Ornamenting silence with sound journeys & chanting to relax the body & mind and touch the soul 🌀
01/02/2024
Hello everyone 👋
I haven’t posted here for a while so thought I’d jump on to let you know that I am still doing sound journey events every second Friday of the month at in Thorpe Bay from 7-8.15pm.
Next one is coming up on Friday 9th Feb 📆
Each session is unique, however I try to incorporate gentle movement, breathwork, and yoga nidra, before settling into the sounds of the Gong and various other accompanying instruments.
We’ll also end the session with a chant to ground ourselves back into the body
If you’re interested, you can find out more via the link in my bio 👌
Hope to see you soon 💜
26/10/2023
Join me tomorrow evening for my next Sound Journey event at Mayura Yoga Studio in Thorpe Bay between 19.30 and 20.45.
If you are looking for something to help you unwind and find relaxation this could be just for you.
More details via the link below 👇🏽
Ease into the weekend with a relaxing sound journey, combining elements of yoga nidra with the healing frequencies of the Gong,...
Excited to be hosting another event diving deep into sound and its therapeutic effects. This is an opportunity to shift your state of consciousness and find deep physical and mental relaxation, clarity of thought, creativity, and inner awareness.
The evening will primarily comprise yoga nidra with a gong based sound journey. We will also do some short gentle practices to open our bodies and connect with our breath, and close with a grounding chant, accompanied with the harmonium, to come back into our bodies.
I hope you can come and join me 🌀link to tickets in bio
05/10/2023
Join us next Friday 13th October, 19.30 to 21.00, at Mayura Yoga Studio in Thorpe Bay for an evening of soul nourishing kirtan ✨
Whether you’re a regular or a newcomer, all are welcome and no experience is necessary.
All you need to bring is yourself, an open mind & an open heart (and ideally some water)💜
Ticket link and more details accessible via my bio.
Feel free to DM me with any questions 🙏
10/10/2021
When we pay attention to nature‘a music, we find that everything on earth contributes to its harmony. The trees joyously wave their branches in rhythm with the wind; the sound of the sea; the murmuring of the breeze; the whistling of the wind through rocks, hills, and mountains; the flash of the lightning and the crash of the thunder; the harmony of the sun and the moon; the movements of the stars and planets; the blooming of the flower and the fading of the leaf; the regular alternation of morning, evening, noon, and night: all reveal to the seer the music of nature
Words by Hazrat Inayat Khan in “The Music of Life”
🌊🔥🍃🌞🍂
04/06/2020
In Tuesday morning's class this week we worked on the half headstand, the most important step as we build up to the supported headstand or
This asana has long been referred to as the King of Asanas in India because of the wide ranging benefits it is said to bring to the yoga practitioner both physically, mentally, and spiritually.
From my experience I feel headstand is especially good for revitalising the mind. I always feel a lot more cheerful after holding this asana for a few minutes.
Turning yourself upside against gravity requires a lot of concentration, and thus headstand greatly helps us to embody the essence of asana as per Patanajali's Yoga Sutras, as in the posture is stable for one, but also that it is non painful and expends minimum energy
An asana should also have the potential to lead us into Samapatti, or infinity of the consciousness, so perhaps that nice refreshing feeling in the mind is a sign that the soul's bo***ge to the 'body mind sense complex' is being loosened 🤷♂️ .
22/05/2020
🐪 Ushtrasana aka Camel pose
A very effective backward bending asana that helps us to open the front side of the body and loosens up the vertebrae. It can also be practiced with the palms on the lower back for additional support to the spine, whilst the toes can also be kept tucked under.
It is important to keep the pelvis pushed forward so that it remains in line with the knees and ensures this gives an effective backward bend to the spine.
I’ve often found this asana pretty tough after years of working at a desk all day and not doing much stretching, but my body is slowly getting more flexible as I practice yoga daily, and this is most certainly one of the most effective backward bends in the hatha yogis repertoire.
Along with removing stiffness from the shoulders & spine, it also helps with respiratory disorders and increasing our lung capacity, improving blood circulation to all the organs, relieving abdominal cramps & constipation, improving posture, and regulating the thyroid gland.
After performing this asana one should counter it with a forward bend. I often come into child’s pose immediately after and hold it for the same amount of time as I held camel.
