Sun and Moon Yoga Studio, Tokyo, Japan

Wednesday July 21st 8:00am-10:00am
4,000 yen
You may also use your class cards. For this workshop, you can use two classes if you have a 4- or 10-card, and 4 classes if you have an Unlimited Card.

Take the Guesswork out of sequencing and choosing poses to best serve your students.

Course Content:
How do you get your Trikonasana (Triangle pose) or that of your studets to look and feel the same on both sides? How do you ever get off the ground in hand balance poses? Learn how to assess yourself and your students for muscle balance, symmetry, strength and flexibility so you can individualise asana programs and correct muscle imbalancces, asymmetries, strength deficits and restricted mobility and flexibility whenever possible.

Workshop is Bilingual Japanese and English. Japanese interpretation by Masaaki Nakajima.
Limit: 18 people.

To Register: Hit Contact. Email us with the name and date of the workshop in the subject line. Include your full name and cell phone number. Please register early to insure a spot.

Overcoming Your Fears and Opening Your Heart with Arm Balances
In Life and In Hand Balances with Yvonne Jaques

Tuesday July 20th 3:00-5:00
Cost: 4,500 yen
You may also use your class cards. For this workshop, you can use two classes if you have a 4- or 10-card, and 4 classes if you have an Unlimited Card.

Hand balance poses cause fear to surface in most of us. We can use this “clutching” of the heart chakra as our signal to release what doesn’t serve us and to embrace what does. Learn to correctly prepare and align your body and mind to open the heart chakra for a strong and fearless hand balance practice and to develop courage in your life and your relationships. We will assess each other for alignment and symmetry in surrendering into the hips, letting go in forward folds, opening the thoracic spine and shoulders, opening the fingers, strengthening the wrists, rooting through the hands - all prerequisite to catching some air in hand balance!

Workshop Content:
Aligning Your Body—Assess for balance and symmetry
Aligning Your Mind—Tong Len Meditation
Preparing Your Body:
Open the hips, fold and surrender
Open the thoracic spine and shoulders
Open the fingers and root
Strengthen the wrists
Preparing Your Mind—Lo Jong Meditation
Opening Your Heart Chakra
Then let’s catch some air in hand balances!

About The Instructor: see Yvonne’s profile in our Teachers Bio page under Visiting Instructor.

Workshop is Bilingual Japanese and English. Japanese interpretation by Masaaki Nakajima.
Limit: 18 people.

To Register: Hit Contact. Email us with the name and date of the workshop in the subject line. Include your full name and cell phone number. Please register early to insure a spot.

The Yoga Studies Institute and Sun & Moon Yoga Presents
Tibetan Heart Yoga Series Two: 20-Hour Yoga Studies Institute (YSI) Teacher Training
with Yvonne Jacques
July 16-19, 2010

Friday July 16, 7:30pm-10:30pm
Saturday July 17, 4:30pm-9:30pm
Sunday July 18, 6:30pm-9:30pm
Monday July 19 (National Holiday) 8:00am-5:00pm

THY 2, “Mahamudra Meet Your Mind,” features a unique Tibetan and classical Indian style of asana, inner body anatomy, an exploration of how karma and emptiness work together in your yoga practice and your life, and the ultimate purpose and goal of yoga.

Mahamudra thoughts are an ancient method of clearing out the inner channels and chakras from the inside with specific meditations on the ultimate nature of one’s own mind. We examine them on six different levels, each one leading to a more sophisticated understanding of our mind and it’s nature an important part of a larger practice that leads to seeing emptiness directly - the direct perception of ultimate reality. This is a key meditative realization that assures very quick enlightenment. When we see emptiness directly, all of our inner winds or prana are concentrated in the central channel sushumna - of our subtle body. Since the inner winds and our thoughts are linked together like a horse and its rider, we can bring the winds to the central channel if we bring the thoughts there: wherever the rider decides to lead, then the horse must follow. We will also work from the outside, to bring the wind-horse to the central channel, which will also help the rider arrive there.

Mahamudra winds - grab the reins of the horse, and the rider has to come with it. In the yoga tradition, we work with the outside of the body - with asana and pranayama - to affect how the winds travel on the inside. As they go, so go the thoughts; and if the thoughts go to the central channel, we see emptiness directly. Our presentation on the physical Mahamudra practice from the yoga tradition comes from one of the greatest classics of yoga ever written: “Light on the Yoga of the Sun and Moon: The Hatha Yoga Pradipika.” It was composed by the yogi Swatmarama, and is thought to date from about 1700.

