URBAN YOGA It's starting to spread throughout the region, and our fifth meeting took place in Turmero, at one of the community's most popular sports and recreation parks, known as the Turmero Oval. Yes, on Sunday, June 29th, we met again to continue building this yoga practitioner movement in the region as a community.
The Turmero Oval, also known as the La Montaña Athletic Center, served as our outdoor yoga studio, showcasing its lush greenery. Those who attended enjoyed, as is customary, the three activities that bring this gathering to life:
1. Philosophy of Yoga in everyday life
Part of the purpose of this urban yoga practitioner movement is to publicize the philosophy that underpins the techniques we practice as part of yoga, since many times the word yoga is reduced to these techniques, overlooking that it is a philosophy, and this is due to the way it has been approached in the West, based more on the physical body and the development of its capabilities when these techniques are carried out regularly.
The teacher Iskra Bohórquez He explained that Yoga is originally a philosophical tradition from India, one of the six ways of life (Darshan) that interpret the ancient Vedic texts of that nation. As a philosophy, Yoga offers answers, like all philosophies, to those great questions that humanity has asked throughout history: What am I? What is my purpose here? What should I do with that purpose? What happens after death? He discussed the worldview offered by Samkhya philosophy, which predates Yoga but is essential for understanding how Yoga techniques operate within us and for what purpose.
The attendees learned about the two unique and eternal principles (without beginning or end) from which the entire Universe originates, according to the two philosophical traditions of India, Samkhya and Yoga. These principles are Consciousness ("Purusha" in Sanskrit) and Matter ("Prakriti" in Sanskrit). Everything we experience through our senses (hearing, sight, smell, taste, and touch), including our body and mind, has materialized on this plane we inhabit thanks to the existence and interaction of these two principles.
However, both Samkhya and Yoga emphasize that what we truly are is Consciousness (Purusha), a unique and eternal field of energy and information, which uses Matter (Prakriti), which allows separation, to experience the infinite forms it can bring to life.
Yoga offers the means to verify this theory and thereby liberate humankind from the suffering inherent in a life focused on separation, on the temporary states of matter. As humankind progresses along this path of self-discovery, drawing closer to the truth of what it truly is, according to Yoga, joy, health, inner peace, zest for life, empathy for others and all beings on the planet, clarity, and the will to fulfill the deepest desires of each individual return.
2. Yoga Sangraha for the community
Around 120 people moved and breathed in unison in the classroom Yoga Sangraha guided by the teacher Iskra together with the students of the school Ashtanga Yoga Maracay In this fifth meeting, many of the attendees were already familiar with the Yoga practice format that we repeat on each occasion; however, those attending for the first time find it very easy to join in and keep up with the rhythm, since it is composed of movements and postures truly accessible to all levels of practitioners, including those who have never done Yoga.
And the best thing about this format is that with just one practice you can immediately experience the positive effects that its creator aimed for. Eddie Stern in which classical Yoga practices such as Kriyas, Pranayamas, Sun Salutations of different types and Asanas (postures) from various lineages and schools are combined with a contemporary approach that takes as reference both Indian tradition and modern science.
The teacher Iskra Bohórquez She is the first Venezuelan instructor certified by Eddie Stern through the Yoga Education College to teach Sangraha Yoga classes, a method that combines different techniques from various Hatha Yoga traditions with an approach that considers science and medical studies. This type of yoga class is accessible to all levels of practitioners and allows you to immediately feel its beneficial effects on the body, nervous system, breathing, and mental and emotional states in just one session.
3. Conscious Market to recognize and re-educate ourselves
This space, designed for the exhibition and exchange of goods and services related to yoga, health, well-being, and conscious and responsible consumption, once again provided the opportunity for local producers, entrepreneurs, and artisans to showcase their product and service offerings to the people who attended the event.
In it Conscious Little Market The following people were present at this fifth meeting: Nutribites, Plantitas.ve, BioFabrika, Yoga Flow, By Emelli, Believe in yourself, Magic of Being, Yoga We Are One, Bylis, Graciela Santos Yoga, Aunt Alicia Products, JL Millennial Creations, Tulsidas and Bhavana House.
The next Urban Yoga gathering is scheduled for Sunday, July 20th. We'll be moving to a new location to connect more urban yogis. We hope to see more yoga practitioners and teachers from the city, as well as anyone interested in learning about these ancient teachings and practices.
And for Yoga Teachers, please stay tuned, we will soon be launching our Urban Yoga DirectoryIf you are a Yoga teacher and you are teaching these valuable teachings and techniques in your area, do not hesitate to register. here so that together we can create a search engine that allows anyone interested to learn about yoga by finding a teacher near their home or town.
These are challenging times for humanity. Yoga is a broad set of teachings and techniques for self-development and human improvement. Yoga can certainly help. Studying and practicing alone can help us go far, but together we'll do it faster!
Thank you! If you're in Maracay or near our region, we'll see you at the next Urban Yoga!
