Posts In: sacred

1. How does yoga show up in your life right now?

Yoga is like a longtime, dear, best friend to me, always there through both good and challenging times. I’m grateful for Zoom and the opportunity to connect online with my students and fellow yogis. It’s not the same as in person, but I know in the future it will be all the sweeter when we get to be together again.

These days my practice is teaching me presence and patience. I learned the pauses in my practice: the pause after a pose, or a sequence, or the inhale-pause-exhale-pause. I try to sit with the pause, however difficult or uncomfortable or scary it may feel.

I’m applying that to my life now, this pause in our regularly scheduled life. It’s a time to tune in and explore the inner landscape. A time to sit in the pause and feel the sacred space between. Yoga has always been preparing us for this uncertain time. Here and now we get to put these tools of patience, practice, presence to work.

We often forget that we have the tools. I do all the time. Then I come back to my mat, to my breath, and remember.

2. Where are you experiencing growth as a yoga teacher and/or practitioner?

I’ve grown technologically since mid-March. I remember the first Zoom class I taught on March 15. It felt so odd to have my students in the living room with me! My lighting was way off and the sound wasn’t good.

I’ve since moved my yoga space into a guest bedroom with abundant natural light as well as studio lights borrowed from Nam Chanterrwyn. We put the bed and furniture into storage and my kids bought me a microphone for Mother’s Day 🙂 

I’ve also become much more dedicated to my home practice. Now that I have the space set aside, I wake up each morning and go to my yoga loft. I read from my yoga texts or draw an angel card and sit to meditate; then I transition into a physical practice for however long I can. Some days it’s just a few minutes, other days I spend 2 hours doing my home practice. 

3. What’s your favorite kind of burrito and why?

I love a good bean and cheese burrito with chips and guacamole on the side ?

guest post by Irene Jones

How does your meditation practice look and feel? We’re highlighting stories of meditation in everyday life to help de-mystify this life-changing practice and share simple meditation techniques with those just getting started. Share your experience in the comments or by email, info@yogaonesandiego.com

These days, my meditation practice is me waking, taking my time, checking in with my emotions, my physical self, and my breath (when I remember, because there is a tendency for the cogs in my brain to start gaining momentum pretty quickly.) I do a little yoga in bed. Nothing strenuous, a few yummy stretches, cat cows and twists and neck attendance to loosen up any stiffness.

I brush my teeth, drink some water, and soon enough I sit comfortably on a cushion facing my window that opens out towards spaciousness and the natural elements. Just before this, I light some incense. I sit nice and tall, roll my shoulders back and lift my heart, starting with a good posture. Of course, it relaxes as I meditate and from time to time, I gently reset the weight in my sitting bones and lift the crown of my head.

Grounding first, I encourage my lower body to be heavy and my pelvic floor to relax. I check in with the Manomaya Kosha, the mind sheath, or how we process our thoughts and emotions. I rest here for a while scanning my entire body head to toe.

I check in with my breath and follow it with my awareness until I get distracted and then I gently bring my awareness back to my breath again.

Most importantly, for me these days, in my meditation practice is opening to my emotional self, so I feel-in. I ask myself, “How am I feeling?” “How am I?” and I patiently wait and open to my experience as it unfolds. I meet myself with kindness and permission for whatever is there and for whatever wants to come to my attention. I hold the sensations of my inner experience in a very sacred and tender embrace. This is my practice.

I rest here for as long as I like. I can then move on to my mental space, check in, honor my mind and all that it does for me and for all its potential. I ask myself, “What would peace feel like in this moment?” I rest in patience for a sense, if it comes to me; if I can cultivate it this morning, if not, no judgement. I rest in the light of my own awareness. Every day is different. 

I especially love when I can get outside early in the morning, when it’s quiet so I can meditate in nature; I’m not sure if there is anything more lovely. Maybe I’ll do some yoga or qigong too. I am blessed to have gained these skills over the years, practicing on and off, making a gradual home for my expanding awareness and my inner peace.

Meditation in itself is not a difficult thing to do – however, to commit to a daily practice, even if just for a few weeks or months can be challenging. Though the rewards are worth it. Meditation can make a huge difference to how we approach ourselves and others; gifting us with opportunities to experience space and patience and self-acceptance while in relationship, it is a fantastic teacher.

Ultimately, we are listening to our own inner teachings and wisdom. I recently heard, that if we can think of it like brushing our teeth, then it will be an easy habit to begin. Five minutes every day is all you need. For me, it depends on how I feel, 20 minutes, sometimes longer, sometimes less, and sometimes I incorporate meditation into my daily activities themselves. Just being present and mindful in each moment is a practice in itself.

by Monique Minahan

Where is your sacred space? How does it receive you from the world? How does it release you back into the world?

I’ve come to understand sacred space as anywhere we offer or receive love, listening, beauty or life. Sometimes that space has walls that hold us and sometimes it has arms.

The word sacred shares the same root as the word sacrifice. Sacrifice, as in making an offering, not as in being a martyr. In our sacred spaces sometimes we offer up and sometimes we receive.

Sacred space is wherever I feel held; by the earth, by another human, by the walls, by the trees, by open sky, by open minds.

It’s wherever I hold; the earth in my hands, my baby in my arms, the polarities of life in my heart.

It’s wherever I feel listened to, validated, encouraged, seen.

It’s where reality is respected, fear is faced and the impossible becomes possible.

It’s where grief is practiced, vulnerability is nourished and love is planted.

It’s bigger than a church, a mosque, a synagogue, a yoga class or a cluster of crystals and talismans.

It receives me however I am, wherever I am. It releases me back to the world equal parts human and being, with my own unique offering alive and beating in my heart.

This piece originally published on The Huffington Post.

Monique Minahan
Contributing Writer

Mo is a writer and yoga teacher who believes in peace over happiness and love over fear. She likes to set her sights high and then take small steps to get there. You’ll find her walking the dirt path behind her house with her little fluffy dog, practicing walking her talk by keeping her head high and her heart open. Contact: moniqueminahan.com