Pinnacle Yoga

PRETTY NEAT These wooden asanas were a Christmas present to my wife and me from a niece. Not as flexible as hand-drawn stick figures, maybe, but pretty nifty.

2021 CLASSES Happy New Year. Classes start in this week at the usual times. Virtual, of course. Tuesdays at 5:45 pm for 1 1/4 hours,... Wednesdays at 9:45 for 1 hour. The session lasts through the first week of March. E-mail me at [email protected] for the zoom links. See more

VIRTUAL TEACHER TRAINING OPPORTUNITY My teacher Francois Raoult is offering his 200 hour teacher training on line, starting in January. Francois started teaching yoga in the 1970s, and studied with B.K.S. Iyengar himself in Pune, India, many times. His peers and classmates include many other well-known teachers, such as Judith Lasater and John Schumacher. I have studied with him for over thirty years and have always been impressed by his depth of understanding. He has man...y unique interests, including the yoga of sound. He teaches workshops throughout North America and Europe. He began offering teacher trainings in 2003 (my year) and in recent years has added Montreal and Brussels. A few years ago Francois moved back to his native France but until this year he has continued to teach several times a year in Rochester, in addition to workshops. This training will include asana, pranayama, anatomy, philosophy, ayurveda, and Sanskrit. I know several of the teachers well. Carla Anselm, the main asana teacher, was a classmate of mine in the 2003 training. She is a gifted asana practitioner and a perceptive and creative teacher. Douglas Brooks, one of my Sanskrit teachers, is a well-known yoga scholar, specializing in tantra. Richard Rosen is a nationally prominent teacher from Oakland whose books include The Yoga of Breath, Yoga for Fifty Plus, and Original Yoga. In addition, I have known Jim Thompson for many years, Michael Amy for a few. Please pass on this information, or consider joining yourself!

MOUNTAIN POOL MEDITATION One of my favorite meditation practices is called Sky Lake Meditation. Typically, this comes toward the end of the practice when the mind has been quieted. The idea is that once your mind has been freed from the worries about the day, or the aches and pains, or even a specific emotional state, you are free to perceive accurately whatever is theresounds, the breeze, food smells, or the light filtering through your eyelids. ... The name comes from the idea that the mind is like the calm surface of the mountain lake, reflecting the clouds, the sky, and any other objects with perfect accuracy. This is a Buddhist practice, but the more Hindu yogic tradition uses the same image to describe samadhi: when the mind is calm and free from mental activity (vrttis) and memories (samskaras) it can understand the true nature of things. The difference between these two approaches is that in the yogic point of view the mind is reflecting ultimate reality, whereas in the mindfulness view it’s simply open to whatever phenomena present themselves. AT ANY RATE Sky lake meditation is one of my favorite practices, except rather than imagining the surface of the lake, I tend to gravitate down into the water. I feel that I’m immersed in the world around me beginning with the sense of space and, again, whatever other stimuli are present. I’m actually in that crystal clear mountain lake. In October, while hiking in the White Mountains on a sunny day, I came across several mountaintop pools left from the previous day’s rain. They weren’t lakes, but the clarity and beauty of the water (you could see all the wayseveral inches!to the bottom) reminded me of sky lake meditation. ------------- A recent discussion of Sky Lake and similar meditations by my mindfulness teacher Frank Jude Boccio appears in Yoga Journal from 2017. https://www.yogajournal.com/meditation/be-the-sky

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER SCHEDULE Hi all, Classes continue at the usual times from now until Christmas.... Mostly. The Tuesday evening class will meet at the regular time of 6:45, including Thanksgiving week and Christmas week (12/22). The morning Over Fifty class will also meet at the regular time of 9:45, but it will meet on Tuesday both Thanksgiving week (11/24) and Christmas week (12/22). Stay safe, healthy, and sane.

SANSKRIT COMING UP Francois Raoult of Open Sky has asked me to do a Sanskrit component for his upcoming virtual teacher training. It's looking like this will be about five Friday mornings in March and April. It will cover Sanskrit sounds, the Devanagari alphabet, and discussion of yoga words and chants. ... This will also be available as a stand-alone class (that is, you can do Sanskrit alone). Cost and exact schedule remain TBD, but anyone interested can contact me at [email protected]. I should say I think it will be available time-shifted. Thanks. Stay safe and vote.

MORE SILLY BENDIES It’s been a while since I posted any bendy poses, so today you’re in for a double. To tell the truth the models have been waiting in position for some time. 1. I don’t know what to say about the Martian’s headstand. Doing it with your neck bent that far back, and with the supporting arms behind? I don’t know-- it’s easy enough using the wall, but no balance so far. ... I’m going to stick with doing it the normal way, with the spine as upright as possible. 2. Side angle on your heels? Feet the wrong direction? Weight on the hand? Are you kidding?

