities, we are understanding Prakriti, our very nature, and Ayurvedic Yoga is coming alive in us. 

Everything on Earth can be understood in relationship to its qualities. For instance, in everyone's life, day and night time have different energies and should have separate rhythms and practices around them. Maybe it's a lot for a blog ... but it's so nice to start to ponder these relationships that I'll include the"Twenty Types of qualities" here:

गु मद हम िनध लण सा मदृ ु िथरा: । गणु ा: ससू म वशदा: वशं त: स वपयया: ॥

Guru(heavy) X laghu (light in weight)       Manda(slow) X tiksna (quick,fast)               Hima (cold) X ushna (hot)

Snighda (unctuous) X ruksa (dry)               Slaksna (smooth) X khara (rough)              Sandra (solid) X drava (liquid)

Mrdu (soft) X kathina (hard)                       Sthira (stable) X cala (moving, unstable)    Suksma (stable, small) X sthula (big,gross) 

Vishada (non slimy) X picchila (slimy)

A great way to start working with the qualities and forces around you and within you is to notice what tastes you are drawn to. What foods are you missing out on? Are you creating balance in your mind and body at breakfast, lunch and dinner? Ayurvedic Yoga teaches that you will bump up your nutrition if you include all six tastes, but not in the same amounts! Are you over-emphasizing your fire? Or under-whelming your taste buds with a sugary palette? Watch which of the six tastes you go to and you will honestly see your tendencies in action! The Astanga Hridaya Sutrasthan says: 

During Winters, (Hemanta and Shishira) and rainy season (Varsa), sweet, sour and salt tastes should be especially used to support as our tissues build. Bitter, pungent and astringent tastes should be used more during Spring Season (Vasanta) to clean us out and keep our fire kindled. Sweet tastes should be used more during Summer (Nidagha) when we can get drained, and sweet, bitter and astringent tastes should be used during Fall (Sharath) when we are in transition. 

Just like the Yogis, Ayurveda teaches that to be healthy, one should get up from bed at Brahmi Muhurtha, as the dawn light is rising! Yes, it's an ideal, but you can do it if you allow your body to rise around 45 minutes before the Sun, around 5 – 6 am. That's the perfect time to meditate, practice Yoga and to balance your spiritual and physical self as the day-light is coming up around you. Many Yoga practitioners rise much earlier to catch this "ambrosia" and for me my ideal time to meditate is at 3:15a.m. 

This past year in a master's class with the DINacharya Institute I had the opportunity to go back and study Ayurveda's incredibly specific morning routine, from what kind of plant material is best for the bristles of your tooth brush to exactly how to clean your nose and eyes. It's all much more detailed than you might have imagined but Yoga and Ayurveda have in common this beautiful idea of waking up to our senses each day. Through special ways of washing and bathing, through Yoga and self reflection best calibrated for you, waking up by cleaning and clearing each sense will give your mind and body a luminous quality that seekers have been enchanted by for eons! We will investigate this higher level of Yogic balance in my upcoming workshop in March. Until then, if you would like to do a bit of self research, take time to clean and clear each sense each day, until .... smelling - tasting - seeing - touching - hearing .... are gateways to the clarity of your mind and power of intuition! 

And last, a kind of charming, curious teaching from a major Ayurvedic text. Don't hold on to crappy energy, is the take away. Be the person you want to be, don't diminish your self for those that are yucky. As life goes up and down, know how to feel like your Self. 

उपकारधानः यादपकारपरे अयरौ सपवपवेकमना,हेतावीयफले न तु

"One should be very helpful even to his foes, even though they are not helpful.

One should maintain a balanced mind both during calamity and prosperity.

One should not be envious towards wealth and happiness of others."

Page No. 20 Astanga Hridaya Sutrasthan

I am giving a workshop called the Heart of Ayurveda on Sunday, Mar 15, 2020 from 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm. I hope that you will join me as we explore. It's about radiance through conscious living and there will be a strong Yoga practice as well as discussion.

