Intense focus after Ashtanga practice and difficulty with eye contact — anyone else experienced…

Intense focus after Ashtanga practice and difficulty with eye contact — anyone else experienced…

This is Ashtanga Yoga Tech Support. Real questions from the yoga community, answered. The Question I’ve been practicing Ashtanga for about 3–4 years now, usually 5 days a week. During practice I often do the asanas with my eyes closed or with a very soft minimal gaze. My drishti is usually intensely around the third eye area, and the navel and at the tip of the nose depending on the posture. After practice I often experience a very intense, laser-like focus. It almost feels like a powerful, concentrated energy.


Read more: https://ashtanga.tech/tech-support/intense-focus-after-ashtanga-practice-and-difficulty-with-eye-contact-anyone-else-experienced-this/
All content: https://mjh.yoga

#ashtanga #yoga #ashtangayoga #techsupport #ashtangatech

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? — A Reading

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? — A Reading

Financial equity for yoga teachers means building diversified income streams, learning financial literacy, and valuing your labor enough to set boundaries.

In Oate’s piece, Connie is fifteen, suburban, and already fluent in the art of self-division. One version of herself for the house, one for the world outside it. Her mother sees the home version and finds her lacking. The outside version — the one that moves through malls and drive-ins with confidence — that one she keeps to herself. The split feels like survival. It is actually a trap. One Sunday the family clears out and she’s alone with the radio. A gold jalopy pulls in. The driver calls himself Arnold Friend.


Read the full article: https://theyoga.club/yoga-teachers-deserve-financial-stability/
Original source: https://cpb-us-w2.wpmucdn.com/blogs.cofc.edu/dist/d/1041/files/2021/01/Where_Are_You_Going_Where_Have_You_Been.pdf
All content: https://mjh.yoga

Concepts: Svadhyaya · Aparigraha · Dharma · Tapas

#ashtanga #yoga #ashtangayoga #yogapractice #theyogaclub

The Count Is the Practice

The Count Is the Practice

Surrendering to an external count transforms your breath into the breath—and that’s where the practice deepens.

There’s a led count for Intermediate Series on YouTube that I’ve been using for years. Not because it’s perfect. Not because it solves all my problems. But because sometimes you need someone else to decide when five breaths is actually five breaths. You know how this goes. You’re in a bind. Your breath is shallow. You start negotiating. Maybe six breaths today. Maybe seven. The count says five and you move, even though your hip flexor is staging a protest and your mind is writing a strongly worded letter about fairness. That’s the thing about a led class. The decision is made for you.


Read the full article: https://theyoga.club/the-count-is-the-practice/
Original source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Myk53CzOdQ8
All content: https://mjh.yoga

Concepts: Tapas · Vinyasa · Drishti · Pranayama

#ashtanga #yoga #ashtangayoga #yogapractice #theyogaclub

Who Gets to Say You’re Ready?

Who Gets to Say You’re Ready?

Becoming a teacher isn’t just about mastering postures—it’s about something harder to measure.

In this episode, MJH delves into the methods of qualification for an Ashtanga Yoga teacher, contrasting traditional practices with modern approaches. Hall discusses the historical context of authorization by Patabi the current certification processes. He highlights issues with evaluation models, explaining the benefits of a non-linear understanding of system dynamics over linear assessments. Hall shares personal experiences, including conflicts in teaching methods, and emphasizes the importance of ethical frameworks and personal growth for both teachers and students in Ashtanga Yoga.


Read the full article: https://theyoga.club/who-gets-to-say-youre-ready/
Original source: https://michaeljoelhall.com/video-ashtanga-teacher-qualifications-uh-oh/
All content: https://mjh.yoga

Concepts: Svadhyaya · Dharma · Tapas · Ethics

#ashtanga #yoga #ashtangayoga #yogapractice #theyogaclub

I’m Worried About More Than Kennedy Center

I’m Worried About More Than Kennedy Center

When you destroy cultural infrastructure, you don’t just lose buildings — you lose the pathways that connect one generation of artists to the next.

The Kennedy Center is closing, and with it, an entire ecosystem of artists and pathways will scatter. From The Kennedy Center's Unnecessary Immolation on thebulwark.com


Read the full article: https://theyoga.club/im-worried-about-more-than-kennedy-center/
Original source: https://www.thebulwark.com/p/kennedy-center-unnecessary-immolation
All content: https://mjh.yoga

Concepts: Dharma · Karma Yoga · Ahimsa · Tapas

#ashtanga #yoga #ashtangayoga #yogapractice #theyogaclub

How to start a realistic home practice as a beginner

How to start a realistic home practice as a beginner

This is Ashtanga Yoga Tech Support. Real questions from the yoga community, answered. The Question Hi all, I'm new to ashtanga and I want to start building a realistic home practice with a long-term vision. Where do I start and how do I keep going? I've been going to led classes 2x a week for a few months now with a great teacher. At the same time, don't want to be dogmatic about Ashtanga. Is this possible? I'm still a relative beginner with yoga in general and love exploring different styles, but so far ashtanga has touched me the most. submitted by /u/philosop…


Read more: https://ashtanga.tech/tech-support/how-to-start-a-realistic-home-practice-as-a-beginner/
All content: https://mjh.yoga

#ashtanga #yoga #ashtangayoga #techsupport #ashtangatech

Combatting Overstimulation

Overstimulation often comes with lots of feelings and emotions. Irrational irritability. A short fuse. Half-cocked in the f-you position. Or maybe the deep desire to just be left the hell alone. You know it’s happening when you’re trying to meditate, and every noise is a nuisance instead of a call to return to practice. I often quote my friend Cory’s retelling of the “kitchen noise” as the monastery. When you’re a monk, all of that sound from the kitchen is dinner getting ready. What a joy to hear! And what a good reminder to get back into focus. But when the sound of your next meal sounds like nails on the chalkboard, you know something’s up. We’re getting fed. That’s a joy. So, great. You…

The Quiet Signals

This week’s thread is about the signals hiding in plain sight — the ones that ask us to pay closer attention. Does getting stronger require suffering? Gretchen Reynolds reports that light weights and consistent effort produce the same gains as grinding under heavy bars. The muscle doesn’t care about spectacle. It cares about showing up. Sound familiar? On the mat, tapas isn’t about dramatic effort — it’s about the steady heat that transforms without burning. What happens when a tech CEO puts down the smartphone? Danny Hogenkamp hosts phone-free parties, runs a Luddite Club, and uses a flip phone after hours. It’s pratyahara in practice — choosing which inputs deserve your attention, and discovering that the world gets richer when you stop scrolling through it….

The 40Hz Protocol: Ashtanga Yoga as a Multimodal Gamma Entrainment System

The 40Hz Protocol: Ashtanga Yoga as a Multimodal Gamma Entrainment System

Neuroscientists are designing elaborate protocols to induce gamma oscillations in the human brain — flickering lights, transcranial currents, near-infrared light helmets. A 2024 review in Frontiers in Neuroscience catalogues four distinct stimulation methods to achieve what the brain needs to perceive clearly, move well, and regulate emotion. Reading it, I kept having the same thought: Ashtanga yoga already does all of this. Not metaphorically. Simultaneously, and without a single device