Each class is contextualised by yama and niyama (see above: first and second aspects of yoga)

We teach ujjayi prananyama, a powerful breathing technique that detoxifies the lungs and energises the whole body. It also soothes the mind, inviting a state of peaceful inner awareness that leads to deep concentration and eventually meditation.

We teach vinyasa, a flowing movement of yoga postures that uses the breath as a thread onto which each asana is mindfully linked, like threading shells onto a necklace.

We teach bandha, a musculo-energetic technique that maximizes the life force (prana) in the core of the body. When successfully perfomed together, the whole body raadiates with pranha, bringing a characteristic flow and lightness to the practice.

We also teach meditation techniques including tratak (candle gazing) and vipasana (clear seeing).

In the west, Yoga is mainly practiced for physical fitness and mental relaxation. These valuable attributes are considered mere by-products, for as you will experience through regular practice, yoga is essentially a path to self-knowledge. The techniques of Yoga are designed to remove the obstacles to enlightenment. Enlightenment is also known as self-realizaion, liberation, salvation.

For thousands of years humanity has been perplexed by philosophical questions, such as: 'Who am I? What is my purpose? What happens after death? I have everything money can buy, yet I still want more. Will I ever feel at peace? Why can't I stop my mind thinking? I am a loser and nobody loves me, so I can never be happy'. These are some of our oldest questions that have never been answered by science, nor settled by philosophy alone.

Patanjali recognised that in order to answer such spiritual questions a different form of enquiry is needed. The science he developed is outlined by his eight-fold philosophy of 'Ashtanga yoga', also known as Raja yoga.

Patanjali's Ashtanga system describes eight clearly defined layers that should be applied to all yoga techniques. The specific techniques of asana (posture) and pranayama (breathing) are not mentioned by Patanjali, since in ancient India the student would already receive guidance in these practices from a master yogi. We also need the guidance of experienced teachers who know the path and can help us to avoid the many pitfalls. The layers of Ashtanga yoga are like the facets of an 8-sided diamond: each face is a window looking into the inner space of the diamond. Likewise, each of Patanjali's layers is like a lense, giving insight into our innermost essential nature.

The first two layers define the Method of practice: yama and niyama (ten positive qualities that become the main focus during yoga practice). The 3rd and 4th aspects refer to practical techniques for developing harmony in the body-mind: asana and pranayama (posture, movement, extension, stillness and breath). Once the student's physical body is at ease and his/her mind is able to relax deeply without falling asleep, then the student is ready to access higher states of consciousness through meditation in which the nature of the Self is explored: pratyahara, dharana, dhyana and samadhi (see explanation below).

Each time we practice yoga we continue to unravel the layers of mental process behind our actions and perceptions: then gradually we become free from habit, social conditioning and prejudice: then we begin to experience reality as it is, rather than as it seems.

To practice yoga is to explore your inner world, to look deeply within and go beyond your 'thinking ego self'. When this investigation is deep, and when the experience is authentic, the inherent wholeness and unity of all things is immediately realized and you are at one with the source of universal love, truth, compassion, liberation, salvation, enlightenment.

2. Nyama - five positive qualities of action that develop out of the practice of yama. Note that these qualities direct our mind inwards, not into thought, but into the source of awareness itself.

saucha: purity of intent (commitment to practice).
santosha: contentment (equanimity of mind under stress)
tapas: austerity (passionate focus on the nature of reality)
svadhyaya: self-study (uncovering the true nature of being human)
ishvarapranidhana: self-surrender (directly experiencing the source of all action and choice so that the true identity of the self is realised).

Limbs 3 & 4: The Techniques

3. Asana - a heightened state of body-mind in a yoga posture. For asana to occur we must be comfortable, steady and free from tension, then we are ready to experience unity within opposites. Patanjali is not as concerned about shapes as he is with ease and steadiness of the posture so that we can relax into and beyond the apparent physical boundaries of our body-mind. This is difficult to describe because while in a state of heightened awareness our thinking mind is virtually asleep, yet awareness itself is fully alert and free from being diverted through the conditioned filter of the thinking mind. The state of asana awakens the body’s intelligence, releasing it from its conditioned limitations and bringing the body-mind into harmony.

4. Pranayama - a state within asana whereby awareness of the breath becomes very subtle and there is no obvious separation between breather and breathing.

Limbs 5 to 8: Meditative Awareness

5. Pratyahara - withdrawal of the senses: a transitional stage in meditative awareness where the senses begin to lose their power over the mind. The mind experiences non-duality during meditative internalization.

6. Dharana - the mind becomes internalized in meditative concentration and is focussed on a single source.

7. Dhyana - the unravelling of perception. The inner activity of the mind is understood in meditative contemplation.

8. Samadhi - subject and object are perceived as one and the same thing. The mind becomes absorbed and established in its transcendental nature.