COURTNEY ROHAN YOGA

I’ve never been a morning person until now. Never scheduled classes or anything before 9, if I could help it. But there is something special about the morning, before sunrises, which can not be overlooked. In the darkness of this part of the day, what is seen is bright and available. Before our bunch of thoughts start merging and converging and feet get to stepping, the world and the energies of peace do their thing. On Monday, I started my first ever donation class at 6:30am in California at the Windsor Yoga Haus . Everything about that statement is new for me. I am binding the habit of telling myself that I am not able to function in the early morning. The easiest way for me to do this is to get up and into the day, in seva, selfless service. Rising to create and harvest unity of body, mind and spirit  instills a purpose. To be able to present an offering at this hour is precious. With the sun rising as class begins, the sky and hearts alight and align; I am moved. We are all m

I love Thanksgiving! It is hands down one of my favorite holidays. I love the idea of gatherings happening across country and a time of eating. Though we could work out that aspect of things in a healthier way, collectively, since there really are many things to eat that are healthy! ( Be sure to check out how to curve this pattern of overeating below. ) If you know me, you know I love to eat! And it excites me that giving thanks is more than gathering and eating. This holiday happens to fall strategically in the middle of a season of contemplation, when many things that once were transform. It is a sacred time of becoming something else to give The One glory.  We all know this transformation. We have done it before in various ways, big and small, seasonally, cellularly, egotistically, spiritually. The beauty of the outdoors during this time of year pricelessly shows us how wonderful and beautiful the process of transformation can be.  And with these big brains of ours, we of

Relationships can feel like delicious treats or deplorable tricks, and the song that we hear each Halloween begs us to make a choice: “Trick or Treat?” Relationships and Halloween both full of choice. And, it has always been this way.  The origins of Halloween being about the dead and our relationship to them long before there was a song to wield in which to gross candy. Beginning in the seventh century with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off roaming ghosts the day before the Celtic New Year. This was a very superstitious time, “when the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31, it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth. In addition to causing trouble and damaging crops, Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. For a people entirely depe

Firsts are profound. A first kiss or a first love as horrendous or blissful as the breeze on a Spring day that lifts your skirt to the crowd or gently caresses your face.  The momentum that a first brings if we are paying attention could be the difference between something taking a year, a month, or a minute to experience. The difference between deciding that's not it, let's try again, or knowing what you want so clearly that there is nothing that could prevent its happening. That's the power of the firsts.  Asha and Sael at the Eats Festival in Oakland Since being in California, there have been a lot of firsts for me. I've been trying for the purposes of this blog to recall them all. I have been blessed with so many. We all are, everyday. And, if we really take stock, so many could be categorized as great!! Boston's first city bus ride (that he can remember) and father-led driving lesson, my first dip in the cold Pacific Ocean, my nieces Sael and Asha mee

I have been making lots of "mistakes" lately, feeling like they were happening to me as opposed to the other possibility. I was creating.  I was creating scenarios in my thoughts unconsciously, and then as I watched events play out, they were much different then I thought they should be. This is not new for me. The mature being is not tossed about by these supposed mishaps, but takes them in stride and sees the opportunity that these "mistakes" present. It is time for maturity in my life, but that is not always what I find. The opportunity to admit a mistakes happens, without fail, daily and perfectly, and sometimes it just plan comes on the wrong day at the wrong time. No matter when it comes though, the opportunity to perk up for the lesson is key. If we can make use of this, without shunning or condemning the self, we can grow character, and further, hope. If we are to call ourselves conscious creators, mature, in any sense of the term, we must practice

I can't believe that I am moving. I thought the day would never come. Living away from my husband for almost two years, waiting for the day when he would call me and tell me that he is ready for my son and I to come join him, made the day he called feel like a dream. I have had to do a lot of preparing to make this move to California, emotionally and physically. I have had to let a lot of things go. There are no regrets here, just observances (though I can't say it has been easy). However the tapas, heat, that I have had to face has melted and rounded my edges. Sleeping on the floor on a very cushy palate and chilling on my meditation mats because all of my furniture is sold has been for the better. Scaling down has shown me that we really don't need that much. The other day I asked my friend which forks I should keep, and then I knew I'd lost it. I had surrendered to God, Isvara pranidhana. With nothing to lose, there is everything to gain. Yoga teaches us this.

Inspiration for Upcoming Class An excerpt from  Practice,  by Courtney Rohan    Modified Bhujangasana Recently, I watched a movie called:  Eat the Sun  on Gaiam. Though the movie conveyed an extreme use of the sun, it reminded me how vital the sun is for the body, mind and spirit. In the movie, sun gazers look at the sun for up to 41 minutes a day! Wow! Burning the retina, but able to eat less and attempt feats of great strength as a result. Nonetheless, the benefits of sunlight are many. Though too much of anything can be damaging, we all need the sun’s light. If we can take in the amount that will allow us to flourish, and use its bounty, we can heal and do more with our time in the body. As within the  movie, we too can tap further into a deep and profound  inner strength. The Practice  June 11th will be our next opportunity to excite the practice for FREE at SC Blue, Irmo. Flow with me through the varying ideas found within the Sun Salutations and create new experiences in