GOOD MORNING PRECIOUS ONES
Honouring the Universe – The philosophy of The Australasian Yoga Institute….
UNDER THE BODHI TREEE…..
Over 2,500 years ago, the Buddha, a man who had been searching for the truth over many lifetimes, sat underneath a Bodhi tree and vowed not to get up until he had come to the truth. Here is Thich Nhat Hanh's description of that moment in time.
"Guatama felt as though a prison which had confined him for thousands of lifetimes had broken open. Ignorance had been the jail keeper. Because of ignorance his mind had been obscured, just like the moon and stars behind the storm clouds. Clouded by endless waves of deluded thoughts the mind had falsely divided reality into subject and object, self and others, existence and non-existence, birth and death, and from these discriminations came wrong views – the prisons of feelings, cravings, grasping and becoming. The suffering of birth, old age sickness and death only made the prison walls thicker. The only thing to do was to seize the jail keeper and see his true face. The jail keeper was IGNORANCE. Once the jail keeper was gone, the jail would disappear and never be rebuilt again".
The gift of learning to meditate is the greatest gift you can give yourself (or others) in this lifetime. It is ONLY through meditation that you can go on the journey to discover your true nature. You will need this knowledge to live and die well. MEDITATION IS THE ROAD TO ENLIGHTENMENT.
INTENTION and the "30-30 CHALLENGE"
Thank you to those who have signed up for the 30-30 CHALLENGE. I have so enjoyed the response. It is easy to see which of you are going to be the extraordinary teachers of teachers. Yes this is not an easy challenge, but even my current Innisfree crew have signed up for it, and they are not even in training. If they can see the value, then you should too.
Unless you have a pressing need to read anything else I urge you all to re-read "HOW YOGA WORKS". It will meet you where you are.
Whatever you read, sign up for the challenge. Email me and let me know you are going to do it, and what you intend to study. We know how long you are going to be studying….. 30 minutes for 30 days. Don't waste the time, make it count.
THE ELECTIVE
To those of you doing the Teacher Training. Here is the low-down on the elective.
1. It cannot be something you have got a certificate for in the past. Some students have tried to squeeze this through – it may work if you haven't written on your initial application that you already have "…….." certificates! Remember The Yamas – be honest.
2. It is not just an essay. There has to be 30 hours of work, and I have to be able to see that this has been carried out honestly.
3. You are training to be a professional and it should show. Your elective should have a goal, progress report, time sheet (how long you have taken, when and where) case histories, and a bibliography.
Keep these points in mind. Work out early on what you want to do, your topic, then start collecting data so that when you are ready to go you already have a head start. It is not easy – it wasn't meant to be.
"Look at these worlds spinning out of nothingness. That is within your power".(Rumi)
THE STICK FIGURES
The video with the stick figures is number 55 Debbie tells me. So, log on, go to no. 55 and try them out. Please get a model (even the dog or cat) just so you can draw almost any pose FAST. It is the fast that counts, also the readability when you refer back. Try, try and try again.
I (you) should be able to look at the stick figure, and know what the pose is . "A picture is worth a thousand words" is the old saying.
THE SUTRAS, AND RESEARCH
This isn't the sort of course where you just have to look up a page, write it out, and say that you have done the work. No, no, no. In this course YOU HAVE TO THINK. I ask a question, you do the answer to that question.
I am not one bit interested if you like the question or not, or if you think there is a better way. Just answer the question. Think, Think, Think.
If you are having trouble with the sutras, first get a copy of "the essential sutras" it is free at www.holybooks.com and then read, and then interpret. You can do cross referencing. Remember that when Patanjali wrote the sutras yoga was very different to what it is today. Yoga actually meant sitting/meditating, not asana.
"HELP US AT YARN-BOMBING"
Dearest precious students. Thank you so much for all the lovely red wool I have been getting. However, don't send ONE BALL VIA THE POST. Even one ball is thought of as a parcel, and it costs us $7.80 or thereabouts, postage for one ball!!!!! It defeats the purpose if we have to pay that. So, get together with friends and send a BIG parcel of wool, or send crochet hooks. Much cheaper.
Thank you to those people who came along and actually learned to knot and crochet with us. We are having a great time, very productive. Thanks to the Braemar students for whom it is part of their school curriculum. I wish my school had included a visit to a yarn bombing group as part of my study! We are crocheting poppies. Even if you don't like ANZAC day, just think of everyone who will learn to make flowers, be creative and have fun.
