 | "My heart has been closed ever since I was betrayed!" "I cannot be open again as I don't want to experience the hurt again!" "Being open means being vulnerable, and this is a weakness!" This and many such statements have just become too common these days! I have heard it both from my students and friends, as well as I have heard me telling them myself. True, betrayal is painful. Wounds run deep and often take longer to heal than we desire. Yet, closing our hearts is betraying and stealing us from the chance to live a full and purposeful life. Every organ in the body functions optimally when it is open. The eyes can see when it is open. The ears can hear when it is open. The hands can offer or receive only when open. The mind can learn only when open. In that same manner, the heart can only connect when open. It cannot connect when it is closed. This is by very nature the design of how it has been intended to function. And without a heart connection, be it with our intimate partner, family, friends, students, teachers or any other being on this planet, we cannot have a meaningful and deep relationship. And we can extend it to non-sentient things such as our jobs, hobbies and other avenues through which we experience this world. We cannot enjoy these profoundly valuable things unless the heart is open. Just because our eyes have a splinter and it hurts, does it mean we don't open our eyes again? Don't we try very hard to remove the splinter so we can see again clearly? And when there is wax in our ears, that blocks our hearing, don't we get rid of it so that we can hear better? In the same manner, just because the heart is hurt, we must not close it forever, but rather, try to resolve the hurt by stepping back, learning the lesson and once again eventually reopen this most vital part of our existence. The heart is like a parachute and works only when it is open. I have experienced both sides, and I have found more meaning in keeping my heart open than closed. So I invite you to consider the same and remain with your heart open dear friends... Life is worth it! Namaste! Dr. Kaustubha Desikachar
The Viniyoga® Tradition
To connect with Dr Kaustubha Desikachar on Linkedin, click here>
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Explained by Dr. Kausthub Desikachar Yogasūtra I.44 – etayaiva savicara nirvicara ca suksma-visaya vyakhyata Indeed, in the same way, [the third and fourth levels] Savicara[-samapatti] and Nirvicara[-samapatti] are explained, where the object of focus is subtle. In the previous two sutras, 1.42 and 43, Patanjali described two lower levels of samadhi, Savitarka-samapatti and Nirvitarka-samapatti, both concerned with gross objects of focus. Gross objects of focus can be grasped by the senses, like the sun, the physical form of a deity or a person. Savitarka is when memory and imagination interfere. When we refine that by going deeper into the samapatti, we get to Nirvitarka, a pure state of perception, a pure connection, where even the sense of self seems to be missing. Now Patanjali extends this to subtle objects of focus - suksma visaya. Similarly – etayaiva, savicara nirvicara ca – are known, based on subtle objects of focus. Subtle objects are beyond the senses. Some can only be felt or experienced through deep feelings, transcending emotions – concepts like love and compassion; or it could be subtle objects in our body, like the deep breath or the subtle elements, the tanmatra-s. These objects of focus are considered suksma visaya. When samadhi is focused on these subtle objects it becomes Vicara-samapatti. Patanjali reminds us that even with these subtle objects of focus, there will be at least two levels – in savicara there will be interferences from memory, imagination, etc. For instance, if you are meditating on what is love, your own imagination and memories may interfere with the samadhi, the deep connection with this concept: this is Savicara-samapatti – sa smrti (with memory) vikalpa (imagination)… sahita samapatti. The more we sustain this state, the deeper we go, memories and imagination will be refined, reduced, smrti parisuddhau, and even the sense of the self meditating on that focus, will disappear – svarupa sunyam iva, as if the meditator is absent. Only the feeling of love will exist, with pure clarity: that is Nirvicara samapatti.
The hierarchy of these four levels of samadhi presented in 1.42-44 is Savitarka-samapatti, then Nirvitarka-samapatti, then we will be able to go to subtle objects with, first, Savicara-samapatti and then Nirvicara-samapatti . So, the meaning of 1.44 is: similarly, we are able to experience Savicara- and Nirvicara-samapatti, when the object of focus is subtle. To listen to the audio explanation of this Yogasūtra, visit here -->
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In part seven of our videos about the great contributions of Sri TKV Desikachar in the field of Yoga, we talk about the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram (KYM).
Because of Sri TKV Desikachar’s travels around the world in the 1960s and the 1970s, many students wanted to come to India to study, especially in the Viniyoga tradition. Sri TKV Desikachar in 1976 created the KYM as an offering to his father Sri TK Krishnamacharya, which would work as a centre for people to learn about this tradition in India. He created this centre exclusively for the purposes of teaching in India, because its tax-exempt status, as a non-profit public charitable trust, allowed it to operate only in India. It became a hub for people, not only from all over the world but also from India, who came to learn about different aspects of Viniyoga under his direction. Many people came to the KYM not only to study, but also to receive yoga as a therapeutic treatment, because that was the most important focus for the KYM. Under the guidance of Sri TKV Desikachar, the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram (KYM) became most probably the first Yoga Therapy clinic in the world, and it was also an invaluable resource for Yoga teachers to learn, in the golden period of Sri TKV Desikachar’s teaching until he retired. Nowadays, the KYM still operates as a Yoga Therapy clinic. It is an excellent place for interested people to have an introduction to the Viniyoga tradition, to receive therapeutic help and to remember and honor TKV Desikachar’s legacy.