BEYOND THE MAT by Ani Raya-Flores

Just after new years, I went for a hike with an old friend. We noticed the trails were a little more crowded than usual—an excited conga line of hikers wearing their new grippy trail shoes, hydration vests, and sweat absorbing/UV blocking shirts. “Looks like a lot of folks made resolutions,” she said, and then asked if Namaste, like pilates studios, like crossfit “boxes,” and yes, like the Angeles Crest National Forest, was experiencing a similar influx of resolution-ers.  

The answer, of course, is yes. Each year, the studio gets a new batch of students who’ve come to the mat for the first time or back after some time away. And it’s great— as a teacher, I can sense the enthusiasm and commitment in the room.

Unfortunately in modern culture, committed can start to look more like dogged. Before you know it, “I wanna practice yoga everyday!” becomes, “I have to practice yoga every day!” A rigid or unyielding approach can lead to burn out. If we view our resolution as something to conquer, we only have a few options: 1. achieve mastery and quit because been there stretched that, or 2. die on the hill of crow pose. I don’t know about you, but neither of those sound good to me.

If I could share just one bit of wisdom with my students, it would be that softening the approach to yoga is what gives it longevity. Softening the approach doesn’t have to mean that 2020 is the year of child’s pose. All it means is that each time we come to our mats, we take the time to orient ourselves in the space, to put ourselves in touch with physical sensations, to build awareness of what we need, and then move (or not move) our bodies accordingly.

I’ve found that the work of staying present on the mat is what’s helped me take my practice off the mat. I’m learning to sit with physical sensation, to see a pose as an opportunity—hey, I get to experience burning quads— as opposed to pushing, gritting teeth, bearing the unmitigated agony that is chair pose. And that’s the outlook that I try to bring off my mat, to crowded movie theaters, to long grocery lines, to traffic.

It’s a lot to consider, and the tools for a more present and mindful practice aren’t always covered in your average hour-long practice. Which is why I teamed up with dear friend and Fitzmaurice Voicework teacher Scott Ferrara to bring this workshop to the Namaste community.

Join us the afternoon of February 23^rd and we’ll practice staying present in the safe space of a yoga mat so that we may take that presence into our everyday life. 

For more information and to sign up for workshops go to: https://namastestudios.la/workshops

Why Metal Yoga?

 

Why Metal Yoga?

by Matthew Clark who leads a yearly Metal Yoga class on the Winter Solstice.

A yoga class in the Western world, or at least in America, is often accompanied by a playlist or soundtrack.  Obviously, that wasn't the way of traditional yoga in India.  I believe that some very wise yogis specifically brought yoga to America, knowing the massive cultural influence of this country and used that influence to broadcast the benefits of yoga globally.  In the 1920's, Parahamsa Yogananda established the headquarters of his Self Realization Fellowship approximately 2 miles away from our studio.  His famous book Autobiography of A Yogi, used parallels of Christianity with yogic concepts and philosophy and was successful in initiating many Americans into these new ideas.  Decades later, Ram Dass penned his classic Be Here Now, which was meant to explain yogic concepts through the lens of the American hippy experience.  It always struck me as a book written by his Guru, through him, to best spread the message, using unconventional typesetting and drawings to connect to a new audience.  My point is that yoga, in coming to the West, was always bound to shift and change and cater to an experience that would resonate with a Westerner.  This brings us back to the topic of playlists.  There are definitely very traditional American studios and institutions that would never use a playlist. For those of us that do use music, it's become somewhat of an expectation, something to keep a pace and a helpful tool to establish a baseline of sound to make a passing ambulance siren or loud talker on the street strolling by less jolting.  We don't live in a bubble.  In my playlists, I try to use mostly songs that wouldn't be distracting or emotionally charged and songs that won't alienate most people.  Listening to a pop song or a Kirtan with a house beat could be blissful to one yogi and agonizing to another.  Conversely, listening to a metal song during practice could be ecstatic for one student and could drive another yogi crazy.  Enjoyment of music is completely subjective.  The point of doing our annual Metal Yoga practice is that it is an experience where, for those who would enjoy it, we use a very different sort of music, one which the attendees have signed off on and are excited to practice with.  My playlist will consists mostly of Doom and Stoner metal tracks, specific styles that I find are at a good tempo and have kind of a raga like quality, they float and meander and shred at times.  Bands such as Black Sabbath, Om, Sleep, Earth, Flower Traveling Band are usually featured as well as some heavy space rock sounds from the likes of Hawkwind and other spacey musical explorers.  This music I find to be powerful and cathartic, both being important elements of a yoga practice.  Aligning with the Winter Solstice has become a tradition for this class. The longest night of the year seems an apt time to embrace these sounds and delve into a powerful cathartic practice which leaves us feeling lighter and uplifted heading into the New Year.

