Alignment is a Heartful, Full-time Practice

Dear Friends and Yogis,

I have enjoyed the first inklings of Spring this past week as the days have warmed a bit and the sun has been shining, urging me out to the yard and garden to see what changes are stirring.  My youngest son Sage is anxiously awaiting the first daffodil bloom and asking each day if Spring is here.

The natural progression of the seasons reminds us that there is a deep and intrinsic order in Nature.  Yoga reminds us that we are part of this sacred order.  Just as plants and animals align their growth and development with the seasons, so must we align our bodies, minds and hearts to create harmony and balance in our lives. 

Alignment is at the heart of the Anusara-inspired yoga that I teach.  The exquisite alignment principles that instruct how we place our feet and hands, and align our muscles,  bones, and organs have profound impacts on our physical health.  Alignment in yoga doesn't stop at the mat; however.  True alignment is unifying our bodies, minds and hearts to experience greater joy and harmony in all aspects of our lives.

My teacher John Friend, founder of Anusara Yoga refers to this as "lining up with the stream of Grace.  When we are in alignment, we experience joy."  Some days, it is easier to find this alignment, other days it is more challenging.  Nonetheless, yoga is a full-time practice, and Tantric scholar Douglas Brooks writes, "No matter what we are doing or where we find ourselves, we can and indeed we must create an experience of alignment." 

More often than not, the simple things in life are what that can bring us back into our hearts, back into alignmnent: pausing in our busy day to gaze out the window and enjoy the beauty of nature, noticing and enjoying the smile of a young child or passerby, stopping in the heat of a challenging situation to find and reclaim the natural rhythm of our breath, rooting down through our feet and rising up through our spine as we stand in the grocery line and making gratitude for these simple joys a daily practice.

I offer you this advice: Don't miss the simple things that bring you into your heart.  This is where you will find true alignment.

Namaste,

Annie