Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Yoga Hope Helps Salute the Spirit
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On Sunday, October 28th, beginning at 8am, the city of Boston could experience an atmospheric shift, a subtle change in pressure as massive amounts of positive, healing energy pour out of the Mind Body Studios at the Sports Club/LA during the transformative yoga event, Saluting the Spirit, 108 Sun Salutations.
Saluting the Spirit is a yoga fundraising event which will benefit the non-profit organizations Pathways to Wellness and Yoga Hope. The Honorary Event Chairs, Ana Forrest, creator of Forrest Yoga and Patricia Walden the renowned Iyengar yoga teacher, embody the prestige of this event and the significance for the yoga community in Boston.
This is the fifth year Pathways to Wellness has organized such an event, bringing together Boston’s best yoga teachers to lead students through 108 sun salutes. Pathways to Wellness works to provide high quality holistic care like acupuncture and shiatsu to people who might not otherwise have access or be able to pay for it.
Yoga Hope was invited this year to join the event the Sports Club/LA. Yoga Hope’s founder, Sue Jones, says her organization’s mission fits perfectly with the event’s mission. Yoga Hope is a relatively young non-profit started by Jones to bring the benefits of yoga to underserved women in treatment facilities for recovery from domestic violence, substance abuse, eating disorders, homelessness and other traumatic experiences.
Jasmine of Yoga Hope explains that the number 108 has deep significance in the yogic tradition. For example:
• 108 is the number of “Upanishads” comprising Indian philosophy’s “Vedic texts”
• 108 is the number of names for Shiva in Hindu philosophy
• 108 is the number of names for Buddha
• 108 is the number of beads on a Tibetan “mala” a strand of beads used in meditation
• 108 is twice the number “54”, which is the number of sounds in Sanskrit
Also, “there is an ancient tradition of dedicating the practice of 108 sun salutations to honor those listed above. Others practice 108 sun salutations and dedicate them to people in need or a special cause.”
This is exactly the goal Jones had when starting Yoga Hope. Yoga helped her pull herself out of a deep depression, and she wanted to share the benefits with women in situations and places in which they never would have been exposed to yoga.
“Our practice is restorative, nurturing, healing.” she says, explaining that often women they teach are immobile or have serious physical limitations and they come to the mat with bad feelings about themselves. “Here you come on to your mat and you drop your judgment.”
After the 108 sun salutations have been completed and the inspiration spread around, Sports Club/LA will host a Wellness Fair to reward everyone’s hard work. The club’s restaurant Blu will be open, Pathways to Wellness will offer acupuncture, massage, and shiatsu, and Lululemon will roll out their latest yoga gear.
There is still room available to sign up for this transformative event- Register online now! http://www.firstgiving.org/salutingthespirit
Saluting the Spirit, 108 Sun Salutations
Sunday, October 28
The Mind Body Studios at the Sports Club/LA-Boston
Comments
Robin - how was this event????? Sounded amazing!
It really was amazing. The energy in the Sports Club/LA during the whole thing did feel equal to the atmospheric shift I predicted in the article! Misstropolis was thrilled to be part of such a significant event for the Boston yoga community. Thank you to all the participants who raised money for Yoga Hope and Pathways to Wellness, incredible organizations we will continue to support. Thank you also to the yoga teachers who donated their time and kept the participants going for hours and hours of yoga - it was great to see Renata, Taylor, Marc, Heather and other Misstropolites teaching!
Participants - please tell us your stories, we’d love to hear from you,
Robin
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