Join Matthew Saturday December 21 at 6pm for this special class.

November is a great time to start meditating

The frenzy of the holidays and the end of the year creep up faster and faster and suddenly we find ourselves overwhelmed and unsure of where our time went. A daily practice of checking in and sitting silently for even just 10 minutes can do wonders to center and ground our energy. When we are grounded and centered, we are more able to take on the multitude of mixed and heightened emotions that come hand in hand with the season.

Regardless of what technique we choose, meditation asks us to actively train our mind to focus on one particular “object,” our breath, a mantra, a sensation or a sound. When we intentionally focus our mind and continually pull it away from the broken-record patterns it is more apt to follow, we begin to calm our central nervous system. The habitual thought patterns are what keep us in states of anxiety and stress – bouncing us back and forth between past experiences and future fantasies.

Meditation has been studied and shown to reduce stress and anxiety, promote emotional health, enhance self awareness and increase one’s ability to focus. Improvement in any one of those areas is exponentially beneficial on a physical, social and emotional level, in all areas of our lives.

It’s true, meditation can feel like a chore, especially with the holiday glitz and drama distracting us with illusory obligations. Perhaps it makes it easier to think of it as a chore, like washing the dishes, it must be done. I like to think if it has a part of my hygiene routine. The breathe and pure awareness are the detergents that keep my mind clean. Clearing my mind on a regular basis keeps me aware of negative thought patterns so I can actively work to shift them; centering my awareness on my breath quiets the unnecessary clutter of thoughts and brings me back to myself.

Truly, it’s always a great time to start meditating, so why not start in November!

Join our upcoming Workshop:November 2nd, 1-2:30pm in Highland Park for a dynamic meditation workshop that will explore a variety of different meditation techniques.

Keeping a Dream Diary

One of the best ways to cultivate an active dream life is to keep a dream diary. Keeping a notebook or audio recorder where you can easily reach it can also help you set the intention to remember your dreams. Record your dream as soon as possible after waking. For most of us, this will be first thing in the morning. If you do wake up during the night and remember a dream, it might be difficult to stay awake to record it, but making the effort is worth it! Even jotting down a few words or images might help you to remember more of the dream in the morning.

Record your dream in the present tense, as if it’s happening right now. Try giving your dream a title; this creates a kind of container for the content and can help you remember it. Drawing pictures of your dream images can also be helpful; it doesn’t matter how rough or simple they are. Sometimes we don’t remember a dream upon waking, but a conversation or event during the day may trigger a memory. Whenever we take the time to tend to our dreams, we can learn something new.

Happy Dreaming! 

By Nancy Lee Sayre

Join our upcoming Workshop:
Dream Circle on Saturday, 4/13 from 6:30-930pm. 
Sign up / more info at namastestudios.la/workshops

Meditations for Vaginal Steaming

"Nourishing yourself in a way that helps you blossom in the direction you want to go is attainable, and you are worth the effort"  -  Deborah Day

Vaginal Steaming:

How it Works:

Vaginal steaming (V-Steam) is a global traditional practice, that has been used by women across the world for centuries to maintain optimal health and vitality.  Using a specific blend of herbs suited for clients needs, vaginal steaming nourishes and tonifies the vaginal and uterine tissues. The steam helps to improve circulation, and alleviate symptoms caused by, or related to, congestion in these tissues, boosting circulation to the pelvis,  increasing oxygenation, dilation of blood vessels, and a relaxing of the pelvic floor muscles that tend to cramp or spasm before or during menstruation.

