2 Newsletter-Fall-2020
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Communication is the Key NEWSLETTER FALL 2020 IYENGAR YOGA CENTRE OF VICTORIA NEWSLETTER Submission Deadline for next issue In this Issue (Spring 2021) Dec 1, 2021 EDITOR Roger Champagne NEWSLETTER COMMITTee Roger Champagne, Lauren Cox, Anne Glover, 3 Reflections Johanna Godliman, Leslie Hogya, Hilary McPhail DeSIgn & PRODUCTION Cady Graphics By Shirley Daventry French IYCV LOGO Charles Campbell, Lauren Cox phOTOGRaphy Michael Blades, Leslie Hogya, 5 IYCV Calendar Gary Wong, Stephanie Tencer COVER PHOTO Stephanie Tencer 5 Communication is the Key PROOFING Roger Champagne ADS & ANNOUNCEMENTS Hilary McPhail by Ann Kilbertus DISTRIBUTION Adia Kapoor, Laure Newnham, Krysia Strawczynski 7 IYCV Teachers Intensive 2020, MEMBERSHIP/MAILING LIST Hilary McPhail Reflections on Mentoring IYENGAR YOGA CENTRE by Stephanie Tencer OF VICTORIA SOCIETY is a non-profit society incorporated under the Society Act of the Province of B.C., whose 9 The Core of Iyengar Yoga, Part 2 purpose is “to encourage the physical, mental, and spiritual growth of its members and other By Abhijata Sridhar Iyengar interested persons of the society at large by the study and discipline of Yoga.” The Society owes its inspiration to Mr. B.K.S. Iyengar. 11 The Value of Community The Newsletter, published regularly by the Iyengar Yoga Centre of Victoria Society, provides current by Leslie Hogya information on events concerning Iyengar Yoga in the Victoria area. Send contributions, articles, photographs 13 Chit Chatting with Geetaji on her Birthday, (high resolution), drawings, information or suggestions to: the Iyengar Yoga Centre of Part 2 Victoria Newsletter, 202-919 Fort Street, Victoria BC V8V 3K3. 16 Guruji Answers: Permission is hereby granted to reprint any of our material, except that copyrighted by the How the Concept of Alignment Evolved author or artists. When reprinting, please credit this newsletter and send us two copies of the publication containing our material. Copyright 18 The Sense of Alignment – Its Role in My Life material is available only with written permission. The editor/newsletter committee holds the right by Dena Glazer to publish or edit all articles at its discretion. Newsletter Advertising Policy 19 The Art of Healing 1. Advertisements must not conflict with the aims of the newsletter of the IYCV. by B.K.S. Iyengar 2. Advertisements must be only for Iyengar Yoga. 3. Priority will be given to advertisements regarding IYCV events, IYCV-sponsored events, and IYAC-ACYI events. REGISTER FOR CLASSES & WORKSHOPS Please visit our website: www.iyengaryogacentre.ca for full information on classes and workshops. Coronavirus 202-919 Fort Street, Victoria, B.C. V8V 3K3 Notice Phone: (250) 386-YOGA (9642) THE CENTRE IS VERY GRATEFUL TO Please refer to our THE VICTORIA FOUNDATION FOR THE $14,664 GRANT WE RECEIVED web site for current Due to space limitations at the Centre, we regret we TO PURCHASE NEW PROPS IN 2020. information on events. cannot accept past issues of the IYCV Newsletter, Yoga Journal, etc. 2 VICTORIA IYENGAR YOGA CENTRE NEWSELETTER Reflections By Shirley Daventry French esterday, August 20th was the sixth Swami Radha was also a guest of honour. life. They are only useful in later life anniversary of Guruji’s death. A Their lively discourses continued. if you have learned and matured from Y notification on email alerted me to By the time I first went to Pune those experiences without the need (or the significance of this date, but I don’t in 1979 I had studied with Swami addiction) to constantly repeat them. If need any reminders! Guruji’s presence Radha for nearly ten years and earned a you have learned from them and apply and teaching permeate my life every day certification to teach in her name. I felt that learning in the present, then these and not just on birthdays, death days or a little guilty because I knew I still had experiences have been worthwhile. special occasions. much to learn from her, but the urge to At the ashram in Canada and at the Guruji is there is my yoga room. study with B.K.S. Iyengar in Pune was institute in Pune, what did I find but He is there as I write this article on my so strong that I trusted my instincts and myself? There was no place to hide, and computer. Two photos of Guruji sit made the trip. I did not see it as running anyway I was tired of hiding my true self on the wall above my computer: one a away but rather as an enrichment, from the world. Such a waste of energy. headshot taken by my husband Derek nevertheless I felt a little disloyal. And It kept breaking through anyway. in our garden in 