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I would like to wish you all very happy holidays and peace, health, love and abundance for 2011!

As the New Year approaches, I am sharing with you the news of my Winter teaching sabbatical.  My inner voice has been telling me for a while that I need to take some time off to rest and recharge, and to deepen my personal yoga, qigong and meditation practices.  I had been ignoring this inner guidance until two weeks ago, when I completely lost my voice to laryngitis (the first time I ever experienced this).

So I took this as a sign that I need to take some time off from teaching, in order to focus on my studies of yoga and qigong, and to create more quiet time for my personal practices, for writing, contemplation, and meditation.

During my Winter sabbatical, I encourage you to check out all the Gentle and Therapeutic yoga classes at the Breathing Project (www.breathingproject.org) in the Flatiron District, Gentle and Restorative yoga classes at Integral Yoga Institute, both on the Upper Westside (www.iynyc.com )  and in the West Village (www.iyiny.org), and Gentle Yoga at the Tong Ren Center in the Flatiron District where they also have qigong and tai chi.  Please email Anubha (tongrenny@gmail.com) and John (gspwallah@gmail.com) for their schedule at the Tong Ren Center.

Many of you have also been asking me about Dr. Roger Janhke’s Tai Chi Easy information, and here are his websites:

www.taichieasy.org, www.feeltheqi.org, www.iiqtc.org, or www.healthaction.net

He sells his books and dvds on these sites, and if you “You Tube” Tai Chi Easy, you should also find some of the practices being demonstrated there as well.

If you have any questions about my sabbatical or about yoga and qigong recommendations, please feel free to email or call me!  I will be in NYC for most of my sabbatical  (as much as I fantasize about wintering in the warmth somewhere, I won’t be on some tropical island or Indian ashram.  ☺ )

I intend to return to teaching in April, and I will keep you informed about my schedule.

In the meanwhile, please feel free to keep in touch!  I cherish your friendship, support, camaraderie, and the practices we share in classes.  Deciding to take this sabbatical was not an easy decision for me, as I feel very loyal to all of you and I derive so much enjoyment from my classes with you.  But, I feel that the sabbatical will hopefully make me a better teacher, and provide me with more information and insights to share with you upon my return.

I hope this email finds you well, and enjoying our beautiful Fall weather!  Next week, I am at Omega for a retreat.

I also wanted to point out a very interesting article in the latest issue of Yoga Journal (November, p. 66), written by Mark Singleton, PhD.  In his article (and his new book), Singleton tracks the modern practice of yoga, such as the vinyasa style and power yoga that is so popular in the West, and discusses its’ origins.  You may be surprised to read his conclusions, based on years of research, that most yoga that is practiced in the West is not the form of yoga that was mentioned in the ancient yoga texts, but is rather a hybrid of Scandinavian athletics and gymnastic training and Indian yoga from only approximately 100 years ago.  Specifically, Singleton writes that “asana was rarely, if ever, the primary feature of the significant yoga traditions in India,” but rather, asana was “subordinate to other practices like “pranayama (expansion of the vital energy by means of the breath), dharana (focus, or placement of the mental faculty), and nada (sound) . . . .”   This sounds very much like the Rasa Yoga training I received in 2003- 04 and the form of yoga that I continue to teach, with some viniyoga additions.  I encourage you to read this fascinating article in its entirety, and I plan to read his book ”Yoga Body:  The Origins of Modern Posture Practice.”

Hi everyone,

I hope this email finds you well, and enjoying our reprieve from the summer heat wave!  Also, I am wishing those of you who celebrate the Jewish New Year, a very happy and healthy New Year.

In addition, I write to tell you about my support for my State Senator and friend Eric Schneiderman who is a leading candidate in the Democratic primary for Attorney General this Tuesday, September 14.  Eric is endorsed by the New York Times based on his “sound judgment, legal expertise, political independence, and long history of fighting for government reform”.  He has also received the support of over 100 elected officials (such as Carl McCall, Christine Quinn, David Dinkins, Bill Thompson, Betsy Gotbaum, and Scott Stringer), unions, progressive organizations, and community leaders.

Relevant to the yoga community, Eric was instrumental in helping defeat the proposed yoga licensing bill this year.  He was very supportive of the NY Yoga teachers who formed to defeat a proposed bill that would have required state licensing of yoga teacher training programs.  (“On July 31, 2009, Senator Schneiderman amends his bill to explicitly include yoga and martial arts as exempted subjects, and clarifies that those teaching teachers of exempted subjects are also exempt.  Assemblywoman [Linda] Rosenthal follows suit on August 17”, and the bill was signed into law by Gov. Patterson on March 24, 2010.)  See http://www.yogaforny.org/background

As you may be aware, the yoga community has been voluntarily regulated by the Yoga Alliance, and any state licensing requirements would have been onerous and cost prohibitive to most yoga teachers and centers.  So we are very grateful to Senator Schneiderman for his support.  Please remember to vote this Tuesday!

