Practice Notes

February 22, 2010

Through the process of sitting quietly and observing the “ground” of awareness that is the backdrop to all activity, thought and perception, you gain a feeling for emptiness and silence. It becomes more apparent that the nature of mind is empty and the thoughts appearing in the mind are constructs. Once you experience a taste for the clear nature or silent nature of mind, the key is to bring this “taste” of the non-dual forward into experiences that you have throughout the day. How to do this? One way is to remember that the attitudes, feelings and perceptions that arise for you in the course of a day are conditional. They are like etchings on a magnetic screen, that arise due to circumstances and conditions. Another way is to practice seeing simultaneously the likes and dislikes of the relative mind and the emptiness of the big mind. There must be a kind of double-vision where you hold together the particular preferences that you have in the course of a day (in order to participate within the social fabric) and yet still have the “taste” for an absolute, undivided awareness.

One way to begin actualizing this in your attention, is when sitting, bring your awareness to the very front of your body. Bring your focus to your forehead, bridge of the nose, sternum and anterior abdomen. Practice developing a quality of ease and relaxation just behind the frontal bone, between the frontal and the anterior portion of the brain. Cultivate a sense of softness and openness just behind your sternum between the breast bone and your heart. And in the solar plexus, bring a quality of ease between the skin of the belly and the organs, into what is called the ventral peritoneum (see Netter PL 253 4th Edition). By this practice you do not zone inward toward a place of more interior calm, but allow a sense of ease top hover at the surface. Then as you engage in activity, a presence that has the qualities of non-grasping, effortlessness and non-defensiveness can emanate outward into all that you do. By this practice the experience of emptiness and stillness is more at the surface, within the connections where you interface with the world.

February 7, 2010

In meditation practice releasing the very top of your abdomen, just below the respiratory diaphragm. This is the upper region of the third chakra, the Manipura Chakra and an area of great sensitivity. Especially for people who have experience shock or trauma, the nerve plexus just below the sternum is prone to irritability, gripping and myo-fascial tension. If the area just beneath the diaphragm is bound it restricts inhalation-the central tendon of the diaphragm (that ties into the superior fibers of the ilio-psoas complex)is inhibited. The startle response shows up as locking in this region resulting in hyper-vigilance, anxiety and feelings of distrust.

The upper abdominal plexus is directly in front of the adrenal complex. The body’s response to threat involves the hypothalamic-pituitary adrenocortical axis, governing the flight or fight syndrome. The repeated excitation of this nerve net at the top of the abdominal plexus leads to digestive disorders, increased heart rate and muscular tightening. Practice softening the connective tissue directly interior to the rectus abdominus muscle. This interior fascia is a broad, highly sensitive sheath that refers strain to the abdominal organs. It also connects to the transversus abdominus, the “cumberbun” of a muscle that is the deep internal support for the abdomen. The transversus abdominus attaches to the respiratory diaphragm.

February 2, 2010

From prasarita padottanasana I swung open to parsvakonasana, held parsva and then returned to padottanasana before going to parsva second side. Each pose was a 2-3 minute hold.

In parsva I looped a belt around my knee into a sling of sorts and laced the strap around the support beam here at home. Lunging into parsva with the knee braced in the strap sling provided tremendous access to the opening of the hip of the lunging leg and to feel the femur sliding open away from the hip by pressing into the knee. This set up would work best on wall ropes.
In Hanumanasana, I placed a strap across the ball of my front foot and laced the strap around my pelvis. By pinning my foot against the strap, I could revolve my opposite side hip forward and power the lift of the psoas and the stretch on the quad of my back leg.

January 31, 2010

I have focused lately on opening the side chest. That is to take the front outer chest back, and to take the lateral pectoral fibers laterally. This dove tails with opening the collar bones wide. At the same time my focus has been to widen the shoulder blades and to widen the back at the sides. This work includes toning the serratus anterior muscles. The front side chest and back side chest meet at the seam of the lateral side chest. I have used the image of opening the vents of the side chest as if opening the additional vents of a suitcase to increase storage space. Practice using the eye wrap has been valuable to gather concentration inward. This combined with turning the gaze down and in. This has served to settle my mind in order to gain recognition into the empty essence. In pranayama practice I have used the image of 4 pillars inside the chest, 2 at the front on each side, and 2 on the back on each side. Focus on jalandhara bandha with prop between chin and sternum. While lowering the head there is a simultaneous lift and curling upward of the center throat.

Working some with the work “lalata” in Sanskrit, meaning the top of the forehead bone. This is a chakra center just above the ajna chakra. In forward bending I have worked with the dynamic of grounding outer heels forward and down, grounding inner knees, and taking outer hips back and down. This diagonal work is most valuable. It can also work: inner heel to outer knee to inner groin.

January 29, 2010

I practiced setubandha sarvangasana with the block under pelvis. Extending my legs and anchoring the ball of foot against the wall. In addition, binding upper legs with strap. Following this I practiced the same pose with one leg extended vertically upward, while continuing to ground the lower leg foot to wall. Focus to internally rotate femur of down leg and maintain extension. The hands can be interlaced and shoulders revolved under, hands set at foot side of block.
Prior to this I practiced jathara parivartanasana, first taking legs all the way to side. Then taking legs to 45 degrees/half-way to the floor. From 45 degrees lowering down to 6 inches off floor. This is effective for toning different fibers in the abdominal obliques.

This morning I did virasana with the dowl between hamstrings and calves. This is excellent for moving congestion out of calf muscle, Achilles tendon and stimulating tibial/radial nerve. I discovered that my left foot may not be tracking straight forward due to the tension in the deep calf compartment. I thought of tibialis posterior muscle, as one of the core calf muscles.

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1. In practice I have explored seated pranayama and viloma with jalandhara bandha. I have used a rolled up cloth to support my chin to my sternum and this wedge support makes a great difference. It has allowed me to connect more with the lifting action of the sternum and the rib cage in general. In addition the action anchors the scapula down the back. I think it is key to do supine pranayama every other day in preparation for seated pranayama.

In asana practice the action of opening side ribs, moving inner side ribs outward, has been valuable. I found baddha konasana to be particularly helpful. My focus has alternated between opening the backside ribs and side-side ribs and front-side ribs. The backside ribs seem to be the most difficult to open. What is the shape of the rib and the angle it takes wrapping from front to back? My emphasis has been to move from the inside outward, in asana. This has helped the pranayama breath.

2. It occurred to me how valuable it is to return to uttanasana repeatedly, after 2 or 3 poses. In practice this morning, I taught this for shorter stints of time, but repeatedly.

Heel work: I began grounding simultaneously the inner and outer heel from the center of the top of the heel (near the ankle). Graphically I imagined this to look like prongs, bifurcating from the center and anchoring down. This evolved into a 3-prong focus—descending both inner and outer heel and centerline of the heel. These 3 prongs, of course, brought to mind Shiva’s trident. What is the energetic behind the symbol of the trident? Solar, lunar and central channel? Passive, active and the harmony between the two? This trident focus was easily transferable to other aspects of the body, i.e. the kneecap, the mid-three toes/fingers.

In head balance I meditated on the center of the skull descending and in addition the lateral “prongs” descending from the outer corners of the eyes down the sides of the temples down to the lateral skull. I reflected on the three lines of the trident drawn on the forehead to signify Shiva.