What is the measure of a woman? Her body? Her
weight? Her face? Her family? Her boyfriend? Her career? Her
finances? Her charitable works? Her yoga practice? Her practice of
any kind? As a founding member of The Hub, I've often measured myself
as a woman by the work, loyalty, and dedication that I did at The Hub
as the attorney, business manager, and yoga teacher. And, now that
I'm following my road less traveled to Sweden (Vasteras for those who
know), I'm measuring myself on a scale of the heart - how much can I
love and how much love am I willing to receive. In fact, now I
realize that the measure of myself has always been about love, how
much do I give and how much am I willing to receive.
Love comes in many forms, but to me, the measure of a woman is how
acutely she can perceive love in every form that is offered. In my
experience with The Hub since it's inception in Lauri's yoga class at
PJ's house when we were all throwing out ideas for names, many people
have crossed my path, many different forms of love have been offered
to me and from me. From students like Julia Blanchard and Paula Tiso
and Daria Donovan, teachers like Nita Rubio and Matt Pesendian, and
healers like David Elliott and Nisha Sharma, the lesson of
recognizing, giving, and receiving loving words, actions, and feelings
has been stronger than ever. And it's because of the deep friendship
with Lauri and our courageous and hilarious efforts to always find the
love that we have grown as women - more loving, more expansive, more
understanding, more compassionate than the moments beforehand. What a
complete pleasure and exhilaration it's been for me to witness and
participate in the loving off!
erings from every single teacher, every student, and everyone who has
worked at The Hub during my tenure. We've laughed so hard. How many
people can say that they laughed collectively at every business
meeting in their company? Genuine smiles and genuine well wishing to
others? I don't think that's common - in fact, I think it's rare.
The Hub is a rare jewel for this reason - the ability of everyone
involved to find the love in all interactions.
I bought out The Hub's inventory of green Hugger Mugger yoga blocks
and sent them with my fiance, Mattias Eriksson, to Vasteras in order
for me to prepare to teach yoga and breathwork in Sweden. I also
bought yoga mats and sent them off to Sweden last Fall when I was
there. When The Hub's doors opened in February of 2009, I was
teaching a full schedule of yoga classes for the first time in my
life. Who knew that I would continue teaching two years later in
another country? I'll always be grateful for that learning ground.
7am classes every weekday with Lisa Siegel (Thank you Lisa!) and 4pm
yoga classes during the week and eventually 4pm restorative yoga
classes on Sunday, for which I gained a great circle of students. We
learned from each other, at least I hope we did, or rather, I know I
learned from them. In fact, my students have now become my greatest
teachers. I was practicing yoga until my low back gave out, but I
kept teaching yoga because of my new debilitati!
ng weakness. I knew more about the practice of yoga and moving the
body because of my inability to move the way my heart wanted to. My
teaching shifted as I became more vested in my students' abilities to
understand how their bodies work and listen closely to the language of
their bodies. More than ever, I made it my mission to impart the
wisdom of listening to our bodies and honoring those communications.
As the great choreographer and some say inventor of "modern dance",
Martha Graham, said, the body never lies. And as I embark to Europe,
I hope to continue to create space for people to develop that close
friendship with their own bodies, to listen closely when we move our
bodies, and to understand that the body is always telling us something
about our hearts.
I know I'll be back at The Hub in the future. For now, I want to tell
the world about how awesome and wonderful are the people at The Hub,
past and present. Workers like CJ McCrary, Tess Jablon, Lizzy Rich,
Mike Baker, Dana Stall, Stacy Mullins, The Prince - Scott Ishihara,
and Alex Richmond (whom I'm training to take over my weekday 7:30am
yoga classes because he's as cool as a cucumber with impeccable taste
in music and an excellent way of teaching morning yoga). Didn't we
all laugh hard together? You each taught me how to be humble and how
to be a better leader and manager. Meagan McCrary for being a damn
good writer, girlfriend, and yoga teacher - please contribute and read
her Little Black Blog of Red Flags. She's doing a great service for
all us Sistahs! Chris Barton for agreeing with me (haha) and being an
excellent accountant. All women who have worked at Lululemon and
supported The Hub with their dedication to the practice of yoga and
genuine smiles from the!
heart all the time. David Elliott for giving me the space to
express myself freely in public (sounds frightening) and the time to
come full circle in truly understanding what life is like when I
actually learn to accept, appreciate, and love myself just as I am -
and for creating a community of individuals who gather at his events
and take it over and make it their own foundation of love and
acceptance on which to go out into the real world. Teachers and
leaders like Scott Schwenk (my first breathwork leader and simply my
favorite group leader), Tad Robichaux (a Duke of Love and Dance and
the kindest, friendliest, intelligent man), Chad Hamrin (my favorite
no bullshit yoga teacher), Gail Bennett and her husband, Bill
Tunnicliffe (she is humble and has one of the most beautiful yoga
practices that I've ever seen - and he literally made the Hub with his
bare hands and a little help from Flavio ;) ), Matt Pesendian (his
Shadow Yoga teachings and his ancient wisdom as a Chin!
ese Medical Doctor validated what my body was trying to tell me - than
k God for Matt), Nita Rubio (she taught me that great teachers
actually channel information from another plane of existence), Cass
Phelps (a cutting edge leader on the treatment of autistic children
and the vitality of calming down), Edward Yu (who else can do Tai Chi
balance poses on the edge of a tall boulder in the ocean?), Jay Co (a
trail blazer at trail blazing and cute salutations such as "Peace,
Love, and Pear Ice Cream with Candied Pecans" - also a fantastic
teacher trainer), Vicki Howie (for her incredible dedication to the
importance of balancing one's chakras and loving one's son), Sarah
Ezrin (Sistah!, Teacher, and Business Phenomenon - survivor, lover,
daughter, and expert at all things Facebook and connecting with the
world - lover of Ashtanga and mutual appreciator of Sonya Cottle),
Sarah Court (classy, funny, wise - she rocks the Bejeezus out of her
students!), James MacDonald (for shaking his booty in Upward Dog and
getting into every single solitary pose in!
the Anusara wall map of asanas, I mean WOW - and his dedication to
helping cancer patients), Sabrina Kappler, Kate Szilagyi, Erin Fukuda,
Hank Ostendorf, Cindy Starry (Sistah Mermaid and Pied Piper for the
welfare of children), Suwon Weaver (amazing fashion designer and
healer), Nisha Sharma (great leader, great Sistah), Katrina Rivers
(boldly going where no woman has gone before - please contribute to
her New Mexico retreat center), Laurence Walsh (for showing everyone
how to go for it in her breathwork classes and writings), Mike Baker
(for leading with empathy and compassion and great music), Scott
Ishihara for Leading the Dance and Preparing to Lead the World (I'm
taking credit as the first person to push him to teaching breathwork
in the world and yoga at The Hub as soon as possible), Jenny Miller
(for painting the Elf Tree of Life in the office, the rainbow
paintings of human diversity in the lounge, and the floating feathers
with the hidden Moby Dick in the Sun Room!
- what a talent - and an excellent breathwork leader and interior des
igner), Chris Chavez (for showing me how empowering it is to lead a
class with passion, calling people by their names, and giving them the
confidence and blast of energy to take poses to an entirely higher
level of practice, and to videotape my teaching to learn and improve
as a teacher), Deirdre Doherty (great interior designer and breathwork
leader), Ryan Brewer for singing your heart out and grooving to a
sweat, John English for showing me the way of the South, Chris Doggett
for showing me the way of my heart and Patchimama, Charu Morgan (for
showing me how easy it is to be loved by a man when I open my heart -
she helped me receive Mattias and hold onto the best man), Sarika
Quach (for opening my mind to new names and sweetness), Lara Catone
and Sarah Vosen (for entertaining me with their remarkable Acro Yoga
and being living examples of practicing what they preach), Jamie
Bechtold (for the gong and subbing restorative - thank you), Oscar
Marquez/Sat Nishan (for the gong!
, for being available, for listening, for being a great therapist and
financial advisor), Marga Laube (for teaching astrology at the Hub and
teaching Lauri, Mike, and I about The Hub and our relationship to it),
Jade Sol Luna (for being my astrologer, my friend, and my champion as
a maha jyotish astrologer and writer of new book Asterian Astrology,
and guiding Lauri, Mike, and I in ways that catapulted our growth),
Amy Lombardo (for teaching Open Level Yoga on Sunday mornings and
showing me how someone can move to a new city and make a life for
herself as a professional yoga teacher and head of a major charitable
organization), Chloe Ashworth (for making me laugh and working with me
on MindBodyOnline and all the clothing inventory and picking out yoga
clothes to sell - that was fun!), Chris Ashworth (for helping Lauri
birth the baby Hub when it was just a glint in her eye), Nina Irani
(for having a glint in your eye when Lauri and I had the Hub glint in
our eyes), Gali Kron!
enberg (for writing so expertly and teaching the laws of attraction an
d being a fun dancer to go out with), Christiane Schull (for being an
excellent rebirther, my therapist, and force to prepare for Mattias'
great love), Kris Nelson (for teaching me how to get a lot done by
doing less and relaxing around business conflicts), and and
and,
For those of you that I have forgotten to write about here, of course
you are vital and important to The Hub and to me. I know I'll be
thinking of your names and faces and contributions and talents as I
walk the Earth. The Hub is actually all of these contributors, all of
these cells, all of these spirits working in concert to make a unified
whole that we call The Hub. The Hub grows as the leaders, teachers,
and, most importantly, the students grow in number, diversity,
laughter, sweat, and tears.
And here's a toast to the students I've met along the way - both my
students and co-students in classes with me: Lisa Siegel, Daria
Donovan, Corinne Theile (LAX Bikini Girl and Charitable Giver of Kind
Bars), Paula Tiso, Leslie Dick (bless your family), Karen Milak, Rama
Yaffe, Delan Hilliard, Patty Miller, Patti Mills, Reva Ferguson,
Stephanie Fish, Terese Stryker, Mona, Kathy & David Tavitian, Ramsey
Woods, Marc Peterson, Lindsay Doering, Chad Matthews and his three
beautiful little daughters, Stacy Mullings, Blaise & Jimmy & All the
Brothers at UCLA, Lulin Tsai, Lauren Kutasi, Robin Udany, Ashley
Marrs, Dr. Richard Marrs, Kyle & Kelsey Milack, Felicia Tomasko (also
for subbing and being a great business advisor), Ariel Hyatt (from
teen to Woman), all of the David Elliott community, and my Allyu. The
list just goes on and on. Thank you for teaching me. Aho
Mataquiasan.
Lauri Ashworth has been my teacher, my best friend, my Sistah!, my
client, and my student. While Lauri owns her baby, The Hub, many have
believed that she and I were business partners at The Hub. For me,
that mistaken belief is the ultimate compliment to me. I work from my
heart, and her love, influence on the world, and talents are what drew
me to support her project of creating The Hub from a mere glint in her
eye. I have a degree in the Entrepreneur Program at USC's business
school, so writing business plans is one of my many skills. For me,
writing the plan with her was a total joy in creativity, imagination,
artistry, humor, family, and intuition. Turns out, my financial
predictions were on the money. The Hub is a dream turned into
reality, and she gave me the opportunity to be a crucial part of that
inception. Lauri is an excellent cook, and we had many meetings over
her food with her family. And, like a family, especially a family
doing business together, we !
have had a rainbow of emotions, interactions and exchanges at The
Hub. I definitely feel that I am a member of the family, and that is
the most important thing I take away from all of this.