Thank you to those who have been delivering red wool to me and to the library. Do any of you have crochet hooks no longer in use (maybe your mum or maiden aunts?). You could put them in an envelope and send them to me at PO Box 14, Mt.Macedon. 3441. We need LOTS.
HOW ABOUT AFFILIATING NOW?
Some of our senior graduates with Yoga Schools of their own are taking the plunge. Why be a yoga teacher, when you can be a teacher of yoga teachers? Those girls in far flung Australian outposts of Yoga First (or even International Outposts), please consider becoming an AFFILIATE. That means you will be me where you are. You can be a teacher training centre, and you could be one by next week if you meet our criteria which is not onerous. If you have done our course, we know you and are happy to have you become a teacher training centre. Think about it. Then Do it.
"People don't grow old. When they stop growing, they become old". (Anon)
HOLIDAY YOGA CLASSES
STUDIO WITH JAHNE: Monday and Friday ONLY – no TUESDAYS - at 6.30.
Saturday 12.30 - Restorative Yoga - "The Strawberries and Cream" of yoga.
WOODEND COMMUNITY CENTRE: Wed. 12.30 and Saturday at 10. $5 pp per class, bring a mat. Families, babies, toddlers and children welcome at the Wednesday and Saturday class.
INNISFREE: Yoga/Yoga Nidra: Mondays 2.30 to 5.30, Yoga/Philosophy: Wed. 2.30 to 5.30, Yoga: Sat. 2.30 to 4pm Bookings required.
++++++ATTENTION/ATTENTION!!!!
CANDLELIGHT SINGING BOWL MEDITATION/RELAXATION NOW ONCE A MONTH
Wednesday APRIL 9th AT 7PM at the Studio in Woodend. Please join in. Give me a call if you can join us yogafirst@netcon.net.au (I may change this date, but I will give you heaps of warning).
MONTHLY YOGA TEACHER TRAINING MORNING: The usual MONTHLY TT will be held on a Tuesday not Wednesday morning, starting Tuesday 1 st April at 9am (not 9.30). EVERYONE - please make every effort to be there.
I am loving Tuesday mornings, and I have got such great feedback. Seems it is much easier for a few of you. More "for's" than "against". Thank you for the feedback.
WEEKLY TEACHER TRAINING MORNINGS. Every Tuesday at 9am.
ATTENTION TRAINEE YOGA TEACHERS: Please please please, if I send something back to you and ask you to do it again, IT DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU HAVE FAILED. There could be many reasons, and I will let you know on your assessment what they are. They are what I say they are, and they are nothing whatsoever to do with failure. No-one gets everything first go. I certainly don't. Do the page again in the way I have asked, and send it in. If you get it back again, do it again. No judgment . Just do it until you know it is right.
THE YAMAS and shortly THE CHAKRAS (on etsy!)
I am not just saying this because I wrote it…. I do believe that EVERY YOGA TEACHER AND STUDENT SHOULD HAVE each OF THESE. I have written them in easy to understand words, and tried them out on non-yogis before going to print. .……available on ETSY as a PDF for $7.99 www.MyYogaBooks.etsy.com
HOW-TO BOOKLET…..If you are "fence sitting", deciding whether to be a yoga teacher, to move from the "introduction course" to the full professional certification, then you would do well to read " HOW TO BECOME A YOGA TEACHER BY HOME STUDY" $2.99 and it is available by emailing deb or me and we can make sure you get a copy.
If you are an Affiliate and have some students you would like to enrol in your teacher training course, then this may be a good investment. This book has just been made Available on iBooks too.
THE CHAKRAS - A COLOURING-IN BOOK and a REFERENCE BOOKLET -
The chakra colouring-in charts are on easy, and ready for you to start on yours today. You can go to Etsy or just contact us on our email and we will take it from there. The cost is $43.50 and we will post it anywhere in Australia free postage. Or go to www.myyogabooks.etsy.com and you can paypal it.
I have just submitted a booklet on the Chakras with small reproductions of the Big Posters to colour in. This booklet will help you understand the CHAKRAS, and to accompany the CHAKRA CHARTS, and will put it on Etsy when I am finished.
I am in the process of illustrating my next booklet "MY MOTHER'S A YOGI" I will let you know when it is up there and available on etsy.
