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Please contact us with your question and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

Phone: 0408 664 020   

Email: info@peacefullivingyoga.com.au

 

Mordialloc location:

St Nicholas Church, 9 Bear Street, Mordialloc

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Newsletters

24-03-25

March Newsletter                    

Curious about Chair base-yoga? 

Have you wondered about chair-base yoga and what it entails? In this class you will be offered a chair, but you may or may not use the chair throughout the class.

The class starts much the same as any other class, except there is the option of using a chair. As is common to all classes I teach, we start with a breath and body focus, a centring practice. While some people may be seated during this practice, others will lie on their back, (as you might be accustomed to doing). From here we move into warmups, again with some people seated and others lying on the floor.

Eventually, everyone will be invited to be in a seated position. From here you can choose to sit on the floor, or (if not already), move to sitting on a chair. If you have never tried chair yoga, it might be interesting to try a new experience. You might be surprised to find that while some postures seem easy enough when lying on our back, they can feel harder when seated on a chair…. why? because in some cases more effort is required to hold up your own body weight, compared to when the body is supported by the floor. At other times you might find sitting on a chair allows your body to move differently, e.g. many people find that they can twist far more with ease and comfort on a chair compared to sitting directly on the floor while struggling to keep their back straight.

From seated we move into standing postures, with or without a chair. Typically, after some balance postures we return to our starting position, back seated or on our back for savasana or meditation. The framework of a chair-based class is not so different to that of your usual class.  

Chair yoga reminds us that it’s another way we can move in asana-s / postures.  Although some postures may be experienced differently in a chair, it’s not about how far you twist or how much effort you need. Ultimately, it’s not about the ‘shape’ you create with your body but more about the experience you are having. Regardless of which class we attend, we all need to move at a level that is appropriate for each of us at a given moment. Listening to the body, being in the experience is what matters.

There is no doubt that a chair-based class is especially helpful for anyone finding getting up and down from the floor challenging. Given that the framework of this class is like other classes on offer, if you find you are unable to get a place in your usual class or you would like to try a new experience why not give chair- based yoga a go. Classes run Tuesday at 10 am.
 


School Holidays and Easter

School holidays are fast approaching. All classes will continue as usual with only two exceptions.

  • Tuesday 8th April class cancelled
  • Easter Monday 21st April class cancelled

 


Restorative class – 12th April 10.00 – 12.00 pm

Our first Restorative yoga for the year is on April 12th. This is a gentle and calming practice which brings about deep relaxation and relieves stress. All the postures are floor-based, and your body will be supported with bolsters and other props which provide added cushioning and comfort. Postures are held longer, allowing time for a slow, deep stretch and for the body to relinquish and release tension.
Join us for this nurturing practice, designed for you to rest, renew and recharge. 

 

Date: Sat 12th April
Time: 10.00 am - 12.00 pm
Fee: $45
Early bird discount: Buy before 1st April for discount and only pay $40. Use code Apr25 
Location: St Nicholas Church, 9 Bear Street Mordialloc

 

13-02-25

New - Chair-based yoga 

Introducing Chair-based yoga classes starting next Tuesday 18th February. Time 10.00 - 11.15 am.

As the Thursday morning gentle class is often very full, I’m delighted to add another daytime class to the timetable offering you more variety and options. This class will be available for everyone, but it could be especially helpful for those who find getting up and down from the floor challenging. The aim is to provide each participant with a chair and the decision to use the chair or not lies with them.  It will be taught similar to a Gentle class held Thursday morning and Monday evenings only with the option to use a chair. You may not need to use a chair but none the less, trying it may result in experiencing the postures differently. In fact, many times I have randomly turned a regular gentle class into a chair-based class. People often say how much they enjoyed the class and pleasantly surprised by the experience.


Chair yoga also can remind us that yoga is not limited to the floor or on the mat. It reminds us that it’s not about the ‘shape’ you create, rather it’s the experience. We might compare ourselves with an image of a posture or how well (?) we perceive another is ‘doing’ the posture. But the postures are not something to ‘do’ or achieve. Yoga practice is not so much about the postures, it's about the quality of awareness. Awareness can be experienced anywhere and in the simplest form.
 
If you are interested to try something new or you can’t get into your usual class, why not give chair-based yoga a go. If you know someone who might benefit and enjoy this class, please share this email with them.

 

 

22-01-24

Happy New Year!

It’s never too late to wish you all a Happy New Year! May you be happy. May you be healthy. May you be your authentic self and listen to your heart’s calling.

 

I am so pleased to be back teaching and I’m surprised the classes have been full or close to full in the first week back. It speaks to your commitment to your practice, which is wonderful. I hope we all thrive together in our knowledge of yoga throughout the year. May we become authentic and move towards inner peace. 

 

Yoga offers a way to inner peace in the form of short verses called Sutra-s. Through learning and understanding the Sutra-s one can attain wisdom, self-realization and inner peace. In total there are 195 or 196 Sutra-s which were codified by the great sage Patanjali. But it is said that living your life just by one Sutra may be enough to gain inner peace and wisdom. In this newsletter I would like to share the first four Sutra-s, 1.1 - 1.4 followed by commentary.

 

1.1             Here is the instructions about Yoga

 

1.2             Yoga is the pacification, concentration and complete focus of the mind’s fluctuating activities.

“Yoga is stopping the mind from becoming involved in activities that distract one from a chosen direction”. – TKV Desikachar

Thereby “towards a state of harmony, clarity and total awareness. At the highest level all fluctuations have stopped”. Frans Moors

 

1.3             Then, the Seer, (witness/internal observer), is established in its True Nature.

When we are in that ‘state’, we see things as they ‘truly are’ and abide in our True Nature.

 

1.4             In other circumstances, (the Internal Observer) is identical in the form to the mind’s fluctuation.

 

At other times, (when we are not in this state), the mind is taken over by fluctuations, (thoughts of the mind). The mind becomes clouded, unable to see clearly.  The mind identifies with the thoughts, (believing them to be true). In this non- Yogic state painful consequences can derive.

 

Contemplation:

1.      Can you think of a time when your thoughts ran wild; you imagined things that were inaccurate and this led to a disturbance, perhaps worry, anger or disappointment?  Now imagine what the same situation would have been like if you were in a state of Yoga with a clear mind. Would the outcome have been different?

2.      How many times throughout the day could you apply this contemplation from the simplest to the more complex situation?

 

Wishing you well for 2025!

Namaste

Mary