• Home
  • About
  • Classes
  • Offerings
    • Workshops & Events
    • Private Sessions
    • Retreats
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • RECOMMENDATIONS
THERESA BRIGGS YOGA
YOGA ON AND OFF THE MAT

TBY BLOG

Picture
August is for: celebrating vulnerability. Allowing the soft frontside of the body open up. Moving into uncertainty. And knowing that you have your own back even if when you’re afraid you might fall.
💚💚💚

Part of the practice of yoga is embracing the unknown. Avidya, often translated as ignorance in the yogic texts, can come across as a negative concept in a world where we place such high importance on being right. On always knowing. Which doesn’t leave a lot of room for mistakes and growth.

We practice our yoga by acknowledging (and then reminding ourselves over and over and over again) that the only guarantee is change. That there is no real “knowing.” That much of what we think we know has been conditioned in us. And we work to recognize how holding on to “knowing” can create rigidity and suffering, both for ourselves and the continued suffering of marginalized groups in our communities.

So here we are! Months into a pandemic where no one really knows what comes next. Centuries into a culture soaked in racism and patriarchy. So thank goodness change is our only guarantee.

Keep practicing. Keep scratching under the surface of what you think you know. In moments of pain and fear and anxiety where it’s nearly impossible to access coping tools, the physical yoga practice (#asana) and breath-work (#pranayama) can remind our nervous systems that we are safe. If those practices feel out of reach because the agitation is too high, try jumping jacks, run around the block, or stomp and shake first. Try yelling! Or singing. These can all stimulate the #vagusnerve & help reset to the nervous system neutral so the quieter practices can become an option again.

#yogapractice #yoga #yogaeverydamnday #yogaeveryday #yogaforanxiety #yogainthetimeofcorona #yogaanywhere #polyvagaltheory #vagusnervestimulation #yogafortrauma #yogaforstress

svadyaya

6/20/2020

0 Comments

 
In the yoga sutra, Svādhyāya refers to self-study: looking inward, reading scriptures, ‘doing the work.’ As we all continue to look inward and peel back the layers of our conditioning- the roots of our actions, reactions and emotions based on learned behaviors and past emotions (samskaras)- part of this practice must include time for quiet reflection to digest and absorb new information and learning. Take time to examine the intentions behind -and potential results of- your actions. Be deliberate. If you’re trying to help- make sure the actions are actually helpful. 
As yoga teachers, studio owners, and practitioners we must be firmly rooted in non-harming, and as we exist in the continued state of inequality in our country and the horrible injustices happening daily to our Black and brown communities, we must take non-harming further and be active healers. 
Inevitably discomfort will arise. If you, like me, have benefited from white privilege, please remember this discomfort is nothing compared to the lived reality of our Black brothers and sisters. The real trauma and pain. So our job is to sit with it. If someone calls you out- take the time to let it sink in. Examine your reaction & where it stems from, and who benefits and who does not. Own your mistakes and truly apologize. 👓 Make cleaning your lenses a daily practice so the actions that you take to heal are clear, rooted in reality and non-harming. Our country desperately needs to heal. Lives are on the line. So it’s (past) time to do the work. Listen more. Be watchful for racism arising from your own conditioning, not just in the actions of those around you. Study your thoughts and behaviors. And read and google and listen to all of the Black voices leading the way. 👂 
From one of her many insightful posts: “In order to navigate the long road and unforeseen plans, we all need to the most access to our inner wisdom possible.” - Octavia Raheem

#yogainaction #yogapractice#yogaeverydamnday #yogaeveryday#svadyaya #introspection #samskaras
Black Lives Matter
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    About this blog

    This blog, together with the occasional newsletter, will be an active space to share thoughts about yoga on and off the mat. Please let me know what you like and what you'd like to see more of. And as always, thank you for the gift of teaching!

    Archives

    June 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2018
    January 2018
    October 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    June 2016

    Categories

    All
    Ahimsa
    Asanas
    Attention
    Being
    Community
    Meditation
    Patience
    Practice
    Pruning
    Teaching
    Transitions
    Waiting
    Yoga
    Yoga Off The Mat

    RSS Feed

THERESA BRIGGS YOGA

Contact
Blog
© Copyright 2016
​All Rights Reserved
  • Home
  • About
  • Classes
  • Offerings
    • Workshops & Events
    • Private Sessions
    • Retreats
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • RECOMMENDATIONS