POSTER AND SCHEDULE FOR THE NEXT FIVE WEEKS Not sure why I got myself doing five-week sessions. Not that it matters much. Anyway, this "session" runs from today (Oct. 13) through Wednesday, November 11.... There will be classes on election day and the morning after. Be safe and vote.

AUGUST YOGA Hi all-- Happy August! Pinnacle is back in session. The August schedule remains the same: ... Tuesday at 5:45 for 1 hour and 15 minutes, Wednesday morning at 9:45 for 1 hour. There may not be class one of the later weeks in August but I'll keep you posted. Price will be $48 for four classes ($12 per), or $36 low income ($9 per), and $15 for single classes. Check or Paypal Contact me [email protected] or (585) 747-2718 for the Zoom links. ----------- -----------

SUPPORTED STANDING POSES? One group of asanas that has always baffled me is the supported standing forward bends. Supported uttanasana, supported prasarita, and (I include) supported dog: these are allegedly restorative poses, but I just don’t get it. The support is something under your head a block, say, but maybe more if you’re not very low. I never understood why my head needed support, and I usually try to get down to the support, so these relaxation poses ten...d to become hard work. And if I’m not trying, well, I can hang in uttanasana all by myself. BUT I must have had a breakthrough. I’ve recently noticed that I often reach for a block in prasarita. It feels nice to put my forehead on something, and with my legs wide I can relax into it, or onto it. You wouldn’t want to stay here too long. Maybe just twenty or thirty seconds, and no more than a few minutes. (I came across a sequence Iyengar gave in Austin in 1993 which included 3-5 minutes in supported uttanasana). Be careful coming back up, especially if you are prone to light-headedness. Soften or bend the knees, come up slowly, keeping the head low. You can also go down to the floor rather than standing up. The main recommendation is to have your forehead on the block, but the top of the head can work also. Check it out!

OOPS-- FORGOT THE BENDIES!!!

BREATHING AND MEDITATION Breath is life. Yoga people know this as well as anyone. Although not as well as George Floyd and Eric Garner.... We can breathe, so at the end of my classes this week I’ve made the following offering: Let us take a few breaths for the George Floyds of the world. Let us take a few breaths for the angry protesters of the world. Let us take a few breaths for the hopeful demonstrators. ---- Also this week I have been giving my metta bhavana (loving-kindess meditation) an especially societal orientation. Normally one meditates for oneself, then for othersa loved one, a neutral person, etc. This week the focus has been outward. My meditation has six parts: May I have courage. May I have confidence. May I be compassionate. May I be at peace. May I be safe. May I be free of pain. The courage and confidence (which often run together) are about facing whatever challenges are before me. So it’s the wish that each of us AND all of us have courage, confidence, compassion, peace, safety, and freedom from pain. - Mental peace and societal peace. - I almost always feel safe personally, so I substitute May I be at ease. Obviously, not everyone has the luxury of safety. - And this week, being pain-free is most obviously about anger, fear, want, and oppression.

LATE SPRING VIRTUAL SESSION SIX WEEKS At long last I've decided to declare the asana schedule I've been following for the past few weeks to be official.... So it's a six-week virtual session with classes: Tuesday 5:45-7:00 p.m. Wednesday 9:45-10:45 a.m. The price for the session is $60 for the six weeks (seems for some reason virtual should cost less than in-person), with individual classes $13. Paypal [email protected] or check.. I'll send sign-in information each week. See you soon, enjoy the now spring weather, and be safe.

AUGUST YOGA Hi all-- Happy August! Pinnacle is back in session. The August schedule remains the same: ... Tuesday at 5:45 for 1 hour and 15 minutes, Wednesday morning at 9:45 for 1 hour. There may not be class one of the later weeks in August but I'll keep you posted. Price will be $48 for four classes ($12 per), or $36 low income ($9 per), and $15 for single classes. Check or Paypal Contact me [email protected] or (585) 747-2718 for the Zoom links. ----------- -----------

