Yoga Philosophy

Virabhadrasana. The Hero’s pose.

Virabhadrasana. The Hero’s pose.

Move through your life like a hero. Stay calm. Stay grounded. Breathe. Be vulnerable. Open your heart. The strongest people you will ever meet are also the most vulnerable. Courage is not avoiding the fire. Courage is standing in the fire and breathing into the discomfort of the unknown. A hero is strong but not wild and not out of control. Strength isn’t demonstrated by losing your temper, and giving in to your emotions. A bully is not strong but incredibly weak. Strength is demonstrated from restraint. Stand your ground. Find stillness. It is easy to be tossed and turned and pushed around by all of life’s challenges. Stay focused. Stay on your path. Concentrate. The battle is not with anyone else it is with yourself. The battle is between you and your mind. Who is in charge? Who is driving your car? Is it you or the mind? Each time you win this internal battle between you and your mind you increase your will power. Each time you lose this battle with the mind, the distractions, the patterns you are caught up in become stronger and have more power over you. ✨✨✨
Move through your life like a hero.

Following the journey!

Following the journey!

Woke up early today to go to the port. Headed back to Athens for a weekend of teaching at Siddhi Yoga Shala and Pano Skylos. One of the great things about getting up so early to catch the ferry this morning was seeing the incredible sky before the morning sunrise. Wow! There’s been so many breathtaking moments this week. I am sad to leave Amorgos. But I am excited about the next adventure. The journey continues. Where is your journey taking you next?

Separation exists in the mind.

Separation exists in the mind.


Hanging out in Bali after a photo shoot with some new friends. Yoga allows each of us to experience our true nature. Who are you at the center of your Self?
You are the experience of awareness experiencing itself. You are not the witness, but the experience of witnessing. You are not the lover, but the experience of loving. You are not compassionate, but the experience of compassion. You are not kind, but the experience of kindness.
Expansive. Beyond time and space. You are everywhere and nowhere. You are pure love. Separation exists only in your mind, and because of your ego.
Imagine, for moment, it’s as if there’s no you and no me. Just for a moment, there’s no separation.
We are travelers on a journey —home, to experience who we really are, underneath all the layers of who we thought we were.

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If you can control your breath...

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If you can control your breath...

One of the things I love about teaching with a translator is how it slows everything down.
Slowly moving with the breath is really where it’s at in a flowing practice. If you can control your breath, you can control your mind.
Let the breath lead the movement and let the breath wrap around the movement. The breath starts and then the movement starts. The movement finishes and then the breath finishes. This way there’s always going to be pauses. There’s always going to be control. Who’s driving your car? You are. Enjoy the dance between the movement and the stillness. Holding these opposites at the same time is the paradox that allows us to have a deeper, transformational experience. Concentrate but also surrender.
Practicing a slow flow that is connected to the breath will help you stay calm and keep you out of the default network of your brain - where it will be hard for you to not react and get caught up in everything that is coming up for you and just trying to process. Think of the four parts of the breath. There’s a little moment of stillness where the inhale meets the exhale, and another little moment of stillness where the exhale meets the inhale.
I love flowing with my students! I always practice a little bit with my students in every class. I find it helps me to connect with the group energy. I also think it reminds the students that I’m just walking the path with them. I’m not on a pedestal. I don’t want to be on a pedestal. We are all just walking home together.

Remember "It's just the mind."

Remember "It's just the mind."

Last night my mind was very heavy. I was working on a technical problem with my computer and the cloud and on the phone with a support specialist. It was a long day too. I was getting tired and feeling overwhelmed with the situation. We kept trouble shooting the problem and couldn’t figure out what was wrong.
I could feel myself getting frustrated. I could feel the emotions coming up. I tried not to get attached to them. It was hard. I was agitated.
One of the things that helped me shift my perspective was remembering one day a few years ago, coming up the elevator to the Dharma Yoga Center during one of my trainings with my teacher, Dharma Mittra. I asked Dharma how he was doing and he surprised me when he said that his mind was very heavy that day and very sad. There was a pause and then he shrugged and laughed and said, “but it’s just the mind” and gave me a knowing look, and I understood a little better the concept we talk a lot about in yoga of shifting our perspective.
I always remembered that morning. And it helped a lot last night. I could feel myself getting caught up in my thoughts and the anger and frustration I was feeling. I kept telling myself — it’s just the mind. Let it go. It’s not you. It’s just the mind.
I went to bed and slept well last night and woke up feeling very light and energized. I remember thinking that It was so silly that my mind was so upset and agitated last night. And even sillier that I was getting agitated and upset too.
The mind is always going to be on the roller coaster. But it doesn’t mean that you have to be too. You’re not the thoughts. You’re not the emotions. You are the space between the thoughts. You are the witness of body and mind activities.

