Spring Renewal: Yoga Practices to Care for Your Self & Environment By Alex Rice The full bloom of spring has arrived – the buds and birds greet us each morning and offer us their vibrancy and song. This time of birth in the macrocosm around us reflects the opportunity for rebirth and renewal within:We can practice ahimsa or non-violence with others, mother Earth, and also ourselves. When we notice thoughts of judgment or criticism, there’s an opportunity to return to […]

You Already Know How: Yoga and Breathing By Susan Kraft Hello Asheville Yoga Community! Did you know that Ada Limón, the extraordinary 24th Poet Laureate of the United States, loves yoga? And yet, in a recent On Being podcast, she laughed while sharing the following:When I lived in New York City, my two best friends, I would always try to get them to go to yoga with me. And they would say, “I don’t want to go to yoga.” And […]

Warrior Breath: Embodying Archetypes By Shala Worsley How I learned about ‘Warrior Breath’ A short time after I moved to Asheville, NC in 1996 I stumbled upon a little yoga practice room above an antique shop downtown. There was no sign outside advertising it as a studio or practice space. At the top of a narrow and creaking staircase there was simply a wooden bowl for donations. The room was dimly lit and I have a vague recollection of the […]

Understanding Bhakti Vinyāsa Yoga By Michael Johnson What is Bhakti? Bhakti means devotion, a deep yearning to experience love in its purest form. According to Dr. Shyam Ranganathan, Bhakti is identical to Yoga as a basic ethical theory that originated in South Asia. Although it is often confused with Theism, a decolonized view of Yoga or Bhakti does not require any beliefs. By contrast, Bhakti Yoga is simply devoting ourselves to the universal ideal of Īśvara (being in control of […]

Giving Back with Yoga  By Rosie Mulford “Giving” is a funny thing.  It is like an endless well that just keeps on flowing and filling no matter how much it is used.  The word “purna” in Sanskrit means full. But more than full.  My teacher describes “purna” as holding a glass under the tap and water fills it to the top and then overflows.  This is what giving feels like. When we give, we feel complete and full. Perhaps it […]

One of the first yoga classes I ever attended was because a friend convinced me to go with her to help me deal with stress after a difficult day.  How many of us have tagged along with a friend to a yoga class and walked away grateful for the experience? Yoga is for the individual in that we are invited to come into ourselves and focus on our breath for the duration of the practice. However, yoga buddies provide a […]

Mindful Meditation Led by Paige Gilchrist [av_video src=’https://vimeo.com/527509345′ mobile_image=’https://youryoga.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/IMG_4158-2-rotated.jpeg’ attachment=’10701′ attachment_size=’full’ format=’16-9′ width=’16’ height=’9′ conditional_play=” av_uid=’av-kiqn26dr’ custom_class=”] Gift yourself 10-minutes, a moment to clear your head, check in with yourself and reconnect with your intentions. This meditation guide by Paige will provide the reset you’ve needed.

Maintaining a Sustainable Yoga Practice Plastic. Trash. Single use items. Carbon emission. These are all items that quickly come to mind when you think of types of pollution that we are battling every day. But as a yogi, have you ever considered how your practice impacts our environment? The most common piece of equipment you use may be offsetting your efforts in sustainability. Many yoga mats contain polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which environmental experts claim to be highly toxic. For years, […]

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Nadi Shodhona Meditation Led by Maeve Hendrix [av_video src=’https://vimeo.com/490497339′ mobile_image=’https://youryoga.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/3N6A4040-1030×687.jpg’ attachment=’10377′ attachment_size=’large’ format=’16-9′ width=’16’ height=’9′ conditional_play=” av_uid=’av-kiqn26dr’ custom_class=”] Meditation accounts for four of the eight limbs of yoga, and is an important aspect of any yogi’s practice. To meditate is to bring yourself into a state of thoughtful awareness, one that allows you to look inward and focus on yourself. Meditating can begin by focusing on your breath, allowing you to be present in the moment. Now, find a comfortable […]