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Iam not actually referring to these
things. No doubt, they are
important to create a certain
atmosphere. When the students
walk in, they will settle down much
more quickly. If they are in an agitated
state, the calm vibrations of the room
will help them shift gears, and this will
also assist them to focus better
throughout the session. A calm and
refined ambience is therefore desirable,
but it is not absolutely critical. Let me
explain what I mean.
There is one thing that is more
important than the actual atmosphere
of the yoga space; that is the
consciousness of the teacher. I have
taught hatha yoga at a spa, where the
room was next to a racquetball court. I
am currently teaching at my work, using
what is actually an activity room for
seniors that is adjacent to a busy
hallway. Neither of these places had or
has the kind of refined ambience we
normally associate with yoga studios. In
fact, they have a "buzzed", or active,
atmosphere, which is not necessarily
conducive to promoting a transcendent
or meditative state.
There is another thing that I would like
to mention. Yoga is not my vocation. It
is rather my avocation. I have never
taught yoga as a career. I did not have
the financial means to rely on the
income from my yoga instruction alone.
Often, I would teach a yoga class a few
minutes after walking out of my office.
Most yoga teachers I know have time to
prepare for their class if they want to.
They certainly don't have to shift gears
like I do, going from a worldly, or what I
call "relative", circumstance, to a more
spiritual activity.
I would also like to say that I have been
meditating for over 30 years. I have
stayed at an ashram in India several
times and studied with a Guru.
Meditation is part of the fabric of my life.
TAPPING YOUR CONSCIOUSNESS
When I refer to a sacred
space, most readers may
assume that I am talking
about the physical
characteristics of a place.
For instance, if it is a yoga
studio in which people
attend classes, most yoga
instructors will make
efforts to create an
atmosphere that is refined,
or in Sanskrit, sattwik, in
nature. This may involve
the décor, the carpets, the
soft lighting, the pastel
colors of the walls, the
spacey music, and so on. It
might involve having a
puja table or altar at the
front, images of a spiritual
teacher, or anything which
might contribute to an
ethereal type of ambience.
42 www.yogicherald.com March 2019
MEDITATION
My philosophy about hatha yoga is that
ultimately it was intended as a spiritual
discipline. Its purpose is not simply to
stretch and tone muscles or massage
internal organs, or even offer repose or
relaxation. I have found that hatha yoga
is ultimately a tool to lead in to
meditation. Without meditation the
state of transcendence, or in Sanskrit
Samadhi, is difficult to attain. I am not
advocating a particular meditation
technique. Any practice that leads to a
withdrawal of the senses and thereby
unfolds a mindless state is worth
pursuing.
My goal in any yoga class is simply to
create conditions in which the
consciousness of the people who
attend is very different when they leave,
from when they first stepped inside. For
example, at the venues where I teach,
when they first come they seem chatty
or even gossipy. They talk amongst
themselves because they haven't had a
refined, both these challenges have led
me to some important revelations that
have changed the way that I approach
my class. In fact, my whole philosophy
about what I contribute as a teacher has
changed.
I have noted that while the venue is
important, it is actually more where my
consciousness is at that makes a huge
difference. A beautiful room can have
very sacred vibrations, but if I, as the
teacher, am not living a sacred space,
there is no way that I can help lead
participants to that same level of
consciousness. In that sense, my
responsibility as a teacher goes way
beyond ensuring that the technical
(physical) aspects of a hatha yoga
routine are executed properly.
So, in terms of creating a sacred space,
there are a few things that need to
happen, at least in terms of the way that
I approach my classes. Of course, by
"sacred", I am referring to an inner
chance to see each other during the
course of the day. But when they leave,
it seems they float out of the room.
They usually don't exchange any words.
They stay in their inward space.
How can we describe this difference in
their states? At some point in the yoga
class, they have transcended a worldly
consciousness, and have reached a
state of beatitude. We can use many
terms to describe it. We can call it bliss,
transcendence or mindlessness. We can
say that the kundalini has risen to the
point where it has pierced through the
sahasrara, or crown chakra. One can
describe it in any which way, but unless
you have that direct experience of
blessedness, these labels are really just
intellectual constructs or concepts.
Getting back to the fact that I have had
to go from the office to the yoga class
and "shift gears" so completely, and
that the atmospheres of my teaching
venues are not necessarily highly
There is one thing that
is more important than
the actual atmosphere
of the yoga space; that is
the consciousness of the
teacher.
March 2019 www.yogicherald.com 43
CONSCIOUS YOGA
Any practice that leads
to a withdrawal of the
senses and thereby
unfolds a mindless state
is worth pursuing.
44 www.yogicherald.com March 2019
MEDITATION
space, not to an outer one, although the
two are interconnected. I need to
transform the fabric of my own
consciousness in order to lift the
vibrations of all the participants who
attend. Let me talk about how I do this.
The first step is that when I step out of
my office, I have to quickly "connect". I
usually have about ten minutes before
the class starts. So I go into the
washroom, and perform a powerful
mudra routine. A mudra is generally a
hand posture or gesture, although it can
involve other parts of the body as well.
The reason it works is that I do it with
intensity, sincerity, and utter focus. The
effect is that my consciousness gets
opened, and I then operate from a very
different dimension. The fact that I can
do this in a washroom completely
blows away any concepts I have about
where a human being can open up
spiritually.
The mudra I use is simple. My arms are
to my sides. I sweep them up in a wide
arc while inhaling and they meet above
my head. I then lower them to the level
of the brow on the out-breath, the
fingers pointing upwards, the palms
together. This is known as the
salutation, or anjali mudra. I also say a
brief prayer, asking that the class be
conducted with vigilance, that everyone
stay safe, and that the space gets lifted
as well.
efforts, and will start to meditate as
well. We routinely meditate for at least
five minutes before the start of the class.
