My dear Yogis and Yoginis,

The fourth Niyama is called Svadhyaha
(Self-study, self-understanding):

“The little self needs a road map to guide it to the Big Self, so
knowledge is necessary to inspire and direct one.
However, one cannot experience the destination by reading a map, one must go on the journey. Study the Big Self to experience the
underlying reason for living.”
~ Alan Finger 
(How to expand the little self to merge into the big self)

~ ~ ~

Knowing yourself, knowing your tendencies and patterns is essential in order to recognize how those patterns influence the quality of your participation in your life. Without knowing your ways of being you are at the mercy of those patterns without really understanding why some obstacles keep appearing along your path. Similarly, it may be difficult to harness useful ways of being to enhance your experience…

Engaging in self-inquiry, that is, when you explore yourself with
genuine curiosity, you come to recognize that you have never been in a vacuum. You have never been isolated from the world around you.
In fact, you eventually realize that everything that you can perceive is connected to you either directly or indirectly, because you are deeply embedded in the universe…

Svadhyaya means cultivating a healthy curiosity about yourself so that you can see clearly how your habit patterns and tendencies may
influence your thoughts, moods,
motivations, breath, posture, movement, and actions.
Keep in mind that some patterns may be useful in one context and
unhelpful in another context. This healthy curiosity includes studying and trying to put into practice true wisdom.
~ Simple Yoga

When we get to know our small self – the self of our personality, our ego, and our identity – we learn the many habits, behaviors, and ways of relating to the world that have been conditioned by our
experiences. We may begin to study a particular chapter in our lives. Maybe a transformation happens with a deeper practice.

In order to transform, we need to get really intimate with these habits, behaviors, and perceptions so that we can identify where they’re
ultimately not serving us.  This awareness can bring great change, while also getting us in touch with our larger Soul Self,
our true nature.

5 WAYS TO DEEPEN YOUR PRACTICE OF SELF-STUDY
Meditate
Study the wisdom teachings
Journal
Practice Yoga
Spend alone time in nature
~ Robyn Cohen

“Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.”
~ LAO-TZU

Monday 10.10.
Tendencies & Habits
Flow

Wednesday 12.10.
Lighthearted Observation
Flow

Thursday 13.10.
Open Theme
Yogis Choice

Monday 17.10.
Movements of the Spine
Flow

Wednesday 19.10.
One more Layer
Slow Flow

Thursday 20.10.
Open Theme
Yogis Choice

In each yoga practice you get to know yourself a little better 🙂

Love,

Nicole