Teaching Support for the Week of June 26th
|
|
|
June 27th: Third Quarter Moon
Photographer: Chris Kotsiopoulos
The photo above shows what appears to be an impossibly large third quarter Moon sidling up to the approximately 2,500-year-old Temple of Poseidon in Sounion, Greece. It was taken on March 15, 2012 at about 2:00 a.m. Like the Earth, one-half of the Moon is always illuminated by the Sun. At the first quarter and third quarter phases, we're seeing about one half of the portion that's sunlit and one half that's in shadow. The huge apparent size of this particular Moon, or any phase of the Moon when it’s near the horizon, is due to the Moon illusion effect. However... the primary reason for the Moon's extra large apparent size in this photo is the 600 mm focal length of the lens that was used. - Chris Kotsiopoulos, Jim Foster
|
|
Dear Teachers & Trainers,
This free Class Planning Newsletter is offered in service to all interested yoga teachers and teacher trainers. For access to the deeper information found in the links below, please see Teacher Memberships, Trainer Package and Membership Pricing.
|
|
|
Coming Up
* Jun 7 - Jul 5: Ramadan
* Jun 27 - Third Quarter Moon
* Jul 4: Independence Day (USA)
* Jul 4: New Moon
* Jul 4-7: Eid al Fitr
* Jul 6: International Kissing Day
* Jul 7: Global Forgiveness Day
More Resources
* 2016 Calendar for planning classes & workshops (worldwide holidays, observances & moon phases all in one organized place)
* Holidays & Observances (key themes for worldwide observances)
* Moon Phases (in-depth support for incorporating moon phases in teaching - from astronomy, astrology and yoga)
* Wheel of the Year (in-depth support for solar and pagan observances such as solstice, equinox, samhain, etc)
|
|
Last Quarter Moon Themes
Ramadan Themes
- Purification
- Refocus attention on God, prayers
- Self-discipline, sacrifice, fasting
More Themes
|
|
|
The Last Quarter Moon
The Third or Last Quarter Moon is Day 22 of the lunar cycle.
To see moon phases by location see timeanddate.
A Good time to Focus on Completing Creative Projects
In the third quarter moon, light and dark are in balance, with darkness increasing. The moon rises at midnight and sets at noon. As the last waning cycle begins, it is a good time to focus on completing creative projects. – Shiva Rea, Tending the Heart Fire © 2014 p 181
A Time of Transition, A Cross-Roads, Decision Time
Once again we have reached the balance of light. The Moon begins this phase exactly half illuminated, but waning. She is slipping into the darkness, slowly but surely. Each night we see another sliver of light gone... It is a time of transition, transformation, and evolution. There is a restless, sometimes uneasy feeling. Instinctively we feel that something is happening, something is changing...
Half light, half dark. We are looking back, and looking ahead. Often we find ourselves at a cross-roads during the Last Quarter Phase, sometimes trying to (or needing to) take both roads at once. Things began early in the phase are coming to fruition. There are things that still need to be done, perhaps another big push to finish up. Maybe they should be continued, or revived. It's decision time. – astromagickal.com, Last Quarter Moon
|
|
|
Northern Hemisphere
Sensing the Quality of Fire
The sitting position resembles a flame burning steady and calmly... joining the palms of the hands, rising the arms, together with deep calm breathing allows us to sense the quality of Fire... It helps us not to waver but to stay close to the joy of nature expressed by the season... Practice refreshes, and brings refuge, where we can withdraw from the dazzling sun. – Sandra Sabatini & Silvia Mori, Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer: Yoga Through the Seasons © 2008 p 182
For readings, teachings, themes and practices, see:
|
|
Southern Hemisphere
Cultivating Internal Fire
Attending to the calm of winter cultivates the internal fire. The practice nourishes this fire under the embers... Standing positions in winter emphasize our roots and help keep us warm. When we repeat them often, they reveal their depths. They helps us to adjust with the the cold climate, and avoid sliding into any torpor. – Sandra Sabatini & Silvia Mori, Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer: Yoga Through the Seasons © 2008 p 178
For readings, teachings, themes and practices, see:
|
|
|
|
Pitta-Balancing
- Soothing, cooling, calming, grounding
- Softness, grace, relaxed effort
- Stimulating without overheating
- Soft gaze
- Effortless, non-goal-oriented
- Warmth without over-stimulation
- Visually appealing environment
- Less is more
Resources
|
|
|
New Class Planning Worksheets Now Available
The Sequencing & Planning Hub features a new Worksheets section.
There you'll find an amazing new teaching resource: the Class Plan Worksheet. This wonderful tool provides you an at-a-glance summary of your class plan and can be used as a structure for planning and documenting your class.
