First Workshop Series Begins 1st November 5.00-7.00pm AEST

Course Dates for First Workshop Series: Tues Nov 1, Nov 15, Nov 29, Dec 13
7am-9am London time (5pm-7pm AEST)

A Workshop series based on Embodying the Yoga Sutra

Although Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtra is often acknowledged as one of the key texts of yoga, for many contemporary practitioners much of Patañjali’s teaching remains mysterious and largely theoretical. Applying some of the ideas from an ancient ascetic tradition to our modern lifestyles requires skill, sensitivity and thought.

 Both Dave Charlton and Ranju Roy have studied and practiced within the tradition of TKV Desikachar for over 30 years. Drawing on their experiences with various teachers including TKV Desikachar, Peter Hersnack and Paul Harvey, as well as their many years of teaching and interacting with students, Dave and Ranju co-authored Embodying the Yoga Sūtra: Support, Direction and Space in 2019.

 The book takes sixteen of the key sūtras of Patañjali and devotes a single chapter to each one of them.  Ideas are fleshed out and we reference other concepts in the Yoga Sūtra as well as from related texts. At the end of each chapter, we present some practical ideas to embody our learning – to take it from the theoretical to the lived experience. And of course, practice requires practice!

(image: UK book cover)

Workshops on both theory and practice.

 These workshops will be divided into two sets of four sessions. In the first set of four workshops, we will present the key ideas from the first three chapters of Embodying the Yoga Sūtra. We will include additional ideas and thoughts so that the presentation isn’t just a repetition of the book, but a live and interactive teaching. These first four sessions will be largely discursive:

• Workshop 1: Embodying the Yoga Sūtra – an introduction exploring the context, history and relevance of the Yoga Sūtra
• Workshop 2: Following the Path – a deconstruction of YS1.1 where Patañjali invites us to actively engage with the practice of yoga.
• Workshop 3: Yoga is a State of Mind – a deconstruction of YS1.2 where Patañjali defines his understanding of what yoga is.
• Workshop 4: Starting from where you are – a discussion on the many forms that yoga can take. Here we use YS 3.6 as the inspiration for our exploration

The second set of four sessions will be practice based and will include āsana, prāṇāyāma and meditation. The ideas that we have presented in the first four sessions will be developed into specific relevant practices which can be used in your life to embody some of Patañjali’s teachings.

(image: international book cover)

Meet Ranju & Dave