Q & A, Healing Sciatica

Someone asked how they could use yoga to help with some sciatica that they started experiencing during their pregnancy.
Having never met them, this is what I felt like i could safely offer.


most generally, sciatica is caused by the irritation, compression, and/or inflammation of the sciatic nerve.

see, the sciatic nerve comes down the vertebrae and weaves through the pelvis, it passes under a part of the pelvis called the sciatic notch (bone). then it travels down through the glut and the hamstring.

often, what can happen, is through alignment, tension, injury, etc, is that the notch rubs against, or crushes the nerve. this is irritating. also, if there is a possibility that the nerve can get squeezed by the glute and the hamstring pushing, or being stuck together.

the best thing to do it to create space in the jammed areas, and be really mindful of your not making it worse by doing poses that jam up the area.

some poses that might be useful:
*pigeon pose while lying on the back, you can do it the normal way, if your hips are really open
*pascimottanasana with the knees deeply bent and the spine straight, to peel open the tissues in the back of the legs and butt. deeply bent knees, really really
*try putting two straps around your hips, pull one to the left, and pull one to the right. this can help open the pelvis nicely. you can keep them on while you do your practice, and it might support you nicely
*twisting triangle
*easy locust pose that will strengthen the low back muscles

avoid
*deep forward folding with legs straight
*deep backbends that jam the sacrum

hope it helps.

My response to Yogi Ram's Denouncement of Shiva Rea.

Here is the Original Article In The Telegraph

So Shiva Rea wears stretchy pants and sports bras.  And she teaches wild, undulating vinyasas.  She brings in live drum orchestras.  She quotes ancient tantric texts, and mixes it with her own brand of inspirational cheerleading.  The few times I’ve worked with her, I had an excellent time.  Really enjoyed myself, and also I felt like I grew, spiritually.  I felt my prana flowing, my body opening, my mind clearing.  All good in the hood, as far as I’m concerned.
I was really surprised to hear Yogi Ram’s quote, "Wearing skimpy clothes, glamorizing or doing unusual things definitely affects the dignity of Yoga. The government needs to step in and retain the essence and authenticity of the traditional Indian art."  Shocked really, and saddened.  Saddened, because I naively believed that the yoga culture that I had opted into was beyond the repressive and misogynistic attitudes that I had come to associate with western traditions.  I’ve seen these things pop up a few times before, but this time, I’m really rubbed the wrong way.  Because Shiva clearly hasn’t done anything wrong.  I’ve seen an article or two that has come to her defense, but that isn’t even necessary.  
It seems more useful to address the obvious underlying issue in Yogi Ram’s attitude.  Yogi Ram seems to have a problem with women.   He seeks to deny them of their power, their sexual and sensual agency, their place in the holy mandiram.  He seeks to shame them, to vilify their bodies, and to repress their femininity.  How else would you explain his words?
Yoga is a tradition passed down by a lineage of naked men who cover themselves in the ashes of dead people, hang out in graveyards, drink out of skulls, and smoke massive amounts of weed.  The Lord of the yogis is a naked man.  You would think that ashes and loincloths would fall under the heading of skimpy clothes.  Unusual behavior?  Take your pick.
But they are men.  Men are allowed to do what they want.  Men can choose what to do with their own bodies, can go naked if they want, can hang heavy weights from their members if they want.   Not women, though.  Women need to be kept under control, protected and locked away, like any other piece of property.  We see this often in western culture, but not so much in our yoga, because we have naturally been attracted to the highest elements, of love, acceptance and freedom.  We have been spared much of the dogma and backwoods rhetoric.  But here it is, yogic subjugation of the female, plain as day.
If another man sees OUR woman, while she is dressed in revealing clothing, he might feel lust, he might try to take her away from us.  He might even use force.  He might rape our woman, perhaps contaminating our bloodline.  And, (and this one is maybe even more dangerous to a fearful male ego) if we see a woman that isn’t ours, wearing stretchy pants, we might feel our primal, instinctual urges, we might be motivated to use force, and forsake our spiritual motivations, and act bestial.  Even if we don’t act bestial (pashukarma), we would have to admit that we live in a body that has bestial tendencies.  Animalistic thoughts arise, its part of the hardware.  But what to do?  Best to deal with them honestly, use a yoga and meditation practice to liberate the energy from the thought forms, and move into a loving, accepting place.   You don’t blame hot dancing women in stretchy pants though, just cause you can’t hold your bandhas.  It’s a shallow expression of a victim mentality, and that, if anything, is what would affect the dignity of yoga.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/8368854/Yoga-row-between-Indian-purists-and-Western-free-form.html

