FAQs

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I’m not flexible – Can I do yoga?
How is Anusara Yoga different from other styles of Yoga?
What should I expect when I come to class?
What is that chant we do at the beginning of class?
Is Yoga a religion?
What do I need to bring to Yoga class?

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I’m not flexible – Can I do yoga?
Yes, yoga is perfect for people with tight bodies! As your body responds to practice, you will become more balanced, stronger, and more flexible. Most students remark early on that they simply feel better and sleep better when they do yoga.
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How is Anusara Yoga different from other styles of Yoga?
One of the hallmarks of Anusara Yoga, founded by John Friend, are the 5 Universal Principles of Alignment. The first principle, “Soften and Open to the Grace around you” sets the tone of our practice. Become sensitive and remember you are in a flow with a much larger current (the Divine!). From the first principle, we get down to the business of creating safety in the physical body with principles that utilize muscle energy and directional movement in the bones. The 5th alignment principle invites us to expand fully into our greatest expression of creative joy.

Anusara Yoga has its roots in the non-dualistic Tantric philosophy that affirms life as the creative expression of the Divine. Because of the nature of embracing goodness, Anusara attracts students who enjoy building community and growing together. Like a great mountain climbing expedition, we go up together, supportive, inspired by each other, always challenging ourselves to be our very best.

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What should I expect when I come to class?
Each class is 1.5 hours long.  Our teachers always begin class by creating a theme (usually drawn from yoga philosophy and often a light-hearted story or observation from your teacher’s own life).  We spend several minutes breathing consciously and centering and then chant the Anusara Invocation to begin class (learn more about the invocation below).

In beginner classes, the postures are broken down sequentially so that students understand how to move safely in their bodies, modifications are offered when needed, and students learn how to incorporate the Universal Principles of Alignment from Anusara Yoga into every pose.

Linking breath work and intention into postures, students experience the vibrancy that comes when stability and freedom happen in the body simultaneously.

Each class ends with a resting pose called savasana. A period of deep relaxation, savasana is an important time of releasing old patterns and integrating new understandings in the body.
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What is that chant we do at the beginning of class?

The Anusara Invocation is a beautiful Sanskrit chant that reminds us that God is always present. We have but to turn to the light of the Divine that is within us and around us to feel its presence.

OM

NAMAH SHIVAYA GURAVE

I offer myself to the light, the True Teacher within and without

SATCHIDANANDA MURTAYE

Who is Reality, Consciousness, and Bliss

NISPRAPANCAYA SHANTAYA

Who is never absent and full of peace

NIRALAMBAYA TEJASE

Independent in existence, the vital essence of illumination.

OM

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Is Yoga a religion?
Yoga is not a religion. It is a 4-5000 year old Indian philosophy that provides a framework for spiritual growth, awareness, and deeper consciousness.

The Indian sage Patanjali is believed to have collated the practice of yoga into the Yoga Sutra around 2,000 years ago. The Sutra is a collection of 195 aphorisms that serve as a philosophical guidebook for most of the yoga that is practiced today. It also outlines eight limbs of yoga:

yamas (restraints),

niyamas (observances),

asana (postures),

pranayama (breathing),

pratyahara (withdrawal of senses),

dharana (concentration),

dhyani (meditation), and

samadhi (absorption, enlightenment).

In the western world today, most people practicing yoga are engaged in the third limb, asana. Asanas are physical postures designed to purify the body and provide the physical strength and stamina required for meditation.
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What do I need to bring to Yoga class?
Just bring yourself and a smile. Anusara Yoga attracts wonderful people who are warm and welcoming. The Bindu has mats, blocks, straps, and blankets on hand. Usually once a student decides to continue in Yoga, he/she will want to purchase his/her own mat.