Taught by Yvonne Jacques: Yvonne is a faculty member of Diamond Mountain University in Arizona, a graduate of the Asian Classics Institute’s eighteen courses paralleling a course of study at a Tibetan Buddhist monastic institution, and a registered yoga teacher and Staff Instructor of the Yoga Studies Institute. She is honored to teach Tibetan Heart Yoga in the lineage of her Heart Teachers Geshe Michael Roach and Lama Christie McNally. A movement therapist and C.H.E.K Practitioner (Level 3) in Vancouver since 1991, she is the founder of Wellness Works Integrated Health Services where she seeks to serve others by looking at the entire being as a holistic entity. Through an understanding of how control systems integrate and produce our moment to moment and long term physical, emotional, mental and spiritual reality, Yvonne creates workshops and customizes movement therapy and yoga programs based on individual assessment. She also teaches motor control re-education and functional movement including Diane Lee’s “The Pelvic Girdle” and Linda-Joy Lee’s ‘Connecting to Your Core’ and “Postpartum Health for Moms’ course.

Cost: 65,000yen for this 20-hour TTC.

SPECIAL PRICE BREAK:
10,000 yen off for those who took both THY1 and THY4 TTC.
5,000 yen off for those who took either THY1 or THY4 TTC.

This TTC will be in English, with full Japanese interpretation provided by Masaaki Nakajima and Tomoko Kawahara. Certification awarded upon successful completion of TTC.

To Register: Hit Contact. Email us with the name and date of the workshop in the subject line. Include your full name and cell phone number. Please register early to insure a spot. If you do not receive a reply from us in one week, please register again. Emails DO get lost and we want to make sure we get yours!

Introduction to Tibetan Heart Yoga Discussion Group w/Leza Lowitz, July 3

Introduction to Tibetan Heart Yoga — Free, Casual Discussion Group
Saturday, July 3rd 4:30-6:30pm

Are you interested in Tibetan Heart yoga, but would like to learn more about it? Please come to our open study group to learn more about this powerful practice. Leza Lowitz and Tomoko Kawahara will facilitate this free, two-hour bilingual session. All are welcome.

NO RSVP necessary –please just drop in.
For more about Tibetan Heart Yoga, See our website and www.asianclassics.org

Come Sing Your Heart Out

Sat, July 3rd
7:00-8:30pm
Fees: Donation (500-1,000 yen)

We’re happy to announce that Sun & Moon Yoga will host a monthly singing group from June. Let’s practice kirtan, bhakti
yoga together to sing our hearts out!

Singing opens the heart and frees the mind. Singing in a community creates a beautiful chorus of voices joining in peace and harmony in sangha. If you have been wanting to free your voice, open your heart, join a community gathering, and
come together with others in an artistic pursuit–even if you can’t hold a note or sing off-tune, then please join this casual gathering.
All the fees will be donated to a charity (Yoga Classics Input Project). We can protect someone’s life and pass down the sacred yogic wisdom to the next generations by joining our hearts and voices together. All are welcome!

Self-Defense & Energy Skills Workshop: Harnessing the Power of Ki
with Shogo Oketani, Karate Buff and Gentleman
Saturday June 12, 5:00pm-8:00pm at Sun and Moon Yoga, Meguro

Using The Power of Ki
Ki (氣) is the life-force energy of the cosmos that also exists within each of us. We have a power source or life center in the body called the “dantien” (Japanese: tanden) located at the hara, three finger-widths beneath the belly button. In Japan there is an _expression, “Put your power in the Sokka Tanden (under the belly button).” This means to gain
equanimity and composure by focusing your energy on this point. When we integrate the energy of the dantien using special breathing, we can manifest our potential power. This power is called ki. The power of ki is the cornerstone of martial arts, and will be the focus of this course on enery awareness, energy building, energy use, and self-defense.

The Advantage of Using Ki
Many people are interested in self-defense and have considered learning Karate or Judo, but hesitate to do so because of the “hardness” or “Yang” qualities of those disciplines. The truth is, when we use the power of ki, we can master the skills of self-defense without stress to the body or joints. When we focus on ki, movement becomes flexible and fluid without utilizing or encouraging excess energy, lessening stress to the body. Also, with special breathing methods, we can balance the body and enhance concentration through exercise. Each week will begin with simple stretches to warm up the body and energy body, and end with relaxation. Also discussion and Q/A. In this workshop, we will learn:

1. How to work with and harness the power of ki. Breathing techniques to strengthen focus and concentration. Basic self-defense techniques. Using “everyday tools” as weapons of self-defense.
2. Breathing techniques to replenish and store ki inwardly. Work with the dantien to encourage core power, grounding and self-confidence. How to use ki for self-healing. Self-defense techniques and partner work.
3. Breathing techniques to utilize/expel ki outwardly. Self-defense techniques including punching and kicking. Partner work.
4. Harnessing and directing your ki for self-defense. Secret Shaolin, Karate and Jujutsu Submission Techniques. Partner work.

