Ashtanga
Yoga for the Rest of Your Life
with David Williams
4 Days, 5 Classes
March 12-15, 2009
Register
and Pay Now!
Register
and Pay for a $55 session
Register
and Pay for a $60 session
!!! indicate which session you are signing
up for in the notes section of the check out form!!!
This
is a rare and wonderful opportunity to study Yoga with the
man who brought Ashtanga to the US.
Thursday- 5:00
pm - 7:30 pm
Discussion of how David thinks Ashtanga Yoga should be taught
and practiced based on his 38 years of daily practice and
teaching. This class is the foundation for all students, and
particularly teachers, who want a greater depth of understanding
of the "big picture" of the most beneficial way
to practice and teach Ashtanga Yoga.
Friday- 6:00 pm-8:30
pm
1st series in depth with thorough explanations of every step.
Saturday- 10:00
am- 12:00 pm
1st series completed with less interruption by David's commentary,
except for postures not covered the day before.
Saturday- 4:00
pm- 6:30 pm
History of Yoga, description and the history of Ashtanga Yoga,
David's travels and adventures in Yoga, and his bringing Ashtanga
Yoga to America and its eventual spread to the entire world.
Sunday- 10:00 am-
12:00 pm
An introduction to 2nd series in a way that everyone at all
levels can try and enjoy.
full workshop $250
$220, if paid 2 weeks in advance.
Register
and Pay Now!
For those who can't come to the entire workshop, David really
encourages everyone to attend the Thursday class.
Attend Thursday's class for $55 and all other classes are
$55. Otherwise, individual sessions are $60.
Register
and Pay for a $55 session
Register
and Pay for a $60 session
indicate which session you are signing up for in the notes
section of the check out form
About David
David Williams
has been practicing Yoga daily, without interruption, since
1971. In 1972, David met K. P. Manju , the son of K. Pattabhi
Jois, and saw him demonstrate the Ashtanga Yoga 1st series.
This was at Dr. Swami Gitananda's Ananda Ashram in Pondicherry,
South India, where David received his 6 month Yoga teachers
training course certification.
In 1973, David
began studying Ashtanga Yoga with K. Pattabhi Jois at his
home in Mysore, India, and became the first non-Indian to
be taught the complete Ashtanga Yoga system of asanas and
pranayama directly from Jois. David introduced K. Pattabhi
Jois and Manju to America and the western world when he, along
with Nancy Gilgoff, organized and sponsored their first visit
to Encinitas, California, in 1975.
David is responsible
for teaching the Ashtanga Yoga system to many of today's leading
teachers and practitioners, including David Swenson, Doug
Swenson, Danny Paradise, Bryan Kest, Jonny Kest, Tracy Rich,
Chuck Miller, and Maty Ezraty.
David is 59 years
old. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill. He has lived on the island of Maui, Hawaii,
since l975, and teaches private individual or group classes
by appointment.
| |
| |
L-R:
David Williams, David Swenson,
Guruji, Nancy Gilgoff. Encinitas CA '75 |
Amma
& Guruji
Mysore, India '77 |
Guruji,
Manu Jois & David Williams.
Encinitas CA 1975 |
What others
are saying about his last workshop
Hi David,
Just thought I'd write to you while the going is good. I thoroughly
enjoyed the workshop and am very happy that I had the experience
of sharing yoga with you. For many years now, I have been
questioning the way that Ashtanga has been taught and I too
have been saddened by the injuries and bad name that Ashtanga
has in the yoga community. I started yoga to find freedom
in my life and then one day I looked around and realized that
I was surrounded by a system that was rigid and full of doctrines
and dogmas.
To hear you, the 'legend of Ashtanga yoga', come out and say
that, "if it hurts you are doing it wrong", that
"it should feel wonderful", and that "the person
who enjoys it the most today is the one most likely to practice
tomorrow", was so refreshing and so important.
You have inspired me to practice daily for the rest of my
life, to love it, and to get real.
Thanks.
Aloha mate,
Mark
Thanks David for unshackling years and years of self-doubt
that certain individuals along the rungs of the "Yoga
hierarchy" have bestowed in me because I didn't and wouldn't
agree with their dogmas and doctrines (I heard you well and
clear Mark). It enabled me to completely change my daily practice
and my way of teaching this very art of Yoga with a clear
conscience and total freedom. Good on ya.
George
An open
letter to North Carolina Yoga students, from David Williams
Greetings and Salutations
from Maui!
