Flow Yoga QC

Spicy Veggie Pasta

2010-03-06T01:06:00.000-08:00

By insistent demand, here’s the recipe for the spicy pasta we cooked for camp food in Mt. Pulag. The climbers loved it daw hehe. I thought of this recipe because it’s so easy to prepare. The spicy flavor is even more appreciated because it’s freezing cold when we ate it.
Diced tomatoes, lots and lots of them. Eggplant sliced into thin ovals and cut into twos. Green bellpepper sliced into strips.

Heat coconut-based cooking oil (minola) in pan. Drop 1 or 2 tbsp of curry powder (less if you don’t want it too spicy). Savor the smell but don’t let it burn, quickly stir and drop the tomatoes. Keep stirring, drop the eggplant slices. Keep stirring, drop the green bell pepper strips. Keep stirring until eggplant starts to get softer. Add a pinch of paminta (more if you really want it spicy). Add a tablespoonful of organic soy sauce (look for Carp in the local grocery, or Kikkoman which is much pricier).
Then add tomato sauce for the final flair.

Stir until eggplant is just about to get soft.
By this time, your pasta should have been cooked. You can now top your pasta with the spicy veggie you just cooked. Enjoy!

But wait! I actually thought of adding strips of “tuna steak” veggie meat but I totally forgot to take them out of the freezer and pack them in my bags before I left the house for the bus station. So this time, you can buy the tuna steak veggie meat at Likha Diwa, cut them into strips, stir fry until golden brown, then add them to the cooked spicy vegetables.
Till our next camp food!

But wait again! For those who want more vegetarian recipes, I recommend The Bahay Kubo Diet, A Survival Guide for the Vegetarian in Manila, written by my yoga teacher Sandy Carmona.

You can always buy those vegetarian cookbooks in the bookstores/booksales but they don’t tell you where to source the right vegetables, spices, and vegetarian restaurants. Bahay Kubo has such lists. I have few copies left!

And finally, here's a shot of us doing yoga in full hiking gear, on our campsite, almost 2,922 meters above sea level, the Philippines' second highest peak! -- Joji Balcita

Redefining Healing and the Body

2010-02-10T21:25:00.000-08:00

I have noticed that yoga students who come to my classes can be classified into groups. First group is composed of those who make it known, either by being vocal about it or just by being there, that they want to lose weight. One can call them mildly overweight and seriously overweight. These are often the more senior among the group who hold top and mid-level university, government, or non-government institutions/organizations who spend most of their working hours in long meetings and being served unhealthy foods. Let me just say that some of them are also in the medical professions.
Of course, the classifications I make here are not clear cut and they actually overlap with each other.

The next group is composed of those who enjoy the yoga rush, the fitness effect, and the meditative state of mind that they get every time they do yoga. These are the athletic ones or those who are generally fit and are looking at yoga as a perfect way to de-stress after a long day’s work, to release stored-up energy that couldn’t be released in other ways. And some of them are in their 20’s and 30’s who, aside from yoga, are doing wall/rock climbing, swimming, marathons. Some of them are totally athletic and have moved on to become yoga instructors, actually.
In between these two groups are those who are trying to get healthy, neither overweight nor athletic, but concerned enough to keep themselves healthy.
And there are those who come to yoga because they are totally sick and they hope they can arrest or reverse their ailment by practicing yoga.

Yoga philosophy looks at the body in a holistic way than Western medicine does, and this is one thing I would like the yoga students to think about. Yogic teachings look at the body as a composite of gross/physical, subtle and causal levels. When you come to class, think that you are not only moving your physical (or gross) body but your subtle body as well. And if you are really focused you could get a glimpse of the causal body that is the ultimate reality of your being.
When we get seriously sick, our immediate idea is that it is the physical body that is sick. It is the organ concerned, the heart or the lungs, or the uterus, the breasts, the immune system, etc. Whatever the doctor has told us that is malfunctioning in our body. And so we automatically seek treatment that addresses this malfunctioning part of our body. We do everything we can to adapt to the treatment—we take the pills, the bed rest, the chemotherapy, the surgery, still thinking that the malfunctioning organ or system has to be put back into its normal physical function.

Our conventional approach to sickness is totally physical.

We ignore the reality that our body is not merely physical but has equally important non-physical aspects. We have a subtle body that needs to be addressed as well. In many cases, it is actually the subtle body that is sick, and its symptoms are what we feel as sickness in the physical body.

The subtle body is composed of the emotions, intuitions, closely associated with mind, ideas, intentions and insight. To traditional Chinese and Indian medicine, this is correlated with chi or prana and corresponding meridians and chakras. There are certain levels in the subtle body and according to Ken Wilber’s studies, this starts with the basic meridians or chakras and goes up to the mind and insight levels and higher up to the sense of bliss and intuitive intelligence. According to Wilber who has studied the wisdom traditions of Buddhism, Vedanta, Christianity and others, and has compared and synthesized these teachings, ancient science of the body considers the subtle body as the doorway to creative expression.