Class taught bilingually in English and Japanese by Shogo.
Men and women both welcome! No martial arts or yoga experience necessary.

Traveling Abroad this Summer? Travel with peace and confidence, avoiding possible conflict.

About the Instructor: Shogo Oketani was born in Tokyo and graduated from Keio University with a degree in Philosophy and Literature. He studied Judo and Kendo from childhood, and began studying Karate as a teenager. Later, he received his black belt from the Gensei School of Karate in Tokyo, where he also taught Karate. (He is a Third Degree Black Belt). He also studied North Shaolinquan Martial Arts from the Japanese master Ryu Meiko. In 1995, Oketani moved to Northern California with his wife, Leza Lowitz. In 2003, he moved back to Tokyo where he works as a freelance translator, writer and Self-Defense instructor. He is co-owner of Sun and Moon Yoga.

Cost: 5,000 yen
Limit: 18 people

You may also use your class cards for this workshop. You can use two classes if you have a 4- or 10-card plus 1000 yen, and 5 classes if you have an Unlimited Card.

To register hit Contact and send in a request with SELF-DEFENSE WS in the subject line. Register early to ensure a spot!

Discovering Your Fire: Pranayama Intensive
with Deni Bechard
deni-eka-pada-bakasana

Saturday May 15 4:30-7:00pm
Sunday May 16 6:30-9:00pm
Saturday May 22 4:30-7:00pm
Sunday May 23 6:30-9:00pm

15,000yen for all four sessions. Or drop-in of 4,000yen per session.
Attendance in all four sessions strongly recommended.

In the yoga tradition, intense pranayama has been taught to both novices and experienced yogis in order to bring them into deeper contact with their inner fire. This taste of intensity helps break practitioners from their patterns and preconceptions, and inspires them to reevaluate their paths as seekers. Working in the Kundalini Yoga tradition, we will move through a series of increasingly powerful pranayamas. Each exercise will be preceded by preparatory asana and will be followed by brief periods of restorative yoga. The energy generated throughout the workshop will culminate in a long pranayama meditation.

deni-headshot
About the Instructor:
Deni Bechard has been practicing and studying yoga for over eleven years. In 2000, he spent six months living on an ashram and completed a Kundalini Yoga training with KRI International Teacher Training. After years of further study in Ashtanga yoga, he completed a Level II training with Ashtanga Montréal. Deni has also practiced Vipassana meditation for eight years, and is influenced by many other styles of yoga, including Iyengar, Kripalu and Vinyasa. He is also a prize-winning author and a journalist, and has worked in Iraq and Afghanistan among many other countries. He is currently returning from India where he has been studying Ashtanga yoga for four months. Through his yoga practice, he both grounds and challenges himself, and he brings this same disciplined energy to his teaching. He hopes to offer students an intense experience of how to focus the mind through asana and pranayama, and how to channel the energy of emotional and mental states into a deeper practice.

Workshop is in English with Japanese translation.

TO REGISTER hit Contact and put the name of the workshop in your SUBJECT and content of the email. Send your full name and phone number. You will be sent payment information.

NOTE:
Deni will also be teaching regular classes during May, and co-teaching special 2-hour vinyasa classes with Lucy Roberts. See Schedule and Top Page for more information.

Awaken Your Core: Inner Strength and Awareness for your Yoga Practice
with Deni Bechard

Saturday May 29 4:30-6:30pm
Sunday May 30 6:30-8:30pm

4,000yen per session, or 7,500yen for both

The core is essential for every aspect of yoga, from pranayama to strength postures to stabilizing muscles in deep stretches. It both grounds the body and energizes it. This workshop develops core awareness through a range of exercises, from the most subtle to the most physically demanding. Drawing on techniques in both the Kundalini
yoga and Ashtanga yoga traditions, we will work the core through alternating exercises involving breath work, stretching and powerful isolations. We will finish with an intense core workout that will give you a direct experience of the core’s power.

About the Instructor: See above description.

Workshop is in English with Japanese translation.

TO REGISTER hit Contact and put the name of the workshop in your SUBJECT and content of the email. Send your full name and phone number. You will be sent payment information.

NOTE:
Deni will also be teaching regular classes during May, and co-teaching special 2-hour vinyasa classes with Lucy Roberts. See Schedule and Top Page for more information.

LUCY ROBERTS & DENI BECHARD 2-Hour VINYASA CLASSES in MAY

All classes Level 2-5 (in English)

May 11 (Tues) 14:30-16:30 Vinyasa (Lucy)
May 13 (Thur) 14:30-16:30 Vinyasa (Lucy)
May 18 (Tues) 14:30-16:30 Vinyasa (Lucy)
May 20 (Thur) 14:30-16:30 Vinyasa (Lucy)
May 25 (Tues) 14:30-16:30 Vinyasa Flow and Pranayama (Deni)
May 27 (Thur) 14:30-16:30 Vinyasa Flow and Pranayama (Deni)

3,000 yen drop-in or use your class cards. No reservations necessary. First-come, first served.

