Flow Like Water

We soared through September and October with birds and flying-themed poses, and now we coast from sky to sea (or a great lake!) with our November focus: FLOW LIKE WATER.  And what better element than water to embrace the season’s changes: fluid, ever-moving, adaptable.  We’ll tap into this theme in so many ways, from bobbing along, coasting the shore, or diving to greater depths.

 

Floating the surface level of our theme, already we have so many wonderful poses to play with: fish pose 🐟, dolphin 🐬, boat ⛵.  Maybe we invite some stability through this fluid element with bridges and planks!  Exploring less familiar poses, like mermaid, swan, half lord of the fishes, lotus and crab.  Reimagining some beloved poses like legs up the wall, which is also known as “waterfall” as the fluids of the legs cascade downward toward the heart through our inner river systems and the nervous system calms, soothing like gently running water.  Or warrior II- “surfer’s pose”- can you bring fresh feelings of exhilaration, buoyancy, and softening as you imagine truly surfing a wave, gazing forward far along the shore to the horizon?

 

And let’s dive a little deeper into our concepts, yogis!  Rolling, spinal waves from child’s pose to cobra, or from down dog to plank.  Undulating, rippling through fluid continuous movement of the spine and hips in a circle-sweeping table top.  Swimming the arms in locust pose and halfway lifts.  Breathing with the audible sound of gently crashing waves– Ujjayi, the “ocean breath.”  Or even having a moment of gratitude for the very gift of every fresh new breath, thinking of moments where we submerge under water and stay a couple of extra heartbeats long enough to really enjoy the triumphant big pull of air that comes in as we splash above the water’s surface.  And as the days grow shorter and we feel within us the moments of retrospection that often come with fall to winter, may we allow the most healing and transformative of waters to ebb from our eyes, whether just a shimmering drop at a time or a well-needed flood, allowing not just our physical bodies but our emotions to flow unblocked, resisting stagnation and knowing that the dams and barriers we force up cannot sustain for always. 

 

And sweet yogis, what if we were to FLOW– like really really flow!  Smooth fluid transitions between poses, sweeps of the arms from one position to the next without hesitation, allowing subtle bobbing of the head and swirling of the hips, circular continuous smooth-breathing, cycling through right and left sides without a still landing, ever flowing pushing pulling endless tides of water that we are!  

 

I am so carried away with our new theme already, and I hope you’ll ride with the current with us this month, too.  Let’s go with the flow, ride the waves, and fully submerge into this new season at Funky Buddha as we FLOW LIKE WATER.  Stay hydrated, stay afloat, and we’ll SEA you soon!