So let me just go back to the idea of health and sickness…when we get sick, we try hard to heal the physical body with modern-day medicine. Yoga, an ancient practice that believes in the body as physical AS WELL AS SUBTLE AND CAUSAL provides techniques that exercise these three levels of the body.

Indeed, Ashtanga and Vinyasa yoga, which are both forms of Hatha yoga, which are done in my classes, are physical ways of exercising the body, But if students are keen enough to pay attention and focus on the flow of the breath along with the flow of the physical body (asanas), the subtle and causal bodies will be activated and exercised as well.

This means, yoga helps you to get into the flow of subtle energies in the body. This means it can introduce a sick person into the other levels of the body where healing can occur.

Let me just quote Wilber: “Your subtle body can lead the way for revolutionary changes—in your life…”

I want to say more about this, particularly the savasana and lotus poses, where the subtle and causal bodies can actually benefit from, but where students express their nervous state of mind by fidgeting. Or totally avoid, maybe subconsciously, by coming in late. More about it next time.

Joji Balcita

Kafka on the Shore

2009-11-05T01:55:00.000-08:00

An excerpt from my other blog www.lifeasiseeit-joji.blogspot.com...yogis might want to think about it:

There is Nakata, an old man, cannot read or write, but by Buddha’s definition he is one endowed with powers that come when the mind is empty. Because he does not read or write he was able to access abilities that do not involve the rational mind, like talking to cats, making the skies rain with fish, or with leeches. He was a craftsman for a long time. Somehow, doing things that does not involve reading or writing or using the critical mind makes the mind silent or empty, and I think that is how Nakata was able to develop his abilities.

Thoughts on teaching yoga

2009-10-14T05:18:00.000-07:00

I'm posting the following paragraphs which I wrote for the teacher's page of Flow Yoga QC site, to remind continuing students and those who plan to enroll in my classes, what it takes to have that healthy figure-- that "healthy figure" they have in their minds and tell me as their reason for taking up yoga:

“In my years of teaching yoga in UP and in private classes and hotel/spa establishments, I gained the notion that people who stay with yoga are those who are truly concerned about their health and physical fitness. They are the ones who have the discipline to keep coming back, who don’t get bored with the asanas.
“Many come to yoga because it is popular nowadays, along with all the trappings of stylish yoga clothes and branded yoga paraphernalia, and all the talk about yoga spirituality (mantras included). Many also come because they want to lose weight and gain health. Whatever the reason for coming, I have seen people come and go and never achieve the style, the ideal weight, or the health they wanted because they simply lacked discipline.
"In the end, I think it’s all about discipline, whether the student wants to achieve a fairly well yet consistent practice or an advanced practice. I have seen among the yoga students that it is they who have the discipline who eventually create a lifestyle of health including diet, weight management, and yes a spirituality that unites body, mind and spirit."

joji balcita

Independence Day Yoga at the Sierra Madre

2009-06-13T03:05:00.000-07:00

A group of 12 women, ages ranging from early 20's to mid-60's did their morning mindful breathing and asanas (poses) last June 12 to start their tw0-day retreat at the foot of Sierra Madre mountains in Antipolo City. While the rest of the city celebrated the holiday (I heard the malls were packed), the women chose to leave the city, be with nature, and discover or rediscover themselves.

The retreat, called Soultreat by its organizer Life Academy, headed by Iya Santiago and facilitated by Aileen Santos, was designed to help the women participants assess their lives through creative means using voice, dance, journal writing and body awareness. Yoga was a fit way to introduce them to body awareness. Aileen, a creative therapist and counselor, recognized the unique needs of the women and thus focused on women, creativity, and their bodies.

It was a nice change for me to leave Quezon City and UP Diliman premises and teach yoga to these women. I believe in what Life Academy is doing as explained to me by Iya when we met before the retreat, and I decided to do this (http://lifeacademy.multiply.com).

I had to design the asanas and sequence in order to address the group's various needs. Twenty something girls who rarely exercise and are short of breath, women in their "golden age", women in their prime, women on the verge, big women, small women-- you name it, the group had it. At the end of the one-hour session, the women, totally relaxed and energized had all sorts of body experience which they shared afterwards.

The retreat place, Mt. Purro Nature Reserve, lifted our energies; surrounded by trees, running water, flowers, it is managed by the Malvar family. I am grateful for the work they do to preserve this part of Sierra Madre, now slowly being eroded by quarriers. The place was over an hour away from QC and we went through a long road, rough roads part of it, through ricefields and carabaos. There was thunder and rain when we left the city, and along the road we could see pools of water which could easily rise to a flood. Worrisome, but when we arrived, the place easily erased our safety concerns.

And oh, they served paco salad or fern leaf salad in vinegar dressing. One of the perks you rarely get if you live in the city.

