Kundalini Yoga Level One Teacher Training

It's a dream come true for me to be in the presence of and to learn Kundalini Yoga Level One from a Yoga Master, Guru Dass Singh, the founder of the International College of Kundalini Yoga.  He is a 'legacy' teacher meaning a direct student of Yogi Bhajan . He met him at the age of 17 years old in 1971. (Guru Dass below playing the guitar).

It was my first Kundalini teacher who pushed me into taking this step. Actually, more of a shove. She kept saying that Kundalini Yoga is a powerful practice and mandatory to one's personal development. She said "We are where we are in our evolution. I am personally committed (at least whatever is left of my human life) to awaken my fellow God-desses so that they can in turn be of service to the rest of the world by animating the GodSpark withIN."

with students from all over the world

And here I am in Bali with 21 other students, literally at the Master's feet listening to his music. Each time he leads us in a meditation kriya, I always end up in tears. It's as if he is singing to my soul, melting my heart.

Kundalini is basically energy which according to Yogi Bhajan has been blocked in the lowest of all chakras, at the first chakra. What actually happens is the joining of two energies - positive and negative, prana and apana - and bring the energy up as it passes through the sushuma. Quoting from Yogi Bajan, he says "[It] works directly on the total energy, and that flow of energy has one simple way: either your sway it or it sways you... [it] is your creative potential. You experience it when the energy of the glandular system combines with the energy of the nervous system to create a sensitivity that the totality of the brain receives signals and integrates them. Then you become totally aware, and your creative potential becomes available to you."

Morning sadhana

The day starts with morning sadhana at 5:30 am,  which is reading of the Japji, a kriya and mantra meditation. Breakfast is usually at 8:00  followed by classes the whole day with a break for lunch, then dinner at 7:30pm and evening meditation with Yogi Bhajan (video) after dinner.

This will be the first of three weeks and I'm looking forward to this transformative technology. As Yogi Bhajan said  "If you want to learn something, read about it. If you want to understand something, write about it, If your want to master something, teach it."

Warning though the process will bring your shadows into the surface and through the practice, you will learn how to cultivate the courage to address the issues that come up. It's a powerful and transformative, if you are ready to change, this is it!

Yin Yoga Meridian Class

Donna showing us the 'churn the butter' asana

I'm glad that my #HYTTManila co-teacher Jayme Timbol pulled me to attend Donna Esteban's Yin Yoga Meridian Master Class at Yoga+ Makati.

Each month, Donna conducts a two-hour class focusing on specific organs. And this Saturday, she focused on the kidneys and urinary bladder.

As you know, we have two kidneys located in the lower back. The kidney functions to remove waste products from the blood, regulate water fluid levels (works with the urinary bladder) and produce blood-vessel protein (angiotensin) to regulate the blood pressure. 

Donna said that in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), aging signifies depletion of the kidneys. She stressed that the kidney is the basis for the body's reproduction and development; and receives and stores essence from the other organs. As our body's organs decline with age, the essence stored in the kidney depletes and eventually, our bones and tendons weaken, the hair turns gray, loss of memory, prolonged lower back issues, over fatigue and exhaustion to the point that there is no longer will. 

Meridians focus on specific channels that conduct energy throughout the body. If the flow is blocked, the body will not function properly.  As we age, she suggested an exercise to stimulate and balance the kidneys (watch video below).  

It is interesting to note that there were a lot of students in the class and I am pretty sure that most of them like me, have taken Donna's advise to heart and do the set of kidney exercises each morning. This just means that people are becoming more open to alternative healing modalities and now accepting yoga, specifically yin yoga, as a form of therapy. 

I am currently practicing kundalini yoga and one of the benefits of the practice is the ability to control and move energy. In kundalini yoga, applying the tantric/yogic tradition of Chakras or energy points in the subtle body, the kidney and urinary bladder including the reproductive organs and glands are part of the Second Chakra, the Sacral Chakra. This chakra is located at the lower abdomen below the navel and is represented by the Water element. The second chakra is the seat of emotions, where all our experiences associated with love and hate are stored.  The water element signifies the aspects of flow. It is said that if we are not fully connected to this chakra, physiological problems occur (which surprisingly is related to TCM) - lower back, ob/gynecological, pelvis, libido and urinary ; and emotionally, difficulty in creativity, manifestation, honoring relationships, obsessions, addictions, oversensitive, manipulative and  learning to 'let go' arise. The signs of a weak connection are jealousy, guilt, possessiveness and shallow relationships. 

Kundalini yoga has sets of exercises (or kriyas) and meditations to enhance the flow of the energy and address specific issues such as in this case, the kidneys, the urinary bladder, the second chakra. I'm confident that in due time, kundalini yoga will likewise be accepted as a form of healing modality. Meantime, I will continue learning and studying about meridians. 

Donna's next Yin Yoga Meridians Master Class is on June 14 (Liver and Gall Bladder) and July 12 (Heart and Small Intestine). 

Priscilla, Queen of the Desert in Manila!!

in trippy 1970s outfit

The best way to watch the opening night of the trippiest musical staged in Manila is to come in - what else,  drag! So we watched "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" all made-up and garbed in 1970s psychedelic outfits with matching falsies and wig (Tessa came in her biggest, fluffiest afro wig).