Through my experience at The Hub and the willingness of Lauri and the
others to work with me through all of our stuff and the kindness of
strangers, I have matured into a solid and trusted business attorney,
a more decisive leader, and a confident, supportive
teacher/healer/leader of classes and workshops.
What's good that's coming up? My wedding in Stockholm in May (we
hope) with my American family and my Swedish family! More
personalized yoga classes and shaman based breathwork classes in
Vasteras and Stockholm, Sweden. Continued legal work advising my
business clients on their entrepreneurial ventures. More cooking of
delicious, healthy meals for Mattias, my Swedish family, and friends.
More massage therapy and helping others to feel good in their bodies
(Mattias is a lucky man). Re-picking up the guitar (Sweet JR Getches,
please send my white Stratocaster back to me) and bass after 20 years
and jamming to AC/DC, The Eagles, and Rainbow with Mattias in our
living room and with The Mahoneys in Scottsdale, Arizona in July.
And, of course, more laughter. Lots and lots and lots of laughter.
--Barbie
The Declaration of Interdependence:
written by Scott Ishihara and the 10s
When in the course of Human events, it becomes necessary for One people to recognize Its common denominator and to perceive among the powers of the Universe, the inseparable and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature’s God entitle them, an Eternal agreement requires that We must remember the Truth of our Unification.
We hold this Truth to be self-evident, that everything in this Universe is created equal, and is endowed by Its Creator with a certain unalienable connection known as Unconditional Love. The time to remember who and what We are is Now. It all ways has Been and It all ways will Be. With the Universe as our witness we hereby set The in10tion at 10:10pm on the 10th day of the 10th month of the 10th year of this millennium, to do as best as Humanly possible to honor and uphold our Eternal agreement to remember in each and every moment that We are created by Love, that We are Love and that Our-Soul’s purpose is to serve and lead as many Humans as Humanly possible, including Our-self, to realize this Truth.
The 10s is a growing energetic force created by the conscious remembrance of the infinite bond unifying Us all together as One. We in10d to share the Light with as many Souls as possible through exchanges of Unconditional Love initiated by artistic expressions of Truth. Ultimately, We are serving to usher in a new age of Peace, Love, Unity and Respect on this planet and within this Universe.
Amen, AhOm, Namaste,Shalom, Salaam, Shanti, Peace and In Munay -the 10s
When in the course of Human events, it becomes necessary for One people to recognize Its common denominator and to perceive among the powers of the Universe, the inseparable and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature’s God entitle them, an Eternal agreement requires that We must remember the Truth of our Unification.
We hold this Truth to be self-evident, that everything in this Universe is created equal, and is endowed by Its Creator with a certain unalienable connection known as Unconditional Love. The time to remember who and what We are is Now. It all ways has Been and It all ways will Be. With the Universe as our witness we hereby set The in10tion at 10:10pm on the 10th day of the 10th month of the 10th year of this millennium, to do as best as Humanly possible to honor and uphold our Eternal agreement to remember in each and every moment that We are created by Love, that We are Love and that Our-Soul’s purpose is to serve and lead as many Humans as Humanly possible, including Our-self, to realize this Truth.
The 10s is a growing energetic force created by the conscious remembrance of the infinite bond unifying Us all together as One. We in10d to share the Light with as many Souls as possible through exchanges of Unconditional Love initiated by artistic expressions of Truth. Ultimately, We are serving to usher in a new age of Peace, Love, Unity and Respect on this planet and within this Universe.
Amen, AhOm, Namaste,Shalom, Salaam, Shanti, Peace and In Munay -the 10s
FREE Intro to Life Mastery Training
workshop with Jay Levin
Saturday, October 23
11 am - 1 pm
FREE
Jay Levin, founder and former editor of the LA Weekly, offers a free introductory orientation for the Life Mastery Basics course he teaches that has helped so many people. The orientation is a compelling and eye-opening experience that dramatically re-orients your sense of self and understanding of the world in one sitting and opens inner doors to tremendous levels of rapid growth and mastery with your own sensitivity. The orientation is also a doorway to a unique training program that you can use for yourself - or to become a coach to others. The program provides a rich education in one's internal workings, dramatically elevating your emotional and spiritual education levels, and includes tools to re-invent for the better one's relationship to oneself and to the world with its teaching of manifestation skills.
Most people who take the full course report dramatic improvements in their lives, sense of self and their relationships by the end of the course. The class best serves people who are ready to propel forward the new powers they are feeling and to learn a comprehenisve way to advance yourself. Also it supports those who seek a new direction in their life, or of some aspect of your life, or want perspective on their relationships, or maybe are struggling financially.
Participants obtain serious skillsets and growth. Your understanding of the world as well as yourself will grow - and potentially greatly. While the classes are effective and hold attention, participants testify they are also fun.
The training draws on Jay's background first as a journalist in which, in order to write about them, he participated in scores of trainings and workshops in post-Freudian healing and human development. Later he continued his education for its own sake. Jay's major education in human development have been via the Master's degree program in spiritual psychology at the University of Santa Monica and the trainer's program in Pathwork.
Saturday, October 23
11 am - 1 pm
FREE
Jay Levin, founder and former editor of the LA Weekly, offers a free introductory orientation for the Life Mastery Basics course he teaches that has helped so many people. The orientation is a compelling and eye-opening experience that dramatically re-orients your sense of self and understanding of the world in one sitting and opens inner doors to tremendous levels of rapid growth and mastery with your own sensitivity. The orientation is also a doorway to a unique training program that you can use for yourself - or to become a coach to others. The program provides a rich education in one's internal workings, dramatically elevating your emotional and spiritual education levels, and includes tools to re-invent for the better one's relationship to oneself and to the world with its teaching of manifestation skills.
Most people who take the full course report dramatic improvements in their lives, sense of self and their relationships by the end of the course. The class best serves people who are ready to propel forward the new powers they are feeling and to learn a comprehenisve way to advance yourself. Also it supports those who seek a new direction in their life, or of some aspect of your life, or want perspective on their relationships, or maybe are struggling financially.
Participants obtain serious skillsets and growth. Your understanding of the world as well as yourself will grow - and potentially greatly. While the classes are effective and hold attention, participants testify they are also fun.
The training draws on Jay's background first as a journalist in which, in order to write about them, he participated in scores of trainings and workshops in post-Freudian healing and human development. Later he continued his education for its own sake. Jay's major education in human development have been via the Master's degree program in spiritual psychology at the University of Santa Monica and the trainer's program in Pathwork.
Metamorphos.ish
written by Scott Ishihara
As I approach the one year mark of first crossing the threshold into the warm embrace of the Hub, I am moved to remember where I was just one short year ago before being introduced to this community of yoga, healing and spirituality. I wonder about what actually led me to a job working at the front desk of a yoga studio when I had never done yoga in my life. A year ago I thought it was because no other employers were responding to my cover letters and that I desperately needed to start paying bills after 2 months of traveling through Europe following my graduation from UCLA. But after a year of being here, I now realize that something far greater than my need for income, something far greater than myself for that matter, guided me into the place that I now call home. Home is where the heart is, the heart is the Hub of all sacred places, and I’ve been called here to roam.
So Friday marks one year for me and I’ve been reflecting on who I thought I was when I arrived at the Hub’s door last October in comparison to who I know I am now. I was living in Rome after graduation with Livia, my partner at the time, and I had this experience in a park called Villa Celimontana. In the summer at this park they play Jazz in the evenings, and people come and lay out on the grass, play with their dogs and enjoy the shade of the trees while the blazing sun makes its daily retreat beyond the horizon. Livia and I were laying out on a blanket when she pointed out a butterfly floating by in the sky. We happened to be discussing butterflies on the bus ride to the park, and I immediately had this urge to stick out my hand, focus on the butterfly’s flight pattern and try to get it to land on my hand. It felt like something I would have done as a kid, and part of me was astonished when this Red Admiral actually flew closer and closer, eventually landing on my hand and staying there for what seemed like an eternity. That same part of me was even more shocked when it flew away, only to come right back and land on my hand again, this time elegantly folding its wings down from their previously upright position to show the beauty of its true colors. I was frozen, time was standing still and I was so tuned into the moment that I could feel the disturbance in the air as its wings gracefully descended toward my skin; I felt those wing beats send ripples throughout my hand, like a pebble tossed into a still pond, spreading further up my arm and then throughout my entire being. If Livia hadn’t been there witnessing the whole thing go down and capturing it on camera, that astonished part of me may not have let me believe that it actually happened the way it did.
Then there was the other part of me, the part of me which intuitively opened my hand and opened my heart to the possibility that I could somehow attract this butterfly to my hand. It was as if this part of me had been laying dormant inside, hidden beneath layers of dirt, like a seed waiting for the optimal conditions to begin germination. This part of me knew what to do, how to make it happen and that it was exactly the right thing to do in that moment; somehow it knew I would be deeply affected by this experience, which would inevitably lead me to an incredible journey of self discovery. In the days after, I couldn’t stop thinking about what forces were responsible for that experience. It led me to start questioning my current lens of perception about how the Universe truly worked. That part of me, my intuitive gut feeling, was telling me that there was something more to life than what I could then understand. There was something connecting me to that butterfly that I couldn’t see nor explain. This part of me continued to grow as I began seeking answers.
Soon after being rocked by this butterfly effect, my friend Josh started talking to me about coming back to LA to pursue a passion for producing electronic dance music, which we both fell in love with while studying abroad in Barcelona, instead of going back to Spain to teach English as I had planned to do after the summer in Rome. Again, my intuition was pushing me to go back to LA and to throw the plans I had made in Spain out the window. Where I was assigned to teach in Spain wasn’t really where I wanted be, and to even take up the position I needed to fly back to the States just to get a visa, and then fly all the way back to Europe, so ultimately I went with my gut, venturing into the unknown without any real plans or sense of security. Without realizing it, my metamorphosis had already begun...my days as a caterpillar were coming to an end.
Upon returning to LA and looking for any job to support myself while pursuing a passion for music, I found the Hub, or rather, the Hub found me, and on October 15th 2009, a year of heavy transformation began. I’ve recently realized that when friends and family ask what I’ve been up to since graduating from college and I tell them that I work at a yoga studio, it doesn't really capture the essence of what I am now fully immersed within. I know this because it’s taken me a full year to even realize a fraction of what it all means to me; so here I go attempting to describe the indescribable.
Yoga is far more than a trendy way of exercising. Not only is it more physically demanding than it seems, but as with most things, its roots run much deeper than its outward appearance. The practice of yoga that we know in the West (body postures) is actually only one limb of the bigger 8 branch yoga tree, which includes practices concerning morality, breathing and meditation among others. The word yoga itself means to yoke, or union, and the true practice of yoga is really aiming to realign the mind, body and spirit back to the inner perfection that we were born into this world with, which brings us back into harmony and union with the true nature of the Universe. It may sound a bit esoteric at first (it certainly did to me when I first started!), but this is exactly what yoga has done for me in the past year, and I now realize I was actually practicing yoga in that park in Rome as I came into union with nature and with the Universe through my connection with Vanessa Atalanta (red admiral’s latin name).
