Ayurveda Cooking Class

So while normally each morning is immersion into the Primary Series of Ashtanga Yoga (Mysore style) we had a special treat recently on our Full Moon, of an Ayurveda Cooking Class. Our daily meals are delicious Kerala style meals, with Ayurveda menu items, as suggested by our beautiful Ayurveda Doctor. Since everyone has been enjoying the meals, part of our experience included a lovely Ayurveda Cooking Class. Our amazing Ayurveda Chef, a fellow Malayalee made some amazing food items.

The menu included:

1. Beet Root Rice
2. Snake Gord Thoran
3. Pineapple Curry
4. Payassam (dessert)

The food was delicious!

The Zoga Yoga Graduation - with the Amazing Joseph

While the teacher trainees in the Bronx celebrated at the beautiful Bhavani Mandir, Sensei Joseph had his graduation ceremony earlier in the week @ The Harmony By Karate Dojo where much of his training took place. Sensei Joseph is an amazing person & beloved friend. He is a Kung Fu and Karate Black Belt/Instructor, a Reiki Master, a Crystal Healer, A Talented Dancer, an Ordained Minister, an AMAZING Friend and now a 200 Hr Yoga Alliance Recognized Yoga Instructor, through ZOGA YOGA. While the list of achievements is probably longer, Joseph is possibly one of the most humble people I know. Just before his Teacher Training journey, together He & I did Reiki Master Training & Master Crystal Healing Training together, with the amazing Mary of Mukti Healing. When training began, Joseph spent weeks in intense training, learning Yoga Asana, Pranayama, The Koshas, The Sutras, The Bhagavad Gita, Ayurveda & Doshas types, Meditation, Asana Adjustments, Sequencing, Oneness Blessing, Mantras, Traditional Surya Namaskar and various other deep spiritual aspects of the Eight Limbed practice we call Yoga. He also had the privilage to learn Inversions with a wonderful Dharma Yogi/friend Amitai & ACRO Yoga on his last day, with a lovely Dharma Yogi/Friend, Agustin. As part of his program he will take Master Class with Sri Dharma. Ironically, Joseph, Sensei Joseph has been one of my Karate Instructors, and as a Sensei has literally flipped me over his head in class (at the speed of light), and challenged me in ways that have saved my life.....So I made sure to give him a dose of the ASANA Challenge at times. We had such fun exploring poses, advanced Sequencing, Gentle Sequencing and more ADVANCED Sequencing....It was fun!!! The look on Joseph's face when I would guide him through some sequences and demonstrate to encourage him to play was priceless. Soon he was very eager to play and explore the Yoga Asana with Advanced Variations, Adjustments, Mantras, and special Pranayama. Joseph has taught me so much and I am so honored to have been part of his Yoga Journey. I know he will go on to transform lives and bring people closer to God, as he himself is truly receptive to that portion of God in his heart. As most people know, I am blessed to teach Yoga full time, every day, nearly all day....and in my temporary absence from NYC, I am happy to leave some of my private students under the Instruction & care of Joseph, because he is AMAZING!

The teacher training experience is a remarkable chance for self discovery and deepening of the Yoga Practice. It is a chance to heal, grow, learn and find God. Whatever your religious belief....Yoga makes a Christian a better Christian, A Hindu a Better Hindu, a Muslim a better Muslim, a Jew a Better Jew.....and I know this because I have students of every faith, and that has been their experience that they share with me. While the fitness benefits of Yoga are inevitable, the Spiritual and Mental benefits are enormous.

I am grateful to have been on this journey with Joseph, and I know he will inspire many people worldwide. As Zoga Yoga is on its way to be a Global Experience that helps people, and inspires people to help others, I am fully confident and grateful to have Joseph and all the other Newly Certified Teachers in this Army of Love. Thank you Joseph for being so AMAZING!

