Fall Schedule

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

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. 

AUM

Workshop #3 was om-mazaing! Thanks to everyone who came out! 

THE POWER OF SOUND:

Everything that exists in the physical,mental, emotional and spiritual realms does so on a vibratory basis (sound waves). So our universe is created through patterns of frequency. Our bodies are made of frequencies, which is why sound, light, music and chanting have the power to change our vibration (and heal an individual). Ancient teachings and modern science agree: all living things, all things in existence, are made up of vibrating, pulsing energy.

(From the story of creation from the Bible "In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God (John 1:1) both Christianity and Hinduism agree that in the beginning there was the vibration through which everything was brought into being). 

^^^ The sound OM most closely resembles this cosmic vibration. "The whole universe comes out of a single vibration … whether we call it the 'Big Bang Theory' or we call it 'AUM,' it's the same thing. There is a single vibration that went forth from pure consciousness and elaborated itself so much that, eventually, it created the impression that there are solid things here, physical things here."

Our sound absorption is similar to our digestive system. Whenever sounds enter our ear it meets our eardrum creating a vibrating effect. The sound then moves through our bones and tissues and reaches every cell in our body. Our brain then analyzes and processes the sound. These vibrations created by sound move through the whole body, releasing (pent up) energies and negative emotions. Just as a sound can disturb someone, sounds can also help us to relax, soothing the nerves and generating positive endorphins- cleansing the mental and emotional systems. 

---------------

MANTRAS / CHANTS :

Mantras, when repeated, help 

-the mind to achieve a sense of balance

-produce certain positive vibrations 

-elevate the mind to a higher level of consciousness

-cleanses the system of its negative energies and vibrations 

"Contemporary medical research has shown that chanting and other forms of vocalization actually oxygenate the cells, lower blood pressure and heart rate, increase lymphatic circulation, increase levels of melatonin, reduce stress-related hormones, [and] release endorphins19." 

By chanting this great mantra, we can better align ourselves with the energy of the heart; as with a finely tuned instrument, we can then offer ourselves more fully from a place of clarity and connection."

The Sound OM:

-considered to be the manifested sound of the Divine, it is the most holy sound of the Sanskrit language. 

-to be healthy means to be "whole" or "holy", and it is said that this can be achieved by continually chanting OM, bringing perfect wholeness to each cell

-one of the best ways to *bring the vibration of unity into the diversity of creation* is to chant OM (this is why we begin and end class with OM)

Sounds are usually created when two objects come together, hitting one another (cymbals, drums, vocal chords, waves against the shore). OM is not, and therefore is known as the "unstruck sound", the sound of primal energy. 

---------------

MANDUKA UPANISHADS and AUM:

Upanishads are a collection of philosophical texts which form the theoretical basis for the Hindu religion. There are more than 200 knowing Upanishads, and the Manduka Upanishad contains the first and most definitive explanation of the divine syllable AUM, the cosmic vibration that underlies all existence. 

The Manduka Upanishad is the shortest of the Upanishads. It's only 12 verses long, breaking down the mystic syllable Aum. 

The four elements of AUM represent the four planes of consciousness:

-the 3 psychological states of waking, dreaming and sleeping

-the transcendent 4th state of illumination

There are 3 letters in the word AUM:

A: stands for a state of wakefulness, where we experience externally through our minds and sense organs 

*pronounced "ah" as in father

U: stands for the dream state, in which inward experiences are available

*pronounced "u" as in who

M: stands for deep sleep, where there is no desire and consciousness is gathered in upon itself. THIS IS LIKE LOCKING THE DOOR TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD AND REACHING DEEP INSIDE OURSELVES

*humming with lips gently closed 

Silence ("Turya"): the fourth, transcendent state: 

neither inward-turned nor outward-turned consciousness; neither knowing, nor unknowing; invisible, ineffable, intangible, devoid of characteristics, inconceivable, indefinable; it's sole essence being the consciousness of its own Self; utterly quiet; peaceful; bliss; without a second; this is the Atman, the Self. This is the silence at the end of the sacred syllable. WHEN YOU REALLY FOCUS ON THE SILENT SOUND, YOU COME INTO THE PRESENCE OF STILLNESS, PRESENCE AND PEACE. 

"creation, sustenance, dissolution, and reabsorption"

Realms of Experience:

A: jagrat (waking state/ conscious state)

U: swapna (dreaming state/ subconscious state)

M: shushupti (deep sleep state/ unconscious state)

Three Gunas (according to yoga the human body and mind are made up of three gunas, which are principles or tendencies):

A: rajas - passion and dynamism

U: sattwa - harmony, clarity, light

M: tamas - ignorance, darkness 

*the silence represents the transcendence of all three Gunas-- pure consciousness. 

