Samadhi: Putting It Together

Greetings. Welcome to our final session together. I'm calling this Putting It Together, because we're gonna take everything we've learned over these sessions and put it into one continuous flow. Okay, so, a couple of things I want you to think about. One is you can review the past videos, and kind of work with all the different places we've stopped and teaching happened, and, so, we've kind of looked at everything we're gonna do today.

I'm assuming that most of you are just gonna be listening, and following, and practicing, but I'd like you to position your screens so you can glance up and see what is happening, like, what I am doing, and, then also, you can kind of watch the video again, 'cause watching me is a good way to learn just as good as the instruction I'm going to give you. Okay, and then, the last thing is that, remember, part of what I've been teaching you all along is that to modify, to individualize, and to personalize the destination, so every position should suit you, and that takes, I've given you a lot of ideas, but it takes, also, creativity and kind of thinking for yourself in that. But I will be doing that throughout this practice too. I'll be doing different versions and stuff, and, so, and what I'm doing doesn't represent, of course, the only version, and that's the point, is there's so many different ways you can express all of these things, and, so, I want you to think that way, because you want your practice to serve you. And, so, it will serve you if you come to a soulful, kind of intelligent, and enjoyable place with all the postures you're doing.

Okay, so, without further ado, here we go, let's flow through our sequence. So, come to Samastitihi. Shut the eyes. You're considering the vertical access that spans from the crown of the head all the way down to the center of the body to the soles of the feet. Enjoying your earth connection, the feet are stamping down as the legs lift up, so the kneecaps, quadriceps, the thighs are firm, your pelvis is neutral.

Lift up the navel. Open the eyes. You're scanning far away, and yet keeping your gaze inside the body. Lift up the heart center, reach down through the pinky fingers and enjoy the zero position. And then spin the palms, spin the arms in external rotation, make the palms face away from you and inhale.

Reach up to first position, exhale, come forward, release your head and neck and stop in second position. Inhale, lift the chest up, roll back the shoulders, get ready with a crouch, and jump. Or step back and come down and hover in fourth position. Inhaling, roll over the tops of the feet, lift up the chest, turn your gaze up and over. Exhale, pull the hips back, come into sixth position of Surya Namaskar.

So, you've got your hands planted, they're rooting into the earth. They're pressing the thigh bones back. You've tipped the pelvis forward, so the pubic bone goes back between the inner legs, and the sitting bones lift and separate. It's a nice inversion position, so you can get the greyhound dog shaped belly, the hollow belly as you stay and elongate the spine from base to crown. Then crouch as you exhale and spring.

Plant the feet, lift up the chest, stiffen the legs, and come to seventh position and stop. Then exhale. Fold. Inhale, reach the arms out the sides. Fill up the lungs to full capacity.

Stamp the hands together overhead. Look up with a steady gaze past the thumbs. Internally rotate the arms, make the palms face away from you, and glide and return to Samastitihi. Then again, inhale the arms up, enjoy the destination of first position, then exhale, project the spine out, come forward with the move and stop. Inhale, lift up the chest, lengthen the spine away from the firm legs, then bend the knees into a crouch, get ready and spring.

Dynamic landing, poised fourth position, inhale, puff the chest as you lengthen the arms and stamp the hands down. Exhale, pull the hips back to downward facing dog, lengthening your arm and leg lines, clarifying Sushumna, the most glorious axis from the pelvic floor all the way through the crown of the head. So, internalize the senses, enjoying the steady sound of the breath, the contractile force of the exhalation, followed by the expansive force of the inhalation. Get ready with a crouch and empty the lungs, then inhale, spring, stamp the feet down, lift up the sitting bones, lift the heart, come way up, even onto the tips of the fingers, project the spine forward, exhale, fold, with stiffened legs, inhale, come up reaching out to the sides, as you ascend the arms to the destination, return to Samastitihi, lifting the chest, stamp the feet down, we'll do one more. Lift the navel, reach up and stop.

Empty the lungs, come forward with the move, and, again, stop. Inhale, third position, lift up the chest, roll back the shoulders, then bend the knees into a crouch and step or hop back, plant the hands, stiffen the belly, the buttocks, the legs, and then straighten the arms and lift the chest, looking up and over as you come into upward dog. Pull the hips back with a move, empty the pallet as you arrive at the destination of sixth position, and strike an immovable spot. The hands and feet are planted, the arms and legs are firm. The spine elongates and dips down and disappears from the back of the body towards the front.