The "Tug of War" Practice

The "Tug of War" Practice

A week ago we wrapped up an incredible Shiva Yoga 50hr Intensive at Baja Soul Yoga in Cabo San Lucas! Here’s a few pics from our Backbending Workshop on the last day of the intensive.
It is so important to understand the relationship between the core muscles, and the spinal erectors and the other muscles that take the spine into extension when you are Backbending. One of my teachers used to say that in every backbend there is a little forward fold. When you engage your core while you are Backbending, your backbend actually gets bigger. You create more space. Your spine lengthens. You don’t put so much pressure on your lower back. And you get to stretch your hip flexors. It’s this relationship of opposites and finding the balance between them that can really take us deeper into the practice. Some teachers call these actions and counter actions. I call this the ‘tug of war’ principle. It is the dance that is happening between the agonist and the antagonist muscles all the time. Sometimes there is an equal fight, sometimes one side wins, but the other side doesn’t just drop the rope and give up. The antagonist is still fighting, just like the villain at the end of the movie, who rarely throws in the towel and goes quietly away.

Exploring Meditation.

Exploring Meditation.

We started the weekend off with a Meditation Workshop on Friday night. It was a really great evening, with some philosophy and Yoga Sutras discussion, and exploring many different ways to meditate. There are a lot of different meditation techniques because there are a lot of different people with different tendencies. You don’t have to master every technique. You want to pick one the works for you and use it to take you where you want to go. Many paths leading to the same destination. Thank you to everyone who came out for the workshop. It was a lot of fun to practice with all of you.

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Fun Shiva Power class this morning at Baja Soul Yoga!

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Fun Shiva Power class this morning at Baja Soul Yoga!

Yoga philosophy teaches us that yoga is the stopping of the movements of the fluctuating mind. When the mind is quiet — in stillness, we experience the true nature of our Self. When the mind is constantly moving and distracting us, we never really get to see who we are because we are caught up in all the movements, and all the distractions. It’s like things are upside down. The senses are leading the mind, and the mind is dragging us along for the ride. Yoga is the practice of taking charge again. You are directing your mind to control your senses, and focus on the things you want to focus on. Every time you concentrate on something and hold your focus — you increase your willpower. Every time your mind wanders off and fidgets, distracting you — the pattern of distraction gets stronger. The greatest battle you will ever fight is the one with your mind. Concentrate! Without concentration there is no yoga

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!

How open is your heart? How much love is flowing through you? Yoga philosophy teaches us that when we quiet the movements of the mind, and experience the deepest part of our Self — love, kindness, and compassion will flow through us and into the world. What kind of love is your love? Is it this love, kindness, and compassion, flowing through you to all those around you?
My teacher Dharma would say reverse engineer it. Maybe you’ve never experienced Samadhi, or you haven’t gone deep enough to experience your inner Light yet. Pretend you are already there. Practice being loving, kind, and compassionate. Be of service in the world to those around you. So much love for everyone who has touched my path. Grateful for each of you! Hope you have a wonderful day today and are letting your inner Light shine through and light up those around you. When the Light is flowing through you, you don’t need one special person, everyone is special, and everyone deserving of love. Namaste.

Sticking with Our Intentions!

Sticking with Our Intentions!

How is your year going? Did you set any intentions this year? Did you make some resolutions? What is shifting for you? What are you working on shifting in your life? Remember, it’s a practice. You can set the intention and head down the path and it’s okay if it doesn’t work out, or if you fall or fail. Just get back up and try again. Our journey is always forward. Sometimes it’s little baby steps. Sometimes it’s two steps forward and one step back to steady ourselves. But it’s always forward.

Meet my new friend Jack.

Meet my new friend Jack.

My new friend! This is my buddy, Jack. I’m staying with him and his family here in Orlando this week. He’s a very special guy. Thank you, Jack, for opening your home to me. And thank you, Annette. It’s been such a pleasure being here. You are a very special and kind person. Grateful for you.

Jack is an old dog. He’s not very lovable sometimes. He doesn’t see very well and he doesn’t hear very well. So, he’s mostly in the dark. That must be a scary place to be. He gets startled a lot and he’s losing his mind a little too. A lot of the time Jack barks at you and growls. He doesn’t mean anything by it. He’s just scared. It must be scary to be in the dark.

I tried practicing lots of love and kindness and compassion towards Jack even when he wasn’t being very lovable. Sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn’t. I think he opened up a little while I was staying with him and Annette.

Just because someone is angry with you and barks at you or growls at you it doesn’t mean you have to bark back them. You can still practice loving them and being kind and compassionate and maybe they will open up a little.

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How is Your New Year Starting Off?

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How is Your New Year Starting Off?

How is your new year starting off? Did you set intentions? What are you going to do differently this year? What seeds have you already planted that you want to see continue to grow? What are you ready to let go of and leave behind?

I returned to Los Angeles on Monday after a wonderful trip to Toronto and the surrounding area to see family and a few old friends and a very rejuvenating trip to New York to practice with my teacher Dharma Mittra and reconnect with some of the Dharma community.

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Beautiful Views from Temescal Canyon Trail.

