Let Us Rise Up...

I am so grateful for hip hop music. I am grateful for the inspiration that it gives me to move my body freely, fluidly and without any restrictions. I'm grateful that it lead me to teaching "HIP HOP YOGA" classes, where everyone simply let's loose, has fun, and moves into their inner Golden Buddha. I am grateful for our amazing community, of which is scattered around the globe. This morning Kelly Croce drove down from Villanova, Michael and Maddie came up from Cape May, The Greens were in from Chicago, Paige was in from colorado, and Gene was in from Michigan. The crew was back together again, and it was amazing. I am particularly grateful for Jeff,one of my favorite yoga students, who celebrated his birthday this year with us, booty popping, gangsta-MUDRA-throwin' and singing to the top if his lungs. I am so happy, so thankful, and so full of love! Namaste...muthafuckas! 

 Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us be thankful. --The Buddha

Sent from my iPad

Thanksgiving

 

This was the second Thanksgiving without my Dad. Last year was tough...it had only been a few weeks since he'd passed. My mom and I had spent the evening at the house, just the two of us, for a quiet, loving dinner...neither of us feeling up to the social encounters that the holiday holds. It was perfect and I was grateful for the alone time as part of my healing. This year I feel so much stronger than I was the last, and I feel a gentle peace and surrender when I think of my Dad. We did thanksgiving at home again this year, just the two of us, with me cooking a delicious and healthy dinner. We didn't talk about him much, but that's because we don't have to. Do you talk about the air? No, not really- but that's because it's everywhere...you just know. And that's how I feel about dad. So despite the inevitable sadness each day without him holds, I woke up smiling because he exists within me. And for that realization I'm grateful. God Bless.

Truly Seeing.

The Buddha says that to close your eyes you can truly see. Last nights workshop was about just that. By cutting off the vision, you are forced to look within. Who am I? What fears are keeping me from moving from my authentic self? Am I existing in my truth? This workshop helps you to cut through the clutter and get amongst your Divine self. To find balance and stability you must cultivate a strong, intentional breath....and you must LISTEN to this breath as you move.

I'm so grateful for everyone who came out, and who trusted me to guide them through this sensory yoga flow!

OCHS at OCZD

Shelby (5th one in) has been coming to class all summer. She always has a smile on her face, she asks amazing questions and you can feel her full devotion and presence to her practice. Yesterday she brought half of Ocean City High School with her to class (well, 7 of them...), for their first ever yoga experience. I had to tell the boys a few times to quiet down with the chatter, but they were GREAT. They were present, and giving their all to their practice. I was so grateful to have you youngn's in the studio and I am so grateful to share my passion with such an open and attentive audience. The theme and dharma talk of yesterdays class was about being YOU, authentic YOU, no matter how much people try to change that. It was something that resonated with them, and I was glad to hear the feedback through the grapevine later in the day....

"To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you like everybody else, means to fight the hardest battle that any human being can fight; and never stop fighting." -ee cummings

Fall Schedule

This is my Fall Schedule....which starts TUESDAY September 2nd!

Zen Den Fall/Winter Teacher Training

HipToDaHop

I love teaching yoga.
I love laughing.
I love dancing.
I love hip hop.
I love combining all of the above.
Bliss.

Good Days, Busy Days, Sweaty Days.

I have been working like a lunatic. It's all been good...because it's just yoga, massage and music (and a bit of catering...). But the other day I was feeling a bit exhausted, and I've been struggling with some shoulder pain lately that has really been raining on my parade. Anywho, my friend Erika sent this to me, and it was really the "pick me up" that I needed. I decided to share it with my classes that day - and it certainly resonated with them as well. Sometimes the "difficulty" that we overcame was waking up and not having enough creamer for our coffee. Sometimes the difficulty is the death of a loved one. Our traumas can be major or minor - and the heartbreak can be sharp and clean or long and drawn out. No matter what phase or pain we have experienced - guess what...we are still here. So, go us! There are challenging days, always, but sweating it out on the mat with my fellow yogis always helps to put things into perspective. I particularly love it when vacationers come back for a week and we get to reconnect. Julianne and her man Greg popped in the studio, after one full year had past, and Jules shared with me that my classes changed her life. She'd moved from being a person who lived and moved from a place a fear- to someone who is now powerful and amazing. Yep, you can bet that turned my day around. I am so grateful to be working so hard at a job that I love. Go me. I'm awesome. Boom. 

After a crazy long day I met up with my mom for dinner at Main Street Cafe in Cape May Court House. There food is freaking ammmmazing, and the place itself is exactly what I want in a restaurant - beautiful, cozy and dimly lit. We split oysters on the half shell and their salt-hay oysters as an appetizer...and then pretty much worked our way through their menu (with me only eating candida-friendly, of course!). I'm so grateful for such a delicious meal, some one on one time with my Mom, and the amazing service that is offered up at this little gem of a restaurant. 