Also Lucy and Deni are subbing some classes. See the top page for the sub list.

Tibetan Heart Yoga (THY) “Full Practice” Series Course with masa

Sun and Moon Co-hosts THY “Full Practice” Series with masa from 5/17/10 to 8/30/10.

Dates: MONDAYS 5/17, 24, 31, 6/7, 14, 21, 28, 7/5, 12, 26, 8/2, 9, 23, 30
Time: 12:30-16:30
Cost: 98,000 yen for total series
PLACE: Sun and Moon Yoga

About Tibetan Heart Yoga:

Tibetan Heart Yoga (THY) is a powerful and unique style of practicing yoga, continuing the lineage of the ancient tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. One of the most prominent features of THY practice is the union of the inner and outer methods, where we work from the inside and outside. We work from the outside with our pranayama (breathing) and asana (posture) to approach the inner layers of being. We also work from the inside with our meditation and ethical practices, planting good karmic seeds and bringing wholeness to our yoga practice. When those two are practiced together on the yoga mat, the intention or motivation with which we practice the asana is regarded as the singlemost important element of the THY practice. THY has 10 series, each of which has a background teaching, accompanied by an asana sequence, pranayama, meditation, mantra, and other unique THY methods.

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Course Content:
This course is about practicing Tibetan Heart Yoga as “fully” as possible at the moment. Full practice here means, asana, meditation, dharma study, and keeping mindfulness in everyday life. In a way, you will learn how to live yoga.
The course is programmed in a way that students make gradual progress in an safe and enabling environment at their own pace.
With the Series 1 and 2 being integral part of THY practice, the course will highlight teachings from those Series, while other series elements are also introduced, and asana sequences are comprehensively practiced.
For more information on the “Series” please see http://yogastudiesinstitute.org/?subdirectory&idp=101&subidp=50

These workshops are in Japanese.
For more information about the workshop, see http://purna-flow.cocolog-nifty.com/blog/2009/12/post-084e.html

For more information about Tibetan Heart Yoga, see www.tibetanheartyoga.jp or http://yogastudiesinstitute.org/?subdirectory&idp=101&subidp=50

To register and for any inquires, email Masa at reserve@tibetanheartyoga.jp.

May 2 & May 8 Daphne Tse and Ellen Watson Song and Dance

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Sunday May 2 6:30-9:00pm
MovingSong: Your Body is a Musical Instrument
Cost: 4,000 yen

Join Ellen & Daphne to enter into the world of soulful connection through song, dance & poetry, tapping into the sources that help to nourish creativity, awareness and connection. This workshop is an especially sweet opportunity for those who are drawn to artistic, transformational and contemplative practices–to glean the jewels from these combined disciplines.

Ecstatic Dance practice, when united with Sacred Sound & Song, invites us to experience bliss, to move through our fear, anger, release sadness, and delivers us to the arms of our Creator, the Beloved. We’ll dance the dances and sing the songs that are ready to be lived in each of us. In small movements and huge leaps, we’ll unearth the full range of who we are and what we have to offer. Open to all!

(photo: James Bailey)

Saturday May 8 4:30-6:30pm
MovingSong: Sounding and Moving the Chakras
Cost: 4,000 yen

Join Ellen and Daphne for an exploration of using breath, sounds, song and dance to activate the energy of your chakras. Inspired by music from around the globe, your feet will dance, your bones will shake and your spirit will fly, quieting your mind. With all circuits open, we’ll sound and sing from our feet, bellies and hearts leaving our chakras balanced and open to give and receive.

followed by

Saturday May 8 7:00-9:00pm
Sacred Song and Kirtan Concert with Daphne Tse & Friends!
Cost: 3,000 yen

Join musician Daphne Tse for an evening of chanting and singing to the Divine! We’ll sing sacred songs from many traditions honoring the Shakti that is within each of us, opening our hearts and connecting through our voices together. No singing or musical experience needed! If you can talk, you can sing… so come and join us, freeing your voice and opening your heart.

