Yoga ~ Anne Nowell

On Saturday June 28,  I returned to Yoganic Studio to work with a group of friends and students in developing the theme of personal practice. One of my observations as an instructor and studio owner is that as our lives become busy with children, job, and social responsibilities, our yoga practice is often abandoned. If we change our definition of practice to include short sequences, or lifestyle routines, which include some breathing and moving, possibly we can find 5, 10, or 20 minutes a day to call yoga. By allowing ourselves to adapt our yoga to accommodate our lifestyles, there is the potential of maintaining consistency. Eventually we realize that the practice of yoga is the living of life, moment to moment and breath to breath.

Thank you to Yoganic Studio and to  friends in San Diego!!

Please click on the flier for a full view.

Our beloved teacher, aka Guru, has passed on. With sorrow in our hearts at saying goodbye, there is also the joy of knowing he is free from the suffering of the body, and of his reunion with Love beyond the physical.

I first met Pattabhi Jois in 1986 during his summer intensive at the White Lotus Foundation in Santa Barbara. At that time John Friend and I were “buddies” and as John was participating in the intensive, he invited me to visit for the weekend.  I was living in LA and teaching at Samata International, therefore it was an easy trip. Since Guruji was virtually unknown, many of his early students were there and it was fun to be involved. I was immersed in Viniyoga training at that time and I did not reconnect with Guruji’s practice until 1988 on Maui, Hawaii.  From then on it was the love of Ashtanga that kept me moving between Encinitas, Hawaii, and Mysore, India.

Although I was not one of his “very” close students I was so fortunate to be with him at the time when he was strong and virile, and when there were only 12 students on the mat at the old Mysore Shala.  I have always been amazed at his capacity for being there when you needed him, and for his memory of who you were and where you were in your practice.  He was indeed one of a kind!

In 1995 when I was in Mysore and attended Guruji’s birthday celebration in July, I was heavy of heart from a broken romance.  Going through a punk rock phase (you know the 90’s grunge scene!) I was practicing very fast and furious and everyone thought I was nuts, except Guruji.  He loved me and would say “Briskly Do, Briskly Do”.  He was allowing for my need to work off my angst.

The last time I saw him was in 2005 on the Encinitas phase of his tour.  By then there were 100’s of students and he was getting the allocade and wealth that he deserved.  He still had the memory of “Annie” aka me, as the “bad lady” that I am,  and he would give me that little squeeze from behind to show his love and approval.

Many things have been said and written about Pattabhi Jois, much of it true, some of it opinion.  One thing is for certain, there will never be another to totally fill his sandals!  Guruji, you will always be in our hearts!

Mount Madonna, under the guidance of Baba Hari Das, is known for being a proponent of Karma Yoga. Karma Yoga generally refers to the practice of offering one’s work efforts as a form of prayer/devotion without attachment to the results. This is easy to say, but we all like to receive a desired result for our efforts, be it the paycheck, the allocades, or the fulfillment of “do good” tendencies.  It takes practice to develop non-attachment to the outcome of our efforts. As in any form of yoga, and in the words of our beloved Ashtanga teacher, Pattabhi Jois, “Practice and all will come.”  In the following photos we get a view of some of the Karma Yoga opportunities at the Mount Madonna Center. For a larger view please click back and forth.

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A position called Field Staff involves setting up, cleaning, and breaking down conference rooms. The conferences can be from 15 to 100+ people. In the first two photos, Ivan from New York, Jennifer from Vancouver, and I (yes, this is my new hairdo!!) set off for work.  With the cart we transport chairs, tables, meditation cushions, and yoga props. In the third photo, Mary from Wisconsin, and Glenda from Canada, load the recycling truck.

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Kitchen duty!  Shakar from Canada, who is also a Celtic musician;  Ashley from Idaho and Mary Craig from Tennessee peeling avocadoes for dinner; Kranti, long time resident of Mount Madonna, with the pasta sauce.

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With Mary mopping up after dinner; tortilla frisbee with Shakar ; In the dishwashing room, sometimes as many as 200 meals to clean up with many pots and pans. The red dot on my forehead is called a tilak.  In Hinduism it represents a protection to the mind against negative outside influences.

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Mary and I at tea service with Nasrat from Afghanistan; 3 days per week Baba Hari Das offers British/ Indian afternoon tea for his guests. We serve chai and herb tea, cookies, and open faced petite sandwiches.
In the kitchen with the happy karma yogis, Mary Craig and Ashley.

Yes, there are many great people and we have lots of fun.  Lessons in community living include dealing with the personalities of many strangers in close quarters and all sorts of attitudes regarding the practices of yoga.  I highly recommend Mount Madonna as an incredible learning experience!