Also in the Worksheets section, you'll find the Vision & Goal Setting Worksheet and the Class Series Planning Worksheet— a way to set a monthly strategy and note your focus for each week (or for a series of related classes). With the Series Worksheet, you can get an at-a-glance look at the seasonal considerations and holidays for any given month. We've filled in all the seasonal highlights and holidays for the entire year!
Alignment Principles
The Asana Digests have in-depth coverage of alignment, verbal cues and hands-on adjustments. But in addition, we've long wanted to bring you expert teachings on General Alignment Principles and we're excited to say this section is now live. Check out the vast and powerful teachings for refining how you generally approach alignment.
Trainers: New Specialized Content
Trainers, now you have access to our Mantra Cards, a sweet new tool for teaching mantras. Print out these beautiful PDFs for sharing with your trainees or including in your trainer manuals.
|
PDF Booklets: Formatting Fixed; Amazing Offer
Teachers and Trainers: Our PDF Booklets are an amazing offer. Choose from among hundreds of topics with premier content designed specifically for yoga teachers. Download any topic with the push of a button and you've got a PDF Booklet that you can keep for life!
These Booklets first became available in January. We're just a small team but our skilled lead developer, Nour Akalay, created a custom technological solution that enables the incredible flexibility to choose from among hundreds of content choices. This amazing flexibility initially meant trade-offs in formatting: some of the booklets had inelegant page flow or spacing issues around photos. Our team worked together to address these issues and we've implemented a host of wonderful improvements.
So now our members have not only the exciting flexibility of choosing from among hundreds of premier content pieces and the ease of one-click downloading, they also now receive PDFs with a more efficient, effective layout. (Members who have active memberships may download content sections more than once to take advantage of section updates or layout improvements - with no charge against your balance.)
To order PDF Booklets:
- Current members: Choose My Account: Buy PDFs
- Past members and Non-members: You may choose from among multiple PDF packages as an add-on to any membership
- Trainers: PDFs (plus the right to re-print them for training manuals) are included with every Trainer Package
|
|
Bakasana (Crane Pose) and Kakasana (Crow Pose)
We've recently added more to the Bakasana (Crane) and Kakasana (Crow) Asana Digest, including clarification of the differences, more resource links and a new Sequencing section.
See the Asana Hub for links to teaching support for hundreds of poses.
Following is a small excerpt from the organized 8-page Bakasana & Kakasana digest of teaching resources.
|
|
|
|
Bakasana
bahk-AHS-anna
Crane Pose
Kakasana
kahk-AHS-anna
Crow Pose
Sanskrit
"baka" = crane
"kaka" = crow
Heart of Poses
Arm Balance
Naming & Differentiation
- Some sources use the Sanskrit name Bakasana but translate it as Crow rather than Crane.
- Some sources consider Crow Pose and Crane Pose to refer to the same asana.
- Some sources differentiate them—including Yoga International (here) and Kino McGregor in Yoga Journal (here)—by whether the arms are bent or straight.
- When differentiated, Kakasana has bent arms and Bakasana has straight arms.
|
|
Notes
- Considered foundational pose for more advanced arm balances
- Beryl Bender Birch notes this as an essential counterpose to the backbends preceding it in her power yoga sequence—including Salabhasana (Locust Pose), Bhekasana (Frog Pose), Dhanurasana (Bow Pose) and Ustrasana (Camel Pose).
-
"In bird poses (crow, eagle, rooster, peacock, etc.), common factors are flexion of the thoracic spine, abduction of the scapulae, and extension of the cervical spine. These actions require precision and strength in the muscles of the spine to achieve cervical extension without engaging the trapezius, which interferes with the action of the scapulae and arms." – Leslie Kaminoff, YogaAnatomy.net
|
|
Excerpt from Bakasana / Kakasana Sequencing
Prep Pose Considerations
The best way to prepare for arm balances like Crane Pose (Bakasana) is to practice Downward-Facing Dog and hip openers like lunges. Downward-Facing Dog... gives you an opportunity to strengthen your arms for arm balances... Lunges can help you prep for arm balances because they open the hips, and you need that openness in the hips to do arm balances like Crane. – Eddie Modestini, Yoga Journal, Vinyasa 101: Why Down Dog is the Secret to Crane Pose
Counterposes
Mark Stephens recommends the following as potential counterposes:
Sample Sequences
See Bakasana / Kakasana Sequencing for more. Se also Arm Balancing Category.
|
|
|
Alphabetized Topic List
Different people think differently about how to approach their study and research. Our objective is to support you in whatever process you use and to make it easy to find what you need. Our latest offering: an alphabetized list of more than 120 yoga teaching topics. See Member Hub: Find Content for the alphabetized list (excerpt here) plus a searching system using general categories.
|
|
|
|
Research Smarter: Organized Topic Structure
|
|
|
Beyond more navigation tools, the unique benefit of researching with Yoga Teacher Central is the ability to preview an organized, comprehensive structure that outlines topics from a strategic to a tactical level.