About the Instructors:
With over 35 years of combined experience in ecstatic dance, music, yoga & healing modalities; Ellen and Daphne have joined forces to create MovingSong: an immersion into the world of dance, singing, movement and yoga.

ellen_headshot
Ellen Watson:
Ellen Watson is celebrating her 25th year on staff at Esalen Institute, where she studies, practices and teaches various modalities of moving meditation practice. A licensed minister, Ellen believes that the core of all healing begins in the realm of the heart and the Spirit. Among her great pleasures are opening the door for people to dance, to sing and play and pray, to touch and be touched. She is passionate about spreading the good news about how waking up can heal and transform the mind, body and soul.Ellen is a teacher of Esalen® Massage, Gabrielle Roth’s 5Rhythms™, Holotropic™ Breathwork, SpiritDance, The Art of Essential Touch, and Your Body is a Musical Instrument. From 1984 through 2003, Ellen developed and administered the Movement Arts Program at Esalen. In 1996, she founded MovingVentures™ School, whose mission is education in the somatic arts, focusing on women and men in developing countries, and the southern USA. MovingVentures™ faculty offer workshops, retreats, and trainings at Esalen, in Bali, and at other inspiring locations around the globe. Her website is http://www.movingventures.com

tse Daphne Tse (Photo: Patrick Haley)
Daphne Tse is a soulful singer/songwriter originally from Texas. She explored music through many venues & was drawn to the west in 1994 (relocating to Los Angeles). Ever since her first yoga class in 1994, she has merged her spiritual practice with her contemporary folk singer/songwriter style. She has played for numerous yoga retreats in India, Greece, Guatemala, Costa Rica and now Bali. She studied music at the University of Texas in Austin, The Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago and kirtan music with Jai Uttal and Daniel Paul in Guatemala. She is currently working on her full-length album in Bali. She has released tracks on yoga music compilations on Sounds True and yoga DVD projects on Acacia with Shiva Rea. Her CD, “Mata,” was released this year. For more information, please see www.daphnetse.com

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PRIVATE LESSONS with Daphne or Ellen

Monday May 10th from 12:30pm-5:00pm
Sun and Moon studio is open for private lessons in voice, movement, chanting with either Daphne or Ellen.
1 hour is 12,000 yen. 1.5 hours is 15,000 yen.
To make an appointment for a PRIVATE LESSON, please contact Daphne or Ellen directly at: ellen@movingventures.org
or dmusic9@gmail.com

TO REGISTER FOR THE WORKSHOP OR KIRTAN, HIT Contact AND SPECIFY EXACTLY WHICH WORKSHOP(S) YOU WISH TO TAKE.

ANNUAL ABUNDANCE FLOW WORKSHOP

Creating Abundance-Money as Flow
BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND! A One-Day CRASH COURSE in Energy Flow and Manifesting with Leza Lowitz

THURSDAY, April 29, 2010, 10AM-5PM (HOLIDAY)

SET GOALS FOR THE YEAR AND CHART A NEW COURSE FOR YOUR LIFE!!!

Do you love what you do?
Does something always seem to stop you from pursuing your dreams?
Do you feel guilty having plenty? How do you approach giving and receiving?
Do you want to share more of what you have, and have more to share?

Money and abundance, like everything else in the universe, are forms of
energy. They have certain spiritual laws of flow. What is your attitude
towards money and abundance? Where did it come from? Do you give
yourself permission to have abundance?

*This workshop is not just about financial flow, but opening up ALL CHANNELS OF FLOW in the universe and manifesting your highest potential.*

This workshop will help you understand and transform your relationship to money and flow, ultimately helping you find your life’s work and realize your natural state of abundance and generosity.

In this workshop, we will use:
・ guided meditations
・ journaling
・ manifesting techniques
・ partner work
・ magnetizing techniques and more…

All to help you understand and transform your beliefs about money and abundance, listen to your intuition, and draw opportunity and possibility to you in ways that support you and the universe.

Writer Bonnie Lee La Madeleine attended a prior Creating Abundance workshop. She said, “The workshop did more to help me see how I hinder my own efforts than anything else. The experience has helped me focus my writing skills and develop a plan to become a full-time self-employed writer. I now have one book in negotiation, and one proposal being seriously considered.”

A participant in the February, 2008 Creating Abundance Course wrote to say:

“I can’t thank you enough for all you taught and offered today. I have not felt this clear about my purpose in life before. So much in today’s workshop spoke to me,
and I now have the faith and trust in myself to go forward and put it all into action!!!”

If you have been looking for a way to expand your horizons and potential, this special workshop is for you.

Cost: 20,000yen.
The workshop will be in English with Japanese interpretation by Kaeko Yasuda. You may do the journaling and partner work in Japanese.

To register hit Contact and send in a request with ABUNDANCE WS in the subject line. Register early to ensure a spot!

Sun and Moon Co-sponsors THY Series 1-7 workshops
with Masa in Naka Meguro from 3/6/10 to 4/29/10.
vashishta

Dates: 3/6, 3/13, 3/20, 4/17, 4/24, 4/29
Time: 10:00am-12:00
Cost： 3,500yen each session (22,000 for entire series)
Limit： 18 people
Place： SAKURA Studio (Nakameguro) (MAP)

These workshops are in Japanese.