In this past year I’ve been monkeying around from branch to branch on this yoga tree, tasting the multitude of fruits that each limb has to offer along the way. As I’ve moved around to different vantage points, I’ve gained clarity in many individual aspects of my life, which is leading me to a greater overall clarity about what I truly want to do with my life. My practice has taught me how to make the small adjustments moment to moment, which eventually lead to larger transformations. For example, I’ve learned about the importance of non-judgement. I’ve really started to see how every time I judge someone or something, I am really judging an insecurity that I hold inside myself. By consciously working to stop making so many judgements about people and things, I’ve started to judge myself less and less, and naturally love myself more and more. This has helped me to free up more mental space to begin appreciating the true beauty that is constantly surrounding me in every moment of life. Taking the opportunity to slow down and experience the vibrancy of things that I’m inherently attracted to, like a particular flower, a sunset, a hummingbird, a baby smiling in the grocery store or a butterfly in the park, has ultimately led to me see how all those things are really just reflections my own inherent beauty.
The deeper I’ve gotten into these practices, the happier and more content I’ve found myself to be in each and every moment, and for me, this is what yoga is really about. As William Blake would say, it’s about cleansing the doors of perception so everything appears as it is, infinite. The clarity I’ve gained as a result has allowed me to see how it all ultimately comes back to love. I can honestly say that until I started practicing yoga and learning about self-love, I didn’t even know what true love was, or at least I didn’t remember. It turns out that for me, love was more of an idea than a reality. Everything I thought was love was really just an illusion, appearing to be the real thing. It had been far too long since I had truly experienced unconditional love: the pulsing, electric, buzzing, magnetizing feeling that radiates out from the heart and connects everything in the Universe with everything else. I now know that in order to truly experience unconditional love, I have to be generating it from within first, and somewhere along the way I lost my ability to love myself, and didn’t even know it! Practicing yoga has allowed me to rediscover what love really is, what it really feels like to be generating this ultra magnetic force. I’ve come to understand that love is actually a vibrational frequency that is incredibly attractive by nature; it is the universal connector. The more I practice loving myself, the more everything is naturally attracted to me and I to It. When I love me, the entire Universe loves me! It is our deepest desire in life to be love and be loved, but we can only experience this when we are in love with our selves first. It’s unreal to me that it took so many years to realize what love truly is, and also what it is not.
And now I know what led me here. Love is what transformed a caterpillar into the butterfly that touched my hand and my heart in Rome, love is what attracted me back to LA and ultimately to the Hub, love is why I now manage the studio, love is why I teach yoga, love is why I do healing work, love is why I am writing this right now! Yoga is not about exercising, yoga is about learning to love yourself so that you can realize that YOU ARE LOVE, nothing more, nothing less. The Hub is not a place to exercise, the Hub is a heart, generating the frequency of love; it’s a sacred place holding sacred space to attract more people who are carrying the same seed inside that is patiently waiting for the optimal conditions to begin germination, to begin the process of remembering their own true nature... so come here and roam. Don’t be afraid of the darkness of chrysalis, hold strong through the turbulent changes of metamorphosis. Follow the Light until you can break free, spread your wings and fly away, only to land on the hand of another, initiating this process all over again.
In the bonds of peace, love, unity and respect,
-Ishhhhhhh
As I approach the one year mark of first crossing the threshold into the warm embrace of the Hub, I am moved to remember where I was just one short year ago before being introduced to this community of yoga, healing and spirituality. I wonder about what actually led me to a job working at the front desk of a yoga studio when I had never done yoga in my life. A year ago I thought it was because no other employers were responding to my cover letters and that I desperately needed to start paying bills after 2 months of traveling through Europe following my graduation from UCLA. But after a year of being here, I now realize that something far greater than my need for income, something far greater than myself for that matter, guided me into the place that I now call home. Home is where the heart is, the heart is the Hub of all sacred places, and I’ve been called here to roam.
So Friday marks one year for me and I’ve been reflecting on who I thought I was when I arrived at the Hub’s door last October in comparison to who I know I am now. I was living in Rome after graduation with Livia, my partner at the time, and I had this experience in a park called Villa Celimontana. In the summer at this park they play Jazz in the evenings, and people come and lay out on the grass, play with their dogs and enjoy the shade of the trees while the blazing sun makes its daily retreat beyond the horizon. Livia and I were laying out on a blanket when she pointed out a butterfly floating by in the sky. We happened to be discussing butterflies on the bus ride to the park, and I immediately had this urge to stick out my hand, focus on the butterfly’s flight pattern and try to get it to land on my hand. It felt like something I would have done as a kid, and part of me was astonished when this Red Admiral actually flew closer and closer, eventually landing on my hand and staying there for what seemed like an eternity. That same part of me was even more shocked when it flew away, only to come right back and land on my hand again, this time elegantly folding its wings down from their previously upright position to show the beauty of its true colors. I was frozen, time was standing still and I was so tuned into the moment that I could feel the disturbance in the air as its wings gracefully descended toward my skin; I felt those wing beats send ripples throughout my hand, like a pebble tossed into a still pond, spreading further up my arm and then throughout my entire being. If Livia hadn’t been there witnessing the whole thing go down and capturing it on camera, that astonished part of me may not have let me believe that it actually happened the way it did.
Then there was the other part of me, the part of me which intuitively opened my hand and opened my heart to the possibility that I could somehow attract this butterfly to my hand. It was as if this part of me had been laying dormant inside, hidden beneath layers of dirt, like a seed waiting for the optimal conditions to begin germination. This part of me knew what to do, how to make it happen and that it was exactly the right thing to do in that moment; somehow it knew I would be deeply affected by this experience, which would inevitably lead me to an incredible journey of self discovery. In the days after, I couldn’t stop thinking about what forces were responsible for that experience. It led me to start questioning my current lens of perception about how the Universe truly worked. That part of me, my intuitive gut feeling, was telling me that there was something more to life than what I could then understand. There was something connecting me to that butterfly that I couldn’t see nor explain. This part of me continued to grow as I began seeking answers.
Soon after being rocked by this butterfly effect, my friend Josh started talking to me about coming back to LA to pursue a passion for producing electronic dance music, which we both fell in love with while studying abroad in Barcelona, instead of going back to Spain to teach English as I had planned to do after the summer in Rome. Again, my intuition was pushing me to go back to LA and to throw the plans I had made in Spain out the window. Where I was assigned to teach in Spain wasn’t really where I wanted be, and to even take up the position I needed to fly back to the States just to get a visa, and then fly all the way back to Europe, so ultimately I went with my gut, venturing into the unknown without any real plans or sense of security. Without realizing it, my metamorphosis had already begun...my days as a caterpillar were coming to an end.
Upon returning to LA and looking for any job to support myself while pursuing a passion for music, I found the Hub, or rather, the Hub found me, and on October 15th 2009, a year of heavy transformation began. I’ve recently realized that when friends and family ask what I’ve been up to since graduating from college and I tell them that I work at a yoga studio, it doesn't really capture the essence of what I am now fully immersed within. I know this because it’s taken me a full year to even realize a fraction of what it all means to me; so here I go attempting to describe the indescribable.
Yoga is far more than a trendy way of exercising. Not only is it more physically demanding than it seems, but as with most things, its roots run much deeper than its outward appearance. The practice of yoga that we know in the West (body postures) is actually only one limb of the bigger 8 branch yoga tree, which includes practices concerning morality, breathing and meditation among others. The word yoga itself means to yoke, or union, and the true practice of yoga is really aiming to realign the mind, body and spirit back to the inner perfection that we were born into this world with, which brings us back into harmony and union with the true nature of the Universe. It may sound a bit esoteric at first (it certainly did to me when I first started!), but this is exactly what yoga has done for me in the past year, and I now realize I was actually practicing yoga in that park in Rome as I came into union with nature and with the Universe through my connection with Vanessa Atalanta (red admiral’s latin name).
In this past year I’ve been monkeying around from branch to branch on this yoga tree, tasting the multitude of fruits that each limb has to offer along the way. As I’ve moved around to different vantage points, I’ve gained clarity in many individual aspects of my life, which is leading me to a greater overall clarity about what I truly want to do with my life. My practice has taught me how to make the small adjustments moment to moment, which eventually lead to larger transformations. For example, I’ve learned about the importance of non-judgement. I’ve really started to see how every time I judge someone or something, I am really judging an insecurity that I hold inside myself. By consciously working to stop making so many judgements about people and things, I’ve started to judge myself less and less, and naturally love myself more and more. This has helped me to free up more mental space to begin appreciating the true beauty that is constantly surrounding me in every moment of life. Taking the opportunity to slow down and experience the vibrancy of things that I’m inherently attracted to, like a particular flower, a sunset, a hummingbird, a baby smiling in the grocery store or a butterfly in the park, has ultimately led to me see how all those things are really just reflections my own inherent beauty.
The deeper I’ve gotten into these practices, the happier and more content I’ve found myself to be in each and every moment, and for me, this is what yoga is really about. As William Blake would say, it’s about cleansing the doors of perception so everything appears as it is, infinite. The clarity I’ve gained as a result has allowed me to see how it all ultimately comes back to love. I can honestly say that until I started practicing yoga and learning about self-love, I didn’t even know what true love was, or at least I didn’t remember. It turns out that for me, love was more of an idea than a reality. Everything I thought was love was really just an illusion, appearing to be the real thing. It had been far too long since I had truly experienced unconditional love: the pulsing, electric, buzzing, magnetizing feeling that radiates out from the heart and connects everything in the Universe with everything else. I now know that in order to truly experience unconditional love, I have to be generating it from within first, and somewhere along the way I lost my ability to love myself, and didn’t even know it! Practicing yoga has allowed me to rediscover what love really is, what it really feels like to be generating this ultra magnetic force. I’ve come to understand that love is actually a vibrational frequency that is incredibly attractive by nature; it is the universal connector. The more I practice loving myself, the more everything is naturally attracted to me and I to It. When I love me, the entire Universe loves me! It is our deepest desire in life to be love and be loved, but we can only experience this when we are in love with our selves first. It’s unreal to me that it took so many years to realize what love truly is, and also what it is not.
And now I know what led me here. Love is what transformed a caterpillar into the butterfly that touched my hand and my heart in Rome, love is what attracted me back to LA and ultimately to the Hub, love is why I now manage the studio, love is why I teach yoga, love is why I do healing work, love is why I am writing this right now! Yoga is not about exercising, yoga is about learning to love yourself so that you can realize that YOU ARE LOVE, nothing more, nothing less. The Hub is not a place to exercise, the Hub is a heart, generating the frequency of love; it’s a sacred place holding sacred space to attract more people who are carrying the same seed inside that is patiently waiting for the optimal conditions to begin germination, to begin the process of remembering their own true nature... so come here and roam. Don’t be afraid of the darkness of chrysalis, hold strong through the turbulent changes of metamorphosis. Follow the Light until you can break free, spread your wings and fly away, only to land on the hand of another, initiating this process all over again.
In the bonds of peace, love, unity and respect,
-Ishhhhhhh
Breathwork with Laurence Walsh
Sunday, October 10
5:30-7 pm
$35 exchange
Beloved
Can you feel how beloved you are?
Do you feel safe, protected and cared for?
Can you recognize your inner value beyond what you’ve accomplished or accrued?
Do you know deep in the center of your being how valuable you are?
You are a beloved child of the universe and if you can’t feel it in your body, you are missing out on incredible feelings of relief, joy and bliss.
Your life is a metaphor. If you are not receiving enough money, enough joy or enough love, it’s because of a breakdown of your core connection to source energy or THE LOVE MATRIX.
And when I say breakdown, I actually mean rejection. We subconsciously reject love.
It is a learned response. What happens is that often we are given love by the same source that gives us pain. Our mother or father, a teacher or a friend. (Or we blame God or the universe for causing us pain.) Since we don’t want the pain, we create defenses to keep it away and end up pushing away the love as well. We become disconnected. If the pain is bad enough, we will disconnect from even our own bodies to avoid it. But…
Love is not painful. Love does not leave. Love does not come at a cost. You don’t have to buy love or compromise yourself to get it. These are all (very understandable) misinterpretations. Love is constant. Love surrounds us and protects us. The truth is: we are love.
