In this episode of the project mindfulness podcast, we talk about yoga; why do it and where to start? I talk with Rob Don, who is a Yoga teacher and musician from Los Angeles. We talk about his personal journey into yoga, why yoga is important and where to start with your Yoga practice.

From partying to mindfulness

In this episode, we talk about the personal journey Rob made. From playing in bands, concerts and ultimately partying to Yoga and mindfulness. After having a sudden change in his life situation, he decided to dedicate his time to practicing meditation & mindfulness. He found his first yoga class on craigslist, which was all about Kundalini Yoga. Later on, he got more into Vinyasa flow and variations of Hatha Yoga. So what’s the deal with Yoga?

Form learning Yoga to teaching Yoga

After a profound experience in a yoga class in North Hollywood, he decided to share this transforming experience with others. The passion to share this experience led him to start his training as a Yoga teacher.
Rob approaches his classes as a variation of Vinyasa flow creating the atmosphere of a meditation in motion. Establishing the breath as the priority and incorporating the principles of asana practice, he encourages students to honor the length of their breath and never sacrifice it in attempts to “achieve” any particular posture.

Personal practice, personal path, personal journey

Rob has been teaching Yoga since 2013. Originally from Lynwood, Rob has trained with world renowned yoga teachers and is happy to share what he has learned with us. Central to this talk is that we can’t force others to see what we see. Each person has their own path and journey, and it is not up to us to say what they need or should do.

There might be times we feel we don’t know where we are going. It’s just that coming back to the practice and the breath. Becoming mindful of the present and the phenomena happening here.
We talk a bit more about Yoga and what the relevance is of this ancient tradition in his life. Rob does a lot with breath-centered work in his Yoga classes. Rob is all about keeping it down to earth and simple for those he instructs. Yoga as a mindful movement practice is inherently spiritual as it is.

Rob sees his classes as a collaboration between student and teacher. What is important is to look where each individual is and what they need at that point in their practice.

The benefits of Yoga

We talk about the benefits of Yoga and what it does to your mind and body. We condition the mind and the nervous system. Our pose and our breathe can influence our state of mind. Through practice of Yoga over time, we become more in tune with the body.

“We are training the mind to respond to stress in a better way.”

So how do we integrate what we learn or do in a Yoga or Meditation class into our own lives? We talk about tricks to get back into the present moment. There is a tendency to do good and better ourselves, but that sometimes translates into being hard on ourselves. It’s important to realize it is a process, and to stay with it.
Just stop whatever you are doing. Return to your breathe.
Rob recommends Yoga Nidra practice as a supplement to other practices, and we talk about the best way to start with Yoga.

Want to know more?

If you’d like to know more about Rob Don, take a look at his website: https://robdonyoga.com

If you’d like to talk about this podcast or have comments and ideas, please let me know by joining our community here https://discord.gg/FKWFeYq
Simply use @christiaan or send me a DM! I would love to hear from you.

With warm regards,

Christiaan Neeteson

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The post Yoga; why do it and where to start? appeared first on Meditation Mind.

The Podcast format

My name is Christiaan Neeteson, 31 years young and currently living in Berlin together with my partner Rebecca. After encountering meditation & mindfulness a few years back it radically changed my life. From incredible emotional turbulence, unhealthy relationships and deep suffering to lightness and ease, the practice radically transformed both my own state of mind and the relationships around me.

I’m sitting down and having a chat with other meditators from around the world to talk about their practice, the lessons they have learned and what they want the world to know. From Zen, Christianity to Secular, all traditions have valuable insights and approaches to awareness, and in this podcast we explore those with you.

International Team

For this second episode, I have a chat with Greg Jacoby about his transformation and his current practice. Greg and me, together with David (previous episode) and Benjamin (coming episode) have started to work as a team on themindfulcourse.com and the Meditation & Mindfulness community. For each one of us, meditation has a lasting and genuine effect on our lives and the lives of people around us. In these first three episodes I will explore what meditation means for each of the team members.

Greg & his transformation

Greg shares how he came from a low point of depression and drug dealing, decided to visit a retreat in India and how it changed his life afterwards. Greg mentions his teacher at that time, Swami J (http://www.swamij.com/) and the idea of staying with the breathe at all times as a practice. Seemingly with a mix of different traditions and techniques, Greg talks about how his life is enhanced with practices like Metta, Bhakti and Vipassana.

Four Paths of Yoga

I am not very familiar with Yoga and its practice, but was intrigued by Greg mentioning Bhakti Yoga. Up till recently , Yoga to me was another way to get in shape and look good.
I wasn’t sure how much of it’s spiritual practice was transferred to us here in the west. It seemed like another way to glorify the human body and feel good about yourself.
However, the more I hear and read about it, the more I start to learn about it’s roots that go beyond just a beautiful pose in the sunset on instagram.
From the Swami J website I found the following description for the four paths of Yoga:

“Jnana Yoga: Jnana Yoga is the path of knowledge, wisdom, introspection and contemplation. It involves deep exploration of the nature our being by systematically exploring and setting aside false identities.

Bhakti Yoga: Bhakti Yoga is the path of devotion, emotion, love, compassion, and service to God and others. All actions are done in the context of remembering the Divine.

Karma Yoga: Karma Yoga is the path of action, service to others, mindfulness, and remembering the levels of our being while fulfilling our actions or karma in the world.

Raja Yoga: Raja Yoga is a comprehensive method that emphasizes meditation, while encompassing the whole of Yoga. It directly deals with the encountering and transcending thoughts of the mind.”

Greg describes how the path of Bhakti Yoga is continuous throughout the day in action and speech, and it’s something I personally feel inclined to discover more about.
The testimonial of Greg in this episode will surely inspire you to practice, to consider the importance of meditation and the impact it can have on each of our lives.

If you’d like to talk about this podcast or have some feedback or ideas, please let me know by joining our community here https://discord.gg/FKWFeYq and simply use @christiaan or send me a DM! I would love to hear from you.

With warm regards,

Christiaan

The post Episode 2: Swami J & Bhakti Yoga appeared first on Meditation Mind.