I teach a sort of Vinyasa Style. My classes emphasise the practice and teaching of a flowing vinyasa style that emphasises laughter, self-inquiry, love, compassion, sensitivity and alignment. Yoga, for me, does not entail any religious or dogmatic views.
I practice yoga because it feels good and helps me to investigate my own being honestly.
Sundara Yoga is mainly concerned about learning to practice ahimsa or non-violence, which starts on the mat with yourself and your limitations. Knowing when to slow down, rest and recuperate is the sign of an advanced yoga practice.
"ahimsa pratishthayam tatsamnidhau vairatyagahone who is solidly established in nonviolence, hostility disappears."
Yoga Sutra 2:35
We explore ahimsa through sensibility, feeling
and loving kindness in the classes.
Try a Vinyasa Yoga in Brighton and Hove class to see for yourself.
What is Vinyasa?
Vinyasa comes from Sanskrit and has different meanings; one is to synchronize movement with breath. Vinyasa does not have to be dynamic or strong; it can also be slow and gentle.
In fact, any given yoga practise should be a mixture of those two elements.
Often in a Vinyasa practice, sun salutations are practised. For example, in traditional Ashtanga, you warm up with 5 Sun Salutations A and 5 sun salutations B. In between each sitting posture, a "vinyasa" (joining the flow of movements) is performed to keep the body heated and constant energy flow.
Vinyasa is one of the most popular yoga styles, and many schools have given it their own name to distinguish themselves from other schools. You can read more about different styles here.
We incorporate Vinyasa in Sundara Yoga Flow. Contrary to popular belief, Mr Iyengar also practised Vinyasa Yoga.
The simple act of moving your arms up and down is a form of vinyasa, so vinyasa does not have to incorporate a sun salutation. Moving from one place to another using the natural breath. Often beginners become confused about when to breathe, but in the beginning, it is best to relax the effort and let your diaphragm do the work. You will automatically breathe in when you lift your arms and breathe out when your arms come down again. Try it!
When a beginner focuses on breathing in as he tries new movement patterns, they might take too much breath in often resulting in hyperventilation. Hyperventilation is doing the opposite what you want to achieve in Yoga: better distribution and flow of blood and oxygen to throughout the body and especially to the brain.
If you want to find out more, send me an email and join my newsletter.
Also, offering a personal development course (200-hour yoga teacher training foundation course in 2021). For all courses and workshops, consult my website. Namaste.