Crouch and spring. Stamp the feet, lengthen the legs and arms, lift the chest, exhale, fold, inhale, reach, palms to a prayer position overhead, and return Samastitihi. We'll try Surya Namaskar B. Bend the knees into a half squat, reach up, breathe in, and then straighten and fold with a move. Inhale, lift the head and chest, get ready, crouch and spring.

Fourth position. Inhale, fifth position, lift up the chest, lengthen the legs, exhale, pull the hips back, so, angle the left heel to the middle, step the right foot between the hands, create your lunge, as you come up, reach up, the great reach, and exhale. Plant the hands, step the right leg back, come down with a move and stop. Inhale, lift the chest into upward dog, exhale, pull the hips back, angle the right heel to the middle, step the left foot between the hands, come up lunging, reach away, out to the sides with the arms as you bring them up, keep your lunge as you reach, and then exhale, plant the hands, stay forward as you step the left leg back, come down with a move, and stop. Inhale, wide open chest, pull the hips back, smoothly, and stop.

Your destination. Entering into the sound of the breath, enjoying the skeletal positioning. The support of the ground. The inward turned senses. And crouch, and spring.

Lift up the chest, exhale forward, and stop, then bend the knees, reach the arms up, cast your gaze down, so, drop your head, look down the body, keep that downward gaze as you straighten the legs and return to Samastitihi. And, again, keep that downward gaze as you squat and reach up, then straighten and fold with a move. Inhale, lift up the chest, plant the feet, get ready, crouch, and spring. Come down and stop. Inhale, lift the chest.

Exhale, pull the hips back. Step the right foot, come into your lunge, reach up, the grand gesture through the arms, exhale, plant the hands, step back, come down and stop. Fill the lungs to come into upward dog, very patiently expanding the upper chest. Exhale, pull the hips back, and step the left leg, come up with a lunge, reach, exhale, plant the hands, step back, come to your personal destination, Chaturanga, and stop. Inhale, straighten the arms, lift the chest, exhale, pull the hips back as you're working an unbroken flow.

Staying absorbed in the actions of the Asana. Absorbed in the inward seeing, the inward listening, staying with that rhythmic flow of breath. So the legs are pressing back and the hands are pressing down. Sort of like being on the rack. Let the vertebra lengthen one by one as they slope down on the diagonal.

Get ready with a crouch and spring, stamp the feet upon landing, lift the chest, fill up the lungs. Exhale with a sound as you fold, forehead towards the shins. Inhale, bend, and reach up. Exhale, Samastitihi. Okay, last one, inhale, reach.

Exhale, forward. Inhale, lift the chest, and then get ready. Spring. Come down and stop. Inhale, lengthen the arms and legs, curve the spine into the body.

Exhale, pull the hips back, step the right leg, come up, and stop at the end point of the position. Exhale, plank, and lower. Inhale, fill up the lungs dynamically to create your position, exhale, pull the hips back, angle the right heel and step, big step, then lunge, you're working to get your front thigh parallel to the ground, and the hips squaring. Reach up through the arms, exhale, plant the hands evenly, keep your weight forward as you come into plank, then lower with a move and stop. Inhale, take your time to create that nice arch in the back looking up and over, pull the hips back, and enjoy this momentary pause.

Exploring the contractile force of the out breath, so you're emptying all the way down to a point below the navel with each breath, and filling up to the brim with each inhalation. Connecting your movement with your Asana. You're connecting your breath with your Asana actions. Here we go, crouch, spring. Lift up the chest, fill up the lungs, empty the lungs, and come forward with a move.

Inhale, bend the knees, reach up, lift the navel, lift the chest, look up past the thumbs, and swim to the zero position. So, now the standing postures. Hands to waist. Crouch, spring, separate the feet with a hop. Breathe in, open the chest, and halfway forward with a move.

Catch your big toes with the two fingers. Ride your spine forward, so you plant the legs, look up between the eyebrows. Straight arms, exhale, forward pulling on your toes and stamping your feet down. You're balancing right over your foot foundation. The belly is hollow, free, and the sound of the breath clear.

