Top Yoga Meditation Music and Yoga Songs I play in Class
In a yoga class setting up a vibe with lights, music and space is such a key part of the experience. It really takes you to a sacred place and I tend to get all bejiggety is my sound system is not working. Whenever I am teaching at a new place or subbing I make sure to spend awhile understanding how their music system works (I’m not technically inclined and tend to panic when the music won’t start)
I tend to play the same 30 CDs all the time but I love picking up new ones all the time ( a few years from now this list will be very different) Even if you don’t practice yoga, these CDs will work well if you want a sacred vibe for meditation or a special ceremony. A few of them will work well for cocktail parties too. Since I work a lot with couples yoga, I am always looking for couples romance products to review and awesome yoga meditation music. Shamanic Dream – When I play this in my classes, I almost always get a student come up and ask me what the CD is. It is hypnotic, ambient and a bit tribal all at the same time but with a fairly even tone. I teach a lot of couples yoga classes and I usually play this at the end so people can drop into a very deep space when the lights are very low. This will transport you.
Sound Sleep for Infants -Another CD you won’t usually find on your top ten yoga music CDs. I don’t know if I would play this during the entire class but it works stunningly during Shivasna. It is some ambient music with a heartbeat in the background. This doesn’t work well if there is background noise like an AC in background though. I also play this CD for 40 minutes at night when I have insomnia. This CD makes me feel like I am in the womb.
Dessert Dwellers – One of my students suggested this to me a few months ago. I tend to have a lot of CDs that are not just Sankrit chants and Ooommming. I like the chill, funky vibe but the tone is even enough to play in a class. A good one to play at cocktail hour as well.
Snautam Kaur – I discovered her when I was at Omega a few years ago. She was part of the Ecstatic Chant weekend. Don’t let her turban scare you. She does a few songs in English as well. She has a voice like an angel and you can feel her soul pouring into all of her chants. This is one of the CDs that my yoga students ask me about the most in my yoga class.
Rain – Another CD you won’t usually find on your top ten yoga music CDs. This is acoustic guitar and piano and I remember playing this when I driving around in the mountains of Vermont during the changing of the leaves. I still see the leaves whenever I listen to this. The music just matched the mood so well – melancholically beautiful.
Wah! – The ! is not a typo. I discovered Wah! when I was working at the Chopra Center in San Diego a few years ago. We used to play her CDs in the store to give it a Chopra Center vibe. I’ve seen her play a few times and it always shocks me that she is is not in bigger venues ( she usually leads a Kirtan at a yoga studio) If Natalie Merchant and a chanting Indian guru had a baby then this is who they would produce.
Yoga & Meditation Music and Song Reviews
Le Spa Sonique – Don’t let the purple flowers scare you. This had a euro chill kind of vibe to it, sweet, sultry and sexy. I think I discovered this at Kripalu a few years ago.The beat can be a bit funky and might not work that well during shivasana. This is a great CD to play for a cocktail hour as well.
Deva Premal & Mitten I don’t think you can call yourself a yoga teacher unless you have at least 2 of their DVDs. Deva’s voice is like an angel and their tunes are soulful, sensual and penetrating. I get plenty of students that come up to me after class asking what the music is. I remember the first time I went to one of their concerts. They think of their concerts more like a group of people getting together and singing…very interactive and the way that they lead some of the mantras you’ll feel incredibly connected to the ether of the universe. My favorite song is in English though, “There is so Much Magnificence”. http://www.devapremalmiten.com/ I love Deva Premal yoga music and her songs are so soulful.
Krishna Das What Bruce Springsteen is to Modern Rock, Krishna Das is to the kirtan (group chant) scene. I saw him perform at Omega a few years ago and have been a fan ever since. His songs are in Sankrit which could turn off some of your students ( or could turn the other ones on…everybody’s different). His CDs are good to play in class but attend one of his live shows and watch yogis jump and twirl around in delirium to his music.http://www.krishnadas.com
Meditation Topics for Couples at Retreats near NJ, PA, NY
Venus Kriyas are meditation topics for couples and are excellent as a regular spiritual practice. There are several Venus Kriyas, but they are especially effective if couples choose one meditation to practice consistently for 40, 90 or 120 days to integrate a particular aspect of the relationship (40 days to change a habit, 90 days to confirm the habit and 120 days to make the new habit part of you. These couples’ meditations are an especially beautiful practice that can elevate your relationship to a higher level.