I move with the infinite in nature's power. I hold the fire of the soul. I hold the life and healing". (Rig Veda)
REGISTRATION/INSURANCE www.yogabeautiful.com.au
We are giving you total choice now, although it may be a bit more expensive…..
REGISTRATION AND INSURANCE HAVE BEEN UNCOUPLED. YOU CAN BUY THEM SEPARATELY. DEARER, BUT IT SEEMS THAT IS WHAT YOU WANT.
Registration BENEFITS from the 1st April onwards:
1. RE-REGISTRATION: If you are a Registered Yoga Teacher who trained with us and are re-Registering, or a a trained yoga teacher registering with us for the first time, you can choose either of these FREE GIFTS: 1. A free download of the "YAMAS" booklet, or 2. a set of "Soul Revelation Cards".
2. REFERRALS: If you refer three people to us who go on to be Registered you can choose: 1. A yin yoga DVD by Paul Grilley or 2. A Set of Chakra Posters
3. PREMIUM RYTA RE-REGISTRATION:
For an extra $100 to the usual Registration fee (=Total $245 for a standard registration): 1. You will receive a years subscription to the videos in addition to your registration. And 2. free advertising in our newsletter.
YOUR TEACHER TRAINING YEAR (or so):
If you are a trainee Yoga Teacher who has been working on the course for more than a year please understand that your course fee only gives you FREE classes with me for your first training year – the first 12 months only.
Imagine if what would happen to our Institute if you took three years to finish your course and you could still come to classes free for the entire course. It wouldn't be fair. We do our fee calculation based on 12 months of free yoga classes. As you know if you are making your living running yoga classes, they are not free to the studio owner. We have to pay all the costs associated with running a class whether you pay a class fee or not. Your training fees cover you for a year, after that we ask you to pay $10 per class. Still way under the usual out there in real life.
TEACHER WANTED.
I have been asked if there are any yoga teachers from our school in the vicinity of Epping (Vic), also Pt. Douglas and Cairns (QLD). If you could do a yoga class or know of a yoga teacher (trained with us) out that way, please let me know asap. yogafirst@netcon.net.au
"If you were to destroy in mankind the belief in immortality, not only love but every living force maintaining the life of the world would at once be dried up". (Dostoevsky)
VIDEOS: THEY ARE NOT OPTIONAL – THEY ARE NECESSARY! Only $275 per annum.
Please look down the list of the videos before you try to do stick drawings, or organise your journal. I have shown you what I recommend.. All you have to do is download.
If you are a trainee YOU SHOULD HAVE THE VIDEOS, they are really not optional. Apart from the information they contain, every time you log on you get a point that counts towards your CONTACT HOURS. It lessens the classes you actually need to do with a teacher.
If you are a teacher, the videos are a vital addition to your own growth. The cost is small in comparison with the time you would have to take to get these learnings.
If you just like yoga and want to join in: These are in 15 minute grabs, are all indexed, and you can do what you feel like doing right now. Worth the annual fee of $275 (equals just 10 classes at a good studio)
THE SHOP and ETSY
ETSY – A market place site and we are putting all our little goodies up there. Very exciting. Please have a browse if you never have been before. If you want to buy from us on ETSY, please go to www.myyogabooks.etsy.com
You can also look on our shop site – we have new products happening all the time. Www.yogabeautiful.com.au
THE RECIPES – "LIVE-ON-$2-A-DAY"
This is our latest challenge. I came across a site that was raising money to help the children of Timor, and thought not only "what a good idea", but also a good idea to test if we could actually live on $2 a day. Most of the world's poor live on less than that. So can you live on $2 a day? Want to try?
At the present we are practising the discipline. Learning how to do it. I am putting recipes up there for you to work with, and we will do this thing together. Today we are thinking about breakfast. Porridge. Hop over to www.twodollarchallenge.blogspot.com and see if you are brave enough to start.
NUT MILK BAGS
I am still using these bags for cheese making, and to strain fruit for jams and jellies. It is so easy, and so good. I used to have a cotton one but it always looked stained and grotty. This version remains white and pristine.