I am honored to have this opportunity to travel
to Asheville and share what I have learned from my uninterrupted
daily Yoga practice of these last 38 years.
When I consider
traveling to other parts of the world to teach Yoga, I am
always reminded that there are some major concepts about how
Ashtanga Yoga is taught and practiced, based on my personal
study, observation, and uninterrupted practice, that I feel
are important to share with my classes.
First, and foremost,
I hope you can learn from me that in your practice, "If
it hurts, you are doing it wrong." Through the years,
I have observed that too many people are hurting themselves
and hurting others. Yoga practice can be (and should be) pleasant
from the beginning to the end. What is important is the mulabandha
and deep breathing. With daily practice, it is inevitable
that one will become more flexible.
I have learned
from my own practice and observation that pushing your current
limitations to get into a position can result in injury, which
results in one needing to rest the injury to recover so they
can resume their practice. This entire sequence of events
is not only unpleasant, it is contrary to my belief that through
slow, steady daily practice, one can achieve greater flexibility
by generating one's own internal heat to relax into positions,
rather than being forced into a position. I have observed
this slower, steadier method is not only healthier, but it
allows one to develop greater flexibility of a more lasting
nature, than the kind that is forced. Unfortunately, as many
have found, pushing one's current limitations can result in
having to severely curtail or limit activity during recovery.
This cycle can lead to unpleasant associations with one's
yoga practice, rather than the pleasant experiences I work
to instill, and that I feel are necessary for a lifelong practice.
In my workshop,
I want to show each of you how you can do the Ashtanga Yoga
series in a lifelong practice that is a totally pleasant experience.
I suspect that when you first saw the practice, you said to
yourself, "If I did this, it would be great for me!"
So, here you are--you have observed the practice, and you
want to continue it. The key is being able to continue practicing
Yoga for the rest of your life. From over 30 years of observing
thousands of people practicing Yoga, I have realized that
those who continue are the ones who are able to figure out
how to make it enjoyable. They look forward to their daily
practice and nothing can keep them from finding the time to
do it. It becomes one of the most pleasant parts of their
day. The others, consciously, subconsciously, or unconsciously,
quit practicing. It is my goal to do everything I can to inspire
you to establish your Yoga practice not just for the few days
we are together, but for the rest of your life.
Secondly, I hope
to share with you my belief that the ultimate goal of Yoga
is not to increase flexibility and strength. Increased flexibility
and strength are simply the natural results and benefits of
daily practice. While additional flexibility and strength
are important and apparent benefits of Yoga, I believe the
goals of Yoga practice are self-realization and keeping oneself
balanced and healthy on a daily basis. Health is your greatest
wealth. The body's DNA knows how to heal itself; all it needs
is the energy. The energizing, rejuvenating Yoga practices
can be the source of this energy.
Lastly, I hope
you will find that my workshop is for everyone at all levels.
I am occasionally asked if someone is "good at Yoga."
I quickly respond that the best Yogi is not the one who is
most flexible, but the one who is most focused on what he
or she is doing, the one most intensely doing the mulabandha
and deep breathing. It is with some sadness that I have observed
people "competing with their Yoga practice." I have
also observed others who are discouraged in their practice
because they feel this competition and worry that they will
never be able to do their practice with the flexibility and
skill of others more advanced in the series. My goal is to
convey the idea that the greatest Yogi is the one who enjoys
his or her Yoga practice the most, not the one who can achieve
the ultimate pretzel position. It is my belief, and I hope
to convey to you, that in your practice of this moving meditation,
what is really important, is what is invisible to the observer,
what is within each of you.
I believe in the
Yoga. I believe that anyone who has the desire can do the
Ashtanga practice, perhaps with personal modifications, in
a way that is totally pleasant. For years, I have said, "If
someone said to me, 'You have 15 minutes, one hour, etc.,
do something good for yourself. You can use barbells, bicycles,
or whatever,' I would start doing the Ashtanga Yoga Salutations
to the Sun and First Series." If someone can show me
something better, I am ready to learn it. In my 30 years of
searching, I have learned five or six systems of Yoga practice.
For myself, I have not found a better physical, mental, and
emotional fitness program than the Ashtanga Yoga system. I
hope you will feel the same after our days together.
I look forward
to sharing my practice and experience with you. If you would
like more information, please go to my website: ashtangayogi.com
. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
Yours in Yoga,
David Williams
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and Pay Now!