I had to cut short my stay because I had a yoga class in UP the following day. Still, the short time with the group at Mt. Purro was a real nice experience for me.

Sorry I did not take photos. I was busy soaking up the place to be bothered with framing and shooting though I did take few shots which I will use for my painting.

More power to Iya, Aileen and Life Academy for their work. Go though their website if you are interested in their soultreats.

yogin jo hobnobs with the Dalai Lama

2009-05-26T21:46:00.000-07:00

We just received news from Dharamsala that our friend and yoga student Karma Yeshe alias Jo who left the Philippines recently, arrived in time for the Dalai Lama's visit in their nunnery. Jo is one of those few who is blessed by the Dalai Lama's presence (people in the US and Europe would stand in line for days just to get a glimpse of him). This is because she is a monk. If I'm not mistaken this is her second time to be in the presence of the Dalai Lama, her first was when she was allowed to have audience with him (which she got after following a strict process).

Jo is that second smiling face from the right, just behind the second row. She says she has grown so dark because of staying out in the sun to paint the markers for the Dalai Lama's visit. (But Jo you have already grown dark here in the Philippines by staying out in the swimming pool for hours hehe).

Walking in the fields, snow in the mountaintops.
Children and women so delighted to be in His Holiness' presence.

Jo tells us she continues to practice her Ashtanga three times a week, early evenings.

Tribute

2009-05-20T10:24:00.000-07:00

Two days of not going online and what news did I miss? Sri K. Pattabhi Jois is dead. Founder of Ashtanga Yoga. A man who dedicated his life to further exploring his culture's ancient knowledge of the human body and the Life that moved it.

Having experienced the benefits of the art and science of this kind of Hatha yoga, I am grateful to him. He joins the long line of men and women who have contributed to the growing knowledge of the mysteries of life and the universe.

As I try to go deeper in my practice, the more I feel the awakening of the body thus further giving me an idea of its potential. I can only imagine as to what heights we can do with our mind-bodies. Or how Hatha yoga enables us to explore the many realities of Life.

To Sri Pattabhi Jois, I bow to you for a life lived well, and a life shared to others so that we too can grow.

For all the attractive yet debatable ideas on Vedic cosmology which includes karma, reincarnation etc., this I know: you will continue to live as long as we practice Ashtanga. We will never know how Hatha yoga will be many years from now but we can always look back to this century when Ashtanga engaged the passions of many people around the world, looking for a way to relate to the body in a mindful and intelligent way.

And Life goes on...for Jois and for us whose bodies, according to the yoga sutras of Patanjali, bear all the elements of air, water, fire earth, and ether. Our bodies made of matter, with a growing or latent consciousness (citta), (depending on how we choose to make of our lives), and bearing the manifested or unmanifested (again, depending on how we choose to live) Cosmic Intelligence (Mahat). (See Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by B.K.S Iyengar, Thorsons, 1993).

Photo shows Sri K. Pattabhi Jois in action, by Sally Griffyn in the book Ashtanga Yoga for Women by Griffyn and Michaela Clark, which I recommend to Ashtangis.

Parting with Mam Ces and Jo

2009-04-30T00:15:00.000-07:00

I will take this time and space to say thank you to two of our yoga students whose regular presence in our Monday and Thursday sessions contributed to its communal atmosphere.

Mam Ces Conaco (she's the daring woman in black in pics, assisted by Jon during Apr 4 workshop), psychology professor whose cited work in social psychology made her a sought-out lecturer in the international academic scene, is moving to Cebu to take over the deanship of her alma mater St. Therese College. This means for us, yogis she won't be around anymore to make sure our yoga room at the Palma Hall Annex is reserved and ready for practice. (Thanks to another psychology prof, sir Edwin who recently became an avid yogin too, the room remains reserved for yoga, same days, same time.)

Our MTh yoga group actually started in 2004, when Mam Ces suggested we add yoga to our regular MTh pilates classes (which Jon started and I took over) . Not all of her pilates classmates were enthusiastic about it. One hour of exercise was enough for them, but Mam Ces still had lots of energy to spare, so adding yoga to pilates was a breeze. We started with some profs from the sociology department, and a few more yoga students from the saturday classes at the College of Human Kinetics. Slowly, the classes grew-- physics profs, chemistry profs, math profs, profs and staff from masscom, social work and more; also, executives and staff from the surrounding non-government organizations which have connections with UP. (With different political views, clashing often, when they come to class, they know that it's time give work and politics a rest just for that moment. So the offering of peace to one another, namaste, prayer position and bowing, helps to create a peaceful atmosphere.)

Through those years, mam Ces was there to host the classes, at the same time keeping herself strong and fit. There were days she had to give lectures abroad, so she made sure the yoga room is still reserved for us.