And then halfway up, straighten the arms, like you're gonna stand up but your grip stops it. Then, Padahastasana, so, the next one, take the hands under the feet, stamp down, and lift up the chest, breathe in, keep forward, and exhale. So, a decisive move brings you into the immovable spot. That breath is ebb and flow, ebb and flow, rhythm, and that's how you get into the skeletal rhythm, the breathing rhythm shows the skeletal rhythm, so the thighs plant, the spine cascades down, neck, head release. Eyes receptive.

Inhale. Straighten the arms, elongate the spine horizontally away from the legs, then stay right there, as you exhale, stamp the feet hands to waist, and come up with one move. Hop the feet to return to the zero position, establishing neutral in a flash, whack, crouch and spring, so, jump out to the right. Extended triangle pose, clarify your setup in an instant, externally rotate the front legs so the kneecap faces up, then tip the pelvis to the side, reach out through the right side waist, come down, and enjoy, start with the foundation, plant the feet, firm the thighs. So, right now I'm gazing straight ahead, I'm not looking up at the moment.

You could even look down at your... Survey your foundation. And then look forward. And, again, work with the elongation of the spine. Reach up through the top arm, turn the chest any amount and then look up.

So, if the legs are bent, you're working them straight. The mighty effort. And exhale, then inhale, come up with one smooth, swift gesture, change the feet, enjoy the setup. So you'll become skilled in creating that setup position. Then tip the pelvis to the left, reach out through the left side waist, come down.

Find the best place for your left hand. Could be on your leg, could be catching the toe, could be beside on the outside. Start off looking down, and actually tell your feet, stamp, firm the thighs, then look forward. And, as you do that, find the length, the horizontal length of the spine. Then turn the chest, the torso any bit, and look up past the thumb.

Enjoy the immovable spot, then inhale, come up. Okay, now transitioning, revolving triangle, Parivritta Trikonasana. Remember the back leg angles in 45 degrees. Reach up through both arms, lift the navel, get ready. So, it's a move that brings you into position like our forward bend, so, throw the torso forward and come into position.

So, it's easier if you have your left hand inside the right foot. So, if you want to add challenge, put it on the outer side. If you want to decrease, put it on the inside. Stamp the feet, firm the thighs, scissor the legs together, and get long lines, long leg lines, long spinal line, long arm lines as you reach up through the top arm. And then come up, swiftly change sides, come swiftly to the setup position and pause.

So that setup position is a worthy meditation seed all on its own. Then a move brings you to the next position. Whoom, project the spine forward and come down. Find the right hand position for you, working to keep the balance by steadying the feet, the thighs, the pelvis. Scissoring the legs together.

And elongating all the Asana lines. Here we come, up with a move, crouch, and spring to the zero position with an immediate arrival. And then again crouch and spring. So, the extended side angle pose. Make your setup so that the right leg 90, externally rotate that leg, make the kneecap face up.

Enjoy that setup, and then lunge into warrior two and reach through the outside waist, and swing the left arm over the ear. So, you want one continuous line. Back leg, spinal line, and top arm in a diagonal line of brilliance. So, you stamp the feet and swing the right knee to meet the right arm and stabilize that right arm against that pressure. Lunge and firm the back leg, and, up we come with a move.

Pull into the top arm, come up, change sides, get ready, and lunge into warrior two, and then reach thought he left side waist, swing the right arm over the ear, and enjoy. The long diagonal line, back leg, torse, top arm. Spinning the torso any bit, so you turn your gaze up the ceiling from beneath your arm. Reach into the top arm, come up and out with a move, and we'll go with the revolving side angle. So, angle the back leg in 45 degrees, square the hips, windmill the arms, free the back heel, and lunge into a revolving warrior two.

Then hook the left arm around the outer right knee, reach the left arm away on the diagonal. Reach through the back leg and continue to lunge. And then up you come. Change sides. Angle the back leg, square the hips, and windmill the arms, create a lunge into a revolving warrior two.