What to Expect in a Namaste V Steam Session:

You’ll sit in a comfy chair, wearing a silk robe, wrapped in a blanket, and offered a cup of tea to sip on. As you begin to relax, the pleasant steam will travel into the body, usually feeling a gentle sensation and warming. Our Steam Specialist will quietly check in with you over the duration of the session, monitoring the steam temperature ensuring your comfort. During the steam it is your choice whether you read, journal, meditate, set intentions or simply sit back and enjoy. Once steam is done expect to take some time to ground and reintegrate yourself back into your day.

Benefits:

The benefits of steaming are tremendous: deep relaxation, increased vaginal nectar, heightened libido and sexual sensation, circulation improvement, decreased PMS Symptoms, skin beautification, tightened and lifted vaginal canal, and scar softening. Steaming is believed to be preventative of infections, offers menstrual support: regulates irregular periods, cramping eases fatigue, headaches, abdominal discomfort and nausea. Steaming enhances fertility by clearing cervical fluids, helps relax the vaginal canal and cervix and nourishes the and tonifies the uterine lining.

V-Steam Plans:
(1) To maintain healthy uterine care and a regulate the menstrual cycle, women are encouraged to steam once a week for three to six months to receive optimal benefits. Contraindications include if you are pregnant, after ovulation if you are trying to conceive, actively bleeding, if you have an infection, and if you have vaginal sores or blisters.
(2) Women are encouraged to steam three days in a row before menstrual cycle begins to prepare the uterus for the natural cleansing of the vagina and three days after menstrual cycle ends to ensure all old residue, clotting, and mucus are removed.

"Every woman who heals herself helps heal all the women who came before her and all those who come after her" - Christine Northrup

Guided Meditations 

"Meditation practice isn’t about trying to throw ourselves away and become something better, it’s about befriending who we are." Ani Pema Chodron

Breathing Technique 

Begin by getting comfortable in your seat.  Feel your feet touching the ground below you.  Feel the crown of your head reaching up to the sky.  Soften your shoulders down your back. Begin by just noticing your natural breathing cycle.  Notice where the breathe moves in the body and what sensations come to you as you begin to relax.  As your ready, start to deepen the breath. Take three short and deep inhales through the nose, and three short and deep exhales out of the mouth, releasing tension in the jaw and making any sounds that may feel necessary.   As you’re ready begin to take a deep inhale through the nose for a count of three, following with a slow exhale out the nose  for a count of three. With each inhale feel the energy move up from the earth, into the uterus, up through the belly, and the chest.  Each exhale feel the air move out the chest, belly, uterus, and redirecting the energy back down to the earth.   Inhale feel the energy expand the body.  Exhale feel a sense of release.  Repeat this breathing, taking deep inhales, and slow exhales for a count of three or longer. Be gentle with the body, mind, and spirit.  The mind has a tendency to get distracted. Just come back to the breath.  It will always be there for you to return to.  Rather than achieving a particular outcome, use this time to establish a loving relationship with your breath and your body.

Connecting 

Place one hand over your heart and the other hand over the front of your pelvic bowl, right below the navel.  Begin by noticing the breath moving to the pelvic bowl, expanding it like a balloon, and up to the heart space.  As you are ready imagine a cord of light connecting your heart center to your uterus.  With each inhale feel the energy from the uterus move up the right side of the body to the heart, sending the energy of wisdom to this space. With each exhale feel the energy of the heart move down the left side of the body, into the womb, sending loving energy to this part of the body.  Create a cycle of energy moving from the womb space to the heart and from the heart to the womb space.  Begin to notice the deep connection between these two places.  Begin to align these powerful centers of the body--the womb, the place of intuition and deep knowing, with the heart, the place of love, rhythm, and kindness.

