Ashtanga Yoga Preseli

13/01/2024

This page has been inactive because I have not been teaching in the preselis for several years. However I chose to keep it up as a way for my dear students from the past to reach me and for the memories from a wonderful time. I am getting strange messages that appear to be from facebook that it may be deleted, and there’s no way to appeal. So please, if you want to be able to stay in touch, send me a message direct to my personal account. Lots of love to you all

27/04/2022

https://www.integralashtanga.com/mind-medicine/2022/4/25/yoga-and-anthroposophy

In a recent podcast discussion on Finding Harmony, one of the proposed questions we did not get around to discussing was: “You were a Steiner student, is that right? Could you describe how that might shaped you and your way of thinking?” I was quite looking forward to talking about this because ...

07/04/2022

Missing you all!

09/10/2021

Popping back to say hi 🙂

Ooooooof. One week postpartum. It wasn’t the easiest pregnancy, physically or emotionally. In contrast to previous ones, I wasn’t able to maintain my yoga practice. I lost a LOT of fitness. Like, a LOT. I tire so easily now. I developed spd- basically destabilization of my pelvis- so I wasn’t really even able to do much stretching, and I couldn’t walk very far at all. I was focused on getting my baby here safely, knowing I would have plenty of time to sort myself out once he was on the outside. Today was the first tiny step. Back on my mat. In a messy room that is part homeschool, part nursery, part mama-cave. Snatching a few minutes in between feeding and changing and reading and trying to soothe everyone. In my nursing tank top with the spit up on it. Five A’s, 3 B’s, trikonasana, and a few seated. More than ive done in months, and all modified. But yoga is always here, patiently waiting to help me when I’m ready to get back to work. Help me let go of attachments - goodbye all the postures I used to do with ease! - but also find space for gratitude. Thank you, body. For bringing four children into this world. For doing all kinds of amazing things all the time. I’m not gonna lie, I do miss being strong, but that will come back. I loved my strong body, but I need to love this one too, this soft, bigger and rounder than I’m used to body. It’s the same body. We have a long way left to travel and many more adventures and much more learning left to do together.

04/09/2020

Hey everyone! Online classes resume next week! Please read more info below:

I hope you all had a lovely August, and got to spend time with family and time outdoors, as much as possible. Flying Lotus studio has just been cleared to re-open for limited in-person classes, which is very exciting news. However I have decided to keep my teaching online for the autumn session. There are a few changes, so please read through and let me know if you have any questions.

Flying Lotus website http://flyinglotus.yoga/

Ashtanga For All - Online Class - Autumn Session

Fridays, 2pm EST (7pm UK time)

In this class, Sasha will lead students through the full standing series and a selection of postures from seated primary and closing of the Ashtanga sequence. Modifications make this accessible to a wide range of students while still being appropriately challenging for those with plenty of previous experience.
This class is fully online for the fall. Anyone may drop in without pre-registration for ONE free class - please message the studio or Sasha directly no later than 10 minutes before class time. After that, students may sign up for a block of six classes at a cost of $60 (the card does not expire). If you have any questions about either the class itself or the sign-up process please ask!

The block of six classes costs $60. When you go to the website, select “Classes and Services”, and a box comes up on the right with “schedule a session”. (this option seems to disappear 60 minutes before the class starts so please make sure you register early.) Use the drop-down menus to select “Ashtanga For All” and your start date. You should then be able to complete payment with a number of different options. If you prefer to mail a US check to the studio instead, please use the “Contact Us” form on the website to get in touch with the studio - Kelly can manually set up a class card for you. (The mailing address is Flying Lotus Yoga Center, 81 Main Street, Canton, NY, 13617.) If you are paying from outside the US, it should offer you the option to use PayPal, which automatically converts currency.
Once you are set up with a class card, you will get an email with the link to the zoom meeting for class.

