Adventures In Yoga – Page 8 – Yoga with Katrina Ariel

Yoga on a New Years Eve Blue Moon

December 30, 2009Katrina Ariel

Wow! What a year it’s been – what a decade, really! And we’re in for a very special transition into the next year.

Tomorrow, on New Years Eve, we’ll celebrate under a full moon. Because this is the second full moon in December, it is also a Blue Moon! To top that off, there will be a partial lunar eclipse, though I don’t think we’ll get to see it in North America.

Needless to say, the heavenly bodies have aligned for an ultra potent moment in time! How will you celebrate it?

Here are a few ideas for you:

The Anusara Yoga Invocation: A Story

December 7, 2009Katrina Ariel

My first experience with the Anusara Invocation mantra was a bit of a surprise, actually…

I’m referring to the Opening Invocation used by Anusara yogis all over the world. It’s a beautiful song that brings you into the energy of light and truth, and it has become my companion over the years.

But the first time I heard it I had no idea it was coming.

I’d just started teaching yoga at the request of my yoga teacher, who was moving away and asked me to take over her classes. I guess I’d been teaching for 6 months or so when I went to my first Anusara® yoga gathering.

The Yoga Of Football? New Orleans Saints Win Another Fan.

December 1, 2009Katrina Ariel4 Comments

Monday night’s Saints vs. Patriots game changed me. It’s funny that even an NFL game can be a yogic transformation. Really – there’s yoga in football, believe it or not.

I have to admit, I’m the last person you’d expect to see enjoying a football game. I’ve had a pretty steady lack of interest in most competitive sports for, well, most of my life. Without a doubt, the New Orleans Saints have won over a very reluctant fan.

Here’s the story:

Magic In The Earth: Findhorn’s Nature Spirits

November 23, 2009Katrina Ariel

I was in my local art gallery organic café one day and picked up a curious book published in 1975. It’s called “The Magic Of Findhorn” by Paul Hawken.

Now I’d heard of Findhorn before. I had a preconceived notion of it being a idyllic intentional community and retreat center in Scotland, but I didn’t know much about it.

The book called to me. You know the intuitive pull your heart puts out when something really resonates? That call. So I picked it up, read the first page, and promptly asked my friend who owns the café if I could borrow the book.

Over the next week or so I somehow created time in my silly busy schedule to read the book. I was so totally touched by what I learned that I decided to share some of it here with you.

Earth Yoga: Greening The Deserts Of The World

November 12, 2009Katrina Ariel3 Comments

This tree is massive! The trunk is about 8 feet wide.

Yoga is a practice of recognizing the interconnectedness of all things, and skillfully living in harmony. So, naturally, that extends beyond the human family and into the rest of the earth…

I found a new friend today in Audubon Park, behind the zoo in New Orleans’ Garden District. It’s a tree, and a magnificent one at that.

Yes, I consider trees my friends. For one, they breathe us humans and create an environment where we can live. So that’s a practical reason for a grateful relationship.

But beyond that, I admire their beauty and meditative existence. They basically breathe, grow, and drink of water, sunlight and the nutrients in the soil. They are steadfast. Any time I need grounding or need to let go of heaviness, all I have to do is spend a little time with a tree… Meditating under a tree is one of my favorite ways to get centered.

What about you? What aspect of nature do you feel most drawn to?

It’s amazing what is possible when we work with nature, listen to her rhythm, and add symbiotic innovations of human design to more harmoniously co-exist.

Check this out: It is perhaps the most inspiring video I’ve seen in a while!

Read More “Earth Yoga: Greening The Deserts Of The World”

Spiritual Practice In The Most Bizarre Places

November 5, 2009Katrina Ariel4 Comments

Picture this: It’s Halloween night in New Orleans. Downtown is throbbing with music, laughter, costumes and a penetrating ‘ting’ of one elf looking creature walking along as if in meditation.

Yep, that would be me. Complete with forest green cloak and a bit of petrified wood in my hair. This is the story of my fantastically weird night out in the wilds of the French Quarter, and how I brought light into even the darkest places.

Deeper Into The Mystery: Anusara Yoga With John Friend

November 4, 2009Katrina Ariel

The magical light of Santa Fe was a constant companion as I went on retreat with Anusara® yoga founder, John Friend. The light from the sun, the sparkling blue sky, the radiant trees, the clear starry night; it was a truly illuminated experience.

Technically the event I attended was an Advanced Therapeutics training and Weekend Workshop. But I’ll call it a retreat because I stayed on campus, and wow did it feel like a complete shift from everyday life.

Private Yoga Classes In Kamloops, BC and Metairie, LA

October 28, 2009Katrina Ariel27 Comments

I am very happy to offer private yoga classes in Metairie LA, as well as the New Orleans area. I’ll also be in Kamloops, BC starting May 2010 to offer yoga classes there. Private yoga sessions are tremendously beneficial, and have been so appreciated by the wonderful people I work with!

“I have been helped enormously by you, and your approach to yoga, Katrina. The private classes I took with you have had a truly remarkable effect, and I am constantly amazed at just how perceptive you were. I could see your extraordinary perceptiveness right away, but time has only deepened my appreciation of your insights. You are a truly wonderful teacher. Thank you so much for all the help and care you have given me – and continue to give me!” ~ Alexander Forbes

Though group classes are excellent, dynamic, and can be really fun, there is nothing like private yoga classes to really explore your individual practice. Both group and private classes are important, and each have their place.

First of all, private sessions can also be fun, dynamic, and extraordinary experiences. I mean, if you don’t enjoy it, why would you want to keep doing it?

Read More “Private Yoga Classes In Kamloops, BC and Metairie, LA”

High On Sound: A Gong Bath

October 26, 2009Katrina Ariel4 Comments

Forget the bong. You want a consciousness altering experience? Try a gong bath.

Say what?

A gong bath. I hadn’t heard of it either, so if you have no idea what I’m talking about, hang in there, I’ll explain.

This experience was offered in Santa Fe, New Mexico, during a week of training with Anusara® yoga’s founder, John Friend. After the last training session of the day, we cleared the room and Richard Rudis, a practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism and skilled gong bath guy came in.

I’ll have to tell you, I was a little nervous.

Read More “High On Sound: A Gong Bath”

Yoga in Metairie, LA

October 26, 2009Katrina Ariel17 Comments

Metairie is a beautiful suburb of New Orleans, Louisiana. I love offering yoga in Metarie because the people here are friendly and fun, just like most of the people in the New Orleans area.

I teach an uplifting, therapeutic, empowering yoga as an Anusara-Inspired™ yoga instructor. The combination of a fun loving, flowing, heart oriented philosophy with specific alignment principles is one that has revolutionized the world of yoga, and transformed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.

I am available for private yoga sessions to help you in many ways, including the following:

To address specific physical conditions, concerns, or pain, so you understand how to keep yourself optimally aligned on and off the mat
To help you develop a safe and enjoyable personal practice you can do on your own at home
To save you time so you don’t have to travel to class

When you request private yoga sessions with me, I come to your home so you don’t waste any time traveling to a class, and you’re also in a very comfortable environment.

Check this out: It is perhaps the most inspiring video I’ve seen in a while! Read More “Earth Yoga: Greening The Deserts Of The World”

Check this out: It is perhaps the most inspiring video I’ve seen in a while!

Read More “Earth Yoga: Greening The Deserts Of The World”