Letting Go 

Settle into a comfortable position and bring your attention to the center of your pelvic bowl.  It may be helpful to place your hands on your lower belly.  Notice any sensations, feelings, or qualities regarding your pelvic energy.  Begin by visualizing the steam rising up into your pelvis bowl and beginning to cleanse and clear your pelvic energy, like water washing over you or sage smoke moving around you.  Choose the element you are drawn to and visualize the water or smoke moving in a circular pattern and clearing each part of your pelvic bowl.  If there is a place that feels blocked or stuck, spend extra time there breathing into that space. Do not try to push anything out, but allow the element of choice to gently remove the stagnant energy.   Invite the water to wash into the earth or the smoke to lift into the sky anything that is not serving your body or being.  There, in the earth or sky, this energy will be received and recycled; it is no longer needed in your life.  Continue until you feel a sense of peace and clarity in your pelvic bowl.  Picture your pelvic bowl as an altar space and imagine placing your offerings here.  Offerings may include expression of gratitude for this clearing, requests for support to make changes in your life or break old patterns, images of your creations, or whatever else comes from your spirit.  Rest in quiet reflection and pay attention to the words or visions that come to you.  Listen for the guidance or comfort that comes from this sacred place.

Blossoming 

Our wombs are the center place of our creative energy.  When we set our intentions and on what we would like to create our wombs are powerful places to envision that creative energy manifesting.  Begin by finding a comfortable position and focusing on the breathe. Bring the awareness to the pelvic bowl.  Visualize a seed right at the center of your uterus.  Allow this seed to be a representation of what you are creating in your life.  This could be an intention of more support in your life, this could be a seed of financial abundance, this could be calling in of a new partner or career path.  Whatever it is that you are working on in your life, allow this seed to be that visual representation.  As you visualize this seed, begin to allow the steam from the smoke to gently wrap around the seed, giving it the proper nutrients it needs to grow.  With each inhale bring in the energy that helps to cultivate your seed, perhaps that is patience, love, kindness, or any other elements that help this seed to grow.  With each exhale begin to visualize the seed sprouting.  First start by seeing the roots moving down towards the earth, connecting you to the source of all creation. Then start to visualize the stem reaching up, moving to the belly, and through the heart center.  Continue to nourish your seed with what it needs.  Start to visualize the blossoming of your seed, seeing a lotus flower blooming out the top of your head.  Bring yourself back to what the original intention of the seed is.  What would it look like for this seed to blossom? What does it feel like? Taste like? Smell like? Sound like?  See yourself as this blossoming flower.  Remember yourself as the seed.  And be patient with the process of growth in between. 

You can book a vaginal steam session with Namaste online at: www.namastestudios.la

- written by Shira Barlas

Young Yogis: Help Students Begin Their Yoga Practice

Young Yogis: Help Students Begin Their Yoga Practice

By Olivia Martinez 

Last summer a friend and I decided to go on a 3 day yoga retreat in Mexico. Between the two of us, we had probably taken 5 classes total. So why did we fly 5 hours to do yoga? Well, the gourmet meals convinced her and the spa’s Margarita Massage hooked me. (#bestmassageieverhad). Yoga was just a side note. However, I ended up taking and LOVING every single class - the energizing morning classes and the restorative sunset ones as well. I was hooked after a couple days. I came back to L.A. and immediately joined Namaste. I fell more in love with yoga and found a new love for the studio and all the amazing teachers. Every class I take I learn something new and push myself to grow both physically and mentally.

It’s been a year now and I am still so grateful for this new part of my life. The next step in my yogi journey is to bring it with me to work. I teach 1st grade at Charles White Elementary in MacArthur Park. P.E. is part of our daily curriculum and I can’t wait to start teaching my students the basics of yoga. Not only do I see the physical benefits of yoga but the emotional ones as well. Giving students the tools and space to be mindful and present will last them a lifetime. 