The Accidental Private

I am teaching a relatively new class at Yoga on Main, in Manayunk. Its Friday at noon. For the past several weeks, this calss has presented itself as private class. One student shows up, and we really have a delightful time working very deeply. Every week, I have been blessed with a very special student; an old friend, a fellow yoga teacher, a mother/daughter combo. It's been rewarding. So, I'd like to encourage you to stop by, and take your chances, perhaps it will just be us, and it can be all about you.

music video with scorpion pose!

this truly bizarre music video by "The Avalances" features a girl doing scorpion pose. in the background, you can also see her in Urvha Dhanurasana. Enjoy!

Happy Birthday John Friend!

I have been following John Friend on twitter (@anusarafriend). He's an interesting enough guy, has a sucessful yoga brand, (Anusara Yoga), and enjoys tantric teachings. I found out, on twitter, from @dailyd, that today is his 50th birthday. So, Happy Birthday, John Friend! I haven't studied with him, nor have I been particularly drawn to Anusara, but I totally love that he teaches yoga in an authentic way that really speaks to lots, and lots of people. I am happy to live in a world with him in it. I wish him a very long life.
Also, I discovered on twitter, that there is a slideshow honoring him. This is a sweet thing to do for someone on their birthday. It was put together by Bill Tipper, who is an extremely talented photographer, whose work I have only been introduced to today. His pictures are so lovely and evocative. His pictures of John are so sweet and intimate, that all of a sudden, I feel drawn to study with him.
This is why I like twitter. All in one quick swoop, I get introduced to so much greatness, truth, and beauty. You can follow me, btw, @sitaramdas.

Kali Ma's Dharma Talks

I like to listen to dharma talks as I drive to my morning yoga class. I have a ravenous appetite for downloadable dharma talks. I like my dharma talks high in quality, quantity, variety, and frequency. I find them nourishing, on a soul level, and interesting and centering for my mind.

I recently found some talks by a woman named Kali Ma. Great name. I think Andy Warhol was right when he said that Everyone is Kali Ma for fifteen minutes.

I found her website a bit confusing to navigate, but from what I could gather, she is a sincere tantric practitioner, with a grounded education in traditional Buddhist Tantric Yogas. I am always happy to see someone striving towards the authentic.

Her Dharma Talks are very nice, too. I have listened to "success and failure" and part of "the tyranny of specialness". She has a nice way of drawing the listener in, and uses excellent historical examples to illustrate her point. There are some occasional moments when her personality gets in the way of the true teaching, and slows down the flow of the wisom, but this is minor, and forgiveable. I can imagine that she will become quite a formidable teacher as she continues down her path.

You can download them here!

Thoughts on Sri K Pattabhi Jois

My month has been full of celebrations. There have been several Birthday parties, many of them milestones. Rhoni Groff and Steve Clofine turned 60, Dharma Mittra turned 70. I'm not sure how old Bhagavan Das is, I wasn't at his official party, but we did chant for him at David Newman's Kirtan at The Chopra Center. All of these people are spiritual significant, all of them lineage holders in their own right, all of them giants. It felt good to be able to honor their lives.