I am looking forward to getting class started again and hope that we will have a nice group of regulars. As I am now charging for a block of classes I’m hoping that I’ll be able to adjust weekly class content even more to the specific needs of the group. But don’t worry if you’re not able to come every single week - class cards will not expire so you don’t have to use them for six sequential weeks. Please let me know if you have any questions and I hope to see you next Friday, September 11.

Our mission at Flying Lotus Yoga Center & Juice Bar is to take yoga off the mat and into our daily lives with authenticity, honesty, and integrity. We believe that healthy bodies and healthy communities lead to a healthy world. Flying Lotus Yoga Center is a one-stop center for alternative health pra...

28/04/2020

Last Friday's class is up on YouTube https://youtu.be/8N69xFXqHCw

Zoom classes: have not been full so you are welcome to join without pre-registering. Every Monday and Friday, 2pm NY time 7pm UK time. if you do not have the link and password, please message me!

See you soon!

22/04/2020

FREE WORKSHOP! Priority for people in northern NY, registration will open to students further afield on Tuesday. See comments for more info!

16/04/2020

Class tomorrow! 2pm NY time (7pm UK) You can sign up via the website (box on the right side, select the class Ashtanga For All Friday 2pm) or you can message or email me direct.

Our mission at Flying Lotus Yoga Center & Juice Bar is to take yoga off the mat and into our daily lives with authenticity, honesty, and integrity. We believe that healthy bodies and healthy communities lead to a healthy world. Flying Lotus Yoga Center is a one-stop center for alternative health pra...

14/04/2020

I finally got a recording of last week's live class uploaded to the Flying Lotus YouTube channel, if you want to follow along with my hilarious attempts to master a new technology, on your own schedule. Hope everyone is doing well and finding your own way to practice.

10/04/2020

Hi everyone - info about tomorrow’s class

Class is tomorrow, Friday 2pm (7pm UK). As of right now I have a few people who registered via the Flying Lotus website. I am requesting that people register so that I can keep it to nine people - this is in order to be able to give you all the attention you deserve. However, if you haven’t registered and you find that you have time and really want to join, please send me an email before class - I would hate for people to miss out. I’m still working all of this out so everything is flexible! (Except maybe our hamstrings if we’ve all been sitting too much ;)

There is a new video up on YouTube called child-assisted yoga - how to use your kid to get some assists. We will be doing some actual child and parent yoga but for now, you might want to take a look at this before class tomorrow, to get a little help if you need it!
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxY-hvu0JmvuDnFSVNZFpMA/videos
There are also lots of short videos on there that you can use throughout the week as short (or put them together for longer) practices, and to get more familiar with these sequences if you don’t know them.

I’m attaching once again a series chart in case anyone wants to print one out as a guide to use during class or on your own (at the bottom of this email).

Please try to log in to the class 5-10 minutes early to get yourself situated and hopefully sort out the tech aspect of things. It would be ideal if you can be on a yoga mat and ensure that your camera has a view of your full mat and of you both standing and sitting. You might need to re-orient yourself or your mat between the standing postures and the seated portion of the class. If you have a book such as David Swenson’s Ashtanga Practice Manual, or a Primary series ‘cheat sheet’, you might want to have them for reference. You may want to have a blanket for resting after.

How this will go (in theory!):
- everyone logs on and adjusts their cameras, settings, etc
- I’ll welcome you and check that I can see you and that you can hear me
- I’ll mute everyone when we begin class
- I will give a brief explanation and we will start with some breathing
- i will do the opening chant - you can follow along as best you can and no one will judge you because we can’t hear you!
- we will do guided sun salutations - I will be giving some explanations
- we will do most (but not all) of the standing sequence
- we will do a selection of postures from Primary seated
- we will do a modified closing sequence
- we will do a brief pranayama
- I will do the closing chant, same as the opening
- i will close the class and encourage you to take rest privately. if you have questions please stay on.