Ideally at a retreat where there are meditation topics for couples. In the Northeast there are yoga retreats in NJ, PA, NY although most people usually want to go overseas for a yoga retreat.
Get closer to your significant other by taking time out of the day to bend and stretch together. Try these simple exercises.
When everyone is really busy and feeling stressed out, often the time with your partner is one of the first things to get bumped. Stretching with your loved one turns the tables on the rat race, allowing you both to be in the moment and renewing your connection. Try these following stretches to reconnect with your partner. Whether you’re waiting for the coffee to brew in the morning or you set up an after-work date of stretching before must-see TV, these simple poses will provide the ideal break for you and your loved one.
Yoga Retreat near NJ in PA
PARTNER YOGA MOVES
Happy hug
Stand facing each other with toes touching. Hug! Relax deeply into your partner’s embrace. Breathe five long, deep breaths in unison with your partner. Let stress and tension fall away. Take turns rubbing each other’s back between the shoulder blades and spine for 30 seconds.
Tree together
Stand side by side. Lift your outside leg up and place your foot on your inside leg’s upper thigh. If your foot slips, you can hold it up with your hand. Wrap your inside arm around your partner’s waist and hold tight for balance and support. Stand tall and raise your head. Breathe in unison and relax into the pose. Take five deep breaths. Switch sides with your partner and stretch the other leg.
Upside-down smile
Stand back to back, about two feet apart and separate your legs by about three feet. Drop your upper bodies down like rag dolls with both arms hanging. Look at your partner in between your legs and smile — or make funny faces at each other. If you can, grab onto your partner’s arms or legs and pull yourself deeper into the stretch.
Tantric twist
Sit back to back, with legs crossed. Keep your lower backs as close together as possible. Twist around to your left. Place your left hand on your partner’s right knee. Place your right hand on your own left knee. Look behind you and relax your neck, pulling firmly on your partner’s knee. Take five deep breaths together. Switch directions and repeat.
“Heeling” massage
This is a great way to give a back massage without lifting a finger. Have your partner sit up with his legs straight out in front. Sit about three feet behind him, facing his back. Then, lie down and rest your feet on your partner’s back. Walk your heels up and down, and rub the sore spots in between his spine and shoulder blades. Rest your heels on top of his or her shoulders and push down. For extra leverage, raise your pelvis off the ground.
Life can be incredibly hectic – work, family, kids, and friends all vie for your attention. All of these people and experiences add something to our lives, but they can easily steal our calm and joy also.
Mindfulness – How to Be Aware of the Present Moment
No one is able to completely disconnect and become a hermit in order to find their true center. The good news is you don’t have to! A simple meditative practice of being aware of each moment can bring you the calm and joy you long for – even in the midst of chaos.
Mindfulness – How to Be Aware of the Present Moment
A lot of us spend our lives thinking of either our past or our present. When we think of our past, we are bound to it. Bad memories cause us to never leave painful places. Even clinging to good memories can keep us from moving forward and experiencing new things. When we think of the future, we often worry about things that will never happen. We also long for future changes in circumstances, and that longing can make us forget everything we have to be thankful for in our present lives.
Being aware of every moment – also called ‘mindfulness’ in many circles – is not something we are good at right away. However, with practice, it will become a more and more natural part of your life. Here are several practices that can help you in your quest to be more aware of each present moment.
Breathe.
All of us breathe each and every day. However, most of us aren’t mindful of our breathing. How does it feel? Take a few moments each morning or during a break to close your eyes, breathe deeply, and focus on those breaths. Feel it fill you, and then leave you. As you practice this, you will find yourself able to focus for longer periods of time, and you will feel more centered and peaceful.
Focus on what you’re doing right now.
Whatever you’re doing – reading this article, typing an email, or talking to a friend – focus on that activity only. Don’t allow yourself to think ahead to what you need from the store, or think back to a previous experience. It may help you to say to yourself, “Right now, I am typing,” or whatever you are doing. When you really drill down, what are you doing at this moment? Being aware of your activities without racing ahead will help you feel less stressed each day.
Feel without judging.
