Ashtanga Yoga Opening Chant

Following a recent article in the Sunday Times magazine, where the journalist suggested that a lot of people have no idea what they are chanting in their yoga class, here is the Sanskrit version of the Ashtanga Yoga Opening Chant along with the English translation. Enjoy!!

om
vande gurunam charanaravinde
sandarshita svatma sukhava bodhe
nih shreyase jangalikayamane
samsara halahala mohashantyai
abahu purusakaram
shankhacakrasi dharinam
sahasra shirasam shvetam
pranamami patanjalim
om

The opening chant translated to English:

Om
I bow to the lotus feet of the gurus,
The awakening happiness of one’s own self revealed,
Beyond better, acting like the jungle physician,
Pacifying delusion, the poison of samsara.
Taking the form of a man to the shoulders,
Holding a conch, a discus, and a sword,
One thousand heads white,
To Patanjali, I salute.
Om

Comments

Neti pot

When I was training to be a yoga teacher, one of the 6 purification techniques taught to us was Jala Neti ( also called Neti or Jaaneti). Purification techniques are sometimes performed as a way of preparing the body for a yoga practice. Whenever the neti pots came out, I disappeared, always needing to be somewhere else at that moment in time… I had many techniques to avoid it: the bathroom, the water fountain, the shop, anything but the Net. Pouring a saline solution up my hooter was really not for me and I have avoided it right up to today. I have got a steaming cold and, as a result, I now have sinus pain, so I have decided to give it another go. Talk about waiting until your back is against the wall! I rushed to the Sivanada yoga studio nearby and bought myself a ceramic neti pot and salt. I had to follow the one photographic image as the instructions were in German!!! Although I did not find it as unpleasant as some people describe, it was not as bad as I remembered. So I will us...

Sharath Jois in London 2013

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All about the balance

A snap from inside my fridge this week. The mix of wine, beer and Vita Coca sort of sums up my family really. The ones that drink wine and beer don't go in for the coco water, and the coco water drinker doesn't go in for wine or beer. In summary, none of us need worry about the other nicking all the drinks. :-)

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