Whilst in the asana breathe naturally, and be aware of the sensations in the abdomen, throat and spine. Spiritually this asana is connected to the swadhisthana (pleasure, humour, sexuality) and vishuddhi (communication, purification) chakras. You can perhaps try to visualise a orange light around the lumbo-sacral area of the spine or a purple light around the throat area, and imagine you’re crystallising the energy (prana) at these chakras. This will depend on where you feel you’re having blockages or issues in life, your relationship to pleasure or perhaps your interpersonal relationships. To better understand how the chakras can be used as a framework for evolving the quality of our consciousness & personality, I highly recommend the book “Practical Yoga Psychology” by Dr Rishi Vivekananda 🙏
01/05/2020
Another week in lockdown is nearly over. It’s been 6 weeks since I arrived home from a year living in India, and I’ve been very lucky to have supportive parents to return home to as I start to get my feet on the ground in these strange times.
I’ve enjoyed teaching yoga online since I’ve been back, and I feel very lucky that despite the plethora of apps, websites and other much more experienced teachers, people have given my classes a go.
Thank you so much for the support 🙏
I will be teaching again tomorrow morning, Saturday 2nd May, at 9am BST. Open to all levels and abilities. You can book via my website theogovinda.com.
Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns.
Om Shanti, Om peace 🕉
26/04/2020
Coming into Vipareeta Karani Mudra from Setu-Bandhasana.
As with other mudras this aims to create a loop of energy that flows around the whole body.
The ta***ic inspired Hatha yogis believe Vipareeta Karani to reverse the the flow of the life giving nectar, aka Amrita or Soma, back down towards the bindu chakra 🌙 (close to the pineal gland) and away from the Manipura chakra 🔥, where it is usually burnt up in a symbolic sacrifice referred to as a homa (sacred fire ceremony).
The Amrita produced at the the life giving Bindu chakra is said to help the yogi gain enlightenment!
Now this might sound somewhat esoteric, and it most certainly is. Don’t get too caught up in the theory. As Swami Sivananda said “an ounce of practice is worth a tonne of theory”. Ultimately these practices help us feel better physically, mentally and spiritually and can help us to have better relationships with our friends and family, and feel more comfortable in our own skin. Whether that’s enlightenment or not, it doesn’t matter!
Om Shanti 🕉
***icyoga
24/04/2020
Join me tomorrow morning at 9am for a 90minute Hatha yoga class.
A great way to start the weekend, leaving you feeling lighter, stronger and more balanced.
We’ll be combining physical exercises and postures to strengthen and stretch the body, as well as integrating breathing and relaxation techniques to help relieve any stress or anxiety we might be feeling.
All levels welcome. Any questions or concerns give me a shout 😊
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No matter your age, race, religion, gender, sexuality, physical or mental capabilities, yoga has something to help you live a happy, peaceful life.
I’ve been very fortunate to live in India for a year studying, practicing and teaching yoga at various ashrams. My training has included classical Hatha Yoga, Sivananda, Cosmic, Restorative and Yoga Therapy. I am particularly passionate about the therapeutic application of yoga to help us restore and maintain good physical and mental health.
I feel it is my duty to share what I’ve learnt and I am now offering 0nline classes via Zoom.
ॐ
Why yoga?
Yoga helps me to cultivate peace of mind.
The ancient yogis looked to evolve their consciousness from the individual to the universal level through mastery of the mind. Patanjali's Yoga Sutras is one of the key texts that outlines this path, referred to as Raja yoga.
To achieve Raja yoga, tools and techniques were developed, and were outlined much later in texts such as the the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. What we know of yoga today stems from these texts, whether it be Sivananda, Iyengar, Ashtanga or any other form of modern yoga.
The yogic techniques are effective at restoring health, improving flexibility and strength, and preventing disease. However, their main objective is to prepare us for meditation and going beyond the everyday vacillations and oscillations of the mind.
Through mastery of the mind the yogi moves beyond fear, beyond comparison, beyond judgment, and beyond all artificial ideals. In a modern day context, the yogic way of life is a sustainable way of life, and one that helps preserve equilibrium and balance in ourselves and mother nature.
Living in ashrams in India has allowed me to experience yoga as a whole and never have I felt physically, mentally and spiritually so good.
ॐ
And keep in mind..
“An ounce of practice is worth a tonne of theory” Swami Sivananda