I don't expect that in this initial
meditation, the participants will be able
to slow their minds down sufficiently.
So, when the meditation is over, and
before doing warm-up stretches, we do
a mudra that I find is one of the most
powerful and direct ways for
participants to ground their energy and
get into the space. I sometimes perform
this mudra at the end of the class as
well. It is similar to the anjali mudra I
referred to above, but has an extra step.
The participants are seated with their
legs crossed. On the inhalation I ask
them to sweep their arms up slowly in a
wide arc, bringing their two palms
The fact that I place the hands in front
of the ajna chakra is significant. When I
perform this exercise, I can often feel it
stirring, a sign that the kundalini energy
has started to rise and that the
consciousness has lifted in my nervous
system. When I step out of the washroom,
I feel more "blown". Even if I don't have
that feeling, and I still retain some of the
office vibrations, I will know that there is
still opportunity to shift gears.
For instance, before a class, I try always
to meditate in the room where I will
conduct it. Even if it is only for five
minutes, I find my meditation lays the
groundwork for cultivating a sacred
space. The meditation lifts the vibration
of the entire room. Also, I find that when
the students arrive, they will respect my
A mudra is generally a
hand posture or gesture,
but doing it with intensity,
sincerity and utter focus
may lead you to a very
different dimension.
March 2019 www.yogicherald.com 45
conscious teaching
very slowly through the nostrils,
bringing their attention to the action
of breathing; the expansion that
happens in the abdomen, ribs and
chest on the in breath, and the act of
fully expelling the breath on the
exhalation. I urge them to become
"one" with the breath.
I then have them hold the out breath
after fully expelling, and at the same
time, have them focus on the space in
front of their closed eyes. As the
breath pauses, so do the thoughts.
The connection between the breath
and the mind becomes obvious. It all
stops as the practitioner waits for the
breath to come, and the mind reaches
a state of suspension. This is really the
culmination of the meditation and the
yoga session. It is in a state of pure
anticipation and openness that the
waves cease in the mind.
Note that I ask them to hold their
breath only for as long as they feel is
comfortable, and start the out breath
when the urge arises. There is no
together above their head. On the
exhalation, I ask them to lower their
hands to the level of the brow, the
palms together, and the fingers
pointing upwards. I then ask them to
leave their right hand where it is, and
to bring their left hand to the level of
the belly (their solar plexus), turning
the palm upwards in a slightly bowl-
shaped position.
At this point I say something briefly
about how, in this posture, we
connect the earthly part of our nature
with our spirit. We stay in this
position, with the spine erect, for at
least a minute. I sometimes open my
eyes, and it is so beautiful to see the
students sitting in this powerful
fashion, radiating a spiritual energy
that is palpable. I then ask them to
bring the left hand to join the right
one. Both hands are then lifted above
the head on the inhalation. On the
exhalation the arms are lowered
slowly in a wide arc, with the elbows
slightly bent.
We then proceed with the yoga class. I
much prefer flow sequences, where
we move seamlessly from one posture
to the next. The movements
themselves become a type of
meditation, as do the poses. Of
course, the breath is important to
maintain throughout. The point is that
it is all meant to shift the
consciousness of the participants.
I must mention that at present I am
teaching during people's lunch hours,
so there is not much flexibility
regarding the duration of the class. I
try to include a final meditation at the
end. Unlike traditional approaches, I
give people a choice whether to
meditate in the sitting posture or lie in
Savasana at the end of the class. The
meditation begins with a focus on
breathing.
As with other aspects of my yoga
class, the pranayama that I present is
improvised. Rather than doing
alternate nostril breathing, I urge
participants to begin by breathing
We need to
connect the
earthly part of
our nature with
our spirit.
46 www.yogicherald.com March 2019
MEDITATION
Sometimes before they get up, I point out
how the vibrations of the room have been
lifted, that there is a type of scintillation in the
air. They will all seem to agree. But I also
suggest that this is as much a function of the
change in their awareness, and that it is not
happening outside of themselves. They also
seem to understand this because they are
having the direct experience of the
meditative, or samadhi state.
So the sacred space we reach is an inner one.
I specifically design the class to promote a
transcendent type of consciousness. The
methodology is not conventional, but neither
are the circumstances in which I teach the
class. However, my major revelation
throughout has been that it is up to me to live
that space. If I am feeling spiritually
connected, there is a good possibility that the
participants will follow.
forcing of a natural process. The breath
comes when it desires to do so. This is a very
important point because I know that this type
of pranayama can be done in a way that is
not beneficial if one does not stay tuned in to
the inner flow. The breathing exercises last for
about two minutes and the rest of the
meditation is a silent one.
By the end of the meditation, there will have
likely been a shift in consciousness. When
everyone opens their eyes, it takes a moment
to adjust. No one just gets up and leaves.
Usually, they are unsteady as they lift the body
from the ground and find their legs. This is a
sign of having reached a transcendent state of
consciousness, or at least a bodiless state. And
then people finally float out of the room. I urge
students not to talk at the end of the class,
because that will abruptly bring them back to
a more worldly consciousness. It is better if
their attention stays inward for some time.
However, I am not strict about it, especially if
someone wishes to ask me something.
Charles Shahar is a clinical
psychologist by training and
social researcher by
profession. He has lived and
studied Vedanta philosophy
in India. He has also taught
yoga and meditation for
over 17 years to diverse
groups, focusing specifically
on stress management for
health care workers.
A beautiful room can have
very sacred vibrations, but if
I, as the teacher, am not
living a sacred space, there
is no way that I can help lead
participants to that same
level of consciousness.
March 2019 www.yogicherald.com 47