Guruji clip from "Yoga Unveiled"

Should you lock your knees in Yoga? by Leslie Kaminoff

Movie: Mysore Magic

http://www.mysoremagicfilm.com/

Video: Difficulties in practice - Kino MacGregor

The Fuzz Speech

Don't be confused. You aren't getting old, you're just fuzzed over. Why it is important to practice every day - through thick and thin and why getting started/restarted after time off can be a bit of an uphill battle. "Take responsibility for melting the fuzz"!

Magnolia's Conference Notes: Obstacles in Yoga Practice

'Yogis should be honest.' Conference notes Nov 6, 2011 w/ Sharath Jois
By Magnolia Zuniga
Posted 11/8/11
Source blog.mysoresf.com

Every Sunday afternoon at 4pm (shala time) is conference with Sharath Jois. This is a time for him to talk about the practice, the philosophy, etc and answer questions from students. Conference on Nov 6th, 2011 Sharath spoke on the many obstacles that come along the path. I touch on just a few...  

Obstacles in Yoga practice...

On Doubt - The practice of Hatha Yoga is not easy and requires sacrifice of many things. Many people have doubt about the practice, the lineage. Instead of surrendering they want to argue. As life changes we have new doubts and new challenges. Guruji used to say 'Practice and all is coming' but if there is no practice how will doubt be cleared? 

In college we must prepare and study. To find answers we read books. But in yoga we practice to find answers. We can read Bhagavad Gita, and Hatha Yoga Pradipika but this is intellectual knowledge. We continue practicing Hatha Yoga to find better answers to the questions...

What is God?

What is yoga?

What is spirituality?

What is life?

On Carelessness - Our carelessness brings lots of problems and our minds get distracted. When we're careless we're not thinking properly. Students come to Mysore, do yoga one month and turns into a gym. If you come to surrender yourself to practice, the effect will be totally different. When you come to Mysore your aim should be to practice yoga. Then mind is clear and focused. Many times it happens students lose energy...

too much talking...losing energy...

too much talking...losing energy...at coconut stand...talking, talking.

On Confusion - Confusion kills yoga practice. Students learn tradition and someone tells them 'oh what they are teaching there is not correct, do this yoga, this is better yoga' then 6 months same thing, and they do another type yoga, then 6 months later another type yoga, and it's like this. Then they say 'Oh I did this yoga, and that yoga and this yoga.' They should also say they are confused. Yogis should be honest.

Question: 'Sharath, why if we're supposed to be relaxed in a posture do you push our limits?'

Answer: [Smiling] You're misunderstanding relaxation. Relaxation in a posture means that if I count it for 2 hours you can stay. You have to reach your limitations longer. You should steadily take to your posture. Bring stability then you can hold for long time.  

[laughing] I feel happy for you Guruji is not there. 

Magnolia started practicing various styles of yoga in 1991. She began practicing Mysore Ashtanga Yoga in 1997 with certified teacher Noah Williams and authorized teacher Kimberly Flynn. She first met and studied with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois and Sharath Jois in 2004 on her first trip to India. Since then she has traveled and studied in Mysore 7 times and taught Mysore Ashtanga Yoga in Hong Kong, Tokyo, France and is currently running a traditional Mysore Ashtanga School 'Mysore SF' in San Francisco. She continues her studies with Sharath Jois in Mysore South India each year.

Magnolia received blessings to teach in 2007 and is now an authorized level 2 teacher.

For more information about Magnolia please visit her website www.magnoliashtanga.com

republished with permission

Reminds me of this:

Guru Movie Screening

Join us for a screening of the movie "Guru" about 9:30 am after Sunday's led class...

Albuquerque Ashtanga Yoga Shala
206 Dartmouth Dr NE, Albuquerque, NM 87106 

ABOUT THE FILM:

GURU, 28 minutes, offers never before seen insights into the life of celebrated 90-year-old ashtanga yoga guru Sri K. Pattabhi Jois.

