The following morning-challenge is held in English and therefore the information is in English only.
Online 3-Week Morning Challenge „Nada Yoga – Yoga of Sound“ with David Ikonomou
Jan 25-Feb 12, 2021
Mo-Fr 08.30–10.00
ONLINE
Englisch
140€
Please register here.
Nada Yoga, the Yoga of Sound is one of the oldest forms of Yoga.
Sound is a universal and very ancient medium of connecting body, mind, soul and spirit, and is deeply rooted in the yogic tradition. We are all unique vibratory beings in a vibrational world. Looking into the nature of sound and vibration will give us meaningful insights into our own nature. Practically we will be exploring different approaches in the use of sound, mainly by generating it with our own breath and voices.
The recitation and chanting of Mantras has many facets. It can be incorporated in our physical Asana or breathing practice or stand on its own as a practice by itself. We can recite Mantra internally (as in Japa-Practices) or outwardly with our open voice, in a more strict and monotonous way as in vedic chanting or in a more melodic and playful way as in Kirtan and Bahjans. We will follow traditional yogic approaches as well as look into other mystic traditions, such as Tantric and Sufi.
Being shaped as words or syllables, Mantras are tools for the mind (manas = mind, tra = tool). Their exploration will give us various occasions to look into the nature and mechanisms of the mind and also touch upon philosophical questions and outlooks.Theoretical impulses will give us direction and inspiration, yet the main focus will be on practical engagement vocally and physically.
Week 1
– Laying out the basics of Nada Yoga.
– What is sound? looking at the world and ourselves as vibration.
– The power of intention / Sankalpa: fueling our practice and giving a direction to our journey.
– Introducing Mantra as a general concept and going into the different facets and uses of Mantra.
– OM – the mother of all Mantras, meaning, use and effects.
– Devi Mantras – Chanting names of Deities, invoking their qualities and guidance.
– Japa – (silent) repetitive recitation of a (personal) Mantra.
Week 2
– Looking more into the elemental components and physics of sound and language.
– Rhythm and Frequency (Ritam and Vritti): what do they mean, how are they part of who we are, our daily life and physiology.
– Another parameter to direct energy in the physical and subtle body: pitch.
– Vowels as seed elements, their relation to the Chakras, effect on our energy field, their relation to the timbre (“acoustic color”).
– More Bija-(Seed-)Mantras from other traditions.
– The Nature and Mechanisms of the mind – listen to silent the mind.
Week 3
– Going deeper into vocal exploration.
– Vocal freedom.
– Union & Uniqueness.
– Opening the field into other traditions: Sufi, Shamanic etc.
– Silence as Source of Inspiration.
– Open Space for the group’s dynamics.
A note on the zoom-online-format and singing:
David has been using zoom for online-singing-circles for a while now with surprisingly good results. The technology doesn’t allow that we actually hear the whole group singing together though. It’s always just the facilitator’s guiding voice and one’s own voice that is being heard, which has its positive effects too. A good sound system, external speakers, or good headphones are recommended.
David Ikonomou started taking regular hatha yoga (Sampoorna yoga) classes with Jutta Qu’ja Hartmann in Germany in 2000 after travelling through India. After ten years of experience of practising yoga, he became a certified yoga teacher at the Sivananda Kutir in Netala, Himalayas of India in 2010. Since then he has been continuously evolving by practising and training in different styles (anusara, ashtanga vinyasa). In his teaching, he likes to emphasize the cultivation of awareness, breathing and alignment – adjusting to the needs of every individual student.
Over the past years, vocal meditation and mantra singing circles as a powerful form of bhakti yoga have become a more and more important part of his work.