The formation of the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram (KYM) is another beautiful contribution of Sri TKV Desikachar to the field of Yoga. Let us hope that all the current students and teachers will continue to represent his legacy. Watch the full video here>
| | Viniyoga® Teacher of the Month! | Hello, I am Régine Crombez, I am 52 years old.I live in Brussels with my husband, our 2 children aged 22 and 15 and my dog. I am interested in herbalism and permaculture. I am a great lover of nature !
I have been practicing for about twenty years, first Ygengar Yoga then Viniyoga which was deeper. I took classes with Philip Rigo to become a Yoga teacher. Since then I give group lessons. It was Philip who offered me to follow individual sessions with Kausthuba. I jumped on the train of Yoga therapy classes offered by Kausthuba in 2016 in Brussels. This complementary training is a real deepening on oneself. It allows me to create adapted sessions using all the tools of Yoga, which gives another dimention to the session. Currently, I offer 2 group classes and occasionally Yoga therapeutic sessions. I'm growing convinced that I have a role to play. In a world in full transformation, Yoga has not finished impressing us. It will help transform the most devoted. Currently it is the therapeutic Yoga that becomes my priority. If you have tips to touch a wider public, share with other Yoga teacher. I will be offering more individual courses in the coming months.
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What I often see is people disconnected from their bodies and unaware of their breathing. It is an important step for me to coordinate movements and breathing to gradually make them aware of the divine part in them. I'm confident because I know that I am not alone. I often ask the Divine to help me. I am happy when I feel that I have been able to restore this connection of belonging to Nature. Then I know that something has changed because these practices gradually change the mind.It allows me to awake the students to their internal understandings and illuminate their true nature. It is so fascinating and beautiful at the same time. I now understand how the âsanas help to practice yamâ and niyamâ! I thank all my Yoga teachers with all my heart, particularly Kausthuba for its last module in April 2023 which was like a cure for me . Namaste Régine Régine Crombez can be reached at lautrerive@hotmail.be
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Our Vedic Chant Teacher Training program has become as popular all over the world as it offers people a chance to learn and become teachers of Vedic chanting. We are one of the few organisations to offer this certification and have conducted this program in many countries in the world. The main faculty for the program will be Mrs Menaka Desikachar, and ably assisted by her long term students. This inspirational training will: ▪ Provide an insight into the origin and evolution of the Veda-s and their content and scope.
▪ Present Vedic chanting as a powerful tradition that is as relevant in the 21st Century as it was a thousand years ago.
▪ Help students practice Vedic chanting keeping in line with the rules and pedagogy of chanting.
▪ Help students experience Vedic chanting as an important tool in the process of meditation.
▪ Offer an understanding of the application of Vedic chanting for health and healing.
▪ Help improve memory and enhance capacity of listening.
| ▪ | Provide an insight into the origin and evolution of the Veda-s and their content and scope. | | ▪ | Present Vedic chanting as a powerful tradition that is as relevant in the 21st Century as it was a thousand years ago. | | ▪ | Help students practice Vedic chanting keeping in line with the rules and pedagogy of chanting. | | ▪ | Help students experience Vedic chanting as an important tool in the process of meditation. | | ▪ | Offer an understanding of the application of Vedic chanting for health and healing. | | ▪ | Help improve memory and enhance capacity of listening. | All sessions will be recorded in audio so that those who miss a session can easily catch up the missed classes. All successful graduates will be issued accredited Viniyoga® Chant Teacher certification from Krishnamacharya Healing & Yoga Foundation and are eligible to be officially listed in the Viniyoga International Registry For detailed information on this course or to register, visit here>
| SELF EMPOWERMENT & HEALING THROUGH BODY, BREATH, MIND & SPIRIT! |
For those of you who wish to be part of the best Yoga Therapy Training in the world, here is a lecture presentation about the upcoming Viniyoga Thrapy Training in Brussels. The presentation is bilingual in English and French, but it is worth the watch! You can also listen to compelling testimonies of some of the previous participants on how the training has impacted them deeply, personally, and spiritually. Perhaps this is the encouragement you need to join our excellent upcoming training. Watch the full video here - https://youtu.be/Dsj2WsAox9A Viniyoga offers the best Yoga Therapy Training in the world and attracts participants from every corner of the globe to be part of this transformational training. Participants who are seeking for deep and in-depth learning that they cannot find anywhere else, often find all their answers during this training. This course is bilingual. It will be conducted in English and translated into French. The main faculty for this training program will be Dr Kausthub Desikachar. For detailed information on this course or to register, visit here>
Testimonial from Annalisa B, Italy
I had attended three other Teacher Trainings in Italy, and they were decisive formative experiences in my evolutionary and cognitive journey. Still, when I made contact with the teachings conveyed by Master Dr Kaustubha Desikachar, I realized that I had landed on knowledge and a mode of transmission that I had never found before. The Yoga Therapy Training has allowed me to learn new tools for teaching yoga, especially in the one-to-one approach. Understanding the rationale behind the teaching choice in proposing one āsana or prāṇāyāma instead of another has allowed me to know how to reason independently in choosing the proposals I teach.
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