For more information about the workshop, see http://purna-flow.cocolog-nifty.com/blog/2009/12/thy-ca0f.html.

For more information about tibetan heart yoga, see www.tibetanheartyoga.jp or email Masa at reserve@tibetanheartyoga.jp.

Exploring our Feminine Nature through Yoga~ Goddess Lifeshop with Sara-Shivani
Tao and Tantra Yoga for Women at Sun and Moon Yoga. (Bilingual)
at Sun and Moon Yoga April 24/25

April 24 Lifeshop. (Saturday) 4:30-9:30pm Exploring Session One
April 25 Lifeshop Exploring Session Two (Sunday) 18:45-22:15

Deepen your current yoga practice with some tools, techniques and rituals that awaken the “goddess“ within you. Learn how to feel happier, sexier and stronger as a woman on and off the yoga mat. Sara-Shivani`s lifeshop is a unique synthesis of hatha and tantra yoga, qigong, healing massage, dynamic meditation and dance. You will have the opportunity to explore how wonderful it is to be a woman and enrich your life with the healing power of feminine group support. Come and explore and express yourself and find the radiant woman within.

This lifeshop covers different content from the 2009 lifeshop. Both sessions are open to women of all backgrounds, ages, yoga styles and levels. The lifeshop is longer than the usual workshop because we not only do individual explorations but group exercises so you can deepen self-awareness, bond with other women and create lasting connections. You will discover how empowering it is to share your dreams, desires and challenges with other women.

April 24 (Saturday) 4:30-9:30pm Exploring Session One. Theme: Exploring the goddess within.

Content:
4:30-5:15 Warm-up exercises and asanas: Opening the first-, second- and third chakras
5:15-6:30 Yin and Yang Dance meditation: Tune into your goddess nature through exploring both your feminine and masculine natures.
6:30-7:00 Goddess Circle
7:00-7:45 group dinner break: Pot luck~ bring your favorite Vegetarian dish.
7:45-8:30 Female anatomy and reflexology: Theory, philosophy, practices and group sharing.
8:30- 9:00 Healing Yoga: The Jade egg Meditation Level One : introduction to the Female Banda.
Learn a meditation that improves PMS, period pain, eases menopausal systems, and celebrates the female connection with the moon.
9:00-9:30 Rediscover the healing power of lullabies and Yoga Nidra (yoga sleep)

April 25 Lifeshop Exploring Session Two (Sunday) 18:45-22:15 (3.3 hours). Theme: Expressing the goddess within

Content:
18:45-19:15 Warming Up Exercises and asanas: Opening the fourth, fifth and sixth chakras.
19:15-20:15 Emotional Detox Yoga. Family constellations exercise
20:15-20:30 Break
20:30-21:30 The Feminine Gift of Touch: Experience the healing power of `giving and receiving` through Massage and mantra. Learn a 15 minute massage sequences~ the `mother`s touch` massage~ so you can give someone special in your life a beautiful surprise.
21:30-21:50 Jade Egg Meditation: Level One (review) and Level Two (optional)
21:50-22:15 Closing Circle

Cost:
Session One and Two: 20,000 yen for (plus optional to purchase Jade egg, 3,000 yen)
Session One only participation: 15,000 yen (plus optional to purchase Jade egg, 3,000 yen)

Workshops Bilingual Japanese and English translated by Sara Shivani.

Limit: 18 people.
Register: Hit Contact and send in the information with Lifeshop in the Title.
Register early to secure a spot.

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Follow-up sessions: Expressing our Feminine Nature through yoga in KAMAKURA homestay ~ Goddess Lifeshop with Sara-Shivani

May (Saturday) Expressing Session One: The `YES of Life` Homestay Sleep over
May (Sunday) (Women and MEN OK): Expressing session two. Invite someone special to join you in Kamakura for a day of nature and massage.

For Follow-up sessions please register directly with Shivani at sara-shivani@livingshizen.com.

RESTORATIVE YOGA TEACHER TRAINING

20-Hour Certification Course with Leza Lowitz

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Saturday March 20 4:30pm-9:30pm (5 hours)
Sunday March 21 6:30-9:30pm (3 hours)
Monday March 22 10:00am-5:00pm (National Holiday- 7 hours)
Saturday March 27 4:30pm-9:30pm (5 hours)

MARCH RTTC IS FULLY BOOKED!! OCTOBER RTTC IS STILL SPACE OPEN!

Japanese interpretation will be provided by Tomoko Kawahara.

Space will fill up soon, so register soon by hitting Contact and answering the application questions, below.