So, how can we learn to distinguish? How can we receive love without the pain?
First, we have to let go of our limiting beliefs about love. Then we have to clear the pain and finally, we have to open our hearts to receive the love.
In this breath circle we will release the painful misunderstandings about love. We will break through the armor that keeps us numb and stuck and we will receive the incredible abundance of love, energy and support the universe has for each one of us.
We will feel the treasure of who we really are. We will dissolve the differences. We will melt into the love matrix. We will receive all that the world has to offer us. We will know we are beloved.
“Laurence's breath workshop was transformative for me. The dynamic breathing, along with the gentle, yet powerful focus she kept us on allowed my body to fully release issues that, in the past, I had difficulty letting go of. The energy flow present in my body created a path to allow my unconscious to heal in ways that I am not even aware of, other than I feel different today -lighter and am present with more joy in every day! I experienced Self Forgiveness.” – Veronica K.
5:30-7 pm
$35 exchange
Beloved
Can you feel how beloved you are?
Do you feel safe, protected and cared for?
Can you recognize your inner value beyond what you’ve accomplished or accrued?
Do you know deep in the center of your being how valuable you are?
You are a beloved child of the universe and if you can’t feel it in your body, you are missing out on incredible feelings of relief, joy and bliss.
Your life is a metaphor. If you are not receiving enough money, enough joy or enough love, it’s because of a breakdown of your core connection to source energy or THE LOVE MATRIX.
And when I say breakdown, I actually mean rejection. We subconsciously reject love.
It is a learned response. What happens is that often we are given love by the same source that gives us pain. Our mother or father, a teacher or a friend. (Or we blame God or the universe for causing us pain.) Since we don’t want the pain, we create defenses to keep it away and end up pushing away the love as well. We become disconnected. If the pain is bad enough, we will disconnect from even our own bodies to avoid it. But…
Love is not painful. Love does not leave. Love does not come at a cost. You don’t have to buy love or compromise yourself to get it. These are all (very understandable) misinterpretations. Love is constant. Love surrounds us and protects us. The truth is: we are love.
So, how can we learn to distinguish? How can we receive love without the pain?
First, we have to let go of our limiting beliefs about love. Then we have to clear the pain and finally, we have to open our hearts to receive the love.
In this breath circle we will release the painful misunderstandings about love. We will break through the armor that keeps us numb and stuck and we will receive the incredible abundance of love, energy and support the universe has for each one of us.
We will feel the treasure of who we really are. We will dissolve the differences. We will melt into the love matrix. We will receive all that the world has to offer us. We will know we are beloved.
“Laurence's breath workshop was transformative for me. The dynamic breathing, along with the gentle, yet powerful focus she kept us on allowed my body to fully release issues that, in the past, I had difficulty letting go of. The energy flow present in my body created a path to allow my unconscious to heal in ways that I am not even aware of, other than I feel different today -lighter and am present with more joy in every day! I experienced Self Forgiveness.” – Veronica K.
LONDON’S HOTTEST EXPORT: Renowned Yogi and Scholar Marcus Freed brings the Kosher Sutras to Los Angeles with “Bend, Stretch, Learn” Class Series
Los Angeles, Calif…..Direct from London, British born Marcus J Freed arrives in the U.S. via Los Angeles to introduce to the states BIBLIYOGA®, his renowned method of achieving enlightenment by embodying ancient biblical wisdom through classic yoga.
Marcus J Freed will offer a “Bend, Stretch, Learn” series of classes in October co-presented by JconnectLA. Each class features a vinyasa flow yoga class for all levels infused with biblical wisdom followed by a brief salon discussion. Classes are $16 each or $54 for a series of four. For more information and to register for classes visit www.jconnectla.org
Freed teaches THE KOSHER SUTRAS which are a whole new way of experiencing yoga, combining classic asana and vinyasa with powerful Hebrew wisdom. “The yoga tradition is incredible,” explained Freed, “It is a system for body-soul meditation and is accessible to everyone, regardless of their shape, size or age. The Kosher Sutra method is about using these powerful postures alongside inspiring wisdom from the Rabbinic and Kabbalistic traditions, to leave us feeling inspired and uplifted”.
Marcus J Freed is available for press interviews.
Mornings at “Mimoda Studio” in Mid Wilshire
Tuesday mornings: October 5, 12, 19 and 26, 2010
9.00 - 10.15 am
5774 West Pico Blvd (at South Ogden) L.A., CA 90010 www.mimodastudio.com
Mid-day and Evenings at “The Hub” in West LA
The Hub ~ Yoga-Breathwork-Meditation studio
2001 S Barrington Ave. # 150, L.A., CA 90025 www.thehub-la.com
Thursday midday: October 7, 14, 21 and 28, 2010
12 pm - 1:15 pm
Sunday evenings: October Sundays 10, 24 and 31, 2010
5.30 pm - 6:45 pm
Marcus J Freed is a studio-trained yogi, yeshiva-trained educator, published author and classically-trained actor. He completed his teacher training with the renowned yogi Edward Clark (Tripsichore Yoga) and Elizabeth Connolly (Yogafarm) and has studied with many of the greats including Erich Schiffman, Danny Paradise, Saul David Raye, David & Sharon Gannon (Jivamukti). Marcus began developing Bibliyoga in 2003 and fuses his yeshiva learning, a deep understanding of yogic theory and practice. Marcus is also an accomplished actor and has recorded over 80 broadcasts for BBC Radio 2 and toured the world performing his quartet of Biblical comedies which include Solomon: King, Poet & Lover and King David's Greatest Hits. Marcus's weekly Kosher Sutras are read by over 2000 people. To find out more, email marcus@bibliyoga.com and to reserve a place at the workshops, go to www.jconnectla.com.
Marcus J Freed will offer a “Bend, Stretch, Learn” series of classes in October co-presented by JconnectLA. Each class features a vinyasa flow yoga class for all levels infused with biblical wisdom followed by a brief salon discussion. Classes are $16 each or $54 for a series of four. For more information and to register for classes visit www.jconnectla.org
Freed teaches THE KOSHER SUTRAS which are a whole new way of experiencing yoga, combining classic asana and vinyasa with powerful Hebrew wisdom. “The yoga tradition is incredible,” explained Freed, “It is a system for body-soul meditation and is accessible to everyone, regardless of their shape, size or age. The Kosher Sutra method is about using these powerful postures alongside inspiring wisdom from the Rabbinic and Kabbalistic traditions, to leave us feeling inspired and uplifted”.
Marcus J Freed is available for press interviews.
Mornings at “Mimoda Studio” in Mid Wilshire
Tuesday mornings: October 5, 12, 19 and 26, 2010
9.00 - 10.15 am
5774 West Pico Blvd (at South Ogden) L.A., CA 90010 www.mimodastudio.com
Mid-day and Evenings at “The Hub” in West LA
The Hub ~ Yoga-Breathwork-Meditation studio
2001 S Barrington Ave. # 150, L.A., CA 90025 www.thehub-la.com
Thursday midday: October 7, 14, 21 and 28, 2010
12 pm - 1:15 pm
Sunday evenings: October Sundays 10, 24 and 31, 2010
5.30 pm - 6:45 pm
Marcus J Freed is a studio-trained yogi, yeshiva-trained educator, published author and classically-trained actor. He completed his teacher training with the renowned yogi Edward Clark (Tripsichore Yoga) and Elizabeth Connolly (Yogafarm) and has studied with many of the greats including Erich Schiffman, Danny Paradise, Saul David Raye, David & Sharon Gannon (Jivamukti). Marcus began developing Bibliyoga in 2003 and fuses his yeshiva learning, a deep understanding of yogic theory and practice. Marcus is also an accomplished actor and has recorded over 80 broadcasts for BBC Radio 2 and toured the world performing his quartet of Biblical comedies which include Solomon: King, Poet & Lover and King David's Greatest Hits. Marcus's weekly Kosher Sutras are read by over 2000 people. To find out more, email marcus@bibliyoga.com and to reserve a place at the workshops, go to www.jconnectla.com.
Woman, Moon, and Serpent: A reclaiming of Feminine Wisdom through the wisdom movement of Serpent
With Nita Rubio
Sunday, October 24
12 - 3:30 pm
$75
Women and snakes have been associated with birth, death, and resurrection since Neolithic times. This connection is depicted through all cultures from the early 5th millennium B.C.E. in Greece ,the Ukraine, and Albania, to Egypt, India and Mexico.
We will explore this link between woman, Goddess and snake in this experiential 3 ½ hour workshop with Nita Rubio. The workshop will be a weaving of teachings of the snake/Goddess connection and actual subtle body experience of these teachings. Teachings will include the connection of snake, woman, menstruation and moon, movements of Kundalini, and snake as woman’s connection to feminine power. Woman’s fear of snake is fear of her own power. Our movement will be an in-depth exploration of the subtle movements of spiral, wave, and serpentine motion and the womb to 3rd eye connection.
And, yes, we will be working with the grace of live temple snakes to experience visceral connection between the living energetic body of woman and the living energetic body of snake!
Please contact the instructor at embodyshakti@gmail.com to register and reserve your spot. Space will be limited to 13 women. Prior experience in the Tantric Dance of Feminine Power with Nita is a pre-requisite to attend this workshop. visit www.embodyshakti.com for current class schedule.
Sunday, October 24
12 - 3:30 pm
$75
Women and snakes have been associated with birth, death, and resurrection since Neolithic times. This connection is depicted through all cultures from the early 5th millennium B.C.E. in Greece ,the Ukraine, and Albania, to Egypt, India and Mexico.
We will explore this link between woman, Goddess and snake in this experiential 3 ½ hour workshop with Nita Rubio. The workshop will be a weaving of teachings of the snake/Goddess connection and actual subtle body experience of these teachings. Teachings will include the connection of snake, woman, menstruation and moon, movements of Kundalini, and snake as woman’s connection to feminine power. Woman’s fear of snake is fear of her own power. Our movement will be an in-depth exploration of the subtle movements of spiral, wave, and serpentine motion and the womb to 3rd eye connection.
And, yes, we will be working with the grace of live temple snakes to experience visceral connection between the living energetic body of woman and the living energetic body of snake!
Please contact the instructor at embodyshakti@gmail.com to register and reserve your spot. Space will be limited to 13 women. Prior experience in the Tantric Dance of Feminine Power with Nita is a pre-requisite to attend this workshop. visit www.embodyshakti.com for current class schedule.
Rising Inner Peace: Shiva Garuda Dharma
with Lama Norbu
Saturday, October 23
1:30 - 3:30 pm
$40 if pre-registered by the day before,
$45 at the door
The great Padmasambhava made a prophecy in the 8th Century: "When an iron horse flies up into the sky, tantric teachings will spread widely in the land of red-faced people." The precious Shiva Garuda practice provides an expedient and beneficial dharma path to help us overcome worry and fear while balancing body, speech and mind. It is an essential and powerful transmission for modern times.
Originating from Divine Mother Guan Yin, Shiva Garuda was transmitted in secret by advanced Tibetan yogis. Lama Norbu received this transmission to help people master our increasingly turbulent times with peace and clarity. Through a potent combination of breathwork, visualization, intention, mantra and mudra, Shiva Garuda enables us to hold a higher frequency of vibrational energy while elevating our consciousness.
