3-Week Morning Challenge: “Winter Self-care: Explore the Inner Landscapes” with Liina Tael

Nov 08-26, 2021
Mo-Fr 08.30-10.00
Live ONLINE via ZOOM
English
140 €

Please register here.

Winter is the energy of the element Water, the time of rest and hibernation, when nature retreats to build up its reserves for its next cycle of seasons. This is a quieter, more reflective time of year, a time to slow down, to allow the stillness to guide you to the places in your body and psyche you may have neglected. During the darkest time of the year, allow the quiet practices to offer you the rest you need to build an inner reservoir and let these practices guide you into deepening your self-knowledge. This is the time for introspection, as all the answers we seek are within us – we just have to be quiet enough to listen and be empty enough to be filled. The main emphasis will be to dive into these slow introspective practices together, to support each other and to let these practices support, nourish, resource and sustain us. There are no prerequisites, no previous experience in anything is needed, just willingness to do less and to explore the inner landscapes. 

The sessions will be a combination of yin yoga, restorative yoga, somatic movement explorations, gentle flow yoga, qigong, yoga nidra, meditation, pranayama and long savasanas.

Week 1
– Why does slowing down matter?
– Experiencing the difference between yin yoga and restorative yoga.
– Main principles and techniques of yin yoga and restorative yoga.
– Embodying safety and capacity 
– Exploring what balanced movement nutrition feels like. 
– Introducing somatic meditation
– Daily practice of yin yoga, restorative yoga, somatic movement, gentle flow, QiGong, meditation and pranayama.

Week 2
– Living according to the seasons and honoring our cyclical nature.
– Seasons in Taoism and how to apply it to practice.
– Self-care versus self-improvement
– Introducing Yoga Nidra.
– Daily practice of yin yoga, restorative yoga, somatic movement, gentle flow, QiGong, meditation and pranayama.

Week 3
– Practical exploration of the definition of yoga: Citta vrtti Nirodhah.
– Why does stillness matter?
– Now that we’ve cultivated some techniques, bringing in silent practices with minimal instruction, where you have space to develop your own personal practice.
– Daily practice of yin yoga, restorative yoga, somatic movement, gentle flow, QiGong, meditation and pranayama.

Liina Tael is originally from Estonia, where she started practicing yoga 18 years ago. She comes from a business background (read: work hard, play hard) and her “no pain, no gain” attitude slowly but surely was leading her towards a burn-out in her late 20s. The only constant in her hectic (self-destructing) lifestyle was yoga, which gradually was sprouting questions and longings that she had not felt before. In 2007 she took a sabbatical, traveled through India and Asia and by the end of that year, through a series of coincidences, she found herself at a yoga teacher training course in (magical) Byron Bay, Australia. She’s never looked back since! She started teaching in 2008 at Byron Yoga Center, the same year completed her 500hr Teacher Training. After 2 years in Australia, she followed her gypsy heart and kept exploring, teaching, practicing and learning. In 2014 life landed her in Berlin, where she has grown some roots along with a vibrant international yoga tribe.