What is a Maha Sadhana?
Your yoga practice should be about more than just doing the poses. Practicing yoga with intention allows you to reap all the benefits; body, mind, and soul. An intentional practice will take you beyond increased flexibility and muscle tone to a place where your body, mind, and soul are truly in harmony.
Have you considered taking your practice even further by taking a longer, workshop-style class? A Maha Sadhana guides you through a sample of many of the practices of Hatha Raja yoga in one workshop. This practice uses movement, sound, breath, and song to gather energy and truly celebrate the gift of being alive!
Today I want to share more about Maha Sadhana with you and introduce you to a special yogi who will share details about a special event we’re hosting at Razz Yoga.
What is Hatha Raja Yoga?
Hatha Raja Yoga is a traditional description of the eight limbs of yoga. It is designed to cultivate a meditative quality throughout the practice, despite being physically challenging.
During a Hatha Raja Yoga Class, the posture sequence is followed by a guided deep relaxation and a calming breathing exercise before concluding with a short meditation practice.
Meet Yogini Kali Om.
Our instructors are a vital part of the Razz Yoga community. Their commitment to not only deepening their own knowledge and practice, but using that knowledge and experience to guide students to a deeper and more meaningful practice inspires me.
Yogini Kali Om (Gabrielle Om), who led the Hatha Raja Yoga Teacher Training at Razz Yoga in 2018 and 2020, is a perfect example. Gabrielle came to yoga accidentally, almost reluctantly when her usual spin class transitioned into a half-spin, half-yoga class. Despite her skepticism, Gabrielle found herself enjoying the yoga portion of her class so much that she sought out classes that were all yoga.
Gabrielle noticed yoga’s positive affect on all parts of her life. In addition to its many benefits to her physical health, yoga has altered Gabrielle’s views of herself, other people, and the world. Over time, she rid herself of negative traits she hadn’t even realized were a problem. She felt things like being controlling, critical, and judgemental of herself and others start to fade away. Gabrielle’s practice enables her to identify judgemental thoughts when they threaten and change her thinking.
Gabrielle credits her yoga practice with helping her through difficult times. She considers her learned ability to remain present and peaceful a magnificent benefit of her yoga practice.
When you attend a class or workshop taught by Yogi Kali Om, she will guide you through your practice so that you, too, can experience magnificent benefits. She is honored to be bringing this special 2-hour intensive workshop created by Sri Dharma Mittra to our Razz Yoga community.
Learn more about Sri Dharma Mittra here.
What can you expect from a Maha Sadhana workshop?
A physical challenge
Maha Sadhana translates to “Great Practice.” Along with a challenging physical practice, Gabrielle will be sharing:
Insights into yoga philosophy.
Breathing techniques to reduce stress.
A meditation practice.
A guided deep relaxation.
Although the practice can be physically challenging, be assured the poses can be modified for most students.
A longer practice
This workshop is much longer than a typical yoga class. This allows students to be exposed to a greater depth of knowledge and a richer experience than is possible in shorter classes.
The extended time available in the workshop allows students to integrate the practice into more subtle layers of the mind and body as well as an opportunity to practice aspects of yoga not usually shared in a typical class.
Maha Sadhana concludes with joyous music and a celebration offering the practice to all beings everywhere energetically.
Feelings of peace and rejuvenation
When you walk out of a Maha Sadhana workshop, it’s our hope that you’ll feel peaceful, recharged, and inspired to live more harmoniously with yourself and other people.
We invite you to join us at Razz Yoga on Monday, December 12, 2022 at 6 PM for this very special event. I look forward to experiencing it alongside our Razz Yoga members. I know you will find it to be enriching and transformative, a way to deepen your practice and form deeper connections with yourself and others. Refer to our Workshops and Events page HERE for more information and to register.