Also known as the Phoenix-Agape practice, Shiva Garuda leads us to a state of deep, meditative focus while attuning us to our own rising, self-healing energy. This profound, esoteric teaching increases our joy and inner peace while helping to heal the collective suffering of humankind. Shiva Garuda teaches us to release limiting concepts, return to our Inner Nature and discover ultimate freedom. In this workshop (suitable for all levels), we will learn the Shiva Garuda practice and rediscover the reservoir of peace that resides within!
Saturday, October 23
1:30 - 3:30 pm
$40 if pre-registered by the day before,
$45 at the door
The great Padmasambhava made a prophecy in the 8th Century: "When an iron horse flies up into the sky, tantric teachings will spread widely in the land of red-faced people." The precious Shiva Garuda practice provides an expedient and beneficial dharma path to help us overcome worry and fear while balancing body, speech and mind. It is an essential and powerful transmission for modern times.
Originating from Divine Mother Guan Yin, Shiva Garuda was transmitted in secret by advanced Tibetan yogis. Lama Norbu received this transmission to help people master our increasingly turbulent times with peace and clarity. Through a potent combination of breathwork, visualization, intention, mantra and mudra, Shiva Garuda enables us to hold a higher frequency of vibrational energy while elevating our consciousness.
Also known as the Phoenix-Agape practice, Shiva Garuda leads us to a state of deep, meditative focus while attuning us to our own rising, self-healing energy. This profound, esoteric teaching increases our joy and inner peace while helping to heal the collective suffering of humankind. Shiva Garuda teaches us to release limiting concepts, return to our Inner Nature and discover ultimate freedom. In this workshop (suitable for all levels), we will learn the Shiva Garuda practice and rediscover the reservoir of peace that resides within!
Monthly In Depth Studies Series with Chad Hamrin
Sunday, October 17
3:30-6:30 pm
$75
This an ongoing, monthly, in-depth study with Chad Hamrin, and is an exclusive offering to facilitate devoted students interested in strengthening their daily asana practice by coming together to study as a community once a month. Limited to fifteen people.
Dive deeper into the yogic experience and strengthen your personal, daily practice with this three-hour, in-depth study lead by senior teacher, Chad Hamrin, on the third Sunday of every month at the Hub.
Yoga asanas will safely be explored from moment to moment in a supportive, encouraging, and communal environment. A highly exploratory and experiential approach, you will be guided to listen and reflect on your individual experience to refine your practice and encounter profound breakthroughs. The idea is to have a solid foundation in technique to transcend technique by bringing a creative presence and encouraging intuition to the practice of yoga.
3:30-6:30 pm
$75
This an ongoing, monthly, in-depth study with Chad Hamrin, and is an exclusive offering to facilitate devoted students interested in strengthening their daily asana practice by coming together to study as a community once a month. Limited to fifteen people.
Dive deeper into the yogic experience and strengthen your personal, daily practice with this three-hour, in-depth study lead by senior teacher, Chad Hamrin, on the third Sunday of every month at the Hub.
Yoga asanas will safely be explored from moment to moment in a supportive, encouraging, and communal environment. A highly exploratory and experiential approach, you will be guided to listen and reflect on your individual experience to refine your practice and encounter profound breakthroughs. The idea is to have a solid foundation in technique to transcend technique by bringing a creative presence and encouraging intuition to the practice of yoga.
Phoenix Agape free workshop with Lama Norbu
Thursday, October 14
7-9 pm
FREE
Experience the powerful Shiva Garuda practice, a precious gift from Divine Mother Guan Yin. Overcome worry and fear while balancing body, peech and mind. Cultivate inner peace, clarity and joy with breathwork, intention, mantra and mudra. Raise your vibrational frequency and elevate your consciousness while helping to heal the collective suffering of humankind.
In this unique, all-male workshop, we will learn the Shiva Garuda practice, release limiting concepts and return to our Inner Nature. This workshop will be a celebration of peace geared specifically toward males between the ages of 17-30.
Lama Norbu, master of Vajrayana and an adept in Supreme Yoga Tantra, was born in a remote village located on the shore of Lugu Lake, in the region of Shangri-La. The area around Lugu Lake is home to the Mosuo people, a small tribal society based on a matriarchal hierarchy, which is the only feminine-dominated society existing in the world today. His father was a Lama in the Tibetan tradition; his mother, from Muli, a decendent of the ancient Guge kingdom. Lama Norbu spent his childhood around Lugu Lake and Muli Monastery, a famous Tibetan Buddhist temple in the Sichuan Province. Throughout childhood, he was nurtured by natural environments and exposed to different teachings from many masters and Lamas who visited Muli Monastery. As a teenager, he followed his master to India to receive his formal education in Tibetan Buddhism and received the title of Geshe Lama at Sera Monastery. He recently authored Love Sutra Lama, a revealing commentary on the Divine Feminine and its importance for our times. He currently serves as Spiritual Director of the New Century Foundation.
This is a FREE workshop offered to males between the ages of 17-30. Please call the Hub at 310-575-4200 or e-mail us at info@thehub-la.com to register beforehand. It will be okay to show up the day of without registering beforehand.
7-9 pm
FREE
Experience the powerful Shiva Garuda practice, a precious gift from Divine Mother Guan Yin. Overcome worry and fear while balancing body, peech and mind. Cultivate inner peace, clarity and joy with breathwork, intention, mantra and mudra. Raise your vibrational frequency and elevate your consciousness while helping to heal the collective suffering of humankind.
In this unique, all-male workshop, we will learn the Shiva Garuda practice, release limiting concepts and return to our Inner Nature. This workshop will be a celebration of peace geared specifically toward males between the ages of 17-30.
Lama Norbu, master of Vajrayana and an adept in Supreme Yoga Tantra, was born in a remote village located on the shore of Lugu Lake, in the region of Shangri-La. The area around Lugu Lake is home to the Mosuo people, a small tribal society based on a matriarchal hierarchy, which is the only feminine-dominated society existing in the world today. His father was a Lama in the Tibetan tradition; his mother, from Muli, a decendent of the ancient Guge kingdom. Lama Norbu spent his childhood around Lugu Lake and Muli Monastery, a famous Tibetan Buddhist temple in the Sichuan Province. Throughout childhood, he was nurtured by natural environments and exposed to different teachings from many masters and Lamas who visited Muli Monastery. As a teenager, he followed his master to India to receive his formal education in Tibetan Buddhism and received the title of Geshe Lama at Sera Monastery. He recently authored Love Sutra Lama, a revealing commentary on the Divine Feminine and its importance for our times. He currently serves as Spiritual Director of the New Century Foundation.
This is a FREE workshop offered to males between the ages of 17-30. Please call the Hub at 310-575-4200 or e-mail us at info@thehub-la.com to register beforehand. It will be okay to show up the day of without registering beforehand.
Evoking the Crystalline Form: A Toltemetry Workshop
with Steve Miller
Saturday, October 2
1 - 3 pm
$40 if preregisted by 11/1/10, $45 thereafter
Please join us for an afternoon of self discovery, personal empowerment and profound emotional clarity.
Presenting Toltemetry, a fresh new modality that combines the knowledge of the Toltec peoples, the wisdom of Totemic earth medicine, and the empowerment of Telemetry.
These movements are specifically designed to reconnect you with the forgotten resources in and around your body that you were born with. They assist in the dimensional re-establishment of our subtle energy bodies, which are essential for a fulfilling life. These subtle bodies become compromised over time due to emotional structures, traumas, illnesses and synthetic energy patterns from modern devices.
Learn how to become open, connected and protected. Experience Life Synergy first hand.
There will be a brief introduction and lecture on the movements, followed by guided practices. Please bring a pen and paper if you like to take notes, an open mind, an open heart, some water and your yoga mat.
Steve Miller is an energetic healer, channel, mythologist, and student of ancient languages and holographic theory. From a very early age he always wanted to know "why" or "how" on an esoteric level. He was born in Japan into a family where energetic healing was already practiced, and spent his formative years being exposed to Chinese spirituality and Tibetan Buddhist perspectives while growing up in then British Hong Kong. His own personal studies and medicine path began in 1995 and continues to this day. Steve apprenticed with Native teachers in the Four Corners area, where he learned their mytholgies and rites of passage, and continues to learn from Shamans and guides from South and Meso America. He has developed dynamic healing maps of the human and canine emotional and energetic bodies showing where various energy stories are stored, and the system of healing that helps to identify and unwrap threads or stories of consciousness. A nexus of this work resulted in a book Steve wrote about dogs from an energetic level, which is currently under review for publication.
He also developed and teaches a shamanic based movement system called "Toltemetry," that promotes "Life Synergy" through subtle body enhancement. This system creates repeatable mechanisms of motion that can allow the pracitioner to feel more empowered, contained and yet still very much connected.
He currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and son.
For more information please visit www.Toltemetry.com.
Saturday, October 2
1 - 3 pm
$40 if preregisted by 11/1/10, $45 thereafter
Please join us for an afternoon of self discovery, personal empowerment and profound emotional clarity.
Presenting Toltemetry, a fresh new modality that combines the knowledge of the Toltec peoples, the wisdom of Totemic earth medicine, and the empowerment of Telemetry.
These movements are specifically designed to reconnect you with the forgotten resources in and around your body that you were born with. They assist in the dimensional re-establishment of our subtle energy bodies, which are essential for a fulfilling life. These subtle bodies become compromised over time due to emotional structures, traumas, illnesses and synthetic energy patterns from modern devices.
Learn how to become open, connected and protected. Experience Life Synergy first hand.
There will be a brief introduction and lecture on the movements, followed by guided practices. Please bring a pen and paper if you like to take notes, an open mind, an open heart, some water and your yoga mat.
Steve Miller is an energetic healer, channel, mythologist, and student of ancient languages and holographic theory. From a very early age he always wanted to know "why" or "how" on an esoteric level. He was born in Japan into a family where energetic healing was already practiced, and spent his formative years being exposed to Chinese spirituality and Tibetan Buddhist perspectives while growing up in then British Hong Kong. His own personal studies and medicine path began in 1995 and continues to this day. Steve apprenticed with Native teachers in the Four Corners area, where he learned their mytholgies and rites of passage, and continues to learn from Shamans and guides from South and Meso America. He has developed dynamic healing maps of the human and canine emotional and energetic bodies showing where various energy stories are stored, and the system of healing that helps to identify and unwrap threads or stories of consciousness. A nexus of this work resulted in a book Steve wrote about dogs from an energetic level, which is currently under review for publication.
He also developed and teaches a shamanic based movement system called "Toltemetry," that promotes "Life Synergy" through subtle body enhancement. This system creates repeatable mechanisms of motion that can allow the pracitioner to feel more empowered, contained and yet still very much connected.
He currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and son.
For more information please visit www.Toltemetry.com.
Workshop Weekend with Mitchel Bleier
“Hip”pie Love (all levels - light vinyasa)
Friday, October 8
7:30-9:30 p.m.
$45
In Sanskrit, "sukha" means easy or content. And that's exactly what we love about this workshop - it's easy on the joints and the long, deep holds make for very happy hamstrings and hips.
These far out forward bends and hip openers are groovy poses to sink into - especially if you're parked at your desk all day. You'll be breathing your way into different postures and holding them for awhile - kind of like giving yourself and your practice a big, fat hug! So if a little bit of self-love is on your radar, then it's high time you hit up this deeply opening, somewhat psychedelic workshop. Give yourself some Hippie Love!
Open Up (all levels - vinyasa with alignment)
Saturday, October 9
3-6 p.m.