Why Restorative Yoga? Why Now?
Daily life is incredibly stressful, especially in an urban environment. We spend a great deal of energy just trying to survive, often running on adrenaline (the “fight or flight response”) until we burn out. Now more than ever, we need a slower, deeper yoga practice that helps us regain our equilibrium and combat the stresses of modern life. Restorative yoga is one such practice that invites the body’s “relaxation response,” calms the nervous system, and quiets the mind. Restorative Yoga is a deeply relaxing, “passive” practice of Hatha Yoga in which we let go of physical, mental and emotional tension by practicing yoga poses in a fully supported environment, holding the poses for longer durations of time, and focusing on the breath. Supported by a variety of props such as bolsters, blankets, blocks, belts, sandbag weights, and other props, this practice helps us regain the equilibrium of the body/spirit, allowing deep relaxation, surrender and opening. This practice is perfect for those who have injuries, are recovering from illness, those with physical limitations, or those who simply want to relax and regain harmony and balance in their lives.

COURSE CONTENT
In this teacher training, you will learn: What is Restorative Yoga? How does it work physiologically, psycho-spiritually, and emotionally? Proper use of Props: How to set up each pose. How to spot and correct common mistakes in prop usage Restorative sequences for different effects Many original restorative postures developed by Leza Specific poses/practices for specific therapeutic needs (insomnia, chronic fatigue syndrome, etc). Pranayama for Restorative yoga How to design a Restorative yoga class around a specific theme or focus. How to incorporate other forms of yoga therapy into Restorative yoga, such as Thai Yoga Massage, Visualization, Guided Meditation, Yoga Nidra, etc.

COURSE FORMAT Classes will be part lecture, part practice, part demonstration in which students will set each other up in the poses and practice with each other, and part question and answer period/discussion.

ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR
Leza Lowitz has been teaching and practicing Hatha and Restorative yoga for over a decade. She was the first teacher to introduce Restorative yoga to Japan in 2003. (When Sun and Moon shipped all the props from America, customs officials held them for months because they had to test every pillow and eye bag for hidden drugs!) She has offered her highly popular Restorative yoga classes at workshops and on retreats internationally. She appeared on “99 Size” teaching Restorative yoga in 2004. She is a writer and certified yoga teacher who has studied many yogic and healing traditions with many illustrious teachers and masters from all over the world. She is the owner of Sun and Moon Yoga and author of the best-selling book Yoga Poems: Lines to Unfold By and Sacred Sanskrit Words: For Yoga, Chant and Meditation (with Reema Datta) in addition to 15 other books.

What to Bring:
The studio has everything you will need for this training. No need to bring bolsters, blankets, weights, yoga mats, eye pillows or anything else. Just bring a notebook and water. You will be given take-home handouts after the end of each session. No recording will be permitted

How to Apply:
If you are interested in attending this training, hit Contact and send in a request with RTTC OCTOBER in the subject. Include your full NAME, ADDRESS, PHONE NUMBER and PLEASE ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS BRIEFLY AND FROM THE HEART.
1. PLEASE DETAIL YOUR YOGA PRACTICE AND TEACHING EXPERIENCE: (HOW MANY YEARS, STYLE, WHERE?)
2. WHAT IS YOUR RESTORATIVE YOGA EXPERIENCE AND WHY DO YOU WISH TO TAKE THIS TRAINING?
3. WHAT IS YOUR INTENTION FOR THIS TRAINING? PLEASE BE SPECIFIC.
4. PLEASE LIST ANY INJURIES OR MEDICAL CONDITIONS WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT.

Payment instructions will be sent upon receipt of your request. Early application is strongly suggested.

Professional Adjustment Intensive:
A Hands-on Adjustment Workshop with Ted Lafferty
Continuing Education for Yoga Teachers & Advanced/Advancing Students
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Session 1: Monday 25th January 5:30-7:00pm
Session 2: Thursday February 4, 6:30-8:30pm
Session 3: Thursday February 11, 6:00-8:30pm
Session 4: Thursday February 18, 6:30-8:30pm

What makes a good teacher? What makes a good teacher a *great* teacher? Touch is a powerful thing, and a good yoga adjustment is a key way for a teacher to aid students in going much deeper into a their practice than they could do on their own. A good adjustment will build trust for the teacher and for the practice as a whole.
A good in-class adjustment and the personal attention it provides brings a greater level of awareness, safety,
and opening of the physical and subtle body. Adjustments are a powerful way to deepen both the outer and inner practice of yoga.
In this in-depth workshop we will look at the “full adjustment” from observation to touch.
Students will not only learn important adjustments for any class, but also the principles behind offering a powerful, professional adjustment in any pose.