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Beautiful Views from Temescal Canyon Trail.

I’m getting over being sick the last week. It feels amazing! I was feeling so rough last week. My body completely shut down. I’ve been pushing pretty hard the last few months and traveling a lot. My sleep has been pretty disturbed, after hopping from time zone to time zone. This is from an hour ago on the Temescal Canyon Trail. I’ve been hiking the last few days to build up my strength again. Not sick anymore but my body is still feeling pretty weak. It’s been ages since I’ve been hiking too and it feels so good to be back in nature. I’ve missed these incredible views and soaking up the energy of the forest. It’s been a really good year. There’s been ups and downs. Plenty of challenges. And lots of big breakthroughs. I feel like this year I planted a lot of seeds. And I let go of a lot of things that have been holding me back. And I know what I want in 2019. I can see it clearly.

Variety of poses and variations.

Variety of poses and variations.

The yogi’s say there are an unlimited number of poses and variations. They also teach us that there are several, original, essential, archetypal poses. And from these poses we can see different categories of poses, or families of poses. There’s only so many ways we can anatomically move the body. There’s three areas of the body which provide most of the movement and which we primarily focus on in yoga asana practice — the Thoraco-lumbar spine, the hips, and the shoulders.

Control Your Breath, Control Your Mind.

Control Your Breath, Control Your Mind.

The breath is so important in a physical yoga practice. The yogis say, “if you can control your breath, you can control your mind.” Breathe deeply. Breathe down into the belly. This is called diaphragmatic breathing. Breathe into the side ribs. This is called costal breathing. Yogic breathing is often described as a combination of these two types of breathing. You want your breath to be long and slow. But you don’t want to fill the lungs so much that the collar bones lift and the upper chest lifts up towards the neck. This is called clavicular breathing. It is not recommended during your yoga practice. It stimulates the nervous system and is usually only used when the body is starving for oxygen. Breathe in and out through the nose. Let the breath lead you into the movement in your practice. Let the body follow the breath. Krishnamacharya says, “Let the breath be the Guru and the body be the disciple.” Ujjayi pranayama is very balancing. It can be performed in any asana. The Ujjayi pranayama is used to control the breath and slow it down. We can’t control the breath at the nostrils without using our fingers. But we can control the breath by constructing the throat muscles, as if we are sipping the breath through a tiny straw.

Making sense of things.

Making sense of things.

You have to have context in order to make sense of things. It’s really important that we understand how Classical Yoga Philosophy compares to the other philosophies which competed with yoga, as a way to understand the world and our place in it, around 2000 yrs ago. These philosophies influenced each other and influence traditional yoga practices. Modern yoga classes are using these traditional yoga practices. It’s important to understand why. What is the goal of these practices? And, once reaching the goal, what is the experience once we are there? If you want to learn more about yoga philosophy, please join me for one of my Shiva Yoga Teacher Training programs next year. We have a 200hr program in Cabo San Lucas next year July 15-August 16 and we have a 300hr program, spread over 3 modules, in the fall, in Port Orange, Florida! Check out the upcoming trainings page! Now, is the time for yoga!

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Teaching Others.

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Teaching Others.

When you practice teaching others, you learn so much about what you know and what you don’t know. Our students, and teaching itself, is such a good mirror for us. Just like in your own practice, the yoga mirror shows you the things you need to look at, and the areas that are disconnected. Are you being effective when you are teaching, or not? Are you communicating with your students? Do they understand the things you are sharing? The real measure of a good teacher is not what you can do on your mat yourself, but how effective are you at connecting with your students, helping them to grow and transform. Show me pictures of your students. I want to see them. I want to see what they have learned. I want to meet them. Are they closer to balance? Are they more Sattvic? Do they have a deeper relationship with themselves, and deeper relationships with other people and the world around them?

The relationship with yourself.

The relationship with yourself.


I met with my student, Andrew Oliver, last week in the Southbay. Andrew traveled to Cabo for our Shiva Yoga 200hr Program in August. I had lunch with him and his partner, Ei Ei — they own the yoga studio, ‘Yoga Remedy’s’ together. Andrew did an incredible job in the training program in Cabo and I was excited to hear that he’s now teaching 2 classes a week at Yoga Remedy’s. He told me that several people in his life came up to him when he returned from Cabo and asked him what he had started doing recently because they noticed this really positive shift in him, and one friend even said it was like he was a whole different person. This yoga technology will change your life. There is no more important relationship you will have than the relationship with yourself. When you change this relationship, it changes your relationship to everything. Proud of you, Andrew!

Teaching and The Yoga Mirror.

Teaching and The Yoga Mirror.

When you practice teaching others, you learn so much about what you know and what you don’t know. Our students, and teaching itself, is such a good mirror for us. Just like in your own practice, the yoga mirror shows you the things you need to look at, and the areas that are disconnected. Are you being effective when you are teaching, or not?

Call 310.800.8614
mail@garthhewittyoga.com