THE THREE DAYS OF SAVASANA When you’re really in savasana, you aren’t lying there worrying or planning your day or thinking about coffee. Your mind might be pretty blank, or you might be having some dream-like experiences, but you’re not asleep, you’re not just resting, and you’re definitely not here. But that doesn’t mean savasana is always the same. In my personal practice, when I lie down for savasana, I almost always check outusually in short order. Generally I ...come back to the surface before the timer goes off (I set it for nine minutes). After so many years my internal clock works pretty well. One day last week I had the rare experience of being so deep, or having been so deep, that I lost any sense of time. I couldn’t tell whether I’d been there for twenty years or five minutes. As I came closer to the surface I wondered whether I had forgotten to start the timer, but when I checked, there were still a few seconds left. I got up that day very calm and peaceful. For some reason, the next day was different. In her description of pratyaharathe meditative word for sense withdrawalJudith Lasater says it’s when you don’t jump with the doorbell rings. On this second day, after coming back from somewhere less profound, I was musing about something more or less consciously. When the timer went off I jumped. That was definitely not as relaxing a practice. The day after that was more normal. I lay down, was completely gone for a while, came close to the surface (sometimes you even do two deep dives), and gradually approached consciousness. When the timer rang that day I didn’t jump. It was just time to get up, and I did, feeling restored and ready for the next thing. Whether you prefer a guided savasana, silence, or a musical accompaniment, please don’t neglect this part of the practice.

VIPARITA KARANI Viparita karani can be a difficult pose to teach (if that’s the right word). To set up. As I mentioned in passing in my early covid post, you should make sure not to be too close to the wall. The closer you are to the wall, the greater the tendency to stretch the hamstrings. The idea is to have the legs be straight without tension.... A perhaps larger issue is placement on the bolster. I like to have the weight balancedso you actually feel sort of weightless. Photo 1: If your tail bone is too far toward the wall, it will force you into an uncomfortable amount of chest opening-- not so much uncomfortable as not calming (this doesn’t look like much, but my backbends are pretty minimal). Photo 2: This is comfortable. The weight is balanced and my heart space is opened gently. Photo 3: Here I’m too far off. The tilting bolster tells you the weight is sloping downward toward the shoulders, collapsing the chest (not to mention strangling me with my t-shirt). Helping students find the optimal position can be challenging. When I ask them how they’re feeling, they will often say fine. Fine is not really enoughwe’re looking for good. Deciding how many adjustments to make is a case-by-case decision.

RESTORATIVE CLASS THIS SUNDAY on Zoom April 19 5:45-7:00 pm (and I'll be on at 5:30) A great way to relax after a weekend of doing nothing!... You should have at least a couple blankets and something to use as a pillow. Voluntary $10 donation. Call or text (585) 747-2718 or e-mail [email protected] and I'll give you the meeting password. You'll need both this meeting ID and then the password.. Here's the meeting ID Meeting ID: 884 5959 5994

VIRTUAL CLASS FRIDAY MORNING, 4/10 Here is the information for the class tomorrow, scheduled to start at 9:45, for an hour. As usual I'll be on at 9:30. I'm thinking this might be a relatively low-key class with a restorative pose in addition to savasana.... Meeting ID 789-604-395 Password is required-- call or text 585-747-2718 or e-mail [email protected] and I'll give you the password. I'd like to schedule a restorative session-- maybe Sunday evening. Please let me know if you have interest or any thoughts. Stay healthy.

BREATHING AND MEDITATION Breath is life. Yoga people know this as well as anyone. Although not as well as George Floyd and Eric Garner.... We can breathe, so at the end of my classes this week I’ve made the following offering: Let us take a few breaths for the George Floyds of the world. Let us take a few breaths for the angry protesters of the world. Let us take a few breaths for the hopeful demonstrators. ---- Also this week I have been giving my metta bhavana (loving-kindess meditation) an especially societal orientation. Normally one meditates for oneself, then for othersa loved one, a neutral person, etc. This week the focus has been outward. My meditation has six parts: May I have courage. May I have confidence. May I be compassionate. May I be at peace. May I be safe. May I be free of pain. The courage and confidence (which often run together) are about facing whatever challenges are before me. So it’s the wish that each of us AND all of us have courage, confidence, compassion, peace, safety, and freedom from pain. - Mental peace and societal peace. - I almost always feel safe personally, so I substitute May I be at ease. Obviously, not everyone has the luxury of safety. - And this week, being pain-free is most obviously about anger, fear, want, and oppression.

THE STUDIO IS SAFE and THE PRACTICE NEVER FAILS In my house we spend a lot of time washing our hands and disinfecting faucet-handles, doorknobs, and mail. One place I don’t worry about is the yoga studio. That’s because since the students aren’t coming right now I’m basically the only person who goes in there.... Having a very private space for doing yoga is of course a privilege. But in an equally important (more important?) sense, I hope that wherever you do your yoga you’re able to practice in a worry-free zoneboth physically and emotionally. That is what it is for. Yoga provides a time for you to develop attention, and understanding of yourselfand thus of the outside world. Every day my head is in a different spaceI can be energized, drained, enthusiastic, reluctant, strong or fatigued. Sometimes the poses just click; sometimes things don’t feel quite right. Sometimes I’m 100% on; sometimes the distractions seem to outweigh the focus. It doesn’t matter. Even on my worst days, my practice does its job of bringing me closer to myself and restoring my focus and sense of being. At her workshops, Judith Lasater sometimes asks the participants whether they ever don’t feel better after practicing. The answer is no; so why then, she asks rhetorically, do we sometimes avoid it? We all know what the obstacles are, but she is absolutely right: when you do the practice, it never fails.