Beautiful.

Partners help us to twist...

The message from last nights workshop...

Beautiful practice.
Beautiful day.
Beautiful life.

I just added in Wednesday and Thursday mornings, 8-9am. I knew that it was going to be a bit slow, so I took advantage of the small classes to do some "partner" work. We lined up in two rows, facing one another, and helped eachother through balancing poses and into deep assists. It was a beautiful class and I was so grateful to share the practice with a great group of individuals. Later in the night I finally got to be the STUDENT! I went to Maura Manzo's workshop, "A Hustle and a Prayer", and it was about turning your hard work into heart work. I personally feel that I've already transformed the hard work into heart work, but a lot of what she was talking about was empowering me and my path. At the end we all picked out hearts from a bag and my message totally spoke to me: it said, "You have everything you need. BEGIN." And so, I've begun...

New Schedule!!

PAIGE...camped out in front of the studio so that she has a spot.She has given up her spot so that some newbies could try out the studio, but by day 3 she was ready to get there early and get her spot.....too funny to roll up on at 7 in the morning...

Hip Hop Vinyasa...HOLLA BITCHES.

So...to say that the classes at the Zen Den yoga studio in Ocean City have been "busy" would be an understatement. Every class this week we have fit the maximum capacity...30 people, and we have had to turn away dozens of saddened yogis. The solution? Add more classes. Duh. In addition to our regular schedule we will now be offering Wednesday and Thursday morning classes, 8-9am, led by yours truly. Which means that we now have 8-9am classes EVERY day of the week except MONDAYS. I have made some adjustments to my summer schedule, and I will *no longer* be teaching in Avalon except my Tuesday night 5:30pm class.

My summer schedule is as follows:

Mondays
9:30am-10:45am @ Margate Zen Den
6-8pm WORKSHOP SERIES @ Ocean City Zen Den
(*These are amazing and ALL levels, even if you've never done yoga before!)

Tuesdays
**New Addition* 7-8am @ 41st Street Beach, Ocean City ($10)
9:30am-10:45am @ Ocean City Zen Den
5:30pm-6:45pm @ Atilis in Avalon

Wednesdays
**New Addition* 8-9am @ Ocean City Zen Den
9:30am-10:45am @ Ocean City Zen Den
7:45pm-9pm YIN @ Living Well Holistic Center in Northfield

Thursdays
**New Addition* 8-9am @ Ocean City Zen Den

Fridays
9:30am-10:45am @ Ocean City Zen Den

Saturdays
8-9am @ Ocean City Zen Den
9:30am-10:45am @ Ocean City Zen Den

Sundays
7-8am @ 41st Street Beach Ocean City ($10)
*new time* 8:30am - 9:30am @ Ocean City Zen Den
*new time* 9:45am - 11am @ Ocean City Zen Den

Fierce Medicine

For the second day in a row we had to turn people away, with the room maxed out with 30 yogis, mat to mat. It was amazing. The love, the community...bliss- full blown bliss. I read an excerpt from Ana Forrests new book, Fierce Medicine. She writes about FEAR and it really resonates with me. She writes:

"...I decided to stalk my fear of heights. I'd perch on this tiny ledge high above a river filled with rocks. I'd stand there, at least twenty or twenty-five feet above the water, petrified, waiting for the fear to leave. But it never did- So I would jump anyway. I'd keep climbing up that ledge and jumping off five or six times, even though my heart hammered harshly in my chest. I realized the fear wasn't going to go away, but my paralysis within the fear would.

Sometimes I'd hesitate. I had this paradigm in my head: If I just stand here long enough, the fear will go away and I'll jump and I'll be fearless. That didn't happen. I discovered instead how not to be stopped by my fear. I tried stilling my fear by sitting down and breathing deeply, but that really wasn't all that helpful. After a while, I'd clamber all the way up and just jump right away so the fear wouldn't have time to build, the paralysis wouldn't deepen, and all the subterranean scary stories in my head couldn't bubble up. I didn't wait to feed the fear. I just took a deep breath, exhaled, and jumped. The fear was there, but it wasn't unmanageable. I'd believed that in order to do what I was afraid of, I had to get rid of the fear first, but that turned out to be only an idea, not the truth. You have to do something two hundred times before the fear will disperse. Are you still afraid of something? Just do it again. Do it again. Do it again.

1. Identify your fear.
2. Turn it around, hunt it, stalk it.
3. Stop making decisions based on fear.
4. Find the healing within the fear.
5. Snuggle up to your fear.