On April 28^th I arrived at the Mount Madonna Center in the Sierra foothills 25 miles from the city of Santa Cruz, CA. Mount Madonna is a yoga community and retreat center founded by students of Yoga Master Baba Hari Das. One of my primary goals for being here is to vacation from “Big City” life and to be closer to nature.

Mount Madonna offers a work exchange program in which outsiders are given a taste of living in a yoga community. In the coming weeks I will post some of the photos and thoughts of life at Mount Madonna. In this post let me show you around the facility.

Photo captions           Please click back and forth for a better view.
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Welcome, the Entrance Sign;  Surrounding Groves;  Map of buildings
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The Aum Grove;  Lion’s Head Waterfall;  Community Building for meetings and meals
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The School, for ages Pre-school to 12th grade; The Temple Founder’s Stone;  The Temple Entrance
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The Hanuman Statue in the Inner Temple Sanctum;  Buddha stone Niche;  Pine Grove
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My home for 8 weeks;  even in Paradise, a Cafe ;  Hanuman, the Hindu God of  Service and Valor

When I arrived to San Diego in 1997 I had no idea that I would sit down permanently, or that I would open a yoga studio. Two studios and 11 years later (!!!) I have tied up the loose ends of my time here and will be moving onto another phase of my life and career. It has been a wonderful blessing and learning experience to live in “America’s Finest City”. The 7 years of owning the Astanga Yoga Centers and the 2 years with the Yoganic Studio have introduced me to many extraordinarily beautiful people. All of you hold a special place in my heart! I do expect that our paths will cross again.

Thank you San Diego! You have truly made my decade!

Please enjoy these photos taken at a “Bon Voyage” event given in the home of Nancy Caciola and Richard Cohen. Muchas Gracias to all you party planners and well wishers! Please click on the photos back and forth for a larger view.

Those who “model” yoga poses know that a good photo is a combination of lighting, skill of the photographer, and some understanding of the postures. For every good shot there are many attempts. I have been blessed in my career as a yoga instructor to have worked with several fine photographers.

As I move into maturity I would hope the outcome of a photo session would likewise reflect that maturity. I feel in these photos photographer, Yvonne Venegas, has captured the essence of my yoga in 2009. Life in middle age has many gifts not the least of which is no longer needing to prove oneself. I look forward to aging gracefully and embracing the strength and power of the “crone” years.

Thanks to Yvonne, her father and daughter for the beautiful outcome of Photos Spring 2009. Many thanks to our Gurus, K Pattabhi Jois & T Krishnamacharya, and to all of you who have shared thus far in my yoga journey.

Namaste

After 8 months of study, experimentation with different styles, and practicing yoga together I am pleased to certify six beautiful ladies as Yoga Instructors. The emphasis in the course has been the techniques of the Krishnamacharya lineage which includes rigorous Ashtanga Vinyasa, precise Iyengar techniques, and therapeutic Viniyoga methods. I feel confident that the newly certified Yoga Teachers will have the knowledge to use yoga in ways that will be beneficial to many students by addressing the needs of their students. By meeting the qualifications of the Yoga Alliance, the new instructors can be certified as RYT’s (Registered Yoga Teachers). Please enjoy the photos of our graduation ceremonies and festivities. You can click on the images for a larger view.

Course Instructors: Anne Nowell and Skyler Myers
Course Participants: Samantha Smith, Lisa Marchesini, Anne Nowell, Adesh Kaur, Skyler Myers, Keryna Johnson, Janet Dehart, Jennifer Shultz

Graduation Smiles!
Keryna Johnson
Janet Dehart

Jennifer Shultz
Samantha Smith

Adesh Kaur Khalsa
Lisa Marchesini

Artist Laura Rogan gifted the graduates with beautiful henna tattoos.
Kirtan (devotional music) performer, Thierry, performed on sitar and harmonium, leading the group in devotional chanting.

Happy Graduates: Lisa and Adesh
Happy Directors: Anne and Devi Kirn (Yoganic Studio’s Assistant Manager)

Congratulations Ladies!
Please enjoy these new instructors as they offer classes through out San Diego.

On a cold December afternoon (yes, even in San Diego there is winter!) our Teacher Training group met to complete their course work with a final exam. In order to become registered as a Yoga Instructor through Yoga Alliance, there is a specific syllabus involving practical, theoretical, and philosophical criteria. In the past 7 months our group has logged 200 hours of training in the teaching of asana as fitness and therapy,  in studying the necessary philosophical and theoretical foundations of yoga,  and participating in related studies such as Ayurveda and Anatomy.

The photos show the practical teaching portion as well as the written Q&A and essay examinations. I am happy to report that all the candidates did exceptionally well in their exams! Please excuse the poor lighting in the photos.  Stay tuned for graduation!