$60
Maybe it's time to OPEN UP? To reconsider everything about yourself and your practice. To take your yoga to the next level. To twist this way and that. To get your arms straight in urdhva dhanurasana and maybe, just maybe press up into a handstand. To laugh in the face of arm balances. To focus on your breath and attempt the some of the more challenging poses just because you can.
Sound like you're ready to OPEN UP? Then take this workshop and we'll get you out of your head and into your body. It will also empower you to take your yoga to the next level, no matter where your yoga is (or goes)!
Open Wider (all levels - intermediate/advanced vinyasa)
Sunday, October 10
10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
$60
Ever consider flying? What about pausing in mid-air or jumping without making a sound? How about breathing deeper, expanding more, or breaking the "I can't" barriers of your soul? Then it's time to OPEN WIDER. Take this part circus show, part mind-altering, part "here are the secrets no one ever told you" workshop and see how the universe takes on an infinite number of finite possibilities. Or maybe just to have that jaw-dropping, I can't believe what I'm doing moment, or at the worst a good chuckle!
OPEN WIDER is your time to jump, float, press, fly through arm balances and backbends, forward bends and inversions on your mat in wild fits of ecstasy (or exhaustion) that are not for the weak at heart.
***Sign up for all three workshops for $145 ($20 savings).
Friday, October 8
7:30-9:30 p.m.
$45
In Sanskrit, "sukha" means easy or content. And that's exactly what we love about this workshop - it's easy on the joints and the long, deep holds make for very happy hamstrings and hips.
These far out forward bends and hip openers are groovy poses to sink into - especially if you're parked at your desk all day. You'll be breathing your way into different postures and holding them for awhile - kind of like giving yourself and your practice a big, fat hug! So if a little bit of self-love is on your radar, then it's high time you hit up this deeply opening, somewhat psychedelic workshop. Give yourself some Hippie Love!
Open Up (all levels - vinyasa with alignment)
Saturday, October 9
3-6 p.m.
$60
Maybe it's time to OPEN UP? To reconsider everything about yourself and your practice. To take your yoga to the next level. To twist this way and that. To get your arms straight in urdhva dhanurasana and maybe, just maybe press up into a handstand. To laugh in the face of arm balances. To focus on your breath and attempt the some of the more challenging poses just because you can.
Sound like you're ready to OPEN UP? Then take this workshop and we'll get you out of your head and into your body. It will also empower you to take your yoga to the next level, no matter where your yoga is (or goes)!
Open Wider (all levels - intermediate/advanced vinyasa)
Sunday, October 10
10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
$60
Ever consider flying? What about pausing in mid-air or jumping without making a sound? How about breathing deeper, expanding more, or breaking the "I can't" barriers of your soul? Then it's time to OPEN WIDER. Take this part circus show, part mind-altering, part "here are the secrets no one ever told you" workshop and see how the universe takes on an infinite number of finite possibilities. Or maybe just to have that jaw-dropping, I can't believe what I'm doing moment, or at the worst a good chuckle!
OPEN WIDER is your time to jump, float, press, fly through arm balances and backbends, forward bends and inversions on your mat in wild fits of ecstasy (or exhaustion) that are not for the weak at heart.
***Sign up for all three workshops for $145 ($20 savings).
Clearing the Path to Authentic Heart-Centered Partnership
with Allyson Kulavis
Sunday, October 3
10 am - 3 pm
$75 if pre-registered
one week before the event,
$95 thereafter
Whether in relationship or seeking a partner, being energetically, mentally and emotionally tethered to past partnerships can keeping us from fully manifesting and enjoying what our heart desires most. Based on the fundamental principles of Spiritual Psychology, this experiential workshop introduces tools and methodologies, for identifying and releasing ties to the past, as well as limiting beliefs of love, partnership and self-worth. These limiting, and often irrational beliefs are what keep us from our joy and hold us in a place of fear. They also keep us from authentically connecting to our beloved and making self-honoring choices.
Learn how to deepen in your loving, connect more fully to your inner guidance, experience unconditional compassion and discover new levels of intimacy with your self and others. Expect to walk away fromthis workshop with straightforward tools and methods for working your process and clearing your personal path. With humor and integrity, we can choose to be free.
Allyson Kulavis holds an MA in Spiritual Psychology from the University of Santa Monica; she supports and counsels clients through all types of personal challenges. Her fascination and expertise in partnership, stem from a vast array of personal experiences and those of her clients. After ending an engagement, she made an agreement with the Universe to clear whatever was blocking her from receiving her soul mate. She is beyond grateful to say that she’s made good on her agreement. Each person possesses all of the necessary resources to heal even the most ancient hurt. Allyson’s intention is to serve as a conduit for Spirit and create an environment of unconditional acceptance and empowerment for the purpose of healing and spiritual evolution. For one-on-one counseling and life coaching, she can be reached at akulavis@gmail.com.
Sunday, October 3
10 am - 3 pm
$75 if pre-registered
one week before the event,
$95 thereafter
Whether in relationship or seeking a partner, being energetically, mentally and emotionally tethered to past partnerships can keeping us from fully manifesting and enjoying what our heart desires most. Based on the fundamental principles of Spiritual Psychology, this experiential workshop introduces tools and methodologies, for identifying and releasing ties to the past, as well as limiting beliefs of love, partnership and self-worth. These limiting, and often irrational beliefs are what keep us from our joy and hold us in a place of fear. They also keep us from authentically connecting to our beloved and making self-honoring choices.
Learn how to deepen in your loving, connect more fully to your inner guidance, experience unconditional compassion and discover new levels of intimacy with your self and others. Expect to walk away fromthis workshop with straightforward tools and methods for working your process and clearing your personal path. With humor and integrity, we can choose to be free.
Allyson Kulavis holds an MA in Spiritual Psychology from the University of Santa Monica; she supports and counsels clients through all types of personal challenges. Her fascination and expertise in partnership, stem from a vast array of personal experiences and those of her clients. After ending an engagement, she made an agreement with the Universe to clear whatever was blocking her from receiving her soul mate. She is beyond grateful to say that she’s made good on her agreement. Each person possesses all of the necessary resources to heal even the most ancient hurt. Allyson’s intention is to serve as a conduit for Spirit and create an environment of unconditional acceptance and empowerment for the purpose of healing and spiritual evolution. For one-on-one counseling and life coaching, she can be reached at akulavis@gmail.com.
Bliss Out! Costa Rica ... A Girls Only Getaway
With Amy Lombardo
February 19-26, 2011
Some things are so good,
they're worth repeating!
Forget what you think you know about retreats. This life-changing "aha" kind of experience takes it to a whole other level. If you've been waiting for the right time and the right trip to commit to, your wait has now ended.
Last year, I led a Women's Yoga and Empowerment Retreat to Costa Rica. Being a spontaneous, adventurous, and somewhat impatient person, I usually create an offering once and then move on to new ideas after it's completed. But this retreat changed all that.
Perhaps, it was the perfect recipe of yoga, empowerment coaching, and nature adventures. Or the great group of fabulous women attracted to this kind of experience. Maybe it was the 5,000 acres of private beachfront and rainforest property, or the horse rides at sunset; or the fire dance performances under the starry sky; or the monkeys calling out from the lush green forest in morning yoga class. Whatever it was, this retreat delivered.
TESTIMONIAL:
"If there is one thing you do for yourself all year, make it this. You'll be taken care of in every way and wouldn't believe how much fun you can have, even without knowing anyone ahead of time. I have made life-long friendships with the other participants and have a renewed outlook on life. I am so grateful I had this chance to re-evaluate my life; renew my energy; and reconnect to myself. This was such a gift!"
- Cathy C., Former Participant
Still, months later, I get emails from retreat participants with updates - some have gone back to Costa Rica a second time because of the initial impact of this retreat. Others paired up with new found friends from the retreat and traveled to new destinations. Others changed jobs; started new relationships; left bad ones behind; moved to new cities, and on and on. Transformation was happening and still continues to this day. A spark had been lit because a small group of women had agreed to travel together and support each other on their journeys of empowerment.
TESTIMONIAL:
"Our retreat to Costa Rica was life-changing - a combination of incredible beauty of the land, the ocean, the rainforest; and the energy of a wonderful group of smart, supportive women of all ages. Practicing yoga every day on the beach with the howler monkeys above us; hiking; riding horses; meeting children at their school; savoring incredible meals cooked outdoors; honoring the land and our place in nature; and taking in the knowledge and generosity of our wonderful guides -- every day was a new and shared adventure. Amy's incredible love of opening new vistas and expanded potential for women is nothing short of magical and natural all at the same time."
- Jeannie F., Former Participant
Together, we co-created a once in a lifetime experience, and it's time to co-create again. Please join me and 13 other like-hearted travelers for BLISS OUT! Costa Rica.
YOUR TIME TO SHINE HAS ARRIVED.
EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION ENDS DECEMBER 1st.
FULL DETAILS AT WWW.BLISSOUTJOURNEYS.COM.
February 19-26, 2011
Some things are so good,
they're worth repeating!
Forget what you think you know about retreats. This life-changing "aha" kind of experience takes it to a whole other level. If you've been waiting for the right time and the right trip to commit to, your wait has now ended.
Last year, I led a Women's Yoga and Empowerment Retreat to Costa Rica. Being a spontaneous, adventurous, and somewhat impatient person, I usually create an offering once and then move on to new ideas after it's completed. But this retreat changed all that.
Perhaps, it was the perfect recipe of yoga, empowerment coaching, and nature adventures. Or the great group of fabulous women attracted to this kind of experience. Maybe it was the 5,000 acres of private beachfront and rainforest property, or the horse rides at sunset; or the fire dance performances under the starry sky; or the monkeys calling out from the lush green forest in morning yoga class. Whatever it was, this retreat delivered.
TESTIMONIAL:
"If there is one thing you do for yourself all year, make it this. You'll be taken care of in every way and wouldn't believe how much fun you can have, even without knowing anyone ahead of time. I have made life-long friendships with the other participants and have a renewed outlook on life. I am so grateful I had this chance to re-evaluate my life; renew my energy; and reconnect to myself. This was such a gift!"
- Cathy C., Former Participant
Still, months later, I get emails from retreat participants with updates - some have gone back to Costa Rica a second time because of the initial impact of this retreat. Others paired up with new found friends from the retreat and traveled to new destinations. Others changed jobs; started new relationships; left bad ones behind; moved to new cities, and on and on. Transformation was happening and still continues to this day. A spark had been lit because a small group of women had agreed to travel together and support each other on their journeys of empowerment.
TESTIMONIAL:
"Our retreat to Costa Rica was life-changing - a combination of incredible beauty of the land, the ocean, the rainforest; and the energy of a wonderful group of smart, supportive women of all ages. Practicing yoga every day on the beach with the howler monkeys above us; hiking; riding horses; meeting children at their school; savoring incredible meals cooked outdoors; honoring the land and our place in nature; and taking in the knowledge and generosity of our wonderful guides -- every day was a new and shared adventure. Amy's incredible love of opening new vistas and expanded potential for women is nothing short of magical and natural all at the same time."
- Jeannie F., Former Participant
Together, we co-created a once in a lifetime experience, and it's time to co-create again. Please join me and 13 other like-hearted travelers for BLISS OUT! Costa Rica.
YOUR TIME TO SHINE HAS ARRIVED.
EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION ENDS DECEMBER 1st.
FULL DETAILS AT WWW.BLISSOUTJOURNEYS.COM.