She always told her fellow profs that health and wellness should not be sacrificed despite the heavy teaching and administrative workload. "If there's no more strength left in you how could you go on working? You need yoga to recharge," she would say. And indeed, her classmates who would stop coming to class, giving work as a reason, would soon be coming back with complaints about the backpain that yoga healed but has recurred when they stopped coming to class. And mam Ces would of course give them her mini-lectures: "I told you. Work should not be a reason to stop coming. What is an hour and half that you could not squeeze it in? Priorities." Her own words.

If there's one thing that the UP should remember her for, apart from her outstanding university work of course, it is that she recognized the importance of mind-body wellness and moved to help set up the yoga group, and thus making this concept real experience for the professors. She walks her talk, this psychology prof.

Mam Ces also handles the Human Potential Development program under the Department of Psychology. She is not new to the ideas on mind and body wellness. Doing yoga is thus one aspect of her preoccupations, though it is not part of her academic work. We hope that with her pioneering support for yoga in the academe, health and wellness will become the lifestyle for many more in the UP community.

To Mam Ces, more power to you as you take on new challenges in Cebu! Thank you so much for your support and may yoga continue to strengthen you physically, mentally, emotionally.

Jo just appeared in class last year, calling me beforehand to tell me that she wants to attend my classes and that she used to attend yoga classes in Pasay. She name-dropped the magic word - Sandy. Sandy, of course, is my yoga teacher and friend, who initiated me into the challenging work of teaching yoga outside UP. And Jo de Leon happens to be her student before. And so I welcomed her to class.

The first day of class, Jo enrolled for the 10 sessions right away. Many students would usually try the class a few more times before deciding to become regular by enrolling 10 sessions.But Jo seemed decided right from the start. As she showed up twice a week, without a miss, we soon learned more about her. Wonder of wonders, she is a monk. She went to India a few years ago, in search of that spiritual bliss. She found herself studying Buddhist art, particularly the Thanka, came face to face with the Dalai Lama, and became a devotee. She is here for just a year to spend time with family and friends, and will leave for Dharamsala in a few days as i write this.

We spent many hours talking to Jo, while having after-yoga dinners at Likha Diwa, asking her all sorts of questions about the monk's life. I learned, for example, how a monk does her prostrations, and that monks are doing this for hundreds and thousands of times as part of their practice, just like a hatha yogin is expected to do her asanas thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) of times in her whole lifetime.

We learned about the principles of Buddhist art, and how in Buddhist society, art and spirituality are not separated, in the same way that daily life for a Buddhist is permeated with the rituals of devotion. Before turning her full attention to making Thankas, Jo was herself an artist, trained in the UP Fine Arts mode, and poised to make it in the competitive, ambitious and glossy world of art. This system apparently was not to her taste.

We traded vegetarian cooking secrets, she sharing her Indian-inspired dishes. Dell of Likha Diwa became even more inspired to create new dishes because of Jo's and the yoga group's regular food talks which could go on for the whole night.

Jo's presence is a reminder for us that there are life options that exist outside the conventional career-and- family lifestyle that modern society has taught us to accept. Her presence has given us a window into the lives of people in the ashrams and temples in India where people live without too much of the complications of a life dictated by commercialism, and illusions of a life of luxury.

Not that Jo shuns fun, because we spent hours of fun inside and outside the yoga mat. Like we would go swimming and she would do her laps almost non-stop, for an hour, happily doing her freestyle and backstrokes.

To Jo, it saddens us that you are leaving, but we are happy that you are going back to India to resume your "monkhood". Our best wishes and laughter go with you and we already look forward to seeing you again in the future. May you take your asana practice to its further heights, as I know quite well that you have learned to hold the bandha and flow with the breath.

Namaste.

(Pics show Jo during workshop with Jon. All photos by Joji B.)

Yoga workshop

2009-04-15T01:03:00.000-07:00

2009-04-15T00:57:00.000-07:00

Summer 2009

2009-03-01T06:58:00.000-08:00

I didn't realize I've been away from blogging for almost a year now. My last update was about summer yoga and here I am, summer of 2009, resuming blogging from last year.

What can I say? Should I enumerate all the reasons why I stopped blogging? Like I entered graduate school, trying to keep afloat in the world of comparative literature intellectuals and that I had to read all these confounding French intellectuals like Foucault and Derrida and Barthes; that I had to keep up with my readings in Latin American novels, and that I had to finish papers and more papers, among them a critique of fatwah-cursed Salman Rushdie's Satanic verses, etc. etc. No I don't think I should even mention these as reasons for not blogging for such a long time, especially that yoga students probably might not care about my non-yoga activities. But. But. But. I consider studying world literature as part of my yogic studies and trying to explain this here is not the purpose of today's blog. Let me just say that studying universal issues and foreign cultures, through literature, definitely evolves a person, in the cognitive realm (as Ken Wilber would say). Of course, cognitive is just one part of the human being, and traditional yogis would tell you to sit and meditate instead, for in the non-cognitive realm (i.e. intuition, meditation), studying is not the focus.