Freeing the back heel, keeping the torso upright, then come forward, hook the right arm around the outer left leg, plant the hand, reach over on the diagonal, reach through the back leg, and enjoy this impossible puzzle. Come up with a move, crouch, and spring to the zero position. Again, crouch, spring, take the hands to the waist, make the feet parallel, breathe in, so, just like our forward bending, make a gesture, project the spine forward, come halfway down, plant the hands, straight arms, breathe in again, lift the chest, ground the legs back, and create Uddiyana Bandha. The belly flies up, then exhales, fold with a move, and, if possible, the head comes to the ground. So, you got five points of contact, two feet, two hands, and the head.

Most of the weight stays in the feet, but the hands and head contribute. So, use that contact with the ground to galvanize the energy of the legs and free the spine. Steady gaze. Enjoy the immovable spot. Come halfway up with a gesture, so, straighten the arms, lift the chest, stay right here with the out breath, empty the lungs as though you were going to do Uddiyana Bandha Kriya, then come up with a move as you breathe in.

And crouch. And spring. Landing in the zero position with poise. And clearing your pallette, enjoying the single line, single skeletal line for a moment. And again, crouch and spring, for Parsvottanasana.

So you angle the right foot out and the left foot in like the revolving triangle to 45 degrees. Square the hips and then swing dynamically to join the palms together behind your back. You can clasp the elbows if you can't do it. So, remember, it's a commitment, a gesture you're going to make, so to galvanize the energy of the legs and then forward. Wow, with a thrilling move to your destination.

Steady breath. A very stable leg, hip foundation as you elongate and work your forehead towards your shin, or your chin towards your shin. Patiently, very patiently keeping the length through the spine. Inhale, come up with a move and change sides. Get ready, stamp the feet, firm the thighs, lift up the navel chest and exhale forward.

Projecting the spine away and coming into your position. Steady breath. And inhale, come up. Crouch, release the arms and return to Samastitihi. Dynamically.

Okay, then swing the right leg up, catch ahold of the big toe, and we'll stay right here and work. So, you're working to extend your limb lines. Straighten the front leg with a kick and pull on your toe with the finger and stamp the left foot down. A very tall left leg. Then, with a move, exhale, swing the leg to the right.

Steady the balance, but, taking a chance, so you swing all the way to your destination, even if that brings an unsteadiness, and the same on the way back. Swing back to center. And pause, then keep the leg up, take back the arm, and lift up the chest. And return to Samastitihi. Second side, swing the left leg up with a gesture, right hand to the waist, reach up and away through that left leg as you pull back with your left fingers.

So, the left arm is straight. Steady breath. Then, with a move, empty the lungs and swing the left leg to the left into the side plane. Turn your gaze to the side. Keep lifting the navel, expanding the chest with each breath, and swing back to the center.

Hold, enjoy this immovable spot. Utthita Hasta Padangustasana. A classic hall of fame Asana. Then, take back the arm, reach through the left leg, lift the chest, steady breath, and Samastitihi. So, remember your option in this next one, so you can use the Vrksasana, the tree, or swing the leg into half lotus.

So, you got the right leg heel the the navel. You can go forward without binding, you can stay upright, so, swing the right arm around, catch the foot, and exhale forward. Balancing on the standing leg, the heel is pressing up into the belly, that right heel. Release the head and neck, keep your weight forward. Inhale, halfway up, stop here, exhale.

And inhale, finish coming up. Establish your spot, release the leg with a move, second side. So, you've either got the tree, Vrksasana, half lotus heel to navel. So, you can either bind or not. And exhale forward.

Come down. Keep your weight shifted forward, it's like you're standing on your right foot. So, really balance there. The right arm is simply a little bit of support, almost there only for show. So, you're looking to ground the right femur.

And release the head and neck. The left heel goes up into the belly and shows you the Uddiyana Bandha spot where you make the belly fly up. Inhale, halfway up, and exhale there. Enjoy that moment, then inhale, come up, and release with a gesture, return to the zero position. Lift the chest, stamp the legs, and we'll go through our sun salutation to Utkatasana.

Inhale. Exhale, forward, come to the destination and stop. Inhale, lift the head and chest, then get ready, crouch and spring. Stop in four limb staff, inhale, lift up the chest, exhale, pull the chest back, and then, here we go, crouch and spring. Come up into Utkatasana, the fierce posture.

