Perseverance & Persistance

Everywhere I look lately, it seems there's a common theme - a common feeling tone, if you will - of hurry up Spring! Of course here in Ithaca (where it's still super rainy and a bit cold for the season), and also all my social medias - I'm only on Instagram & FB ;) - seem riddled with wishes of something else. Something warmer. Something sunnier. Something more... beach like! 

Now, I'm thinking my Costa Rican friends are continuing to live the dream down there (takes a pause, looks out at the rain, wonders why she's not living in CR... haha), and I'm sure there are a few souls that like this kind of weather. Like I said, this is an overall vibe that I'm picking up on. And it got me thinking. I've been picking a new Hindu Deity to talk/teach about each month - in an effort to connect my students with some of the deeper aspects of yoga philosophy that I find to be really influential - and this month is the monkey god Hanuman.

Hanuman has some crazy stories! Most of them revolve around his love for Rama and Sita, and his deep devotion to them. In one of the stories, Rama's brother gets injured in battle and is dying, so Rama asks Hanuman to find this special herb that can save his brother's life. Hanuman immediately begins the quest to find this special herb. He has no idea what he is looking for, or even where to look frankly, but he keeps going. He keeps persisting, knowing that the magic is right around the corner, it has to be out here somewhere! 

He comes across this mountain, and notices that it is lush and beautiful - it's full of herbs! Now, which one is the cure for the brother's woes? Hanuman has no idea, and also he wants to complete his mission, he wants to save his friend - so he uses his powers and gets really big again (read more about the another time when he got big in my post "hidden strength") He picks up the whole mountain and brings it to Rama, who then saves the brothers life. 

The lesson I'm taking from Hanuman this rainy day is to keep going - keep trying - keep persisting and persevering. Even if you feel a giant mountain is in your way, return back to your breath and notice your inner strength. 

Here's to sunnier skies soon Ithaca!    

R

Hidden Strength

One of the most well known stories about Hanuman is his search for, and rescue of, Sita. Sita is Rama's wife, and Hanuman has a deep devotion to both of them. The whole story is depicted in the great Hindu text Ramayana, and I'll be going more in depth with Sita next month - she'll be the focus of my classes (and blog posts) for May. For now, the basic story is that she was tricked and then captured by Ravana, and held on an island against her will. Hanuman wanted to rescue her, but didn't really know how since she was over on the island, and it'd be hard to infiltrate. He really, really wanted to help, but didn't think that he could. 

Then, Rama reminded Hanuman of his hidden strength - he reminded him of his hidden powers. Hanuman is the son of the wind god Vayu, and has incredible strength that was hidden from him as a child after he tried to eat the sun (more on that in my post "yum, the sun's a mango!). Rama whispered in Hanuman's ear, reminding him of the power from his youth, and suddenly Hanuman grew very large and was able to see out over the ocean to the island of Lanka, where Sita was being held captive. Hanuman took a great leap across the ocean, basically making a split with his strong powerful legs, and this is where the Asana name for split pose comes from - HanumanASANA.

Once Hanuman gets to the island some other things happen (it's a long story!) and he ends up saving Sita, and bringing her back to Rama. The take away I want to highlight about this story - What is your hidden strength? Where are you keeping yourself small? How can you tap into your power? All of us end up with expectations, perceived requirements, masks, assignments that are given to us based on where we live or who we know or the culture we were born into or the gender we were born as. And all of these layers pile up, like Russian nesting dolls, one inside the other. Through practicing meditation and yoga, we can help remove some of those layers, getting a peak into, and access to our true self. And once we get that,  the power and possibilities just open up.

Be big today, take up space, don't stay small! 

xo,

R      

Where does it come from?

The Big Poster Book

of Hindu Deities

Written & Illustrated by Sanjay Patel

When I was in elementary school, I remember learning about Ancient Greek Mythology, and absolutely loving it. I can still remember the coloring book style handouts we would receive from our teacher; I would doodle along as he read the story, totally transfixed by the parables. As I studied yoga, I discovered a whole new set of Gods and Goddesses - the Hindu Deities, whose stories provide the backbone for not only Yoga Philosophy, but also many of the physical poses and postures.

 

*** side note! The poses/postures are called "Asana" - and it's in the name. If you go to a class where the yoga teacher uses any Sanskrit for the yoga postures, you'll hear it - triangle pose = trikonASANA, mountain pose = tadASANA, final resting pose = SavASANA ***  

There's a book that I have wanted for a while - I first saw it at my friend Keri's apartment in NYC. She has all of these really cool, graphically pleasing posters hanging up, and when I asked her about it, she told me they were from The Big Poster Book of Hindu Deities by Sanjay Patel (image above). I received the book as a gift over the holidays, and I've been picking a new Hindu Deity to talk and teach about each month in an effort to connect my students with some of the deeper aspects of yoga philosophy that I find to be really influential. I began in February with Ganesha, March was Krishna, and April has been Hanuman. Everyone in class seems to really be enjoying the link, and some people have even sent me their favorite story or a video tat they've found about the deity I've featured. I love this way of connecting with my class, and wanted to expand that into my digital community - so many of you have taken class with me in the past, whether you used to live in Ithaca, or you've been to a workshop with me, or we've spent a week together in the jungle of Costa Rica!  

I want to stay connected to you, and I hope you will enjoy these blog posts as I delve deeper into the aspects of each deity over the coming months. I'll also be playing catch up on the past deities, Ganesha, Krishna, and we are in Hanuman. Each month is a different Deity, each week a different aspect of them that I find cool or interesting.

Take care, xoxo - 

R

* Sailboat photo by Robert Stokoe from Pexels - https://www.pexels.com/photo/white-boat-on-sea-during-golden-time-717501/