Ok, so now that I have decided not to tell you the reasons for not blogging in the past year (uhum), I will now say what I'm supposed to say--news for our yoga students!
Of course I continued to teach the asanas and intro to meditation even if I haven't been blogging and you know that because you've been in my classes. First of all, let me praise those students (you know who you are) who really made the effort to memorize the Ashtanga sequence, Primary Series, first half. Despite your stressful teaching load in UP, your equally stressful GO/NGO and corporate jobs, you managed to come to class with a memory of the sequence, and tried to remember one asana after another as you progressed through the year. As I kept telling you, you can do the sequence away from class, during personal practice, and during those times you had to leave the city or the country and you don't have the opportunity to attend Ashtanga class somewhere else.

As for those who are still trying to memorize the sequence (or should I say the memory-impaired), that's okay, I can see you trying, every time you come to class. There are those really trying to mindfully move from one asana to another, recalling the sequence. Of course there are those who scramble from one asana to another to keep up with those who know the sequence. I understand, the sequence is less important for you for now.

Events for the Summer.
We will be opening 7am classes Mondays and Thursdays starting April, at the PHAN 304. This is in anticipation of a hot summer (which we are all hoping it wouldn't be so hot) and doing pm classes would be so hard because of the heat. Early morning classes would be something new. It's good to start the day with the yoga practice, in the cool of the morning. Those who live and work in and near UP would benefit from this new schedule. As for those who cannot make it early morning, we still have Mon and Thur pm classes, venue to be announced.
If all plans push through, CHK Comrec classes will be like in the past year. Saturday classes: Pilates 8am, Yoga 9am. Wednedsday Yoga 5:30pm will also be open.Please visit the Comrec office for registration.

Yoga Retreat
Since many of you are asking about it, yes we will have another yoga retreat for the summer! March 28, Tanay, Rizal. Please tell me early if you are planning to join because I can only accomodate 15 at the most. Regular students will have the chance to do yoga and meditation in the midst of nature and animals. We will be doing our own vegetarian cooking this time so that those who want to share their vegetarian recipes can do so and those interested in cooking vegetarian dishes can learn from fellow yogis.

Yoga Workshop with Jonathan
Yes the Jonathan Cagas is back from India and many of you have had the chance to attend the classes he taught at the Psych and NEDA classes! But I know you want more classes from him so we are holding a workshops meant to deepen your Ashtanga practice.

Part 1: March 14, Saturday, 4:00pm-7:00pm Building the Practice (Fundamental Asanas)
Part 2: April 4, Saturday, 4:00pm-7:00pm Deepening the Practice (The Primary Series)

Only those who have attended the Part 1 workshop can attend the Part 2 workshop. Approach me before or after class to reserve your spot. Venue will be at the PHAN 304 where the Psych yoga classes are held.

Okay blog for today ends here. ill update you more about these events in the coming days.

Reminder for today: slow down the breath.

See you in class!

Joji

Yoga come rain or shine or extremely hot weather

2008-04-17T21:34:00.000-07:00

The days are really getting hot, and we have this joke at the chk gym that we are actually doing bikram yoga. Summer is quite freakish this year though, last week there was a day when it rained the whole day thanks to the first typhoon of the year which came so unexpectedly. So the 5:30 pm students had a respite from the heat. But the heat is back this week and we had extremely slow and sluggish workouts, at least by the teacher’s - me - standards.

But majority of the chk gym students are beginners, so they wouldn't know the difference for now. For them the whole routine, minus the more difficult poses, is challenging enough to make them grunt and sweat and calmed down at the end of the session.

At the psychology department class yesterday we used another room, and we agreed to allow air conditioned air from the next room to flow into our uncooled yoga room. Then we opened the windows so air can still circulate, (even if it’s hot air) and the sight of the green acacia trees outside could still freshen us. The temperature was a bit cooler than outside and it turned out to be a very relaxing yet energetic practice.

But come rain or extremely hot weather, i think the serious yogin should be able to do her / his practice, making adjustments so as not to faint in the heat, and still come out in good form in spite of the weather. In good form meaning, the mind has been stilled by the breath, the body has been worked out by the asanas, and the prayer of peace offered to one another at the end of the practice. Water breaks between asanas, a cool bath just before coming to class, and drinking lots of water before and after practice should help.

I’ll see you in class!

joji

Yoga: Not Just an Exercise

2008-03-11T00:19:00.000-07:00

Regular practice of hatha yoga reduces stress and anxiety. The Stress Reduction and Relaxation Program (SRRP) developed by Dr. Jon Cabat-Zinn of the University of Massachusetts has been shown to significantly reduce anxiety and depression. This method involves observing one's mental processes.

The practice of pranayama, or yogic breathing exercises, has been found to be very effective in treating depression.