During the class I will give verbal explanations of the postures and I will give as many individual verbal cues as I can. If you do not understand a posture, if you feel that it is uncomfortable, then please stop and either wave (as you will be muted) for more explanation, or simply return to focus on your breathing in a natural position until we move on to the next posture.
After class I will be happy to try to answer specific questions if you have them.

opening chant
Om
vande gurūṇāṁ caraṇāravinde sandarśita svātma sukhāva bodhe |
niḥ-śreyase jaṅgali–kāyamāne saṁsāra hālāhala moha-śāntyai ||
ābāhu puruṣākāraṁ śankha – cakr – āsi dhāriṇam |
sahasra śirasaṁ śvetaṁ praṇamāmi patañjalim ||
Om


Translation
I bow to the lotus feet of the Supreme Teacher/Guru who reveals the happiness of Self-Realisation/Pure being which is beyond any joy we have experienced (beyond better):
who like the jungle physician removes the delusion caused by the great poison (Hala Hala) of conditioned existence (Samsara)
I prostrate before the sage Patanjali, who has thousands of radiant, white heads (as the divine serpent, Ananta) and who has, as far as his arms, assumed the form of a man holding a conch shell (divine sound), a wheel (discus of light or infinite time) and a sword (discrimination).
Closing chant

OM

 Swasthi prajabhyah / paripalayantam / Nyayena margena mahi mahishaha / Gobrahmanebhyaha / shubhamastu nityam / Lokaasamastha sukhino bhavanthu / OM shanti shanti shanti

May all be well with mankind / May the leaders of the earth protect in every way by keeping to the right path / May there be goodness for those who know the earth to be sacred / May all the worlds be happy

05/04/2020

New Class added! Tomorrow! Info below, please read, you need to register.

I apologise for the flood of messages. I think I am getting a handle on things… So, I am happy to let you know that I will be adding another class, beginning TOMORROW, Monday April 6 at 2pm EST / 7pm BST.

The plan going forward is for class every Monday at 2pm and every Friday at 2pm. For BOTH of these, please use this information

Topic: Ashtanga for All - Sasha
Time: Every Monday and Friday, 2pm-3pm

Join Zoom Class
https://zoom.us/j/369787481?pwd=aFZyeW1mNHFrbnQvUlVsUkhkNTRLUT09

Note that you will need A PASSWORD to join the class - a new feature in zoom so please allow a couple of extra minutes to log on. Message me privately or email me for the password (I can't post it to this page as it would breach security).

ALSO NOTE that I need to limit the class size to 9. It was lovely to see so many of you on Friday, but I wasn’t able to give you all the attention that you deserve. With nine students I can do that more effectively. So, if you want to attend class, I ask that you please use the registration on the Flying Lotus homepage to register no later than 1 hour before class.
The homepage is here http://flyinglotus.yoga/

If for some reason you can’t register there, you can email or message me directly.

I will also be recording some child and parent videos with Z, including ‘how your kids can help give you adjustments’ - yes, really! These will go on Youtube and if there is enough demand we can try a live class.

If you would like any additional resources to help you get the most out of these classes, or have specific questions, please email me.

And if you are able, please consider a donation to the Flying Lotus studio (via the webpage or by mailing a US check to Flying Lotus Yoga Center, 81 Main street, Canton, NY, 13617) to help keep this community yoga space afloat.

May you be healthy, may you be happy, may you be free from suffering, may you live with ease

With love
Sasha

YouTube Practice videos and pranayama are here https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxY-hvu0JmvuDnFSVNZFpMA/videos

A recording of Friday's class is available here https://zoom.us/rec/share/5tJ_LYrf83JLXImXsRrTdZxxP4nfT6a8hyMY8_sOyk2a8NOlWa-IifvNeW7iWmvV?startTime=1585764475000

Zoom is the leader in modern enterprise video communications, with an easy, reliable cloud platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars across mobile, desktop, and room systems. Zoom Rooms is the original software-based conference room solution used around the world in board, confer...