Three principles of existence:

A: Brahma (creator)

U: Vishnu (sustainer)

M: Shiva (destroyer)

*the silence represents the underlying reality which underlies and is beyond that which is created, sustained and destroyed. 

Sent from my iPhone

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 ;)

SweatFest

sam, pre-sweat

sam and i, post sweat.

adena and i, full power, en route to ZUMBA

this is where the magic happens....

I love going to yoga, and I love CrossFit...and now I love Zumba! I know that it seemed like a bit much, but my Monday/Tuesday fitness-sweatfest-extravaganza was just what the doctor ordered. My CrossFit partner in crime Samantha joined me at the Zen Den on Monday night for (her first ever) SWEAT class. Well, holy shitballs! It was the sweatiest sweat class that I have ever been to. At one point I started laughing out loud because the heat was that unbearable. Sam looked at me once and said, "Seriously, I couldn't fucking sweat anymore if I tried". Afterwards I felt great though and I hugged all my yogis goodbye...dashing into my car and speeding off to meet Adena for our Zumba date. This Zumba class cannot be put into words...it was one of the most unique experiences I've had round these parts. Armando was our teacher, a long haired, very flamboyant, sass-for-days late-20-something Hispanic man with liquid hips. The Zumba center was in the Cardiff circle in Pleasantville...so the eclectic crowd in there was entertaining in and of itself. The Spanish girls there certainly had the best moves and they compromised most of the first row (which is probably the funniest part of the story: all of the classes in the Zumba center are only $3, but Armando's classes are $5 and if you want to be in the front row in front of the mirror it's $7!). His classes get packed, and rightly so- his enthusiasm is contagious and he has got some wicked sweet dance moves. Now I have always prided myself on being an amazing dancer, but I've never really followed instructions to well (dance classes and salsa lessons were epic fails). So, needless to say, I struggled with the planned steps and moves, but I still managed to keep up and shake my booty! It was so liberating to sweat and sweat, then dance and dance and dance...it was just what the doctor ordered. The next morning, 5:30am crossfit....yeeeeew buddy!

Holding Space.

Wow. What a beautiful day yesterday was. What a beautiful afternoon. What a great night, and what a sad evening. I won't begin to try to understand how our emotions change as quickly as they do - I just accept it. Nothing is permanent, especially not our emotions. The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche says...

"Learning to live is learning to let go...there's nothing wrong with the desire to be happy, but what we grasp on to is by nature ungraspable. Taking impermanence truly to heart is to be slowly freed from the idea of grasping, from our flawed and destructive view of permanence, from the false passion for security on which we have built everything. Slowly it dawns on us that all the heartache we have been through from grasping at the ungraspable was, in the deepest sense, unnecessary."

Then Sogyal Rinpoche goes on to give us an experiment...

"Pick up a coin. Imagine that it represents the object at which you are grasping. Hold it tightly clutched in your fist and extend your arm, with the palm of your hand facing the ground. Now if you let go or relax your grip, you will lose what you are clinging onto. That's why you hold on. 

But there's another possibility. You can let go and yet keep hold of it. With your arm still outstretched, turn your hand over so that it faces the sky. Release your hand and the coin still rests on your open palm. You let go. And the coin is still yours, even with all this space around it. So there is a way in which we can accept impermanence and still relish life, at one and the same time, without grasping."

I always say that we are as happy or as sad as we make up our minds to be....but that doesn't mean that we won't be sad, so don't misunderstand me. Mooji would say that you have to feel whatever emotions come up, but you don't have to PURCHASE them. So hold space for them (keeping your palm open) but don't hold on to them (palm facing down, holding tight). And sometimes sadness can even be a beautiful thing - which helps to season us, to help us grow. Hafiz says....

*My Eyes So Soft*

Don't surrender your loneliness so quickly

let it cut more deep.

Let it ferment and season you

as few human or even divine ingredients can

Something missing in my heart tonight

has made my eyes so soft

my voice so tender

my need of god 

absolutely clear.

--Hafiz

So last night, after the most amazing day, I held space for my sadness. I'm adjusting to life back in South Jersey. I'm adjusting to life without my dad. I'm adjusting to being a daughter living back in my mothers home. I'm adjusting to a full work schedule. I'm adjusting to a life that is different than the one I was just living all winter. So sadness will come, and sadness is okay - as long as I don't try to force myself to GRASP at the happiness I've felt, and as long as I don't purchase the sadness that is simply passing through. So, I'm holding space...for anything that comes up. I cried myself to sleep last night, cuddled into the guest bed in Luther and Adenas home. And then I woke up this morning, feeling fresh and okay. I sat on their porch, cuddled their sweet Biscuit, and then got on with my day.