Many of us have emotions that we label as OK and others that we label as unacceptable. We enjoy the emotions we like, but we often try to ignore or bury the emotions we don’t like. However, that creates inner tension as our emotions try to rise up past our barriers. Instead, feel your feelings without judging them. You don’t have to give in to them, just acknowledge them. It may help once again to verbalize this and say, “Right now I am feeling angry,” or whichever emotion you have. You will find yourself able to identify but not overreact with your emotions. Best of all, you won’t be repressing what’s truly going on.
Make a thankfulness list.
There’s no better way to acknowledge the present moment than to look around you and list all of the things you are thankful for. I’m thankful for my job, for the shining sun, and for the good food I’m eating for lunch. What are you thankful for in this present moment?
Being present in every moment is a big challenge. Don’t get frustrated when you get distracted and go back to old patterns of behavior. Just center yourself, take a breath, and once again acknowledge the present moment.
Illness in any form is nothing more than our negative energies choking off so much of our Life-flow that cellular damage results. The body is not separate from the universe, so when we think a thought, the vibrations run through the body as well as everywhere else. If those vibrations are in harmony with our body’s intrinsic programming for well-being and vitality, the the cells thrive. But if it’s negative energy we are projecting, the cells can’t remain strong enough and don’t perform as well.
Without the high frequency energy of life force necessary for them to survive they eventually weaken and die before their time, no longer able to replicate normally. Illness exists in a state of dis-ease. Someone has flowed more negative energy than high frequency energy. If you find a generally happy person, you usually find a very healthy person. People who are sick have shut themselves off in some degree from their own life Life-force energy by letting negative thoughts from fear, guilt, blame, hate, worry (and the energetic resonance of those thoughts).
Anytime we think of anything, we’re flowing out some kind of positive or negative energy (feeling) Whatever we’re feeling, we’re attracting, on an energetic level. Then we live with the results. The vibration (or emotional resonance) that comes from our thoughts have the power to magnetize vitality or disease. The more thoughts we send out, the more powerful these vibrational clumps become and they start to draw into their whirling centers anything and everything of a similar vibration Like attracts like, whether it is something you desire, or something you don’t want.
When I lay my body down in bed each night I choose a few words and just repeat them in my head…. Peace…. Abundance…. Ease… sometimes I say them as an affirmation… I am Peace….. I am Abundance…. I feel Ease.
How to Heal your Body with the Law of Attraction
To turn illness around, you must start to use trickery with mind into creating higher vibrations (that come from focusing on feelings of gratitude, love, appreciation) to begin their process of regeneration. This is not a cure-all. It is simply a beginning. The key to reversing anything within the body is to get your focus of what you don’t like or want and get into the the “feeling place”, words a la positive affirmations and visualization will help but learning to shift your own energy is also paramount.
The trickery is much like writing a new script. You have to learn to consciously change the kind of energy or vibrations you are emanating since most social-conscious thinking (and feeling) is based on fear and lack. You can call this Flip-Switching your energy (vibrations). So here are two basic ways to flip-switch. You can do these at your desk (while facing a computer screen) or in the car, lying in bed or really anyplace…..so no excuses for not having a place or time to practice. (Are you committed to your excuse or are you committed to feeling better?)
Healing your Mind and Body Through Thoughts
1. Flow Appreciation– Focus on a part of your body that you are not happy with. If you have a bad back, then start to FLOOD your back with appreciation. Make yourself feel the frequency change in your body. Feel adoration, respect, gratitude and love pour and emanate out from you until you feel a buzz throughout your body.
2. Inner Smile Jump-Start. (Best to do this in private) Put a meaningful smile on your face, the kind of smile you’d have at seeing a newborn baby or watching puppies tumble and play. Feel it grow warmly inside of you until you’re encased in the glow of a gentle inner smile. While encased in this state, flow gratitude and love towards the part of your body that needs healing.
Just using these techniques once will not be a miracle-cure. It took a lifetime to get the thought and fear-based emotional habits and patterns you have and it will take discipline, commitment, faith and practice to heal as well. It helps to have a supportive buddy that you are practicing these with so you can check in with each other on your progress and keep each other inspired and accountable.
Are you letting doctors be completely in charge of your path to pregnancy? Do you feel like a helpless victim at the mercy of the fertility gods? What are you doing to make your body as clean, sparkling and welcoming a home for the life you want to grow inside of you? What kind of spring-cleaning are you doing?