Stephen Cope, author of the book Yoga and the Quest for the True Self, explained that the practice of yogasanas, or yogic postures, improves mood by moving energy into the body and directing it to parts where negative emotions are stored. Regular practice can release these blocked energies and create an experience of well-being.
Cope also mentioned that yoga students can also benefit from their relationship with their yoga instructors. The instructor can provide a "container" or a safe place for investigating, expressing and resolving emotional issues.

Yoga combined with traditional psychological treatments for depression has also been found to be more effective in preventing relapse.

You can read the full article from Psychology Today here.

Flowyogaqc Retreat March 22-23, Tanay

2008-03-04T23:26:00.000-08:00

Schedule

March 22, 2008

6:45 AM – Assembly time (place tba)

7 AM – leave for Tanay

8:30 – Arrive at Tanay

Drinks/Refreshments

10:00 – Ashtanga Yoga

12:00 Lunch

1:00 Rest and Recreation

Swimming/Boating/Commune w/ nature & animals

5:00 Yoga and Meditation

7:00 Dinner

8:00 Filmshowing – What the Bleep Do We Know!?

At the core of this film are provocative questions about the way we participate,

consciously or not, in an unfolding, dynamic reality. What the Bleep Do We Know!?

proposes that there is no solid, static universe “out there,” waiting to be comprehended by

our probing minds, but that reality is so mutable, it is affected by our very perception of

it. At the same time, it does not argue that reality is entirely relative or simply constructed

out of thin air. No matter what your theory of reality, real Mack trucks can and do run

over real people. There are consistent dynamics at play in the universe, some things that

are “truer” than other things.

This is why it is important to know the difference among what can be known through sensory empiricism (the contribution of science), what is known intuitively, what comes to us as mystical vision, and what remains unknowable. This is not to favor one form of knowing over another but to

discern when we have crossed the line of science into imagination, instinct, or intuition.

10:00 Sweet Dreams

March 23, 2008

7:00 Meditation and Ashtanga Yoga

9:00 Breakfast

10:00 Free Time

Depending on our transportation arrangements, we can stay in Tanay till late afternoon so you can have more time to enjoy the place.

Fee: P2000. covers vegetarian food, accommodation and transportation

Fit Body, Fit Brain

2008-03-02T02:02:00.000-08:00

Us athletic people always sensed the need for the body to work out, that’s why we’re always out there doing something active. What we’ve known in our body-minds for a long time, science is slowly confirming. I came across a Newsweek article (December 2007) about recent research on exercise and mental ability. So it’s true, intellect and athleticism need not be exclusive from each other.

Some of the points in the article, if you’re too busy to read (I’ll also print some copies for you so you can read it outright afterclass):

Everytime a muscle contracts and releases it sends out chemicals, including a protein called IGF-1, that travel through the bloodstream and into the brain, resulting to production of chemicals that fuel activities that lead to higher thought.

Regular exercise builds up supply of such chemicals. New nerve cells are generated in the brain. Emphasis on the “regular”; once you stop exercising, the brain stops producing the needed chemicals for intellectual activity.

This happens no matter what your age is; you regenerate your brain cells even if you are advanced in age.

And here’s one for educators and parents: many American educators are now pushing for an overhaul of physical education in their public schools. Teachers can ensure their students' success in other subjects, they argue, by making PE longer and more focused on brain-strengthening cardiovascular exercise. Kentucky State Sen. Katie Stine recently proposed a bill making a daily half hour of PE mandatory for kids up to eighth grade.

Humans have evolved to thrive on physical activity; without it, our brains go awry. Early studies suggest that people who exercise at least a few times a week tend to develop Alzheimer's less often and later than their more sedentary counterparts.

Much as you need effort and discipline for your sport or workout, you also need to put effort on developing your intellectual expertise be it math, physics or astronomy. The researches haven’t really focused on artistic intelligence, but I suspect the same correlation.

As the article says, having a big, gorgeous, healthy brain isn't enough; it also has to be full. For that, kids have to hit the library as well as the gym.

To read entire article: http://www.newsweek.com/id/36056/page/1

It’s good that we do Ashtanga in class. The suryas and the vinyasas between the poses provides the aerobic aspect of this form of hatha yoga, making sure our heart keeps pumping blood to the brain, giving it more oxygen, and enabling it to produce the needed chemicals. The article says research has focused on aerobic exercise, and not much on strength-training and stretching.

So those of you who would rather “sit and rest” while the others do their vinyasa during our sitted poses, you now see why I keep saying “vinyasa!”

See you in class!

joji

Physics Bldg Yoga on Sats, March Yoga Retreat and More

2008-02-25T21:59:00.000-08:00

The regular students at NEDA and UP Psychology Dept are now actually doing their Mysore, the whole standing and sitted asanas (except marichyasana b and d, up to purvottanasana) plus the closing sequence with just a few reminders from me. Congratulations!

