Monday for most is met with grumpy resignation. Back to the hamster wheel, the rat race, the treadmill. What if we choose to see it as a clean slate, a fresh page? My Monday's mean teaching my 10.45 Yin class at New Energy Yoga studio in Winchester. Tucked down Parchment Street, away from the main city centre is a special space. The studio room is upstairs so we have a comforting view of the higgldy-piggldy roof tops of Winchester and the skies above. We have all the bolsters, blanket, bricks and blocks we could ask for. I can create a warm, comforting atmosphere with the heating, coloured lights and flickering candles. It's simply lovely.
I use all kinds of inspiration for my class plans. Often I use a Taoist reading, as was the starting point for this week, sometimes it might be a poem or an event.
One of our practices on a wet day began with what I think of as a Yin Vinyasa - the Cloud Salutation. If you are a practitioner of Hatha, Vinyasa or Ashtanga you will be familiar with The Sun Salutations, and sometimes the Moon Salutations as well. Cloud Salutations are a very simple yet oddly challenging vinyasa. Most Yin postures are seated or floor-based but for this we stand. Feet firmly grounded as we marry the inhale with a sweep of the arms up overhead, palms touching. As we exhale the hands come down to heart centre in prayer position, or anjali mudra. We take a few rounds to allow the movement to follow the breath, rather than our Yang habit of breath following the movement.
As we become settled into this flow we can add in movement to the lower body. One knee raises in time with the sweep of the arms, the foot descends to meet the mat as we gently exhale hands to heart centre. Sounds easy? Give it a try! Sometimes it requires all of our attention to truly tune in to that marriage of movement and breath. I love taking something deceptively simple and bringing full attention to the details. For me this is the magic of Yin and of tea. Nothing has to be big or showy. Simple pleasures.
After some wobbles and frustrations, which you can always meet with a smile! We use Surya mudra to connect us to some sun energy after our clouds. We lay our bodies over our bolsters to embody the rainbow. We open our hearts and allow them to melt towards the earth, preparing us for the second arching of our spines - bridge pose. In Yin we use Supported Bridge, we have a stack of bricks under the sacrum to take the weight of the pelvis. No big muscular holding is required, instead the spine can release into a back bend.
We lower ourselves down, brick by brick until we find ourselves in Pentacle, also known as Savasana.
It's time to get cosy, with blankets and eye pillows to allow us to sink into that special place of reflection and rest. Patanjali's 5 Niyamas include Contentment and Zeal. Finding the balance between these two emotions is not always easy but all 8 Limbs of our Yoga practice are there to help us navigate our internal environment to where we find that magic. Our bridge between our physical world and our spiritual world, our heaven and earth. Finding that rainbow.
Always offered but never essential is the opportunity to join me for a cup of tea and a chat after class. It always seems a shame to dash off after the peace of savasana! Offering a cup of tea means my students can take a bit more time to come back into the real world after their class. We get to connect as group. We get to taste and talk about all kinds of tea!
As my students gradually ebb away to continue with their day and week, I take the deepest joy in the smiles and sighs that have replaced that 'Mondayness'. Most of us aim to be kinder and isn't that so much easier to do when you feel more at ease, less hurried, more centred?
Written by Hannah Fletcher and published on Friday 24th January 2020 at 14:10
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