How are you eliminating toxins…. in your diet, beauty products, cleaning products? What kind of movement are you doing to oxgenate and strengthen?
What kind of practices are you doing to ease the stress of conceiving – meditation? Better and more sleep? Yoga? Massage? The more you choose to become your own master of health the more empowered you will feel in your own ability to conceive. You will feel more in control which will help to ease anxiety and reduce cortisol (the stress hormone) The more cortisol in your system, the more it throws your delicate hormonal balance into pandemonium.
The promise of yoga is to unite your finite self with the Infinite Self. There’s no better way to enhance that journey than to practice yoga with your partner or yoga for couples. Sexuality and spirituality are not mutually exclusive. In fact, the ancient yogis understood that a worshipful attitude towards your partner created a neuro-chemical change in the brain that allowed for the experience of ecstasy and bliss in couples meditation and couples yoga.
Meditation is a very private, internal experience that a person has with his or her inner Self. It is an important technique in the quest for a sacred sexual relationship. Meditation improves self-esteem and heals individual wounds, allowing the development of self-awareness that can lead to a heart-centered opening in the love relationship with one’s self or one’s partner. Meditation also connects one to one’s soul and balances the female and male energies in the body. Certain meditations can enhance the feeling of ecstasy experienced during sex. Other meditations have been known to end arguments, get rid of grudges and clear the clouds between couples. Couples Yoga uses a variety of sacred yogic meditations for couples as a way to augment the experience of oneness. These couples’ meditations are an especially beautiful practice that can elevate your relationship to a higher level.
1. Can couples yoga foster romance?
If you begin a couples yoga class with an existing partner, talk with each other before going to the first class about what you want from this. Try not to let your expectations get overblown in terms of how the class can remedy any specific relationship challenges you’re having. Go in with an open mind and heart — not with a sense that this is going to fix something, but a willingness to learn and grow together by sharing and connecting through yoga. It can be sensual though, if practiced with loving intention and can secretly set the mood. If the low lighting and candles — two things that most yoga masters recommend to help de-stress while doing yoga — don’t help set the tone, doing yoga together allows you to perform partner-assisted poses. These types of postures require a partner to help the other person get a full stretch or just get into position. Having to focus on your partner’s body, plus all that extra touching, lets you be playful as you exercise together
Spirituality Merge in Yoga Poses and Couples Meditation
2. What is the purpose of specific moves?
The first part of the class is a time to ground, center, learn to synchronize energy and breath and become sensitive to your partner’s rythms as well as start to gently warm up the body. The second part of the class is a time to build up more heat in the body with some balancing poses that challenge somewhat as well. As partners are able to get into more difficult poses, this builds self-esteem, confidence, emotional mastery, focus and this can heighten the bond as well. Some of the poses are aesthetically wondrous when you are juxtaposing bodies or mirroring. Some poses are childlike and playful and bring you back to a place of wonder and innocence. The last part of the class is both restorative with poses that you melt into in order to rebalance the central nervous system or there is guided Thai massage where intention, rather than technique is emphasized. The last pose is “Corpse” pose where student are able to integrate and process all the deep work and the body can reset itself from a place of renewal and rejuvenation.
3. How does yoga for couples allow one to experience another?
It makes you more attractive. This may not seem important, but the truth is, the more thoughtful and focused on your partner you are, the more endearing you will seem to her or him. . That’s because anytime a person expresses genuine interest in someone else and committed to just being physically and emotionally present — you will feel a sense of safety and support on a purely kinesthetic level. When you experience a profound truth through the experience of the body, it becomes ingrained in your mind and heart as well. Without realizing it, simply committing time to doing yoga with your partner becomes an opportunity to strengthen your level of intimacy — something that always adds strength and solidity to any partnership. It can reveal interpersonal dynamics about the couples that lead to inner growth and intimacy. Learning how to become really attune to your inner world while simultaneously being totally present to your partner is not a gift we often receive.
4. What are we meant to experience?
As each participant learns to let go and trust, the partners begins to explore spiritual levels of the practice together. They build on the energy of each other and create a better understanding of their connection as well as the practice of yoga. It removes distractions that keep humans from focusing on each other.
Top Yoga Meditation Music and Yoga Songs I play in Class
