Pamela Seelig - Threads of Yoga: Themes, Reflections, and Meditations to Weave into Your Practice

Y OGA IS A five-thousand-year-old wisdom tradition that guides us to the discovery of our true selvesto self-realization. Despite this powerful legacy, the present-day perception of yoga is often of a purely physical practice with its associated clothing and accessories. But the heart of yoga goes much deeper, and hints of that depth are what keeps a yoga student coming back to the mat.

Even if youre brand new to the practice, you probably sense that theres much more happening during a class than the awesome stretch of a Downward-Facing Dog Pose (Adho Mukha Svanasana)and it is awesome! Physical achievement is beneficial, for sure, but that is not why ancient yogis spent years in Himalayan caves or forest hermitages. You may have asked yourself, Why do I feel both calm and energized after a yoga class? or What is the point of meditation?

The answers to these questions and the more profound wisdom teachings of yoga are often not covered in a typical class, and its no wonder. Teachers may avoid getting too deep as that might risk turning off a new student or annoy those interested in a purely physical workout, or the teachers themselves might be uncomfortable with yoga philosophy. After owning a studio and teaching yoga for more than fifteen years, I know its hard planning a class, remembering sequences, managing the music, handling latecomers, all while not tripping over a block. Bringing in yoga wisdom adds complexity.

Even so, yogic teachings that delve below the surface are what most students crave, and these teachings also honor yogas roots as much more than a physical practice. This information needs to be shared, especially now. As technology barrels ahead, people continue to feel more isolated from each other and from nature. Scientific advancements such as mapping the human genome increase our physical understanding of who we are, but the inner exploration of consciousness and what lies beyond our chattering minds is also valuable.

If you are a yoga practitioner, Threads of Yoga presents more in-depth teachings than students typically encounter in a sixty-minute class. Whether you would like to know more about meditation or find out if enlightenment is really a thing, this book gets below the surface to share this wisdom clearly and experientially.

If you teach yoga, Threads of Yoga can assist you in bringing this essential wisdom into the class setting without sounding preachy or cheesy. Most yoga teachers are trained and do an excellent job teaching asanas, the physical component of class, but many are not taught to incorporate yoga philosophy. This book provides inspiration and information in each chapter that can inspire your own practice as well as elevate your teaching.

For those who have never experienced a yoga class, this book gives insight into yogas age-old tradition that includes both meditation and breathwork. The physical poses are often a gateway to the deeper teachings for practitioners, but physical practice is not required to realize these teachings.

Threads of Yoga relies on ancient texts, such as Patanjalis Yoga Sutras, but it isnt religious or scholarly. Yogas roots have deep connections to Hinduism, as well as Buddhism and Jainism, but the yogic path is not dogmaticthere is no required belief system, and students of any (or no) religious background are welcome to practice. Yoga wisdom and practices aim to quiet the mind, allowing for clear perception regardless of ones personal belief system.

Over the past twenty-something years, Ive had both a consistent, steady practice and a sputtering one. While consistency is important and rewarding, I can attest that even a basic introduction to yoga can bring about changes that profoundly affect your life.

Inspiration and enthusiasm to practice can bubble up on their own. But other times, especially when life gets busy, the inspirational well might be a bit dry. Whether youre new to yoga or a veteran teacher, I hope this book will expand your understanding of yoga and inspire and support your effort to go within and explore who you truly are.

H OW TO U SE T HIS B OOK

A primary aim of yoga is to quiet the mind. When the mind quiets, a heightened state of being ensues. This elevated state is highly creative and open to new thoughts and ideas. Threads of Yoga