ashtanga (un)chained

HOW IT STARTED​​

This sequence was an experiment, continuously re-adjusted, born during Covid (March 2020-May 2022). 

Self-isolating and self-practicing, I started to teach online my personal practice which was a combination of Ashtanga series. It was not a commercial strategy to find new attractive reasons to practice with me, but a need to be gentle to my body and Vata mind.

 

My intent was to be more gentle, but also a need to disrupt the strict and layered order of Ashtanga. The traditional approach represses the infinite combinations and changes of my psyche and body. By being strictly preparatory - "first this, after that" or "do it only this way" - this approach made my practice mainly concerned on the system and the form, rather than how I feel inside. Moreover, it was perpetrating a mindset where I was not responsible for myself and it wasn't helping me understand, listen and respect my emotions.

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My mental health depends on recognising my playful nature, and if I dedicate 1h30 to a physical practice, it definitely needs fewer rules. Feelings are not enemies, if we learn how to connect with them.

 

I don't refuse the traditional approach, because sometimes it's just what it takes to forget about myself and just be.  I wasn't capable of staying without the repression of my constant judgements. It was great to stop that part of the self and become more empty. My (un)chained experiment didn't aim to be a substitute, but a compound practice to give another perspective, an alternative to soften the study of the self without leaving the Ashtanga system. 

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WHY ASHTANGA?​​

Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga is the foundation of this sequence because it cultivates a deep awareness of the breath, a courageous willingness to stay with discomfort in order to meet our emotions, and a search for stillness and conscious transitioning.

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For me, no other style of practice offers such a solid foundation. However, it also has its limits and cannot be my daily practice. I decided to take responsibility of who I am, with all my faults, embrace my imperfect nature and design my own sequences.

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​Ashtanga (un)chained is a breath-focused primal vinyasa. It combines the asanas of Ashtanga Series, traditionally taught in a strict succession which takes years to access, or maybe never.

Here, we play with them. ​

It’s an intense sequence designed to emphasise the way we vibrate, rather than how we should appear, perform, or achieve. It is a more playful attitude towards the practice and a message to change the patriarchal system which stands behind every social construction, also the spiritual ones. Personally, I see Ashtanga, with its hierarchical and divisive structure, as an expression of the patriarchal mind.

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My experiment was sensuous; it didn’t repress feelings and was enriched by other intelligences: Thai Yoga Massage, traditional Hatha, and Dharma Yoga.​​

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Today, this practice and sensibility have crystallized into Prana & Apana Flow.

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