The Zoga Yoga Teacher Training Graduation

After months of hard work, sweat, tears, laughter, assignments, Tests, intense asana classes and more sweat....these amazing Yoga Teacher Trainers had their graduation. A journey that began at a studio in the Bronx called Bamboomoves, which soon turned into Excel Yoga, which became the location for the the launch first ever ZOGA YOGA 200Hr Teacher Training Experience. This is the first ever Graduating Class for this program, and I am grateful to have been part of this journey with these amazing people! They learned from amazing Instructors like my friend/Yogini Tao Porchon-Lynch, The incredible Yoshio Hama, The L.A. dynamic duo Dice and Bry, Excel Co. Owner Michael Baez, and myself (broken toe and all). They had to take Master Class with Sri Dharma Mittra & various other respected Teachers that I felt they could learn from. With in depth instruction on the Yoga Sutras, Bhagavad Gita, Yoga Anatomy, Yoga Asana Sequencing, Asana Adjusting, Yogic Diet, The Gunas, The Koshas, Pranayama, Meditation, The Doshas, Oneness Blessing Training and much more, these trainees were saturated with all things YOGA. Their graduation took place at the beautiful Bhavani Mandir right after the intimate 7pm class that I taught. The Bhavani Mandir is a gorgeous Temple in the Bronx, where the Friday night 7pm Yoga class will soon be taken over by some of these amazing Yogini's in my absence. The 5 new Yoga Instructors, Margie, Nicole, Jessica, Latesha and Stephanie (minus their three amazing fellow Yogis who were unable to attend) sat on the stage and we began with our chant "Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya", and then they sat on their chairs. While graduation was set for 7:30 pm, we started 45 minutes late, so luckily when Michael, the studio owner of where the training was hosted walked in 45 minutes late, he was able to share in the experience. Michael was a pivotal part of their journey. The Bronx studio was once my "home studio" where I am am grateful to say that I was lead instructor for two years & grateful for many learning experiences. I introduced him and invited him to join me & the New Yoga Instructors on stage. Together we distributed certificates, highlighted the unique qualities of each individual, and gave them each Mala Beads and Meditation shawls that I arranged for, specially sent from India for them. There were tears and laughter, it was beautiful. At the end, there was one shawl I had laid out as extra, my intuition told me Michael would possibly show up to come to support these amazing individuals, and so I presented it to Michael with gratitude for my two years at the studio, and the opportunity to launch the ZOGA YOGA Teacher Training program there...we hugged which was followed by a beautiful group hug, and tremendous applause. We said thank you to Bhavani Mandir & Pandit Rohit for providing the amazing space for the graduation. Thank you to the friends and family members who came to support these amazing individuals on the start of a new beautiful chapter in their Yoga journey. Slowly we feasted on Andrew's Pasta Primavera which was delicious (Nicole's hubby), Thank you Andrew. We took pictures, and celebrated the achievements of these remarkable new Yoga Instructors. Each one of them having a special unique gift that they bring to the world of Yoga. I am grateful to have been on this journey with all of them, as they have taught me so much. I accept & I am honored to have been given the nick name "the Pusher", thank you Nicole....and love you all so dearly. It was a pleasure and honor to push you all to your highest potential. Thank you all, and may you continue to be receptive to the Grace of God (as Sri Dharma says), and act as humble vessels that facilitate an amazing experience for others. Maintain respect for your teachers, everyone of them.....every instructor, every child, mother nature, and every student is your teacher.....Please always maintain humility no matter how amazing you think your Asana Practice gets, how famous you get as a Yoga Teacher, without God there is no Yoga, as Samadhi is the ultimate goal of the practice. ~

In the Words of Sri Swami Satchidananda "When you are not aware of the Lord inside, you won't find him outside either. He must be seen inside first. Then you will see Him everywhere!" Om Shanti

Thank you Milta for the lovely pics!!!

Community Yoga Class with Armondo

This year marked the launch of the Zoga Yoga Teacher Training Program. While I had been working on this teacher training since last year, and anticipated launching it in the Fall of 2011, the Universe wanted otherwise. I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to launch the first program alongside Michael Baez at the Bamboomoves BX location (Newly Named Excel Yoga), and lead these 8 new Yoga Instructors on their newest chapter of their journey. After months of cleverly crafted Teacher Training that exposed students to Teaching Methodologies, Yoga Philosophy, Anatomy, Subtle Body Awareness, Testing and much more, students are now ready to teach "Community Classes". These classes are open to the community, discounted at $5, and come with incredible value. The first Teacher Trainee to teach was the outstanding Armondo. Armondo is also husband of Denise, and a fellow Fire walker. Ironically, Armondo is the newest to the practice of Yoga out of the 8 Teacher Trainees but you would never guess it if you witnessed his practice. He has come to develop an incredibly strong Yoga Asana Practice that leaves him ready for camera shots in every pose.

The community class had a beautiful turn out of friends and supporters of Armondo. While I was feeling incredibly sick, I wanted to participate in the first Community Class of the group. Armondo played beautiful music and led the class in a wonderful practice. Towards the beginning of class I actually became tearful, I felt the powerful impact that Armondo's instruction was having on the entire class, the vibrational energy that his humility and love had helped create, and it was like an "A-HA" moment, this was part of the reason I wanted to create a Teacher Training Program. He was amazing. His sequence was mindful, his opening meditation was inviting, his attention to new students needs was absolutely beautiful, his pacing and incorporation of modifications was lovely, and as always his demonstration was fantastic! The funny thing was that Sunday had been day three of a horrible reaction to food poisoning for me, so I was weak, and Armondo's class made me feel better. At the end of class during Savasana, Armondo guided us into a beautiful peaceful Savasana. I felt as though a wave of light had swept over my body, it was amazing!

The goal of the 200 Hr Zoga Yoga Teacher Training Program is to Harmonize the Mind, Body and Spirit, to create teachers that inspire this opportunity in whatever yoga class situation that are faced with. Armondo did just that, I was so proud and happy! Community Classes are a beautiful way to support and up and coming Yoga Instructor. Community Classes are on Sundays at 3:30 at Excel Yoga in Pellham Bay, BX. Thank you Armondo for a lovely class.