Ashtanga Yoga Charlottesville
Download the Ashtanga Yoga of Charlottesvil App today to plan and schedule your classes! From this mobile App you can view class schedules, sign-up for classes, view ongoing promotions, as well as view the studio’s location and contact information. You can also click through to our social pages! Optimize your time and maximize the convenience of signing up for classes from your device! Download this App today!
You can use this app to enroll in classes at either location; Ashtanga Yoga Charlottesville in the historic Belmont neighborhood in downtown Charlottesville or The Ivy Yoga School, located next to the Meriwether Springs Vineyard, only 15 minutes west of downtown Charlottesville in a beautiful and peaceful country setting.
ASHTANGA YOGA OF CHARLOTTESVILLE:
PHILOSOPHY BEHIND ASHTANGA YOGA
Ashtanga yoga is a practice and philosophy that develops ones psychological and spiritual health. It has been kept alive for thousands of years from one generation to the next by being passed on through a lineage of teachers. It has not endured by staying fixed in the past, rather it is a living tradition that has maintained its integrity
while adjusting to peoples needs and the demands of the time. Ashtanga yoga is not bound to one particular religion, political lineage or any other association. What this tradition does is connect us to the life-force that flows through all beings, and remains grounded in a deep sense of respect for the teachers and the practice itself.
THE PRACTICE
The practice of Ashtanga Yoga (Ashtanga/Vinyasa Yoga) as established by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois of Mysore, India is a system that consists of a precise sequence of poses (asana), breath control (ujjayi pranayama), a gazing point (drishti), and internal energetic locks (bandhas). Each pose in the sequence is a preparation for the next, and is traditionally practiced in sequence.
The combination of breath, movement, and focused awareness begins to generate heat (tapas). This heat purifies the senses of perception, (indriyas), and consequently, we begin to be more discriminating in how we feed our senses.
According to Pattabhi Jois, Ashtanga yoga is a path that leads us to our own spirit, to our very nature.
There are two traditional ways in which Ashtanga is taught: in a led class, where the vinyasa system is counted out loud, or in a Mysore-style class, with everyone going through the asana series individually, at his or her own pace, under the supervision of the teacher.
Yoga is above all experiential. It is your own experience that will always be your truest and best teacher.
As Pattabhi Jois was fond of saying “99% practice, 1% theory. Do your practice. All is coming!”
THE IVY YOGA SCHOOL:
IYS is dedicated to the study and practice of yoga posture, philosophy and mindful movement. Classes are geared toward those new to the practice and to those students more experienced that want to move more deeply and at a slower pace. All the teachers at the Ivy Yoga School are dedicated students of yoga, always learning and delving deeper into the understanding of yoga, so that their teaching remains fresh and inspired.
We offer special weekend workshops, retreats and teacher training programs.
Jennifer Elliott is the senior teacher and director of both schools. She has been a student of yoga for over 30 years.
Jennifers dedication and devotion to Ashtanga Yoga is evident in the clarity of her teaching. Jennifers primary intentions are to maintain the purity and integrity of Ashtanga Yoga as taught to her by Richard Freeman, Tim Miller, Shri K Pattabhi Jois and Sharath, at the same time to maintain the accessibility of the yoga experience to all levels of practitioners. Jennifer received authorization level 2 from Sharath Jois and is honored to carry on the lineage of teaching traditional ashtanga yoga practice in the Mysore setting. Jennifer opened The Ivy Yoga School last year as a place for study of yoga beyond postures.