As you can imagine, funding for public schools is limited and Donors Choose has been such a blessing for teachers who usually pay for many classroom supplies and “extras”. With Donors Choose people can select projects that they feel passionate about and help make them a reality for students and teachers. Please take a minute to check out my proposal “Young Yogis” and consider supporting my plan to bring a little Namaste to my classroom. While there, check out my other proposals and those of teachers around the country! And always feel free to share this with any of your generous friends and family. Thank you in advance and I’ll see you around the studio.  

Please visit HERE for more info and to donate! 

Photo via The New York Times.

What is Ashtanga Yoga?

What is Ashtanga Yoga?

by Chris Reed

Did you know that most modern vinyasa practices stem from the Ashtanga Yoga method? Developed by K. Pattabhi Jois, Ashtanga is the sanskrit word meaning eight-limbs as mentioned in the yoga sutras of Patanjali. The practice incorporates breath, drishti or focus, and bandha in a fairly rigorous sequence of postures. Students usually practice the memorized sequence at their own pace in what is called "Mysore style" named after the city where Jois taught. Usually an Ashtanga practice begins with five repetitions of Sun Salutations or Surya Namaskara A and five repetitions of Surya Namaskara B, followed by a standing sequence. After this the practitioner begins one of six series and ends with the closing sequence.

Yoga Chikitsa (Yoga Therapy) or the Primary Series is the most common practiced sequence in Ashtanga yoga. Many students will spend up to a few years learning the entire sequence before moving on to second series. Postures are recommended to be held for at least five full deep breaths through the nose or whats also referred to as Ujjayi Pranayama. Where the practitioner focuses the eyes while is the posture is what is referred to as the drishti. There are few different key drishti's in the Ashtanga practice, mainly the nose, navel, between the eyebrows, thumbs hands and feet. The bandhas are energy locks within the body that we often hear teachers talk about in vinyasa classes. Ashtanga focuses on three main bandhas; the mula bandha or root lock at the pelvis floor. Uddiyana bandha is located at the abdomen 2 inches below the navel and the Jalandhara bandha is found by tucking the chin to the chest.

There are many different opinions and beliefs surrounding the "tradition" of Ashtanga Yoga. One school would say that you must "master" a posture before being given permission to move on to receive the benefit from the practice. I personally subscribe to my teacher's teacher Manju Jois (Pattabhi's son) and his more laid back approach of adjusting the practice to the practitioner. Having done a few workshops with Manju, I have experienced how this non-linear approach allows the student to complete a practice while being safe and not leave feeling completely defeated.

Join Chris for a Workshop: Balances, Bhandas, & Binds on Sunday, May 20th from 2pm-4pm at Namaste Highland Park. Sign up at namastestudios.la/workshops 

Cookin' with Jazz - Rich and Creamy Horchata Muesli

Horchata Muesli 

By Jasmine De La Paz

When I first realized the next Breakfast on the Patio at Namaste falls on Cinco De Mayo, the first thing that came to my mind is Horchata. 

Horchata is a Mexican drink typically made from rice milk, cinnamon and vanilla, and is simply delicious. My husband requests Horchata frequently as he likes to add it to his iced coffee. The only thing I don't like about Horchata is the amount of sugar added, so I decided to sweeten mine with dates, and made it vegan by using almonds and coconut milk. It is time consuming, but is so worth it. The result is rich and full of flavor - making the muesli extra creamy. 

Vegan Horchata (serves 4-6) 

1 cup white rice
1/2 cup almonds
1 cinnamon stick
1 can whole fat coconut milk
4 dates
1tsp vanilla 
1 1/2 cups almond or coconut milk
dash of salt

Directions: 

1. Start by soaking the rice, almonds, and cinnamon stick in water overnight. Once done soaking, drain out the water, rinse through, and add the ingredients to a blender. Blend on high with the canned coconut milk until well blended and frothy. 