Get into a deep half squat as you reach up through the navel, through the chest, through the arms, separate the hands, cast your gaze down, so you're both squatting, going towards the earth, and reaching away from the earth until the posture becomes fierce. Then stamp the hands together, look up past the thumbs, and then take the hands down and jump back. Inhale, with a magnificent expansion, open the chest, exhale, pull the hips back, step the right leg forward into Virabhadrasana One. Lunge. And reach up through the arms.

The navel's lifting, the upper chest is lifting, reaching upward actively through the arms. The front thigh is flowing forward as you lower on that front hip, then, inhale, come up, change sides with a move, then dynamically lunge, come down, try to get your front thigh as close to parallel to the ground as possible, lift up the navel, lift the chest, reach up through the arms. Steady breath, hips going towards square, okay, then come into Warrior Two. So, lunge, lift the navel, lengthen the tail, and ground the back leg. Steady gaze out past the left fingertips, reaching away through the arms.

Come up with a move, change sides, and dynamically lunge as you track the right thigh straight from the hip to the knee. Keep the pelvis as level as possible, so lift up the navel strongly, lift the upper chest, reach through the arms with a brilliance, ground the left leg, and turn the head and gaze past the right fingertips. Alright, take the hands down on either side of the right foot, step back and lower, inhale, the great expansion of the chest, look up and over, exhale, pull the hips back, and crouch and spring, jump through, sit down. So, remember, Dandasana is the Samastitihi of your seated positions. So, you're working with two skeletal lines, from the pelvis floor base to the crown of the head, and from the hip all the way through the feet.

So, there's a galvanization along those energy lines, a contemplation, an absorption of the senses in order to express those lines. So, they come to life by you working with them, imagining them, creating along them, and breathing along them. Reach forward, catch the big toes, inhale, and, with a move, exhale forward. You're with the steady sound of the breath, you got a good contact between your fingers and toes. The thighs are stamped down.

Inhale, halfway up, and then again reach, and again inhale, exhale forward. Enjoy the western forward, intense forward bending posture. And inhale, keep your grip on your feet, and lift the chest. Come back to Dandasana, then take back the arms. Gonna grab my blocks here, and come up into Purvottanasana.

Place the hands, fingers facing forwards about 12 inches behind your hips, lean back, lift up the chest, and then come up decisively, lifting the back of the pelvis, lifting the chest, take the head way back, and enjoy. So, stamp down through the hands, lengthen the arms, lift up the chest, pull up the navel to open the chest, ground the thighs and point the toes. And come down. So, set up for your jump back, get ready, lift your feet, cross the ankles, suck the thighs towards the chest, so you're leaned back, the hands are forward, and then come lift up all of a sudden and swing the legs back, come to plank, down to Chaturanga Dandasana and inhale, upward dog, exhale, pull the legs back, bend the knees into a crouch, and spring through to Dandasana. So, Padangusthasana A, take the right leg back 90 degrees, the foot is beside your left, the right foot is beside the left thigh, not underneath it or not up against it.

Come halfway forward, catch your foot, or catch your wrist around your foot. The left hand is grabbing the right wrist. Then inhale, lift the head and chest, pause there momentarily, look up between the eyebrows, and enjoy, and exhale forward. Grounding the thighs, reaching through the left leg, from the hip all the way through the foot, the heel, the mounds of the toes, and pulling back slightly with your arms interlocked around the foot. So, getting some leverage to pull the spine forward and release it downwards.

Then inhale, halfway up, and pause, then release, and second side. Take the left leg back, so the left foot is beside the right leg. The foot is facing up. Come halfway forward, catch the left wrist around the foot if possible, otherwise just catch the foot, or catch your shin. And make your gesture, breathe in, look up.

And exhale forward. Find your place where you're working, ground the thighs so they connect with the earth, elongate the straight leg, slowly work your way forward using your arms, pulling on your foot, a little help, slowly, slowly deepening your position. And halfway up, stop, and here we go. Getting ready for our jump back. So, lift the feet, cross the ankles, bring the thighs towards the chest, plant the hands in front of the hips and strike.

Lift up and jump back and hold at the destination. Inhale. Lift the chest, exhale, pull the hips back, crouch and spring. Then sit down. Take Marjaryasana C on the right side, bring the right leg back.