Topics covered in this workshop
- Observation/Intention
- Types of adjustments
- How to see and adjust the subtle body
- Types of touch
- Addressing individual needs
- Ensuring the student gains wisdom through the adjustment
- Alignment principles
- multiple adjustments for all types of asanas from Tadasana to Savasana
- Best practices for adjusting and teaching in general.

These course hours count as continuing education credits through Yoga Alliance.

Sessions build on each other.

Cost: All sessions for 20,000.
Special price of 18,000 for all four sessions for attendees of Ted’s THY TTC Series 1 & 4.

Participation in all sessions is strongly recommended. Individual drop-ins possible by advance request after workshop is booked.

Strict Limit: 18 people

Workshops will be in English with Japanese translation by Masaaki Nakajima.

About the Instructor: Ted Lafferty is a Staff Teacher for the Yoga Studies Institute (http://www.yogastudiesinstitute.org/). He is also a certified Jivamukti Yoga teacher. Ted teaches workshops, teacher trainings, retreats, and coaching sessions around the globe. He also teaches nutrition and runs a health program that uses an integral approach to bring transformation to the whole-self; mind, body and spirit. He is part of the development and operational team for the YSI 300 hour Teacher Training program.

To register for the entire workshop hit Contact with the name of the workshop, your full name and number, and the dates you would like to attend. Bank information will be sent. Reservations are confirmed after payment is received.

First THY Japan Teacher Training at Sun and Moon Yoga in 2010

Tibetan Heart Yoga : Two Full 20-Hour Yoga Studies Institute (YSI) Teacher Trainings with Ted Lafferty–FIRST TIME IN JAPAN!!!! ancientyogapanel

ONLY THREE SPACES LEFT. REGISTER SOON!

“Tibetan Heart Yoga (THY)” is a powerful and unique style of practicing yoga, continuing the lineage of the ancient tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.

One of the most prominent features of THY practice is the union of the inner and outer methods, where we work from the inside and outside. We work from the outside with our pranayama (breathing) and asana (posture) to approach the inner layers of being. We also work from the inside with our meditation and ethical practices, planting good karmic seeds and bringing wholeness to our yoga practice. When those two are practiced together on the yoga mat, the intention or motivation with which we practice the asana is regarded as the singlemost important element of the THY practice.

THY is comprised of 10 series. Each series has its background teaching, accompanied by asana sequence, pranayama, meditation, mantra recitation, and other unique THY methods. This TTC will focus on how to teach two of the most profound and powerful series–Series One and Four.

Tibetan Heart Yoga Series 1:
The Six Perfections: Series 1 reveals the foundation of Yoga as practiced in the Lineage of the Dalai Lamas. Tonglen compassion meditation is weaved into asanas which are each used to cultivate one of the six perfections: giving, morality, patience, joyful effort, concentration, and wisdom.

Tibetan Heart Yoga Series 4:
The Five Winds: Series 4 teaches the Kalachakra Tantra: Yoga of the Wheel of Time and the life and teachings of Buton Rinpoche. Asana are used to see and feel each of the five winds that make up the inner body and purify specific mental afflictions. Tibetan Heart Yoga is the yoga of the subtle body; used to learn to practice not only with the outer form, but with mental and energetic capacities as well.

Taught by Ted Lafferty: Ted is a Staff Teacher for the Yoga Studies Institute (http://www.yogastudiesinstitute.org/). Ted teaches workshops, teacher trainings, retreats, and coaching sessions around the globe. He also teaches nutrition and runs a health program that uses an integral approach to bring transformation to the whole-self; mind, body and spirit. He is part of the development and operational team for the YSI 300 hour Teacher Training program.

Dates: Saturday/Sunday January 23-24/30-31 & Feb 6-7, 13-14, 20-21. Thursday February 11 (National Holiday) Practicum
THY Series1 (20 hours):
Day 1: Saturday, Jan 23rd　4:30-9:00pm
Day 2: Sunday, Jan 24th　6:30-9:45pm
Day 3: Saturday, Jan 30th　4:30-9:00pm
Day 4: Sunday, Jan 31st　6:30-9:45pm
Day 5: Saturday, Feb 6th　4:30-9:00pm

THY Series4 (20 hours)：
Day 1: Thursday/National holiday, Feb 11th 11:30-16:30
(Aco’s two classes will be cancelled)
Day 2: Saturday, Feb 13th 16:30-21:30
Day 3: Saturday, Feb 20th 16:30-21:30
Day 4: Sunday, Feb 21st 16:30-21:30
(Em’s 16:45-18:15 Ashtanga will be cancelled)

Cost: 65,000 per 20-hour TTC, 110,000yen for both. There will be homework on this course to receive a certificate.

To register, please hit Contact and put your full name and phone number. First come-first served.

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PAST WORKSHOPS:
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005 and Prior

Sun & Moon Yoga Studio, Tokyo, Japan