All posts tagged: Lila Yoga

A Simple Visualization Meditation from Yogacharya Erica Kaufman

Published by dmcblog

By Erica Kaufman // I developed this simple meditation to help people experience a state of yoga—where the mind is clean and clear. The feedback has been remarkable. Visualizations like this tend to free us in a profound way and we actually experience limitless support as we sit. The tools of yoga are vast and highly useful. I grew up with yoga and am energized to support you in the many ways it feeds our soul and health. Imagine the divine sweet scent of the trees at Shambhala. Close your eyes and watch your breath. Regulate your pace and make the habitat for your breath spacious by sitting with a long spine and a broad chest. Comfortably slow and deepen your breath. Continue for a few minutes. Now take note of where your mind usually goes. Ask yourself: “what are the things that have been drawing my attention lately?” See them in your mind as a slide show. Just like cards, collect these slides and set them aside for now. Allow yourself to be in …

Lila Yoga’s 3 Steps to Awakening to the Larger Rhythms of Life

Published by dmcblog

By Erica Kaufman Let’s take a brief look into the science of yoga and what it offers. Yoga is the science & art of living in harmony. Yoga considers the mind to be a huge influential factor in the human experience and thus worthy of understanding. There are many aspects of the mind, including what I will call the small mind—the part of us that is saturated by the immediacy of our considerations and experiences. It is the way we function when the world seems to shrink down to conform inside perceived boundaries of a frame and we lose the larger perspective/context or rhythm/energy of life. But unity/yoga has no borders—and when we function inside the limitations of a framed awareness, we may not be sensitive to the larger rhythms of consideration. So how do we broaden our awareness? Let’s consider 2 Sanskrit words: Lila = cosmic play within life; the larger rhythm of life Yoga = Unity/Harmony Lila Yoga (Unity within Life) is a unique and powerful offering in the field of yoga. It’s …

Mindfulness in Lila Yoga

Published by dmcblog

We’re thrilled to have the wonderfully skilled Yogacharya Erica Kaufman returning to SMC this June to lead Lila Yoga Mindfulness Retreat. And, also very glad to be able to offer you a glimpse into her brilliance as a teacher and the profundity of the practices that she’ll be leading here on the land next month. Please take a few minutes to enjoy this lovely video which explores the mindfulness aspects within the Lila Yoga practice. Erica describes and defines how mindfulness is an intricate part of our learning process and how it is woven into this style of yoga. Shambhala Mountain Center hosts Lila Yoga Mindfulness Retreat, May 26-29, 2016 — click here to learn more and to register. ~~~ Yogacharya Erica Kaufman is the founder of Lila Yoga® and the owner of Lila Yoga Studios. Since 1984, she has taught ancient wisdom as a daily practice and holds the highest level of Registry with Yoga Alliance. Her teaching expertise and sophisticated gutsy openness awarded her Yoga Journal’s Karma Credit and features in publications such as The Times …

Why Samadhi?

Published by dmcblog

by Erica Kaufman We like to think of ourselves as living in independent time, separate from each other and from cosmic influences. But that is just it. We “think” and create mind play for our thoughts. In a way our minds are like the dominant child within us, the one that steps forward and likes to take over but is not always the most sensitive or intuitive. While our bodies are more like the quiet child within us, the kind that needs patience and is worth the wait. That is why Lîla Yoga™ is such a powerful harmonizing tool. It is both meditation in motion and philosophy in motion. Through our asana practice we learn to quiet the mind and allow the truths within our body to lead us to a more revealed state of awareness. From this state of being, our true Self is more easily exposed. This process is called Dhyana (meditation) and Samadhi (absorption). It takes great discipline and consistent practice to calm the mind into a tranquil state of stillness for Dhyana. …

Reawakening Amazing Inner Places

Published by dmcblog

by Erica Kaufman This year I traveled quite extensively in India. So much teaching…and of course I learn from each student. Regardless of their spoken language, I learn from their ways and this helps me to teach accordingly. I teach the eight limbs of yoga, they are portals into the intuitive home. Life is a journey and the eight limbs of yoga are a beautiful guide into intuitive clarity. That journey is of central interest in my life, and in teaching Lila Yoga. I am here, solo and not. I am sometimes alone but I am not lonely. As I relax into new-ancient rhythms, I experience the home of GENEROSITY. I will explain: Generosity flows naturally, when we understand the inter-connectivity of it all. Tat Tvam Asi. We are That…That which Is… No need to horde…impossible to hold onto anything…what could we hold onto? When we live sensitive to this, it breaks down defensiveness and possessiveness and Generosity opens. Generosity of Spirit, Love, Patience, Time… We have within us/around us/between us, an endless source of these qualities. No need to ration. Fear of loss …