What exactly are you afraid of, and where did that fear come from? Start working that path of discovery. "

Gratitude to all the people who came out to class today, and to Ana Forrest for sharing her wisdom in her book Fierce Medicine.

Pranayama and Meditation

"The yogis life is not measured by the number of his days but by the number of his breaths." 

We had TWENTY TWO people in last nights Pranayama and Meditation workshop!! It was amazing! My favorite was a tie between the Brahmari breath and the Osho Dynamic (dancing shouting movement) mediation. 

Prana: life, breath, respiration, wind, energy, strength

Ayama: extension

Pranayama : "the extension of our life force" "the extension of breath and its control"

*Bhramari: (helpful with insomnia)

"The bee breath"

1. Close your eyes, index fingers on the lids

2. Tips of middle fingers touch under the nos

3. Tips of the ring fingers touch under the lips 

4. Pinky fingers connect under the chin

5. Thumbs press the ears closed 

Inhale, exhale with a HUM. 

- repeat continuously for two minutes

OSHO DYNAMIC MOVING MEDITATION:

1. Feet shoulder width apart. Soft knees. Emphasize exhalation. Avoid getting into a rhythm. 

2. Scream jump shake. Catharsis. 

3. Jump. HUH. 

4. Stillness 

5. DANCE 

22 People in the Pranayama Circle

THE ZEN DEN

It Begins!

The teacher training has begun! Arianne and I have been working our (super amazing yogini) asses off! For months! And now, the time is here! Last night was the kick-off to our six week teacher training certification program. We did a beautiful opening ceremony that involved food, chanting, puja, laughter and tears. I am SO excited for everyone in the training...myself included! It is going to be an amazing, challenging, beautiful, inspirational and transformational summer. Yahooooo!

All the trainees received a notebook and a flower...along with some blessed rosewood mala's from India!

The Altar.

Saging the sacred space...

This was only appetizers...later there was dinner! I was cooking all day long, but I wanted to start off the training by feeding the trainees...afterall, food is how I express my love!

Me + Arianne....Yin + Yang.....The Perfect Combination.

Don't worry if you couldn't be a part of our summer Yoga Teacher Training Certification (which is not only amazing and fun and jam-packed full of information, but it's also Yoga Alliance certified!), because we will be doing another one in the FALL! Set the intention now....

MONDAY NIGHT WORKSHOPS

Training and Workshops with Ari and Me.

WORKSHOPS

There's still time to sign up for our 200hour Yoga Alliance Certified Teacher Training Certification! It begins July 1st and ends August 15th. Whether you want to be a teacher or just deepen your practice it will be an amazing journey into the essence of yoga. If you can't make it to the training but were still looking to deeper your practice and understanding of yoga, you're in luck!! I'm teaching a Monday night lecture series as part of the training which will also be open to the public. The 7 week series begins July 1st, and can be done as a drop-in or you can save some money by signing up for all seven!

Monday Night Workshops

6pm - 8pm

@ Ocean City Zen Den Studio (900 Asbury Ave)

July 1st
1. Pranayama + Meditation: Using our breath to find peace of mind.

July 8th
2. Surya Namaskar: Salutations to the Life-Giving Sun! Explore the variations of sun salutations, their mantras, and the power they hold! (This is an asana class as well as a lecture class, please dress appropriately).

July 15th
3. AUM: Exploring the history of the universal sound "AUM" (including a blessed mala from India)!

July 22nd
4. Chakras: working through all seven of our energy centers, learning how to activate and empower each one. (Light asana)

July 29th
5. Chanting + Devotional Sound: Devotional singing is another way to practice yoga. Learn several famous chants to empower, and learn how to use a mala to help.

August 5th
6. Ida + Pingala: Opening and activating our two main energy lines through asana and pranayama. (This is an asana class as well as a lecture class, please dress appropriately).

August 12th
7. Sensory Yoga: Learn how to use your breath and intuition to guide you through a blindfolded yoga practice. (This is an asana class as well as a lecture class, please dress appropriately).

If you are interested in the workshops, please contact Arianne Green @ 609.335.6232 or email me @ cailin.callahan@gmail.com . The workshops are $40 drop-in or $210 for all seven (that's a $70 savings!)

MONDAYS.

I've decided that "days off" are for lame-o's, so I'm adding MONDAY MORNINGS in MARGATE to my schedule! Every Monday, starting tomorrow, at our margate Zen Den studio (101 N. Washington). See you there ;)

To Every Monk...

To Every Monk,

There Is A Path. 