And then came the news about Pattabhi Jois. He was ninety four, and died at 2:30 pm, India time. It was heavy news. I don't teach Pattabhi's Ashtanga Vinyasa, though I do practice the primary series, at least parts of it, quite often. Ashtanga was the first vinyasa class I had ever taken, it had all been Kundalini, beginners Iyengar, and 'ecclectic' (hippie) yoga up until then. I didn't even really know that the teacher was teaching a sequence. I just thought that they figured all those jump throughs would be fun for everybody. They sure were fun for me, and my 20 year old body. I didn't figure it out until later.

So later, I found vinyasa classes, and ashtanga classes, and my practice started to get really inspired. I learned about Krishnamacharaya, Jois, Iyengar, and Desikachar, and how most all the yoga that I was doing, no matter how it was evolved or modified, could be traced back to them.

We sometimes take it for granted that we practice yoga, or even that we practice a certain type of yoga. We might think, "of course I practice yoga, what else wouls I do?" , or even, "of course I teach yoga...". We forget that we stand on the shoulders of giants. If we have these opportunities, this outrageous abundance of teachings available to us, this increasingly enlightened sub-culture, it is because those before us have done great work.

Sri K Pattabhi Jois is one of these giants. His steadfast devotion to his practice and his teaching sets the bar for us all. His easy willingness to give of himself inspires us all to be generous. His social works shows us that yoga doesn't exist in a vacuum, or hidden away in a cave.

Just like Guruji, we all have a responsibility to flow yoga into the future, to make sure that those who seek its refuge are not left wanting.

So, I could go on like for a while, but i think I will leave you with just two more things.

First, a quote I saw on twitter from a teacher named Darren Rhodes.
He Says: " Just as the moon lifts the tides of the Oceans, Pattabhi Jois raised the tides of Yoga for one and all: he is a Moon among men"

Second, a slideshow I found while googling around, quite moving, with a nice George Harrison Soundtrack. Here!!

Peace, Love, Chant- David Newman

The first time I heard "The Prophet/Hare Krishna" from David Newman's "Love, Peace, Chant", it moved me to tears. And it still happens from time to time. I just feel the love deep in my heart, and I'm powerless. Its a truly beautiful experience, and its a truly beautiful album. It is a gift spiritually, to be able to spend time meditating with such a gem, turning a potentially aggravating rush hour drive into a chance for dive into the heart of the spirit.
I also use these chants frequently when I teach yoga class. The flow of the album works perfectly within the format of a class, and sometimes I pick and choose a few songs to mix into a playlist and that is delightful too.
In closing, I feel that David's mixture of traditional Sanskrit Devotional Chants and inspiring English lyrics really helps bridge the gap between east and west, between ancient and modern, between the head and the heart.

The Prophet

Sarah Power's New Book, 'Insight Yoga'

I haven't read it yet, because it just came out, but I am very excited to curl up with some tea and delve into Sarah's written word. I having spent many hours at Sarah's feet. I find myself consistently astonished and amazed me by Her lucidity. Her ability to describe the spectrum of human experience and the profound importance of simple spiritual practice inspire me greatly. When sitting with her, however, I am able to hear everything she says only once, she invairably goes on to another idea soon enough. It may be one of her ways of teaching impermanance. Im my stubbornness, and my desire to stay with the truths she shares a little bit longer, I have no doubt that I will cling to my copy of 'Insight Yoga', and read it again and again and again. I feel very comfortable recommending that you do the same.

Just found out that Mary Dunn died

Well, I never studied with Mary Dunn, but I always saw her name around, and I was always pretty sure that she did good work. I'm bummed to hear that she died, and I'm sure that she will be missed by alot of people. She was 66, and died of cancer, it happens to the best of us. I have heard that when yogis die, usually they are full of life and vigor right up until the very end, and often have a quick and painless drop off into the infinite. I hope this was true in her case.

I did read (skim) her blog, marydunn.blogspot.com, it is brief, and has a few notes by mary and her family. It has a very tender feel to it.
It notes that there will be a merorial service for mary on September 27, at 2pm, at the New York Iyengar Institute.

There is an article in the New York Times here