To buy the bag, log on to the shop at www.yogabeautiful.com.au or for recipes…..www.yoganoozle.blogspot.com
THE GARDEN:
What a wonderful weekend. The leaves are just starting to fall, and the Ash in the centre of the garden has turned a glorious golden yellow. For the next few months I will be raking up leaves, but we need more mulch in the garden, so this is a useful chore. As soon as the fruit tress lose their leaves I am going to do a few "swap pies" Things that need to be moved. Looking forward to this actually. I can already see the shape of the garden with the trees in their new spots. A big improvement. Want to do it now, but have to wait.
THE BLOGS and the bees!
Next Sunday afternoon we are going to look at the "honey production". You can certainly smell the honey as you move around the yard, so I am looking forward to seeing the actual. Might even drain off a little for my own use. "rental" for the last few months of care and attention.
If you are interested in old folk lore, like bees or would consider a "quest", then this book is for you. The book "THE SHAMANIC WAY OF THE BEE" has arrived. If you would like to reserve a copy email me yogafirst@netcon.net.au I am not sure of the cost. About $15 I would expect plus postage.
YIN YOGA DVD with Paul Grilley
If you haven't got one, do it now. This DVD is so popular because it is the best. This DVD will form the backbone of your yoga references and is something you really need. As I have told you before when I bought mine it cost $100 or so. I thought that was a good investment. I think half that is a steal! And that is what we are selling this for. Www.yogabeautiful.com.au
PERSONAL SELF HYPNOSIS TAPES
Jahne is making some guided self hypnosis tapes to help with *confidence, *study, *health and *being stuck. When they are ready, they will be going on Etsy. We will let you know closer to the time on this newsletter.
JAHNE'S MENTORING SESSIONS ….
Because Jahne has been teaching yoga teachers for more than 40 years, and running a business the Buddhist way for much longer than that (and successfully) she is often asked for advice. Asking course questions is free. This does not mean IDLE Yoga questions "just because you want to know" – She could spend her whole day answering those and getting no-where, in spite of the fact you may think your life will end if they are not answered.
…….but, if you wish to have Jahne help you with relationships, career, or just getting personally "unstuck" then that is coaching/mentoring and does come with a cost. Her charge per half hour for mentoring is $75 and $65 for student teachers. It is amazing how much you can shift in half an hour when you strip away the unnecessary chatter. It's the Buddhist way.
PLEASE NOTE: If you come to the Studio and you have travelled to "pick her brain" so to speak, please understand that her time is valuable and it is not free. You may be on a holiday, but she is not. Make sure that you have a list of questions you NEED answered, and have booked time. Such "counselling only" chat will cost $65 per half hour as usual. We have not changed the rates in years.
If you want to speed up your course by doing your exam one-to-one at the studio, or catching up on contact hours, Jahne is often asked to do this and is pleased to do it for you. Call Deb on a Tuesday or Wednesday and organise a time spot. Once again - It is not free. If you did 40 contact hours or more in a class it would cost a lot. We can get that much covered in an afternoon, so a $325 (average) cost with Jahne is a great saving of both time and money.
If you want to talk to Jahne about questions you have re. your CURRENT course or your next step. That is part of the student-teacher contract and is free.
Remember the Studio is also her home (not a hotel or BnB). We always respect the mat and the Studio Space wherever we go, doubly so when your teacher lives there.
DONATE YOUR CAR:
That's right. If you have a spare car, donate it to KIDS UNDER COVER and 100% of the proceeds will help prevent youth homelessness. Www.donateyourcar.org.au
++++++ATTENTION/ATTENTION!!!!
CANDLELIGHT SINGING BOWL MEDITATION/RELAXATION NOW ONCE A MONTH
Wednesday APRIL 9th AT 7PM at the Studio in Woodend. Please join in. Give me a call if you can join us yogafirst@netcon.net.au (I may change this date, but I will give you heaps of warning).
JAHNES ITINERARY
FOR GENTLE YOGA AND SINGING BOWL MEDITATION SESSIONS
The dates and times may change – but I have an intention)
ALBURY – end of march or beginning of April: Melbourne. Shepparton. And all ports later on. I know I will be in Adelaide in October.
REGARDING DEBBIE – If you want to speak to Debbie about any aspect of the courses – she has done them, please remember that she only comes in on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. She is available on Ph: 0354 273 518. I am always here, and available preferably on email or text because I teach. Don't hesitate to email me and I will answer your email or text as soon as I can..
Log on to our Web site www.yogabeautiful.com.au,
and tune in to our videos daily.
ENJOY – Love and Blessings,
Namaste Jahne
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