John McConnell Yoga http://www.johnmcconnellyoga.com Wed, 02 May 2012 13:28:54 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Practicing Gratitude http://www.johnmcconnellyoga.com/practicing-gratitude/ http://www.johnmcconnellyoga.com/practicing-gratitude/#comments Wed, 02 May 2012 13:26:54 +0000 John McConnell http://www.johnmcconnellyoga.com/?p=2274 Today’s class is based on a talk on I saw on TED Talks about happiness. In the talk it mentioned the 5 things you can do to be happy — journaling, meditation, exercise, acts of goodness, and gratitude. So, today’s class is all about practicing gratitude.

Enjoy! John

]]> Today’s class is based on a talk on I saw on TED Talks about happiness. In the talk it mentioned the 5 things you can do to be happy — journaling, meditation, exercise, acts of goodness, and gratitude. So, today’s class is all about practicing gratitude.

Enjoy! John

]]> http://www.johnmcconnellyoga.com/practicing-gratitude/feed/ 0 John Friend, Anusara and what a Real Yogi looks like http://www.johnmcconnellyoga.com/john-friend-anusara-and-what-a-real-yogi-looks-like/ http://www.johnmcconnellyoga.com/john-friend-anusara-and-what-a-real-yogi-looks-like/#comments Thu, 22 Mar 2012 18:31:59 +0000 C.JaneTaylor http://www.johnmcconnellyoga.com/?p=2228 The yoga circuit is abuzz with the recent shake up of Anusara yoga, formerly “one of the most highly respected and fastest growing schools of hatha yoga in North America with an expanding presence in the UK, Europe, Japan, and Australia.” (source http://www.anusara.com). John Friend’s acts of ethical, psychological, sexual, spiritual and pedagogical impropriety have [...]]]> The yoga circuit is abuzz with the recent shake up of Anusara yoga, formerly “one of the most highly respected and fastest growing schools of hatha yoga in North America with an expanding presence in the UK, Europe, Japan, and Australia.” (source http://www.anusara.com). John Friend’s acts of ethical, psychological, sexual, spiritual and pedagogical impropriety have turned a great yoga system on its head. And Anusara Certified and Anusara-Inspired teachers across the country are pulling their hair out and losing their grip on a wonderful, life-changing yoga practice.

I’ll admit, the last melodramatic and highly polished apology from John Friend published the other day in Elephant Journal put me over the edge. I’ve had enough. I was reminded of my days of political action when I demonstrated and marched in DC, chanting ‘This is what democracy looks like.’

Well, this is what a yogi looks like: Albert Einstein. I read a post about him this morning that made me think about what yoga really means. And this afternoon I marched around my community and my mat and smiled. This is what a Real Yogi looks like!

Take a look for yourself; then take a look at yourself. Chances are good you’ll see a real yogi right there in the mirror. It might take a bit of unveiling, but that yogi is there.

The tantric philosophy upon which Anusara yoga is predicated advocates that the practice of yoga unveils the divine that already exists within each of us. It’s high time for Anusara to lose the John Friend veil.

Here are the highlights of Life Lessons from Albert:

  • Follow Your Curiosity
  • Persevere
  • Focus on the Present
  • Imagine
  • Make Mistakes
  • Live in the Moment
  • Learn From Experience
  • Learn the Rules and Then Play Better

It looks like AE nailed it. Time to get back to the mat…

~ C. Jane Taylor

 

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-4297/10-Life-Lessons-From-Albert-Einstein.html

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