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Introducing Rocket Yoga

To the Shala, with love from Megna Paula:

It is both a joy and an honor to introduce Rocket Yoga to the Shala! We have a 14 year long history of being the yoga home for both traditional Mysore teachings of Ashtanga, as well as space for Vinyasa classes that honor the foundations of traditional lineages. A few yogis of our community have experienced the Rocket in San Francisco, where it was created in the spirit of the rebellious 60s and 70s. Rocket classes still carry that laid back West Coast creative vibe, in a way that translates as bright NYC energy.

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Jocelyne Stern teaching Mysore at the Shala

The Shala is excited and honored to welcome Jocelyne Stern to the Mysore Ashtanga program. She will be teaching Monday through Wednesday 6:15 to 8:15am in Union Square. A wealth of knowledge, wisdom and experience, Jocelyne has been practicing and teaching Ashtanga Yoga for over 30 years.

BIO

Jocelyne Stern is an Ashtanga Yoga and meditation teacher. She made her first trip to India in 1986, where she learned yoga from Rudra Gowda in Rishikesh and Swami Gitananda in Pondicherri. She was first introduced to Ashtanga Yoga by Derek Ireland and Radha, and worked with them for several years at the Practice Place, a yoga retreat center in Crete. In 1991, she made the first of many trips to Mysore to study with Pattabhi Jois and Sharath Jois. She has been teaching since 1995, when she co-founded the Patanjali Yoga Shala with her husband, Eddie. After the birth of their daughter, their yoga shala moved to Broome Street and became Ashtanga Yoga New York, and Jocelyne taught there periodically over the following 15 years. In 2015, Ashtanga Yoga New York moved to Brooklyn, where Jocelyne continued to teach and also co-created Sadhu Elixir, a healing oil. She practices Vipassana meditation and has attended many Vipassana retreats. She was given Kamala Masters's blessing to teach Metta meditation in 2015. Jocelyne teaches meditation and yoga alongside Eddie at international retreats, and works with homeless men and other at-risk communities.

women’s march prep

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teacher sherry russell recently called on the shala’s love army to generate signage for the women’s marches happening in washington, d.c. and here in nyc (not to mention all over the country!). we think these gorgeous signs and banners will lend some much-needed color and joyful tenacity to the enormous gatherings taking place this inauguration weekend.

 

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self-care at the shala

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on a mild evening in early january, maria rubinate and ashley dorr treated both new and familiar faces to a cozy self-care workshop, including light asana practice, pranayama, art therapy, and a tutorial in seasonal ayurveda. one of the focuses of the workshop was how to identify and address symptoms of vicarious trauma as a result of intense, challenging, and emotionally-charged fields of works. it was a remarkably educational and soothing event, and we’re excited to hear that maria and ashley are considering making this a regular happening.

fort greene garden

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our fort greene garden has come a long way!

thank you to all the students and teachers who kept our garden watered and cared for this summer. it looks beautiful and well-loved!

Fort Greene Garden Update

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A big thank you to Maria Rubinate for organizing the garden restoration project, and to Maureen, Claire, and Calvin (among others), who aided in the transformation of the Shala’s green space. It took a tremendous amount of work (which is still ongoing) to dig up and remove decades of debris. If you are interested in lending a hand, please speak with Maria Rubinate or sign up on the Fort Greene Shala bulletin board. Gardening season is near!

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yoga sutra 1.4

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Drawing for Spiral Jetty, Great Salt Lake, Utah, Robert Smithson, 1970

1.4 वृत्तिसारूप्यमितरत्र ।।४।।

vṛtti-sārūpyam-itaratra

At other times (itaratra), it takes the form (sarupyam) of the mental activities (vritti). or: Conformity to the operations elsewhere.

It is natural for our minds to identify with our thoughts and with the objects around us. This is the basis of avidya, or ignorance of our real Self — confounding all the changeable things around us with our own true nature. This true nature (atman, purusha, soul, the seer) is said to be eternal and unchanging, and is pure awareness.

This sutra tells us that when we lose touch with our own being, chitta (the mind, or thinking faculty) manifests itself in place of the seer. We then become bound by time and space.

When the mind is not resting in its own true being, it takes the shape of the vrittis. We think the thoughts we have are who we really are. This avidya, the source of all suffering, clouds our perception. When we ‘clean’ our minds our thoughts and actions are not colored and dictated by our misperceptions.

With practice, we can avoid behaving in ways we don’t intend, and can stop ourselves from saying things we regret. Practice allows us to make a habit of being true to ourselves. This intention becomes a habit of awareness. Though we will fluctuate back and forth, identifying ourselves with our mental activities, we can catch ourselves and let go.

Vyaas Houston of the American Sanskrit Institute has said:

“If I don’t remain the seer, continually aware of the field; if nirodhah is not occurring, there is conformity to the vritti. I never lose my original identity — I just think I do.

One or the other is taking place. Either yoga is taking place or there is identity with vritti.”

— Jenny Meyer + Barbara Verrochi