Graduation Photos

Axis Yoga has once again successfully graduated another class of yoga instructors.  Some have taken the program purely for personal enrichment while others will go on to teach.  Regardless of their motivation, students tell me year after year what an extraordinary experience the training was for them, how their whole perspective on yoga has changed and how grateful they are to have participated.  The training culminates in a graduation ceremony in which the students bring their friends and families.

The graduation requires every one’s participation as students assemble the banquette room, prepare food and clean up all in dress attire!  Everyone gets into the spirit of karma yoga and the work seems effortless as everyone selflessly works for the common good.  In many ways, the graduation ceremony is the culmination of their learning.

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Practicum in Summary

yoga class 064Axis Yoga’s teacher training program culminates in practicum presentation in which the general public is invited to attend student lead classes free of charge. This is an exciting (and nervous) time for the students and they draw together 4 months worth of study and condense much of it a two hour class. Often times students begin the program with a good deal of apprehension but through the course of study they gradually become more confident and ready to go out into the world and share the wonderful benefits of yoga.

A considerable amount of time is spent preparing for their final presentations. The students are divided into groups of four and each is responsible for a half hour’s worth of content of their two hour long class. It can be challenging for the group of four to create a sequence that is clear on cohesive given the diversity of presenters.

No two classes are ever the same. At Axis Yoga we instruct the participants in how to design classes based on sound sequencing principals. We do not offer a “cookie-cutter” approach. Rather, the students are instructed upon how to take particular skill levels, dispositions and subtle body components into consideration when designing a class. This makes for a very rich understanding of the intelligence behind each of the postures and how to put them together.

The practicum is a time of celebration and rights of passage as the students instruct a group of 30-50 participants through a class of their own design. For many, this is the first class they ever taught. The good news is that many of their friends and family are there to support them through the process. After the class is finished students are always met with an applause and then everyone piles into the lobby for a health-full array of treats and hot chai.

If you were able to attend our final practicum last weekend I want to thank you for your participation. If you were not able to attend, I want to invite you to attend our next one. Graduates of our fall program will be offering the free event some time in mid-December. I hope you are available to attend this fun and inspiring event.

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Photos from our Final Practicum

Images from our Final Student Practicum

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Free Practicum

Dear Students of Yoga;

I want to take a moment to invite you to Axis Yoga’s Final Practicum for its graduating students. This Denver based event is offered Free to the Public. These students have dedicated themselves intensely to the practice and now wish to share the fruits of their discoveries with you!  Sumptuous Refreshments Will be Served Every Session!  Come on out, enjoy a fantastic yoga class, enjoy the fervor and have some chi and sweets!

Location:  Sixth Ave UCC ~ 3250 E. 6th Ave (Sixth and Adams)

Sunday, June 5
Session I 3:30-5:30pm “The Complete Practice: a Full Yoga Journey” (Phil, Shigeko, Svetlana)

Sunday, June 6
Session II 1-3pm “Lengthen and Strengthen: Entering the Heart of Back bending (Chris, Martha, Samantha, Jim)
Session III 3:30-5:30pm “Opening the Spine and Hips” (Elena, Virginia, Brittany D. Michelle H.)

Saturday, June 12
Session IV 1-3pm “Heart Openers” (Jessica, Lana, Michelle Le)
Session V 3:30-5:30 “Dessert Yoga: Grounding and Balancing Renewal (Carmen, Nancy, Allyssa, Craig)

Sunday, June 13
Session V 1-3pm “Celebrating Back Bends” (Barbara, Bob, Brittney CT, Rachel)

Axis Yoga is Denver’s Only Donation Based Yoga Teacher Training. We offer a thorough, in depth immersion into the heart of yoga practice. Our 200 hour Yoga Alliance Certified school, is designed to meet practitioners at every level and propel them into being skilled instructors, if they so choose. If you wish to go deep into yoga practice, I invite you to participate in this program.

Sincerely,

Derik Eselius
~Program Director~

zrldesign.com | 720-934-6943

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Theory and Practice

I often tell people that Axis Yoga’s training is unique in many ways.  To begin, we are a classically based program.  What this means in practice is that we reference historical and scriptural perspectives on yoga.  The practice of yoga has undergone a tremendous transmutation in the last 100 years since first arriving on our shores; and in the past 10-15 years it has entered the stream of popular culture.  All of this comes with both its up and down sides.