The musical is definitely a must-watch! I must hand it to Resorts World for getting top-rate actors - three-time ALIW awardee Leo Valdez, comedian and impersonator Jon Santos and Red Concepcion  - including seasoned performers such as Bituin Escalante, Pinky Marquez, Timmy Canlas, Michael Williams, Menchu Lauchenco-Yulo, Lani Ligot to be part of the ensemble.

(from left) Leo Valdez as Mitzi (n yellow), Red Concepcion  as Felicia (green) and Jon Santos as Bernadette (purple)

with happy campers Pinky and Gai

The story is about the adventures and misadventures of three friends - two drag queens and a transsexual - as they travel into the heart of the Australian outback in a pink-painted bus they named "Priscilla." Note that the musical is very Australian. The scenes depicted their homophobic bogans (redneck in American slang), aborigines and even a castrating pinay who can work on her muhlabanda. 

Get ready to dance all night as the musical plays top 1970s disco hits - Alicia Bridge's I Love the Night Life, Abba's Dancing Queen, Peaches and Herb's Shake Your Groove Thing, The Weather Girls' Its Raining Men, Village People's Go West, Tina Turner's What's Love Got to Do With It?and many more and including hits of Australian singer Kylie The Locomotion, Can't Get You Out of My Head.

The local production is directed by Jaime del Mundo. The musical will run for three months until July 13, 2014.

First #HYTTManila Hot Yoga Treacher Training

first #HYTTManila teachers and students 

"Trust the Process" that's what Dinah Salonga kept telling us throughout the ten weeks of the first Hot Yoga Teacher Training (#HYTT) program in the Absolute Yoga Series in Manila.

I must admit that I wasn't too sure if I would've lasted the training program - i.e. commit to attend all ten weekends plus keep up with my co-TTs who are younger :-).

Well, I'm happy to write that all twelve of us - Anne, Anthony, Bot, Carina, Chi (the youngest at 22), Edel, Ian, Janina, Jayme, Michelle, Sheila - survived! That's a total of 200-hours training from February 1 to April 6.

trying to complete the required 40-classes before graduation

Mind you, it wasn't easy. We were weekend warriors, up early to make the 6:30 am morning practice. The studio doors were shut at exactly 6:30am. Not to mention, we lost weight doing doubles per day just to complete the required 40 hot classes outside the weekend training (left photo). In fact, Anthony resorted to doing triples since he was migrating to Canada after graduation.

Amazingly, we managed to juggle our time between our work load, studying and practicing. Hats off especially to Jayme who was nursing her 4-month old baby and working at the same time.  And thankfully, we all passed the written exam and the peer class which served as our oral exam.

Anatomy class with Dr. JP Prado

Coming from someone who used to practice Bikram Yoga and Ashtanga, I find the Absolute Yoga series sort of a hybrid. It is similar to Bikram where the room is heated up to 39 to 40 degrees Celsius. However, there are more postures in the series, a total of 50 postures compared to Bikram's 26 postures.  There are also some ashtanga poses incorporated in the series.

The practice was founded in 2002 by Benjaporn Karoon Kornsakul. The philosophy is simple - according to Lucas Rockwood, one of the major proponents of Absolute, "Absolute teaches yoga as a form of mind-body fitness as a way to get in great shape and practice moving meditation."

Ryan, Dinah and Aisa

Looking back, I remember my lunch with Dinah in January. She sat me down and spelled out why I shouldn't miss the first TT program in Manila. This made me think of the time I first stepped on a mat which was way way back in 1995 in New York. After that lunch, I asked myself maybe it's about time to teach. I've been doing yoga for some time already. What really propelled me to commit was the quote from Yogi Bhajan "if you want to learn something, read about it; if you want to understand something, write about it; if you want to master something teach it."

The lead teachers of the first #HYTT were Dinah (head), Aisa Locsin-Winternitz and Ryan Chester. And the subject matter experts were Lucas (who via Skype), Pio Baquiran and Dr. JP Prado.

lab work updates on instagram

Our training sessions typically looked like this:

6:30 - 8:30 Morning Practice
8:30 - 9:30  Breakfast Break
9:30 - 12:30 Module /  PT
12:30 - 1:30 Lunch Break
1:30 - 3:30  Module / Lab
3:30 - 4:00  Break
400 - 6:00   Module / Afternoon Practice

The sessions focused on practice teaching (PT) and clinics to discuss each of the poses in the series. The subject matter experts - History, Philosophy, Ethics, Nutrition, Anatomy were included in between modules.

Potluck lunches

Group shot (photo credit: Edelweiss Tubog)

all twelve of us with our certificates

I am so grateful to teachers who drilled on us the importance of the dialogue to keep the class flowing and to relate to the students. And most especially grateful to my co-TTs, now co-Teachers and friends who I looked forward to being with every weekend. I'm going to miss our early morning yoga, the laughter during breaks, our lunches together and catch-up practices.

Right now, we're all slotted in the current class offerings at Yoga+.   I'm teaching at Yoga+'s Ortigas Branch every Tuesdays at 6:30am and do private classes as well. Here's a compilation of the photos I took throughout the 10 weeks. Click here to view. Happy viewing!