Yoga Teachers: Building Compassion

April 23

How do you express your compassion?
   - Through my voice. Volume and tone can have a powerful effect.
   - Being calm & centered in yourself. Then you can really listen.
   - Listening and relatedly meeting people where they are.
   - Empathic listening. Listening with every part of me.

How can we increase our compassion?
   - When I am in the habit of meditation my compassion increases.
   - Work at listening. Thoreau has a quote about how we look at things all the time, but don’t really see them.
   - Becoming aware of my habits, things I do to numb painful feelings which in turn lessen my ability to be compassionate. Being aware of my breathing.
   - Increasing length, width and depth of my Sushumna nadi.

Sukhasana Warm Up:
   Prayer hands
   Open arms to side at shoulder height – unfolding first shoulders, upper arms, elbows, wrists, hands and fingers, palms face forward.
   Big rounding of spine with arms circle forward – hug an imaginary stability ball.
   Fingers interlaced, arms overhead
   Twist left, arms still overhead
   Cactus arms, elbows level with shoulders, forearms perpendicular to floor, wrists netural
   Right hand down to left knee, left hand behind
   Face forward, bring left arm on top to hug. Compassion starts here at home.
   Eagle arms, left arm on top
   Eagle with bent leg boat
   1/2 boat, arms unfold forward
   Rock the body, while maintaining the distance between the legs and the torso
   Rep 2nd side

Bird Dog & Friends: All Fours
Here we looked at each other closely to observe and assist alignment of back leg. We can’t see the back leg extended behind us, so we are working to develop our awareness from an inner sense.
   Right leg back at hip height
   Bend right knee, thigh still parallel to floor, lower leg vertical, ankle circles
   Extend right leg
   Dog at Hydrant, right leg bends and moves to side – hip, knee and shin all equidistant from the floor…
   Place right foot down, Parighasana
   All fours: Knees, Chest, Chin
   Shalabhasana, holding edges of mat
   Anantasana, lying on left side, with top leg extended
   Keeping side of left leg grounded, swing top leg back behind your hips, toward 90 degree angle with long left edge of mat, hands/torso walk toward right off mat. Angela Farmer called this Dead Warrior.
   Legs together on abdomen
   Balasana

Down Dog

Lunges:
   Airplane arms, chest on thigh
   Big contraction/rounding of spine, arms circle around imaginary stability ball (fingers reach under front leg),
   Lift hands above front thigh, interlace fingers and press palms upward,
   Straighten back leg for high lunge
   Parvottanasana
   Rep 2nd side

Uttanasana
Down Dog
   Lunge right
   Keeping right leg straight, bend back knee to ground
   Turn out right leg, for lateral hamstring stretch
   Bend right knee for turned out deep lunge, hands walk forward onto elbows possibly
   Hands under shoulders, straighten back leg and lower heel back heel, turn front toes forward,right hands flat down on inside of right foot
   Parsvakonasana, peel open left arm
   Vira 2
   Trik
   Rep 2nd side

Handstand
   Lower one knee to chest, straighten leg
   Rep 2nd side

Supta Baddha Konasana

Savasana

Time flies when your are having fun!