Breath Work with Michael Baker
Friday, August 6
8-9:30 pm
$35 exchange
“All problems are Illusions of the mind”- Eckhart Tolle, The Power Of Now
The human brain weighs approximately 3 pounds.
The median weight of the average American is 178 pounds.
How can one muscle, out of the 850 that make up the human form, which occupies only 1.7 % of our whole physical being, run on auto pilot and convince us that we are anything other than love? Mind
What is our preoccupation with the thinking mind and why does it hold steady to fear, attachment and expectation?
How often does it take us out of the experience of what actually is?
Why is it that the mind can often be so busy in it’s own mental chatter, that we miss what is going on right in front of our faces?
The mind is an amazing tool that serves us well when there is formula, calculation or information to be stored.
When we say we weren’t paying attention what we really mean is, I relinquished my power to the thinking mind. I wasn’t grounded, present and in my body enough to receive what existence was attempting to award me. This preoccupation is an ailment as old as time itself. The remedy for this ailment is getting out of the head and into the body. Feeling rooted to the earth and grounding.
Many speak of grounding but have little or no true practice around it. Through mindfulness practices taught by David Elliott, we have easy access to our feet and the direct connection to nourishing energy that the earth has to offer in unlimited, vast supply.
Come drench yourself in tranquility this Friday night from 8:00 to 9:30 at the Hub in West Los Angeles for a practice in grounding, filling and breath that will allow the brain to take a brief hiatus and the body to recharge with the natural flow of life force energy. No experience necessary. Wear comfortable clothes. Bring a yoga mat, water and an open heart.
8-9:30 pm
$35 exchange
“All problems are Illusions of the mind”- Eckhart Tolle, The Power Of Now
The human brain weighs approximately 3 pounds.
The median weight of the average American is 178 pounds.
How can one muscle, out of the 850 that make up the human form, which occupies only 1.7 % of our whole physical being, run on auto pilot and convince us that we are anything other than love? Mind
What is our preoccupation with the thinking mind and why does it hold steady to fear, attachment and expectation?
How often does it take us out of the experience of what actually is?
Why is it that the mind can often be so busy in it’s own mental chatter, that we miss what is going on right in front of our faces?
The mind is an amazing tool that serves us well when there is formula, calculation or information to be stored.
When we say we weren’t paying attention what we really mean is, I relinquished my power to the thinking mind. I wasn’t grounded, present and in my body enough to receive what existence was attempting to award me. This preoccupation is an ailment as old as time itself. The remedy for this ailment is getting out of the head and into the body. Feeling rooted to the earth and grounding.
Many speak of grounding but have little or no true practice around it. Through mindfulness practices taught by David Elliott, we have easy access to our feet and the direct connection to nourishing energy that the earth has to offer in unlimited, vast supply.
Come drench yourself in tranquility this Friday night from 8:00 to 9:30 at the Hub in West Los Angeles for a practice in grounding, filling and breath that will allow the brain to take a brief hiatus and the body to recharge with the natural flow of life force energy. No experience necessary. Wear comfortable clothes. Bring a yoga mat, water and an open heart.
Tantric Purification Practices for Women & Men
five week series with Nita Rubio
August 12 - September 16
Thursdays 7-9 pm
$135
Come and experience these ancient and valuable Tantric practices of purification. The orientation of purification in these traditions are not about morality, but practical energetic applications. It can be likened to cleansing the inner energetic palate to be able to enter and be absorped into deeper states of meditation and presence. These practices are appropriate for both the beginning and advanced practitioner.
We will come together weekly for 5 weeks to have a consistent practice in two powerful body meditations. First, we will experience Bhutta Shuddi. This practice is a cleansing of the basic elements in the body and their corresponding chakras by utilization of each chakras seed (bija) sound and mudras (hand gesture that creates an energetic seal in the body). Information will also be given on how to weave this into a daily practice. Next, we will learn and practice weekly the Chandi Nyasa.
This is a profound practice for women as it deeply cleanses the obscurations and impressions women can hold deeply in their wombs. We will apply this practice directly to specific nadi's (energy channels) in our wombs for deep healing. Common benefits of this practice, if used consistently, is regulation of the blood and menstrual flow, release of residues of trauma or abuse, and increased libido. This practice also helps us develop a real sensitivity to the subtle energies of our wombs (considered the "seat of the Goddess" in Tantra).
Nita has received direct transmission and permission to impart these teachings from Parvathi Nanda Nath, a lineage holder in the Yogini tradition of Kaula Tantra. Both practices purify the energy body and help to establish a "ground" in our bodies for any further spiritual work in any modality.
Registration in advance for this class series is necessary and also ensures you to receive the orientation e-mail. For any questions or to register, please contact Nita at 310-560-6225 or embodyshakti@gmail.com
August 12 - September 16
Thursdays 7-9 pm
$135
Come and experience these ancient and valuable Tantric practices of purification. The orientation of purification in these traditions are not about morality, but practical energetic applications. It can be likened to cleansing the inner energetic palate to be able to enter and be absorped into deeper states of meditation and presence. These practices are appropriate for both the beginning and advanced practitioner.
We will come together weekly for 5 weeks to have a consistent practice in two powerful body meditations. First, we will experience Bhutta Shuddi. This practice is a cleansing of the basic elements in the body and their corresponding chakras by utilization of each chakras seed (bija) sound and mudras (hand gesture that creates an energetic seal in the body). Information will also be given on how to weave this into a daily practice. Next, we will learn and practice weekly the Chandi Nyasa.
This is a profound practice for women as it deeply cleanses the obscurations and impressions women can hold deeply in their wombs. We will apply this practice directly to specific nadi's (energy channels) in our wombs for deep healing. Common benefits of this practice, if used consistently, is regulation of the blood and menstrual flow, release of residues of trauma or abuse, and increased libido. This practice also helps us develop a real sensitivity to the subtle energies of our wombs (considered the "seat of the Goddess" in Tantra).
Nita has received direct transmission and permission to impart these teachings from Parvathi Nanda Nath, a lineage holder in the Yogini tradition of Kaula Tantra. Both practices purify the energy body and help to establish a "ground" in our bodies for any further spiritual work in any modality.
Registration in advance for this class series is necessary and also ensures you to receive the orientation e-mail. For any questions or to register, please contact Nita at 310-560-6225 or embodyshakti@gmail.com
Free Your Shadow Breath Circle
with Laurence Walsh
Friday, July 30th
8pm-9:30pm
Exchange: $35
We use massive amounts of energy denying, pushing away and burying our shadow. This leaves us as fatigued victims of half-lived lives rather than empowered co-creators of our destiny.
When ignored, our shadow lashes out causing headaches, backaches, addictions, cravings, and behaviors that shock and disappoint us. Sometimes our shadow just throws a heavy blanket on our emotions leaving us numb, immobile and confused. We don’t know who we are or what we want.
When we deny our shadow, we force others to act it out for us. And they do this literally. Our bosses yell at us. Our spouses act insensitive. Some "jerk" cuts you off on the freeway. But our image remains pure as the driven snow. We are golden.
Yet when we take responsibility for our projections, we can clear them and find serenity inside and out.
As Caroline Myss reminds us, “Your shadow aspects are primarily rooted in fear patterns that have more control over your behavior than does your conscious mind.” –Sacred Contracts
In this breath circle we will
-let others witness our shadow sides
-accept ourselves and others exactly as we are
-release the fear pattern under the shadow aspect
-take responsibility for our projections
-free our repressed energy
-discover the benefits of embracing our shadow
-bring light to the unloved parts of ourselves
-celebrate our wholeness
So bring your inner asshole, your outer bitch, your lazy, good-for-nothing selves, your skeptic, your procrastinator, your sexy vamp, your aggressive brut, your poor huddled masses and we will love them all and set them free. Plus, it’s me, so it will be fun.
What to bring: water, blanket, yoga mat, shadow.
Friday, July 30th
8pm-9:30pm
Exchange: $35
We use massive amounts of energy denying, pushing away and burying our shadow. This leaves us as fatigued victims of half-lived lives rather than empowered co-creators of our destiny.
When ignored, our shadow lashes out causing headaches, backaches, addictions, cravings, and behaviors that shock and disappoint us. Sometimes our shadow just throws a heavy blanket on our emotions leaving us numb, immobile and confused. We don’t know who we are or what we want.
When we deny our shadow, we force others to act it out for us. And they do this literally. Our bosses yell at us. Our spouses act insensitive. Some "jerk" cuts you off on the freeway. But our image remains pure as the driven snow. We are golden.
Yet when we take responsibility for our projections, we can clear them and find serenity inside and out.
As Caroline Myss reminds us, “Your shadow aspects are primarily rooted in fear patterns that have more control over your behavior than does your conscious mind.” –Sacred Contracts
In this breath circle we will
-let others witness our shadow sides
-accept ourselves and others exactly as we are
-release the fear pattern under the shadow aspect
-take responsibility for our projections
-free our repressed energy
-discover the benefits of embracing our shadow
-bring light to the unloved parts of ourselves
-celebrate our wholeness
So bring your inner asshole, your outer bitch, your lazy, good-for-nothing selves, your skeptic, your procrastinator, your sexy vamp, your aggressive brut, your poor huddled masses and we will love them all and set them free. Plus, it’s me, so it will be fun.
What to bring: water, blanket, yoga mat, shadow.
Trust your gift and share it!!!!
Breathwork Circle with German Torres
Sunday, July 25 5:30-7 pm
$35 exchange
As I walked in Topanga Park last week I realized that, we all have a destiny. We are all, at some point in our lives, in search of our path. Some of us are in the realm of discovery, of awakening, contesting the questions, what exactly is our gift, what is our purpose? Others of us know our path in this lifetime. There are those of us which are searching for what we like, that which brings us joy.
Are you waiting for the right moment, the ideal circumstance, when it all feels right or ready? Do you know what your good at?What are you waiting for?
Do you know the impact that you can have by simply sharing your gift with others? How many people are waiting to hear, read or see their purpose, their gift? Maybe you're a writer, a musician a nurse or possibly a gardner, your unique gift is something that you conduct with ease and fills other with joy.
Are you ready to trust in spirit and let go of the excuses that keep you out of integrity with who you are destined to be, who you truly are?
Do you want to cultivate your connection with spirit and relish in the trust and joy that sharing our gift with others brings. Come this Wednesday and breathe, move those blocks and begin to fully engage your life, all you need to do is show up.
German T.
Sunday, July 25 5:30-7 pm
$35 exchange
As I walked in Topanga Park last week I realized that, we all have a destiny. We are all, at some point in our lives, in search of our path. Some of us are in the realm of discovery, of awakening, contesting the questions, what exactly is our gift, what is our purpose? Others of us know our path in this lifetime. There are those of us which are searching for what we like, that which brings us joy.
Are you waiting for the right moment, the ideal circumstance, when it all feels right or ready? Do you know what your good at?What are you waiting for?
Do you know the impact that you can have by simply sharing your gift with others? How many people are waiting to hear, read or see their purpose, their gift? Maybe you're a writer, a musician a nurse or possibly a gardner, your unique gift is something that you conduct with ease and fills other with joy.
Are you ready to trust in spirit and let go of the excuses that keep you out of integrity with who you are destined to be, who you truly are?
Do you want to cultivate your connection with spirit and relish in the trust and joy that sharing our gift with others brings. Come this Wednesday and breathe, move those blocks and begin to fully engage your life, all you need to do is show up.
German T.
Jay Co - Practice and Fun
I know this video is for selling yoga towels, but it's so much fun, and it's all about our JAY CO!
