Dharma Yoga New York Center: LOAY 800-Hour, Day 3

The Life of a Yogi

“If you want to conserve energy [after the relaxation class] don’t talk. Don’t eat heavy food.”

This is a difficult entry to write, having just emerged from a very blissful one-hour Deep Healing Relaxation session with Dharma. Earlier in the day Adam described a lot of the inner workings, how’s, and why’s of the Deep Healing Relaxation Method that Dharma teaches. Because of that detailed information, I actually completed the whole hour without falling asleep for the first time… EVER! Yeah, I know, you’re not supposed to do that. But my under-rested body and mind feel so safe and serene when Dharma paints beautiful relaxing pictures with words, so inevitably I drift off (not for the whole thing, but for a small part of it). Because of the lack of discipline (and knowledge that falling asleep is incorrect) in the past, I was never able to truly benefit from the incredible effects of this practice until Adam’s instruction this afternoon.

When one practices this method under the guidance and supervision of a truly qualified teacher, it is possible to lose all body consciousness. In other words, by relaxing the parts of the body in a certain way, you lose feeling of it. When this happens, you can turn your attention inside and become aware of deeper levels of your own mind, and sometimes even experience some of the more subtle (AKA non-physical) energies that exist in you. It must be experienced to be understood.

Earlier in the day, Adam also led us through a “Dharma Sukha” class. This is a wonderful, simple class that anyone can do, and Adam created a nurturing environment that was very conducive to meditation. Then again, his use of his own voice and loving presence is enough to led one into a meditative state.

Early this morning, our first sessions with Dharma were "How to teach Dharma IV" and the Psychic Development series again. Each time I do the series, more and more subtle effects of it are revealed, as are more subtle ways of completing each exercise. It is worth being in Dharma’s presence to absorb this subtle knowledge. Even those who live in NYC and study/practice Psychic Development on a daily or weekly basis say it is worth it to be here just to be part of the group consciousness. And as for learning how to teach Dharma IV from Dharma himself, well, let’s just say we are drinking straight from the fountain.

Om shanti, and thank you for being part of the collective consciousness wherever you are!

~Olivia Foss

_____________________________________________________

“Merge with everyone,” was Sri Dharma’s opening statement today in his noon master sadhana class. We started the morning with pranayama and meditation led by Sri Dharma. That is one of the benefits of being a LOAY trainee – having a daily 90-minute session each morning with Sri Dharma.

Following the session, Sri Dharma carefully explained and cued every pose in the Dharma IV sequence, which is the asana sequence highlighted in the 800-hour program. The trainees did not practice while Sri Dharma led; it was a blessing to be able to jot Sri Dharma’s exact words, his variations, and his ‘tricks’!

After our break, which followed another powerful and packed master class, Adam introduced us to Yoga Nidra, known as psychic sleep or deep relaxation and healing and how to teach it the way Dharma teaches it. This, with Psychic Development is an active meditation technique that normalizes circulation and the nervous system. Adam explained that our sympathetic nervous system, ‘flight or fight’ is really only supposed to be engaged a small percentage of time. But the way people generally handle stress and life, the sympathetic nervous system is engaged a lot more in most people.

As Adam was explaining this, I was thinking of how, after I develop my own Yoga Nidra practice, I will offer it to my co-teachers that work with me in middle school… as a gift. Dealing with adolescents on a daily basis requires a lot of energy output!

Adam then taught us Dharma Sukha, which is a new class that is meant to be at a level in between Dharma Gentle and Dharma I. It was a great warm-up that preceded Dharma’s Maha Shakti. We ended our session with a practice we all needed and anticipated: deep healing and relaxation techniques.

~Cindy Ley-Sepe