Enrich Your Daily Practice With The Philosophy Of The Yoga Sutras
Artemis Yoga is delighted to host this comprehensive program from October 2023 to March 2024. You are invited to join for one or all 3 workshops.
Now Sundays Only!
October 29, 2023 | December 3, 2023 | March 3, 2024
10:00am – 2:00pm Eastern Time Zone
Patricia Walden & Gitte Bechsgaard join for their first ever introductory course on the ancient philosophy foundations of yoga in integration with Iyengar sadhana (practice).
LIVESTREAM WORKSHOPS!
Register for one or all three workshops and save!
* There will be a 30 minute break. All times are Eastern Time (Boston, MA). ** Program will be recorded and available for 30 days as well.
During the ‘Mandala of Iyengar Yoga Practice’ program, the physical, mental, & spiritual tenets of yoga will be explored in dialogue with study of the Yoga Sutras as well as traditional mantra recitation.
Each workshop has a theme: Tapas (discipline), Svadhyaya (self-study), and Ishvara Pranidhana (devotion).
Your teachers Gitte Bechsgaard and Patricia Walden take their decades of collective experience to hone your newfound understanding into asana & pranayama practices.
Each live, online workshop includes both asana and philosophy expertly guided by Gitte and Patricia.
The workshop concludes with a joint dialogue and discussion at the end of the weekend facilitated by Rahel Wasserfall of Artemis Yoga.
All participants will receive a limited time recording of the full workshop for 30 days. After that, the link expires.
Full Course Savings: Three workshops are combined to create a comprehensive course for $175, or available individually with a la carte pricing for $70.
Registration includes a recording that will be available for 30 days.
Full Course – 3 Workshops
Only $175 for all 3 Workshops. Save $35 over a la carte pricing!
Single Workshop
$70 for a Single Workshop.
This is a unique opportunity to explore deeply the philosophical text of the yoga sutras with renowned sutra scholar, Gitte Bechsgaard in harmony with the refinement of asana and pranayama by Patricia Walden, one of the most senior Iyengar Yoga teachers worldwide.
To discover the Heart of Yoga you must endeavor on a quest towards inner stillness.
This quest paved the development of a diverse array of practices and focuses on the cultivation of the self from all angles; physical, mental, and spiritual, alike.
Over thousands of years these techniques were developed as part of The Eightfold Path to unify all elements of one’s being.
It’s within the teachings of yoga philosophy that we uncover this blueprint.
The philosophical text of the Yoga Sutras reveal approaches to practice so that you may cultivate the spiritual, mental, and physical layers of yoga in balance.
During this program, your teachers Gitte Bechsgaard and Patricia Walden share their decades of collective experience and unique insights on the developmental process behind Iyengar yoga asana to help guide your practice in congruence with the sage Patanjali’s philosophy.
Patricia Walden began her study with BKS Iyengar in 1976. Respected as one of the most senior Iyengar Yoga teachers worldwide, Patricia’s dedication to her teacher and to the subject of yoga has defined her life’s journey.
In 2004, Yoga Journal cited Patricia as one of “25 American yoga originals’ who helped to shape yoga in the West. She has been featured in Time Magazine and recently was featured on CBS news for her work with yoga and aging.
Patricia co-authored The Women’s Book of Yoga and Health with Linda Sparrowe among other writings on yoga and depression.
Active in the Iyengar Yoga community since the mid-1980s, Patricia co-founded the B.K.S Iyengar Center of Cambridge, helped to start the Iyengar National Certification Committee and she remains active in the Iyengar Yoga Association of New England (IYANE.)
Gitte Bechsgaard RP, Ph.D. is a teacher, researcher, and psychotherapist renowned for her unique expertise on The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Jyotish Upayas, & the study, as well as the clinical integration, of eastern psychology.
As a Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher, she guides students in unveiling the philosophy behind practice. 14 years in private study with her mentor Sri Krishan Mantriji established Gitte’s unique foundation in Sanskrit and the Vedic teachings of Yoga philosophy, Jyotish, and Contemplative practice. Meanwhile, she continued her empirical Yoga research in various Toronto hospitals over the last 18 years, in conjunction with York University.
Her work in yoga & vedic scripture is further complemented by over 14 years of clinical experience as a registered psychotherapist (R.P.) giving Gitte an integrative perspective on the esoteric psychologies of the eastern tradition and their practical implications for the mind.
Gitte is the author of The Gift of Consciousness: Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and the recently published, Yoga & Alignment – Upanishads to BKS Iyengar, co-authored with Dr. Gillian McCann with whom she also wrote, The Sacred In Exile – What It Means To Lose Religion.
Gitte Bechsgaard & Gillian McCann
Though asana practice is initiated through our physicality, with ‘Integrated practice’ it is equally effective at tapping into the nervous system to cultivate stability and resilience on both mental and spiritual levels.
Iyengar described this state as:
“perfection in action and freedom in consciousness”
Asana is by definition good posture, yet it’s as much a state of mind as it is a state of the body.
The root of the Sanskrit word asana (pose) literally means to be or to abide, implying a restful and yet alert state of consciousness.
Excellence in practice radiates presence and shines beyond the realm of physical observation.
The meditative, spiritual, and self reflective forms of pranayama are often sought out, yet yogic philosophy reveals how to establish pranayama & asana practices in unison to explore your inner landscape more consciously and seek out your inner abiding Self with more clarity.
Workshop 1
Sunday October 29, 2023
10:00am – 2:00pm Eastern Time
With Patricia Walden and Gitte Bechsgaard
During workshop #1 on the body, we will explore Virya together with Tapas as a powerful combination to empower your soul.
Workshop 2
Sunday December 3, 2023
10:00am – 2:00pm Eastern Time
With Patricia Walden and Gitte Bechsgaard
During workshop #2 on the mind, you will learn how to integrate your study of yoga philosophy with guided reflection in practice, placing specialized focus on the embodied purification practice.
As Iyengar wrote:
Workshop 3
Sunday March 3, 2024
10:00am – 2:00pm Eastern Time
With Patricia Walden and Gitte Bechsgaard
During the third and final workshop focused on the Innermost Self or Soul, we will explore the many ways in which we can cultivate devotion as an integrated part of practice.
Iyengar compares this inward spiritual process to a snake shedding its skin.
This shedding takes time and consistent practice. It certainly can’t be rushed. It’s cultivated gradually as we learn various practices.
Artemis Yoga offers “live” online yoga classes through Zoom. To join, find an inviting space to practice and follow the steps below:
Step 1: Use your MINDBODY account with Artemis Yoga to register for the class.
Step 2: Log into https://zoom.us/join and enter the Class-Specific Meeting ID then click “Join”.
Step 3: Once you click on the Meeting ID, register with your name and email in Zoom. Please use your real name so we can match with Mindbody. You will then be entered in the “Waiting Room.”
Step 4: When let in from the waiting room, click “Join with Computer Audio.”
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US ONLINE FOR CLASS!