Jois, whose students include Madonna, and who is featured in the next issue of 'Vanity Fair' magazine is certainly a hip guru...But having devoted himself selflessly to yoga throughout his life, is he happy with the accolades of the past few years? What does he actually think of his 'foreign' students with their yoga dreams? What do his Western devotees get out of traveling all the way to India to see him? Some would go as far as to say he is an enlightened being…

This film's narrative is structured around preparations and celebration of Sri Pattabhi Jois's 90th birthday in India last year, attended by a cavalcade of international guests. Jois provides philosophical insights along the way...We meet his students; Hamish Hendry who runs a yoga school in London; Rolf Naujokat who has been coming to Jois since the 70's; and Saskia Maria Vidler who for the past 3 years has been living in Mysore. Pattabhi Jois's family themselves reveal how hard it was to grow up with such a focused father…

For the uninitiated, this film also offers a unique opportunity to experience traditional Mysore style ashtanga practice, as taught in Mysore by Jois himself and his grandson Sharath Rangaswamy.

GURU is an insightful, humorous and touching look into the guru/ student relationship...

GURU is filmed entirely on location in Mysore India, on high definition DVCAM. It is voiced by popular UK narrator Zam Baring ('Going to Extremes' Channel 4), and includes the music of Indian flautist Teymour Housego who has recorded with Nithin Sawnhey and Michael Jackson.

Director Robert Wilkins has been making documentaries for over 10 years covering subjects as diverse as Al Jazeera London for BBC 4's 'The Desk', forensic science for The Discovery Channel, 'Mummy Autopsy', and the award winning 'Calling Young Hong Kong' about the 1997 handover of Hong Kong to China as told from a young person's perspective.

click here to watch trailer

Purchase the DVD: http://www.guruthemovie.com/html/buy-dvd.htm

5% of all sales of Guru DVD will go to the Shri K. Pattabhi Jois charitable trust. 

screening with permission Mr. Wilkins. 

Ashtanga Yoga Opening and Closing Mantras

Listen properly!

Video: Sri K. Pattabhi Jois on Ashtanga Yoga

Transcript:
I tried my best to transcribe the video below.  Suggestions welcome.

One method: yoga method.
(It's asana and pranayama and pratyahara.  This is all one type method.)

That's why yoga is important.
That is universal.
No one man - one man property.
This is not one man property.
This is [not] one country property.
This is universal, Yoga is universal.

Yoga not physically purpose, no.
This is internal yoga.
Internal cleaning.
Internal exercise.
Not external exercise in yoga method.
There is yoga - Yoga means you self knowledge you getting.
Self knowledge...
Knowledge - there is going yoga is taking that to go that way is taking going.
That is method.

That's where you start yoga.
Asana you start.
You do asana more asana, asana, asana, genuine asana.
Much asanas is there.
That asana you do.
Is giving very good strength and stamina
Your energy is increasing every day, every day, every day.
Your mind also is correctly standing [when] position is coming.
This is yoga method.

Abhyasa you can take practice, don't talk.
95% practice, 5% percent theory.
You know, now a-days people 99 and half percent theory, one half percent also no good practice.
That is very bad.

Discipline means you can take your practice.
First you stand - your stamina you give it first.
Your body strength you want to give it.

Body means - three type of body (external body, internal body, spiritual body).
Spiritual body...

That is three type of body strength you are getting.
That is giving strength only for the yoga practice.
With breathing systems with vinyasa all included.
So breathing is very important.

Without breathing not spiritual body is not coming.
Spiritual mind also is not coming.
That is very important in breathing.

Breathing means - you don't understanding.
That is why there is a method - ekam, dve, trini - that is vinyasa.
That's called vinyasa.
Inhalation, exhalation.
One type of time.
10 second, 10 second.
15 seconds, 15 seconds.
Inhalation 10 seconds.
Exhalation 10 seconds.
Inhalation 15 seconds.
Exhalation also 15 seconds.
Same method, you follow.