Yoga Journal held their annual Yoga Journal Live event in New York City 4/23-4/27 with quite an assemblage of talent. From Seane Corn to Rodney Yee, Bo Forbes to Eric Paskel, over 50 yogis were on hand to teach and inspire. I would have liked the opportunity to join all the classes, but the ones I did attend had a huge impact on me.
The opening lecture, “Being Present: How Mindfulness Is Shaping Modern Society” with Sharon Salzberg, Gopi Kallayil, Jeff Walker, and George Momford, incorporated insight and awareness in how to bring compassion and mindfulness into all aspects of your life whether it be sports, work, relationships… Let’s face it—mindfulness is where it’s at today. More and more people are becoming conscious or are at least looking to be, and who better than these great masters of mindfulness to teach us?
Several of my favorite classes and lectures were:
Dharma Mittra teaching “The Foundation of All Yoga: Sacred Techniques for Awakening,” which was a class comprised of yoga flow, meditation, and breath work—a great awakening to my morning! For those of you who aren’t familiar with Dharma Mittra, he’s an ancient, limber, full-of-life-and-knowledge yogi. Dharma is one of the master teachers of this fine practice. His voice is gentle and kind, and he makes you feel comfortable in your own skin even if you’ve never taken a yoga class before.
Larissa Hall Carlson taught a class called “Exploring The Doshas: Enhance Your Vitality with Ayurveda.” Ayurveda is something that’s always interested me. It’s an ancient Hindu healing system dating back more than 4,000 years. Larissa’s explanation and approach to Ayurveda followed the basic explanation of the doshas—one of three states that the body can be in: vata (which is associated with qualities that pertain to space and air), pitta (with qualities related to fire and water), and kapha, (which embodies qualities related to water and earth). She spoke about how to incorporate the principles of Ayurveda into your diet and lifestyle.
Shiva Rea. Shiva—whose energy is never ending—had me melting as soon as I walked into the room. Her smile lit up our space. The class she taught was called “Rhythmic Vinyasa Flow,” which was powerful, hypnotic, and fun!
Seane Corn. I attended her “Three Realms of Consciousness,” an amazing asana class that propelled me from my past, to my present, and onto my future being!
The whole weekend was an energetic flow of awakenings, community, connection, and—let’s not forget—shopping! All earth conscious, eco-friendly, and givers to the greater community. When this conference comes back around do what you can to attend. It’s not to be missed!
Rose Caiola
Inspired. Rewired.
Click here to find out more about Rose’s thoughts on wellbeing and health
