March 12-18: Revisiting Ahimsa

Ahimsa is the first of the Yamas in the Yoga Sutras- It is generally translated as non-violence or non-harming.  It is the active practice of thinking about our actions and what the effect will be.  It applies to both how we treat ourselves and how we treat others.  I came across this story, as told by the wonderful Judith Lasater.  It is a story I have heard before but I always love to revisit it- and I wanted to share it with you this week:

"There is a famous story about ahimsa told in the Vedas, the vast collection of ancient philosophical teachings from India. A certain sadhu, or wandering monk, would make a yearly circuit of villages in order to teach. One day as he entered a village he saw a large and menacing snake who was terrorizing the people. The sadhu spoke to the snake and taught him about ahimsa. The following year when the sadhu made his visit to the village, he again saw the snake. How changed he was. This once magnificent creature was skinny and bruised. The sadhu asked the snake what had happened. He replied that he had taken the teaching of ahimsa to heart and had stopped terrorizing the village. But because he was no longer menacing, the children now threw rocks and taunted him, and he was afraid to leave his hiding place to hunt. The sadhu shook his head. "I did advise against violence," he said to the snake, "but I never told you not to hiss."

Protecting ourselves and others does not violate ahimsa. Practicing ahimsa means we take responsibility for our own harmful behavior and attempt to stop the harm caused by others. Being neutral is not the point. Practicing true ahimsa springs from the clear intention to act with clarity and love." -Judith Lasater

Upcoming Workshops:

Celebrate the return of Spring with an afternoon of uplifting yoga.  These 2 hour workshops will focus on heart opening backbends and twists to 'spring clean' our bodies, mind and souls.  We will explore asana, meditation, chanting and pranayama to welcome in this beautiful time of year.

Sunday, April 8th at Exhale Yoga, NE Portland, 1-3pm
Saturday, April 14th at Heart Fire Yoga, St Johns, 2-4pm
Sunday, April 15th at Yoga Shala Buckman, SE Portland, 3-5pm 
Saturday, April 21st at Discover Yoga, Redmond, WA, 1-3pm 

This Week's Teaching Schedule:

Monday 6:30am, People's Yoga North, Morning Flow
Monday 9:30am, Yoga Shala North, Vinyasa Level 2
Monday 4pm, Yoga Shala North, All Level Vinyasa
Monday 6pm, Yoga Shala SE, Vinyasa Level 2 (community class)

Tuesday 9:30am, Yoga Shala Buckman, Vinyasa Level 2
Tuesday 12pm, Yoga Shala Buckman, All Level Vinyasa 

Wednesday 6:30am, People's Yoga North, Morning Flow
Wednesady 4pm, Yoga Shala North, All Level Vinyasa
Wednesday 7:15pm, Exhale Yoga, Yoga Basics

Thursday 9:30am, Yoga Shala Buckman, Vinyasa Level 2

Thursday 12pm, Yoga Shala Buckman, All Level Vinyasa
Thursday 6pm, Yoga Shala SE, Vinyasa Level 2

Friday 6:30am, People's Yoga North, Morning Flow

Friday 9:15am, Exhale Yoga, Hatha Blend
Friday 5:30pm, Yoga Shala SE, All Level Vinyasa