Yeah right! You might be asking yourself how a steady and comfortable seat might relate to yoga postures – most of which are anything but steady or comfortable. We’re talking about asana in terms of being the third of the eight limbs of yoga, as defined in the Yoga Sutras of Patañjali. It defines asana […]
When all is said and done, it can be our complete surrender from our expectation of results and progress that can bring us a sense of relief, peace and, some may say, enlightenment. So what’s God got to do with any of that? Let’s find out. Say What? We come now to our last of our
Practising on the edge. For those of you old enough to remember, the Edge used to refer to the lead guitarist of U2 (Showing my age? Perhaps!), but for those of us in the yoga world, the edge means something entirely different. Practising on the edge is a relatively recent term in yoga. It refers
In the yoga industry we need to be educating ourselves on how to make classes open and accessible to all, including those who are neurodiverse. But what does neurodiverse mean? Neurodiversity covers a range of conditions that affect how a person’s brain functions, making it work differently to a neurotypical brain. Rather than thinking about
Reiki (pronounced ray-key) is a Japanese word meaning ‘universal life energy’ and is a beautiful system of natural healing that can be particularly beneficial for yoga teachers. Founded by a Japanese Buddhist, Dr Mikao Usui (1865 – 1926), in the late 19th century, Reiki has evolved as a result of his research, experience and dedication. What
Sex: an intimate moment shared between two people. How can yoga benefit and increase your experience with your partner? Yoga can connect you to your inner self to help you better open up. Not only can it work on an emotional level, it can work your muscles, making sex even more pleasurable. This practice will
This month the news is that we need to focus on looking after ourselves; physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually, from looking after our feet to facing our fears. There is a range of fantastic health news to be found on the Zen Monkey website. A quick browse of the articles this month could lead to
I had a teacher once tell me that the hips were the ‘junk drawer’ of the body. They store all sorts of emotions, trauma and anything you are unconsciously holding on to. That’s why if you fully surrender into a hip opener, all the built-up emotions can release. I hear stories of people in classes
Vinyasa Flow is hands down one of the most, if not the single most popular styles of yoga. It is widely practiced by millions of yoga practitioners and can be very versatile depending on the studio you visit. If we translated Vinyasa, it would loosely translate to “arranging something in a special way”. That is
By the time I reached 18 years old, I had a fair idea of what it was to lose the things that matter. My mum had died when I was aged two, but it was between the ages of fifteen and eighteen that I lost the most in the shortest space of time. My loving grandparents, who