Our theoretical orientation is coupled with an in depth study of the many yogic techniques.  According to the teachings, theory and practice should go hand and hand.  The practitioner then has the opportunity to realize the deeper truths that underscore the practice.  In this way, theory provides an essential reference point for the multiple yogic methods.

One of the ways that we go about exploring and applying the various assertions that underlie the practice is in the form of self directed experiments.  After presenting a piece of material, students then have the opportunity to go out and apply it in real life circumstances.

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Student Experiments -Applying the Practice

A simple example of this would be the practice of yama and niyama, or the basic moral precepts of the practice.  Students choose one of these virtues to practice for about two weeks before reporting their findings to the rest of the group.  This sharing of personal realizations not only enriches the individual (and gives them an opportunity to practice teaching), but it also helps to integrate the teachings for the entire group.

As the course progresses, students are then given the opportunity to select an experiment entirely of their own choosing.  We have received a wide variety of proposals over the years ranging from in depth mantra practice to treating asthma.  Some of the exercises are more simple and others are more complex.

We believe that it is essential that students take ownership of their yogic study and find ways to integrate the practice into their lives.  As I have stated in many prior entries yoga has the potential to infiltrate every aspect of our being. And the experiments offer a basic framework for exploring that transitional territory between theory, formal practice and application.  What follows is a simple example, directly from a student, as to how this process works.

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Observation

The training is coming closer to an end, and this is the final experiment.  At first, I thought I should choose the hardest experiment. I thought I should pick something that I am not good at. What is it? Maybe pranayama?  Or maybe mantra?  Then, I asked Derik his opinion and his answer was I should do something enjoyable. I thought that this was a very interesting suggestion.

Then, I started thinking about the entire training. What did I learn most? I learned a lot; I learned Yoga philosophy, proper alignment for poses, various kinds of pranayama work, beautiful mantras, ayurveda…etc., but the juiciest at the training was learning the importance of Savasana and how to let go of the struggle.

The Axis Yoga teachers may have noticed that I struggled a lot at the beginning of this training. I forced myself to understand everything at once and it was very frustrating. I got really angry at myself at one point because I felt like I was lost.

I learned to appreciate Savasana after doing a lot of Downward-Facing Dog poses, Triangle poses and other intense poses. I’ve been doing Yoga for a pretty long time, and until now I never really enjoyed Savasana; my mind always starts wondering to the things I will do after practice.

During the training I experienced very different feelings from the other Savasanas that I’d done in the past. I felt my own breath, sweat, heart beat, tension and feelings.  It was really nice; I felt like I could let go of everything.

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Hypothesis

My strength is I can focus, I am consistent, I am motivated and I am goal oriented. Those qualities often cause struggles and burn me out, but the problem is I just don’t want to let go of anything; I always want to hold onto it and keep it going. I think I have the same attitude toward my Yoga practice. I don’t like Savasana and I don’t like home practice because I feel like I’m not trying hard enough.

But since I started enjoying Savasana so much in the training, I thought maybe I could do more home practice in a restorative way. Lots of Savasana at home! I was getting excited when I decided on my experiment theme.

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Experiment

My regular home practice routines are as follows;
Seated warm-up
Surya Namaskar (x 3)
One ore Two Standing poses (i.e. Warrior series, Triangle series, Tree pose…)
Head Stand & Shoulder Stand (Those are good for my Immune disorder disease)
Twisted Setu Bandhasana (It’s good for mental difficulties)
Supta Baddha Konasana
Savasana (10 to 15 min.)

I changed my standing poses daily, but for the rest of the poses, I stick with them. Also, I did gayatri mantra 3 times at the beginning and said OM internally at the end of the practice.

I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy my home restorative practice before I started, but I actually really enjoyed and even started craving for the practice, especially the Savasana part!  I felt rejuvenated when I was done with the practice. Also, my mind was very clear. It was deep. It was so much different from the practices I had done in the past.

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Conclusion

As I mentioned, I struggled a lot at the beginning.  I even wondered if I could make it through the training, but instead of giving up my faith, I learned to let go of my struggles gradually.  Now, the training is almost over. I was counting how many days I have left every time I went to the training! It’s funny, I am sad to see the training is ending.

Thank you so much for guiding us in such a positive and gentle way. I cannot tell you how much I learned from all of you. You guys are wonderful teachers and I feel really fortunate that I had you in my Yoga path. It is truly a blessing.
Namaste,
Shigeko Leveque

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