Here's the link:
Here's the link:
Rave - A Spiritual Practice
My close friends and I had already begun building strong intentions going into our 2010 Rave experiences to consciously foster and spread this Love, so that we and everyone who came into contact with our energy would experience what we feel Raving is truly about. My intention going into EDC this year was to receive all the Love I could and then give it right back to everyone and everything around me, whether that was through words, hugs, bracelets, light shows, dancing or any other medium of expression… give it all out and let it all flow right back in. People open up quickly at Raves because they inherently resonate with the vibration of Love, which is the prevailing vibe throughout an event like EDC. One thing I have learned in my experiences as a spiritual teacher thus far is that once I’m in sacred space and people start to open up, it’s time to go to work, expressing my own inner Love/Light and using it to tease out the inner Light of all those around me, whether they are friends or people I have yet to befriend. Ultimately it is all about exchanging this Love and this Light with each other, which allows universal energy to flow between us, creating a connection, a bond, that unites our energy as One. A typical example of how this happens at a Rave is through the trading of homemade bracelets between people, which serve as a physical representation of these energetic exchanges of Love. Leading up to the event, as many others do, I made about 10 beaded bracelets, each with its own specific intention and vibration. With yoga and healing in mind, 7 of these were based on the colors of the rainbow, each representing one of the 7 main energetic centers (chakras) in the body and what it is generally responsible for:
- Red - Grounding
- Orange - Creation
- Yellow - Flow
- Green - Love
- Blue - Expression
- Indigo - Intuition
- Violet - Ascension
Walking into the Mystery
Healing Breathwork Circle with Laurence Walsh
To know the truth of who we are
To feel it in our bodies
We have to let go of
Identifying ourselves as our job, our status, or our good qualities.
To flow with everything around us
We have to give up the struggle.
To be able to hear divine guidance
We have to give up knowing what’s best for us (and everyone else).
We can fight so hard to maintain control
When the joys in life are in surrendering.
Surrendering
Our issues and problems
Surrendering
Attachment to relationships, jobs, addictions
Surrendering
Our personality and specialness
What we find in surrender is a release of the pain and anguish that’s been holding our negative patterns in place.
Then there’s a free fall, a breaking of the chains, an opportunity to see that our fears are just illusions.
“The only thing to fear is fear itself.”
Through the freefall, we develop trust. We appreciate our obstacles as indicators of limiting beliefs to be released so we can realign to our path. We let go of what we want, so we can receive what we need. We discover we are held and supported by a loving universe. We find a sweet connection with everyone and everything. We feel the divinity of ourselves and see the light in others.
Once we are present, we can blissfully see and feel our true path. We know our life purpose. We receive inspiration, ideas and next action steps. We follow the path of our true hearts desire with faith. The path unfolds effortlessly and life feels like magic.
Then we walk in co-creation, with ease and grace, with deep satisfaction -- fully supported, completely self- expressed and vibrating with universal love.
Join me in 'Walking into the Mystery'
Friday night, July 9th
8pm- 9:30pm
The Hub
2001 South Barrington, Ste. 150
LA, CA 90025
Exchange: $35.00
Thanks and love,
Laurence Walsh
www.laurencewalsh.com/
www.healingthroughbreathing.blogspot.com/
To know the truth of who we are
To feel it in our bodies
We have to let go of
Identifying ourselves as our job, our status, or our good qualities.
To flow with everything around us
We have to give up the struggle.
To be able to hear divine guidance
We have to give up knowing what’s best for us (and everyone else).
We can fight so hard to maintain control
When the joys in life are in surrendering.
Surrendering
Our issues and problems
Surrendering
Attachment to relationships, jobs, addictions
Surrendering
Our personality and specialness
What we find in surrender is a release of the pain and anguish that’s been holding our negative patterns in place.
Then there’s a free fall, a breaking of the chains, an opportunity to see that our fears are just illusions.
“The only thing to fear is fear itself.”
Through the freefall, we develop trust. We appreciate our obstacles as indicators of limiting beliefs to be released so we can realign to our path. We let go of what we want, so we can receive what we need. We discover we are held and supported by a loving universe. We find a sweet connection with everyone and everything. We feel the divinity of ourselves and see the light in others.
Once we are present, we can blissfully see and feel our true path. We know our life purpose. We receive inspiration, ideas and next action steps. We follow the path of our true hearts desire with faith. The path unfolds effortlessly and life feels like magic.
Then we walk in co-creation, with ease and grace, with deep satisfaction -- fully supported, completely self- expressed and vibrating with universal love.
Join me in 'Walking into the Mystery'
Friday night, July 9th
8pm- 9:30pm
The Hub
2001 South Barrington, Ste. 150
LA, CA 90025
Exchange: $35.00
Thanks and love,
Laurence Walsh
www.laurencewalsh.com/
www.healingthroughbreathing.blogspot.com/
From Christiane Schull
"When you let go, you make room for your dream. You may not see it, so focused you are on what is leaving. But if you could see as God sees, you would see the golden sails of the Mighty Bountiful cresting over the horizon -- its sails catching the sea wind with unbounded Joy! You thought your ship had passed you by, when all the while, it was just waiting for you, Child, waiting to come in."~~ Christiane Schull
Cleansing
Last night was my cleanse consultation with Cass Phelps. I know I've talked about this process before, and it may sound like I am repeating myself, but I know the questions surrounding my observations are something to be shared. Anyway, Cass usually begins by asking your reason for participating in the cleanse, what outcomes you would like, and what layers are you committed to facing and moving through, shedding. Each cleanse has become a building block on top of the other, and the first two definitely built upon one another. Cleanse #2 revealed my mind’s programming, its association with food, and how it feeds my emotions.
I confess that I am addicted to coffee - it's my drug of choice. I love it. Cass said humans are the only species on the planet with addictions. A part of me feels stupid sharing this. I know it's a popular addiction, otherwise Starbucks wouldn't exist. Anyway, with every cleanse, I've been able to give up coffee, and it's really not been that big of a deal. I like the way I feel when my nervous system is not pumped with caffeine and how grounded and connected I become. It's all for the good, yet I still desire the satisfaction of the taste and rush I get from drinking coffee first thing in the morning. I know how good I feel when I don't drink coffee. Yet after every cleanse, I slowly sink back into feeding this old pattern and start the ritual all over again. I know better - so why do I choose this and what am I avoiding? Why am I choosing to bury and numb myself from the field of existence? Is it because I am not ready to fully step into my power? Do I confuse my power with caffeine? Are these the lessons going to keep coming into my life until I wake up and see the divine, beautiful mother inside and out?
My work is to mother myself so that I can be the container for the energy of Mother. Listening, watching, and feeling the inner awareness are direct connections to the heart. I know that my intuition always comes from my heart space. Intuition is a strong component of the feminine divine principle, which is "not knowing" and "not doing." When I focus my mind on the practice of not doing and not knowing, my intuition becomes a magnetic force that illuminates the path, moving from the background to the foreground. All the practices (yoga, breathwork, meditation, dance, cleanse, etc.) enhance the sixth sense/mother energy, and stoke the fire to explore and navigate the unknown. - Lauri Ashworth
I confess that I am addicted to coffee - it's my drug of choice. I love it. Cass said humans are the only species on the planet with addictions. A part of me feels stupid sharing this. I know it's a popular addiction, otherwise Starbucks wouldn't exist. Anyway, with every cleanse, I've been able to give up coffee, and it's really not been that big of a deal. I like the way I feel when my nervous system is not pumped with caffeine and how grounded and connected I become. It's all for the good, yet I still desire the satisfaction of the taste and rush I get from drinking coffee first thing in the morning. I know how good I feel when I don't drink coffee. Yet after every cleanse, I slowly sink back into feeding this old pattern and start the ritual all over again. I know better - so why do I choose this and what am I avoiding? Why am I choosing to bury and numb myself from the field of existence? Is it because I am not ready to fully step into my power? Do I confuse my power with caffeine? Are these the lessons going to keep coming into my life until I wake up and see the divine, beautiful mother inside and out?
My work is to mother myself so that I can be the container for the energy of Mother. Listening, watching, and feeling the inner awareness are direct connections to the heart. I know that my intuition always comes from my heart space. Intuition is a strong component of the feminine divine principle, which is "not knowing" and "not doing." When I focus my mind on the practice of not doing and not knowing, my intuition becomes a magnetic force that illuminates the path, moving from the background to the foreground. All the practices (yoga, breathwork, meditation, dance, cleanse, etc.) enhance the sixth sense/mother energy, and stoke the fire to explore and navigate the unknown. - Lauri Ashworth
Healer Training Level 1 with David Elliot
This 2 day course gives you the basic tools of this technique. Ideally students have read the book, or listened to the audio's of THE RELUCTANT HEALER and HEALING and become familiar with the written information prior to the start of the class.
Once the class begins the process of understanding and connecting to your energy and intuition is initiated. The first technique used to connect you to your energy is an ancient breathing technique known as pranayama yoga. This technique has been fine-tuned by David with over twenty years of practice and use in healing. Just the breathing training alone will give the participants an incredibly powerful tool. There will be much practical application working with the breath during this 2-day course.
Simultaneously you will be learning how to access your intuition through the openings that occur with the breathing - which will provide you with an unobstructed pathway to spirit. The intuition exercises have been specifically created for this class. Your connection to spirit will be powerful. Spirit always shows up as you learn to access it though your energy! Once this connection is made you will learn how to work with energy to bring about your own healing. This is accomplished by clearing the blocks on physical, emotional, mental and spiritual levels. And finally the healing work segues into�an understanding of how to work with others.
You will have a partner each day to work and share your gifts with. Each person’s gifts and talents are brought out to establish originality with each healer. The whole class is a lot of fun! * This class will be taught by David **
Mp3 Audio of The Reluctant Healer available under PRODUCTS/Books Payment Plans available - call Nisha @ 323-256-2005 to setup Location: the Hub, 2001 S Barrington Ave, Suite 150, Los Angeles, CA 90025 Time: 9am - 4:30pm; Sat & Sun What to bring: notebook and pen, yoga mat/pillow to sit on, and any healing tools you have (oils, eye pillow, etc) www.reluctanthealer.com
Once the class begins the process of understanding and connecting to your energy and intuition is initiated. The first technique used to connect you to your energy is an ancient breathing technique known as pranayama yoga. This technique has been fine-tuned by David with over twenty years of practice and use in healing. Just the breathing training alone will give the participants an incredibly powerful tool. There will be much practical application working with the breath during this 2-day course.
Simultaneously you will be learning how to access your intuition through the openings that occur with the breathing - which will provide you with an unobstructed pathway to spirit. The intuition exercises have been specifically created for this class. Your connection to spirit will be powerful. Spirit always shows up as you learn to access it though your energy! Once this connection is made you will learn how to work with energy to bring about your own healing. This is accomplished by clearing the blocks on physical, emotional, mental and spiritual levels. And finally the healing work segues into�an understanding of how to work with others.
You will have a partner each day to work and share your gifts with. Each person’s gifts and talents are brought out to establish originality with each healer. The whole class is a lot of fun! * This class will be taught by David **
Mp3 Audio of The Reluctant Healer available under PRODUCTS/Books Payment Plans available - call Nisha @ 323-256-2005 to setup Location: the Hub, 2001 S Barrington Ave, Suite 150, Los Angeles, CA 90025 Time: 9am - 4:30pm; Sat & Sun What to bring: notebook and pen, yoga mat/pillow to sit on, and any healing tools you have (oils, eye pillow, etc) www.reluctanthealer.com
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