So, remember, you can sit on a blanket in this and elevate your hips, make it a little easier on you. And bring the right foot back, so it's almost like you're standing on that right foot. Stamp it down, lift the spine, turn to the right. And then work to bring the upper left arm around the outer right knee. And make a fist, so, you make a right angle between your left upper arm bone and forearm and then twist.

And if you wanna take it around, internally rotate the left arm, take it around and catch. Stamp the right foot down, ground the left thigh, lift up the spine and turn. And release. Return to Dandasana, second side. Plant the left foot, lift up the spine, turn to the left.

And so, the left hand pushes the left leg across the middle, and then try to get the right arm, the upper arm, around the outer left leg. Make a right angle between the upper right arm bone and forearm, make a fist, and push your arm, your right arm against the left leg and resist. Then turn. So, this is a fine position to work. Or, if you like, take it around further.

Internally rotate the right arm so the palm faces out, catch, and turn. Ground the left foot, right thigh, and lift the spine up. And release. We'll get ready with our Vinyasa. So, you lift up the feet, cross the ankles, suck the thighs towards the chest, stamp the hands down in front of you and strike, lift up and swing.

Stock at the Chaturanga, enjoying momentarily, then into upward dog, pull the hips back smoothly into downward dog and jump through, sit down. Alright, so now we're gonna work with our bridge position. So, lay down on your back and bend your knees, bring your heels back towards your sitting bones. Lower your chin and, so, your feet are hip width apart, parallel, and stamp your feet down and lift the hips up. Clamp the fingers below you.

So, you're actively stamping the feet down. You've got your thighs tracking, meaning the knees are free, they can go in, they can touch, they can go out, but they're in the middle, free. The back of the pelvis, you're working for maximum height, lifting up and expanding the chest. And then it's like a Pranayama, you're breathing into your chest, not into your belly. And lift the toes up, lift the balls of your feet so you're just on the heels and open the chest.

And then come down, rest for a moment. Okay, so we'll do another variety. You can do the same one over again or step on your hands. So, get your fingers under your heels and then lift up the pelvis, open the chest and stamp down with your heels on your hands. So, you can lift up the feet, the ball of the foot and toes, or not as you like.

You should get a good work in the thighs as you stay. And come down. Okay, last one. So, you can do one of those two or come all the way up in the Vrschikasana as you like. If you're coming up, you're taking your hands under your shoulders, lead with your pelvis, so, up you come, pelvis first, and lift up the back of the pelvis expand the chest, stamp the feet and hands down, and come down.

So, rest for a moment. So, come up and we'll take forward bend Paschimottanasana. So, take Dandasana, come halfway forward, choose your hand position on your shins, your feet, or catch your wrist, breathe in, look up, and exhale. Come into your forward fold. Enjoy the earth foundation.

Listen to the sound of the breath, release the spine downwards and enjoy. Then halfway up and come to Dandasana. Okay, so we'll set up our shoulder stand position. Got my blankets. And up I come.

So attend to your foundation. Remember, it's your hands, your arms, your upper back that is taking the weight of the body. The neck and the head are light and free, and that's part of why you have that support. So, it's kind of a contradiction that you're sucking the spine forward into the body, but the rest of the body is kind of settling back into the hand, arm foundation. So, it's as though the spine leaves the rest of the body behind as you stay there.

That image of the spine leaving the body behind takes time to puzzle through and get clear about. But, you work at it, because you want your weight and your arm foundation, and yet you want your chest open. And you're working to achieve the vertical line, the stacking arrangement of joints, the ankles, knees, hips, shoulders in one line. And, remember, some of you will be using the options that are in the tutorial, so, you might be at the wall right now with your feet at the wall and bringing one leg up at a time. Or you might be using that alternative shoulder stand, where your hands are on your hips.

And we'll try our tree variation, okay, so, swing the right leg out a bit and then kick. Stamp the right foot into the left inner thigh, swing the right knee to the right, keep the navel forward, and then release that with a kick, return to Sarvangasana and left, kick, swing the left knee to the left, reach up through the left leg, stay centered in your arm foundation with the released throat, passive eyes, and release that with a kick out on the diagonal, return to Sarvangasana. Come down to Halasana. With a gesture, so that gesture is come back up. It's a hinging at the hips.

