Asana Foundations Seminar Vol.3 with Anastasia Biliri
In the ancient yoga texts there is no mention of postural alignment techniques. A major reason for this is because the emphasis in yoga is not on performance, but on exploration. We are not so much concerned with "how I do the pose" but "who I am in it".
However, it is important that the pose is performed with a certain amount of safety, which is not always possible in the short time we have in a class. As in music, we learn the rules first, then consciously set them aside so that we can be more creative, relax, feel and explore.
This workshop was created by Anastasia Biliri and is inspired by various yogic traditions, years of practice, seminars and research, and after numerous discussions with physicians and physical therapists.
An intensive two-day course, which results from a need to communicate the basic principles in the various categories of yoga postures (standing postures, front and back bends, twists), so that:
- to be performed more consciously and safely
- to take advantage of the full benefits of asana
- to challenge the instructions we have adopted, which are given in many yoga classes without necessarily having a kinesiological rationale
- transform our own established patterns that have been limiting us for years to moving our bodies in a certain way
- to allow our presence to reach out into new corners within the body, to expand and enrich our relationship with it
If we dive into ourselves with such an approach, observing and feeling, the exploration of the body moves away from sterile technical performance and becomes highly meditative and transformative.
There is no perfect alignment, because traditionally no reference point has been given, and anatomically our bodies are different. How wonderful, then, that we are given the space to explore in each shape what the ideal alignment is for our own body, and within that, to maintain certain basic principles with flexibility.
A more technical perspective than we are used to in our daily classroom practices, ideal for new students as well as teachers or advanced students who need to structure the principles of each position a little better.
SCHEDULE
Saturday 11 November
13:00-16:00 Standing positions
16:00-16:15 Break (we suggest you bring some fruit or nuts)
16:15-19:00 Frontal push-ups
Sunday 12 November
11:30-14:30 Rear presses
14:30-14:45 Break (we suggest you bring some fruit or nuts)
14:45-15:15 Yoga Nidra
15:15- 17:30 Revolutions
In the early stages of training, an aspiring gentleman needs to memorize entire shelves of arcade texts. Learn the precise angle of which to bow, and learn the length of the steps with which he is to enter a room. His seating mat must always be perfectly straight. All of this rigour and restrain however, is ultimately aimed at producing a cultivated but nonetheless genuine form of spontaneity. Indeed, the process of training is not considered complete, until an individual has passed completely beyond the need for thought or effort. Confucius
Cost: 40 euros/day or 70 euros/weekend
(We would recommend to attend the whole 2-day course)
Anastasia Biliri
Anastasia was introduced to yoga on a remote magical sandy beach about 15 years ago. Since 2009 she has been travelling frequently to India to study with renowned teachers in traditional Hatha Yoga. She has completed 4 teacher training programs (200hrs, 300hrs and 365hrs) as well as numerous seminars in Europe and India on therapeutic yoga, anatomy, philosophy, kinesiology etc. under the guidance of Leslie Kaminoff, Swami ShaktiMurti, Swami Niranjanananda, Swami Sivamurti, Sharat Arora etc.
She is a Hatha Yoga instructor since 2012 and founder of Neda Yoga Shala. She has taken Karma Sannyasin initiation in the Satyananda Yoga system from Swami Satyasangananda Saraswati at Rikhiapeeth Ashram in India, walking with dedication on the path of spiritual quest. He is involved in music and is a member of the Kirtan ensemble Adi Shakti as well as the Ryza Project, through which he explores the connection between sound and yoga. She has also completed month-long training courses on the Indian keyboard with Kenny Clarys.
With her teaching, she wants to transmit to the world what she was fascinated by in yoga. How the practice offers an inner sanctuary, but also equips you to open up to life boldly. To connect deeply with yourself, nature and the world around you. To be free through awareness and discipline. To be here. To observe and listen. To feel. To love. To live!