donnaramayoga
Power of 3 – Flow
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Power of 3.
A handcrafted blog about well being, yoga and wisdom by Donna Raftery.
24th September 2023
Welcome to this week’s Power of 3. Our theme is Flow… What do we understand this to mean? What does it represent in practice? What hinders it?
This week I have been exploring the theme of energy in my practice and classes – perhaps you have experienced the ‘state of flow’. Once we understand more about the nature of ENERGY and how we might come to preserve it or even work with it as a natural force – we are empowered to be more responsive and ‘in flow’. Less effort is required and life flows to us and through us. So how do we access this? Let’s dive in…
1. Prana
What is this thing called prana? It is not the breath but carried in the breath. Think of prana as the magic elixir – flowing through you, in you and around you. There are five forms of prana – sometimes described as ‘winds’ vayus. Come to sit in a comfortable position, seated, balanced and upright. Begin to watch the energies settle in the body. First we settle the body, then the mind. Smooth breathing through the nostrils, see if you can watch the breath moving around the body. This is a subtle activity. Prana is subtle.
“prana is a friend to purusa (consciousness)” T.K.V Desikachar
2. Body Movement
As you may know – in my classes I love to encourage spontaneous movement. Let the wisdom of your body move you – the innate intelligence and liberation of this encourages the natural flow state – why not incorporate tapping, jumping or rolling around – anything goes when it flows! Trust yourself. Movement is medicine afterall…
3. Stuck?
If we are not in flow where are we? stuck in our heads? our habits? our fears? One way to dismantle the hold of this pattern – which arises from the mind, is to identify the ‘attachment’. So we practice vairagya – non attachment. This takes practice and is not to be misunderstood as not caring, closing ourselves off emotionally etc but to create some space around that which binds us and causes great suffering. It’s no wonder ‘Let it Go’ is so popular!
I’m really interested to see if this resonates with you – where are you feeling in flow at the moment?
If you feel stuck and unable to get started, let’s chat about how can we do this together – with accountability and support. Reach out any time, I am opening up new offerings of bespoke packages to support you through 1:1 coaching, embodiment and healing. If this is something you have been thinking about, let me know! More to come soon, in the meantime – enjoy every breath and get familiar with letting go… start with the next exhale.
Much love + gratitude
Donna
