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CLASS DESCRIPTIONS: WORKSHOPS AND GROUPS OFFERED

Ananda Mandala Breathing Meditation

Ananda Mandala Breathing Meditation is a very powerful cleansing meditation used by yogis in India to wash out hidden emotions stuck in the body and open to higher states of consciousness. A guided rhythmic breathing pattern, followed by a concentrated and focused meditation on each chakra (energy center), invites deep energetic releases from the body and pathways to more blissful states of mind.

Yoga Nidra

Yoga Nidra, also known as yogic sleep or lucid sleep, is an ancient healing practice that is rapidly gaining popularity in the West. It is intended to induce full-body relaxation and a deep conscious meditative state. Yoga Nidra, using guided imagery and body scans, is a systematic method of complete relaxation, holistically addressing our physiological, neurological, and subconscious needs. Yoga Nidra quiets the overactive conscious mind, inviting it into a meditative state, gradually finding a state of ultimate harmony, in which the brain waves slow down and a subtle euphoria may occur. The practice of yoga nidra has been found to reduce symptoms of anxiety, PTSD, chronic pain, and insomnia. Unlike a quick savasana at the end of asana practice, Yoga Nidra allows enough time for practitioners to physiologically and psychologically sink into a deeper state where healing can occur.

Life Force Yoga

Life Force Yoga opens the body and mind, allowing prana (the sanskrit word for life force and energy) to flow more freely, energizing the body and mind with specific breathing, chanting, movement, and meditations techniques that increase emotional balance, mood regualtion, and relieve the stresses of daily life and the symptoms of depression and anxiety. Each class ends with a guided deep relaxation. Appropriate for beginners and all levels.

Introduction to Mindfulness Meditation

Have you been curious about meditation, but unsure about getting started? In this introduction, you will learn the basics of starting a daily practice. Research has demonstrated a number of health benefits that result from a daily practice, includes: reduces symptoms of stress, lowers blood pressure, increases physical relaxation, increases emotional regulation, improves sleep, and reduces pain.

Sacred Cycles - Five Seasons of the Soul: A Seasonal Women's Gathering

Spring, Summer, Late Summer, Autumn, Winter….Nature is in constant motion, following cyclical patterns that describe the process of transformation. When the elements of nature are in balance, life is harmonious and flourishes. When this balance is upset, disharmony and disease results. Human beings cannot be separated from Nature; we are cosmos in miniature and propelled by the same forces. Each cycle of seasons brings with it a universe of distinct associations, meanings and gifts. Consciously entering the portal of each season gives us an opportunity to learn from Nature and align ourselves with her rhythms in a way that awakens, supports, nourishes.

Listening to the wisdom teachings of each season, we are guided to better understand the natural changes that occur in our bodies, emotions, thoughts, relationships, diet and energy levels as we move through the various cycles of our own lives. Integrating these insights helps us make choices that reflect the harmony and balance of Nature and align ourselves with our deepest instincts and wisdom.

Immerse yourself in a day long journey where nature will guide us in deep listening, rituals, creative expression, clearing and attuning processes, and inspiring stories. At lunch time, we will feast on an abundant homemade harvest from the bounty of the Season.

Samyama Healing Meditation

Do not look for God. Look for the one looking for God…Rumi

Do you long for a deeper connection with yourself and with others…for inner peace and healing? Samyama Healing Meditation, an ancient yogic practice that has been used for eons, is a meditative process, a profound healing tool, and a spiritual practice that awakens us to Self-Realization. We will learn and practice simple tools that quiet our chattering minds, that rest our conscious awareness on the present moment (letting go of past regrets and future anxieties), and that teach us to descend into the immense wisdom of the heart. Within this sacred vessel, we meet our fullest selves, including any repressed emotions, and learn a highly effective and compassionate way to dissolve old wounds that interfere with the flow of a joyful life. This clearing becomes the portal to experiencing our infinite Oneness-with-All and the truth that we are divine. This workshop is highly experiential and offers you specific tools to incorporate into an ongoing practice of self-healing and Self-Realization.