No longer will you have to read an entire article to learn to what degree it covers the teaching aspect you are researching. Now you can find the information immediately and narrow in on resources that will meet your need.
Each page includes an at-a-glance overview, as shown here for the Yamas & Niyamas Introduction.
This structured approach also makes it easier to be inspired by related teachings and provides a pathway to study.
|
|
|
|
Quickly Focus in on Your Priority
|
|
|
|
You'll also find Quick Menus such as shown here - another way to quickly view the structure - even of vast, deep topics - and easily navigate among pages. (You'll also find handy "previous" and "next" buttons at the bottom of pages.)
|
|
|
|
Get Better Results from Your Time Invested
|
|
|
The mindful organization you experience throughout Yoga Teacher Central is in contrast to the typical publication approach of offering stand-alone articles that may or may not overlap or relate, and are accessible only through a generic search.
Here, you get both a complete picture of the topic and the ability to quickly focus in on your priority.
When you find your topic, it won't be a mere mention, as often happens with traditional Internet searches. You'll get vast, organized coverage and a summary of additional study sources.
For example, The Contents here is for the study topic of Ahimsa. Notice the organized and complete outline. Just click a header to jump to that sub-topic.
|
|
|
|
Quick Access to an Unparalleled Compilation of Expert Support from Diverse Styles
|
|
|
You won't find personal opinion here... unless it's the personal opinion of an industry expert, in which case we'll clearly state the source.
Studying at Yoga Teacher Central doesn't mean you have access to only one person or one group's perspective. A driving force behind Yoga Teacher Central is our passionate interest in - and respect for - multiple lineages and styles of yoga and many wonderful scholars and teachers, ancient and modern.
We study hundreds of books, industry journals, scholarly articles, expert teachings and popular blogs. We are completely transparent about the source of teachings, giving you instant links to each and every one. You'll find the links both within every sub-topic plus in an at-a-glance compiled list, as shown here for Ahimsa.
|
|
|
The Bhagavad Gita
* The Bhagavad Gita has been translated as the Lord's Song, Song of the Spirit, the Song of God and the Song of the Beloved Lord.
* Often simply called "the Gita," it is a portion of the Mahabharata—an epic poem containing 18 books and approximately 100,000 verses.
* The Gita is 700 verses and comprises 18 chapters (23 through 40) of the sixth book.
* The Mahabharata is said to have been authored by the illumined sage Vyasa.
* The Gita is a dialogue—an "immortal conversation"—between the incarnate God Krishna and the warrior-prince Arjuna.
|
|
The Bhagavad Gita... is essentially a book on yoga. The word yoga is found 78 times in the Gita, appearing in every chapter except three... The word yoga and related words, such as yogi (found 28 times) and yukta (found 49 times), appear 155 times. This means that in over 20 percent of the Gita's verses the word yoga or its related forms appear. This profound teaching is the book on yoga par excellence because it presents yoga in the most comprehensive sense of the term and in all its depth. – Graham M. Schweig, Bhagavad Gita: The Beloved Lord's Secret Love Song © 2007 p 3
|
|
|
Comprehensive Spiritual Guide of Infinite Wisdom
So comprehensive as a spiritual guide is the Gita that it is declared to be the essence of the ponderous four Vedas, 108 Upanishads, and the six systems of Hindu philosophy... Indeed, the underlying essential truths of all great world scriptures can find common amity in the infinite wisdom of the Gita's mere 700 concise verses. – Paramahansa Yogananda, God Talks with Arjuna: The Bhagavad Gita © 1999 p xviii
The Ultimate Self-Help Book
The Gita is a multilayered manual for living—the ultimate self-help book. “How do we act in a world of conflict and suffering? That’s the question that the Gita answers." – Anna Dubrovsky, Yoga International, Bhagavad Gita: Star of Film and Stage
The Deeper You Dive into It, the Richer the Meanings You Get
The Gita is not an aphoristic work; it is a great religious poem. The deeper you dive into it, the richer the meanings you get. It being meant for the people at large, there is pleasing repetition. With every age the important words will carry new and expanding meanings. But its central teaching will never vary. – Mohandas K. Gandhi, The Bhagavad Gita According to Gandhi © 2011 p 11
Inspirational Throughout the World
Gandhi said, "I find a solace in the Bhagavad Gita that I miss even in the Sermon on the Mount... I owe it all to the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita." The Gita, which has been available in English translation since 1785 also has inspired many well-known Westerners, including the philosophers Georg Friedrich Hegel, Arthur Schopenhauer, and Johann Gottfried Herder... the writers Walt Whitman, Aldous Huxley, and Christopher Isherwood; as well as the esotericists Rudolf Steiner (founder of Anthroposophy) and Annie Besant (a leader of the Theosophical Society). – Georg Feuerstein, The Yoga Tradition © 2008 p 188
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
