Please find enclosed a list of classes that Jocelyne and I will be holding in April and May. 

 

 

Jocelyne will be teaching a series of four meditation classes at The Shala, located at 816 Broadway. 

 

Monday, April 15th & 22nd, from 1:30 to 2:00pm

Friday, April 19th & 26th, from 1:45 to 2:15pm

 

She will introduce four different meditations: the forgiveness practice, loving kindness practice, compassion practice, and space meditation. These are mindfulness based practices to bring awareness to the heart, mind, body, and the space around them. Each session will last about 30 minutes. You can register here. 

 

 

The May and June dates for classes in Manhattan are open for registration here. The May dates are the 1st thru 6th, and the June dates are the 19th thru 24th. We have opened up a limited amount of drop-in classes for each time slot. If the slot you wish for is filled up, please send me an email and I'll see how we can fit you in. 

 

 

From July 5th to 7th we will hold our annual workshop/retreat in the city. The retreat will include two meditation classes each day, two chanting sessions, one yoga practice, and a lecture. Registration will open on May 1st. 

 

 

I'll be holding workshops and lectures on the topics in One Simple Thing on April 28th at Integral Yoga, May 7th at Five Pillars, and May 18th at the Penn Book Center in PA. My full workshop schedule can be found here, as well. 

 

 

I sent this out to all of the people who attended the first week of classes at Sky Ting, and am including it below for you to read as well: 

 

Thank you very much for attending our first week of classes in Manhattan. I understand that it's kind of a bizarre schedule, and I truly appreciate your willingness and openness to participate in this experiment. The current plan is that I’ll teach for one week a month at Sky Ting until December, and then after that, we’ll see what happens.

Just as a small connecting idea to our current schedule, I wanted to share with you how I learned Ashtanga yoga. I used to go to India for a few months each year to learn from Pattabhi Jois, and each year he would teach me a few new poses (and sometimes he wouldn’t teach me anything new). Usually after I had been there for a few months, he would say something to the effect of, “Go home, go to work, do your practice, and come back next year."

So I would go home, practice on my own for nine months or so, save money, and then when I had enough money together, I would go back to India to get some help with my practice. There were no Ashtanga yoga schools in NY for me to go to everyday. I was on my own, and had to build up self-reliance, independence, and a little spirit of experimentation in order to figure out how to make some of the postures work. Jocelyne learned in the same way. It was a great way to learn yoga. I learned about balancing self-reliance with the importance of having a teacher.

My hope is that during these next few months you’ll get to experiment with a NYC variation of this set up. We can meet together for a week each month and I’ll help you the best I can, and then you’ll have a few weeks to practice on your own, and build up the spirit of independence in your practice. Perhaps you have that spirit already, but if you don’t, then maybe this email will be a little encouragement for you.

I hope this idea is appealing to you. I understand that not all of you have the ideal practice situations at home, but that is also a part of the yoga journey. A little bit of difficulty in spiritual practice can fuel transformation. But not too much difficulty… otherwise, of course, it’s a burden. Don’t be afraid of challenge. It makes us grow.

 

That's all for now! I hope to see you at the classes in NY, or somewhere else along the way. 

 

With love,

Eddie and Jocelyne 

 

 

 

 

PS I've been going through old photos, and found this great one from when the Broome Street Temple/Ashtanga Yoga New York was pink and gold... my favorite version!