by Emma McCann of www.emma-mccann.com

A few years ago I realised that I love yoga.

I teach yoga. So it’s probably obvious that I love it, because it’s the sort of path you get into only because you love it. But I really love it. Through the time I’ve been practicing yoga (about 10 years now) I’ve had many moments of the feeling of home when I rolled my mat out and started. And there have been many moments when I realised that yoga does wonderful things for me that makes life better and me a more calm, peaceful and energised me.

I love the arrival.

Not just the arrival to the studio, or arrival on the mat. But the constant arrival throughout the class. The arrival here. To now. To this moment. There is nothing else. Every moment that we are in the now, every moment we return to the now, this is yoga. This is when it starts.

I love the breath and how incredibly powerful it is.

It fuels the body. It softens us. Inhale fuel. Exhale soften. Inhale energise. Exhale surrender. Inhale expand, exhale release. The breath is the life force energy in yoga, and rather like in Chinese medicine, there’s channels in our body that it flows through. When we work with the breath we harness our life force. It truly is the foundation for the practice.

Focusing on the breath also keeps our ‘monkey mind’ busy doing something. Engaging with a busy mind is not yoga. Being present in this moment, now, is. And the breath is a way to support you to be in the moment.

The breath, on its own, without using poses, is a focus for meditation. And in yogic practices there are numerous practices of breath control and harnessing that come under the limb of yoga called pranamyama. It’s that important, that in the 8 limbs of yoga (one of the philosophies around yoga that provides 8 different areas through which to create a ‘right life’), working with the breath has its own limb.

The breath is also a clear signal about how hard we’re physically working. I remember in my first yoga class a student who was shaking and puffing and panting his way through, making it a strenuous exercise despite the teachers’ encouragement that that wasn’t yoga and there’d be more benefit for him to back off a notch. I didn’t fully understand that at the time. But now I do. There are some classes or teachers styles where you’re invited to push yourself a bit, with body and mind, to move past the limit that you otherwise would have. You are going to lose control of the breath in those moments.

Essentially, I’d say it like this: If the breath is running away with itself then you’re no longer meditating. Which means you don’t really have the connection yoga is all about, so you aren’t really doing yoga. When the breath is running away with itself you are no longer in conscious control of it. And you want conscious control. Because it’s through that you’re harnessing the power of the life force energy (prana) and can access stillness. It’s here that other things drop away. Breath is the life force. Prana is life force energy. Pranayama – breath work – uses the life force energy in an active, mindful and meaningful way to enhance the flow of prana in the body and receive the positive flow on effects.

Yoga provides deeper body awareness.

Yoga offers us an understanding of bodies by being present with them. We learn to notice where we are in time and space, where we hold our tension, where our bodies are out of balance and alignment. It offers us the opportunity to notice pain and injury, limitations and flexibility and strength.

We get the opportunity to look at ourselves in a way we otherwise might not. To look at whether we’re hard on ourselves. Or expecting a particular outcome. Or maybe angry for not being able to do what we did last time we practiced. Maybe we’re comparing ourselves to others and pushing ourselves to keep up with them. Or judging them. Or judging us. Maybe not listening to our bodies. Maybe we’re bored and picking our toes or looking around. All of these are not being present. All bar the last two are our ego having its way with us. And not yoga.

There are so many students I’ve worked with who when I’ve asked them what they feel in their bodies in a pose couldn’t name anything. Through some guided techniques, I invite my students to notice where in their bodies they feel the stretch, tension or release of the pose, to notice the floor beneath them, to notice how their breathing has changed in this pose. To notice where they’re limited, whether it’s a particular part of the body that is stopping them going further, or is the limitation constructed in the mind. I also invite them to witness their thoughts and to then return to following the breath.

Yoga is amazing in its ability to ground and centre.

This happens for me as soon as I step onto my mat when I’m practicing at home, or as soon as I walk into the studio. I’ve done it long enough that my body has an association with the mat and the studio for feeling more calm and less tension. I instantly relax. It’s like my whole system does a sigh. And then it’s a coming back to the body, to the breath, to me, to my true nature. I feel this most pronounced when I practice and also when I teach. It’s such a gift to me for my ‘work’ to have such a grounding effect. I feel it and see it in the students. I see the zen start to settle on them as they settle into the practice. At the point at which they ‘arrive’ something shifts. Something drops away. And they begin to find calm. The monkey mind slows. And from there the grounding and centring builds.

Yoga has the ability to meet people where they are.

Yoga is for every body. It is for everyone. You just need to find the right poses at the right level. There’s going to be some poses that we just simply can’t do because of our particular anatomy, but what if we modify it a bit so it looks different? Could you do it then?

As a teacher there is something so incredibly beautiful about seeing a room full of different levels of a pose because it tells me the people on the mats are listening to themselves and working with their bodies. And that’s what we really truly want.

And seriously if I can teach yoga to women whose limbs are strapped to their wheelchairs and they tell me with excitement about how they’re doing a particular pose as they straighten their spine and twist ever so slightly to one side, then well, anyone can do yoga.

It’s all about finding the yoga you need. The poses you need. The poses that meet you where you are. And with over 600 poses to choose from I guarantee there’s more than one that will work for you.

The philosophy that guides us through more than just movements on a mat.

Another thing I love about yoga is the philosophy. It reminds me not to judge. Not to covet. Not to attach. Not to be gluttonous. The philosophy reminds me to focus. To breathe. It implores me not to do harm and that means far more than not killing. It also means not harming by detracting from someone’s experience. And that thought always bring me back to my values to act with love and compassion.