2. Pour mixture into a cheese cloth strainer, or nut milk bag, and squeeze as much of the liquid out as possible. 

3. Add the liquid back into the blender, and blend with dates, vanilla, almond or coconut milk, and a dash of salt! 

4. Store in the fridge for about 3-4 days. 

Horchata Muesli (serves 2) 

1 cup oats

3 tbsp chia seeds

3 tbsp flax seeds

2 tbsp coconut flakes

1 tbsp almond or coconut yogurt

2 - 2 1/2 cups Horchata

Directions: 

1. Add all the ingredients into a bowl, and mix together. If you notice it's a little dry, you may need to add more Horchata. Keep in the fridge overnight. Enjoy with added fruit, nuts, seeds, and extra Horchata! 

BREAKFAST ON THE PATIO

Join us for yoga, community, and nutritious food! 

Saturday, May 5th from 10:45 - 11:15am. 

Free to those who attend class before or after. 

Reserve your spot online here.

30 Day Yoga Challenge

30 Day Yoga Challenge

by Steve Arcos 

When you first heard about the 30-Day Challenge what went through your mind? Were you excited? Did you feel overwhelmed? I remember my first time participating in one of these challenges. I thought: how will my practice transform?  Is thirty days a commitment I'll be able to keep?

The first week flew by. Seven classes in seven days? I felt unstoppable!  I could already tell my forward folds were getting deeper and my arm balances getting stronger.  My focus was unshakable.  I felt the solidarity of the yogis. I had this in the bag.

By the second week my momentum was slowing.  I pushed it hard and was sore from over exertion.  Meanwhile my social life kept trying to get in the way: dinner plans, movie date nights, was I always so popular?  I realized I had to mix up my routine with restorative and meditation classes to find a balance between the demands of the 30-day challenge and my personal limits. I also realized that I couldn't keep every one of my social engagements. If I wanted to get to thirty days; this month, my priority was my practice. 

Once the third week rolled around I had found a new source of motivation.  I was starting to see a lot of the same faces around the studio. I would look forward to class because I would also be seeing all of my cool yoga friends.  These were my people now.  A lot of us were having major breakthroughs on the mat and it was awesome being able to share that with my fellow 30-day challengers.  

When I finally reached the end I knew that I had accomplished something amazing.  I completed thirty classes in thirty days!  I had discovered a new level of physical intelligence and self-awareness. Most remarkable though was the realization that I was part of something bigger than myself.  Sharing this experience with so many inspiring yogis, many of which are still my close friends, truly made the 30-Day Challenge memorable. 

Have you signed up for the #30dayNamaste yoga challenge?  Just write your name on one of the poster boards hanging in the lobby.  Every time you take a class place a star sticker next to your name.  Every five classes you will be entered into a raffle for some fun and fabulous prizes including private yoga sessions with many of our teachers, art lessons, ayurvedic assessments, acupuncture, Town Pizza, La Tehuanita tacos, and so much more.  See the full list below, and don't forget to post your journey using #30daynamaste.  See you on the mat. 

Lea Kramer - Ayurvedic Assessment

Dana Kraft - Private lesson, Pre-natal Lesson

Ana Aguire - Photo shoot

Jasmine De La Paz - Homemade Bliss-Balls

Steven Arcos - Private handstand lesson

Nora Brank - Philosophy of Yoga group lesson

Chona Bernardo - Mandala art lesson

Sondra Sun - One free workshop

Meg Shoemaker - Private yoga session

Roxy Lange - Date night Nanny

Jenny - Private yoga session

Town Pizza - $25 and $5 gift cards

Leader of the Pack - $25 gift card

Shorthand - Stationary gift set

Study Hall - Swell water bottle

House of Intuition - May HOI MOON BOX 

La Tehuanita - Gift cards

Joy - Gift cards

Adriana Rizzolo - Healing Shakti Haircut

Amalia Gardner - Pardon my Heart Acupuncture

Jolie Matty - Private yoga session

Dylan Coffey - Herbal Remedies goody basket

More to be added! 

Cookin' with Jazz - Glowing Yogi Bowls

Glowing Yogi Bowls

by Jasmine De La Paz 

Like many things in life, I go through phases with chia pudding. There are times when I crave it, make huge batches, and eat it everyday for breakfast or for a snack. Then there are times when just the thought of chia pudding makes my nose scrunch, and I don't eat it for weeks. Well, lately I have been all about the thick, gelatinous pudding and am always thinking of ways to adapt it. 

