The Various Yoga Disciplines XIV
Yoga is mind training that includes the physical body, which Yoga views as a great treasure. Through your body you learn valuable experiences and lessons, and the body is the foundation on which you build your entire life. Yoga suggests you take care of your body through reasonable diet, exercise, as well as appropriate rest and sleep. At the same time, Yoga tells you that you're not just the body but also the mind, and then you go beyond body and mind, to the spirit.
Last month we profiled Sharon Gannon, co-founder of Jivamukti Yoga. This month we will profile her fellow founder, David Life. He was born in a small town in Michigan and graduated from Michigan State in 1972 with a BFA in art. David is a certified Advanced Level II practitioner of the Ashtanga system of Shri K. Pattabhi Jois of Mysore, India. He spent several years as a sannyas (renouncement) of a lineage of Yogic monks in India. He has received special initiation from his Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. His interest in Yoga is supported by his artistic, literary and metaphysical studies.
David fills his classes with metaphor, musicality, and spirituality, spiced with humor, vigor, and spontaneity. He is considered to be a "teacher's teacher" and is respected, popular and much in demand around the globe. He has taught for 20 years and since 1993, he has been involved annually with various national Yoga conferences. He teaches a one-month intensive Jivamukti Yoga Teacher Training course with Sharon. His high profile students include Sting, Russell Simmons, Donna Karan and Geshe Michael Roach.
David has lived in New York City since 1979. In 1980 he created Life Café, a coffeehouse with vegetarian chili and espresso made one-at-a-time on an electric hotplate. Life Café featured jazz, art, and poetry. David became an influential performer, artist and spokesperson of the lively arts community in the 1980s Lower East Side of NYC. The Café has been featured in the Broadway play Rent.
David has written articles, as well as being featured in articles in Yoga Journal. He's been a contributing writer for several other publications including Yoga International. With Sharon he co-authored two books; Jivamukti Yoga: Practices for Liberating Body and Soul and The Art of Yoga. David is an Animal Advocate and a long time vanguard member of PETA, working with them on various projects and campaigns. Along with Sharon, he has established a 76 acre Wildlife Forest and Sanctuary in upstate New York.
David and Sharon make regular trips to Mysore, India to continue studies with Jois. Another Guru they continued studies with was Shari Brahmananda Sarasvati. He had an extensive background in Eastern and Western medicine and in 1958 he founded the Yoga Society of New York. In 1964 he established Ananda Ashram (dwellings of a Guru) in Monroe, New York. The ashram hosts many Jivamukti events in which his teachings and message continues to be delivered. He died in 1993. David Life also studied with Shri Swami Nirmalananda in which he inducted David into the Sunnyas order in 1990. The Swami believed in the potency of self rule, he was a naturalist and practiced silence for 11 years and a great influence for David. Perhaps you can explore Jivamukti Yoga. Here's To Your Dancing Health!
Hip Bend
This exercise bends your body so that it resembles a crescent moon. As your body bends from one side to the other, it reinforces how supple and flexible your BACK and ENTIRE BODY is. This exercise stretches the MUSCLES at the WAIST and along the SIDES of the UPPER BODY, ARMS, and SHOULDERS. It trims and tones the WAIST and UPPER ARMS. It also realigns the SPINE. Instead of just bending, get the feeling of reaching out to each side. Dancer and I disclaim any liabilities or loss in connection with the exercise and advice herein.
1. Stand with your feet under your hips and shoulders. Lift your arms up and keep them by your ears with palms facing each other.
2. Lift your body up and then over to the right side. Do not let your right arm lower, keep it by your ear to reach the beneficial stretch and toning. Hold 10-20 counts and then return to the standing position.
3. Again, lift the body upward and over to the left. Hold 10-20 counts. Return to your standing position and repeat on both sides. Return your arms to your sides and relax.