Interdependence. Three summers ago, I got these tattoos. These arrows came to me after a horrible break up and the subsequent months of agonizing heart break and pain that followed. The invisible threads that connect us all with lovers, with friends, with family, and yes, even strangers, felt as if they were winding themselves around […]
Last week, I received a Facebook message from a friend inquiring about my Yoga for Athletes workshop. He said he had seen the flier, was interested in attending, but he had a few concerns. Not only was he worried that he wasn’t accomplished enough to be considered an “athlete,” but he felt anxious that he […]
Article originally posted on mattnelsonyoga.com. Shortly after my first child turned three years old, I found myself feeling that there was a disconnect between my sadhana and my family life. Having two children under four is a consuming endeavor, and presents a unique set of challenges with regards to finding time to engage in daily spiritual […]
As we practice it today, Yoga can be understood as the process of breathing into movement. Whatever first drew us to Yoga class, many people find themselves returning for the experience of plugging into an elusive but ineffable something, something we find at the core of ourselves, and yet instinctively understand to be more than […]
I’d like to take a moment to introduce myself, as some of you may be unfamiliar with my work at The People’s Yoga. I am the creator and teacher of Yoga for Bigger Bodies. This yoga class was created when I noticed the absence of support for people living in larger bodies. It was created […]
We have countless ways to dismiss our experience. Endless strategies to shirk from, abandon, and resist the moment – in particular, the experience we are having in the moment. Picture a mother consistently dismissing her child. Imagine the effect that this has on the child. We learn to assume that our experience isn’t valid. We […]
Lately I find myself one or two finger typing, I am not a fan. So when I have time, one way I meditate is through remembering how to use cursive. I believe that my sitting meditation tools help me remember; remember my inherent wakefulness, the beauty that we already are. I would like to share […]
Tension is one of the ways we feel safe and held and assured that little is going to change. While easy to identify neck and low back tension, the grip in the ears is more complex. Not listening is a key skill of maintaining the status quo (abhinvesha). Through a simple investigation of how the ears work, we […]
It seems like the attention can only be held by what she does not yet understand. So key to the yogi skill of dharana (steady attention) is the willingness to consider that one might yet know it all. There can be no curiosity or wonderment if we are bored. The yogis have long suggested to […]
I enrolled in my first Yoga Immersion after seeing a paper flyer taped to the check-in counter of my local studio. Those two words, “Yoga Immersion,” spoke to a longing that had taken form in me that I hadn’t quite named yet: I wanted to steep in the practice. I sensed there was something more […]