A TRIP TO THE GROCERY STORE (full disclosure: this is not about yoga) Early Sunday morning I went to the grocery store.... Unlike some of our friends, we are not getting all our food delivered; we’re just minimizing trips and trying to be as safe as possible. (Safety first!). It was my first time out among people in a week, which made it an interesting experience. - First, it was quite refreshing to be out there, remembering that despite the dangers, life goes on. - Seeing the employees stocking the produce department, staffing the fish department, and doing the checkout reminded me of how many people it takes to simply keep things running. It’s not just the hospitals, the power grid, sewage, and the water supply. It almost feels like all of them are working the grocery store, close to their co-workers-- any of whom might be a threat-- so that seniors like me can stay home. Which is actually the case. - Having said that, there were a surprising number of seniors shopping. Most of them as well as most shoppers in general had some kind of protection. - The employees did not look like they were under siege. I don’t think I saw any store employees wearing masks or gloves. They were just working (and some were a little cavalier about social distancing). - In the current state of the economy, the store employees are the lucky ones; they have jobs.

VIRTUAL CLASS THIS TUESDAY I hope you have all had a pleasant weekend (if the weekend is any different from other days). The next scheduled virtual class is this Tuesday the 7th the same time as the past two weeks; 5:45-7:00 on Zoom.. I'll be on at 5:30.... It appears that Zoom has changed the rules so you do have to enter a password. Apparently there has been a problem of people hacking into meetings. The Meeting ID for Tuesday is :465-500-675 If you are interested, send me an e-mail [email protected] or call or text (585) 747-2718. I can give you the meeting password then. In the meantime, be safe.

SECOND VIRTUAL CLASS-- FRIDAY 3/27, 9:45 I hope everyone is still safe and healthy. Thanks to everyone who attended the virtual class Tuesday evening. I enjoyed it and I thought it went well. From a technical standpoint, everyone except two participants had video, which as a technologically-challenged senior I find amazing.... The next class will be tomorrow morning-- Friday, March 27 from 9:45 to 10:45. I'll try to be on at 9:30 to make give us all time to get on. The class will be on Zoom. (Zoom.us Cloud meetings. I think you have to sign up for an account in order to join.) The Meeting ID is 464-013-016 The meeting password is 427723 Let me if interested. [email protected] I would like to set up a regular schedule-- more than likely it will be my usual weekly schedule of two classes on Wednesdays. Maybe more-- we'll see. I have been wondering about what to do about fees, and have decided that these virtual classes will be free of charge for the duration of shelter-in-place. However, I'll ask for a totally optional $10 donation. My Mindfulness Yoga teacher, Frank Jude Boccio, sent out a request for help several weeks ago-- before Covid really hit. I had not known but he was diagnosed with a cancer nearly a year ago. He's apparently doing well, but is not able to teach as much as usual. This is not a Covid donation but it is a genuine need for which I feel a personal connection. If you'd like to do this, I have Paypal with my other e-mail-- [email protected] Tell your friends!

VIPARITA KARANI Viparita karani can be a difficult pose to teach (if that’s the right word). To set up. As I mentioned in passing in my early covid post, you should make sure not to be too close to the wall. The closer you are to the wall, the greater the tendency to stretch the hamstrings. The idea is to have the legs be straight without tension.... A perhaps larger issue is placement on the bolster. I like to have the weight balancedso you actually feel sort of weightless. Photo 1: If your tail bone is too far toward the wall, it will force you into an uncomfortable amount of chest opening-- not so much uncomfortable as not calming (this doesn’t look like much, but my backbends are pretty minimal). Photo 2: This is comfortable. The weight is balanced and my heart space is opened gently. Photo 3: Here I’m too far off. The tilting bolster tells you the weight is sloping downward toward the shoulders, collapsing the chest (not to mention strangling me with my t-shirt). Helping students find the optimal position can be challenging. When I ask them how they’re feeling, they will often say fine. Fine is not really enoughwe’re looking for good. Deciding how many adjustments to make is a case-by-case decision.

RESTORATIVE CLASS THIS SUNDAY on Zoom April 19 5:45-7:00 pm (and I'll be on at 5:30) A great way to relax after a weekend of doing nothing!... You should have at least a couple blankets and something to use as a pillow. Voluntary $10 donation. Call or text (585) 747-2718 or e-mail [email protected] and I'll give you the meeting password. You'll need both this meeting ID and then the password.. Here's the meeting ID Meeting ID: 884 5959 5994