For some, the path is yoga and in yoga the path may be chanting; for some it's asana; for others it's meditation. The point of the story is that there are several ways to climb the mountain and that's going to be unique to each of us. Around these parts I feel like people have only been introduced to one path: asana (postures). And after my time in India I made a commitment to myself and my community that I would teach authentically, from*the*heart, not just asana, but all the different paths...A well rounded person makes for a more open mind. I knew that along the way there would be people who didn't like the paths I was introducing and incorporating. I knew that there would be some people who loved it, and others who thought that I was crazy. But as I said, I made a commitment to honor the decision I made about teaching what's closest to my heart and what is so new and foreign to little South Jersey. Well, the other day it happened. One of my biggest fears. Someone hated what we were doing. And not just that, this person was so irritated that they got up and left in the middle of savasana as we were chanting. It threw me for a second. And then I was upset. And then I was slightly ticked off. And then I was hurt. And then I didn't care. Boom. A flurry of emotions in a matter of seconds. And then I took a breath in and out and all was good. We were chanting aum, all of us, while lying down in savasana. It was a continuous chant of aum for a few minutes as we were working on balancing our throat chakra. I definitely was asking people to come out of their comfort zone, but I was doing so in a fun way and in a safe and sacred space. It comes back to the saying "if you never try, you'll never know"...so I'm happy that some of you are open to trying. The gratifying bit is that after class I got a GREAT response from everyone else in class. They were ecstatic about all the new stuff that I added into class and even asked for more! In the end, you can't please everyone- and the first person that we need to please is ourselves. Authenticity, Authenticity, Authenticity. You can do no wrong when embracing your authentic nature. Blessings everyone! 

Cailin Callahan

www.cailincallahan.blogspot.com

Life is Short, Slow Down.

Life is too short to not be savored. 

Slow down. 

This is my thought for the day, which was the theme for the class I taught this morning. The most significant difference between the West (that'd be us) and the East (that'd be India) is not the cuisine, and it's not the language - no, the greatest difference is the pace at which we live our lives. Often times in the US we think the more, the faster, the better! In India I learned how to slow.down. As they say all over asia: "Shanti, Shanti", and "Slowly, Slowly". When you slow down you are able to savor every action and every person. When you slow down you are able to bring an awareness into your life that cannot exist when you are moving quickly. When you slow down you are able to make each and every act sacred. When the day comes for you to leave this life, if you have moved slowly - I promise you that you will be able to look back without regret...

Monday morning is to be my day off, but I had to cover today for Nicole Cuccinota - one of our teachers at the Zen Den. Nicole is a full power woman, and amazing mama, and the most devoted wife. Her husband Dean has cancer and has been fighting the good fight for quite some time now. He fights his battle with the same strength, integrity and grace that my father had....never complaining, never a "why me", and instead of counting the days that he WON'T have, he savors each and every moment that he DOES have. When I drove to the studio this morning, pondering what to teach and what to talk about, I couldn't help but to have a heavy heart. I cried most of the drive, varying between a few tears rolling down my face to full blown sobs. I feel so connected to the emotions that the Cuccinota family is going through: I feel their pain, their happiness, their heartbreak. And I remember, just last summer, savoring each.and.every.moment that we had - never rushing towards tomorrow, because today was such a beautiful blessing...

SO, today's class was a HATHA flow. A slow, mindful, deep, practice filled with awareness -- just as I'd practiced in India. By slowing down and tuning in, we gave each pose the dedication that it deserved. So on the mat, and in the world - stop trying to rush towards tomorrow, towards more, towards what's next ... but savor the moment. Because this moment is all that we have, and this moment is a blessing.

HipHopBootyPop

Despite having little-to-no-voice (I had to cancel last nights gig!), I managed to teach two packed classes this morning! The first class was a hip hop booty poppin' class, dj'd by my girl Kelly Croce Sorg! It was such a success, and I was flying SO high, that I decided to make my second class a hip hop booty popping flow as well! The theme of the class wasn't just vulgar music, shouting "holla muthafuka", or dancing like its 1999...but it was about LETTING GO, and the best way to let go is to loosen up! Tonight is a full moon, and the full moon is a powerful and auspicious time of month that encourages and empowers us to let go of anything that we are holding on to. Rumi puts it perfectly...

Dancing

Dance when you're broken open.

Dance when you've torn the bandage off.

Dance in the middle of fighting.

Dance in your blood.

Dance when you're perfectly free.

Struck, the dancer hears a tambourine inside her,

like a wave that crests into foam at the very top,

Begins.

Maybe you don't hear that tambourine,

or the tree leaves clapping time.

Close the ears on your head,

that listen mostly to lies and cynical jokes.

There are other things to see, and hear.

Music. Dance.

A brilliant city inside your soul!

--Rumi

So today in class, we let go of the lies and cynical jokes that we attach ourselves to, and just danced- celebrating the brilliant city inside our souls! 

the zen den

Come check us out at THE ZEN DEN!