A few weeks ago I strolled into a juice bar (I will not mention the name), and was perusing their fridges full of pre-made puddings, juices, and bars. Not to sound too presumptuous, but most of the items I found I could easily make myself (or already do), and really didn't feel like paying the hefty price for a chia pudding bowl. I did however notice their use of probiotics in puddings, and that got my brain going. The result is this Glowing Yogi Bowl - I added coconut yogurt as the probiotic to the chia pudding, which also makes it extra creamy. I was also wanting to re-create an orange creamsicle flavor, so decided to make orange coconut cream to swirl on top (plus it looks pretty). 

Glowing Yogi Bowls (serves 4 - 6)

Probiotic Vanilla Chia Pudding

4 cups coconut milk 

1/2 cup coconut yogurt (unsweetened) 

3/4 cup + 2 tbsp. chia seeds

4 1/2 tsp. pure maple syrup

2 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract 

Orange Coconut Cream

1 cup orange juice (I juiced a 2-3 oranges)

1/2 cup coconut milk (the thick cream from a chilled can) 

2 tsp. maple syrup 

squeeze of lemon juice 

Directions: 

1. For the chia pudding, blend all the ingredients together except for the chia seeds. More the mixture into a bowl, and slowly stir in the chia seeds until well combined. Let the mixture sit for about 5 minutes, give it another stir, and then place in the refrigerator, ideally overnight. 

2. For the orange coconut cream, juice your oranges (I used a variety, including one blood orange to make the color pinkish). Add the juice with the rest of the ingredients to a blender, and blend on high for a couple minutes. Pour into a jar or bottle, and let is cool in the refrigerator for a couple hours. Once ready to use, you will need to stir or shake it up to combine again. 

3. Add chia pudding to a bowl, top with coconut cream, granola, fresh fruit, and edible flowers! 

BREAKFAST ON THE PATIO

Join us for yoga, community, and Glowing Yogi Bowls! 

Saturday, March 10th from 10:45 - 11:15am. 

Free to those who attend class before or after. 

Reserve your spot online here.

For more recipes and food inspiration, follow Jasmine on Instagram. 

Namaste! 

Ask & You Shall Receive!

Thank you for giving us your input and ideas.  

We are excited to have implemented a few changes below, and welcome new members to our staff! 

Highland Park Studio

• Sunday GENTLE :: Yin Restore :: 6:15 - 7:30pm has been extended to 75 min with a new start time. 
• New 90min class! VINYASA :: Intermediate on Saturday at 9:15am with Alex Halenda. 
• Saturday YOGA :: Hatha & Kundalini will start at 9:30am.
• Saturday VINYASA :: All Levels moves to 11:15am and is now taught by Ani Raya-Flores
• New Saturday GENTLE :: Flow + Restore :: 11:15am with Meg Shoemaker
• New MEDITATION :: Morning Sit (c) with Nora on Wed 7:50am - take a class before or after.
• Per popular demand Wed 8:15am now moves to 8:30am as a VINYASA :: Intermediate class.
• New VINYASA :: Advanced classes:
• Monday & Friday at 8-9:15am with Chris Reed  
• Tuesday 6:45-7:45am with Ani Raya-Flores

Downtown Los Angeles Studio

• Welcome Hannah Rodriguez! Join Hannah downtown on Sundays VINYASA :: Candlelight at 7:30pm and on Saturday at 4pm VINYASA :: Intermediate.
• New VINYASA :: Basics on Saturday at 10am taught by Chona Bernardo.
• Chris Reed now teaches a weekly VINYASA :: Intermediate on Wed at 7:45pm.
• New class with Kendra Baranko on Mondays at 7:45pm VINYASA :: Candlelight.
• Roxy Lange has a regular class downtown on Wednesday at 5:15pm VINYASA :: All Levels.

Visit our schedule HERE and sign up for class. 

Namaste!