Saturday classes at UP CHK ended last week. We will start having Saturday sessions at the Physics building starting this sat. March 1. Just text me if you want to join. Will text exact place as soon as I get details from Prof. Kristine who takes charge of the place. This is just while we wait for summer classes to start at the CHK.

Meanwhile, Psych classes continue MTH 5:45 pm. Newcomers are encouraged to text ahead so I can reserve space for them.

Summer Community Recreation Program at the CHK will start the week of April 7. Yoga schedules will be MW 5:30 pm, Sat 9 am.

Pilates, Sat 8am. Please enrol at the CHK ComRec office.

Few more slots are open for the Mar 22 – 23 second yoga retreat in Tanay. Please reserve your slot as soon as you can!

I know I still have to write that article about body-mind…. Urhm next time.

Meanwhile, just view Jon’s videos. Imagine you can do that handstand as well as he does.

And yes, if you want to catch me at Tomas Morato area, I just started morning classes there, at Bravura Dance Studio. No set schedule yet but we’ve done Tues 7:30 am and Sat 7pm last week.

See you in class!

joji

Surya Mysore style

2008-02-04T22:17:00.000-08:00

I am so glad almost all of the classes now are doing the suryanamaskar a and b without my demo. You have learned to do suryas a and b on your own, particularly the UP Psychology group and the NEDA group, who look lovely as they quietly work their suryas without my background voice. Advanced students at the CHK gym group are also doing the suryas on their own and are leading the many others who still can’t memorize the sequence. So the gym class looks great too, the whole dance studio filled up with yogis doing suryas each at their own pace.

Private classes at PhilHealth, Pasig and UP MassCom are catching up. Half of Philhealth class are virtually beginners so we had to acquaint them with the sequence, thanks to the leadership of the regular attendees who started last year.

Knowing your suryas and doing them at home 5 times or more is good practice. Some of you are already making this a habit-- can’t come to class so do suryas at home instead. Better if you follow it with the standing forward bends, and better still if followed with the triangles and inverted triangles, and much better still if followed by…ok you get my point. Better if you remember the whole sequence and practice it at home.

So when you come to class, we can focus on adjusting the asanas which you are still struggling with.

Like the balance pose where you hold your leg up straight holding on to the big toe (extended leg balance), and that one where you have to stand with one leg and fold the other leg and hold the big toe from behind, and do a forward bend (standing half-bound lotus forward bend). The balance poses are such a challenge to many of you!

So we are working closer to a better asana everytime we practice together.

Yoga is an inner-directed practice. You don’t just come and follow the teacher or your classmates everytime. There is a great sense of accomplishment once you know the asanas and that everytime you do it you know that you are closer to a better pose than when you first started.

And the more consciously you approach your asana, the body-mind releases tension gathered in your muscles, nerves, tissues, cells, etc.

But more of the body-mind next time.

Om Shanti. See you in class!

joji

Introducing Ashtanga

2008-01-22T06:21:00.001-08:00

Hello to all yogins who have been attending flowyogaqc classes! This blog is meant for you, in case you’re asking yourself what the bleep exactly are we doing in class.

As many of you have told me, most of you are there for wellness reasons – you want to de-stress after a long day’s work (yes you are UP profs, NGO and GO execs and staff), you want to keep away that backache that used to hound you before you started yoga and which comes back once in a while when you neglect your asanas (your poses), and of course many of you come for the simple reason that you want to feel good – mentally, physically, emotionally.

You would have gotten it by now, after several classes, that yoga is a mind-and-body practice, the deeper you go into the asanas, the more consistent you do it, the more you notice the effect on your physical body, your mental composure in and out of the mat.

So let me just give an overview of our classes the past two weeks when we resumed classes this January. We have been doing Ashtanga yoga, though not the full sequence.

We started doing the Ashtanga sequence since Jonathan shared his Ashtanga training in Thailand last October when he came back for a short vacation from Riyadh. Previous to the Ashtanga sequence, we have been doing flow yoga, a free form style which I vary in sequence and asanas, with music. It’s based on ashtanga-inspired flow yoga which Jonathan and I learned from Sandy Carmona, of the Soma Yoga Studio and YogaFoundation Philippines.

Of course many of you still can’t differentiate ashtanga and flow, even after so many classes, because you’d rather not bother with the sequence as you are still trying to work deeper into the poses. But if you want to be conversant in yoga, you will be able to at least say “I’m doing ashtanga” without blinking.

Some of you are fortunate to attend the Tanay workshop, and maybe even did the full sequence with Jon. Good for you! (Of course I’m not in the photos, I was the one behind the camera, apart from running all over the place making sure everything’s in place). But for those who weren’t there, it’s okay because we are still doing it in class, though not the full sequence. It will take time, energy, focus and discipline if you really want to do the whole sequence.

For now, it is good for you to memorize what we do in class and practice it at home. That is the first step.

As it is, many of you are already spoiled, just depending on me to demo every sequence when in fact you already know it.