The philosophy reminds me of the importance of asana (the poses) being just one part of a system of yoga in which morals or ‘right living’ come first. Can’t live a clean life by just moving the body right. There must be right action to live a right life. So the philosophy constantly asks me to look at myself and see where I can soften that little bit more.

And then I arrive again.

Because yoga (the union with something greater than myself) happens.

It happens in the moments between spaces. In the movement from up dog to down dog. In the ujjayi breath. In the focus on the spot on wall in tree pose. In my interactions with my kids. In my purchasing decisions. In my attitude when I do the dishes.

We arrive.

Both on and off the mat. We arrive.

And yoga starts.

Emma McCann will be presenting on Saturday at the Canberra Summer’s End Yoga Festival. To read her blog and to find out more about her workshops and classes, visit www.emma-mccann.com.

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The post November News appeared first on Canberra Summer's End Yoga Festival.

In this e-newsletter we have more details about ticket sales, how to plan, our final four featured presenters, some new sponsors and more. Remember, tickets go on sale 1 November and will remain at the discounted rate of $120 per single day and $200 for the weekend until 31 December. As of 1 January, prices will go up to $150 for a single day and $250 for the weekend. There is also a limited number of tickets to be sold, so be sure to get yours early to secure your place!

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The big news is that we have several sponsors on board and some incredible featured presenters prepared to fly a long way to share their yoga knowledge with us. We also have a new venue that will have a spacious dining hall, accommodation and an oval for outdoor classes.

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“We liked Canberra Yoga Conference so much, and now you’re changing the name?!”

The Murrumbidgee River at The Greenhills Conference Centre.

Yes! And we couldn’t be happier about it. The reasons for changing the name are numerous, including how the ACT Government defines “conference”. Although the name aptly described what we did that day, going from session to session with lunch and tea provided, the name wasn’t particularly unique. It sounded a bit corporate and business-like, qualities we don’t normally like to associate with the practice of yoga. As the search for a new venue began, within days of CYC, it became clear that every location has a different feel, a different vibe.

Change of venue = Change of vibe

With a change of venue from Exhibition Park in Mitchell to the Greenhills Conference Centre in Stromlo, the whole vibe of the event will be very different. Rather than closed in by walls and fluorescent lighting, we will have natural light streaming in from large windows with views to the trees and the bush surround us. Rather than walking down a crowded corridor to the next session, you can get out in the open air to feel the sun and fresh air as you walk from one building to another. You can take an outdoor class on the oval when you need to take in more of nature, or better yet, skip a session and go down to take a dip in the cool clear waters of the Murrumbidgee River.

All that you loved, but better!

There were many things that participants loved about CYC. So we’ve tried to keep everything that you loved, but make it better, based on your feedback.

Thai Yoga Massage from Heather Agnew of Yoga Trinity at CYC.

Sessions were excellent!

You all loved the variety of sessions available. That will remain the same. But we’re going to try to add even more experiences outside the yoga box, such as dance, music, movement and martial arts.

Time for more time.

One thing that participants liked was that every session started on the hour. However, to give time for a 10 minute break between, that meant sessions only ran for 50 minutes. Additionally, some participants felt 10 minutes wasn’t quite enough time to get to their next session. What’s more, presenters wanted 60 minutes (some wanted 90!). So where will the extra time come from? Well, this time around you will only have seven sessions in one day, rather than eight. But this will allow for 60-minute sessions and 15 minutes between each session which will hopefully be adequate time to stake a spot in your next session, take a loo break and still time for a bit of a gab with fellow yogis.

Yummy Food = Happy People

Whether to cater or not to cater was a big question at CYC. Overall, it appears that having it catered pleased the vast majority. Food was available all day, whenever they wanted it, without having to pay any more money. Just like last year, a vegetarian lunch, morning and afternoon tea will be provided at SEYF. We will also do our best to provide gluten/dairy/nut-free options. If your diet is especially restrictive, however, you are most welcome to bring food with you to the festival. Will we have food vendors? Not sure, yet at the moment. We will certainly seek some out, but at the moment, it is an unknown. We will aim to have a chaiwala and at least one coffee vendor, but these will be market stalls that participants will need to pay extra for, they are not included in the catering.

Kinetic Wear was an Stall Holder at Canberra Yoga Conference 2015

Bigger and Better Marketplace

We had some fantastic vendors at CYC, but people wanted more (and so did we!). This year we will work harder to attract vendors to our marketplace so that you will have greater variety and choice in products and services to browse and buy. If you know of a business that might benefit from peddling their wares or services at SEYF, send them our way! Here is a link to the Exhibitor’s Page for more details.

Two Days Are Better Than One

By cutting one session time (from 7 to 8) and offering four choices at each time slot, instead of five, means that rather than offering 40 sessions in one day, we will only be able to offer 28 sessions (which is still a lot of options!). But we have so much talent in Canberra and in the region that we would like to feature, so we are adding a second day to the event! The second day will also feature a stream of four 2-hour workshops, in addition to many 1-hour sessions. Make a weekend of it and have a phenomenal experience!

Make it a Getaway

If you really want to get away from the city, and truly make a weekend of it, Greenhills Conference Centre offers accommodation on its grounds. You can hire a cabin with four beds, a shower and toilet, or you can camp at Cotter Campground which is only a minutes away. There is also a chance that by March 2016, a new campground at Greenhills may be ready to accept campers. For details on available accommodation, contact Greenhills directly to book your cabin.

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