1984. The second, also what happened in Pune? Once again I Many times I have told the story taken by Derek during that same visit found myself facing many of the same of my Life Seals. This was a weekend at a luncheon for Guruji hosted by obstacles which had arisen in Canada. workshop which Swami Radha Swami Radha. It was their first meeting Seemingly I was carrying around my developed. Participants were instructed after years of written communication. own personal battlefield. Just as Arjuna to make a series of pictures symbolising This correspondence had begun several in the Gita was having to face certain various aspects of themselves such as years earlier and continued until Swami aspects of his nature, apparently so was I! the five senses along with five positive Radha’s death in 1995, and as a result There is a familiar ditty from my personal qualities and five negative of this first meeting she visited him childhood which goes: ones, plus a symbol for your Essence and Geeta at their Institute in Pune on I joined the Navy to see the world or Self. There were few instructions or several of her pilgrimages to India. And what did I see? I saw the sea! limitations and you could arrange these Quite clearly these two yoga masters I saw the Atlantic and the Pacific symbols as you saw fit on a backdrop from different traditions had the greatest and the Pacific isn’t terrific of paper or other background as big or respect for each other and wasted no And the Atlantic isn’t what it’s small as you wished. Later you would be time discussing aspects of yoga and cracked up to be. asked to put your Seal up on a wall and learning from each other. It was a very Well that could just as easily talk about it, interspersed with questions lively lunch! And later at an evening apply to many of the ventures and from Swami Radha. I learned about banquet in honour of Guruji’s visit, some of the adventures of my earlier various pitfalls which alerted attention such as too much colour, or no colour at all. Oversized or crowding everything on to a small piece of paper. Of course I endeavoured to avoid these extremes when I repeated this workshop, as I did several times. Then one day at my home In the Light of Yoga Swami Radha enquired if I still had them and asked me to display them on Please watch our website the floor of my living room. As I laid for information about this event. them out it was as if a rubber stamp was stamped on each one saying: “Shirley, Shirley, Shirley….” PHOTO: KEVIN MASON FALL 2020 ISSUE 3 I studied yoga with Swami Radha trying to pursue yoga on my own terms. Victoria where I have lived for nearly and came face to face with myself. I It simply doesn’t work that way. fifty years). I really like the look of this travelled to India, studied with Guruji One other trait which Guruji and house which has been designed and and came face to face with myself. When Swami Radha shared was a reluctance built with a conservationist frame of I returned home from any of these to waste time with those who were mind literally in and around a grove expeditions I came face to face with unready for this daunting task. When of beautiful old trees which we were myself. It began to dawn on me that the speaking about therapeutic yoga and expecting to be cut down. Now I have one constant here was me. For better people wanting to come to his medical met the owners who were also surprising for worse, your true Self cannot be classes, Guruji said that first he gave them in another way. They are both familiar disguised—nor is there anywhere to hide. pleasing asanas while he assessed their with the name Iyengar and knew I valued both Swami Radha and calibre. He did not dispense his wisdom something about yoga. In fact, this Guruji as spiritual teachers, but looking willy-nilly. If he was hard on you it meant architect had studied Iyengar Yoga in back at the level of awareness I had in he saw at least a chink open to change. Montreal before ‘crossing over’ (as he those days I still saw their teaching as And sensing this he would come at you put it) to the Pattabhi Jois camp where significantly different although each fiercely to initiate the changes required. the approach was more athletic. He complemented the other. Now I no Similarly with Swami Radha, if enquired what I thought about a reason longer see it that way. It has become someone in need appealed to her for he had heard for the difference between clear to me that their purpose was help she would get them to come to her their approaches even though they had exactly same: to remove obstructions to ashram and give them some chores while the same guru: Krishmarcharya.