Can we at least memorize Surya Namaskar A and B, so when you are late in class you can do the suryas on your own before catching up with the class? (Check the link for Ashtanga Sequence posted in this blog).

Since the classes don’t do the whole Ashtanga sequence, there are asanas which are introduced only if I see that students are ready for it.

The whole standing sequence is taught in all classes with modified forms of the balance/one-legged poses for those who still can’t do it.

So go ahead and memorize the standing sequence if you want to master it.

I’l be adding more notes on the asanas later on.

Though we have been practicing ashtanga, I will be doing flow classes once in a while just to practice other poses we haven’t done in a while, like the dancer’s pose and the pigeon pose, which are class favorites.

See you in class!

Namaste,

joji

Tanay Weekend Yoga Retreat Photos

2007-12-31T02:54:00.001-08:00

Happy new year everyone! May you have a great year ahead of you.

Om shanti, shanti, shant.

Please visit the website for more photos of the retreat.

2007-12-12T02:48:00.000-08:00

Namaste everyone.

The first flowyogaqc retreat looms just a few days ahead and we are all excited about it!
There are 13 participants in all.

Meeting place will be at the lobby of Palma Hall Annex. We leave 7am sharp so we expect to see you there 6:45 am or earlier.

Just a few reminders for all of us:

Bring your own blanket.(Bedsheets and pillows are provided).
Early mornings and evenings can be cold in Tanay, bring sweater.
Insect repellent (though advanced yogis aren’t bothered by insects when meditating).
Mineral water is provided, just bring your water bottles.
Fresh fruit juices will be on sale at the kitchen in case you want energizers before and after class (don’t fill-up your stomach though an hour before asana class). Just approach our fellow yogin Perla.
We don’t have kitchen staff so let’s wash our own plates after eating.
Smoking is not allowed in any area of the retreat place.
Please bring your meditation cushion, yoga straps and blocks, if you have them, for the breathwork and restorative asana classes.

Don’t forget your mat!

See you Saturday, Dec.15!

Joji

Flow Yoga QC December Retreat

2007-11-05T02:35:00.000-08:00

Namaste everyone!

Flowyogaqc is excited to announce its first yoga retreat.

When: Dec 15 - 16, 2007
Where: Tanay Private Sanctuary
Who: YOU ARE INVITED
Workshop fee: P2000.
Fee covers 3 yoga classes, 3 breathwork classes
Vegetarian meals
Overnight stayRecreation (swimming pool, boating,mini-zoo)

Teachers/facilitators: Joji Balcita and Jon Cagas

Registration: Anytime now until Nov. 30

Please ask Joji for more details before or during our regular yoga classes. Or text her at 09108934240

Take this time to develop and deepen your practice and understanding of yoga.

Schedule of Activities:
Day 1
7am Leaving QC
9am Meditation and Intro to Breathwork
10am Mysore-style Ashtanga Yoga
12:30 Lunch
1:30-4:30 Free time
4:30pm Asana Study
5:30pm Breathwork and Restorative Yoga
6:30pm Dinner
8:30pm Group Meditation
9:00pm Quiet time/Lights Off

Day 2
8:00am Meditation and Breathwork
9:00am Mysore-style Ashtanga Yoga
10:30am Breakfast and Bye

See you there.

Ashtanga Yoga in October

2007-09-30T02:16:00.000-07:00

Namaste everyone,

I will be in Manila this October and will be teaching the following classes:

Oct 8, Mon, 5:45pm - UP Psych
Oct 9, Tue, 5:30pm - NEDA
Oct 10, Wed, 5pm - PhilHealth
Oct 11, Thu, 5:45pm - UP Psych
Oct 12, Fri, 6pm - UP Pep
Oct 13, Sat, 8:30am - CAL

Ashtanga Yoga is the hatha yoga system taught by Sri Pattabhi Jois at the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute in Mysore, India. It follows a precise sequence of postures and it is the traditional method from which Flow Yoga is derived.

See you in class.

Namaste,

Jon

Sri Ramakrishnananda Puri in Manila

2007-09-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

Sri Ramakrishnananda Puri, a disciple of Ammachi, the Hugging Saint, will be in Manila.

Please visit their website at www.ammaswamiinmanila.com

Namaste.

COMREC 2007: 1st Semester Schedule

2007-06-13T20:43:00.000-07:00

Namaste,

The UP CHK Community Recreation Program yoga and corework (pilates mat) classes will start on June 23, 2007, Saturday.

8:30am-9:30am Corework (1500php for 10 sessions/Saturdays)
10:00am-11:30am Yoga (1750php for 10 sessions/Saturdays)

The venue for both classes will be the All-Purpose Room. It's the room adjacent to the Dance Studio.

Please visit the UP College of Human Kinetics Administration Office and look for Jeng or Vivienne to register or call 9296033 for inquiries. You can also download the complete list of the 1st Semester Activities here.

See you there.

J