This is a chant I copied off the Anusara.com site.

Today, I was home due to a parent orientation seminar at the boys’ school. It gave me time to do some shopping in the afternoon and a light yoga practice in the evening.

As I said in my previous post, I had become enthralled with anusara yoga since I got to know Hillary and Elsie, 2 wonderful anusara yoga teachers/podcasters in the US. More so, after taking a class with Francesca at Pulse Yoga.

I “grew up” in yoga doing the vinyasa style of yoga. And until now, this has been my favorite yoga style. However, lately, I have began exploring anusara after hearing the podcasts of Hillary & Elsie. This style of yoga is speaking very strongly to me — speaks to my heart. And I want to know more about it and how to use it in my self practice.

Of course, not knowing exactly how the sequences go in anusara yoga, I attempted to remember what I could from Francesca’s class. I did the OHM chants, then as I went through the asanas, I modified them to open up the chest and the heart as wide as I could. In the Trikonasana , I did it the way Francesca told us — fingers apart as it reached out to the sky, arms thrown back as far as we could instead of straight up, chest open.

For me, that time alone with myself was like a beginning journey into self-discovery. In anusara, one has an individual light — a light that can shine on the world radiating goodness, beauty and love. It recognizes that Divine Grace flows through us and in us. As one does the pose, it is felt from the inside of one’s self — that deeply creative and spiritual part of your self — and it springs out from you and is manifested in your alignment with our Divine God.

My practice today was short — just over an hour. But I chose specific poses that emphasized openness. I even did more forward bends and backbends than usual. And in Savasana, I lay on my mat with arms open and accepting of where my body was at this time and where my life and heart were. And it made me smile.

Yes, I will continue my vinyasa practice. But I hope anusara yoga is eventually introduced in the Philippines (and I will definitely keep a close watch on when Francesca will be returning!). Added to this of course is the wealth of podcasts already released by both Hillary & Elsie which can help me during my self practice days.

I would also like to plug the new yoga DVD of Hillary’s which is slated for a Sept. 2008 release.

 

Hillary is a certified anusara yoga instructor but more than that, she is a beautiful and warm person — someone I now call a friend. What is even more amazing is the fact that she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) in 1996 while working with Prada. Her dedication to yoga and her devotion to a healthy life has kept her symptom-free to this day. A part of her DVD sales will go toward supporting children with MS and other auto-immune disorders.

While I still do not know how we can pre-order or have delivery sent to the Philippines, I will try to inquire from Hillary. Suffice it to say, I am trying to get my own DVD copy.

Visit her site HERE for more on this DVD. Once I have more purchase/delivery details, I will post updates.