Okay, so, keep your pelvis-torso foundation all stable and hinge at the hips, swing the legs down to plow and stay. And then bend the knees, and bring the knees to either side of the ears. You can release the hands off the back and catch, walk them around and catch your feet with your hands. You can keep the ankles flexed or point the toes. Squeeze in the ears with the legs.

Karnapidasana, it's called, the ear pressure pose. You then Halasana and slowly, vertebra by vertebra, lower down and back up off your support so the shoulder blades are on the ground, not on the support and rest for a few breaths. Alright, roll to the side, push yourself up, and we'll work on our head stand. Okay, so, remember I gave you a video tutorial on inversions and we worked with some options for headstands, so, we're just gonna go through those briefly. If you don't wanna do them, you can come right up into headstand now and work while I'm going through them with everyone.

Okay, so, here we go. Set up your foundation and lift the hips, lift the shoulders. Just remember, you can work right here and get into an immovable spot. And then, if you want a little variety, swing one leg up without any rotation. Got the right leg up and change.

Bring the right leg down, lift the left leg. And come down. So, if you want more variety, I actually came all the way down. I've got my blocks, so I put them between the feet, set up my position, step onto the block, and lift the right leg up. Keep rooting through your arm foundation and bracing across your upper back, that sound of breath is very clear and long.

You're clarifying the vertical line, all the way through the right leg down through the torso, shoulders. Second side, bring the right leg down, lift the left leg up. Alright, so you can come down, or I'm gonna do a move that I haven't taught ya. I'm just gonna swing the right leg up, it's a little big tricky, and now I'm in headstand. So, if you don't wanna make that move, come down and move those blocks and go back up.

Or keep working. One leg at a time, or just with the foundational set up. If you're up in headstand, stamp down through the arms. Try to keep at least 50% of the weight in your arms. So the head stays relatively light.

You're working Samastitihi, the very first position, zero, from an upside down perspective. Alright, then swing the hips down, come down, don't lift the head, rather, roll into the forehead and release the neck. Okay, we'll come to fourth position. I'm stop, then through the Vinyasa, pull the hips back to sixth position. Go into a crouch and spring.

Jump through, sit down. And take Padmasana, so the right heel to the navel, left heel to the navel. If you can't do the Padmasana, you can do the half lotus, if you can't do the half lotus, you can sit cross-legged. And if you want, ease into getting your pelvis to neutral, sit on a blanket. We'll just sit in the classic position and work with the breathing for a few moments.

The brain is passive, the senses receptive. Very interested in the happenings within the body. The breathing rhythm. All the little nuanced events that are taking place along the central axis, from the pelvic floor base up through the palette. So that sound of breath is long, so it's traveling the length of the access with a contractile force as you breathe out and an expansive force as you breathe in.

You're using the resistance in the throat to amplify that contractile and expansion force. The chest is in a mighty expansion. So, I'm pushing my legs with my hands to get the whole body involved. The mind becomes very steady, very quiet, the senses quiet, the body quiet, immovable. Alright, release the position and we'll take Shavasana.

Lay back, take your Samastitihi, laying down Samastitihi to set up your position. So, enjoy that horizontal line, from the crown of the head through the pallette, through the torso, pelvis, legs, all the way to the soles of the feet, and then separate the arms and legs away from each other. Let the body come to a complete resting place. So you want to see if the dynamism, the action of the Vinyasa and all the postures that you do in your practice can help you to achieve a stillness, so it kind of builds to this point, a corpse pose, where you create a stillness, a steadiness, enter in quiet and enjoy what we call Shunya, void. So, through practice, instead of void being a fearful place, that emptiness somehow is inviting, it's like a relief to just let go and become receptive, empty out.

Alright, so, you can stay in the Shavasana as long as you like, and then come up and out. Alright, there it is, we did it. Eight episodes. And, I'm so happy you've come on this journey with me, and we got to explore, big adjectives come, wondrous, glorious, magnificent. That is Hatha Yoga.

Because of what it can show you and where it can lead you within yourself and it's just such an amazing discovery to find these techniques, and so, I hope you continue in your practice and grow, and I hope that this course that I've offered you will help you in your journey. So, I wish you all the best. Namaste.