Hi everyone,

I hope this email finds you well, while in the midst of this NYC heat wave.  Last month when I was in Montana, even guests and workers at the ranch were discussing the brutally hot summer that NYC is experiencing.  (It was nice to know they care about us!  J)  If you are like me, you may find yourself getting more “hot and bothered” by things that normally wouldn’t be so bothersome.  I find that I tend to be less patient and more irritable as I go through my day, enduring what feels like subway platforms in purgatory and sidewalks so hot I can feel my toes burning in my sandals!  So, to help me “cool off” both in body and mind, I have been slowing down – adjusting my schedule to include slower walks in the park (thank you, Central Park, for the cooling comfort of your beautiful trees); drinking coconut water (if you can find a place to pop a straw into a young coconut for you, it’s heavenly); and adding more quiet time for contemplation and meditation.  If we can find ways to be flexible and adapt our lifestyle choices in response to nature’s extremes, we can then always find our own inner balance and harmony – and that is the true definition of yoga.

Hi everyone,

I hope you had a glorious Memorial Day weekend.  This morning, my husband and I attended a moving memorial service held at the Sailors’ and Soldiers’ Monument in Riverside Park.  Mayor Bloomberg and City Council Member Gale Brewer were among the eloquent speakers, and the United States Navy Band played the anthem.  Seeing the currently enlisted young men and women (and they do look young) of the Navy and the Marines, next to the retired servicemen and women (one senior officer in attendance had conducted taps at FDR’s funeral), was very touching.  It is a beautiful service offered annually on the Upper Westside, and I am glad that I was able to attend this year to pay my respects.

Hi everyone,

First, I would like to wish everyone a very happy and healthy New Year!  I don’t know about you, but to me 2010 has a nice ring to it.

I am healing well from my surgery in December^.  I know all your healing thoughts have helped me in this healing process, and I thank you again for your kindness, your emails and phone calls.  I am starting back to teaching on a limited basis (kind of easing my way back into it), and then in March, I will email you my full schedule. I also want to thank all the wonderful yoga teachers who have subbed for me while I was on leave; thank you!

I am so looking forward to reconnecting with all of you, and returning to my yoga practice.  During my recuperation, the qigong has been a lifesaver as I was able to do it (albeit with smaller movements) even on the night after surgery when I was in a fair amount of pain.  So I am very grateful for these practices, and also for Reiki and meditation, because I found they gave me the tools necessary to help me deal with the stress of surgery (and admittedly I got very stressed during pre-op), and the post-op healing process – which was more challenging than I had expected.  So, the value of having a consistent mind-body practice (whether it is yoga or qigong), became even more crystal clear to me.  This experience has confirmed to me the importance of these ancient self- healing practices.  During challenging times, they are an amazing resource from which to pull.

Please join me on Saturday, Sept. 12 for an interactive and fun workshop on the Sun Salutation!  During this workshop, each pose and transition from the Sun Salutation will be isolated and discussed in detail.  With an emphasis on correct alignment and strength building, you will also learn and practice the modifications and variations that work best for you!  If you have had questions regarding the best way to practice the salute to the sun, or if you have struggled with some of the asanas or transitions in the Salutation, this workshop will benefit you.  We will end the Workshop with a guided relaxing Yoga Nidra as well!

Hi everyone,

I just returned from a wonderful trip to England, visiting London and then the countryside.  Both the city and the English countryside are beautiful, with wonderful old architecture preserved and well maintained, well-tended gardens, and clean streets.  While sightseeing, I observed myself thinking and wishing that NYC could be more like elegant London, with its lack of graffiti and strewn litter, and respect for historic buildings.    But upon my return home this week, and my routine, I find myself appreciating NYC once again.  No other city that I have visited offers the diversity and wealth of health options as NYC.  Here there is a yoga center, dance school, karate or martial arts school, gym, health food store, and some kind of holistic practitioner or healing center, it seems, every 10-20 blocks.  I always appreciate the options we have here, but whenever I return from vacation I especially realize how wonderful NYC is – warts and all.

Hi everyone,

I am teaching a free community Hatha Yoga class on the following Fridays:  July 10, July 17, and July 31.  The class is held outdoors at the beautiful Target Community Garden in Bed-Stuy from 6:30 – 7:30 pm (weather permitting).

Please join me at one or all of these evening yoga classes.  It’s a perfect way to end the work week:  come stretch and relax on the garden’s green grass as the sun sets over the skyline!  Children are welcome as well!

No prior yoga experience is necessary; just bring a mat or a towel, and an open mind.

Hi everyone,

Happy Inauguration Day!  I, along with many of you I’m sure, found today’s events very moving.  No matter what one’s political affiliation may be, we can agree that it was a historic day for America and the rest of the world.  I feel so fortunate to have experienced such positive history in the making, albeit by watching it on television and not live in DC.  But it was a special pleasure to have shared the experience with my friends at Gilda’s Club after our morning tai chi class.

In his speech, President Obama (and later Ret. General Colin Powell in a separate televised interview) spoke about how we all can serve the country and one another.  I immediately thought about yoga philosophy, and how being a yogi is so much more than practicing the asana (physical poses) or breathing exercises (pranayama).  In yoga, being of service is one of the main principles.  In fact, one type of yoga is all about service:  karma yoga.  Additionally, in yoga class we often offer the energetic or spiritual benefits of our physical practice to something or someone outside of ourselves.  In that way, we can also serve.  So, I hope the new administration will help to inspire us to be of service in whatever unique way it manifests for each of us.  Let us practice yoga together with that intention in mind.  And know that when we serve others, we are also simultaneously helping ourselves.