We are what we have been seeking…closer than our own breath…Rumi

Sacred Collage

Sacred Collage is a creative and intuitive art process that opens the heart, illuminates the mind, and soothes the soul. During this workshop, participants will be guided to journey inward and explore places that long for healing and wholeness. Using a few simple tools, we will gather and select images, layer, and arrange them on collage boards, and discover new meanings, insights, and ways of expressing that which words cannot describe. A playful, safe, and nurturing container will be cast among participants to encourage a deep exploration and healing, laughter, personal and spiritual growth. No art experience is necessary. All materials are included.

Shadow Work Seminar®

Shadow Work® offers us the opportunity to work with our shadows and to reclaim gifts and talents that have been unconsciously disowned. Accessing our inner archetypal strengths, we learn how to:

Increase ability to make powerful choices; feel appreciated for who you are (Sovereign)
Develop new solutions for old problems; understand persistent patterns (Magician)
Deepen your capacity for intimacy; activate your creative talents (Lover)
Improve your ability to set boundaries and deal with money (Warrior)

All participants will experience a series of processes carefully designed to help with accessing the full range of emotions. Some participants may choose to do “centerwork” and explore a life issue with the help of facilitators and the support of the group.

In centerwork, your intention guides the process. Using Shadow Work® tools, the facilitators help you symbolically reconstruct your issue so the shadow can be viewed objectively. New perspectives and powerful techniques are offered for reclaiming the empowering energy in the shadow. Whether or not you choose to do centerwork, all participants benefit from witnessing and supporting the transformational process of others. Visit www.shadowwork.com for more information.

At Home in Your Heart: Preparing the Guesthouse

Unexpected “guests” arrive at our doorsteps, pile up, distract us from our higher priorities, dreams, visions, and true purpose, and overwhelm us, especially during personal transitions and sweeping world change. While we may not be able to control who or what arrives at our house, we can change the way we greet them. We can open the door to our guesthouse and invite who or whatever arrives with a compassionate heart.

We will experience a powerful process that shifts our awareness from victim to compassionate witness, allowing us to meet everything that arrives at the door of our hearts and greet them as our spiritual teachers. We can witness our emotions like the changes of the seasons. We will build our own guesthouse, a place inside of ourselves where it is possible to remain centered, no matter how violent the storm.

DreamDancing

Dreams are richly textured and full of meaning, revealing deep insights into our lives. Our conscious mind becomes quiet and still during sleep, allowing our unconscious mind to awaken and take us on a journey deep into our psyches. When we take a closer look at the symbols, images, and action in dream content, new insights about ourselves may immerge. Broader perspectives about our lives may be illuminated. We may be offered guidance in the form of a solution, an answer, or a direction to turn. Healing may occur by helping us to integrate something missing. Dreams are also ephemeral in nature and can dissolve from memory moments after waking, thereby robbing us of their gifts.

DreamDancing allows us to dream while being fully awake. In DreamDancing we enter a spontaneous dream state by following the body and mind’s sensations, impulses, images, symbols, feelings, thoughts, and visions into movement with eyes closed. Working with a partner, we are witnessed by another DreamDancer who follows our movement with open-hearted compassion. Journaling, drawing, and discussion follow as a way to find meaning in the dream and integrate new insights, discoveries, and revelations. DreamDancing allows us to reap the gold from our dreams, while simultaneously witnessing the dreaming process.

Adolescent Girl's Support Group

This eight-week support group is designed to take girls on an eight-week journey that encourages self- exploration and discovery of their unique strengths, talents, and abilities that may be hidden beneath low self-esteem, poor body image, feelings of inadequacy, and self-doubt. Girls will be guided to develop, improve, and strengthen:

healthy expression of emotions, thoughts, and ideas
personal care of body, mind, spirit
skills for coping with stress and social pressure
self-perceptions and body image
communication and conflict resolution skills
identification of healthy relationships
constructive decision-making strategies
accessing support from others

Referrals: From parents, school counselors, therapists, or teachers
Participation: Commitment to attend all eight weeks

Contact for Specific Dates and Locations