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Dates
Saturday 04/27/2024 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Saturday 04/27/2024 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Pricing
$30.00 Deep Rest Master Class: Touring the Subtle Body
$60.00 Common Injuries
$60.00 Deep Rest: Breath, Meditation & Nidra
Deep Rest Master Class: Touring the Subtle Body
Friday, April 26, 6:30 - 8 pm
In Person
$30
The ‘map’ of the ‘subtle body’ in yoga has long provided a path for going deeper into one’s yoga practice, but it hasn’t always been clear how to pursue it, apart from a few breath and meditation techniques.
Yet as we come to understand the nervous system better, and its deep interpenetration of the fascial matrix of the body, we not only get some objective confirmation of the insights of the yogis into the deeper experience of yoga; we also derive clear and practical direction for all of our yoga practice.
This master class will be an exploration of simple movement and asana linked to fundamental breath practices, leading to deep relaxation. Rather than being just one practice, there will be several short and memorable ones of a few poses, each set of poses completed with a short breathing practice and meditation. The cumulative effect will be a deep relaxation at the end.
This will be accessible to all levels, and not overly demanding physically; instead, the emphasis will be on getting an experiential sense of what the ‘subtle body’ in yoga is all about. There will be some explanation, but a broader context and explanation will be provided in the workshop on Saturday afternoon. This Friday night session is about enjoying the ride!
Common Injuries
Saturday, April 27, 10 am - 1 pm
Hybrid
$60
A significant part of being a good teacher is to not only be aware of common injuries that may appear in a yoga class but to recognize postural and movement patterns that carry a greater risk of injury. In both cases, we want to be able to offer alternatives and variations — to avoid aggravating the injury and help it to heal, but also to enjoy and advance in the class with reduced risk of injury.
In this hybrid session, we’ll cover the most common injuries and how to adjust for and avoid them — especially concerning the hamstrings, hips, lower back, shoulders, and neck.
More than that, we’ll look at postural patterns and movement limitations that we can recognize in students, what alternatives and approaches to offer, and how to go about addressing them without breaking the flow of the class.
The art of teaching includes the art of being in tune with the class, being able to meet them where they are and communicating the possibilities of practice in a way that tunes them into the wisdom of their own body. The challenge of being a student is the challenge of listening to you - the teacher - and their bodies at the same time!
This session is about making it easier for them to do both, while enjoying the practice.
Deep Rest: Breath, Meditation & Nidra
Saturday, April 27, 2 - 5 pm
Hybrid
$60
This afternoon session will be a deeper dive into the realms of breath and Yoga Nidra, and their relationship to the meditative practices of yoga. It will include practical foundations in science, particularly relating the vagus nerve to the various ways it is stimulated through breath practices to influence the states of the nervous system. This approach will give us a clearer understanding and appreciation of yogic breath practices, as well as the language of yoga about the ‘subtle body,’ with its nadis and chakras.
Too often, pranayama emphasizes technique rather than feeling. Yet the power of the practice, especially for bringing about deep states, lies in the feeling of the breath. The practice just provides the focus and the context. We’ll relate the guidance given for this in a few key sutras and texts to our experience of these practices.
This is the setting for a deep dive into Yoga Nidra and early ideas about it as outlined in some of the hatha yoga texts. There are several ways to approach it, as distinct from modern versions, and we’ll explore each one, along with its foundational ideas, by doing them. This will give you a manageable variety of approaches to the practice.
And finally, these experiences will be tied to a few simple dharanas, or practices of focus that lead naturally into meditation. These too will be simple and memorable practices that you’ll experience more deeply each time you do them.
The advantage of the hybrid session is that you’ll have good-quality recordings of the session and the practices contained within it for you to return to and re-experience, making the practices your own!
Doug Keller
Doug Keller has been teaching workshops and trainings internationally in the therapeutic applications of yoga for 20 years, and is known not only for his effectiveness in communicating this ever-evolving approach in these trainings, but also for his extensive writing on the topic in magazines, journals and his two-volume work on ‘Yoga As Therapy.’ He has also served, in addition to his traveling and teaching, as a Distinguished Professor at the Maryland University of Integrative Health in their Master’s Degree program in Yoga Therapy.
His background reflects a lifelong commitment to studying, imbibing and sharing the vast field of knowledge and practice known as yoga. After receiving honors and graduate degrees in philosophy from the top Jesuit universities in the United States, Georgetown and Fordham Universities, and teaching philosophy at a college level for several years, he then pursued his ‘post-graduate’ education in the practical experience of yoga at the Siddha Meditation Ashram, Gurudev Siddha Peeth in India, for seven years. He spent a total of 14 years doing service, practicing, training in and teaching yoga in Siddha Meditation Ashrams worldwide. He received intensive training in the Iyengar system in New York City, mainly with senior certified Iyengar teacher Kevin Gardiner. He also practiced Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga in India, and became one of the first certified Anusara Yoga teachers, producing three highly respected books on asana, pranayama and yoga philosophy.