Impermanence. 

Holding Space.

Breathe In.

Breathe Out.

How can you be sad when your cuddled by this handsome face? Biscuit!

Small Spaces.

The prius, filled to the brim!

The Zen Den, packed to the max with 28 people!

trunk sale of all my winter treasures!

just a preview of some of the goods...

just a preview of some of the goods...

We managed to pack months worth of treasures into my little prius. Then I was off to the studio to teach my Sunday morning class, where we packed 29 people into a studio that could.not.fit.another.limb. Seriously, we were wall to wall - and it was amazing! The energy was bursting out through the walls. Amazing. Directly following class we started to unload the car and fill the studio space with all of the eclectic bits and pieces that I'd collected throughout my winter away. The sale was a great success, and I still have a ton of stuff to sell - which I will be peddling via my online Etsy store......

Vagabond Ramblings

I haven't put anything on the shop yet, but I will be adding items slowly throughout the week, so be sure to check back! If you are a friend of mine, it'd be best to tell me what it is on the site that you'd like and we will work out payment away from the Etsy site :)

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!

Yoga, Presents and Green Smoothies.

kellys gift for me....a "lets fucking reminisce" photo album!

krissy e in a perfect bind.

manipura chakra!!!

kellys scorpion variation

driving and drinking green smoothies, going from one job to another and getting ready for a surf!

To say that I love my job would be an understatement. I am truly truly grateful to be able to support myself by doing what I *love*. It has been wonderful to come home and be able to flow right back into the rhythm of summer. This morning I taught two classes, one in Avalon and one in OC, and both were full of familiar smiling faces. Between classes I stopped home to blend up a super power kale smoothie and to grab my longboard- and then it was off to OC. I was received with hugs and presents (thank you Kelly for the hysterical photo album, and damn you Diane for those delicious chocolate caramels!!). Life is good!

Body Work + Healing

This summer I am offering up all sorts of amazing healing, from both a physical and energetic approach. I have started to do one on one training with the amazing Rose Griscam, taking my Thai Massage to the next level - and while in India I studied Reiki, Marma, and working with Gems. 

Thai Massage: 

Thai massage, thai yoga massage, thai yoga therapy are all names used for this form of bodywork that is based on Ayurvedic medicine and yoga. It's a combination of acupressure, energy meridian work, and yoga-like stretching. No oil is used and the client remains completely clothed throughout the session. It's based on the theory of the flow of energy between specific points on the periphery of the body and the internal organs. The acupressure points stimulate and relax the patients mind and body, promoting a natural healing processes. It improves circulation, flexibility, and muscle tone. Thai massage helps in repairing damaged tissue. The blend of acupressure and stretching is especially beneficial for those who are stiff, sore, or tired from over-exertion, and those suffering from arthritis. It encourages lymphatic function and the deep tissue massage helps to detoxify the body, heighten the immune system, and prevent disease and injury by promoting flexibility and supple joints. 

Reiki:

Reiki is a Japanese word meaning "Universal Life Energy", the divine life-giving force. 

Reiki energy has five effects:

-Deep relaxation

-Dissolves energy blockages

-Detoxifies

-Supplies healing universal life-force energy

-Increases the vibrational frequency of the body

Marma Massage:

Marma massage is a form of acupressure where specific points throughout the body are stimulated by applying pressure. There are 117 "prana points" in our body that can become congested or stagnant, and by stimulating this point you help chi to flow to the area - moving energy that is felt emotionally and physically. Marma massage is great as a therapeutic approach for specific injuries, ailments and pain (vertigo, menstrual pain, congestion, chronic headaches, shoulder pain, suppressed sadness, etc etc). 

Gems:

Using the natural and powerful healing power of gems to move energy, help promote a natural release of stagnant emotions, and create an overall feeling of well being. 

I have handpicked (with a pendulum!) gems from sacred places in India and Sri Lanka for healing work.

PRICE LIST:

• Thai Massage
: $80/75minutes

• Reiki
: $50/60minutes

• Marma Massage
: price varies based on therapeutic focus and treatment

• Full Body Healing
(blend of thai massage, reiki, marma, and gems): $100 for treatment (lasting from 75min - 120minutes)

Call 609.338.8125 or email cailin.callahan@gmail.com to schedule appointment.