40 Day Kriya or short standing side stretch – it’s all making the magic

 

Do you sometimes have an aha moment after the fact? That kept happening while I was doing Brett Larkin’s 40 Day Kriya. I chose to do the hour Kirya – and that time every day shifted so many things. It was obviously quite an commitment – but you can find the same yoga mind-body magic yoga  in something as straightforward as a luscious standing side stretch. Yoga’s mind body connection – two minutes or 40 Days.

Surrendering to the 40 Day Kriya

I surrendered myself to the discipline of this Kundalini yoga. You do the same practice every day and if you miss a day, you have to start from the beginning again. The idea is that this builds energy to break negative habits that stop you from expanding and stepping into something new.  That’s why you should start at the beginning again if you miss a day – your energy is building.

Understanding imagery

This journey had lots of twists and turns. During the first week, I had vivid images – the Gordian Knot symbolism that I wrote about here was one of them. I kept reporting amazing things in my journal.  One day, my heart went through the basket ball hoop of my Third Eye. Those of you who know me will understand that sports metaphors are not at all something I’m liable to use. 

 Digging deep into the pose

Day by day I became more and more in tune with the physical aspects of the practice. This asana  part of the hour Kriya took 35 minutes and had long, long holds. There’s a locust variation and baby cobra which are both held for 2.5 minutes – and then glorious rests!

These are active holds – in movement,  in strenth and in alignment. My brain began to quieten and I began to feel the different aspects of the posture more intensely and my focus shifted.  I often felt fully wrung out.

 

Silent transformation

The Kriya has meditation and silent mantras along with the poses – with a beautifully designed arc. Some days I couldn’t get into it and muttered under my breath, some days I expanded with wonder – and of course, there were the almost psychedelic visions I had during my first week.

The last 15 days of the Kriya is just bells for transitions. There’s no talk, you can watch Brett move though the practice with you – silently. I soaked up the hour of silence and found profound depth in it.

I was in London for the last five days of the 40 Day Kriya. I spent two weeks there clearing mum’s flat – and it made all the difference.  What a huge task – yet I was able to be flexible and approach this very intense task with equanimity, thanks to yoga. I wrote more about this journey here. 

Yoga’s mind body connection – two minutes or 40 Days.

Whether it’s a 40 day Kriya  or something that just takes a few minutes, yoga’s mind – body connection makes all the difference inside and out. Interested in exploring – I’ve got a luscious free, short side stretch sequence. You’ll be amazed.

Interested in going deeper? Find out more info about working with me
email me antonia@newlandscapeyoga.com

Find out more about Brett Larkin here.