Event Description
Saturdays in Autumn | 4:00pm - 6:30pm
Yoga Philosophy Crash Course
FREE
Ever wonder why you should bother standing in a room full of people silently making strange shapes with their bodies? Do you take a yoga class every week but wish you knew more about where the poses come from? Are you a teacher who wants to better understand yoga’s roots, whether to deepen your own practice or to help inform your teaching?
Beginners, practitioners, and teachers can all benefit from this crash course on the foundational philosophy that underpins every type of yoga. Across 4 sessions, we’ll survey this vast landscape of teachings and techniques to paint a high-level picture of how they all fit together.
It’s completely free, so you’re welcome to drop in on whichever weeks interest you most. Yoga isn’t just one thing though, and if you come for all four weeks you may discover something new to love or inspire you about the practice.
We ask that you please RSVP below so we have an idea how many people will be attending.
Facilitator
Mike Saccone
This course will take place at Una, a new yoga studio in downtown Portland.
Click here to learn more →
Partner
Course Details
Week 1 - Core Philosophy
October 10 | 4:00pm - 6:30pm
What do we mean when we use the word ‘yoga’? Why is this word used to refer to so many different things?
What is the historical context within which yoga—both traditional and modern—developed?
How have these teachings been passed down to us from then until now? How have they evolved over time?
Is yoga a philosophy? A religion? A type of exercise?
What is the ultimate goal of yoga?
What is the nature of consciousness? How does it interact with the physical world we inhabit?
At the heart of yoga is the idea that the nature of our consciousness is different from what it appears to be. Because we are ignorant to our true nature, we act in ways that are harmful to others and often also to ourselves. Yoga teaches a path (or many paths) back to our truest and highest selves. To directly experience the truth of who we really are is the goal of every type of yoga.
Join us this week as we cut straight to the core and discuss what the point of these practices is and who can benefit from them (spoiler: everyone). We’ll cover the history of yoga (both classical and modern) for context before diving into a heady discussion of consciousness, matter, unity, duality, transcendence, and the limitless potential within each and every one of us.
Primary Text: The Upanishads
NOTE: If you are at all intimidated by philosophy, don’t worry. While the underlying concepts are deep, the truths that yoga teaches are simple. You don’t need a PhD to benefit from this week’s topics.
Week 2 - Walking the Spiritual Path
October 24 | 4:00pm - 6:30pm
Is yoga only for certain types of people?
Do my physical or mental limitations mean that I can’t practice yoga effectively?
Is there only one way to practice, or are there many? Do all paths share the same goal?
Does yoga practice conflict with my religion?
What does yoga look like outside of the studio?
What is karma? What is dharma? What is samsara, the cycle of reincarnation?
Can I practice yoga earnestly while living in the modern world?
How does one practice yoga off the mat? This is a question with many answers. While the goal of yoga is singular, there are different paths by which to reach it, and there are challenges faced by those who seek spiritual growth or try to earnestly apply the teachings of yoga to their lives. In week 2, we’ll discuss some of these paths and challenges through the lens of an important ancient text on yoga.
The Bhagavad Gita tells the story of Arjuna, a hero and quintessentially good person who has been wrongfully exiled from a kingdom of which he is the rightful ruler. Part of a larger epic tale, it relates the difficult moment when Arjuna realizes what he must do in order to set things right. With layers upon layers of meaning, the Bhagavad Gita is like a guide to the spiritual life, showing us safe paths to tread while sharing advice for the dangers we may encounter along the way.
Primary Text: Bhagavad Gita
Week 3 - Physical Practices
November 7 | 4:00pm - 6:30pm
Where do the physical postures (asanas) come from?
What do breathing and breathing practices (pranayama) have to do with yoga?
Why does practicing physical postures seem to affect my mood, mind, and emotions?
What is the ‘subtle body’?
What are the nadis, the chakras, and the koshas?
Is physical yoga practice healthy? Is it dangerous?
What does physical yoga practice have to do with meditation?
Hatha yoga teaches that the physical body is just one piece of who we are. It provides a collection of ‘maps’ or ‘models’ that help us understand the layers of the self beyond the physical body. These layers are distinct but also deeply interwoven, so changes in one can ripple out and affect the others. When seen in our totality, each of us is a microcosm that reflects the structure and nature of the entire universe.
In week 3, we’ll discuss using the energies of both our physical and subtle bodies as powerful tools to enhance our yoga practice. The methods taught in Hatha yoga (often translated as the ‘yoga of force’) are some of the most direct and effective ways to change our bodies and minds. This week, we’ll discuss some of these practices and explore how placing your body in unusual shapes and breathing in a certain way can, over time, begin to change your life.
Primary Text: Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Week 4 - Mental Practices
November 21 | 4:00pm - 6:30pm
How is meditation related to yoga? What style of meditation do yogis practice?
What are the 8 limbs (ashtanga) of yoga?
How can yoga practice change the nature and improve the function of the mind?
Why do we sometimes chant OM at the beginning or end of a yoga class?
What are mantras and what is the point of working with them?
How do different types of yoga practice relate to each other?
Can the entire practice of yoga be summed up in four short sentences?
The mind is an extremely powerful tool, but only when it can be properly used. Unconscious and deeply ingrained patterns of mind dominate the average person’s thinking and behavior. We are enslaved by our desires and imprisoned by our identities. With certain tools and techniques, we can break free of these patterns and learn to master our own minds. The mind is like a mirror, yoga teaches, and when we repair, clean, and polish it well, we can turn it to anything we wish—including ourselves—and see with absolute clarity.
Yoga is the stilling of the fluctuations of the mind, according to a seminal—and in today’s world, the most widely known and celebrated—text on yoga called the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. It describes in detail many different paths of yoga and often succeeds in reconciling them to present an exhaustive but coherent perspective on how to practice. Less concerned with philosophy than experience and results, it’s an eminently practical guidebook that many dedicated yogis return to again and again as their practice deepens.
Primary Text: Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
NOTE: This session could be considered the summary and culmination of all that was discussed in prior weeks. If you can only make it to one session, try to attend this one. If you did attend the three prior sessions, you may find that this week’s topics tie them all together.
Please RSVP
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