A New Form of Yoga in State College That Anyone Can Master
As a busy student I’m always looking for ways to relax. But I lack the time and money to really spoil myself. I almost gave up on finding something until my roommate introduced me to a new type of free yoga taught by instructor Laura Mills at Yoga in State College.
Kirtan is the meditative practice of singing different mantras over and over again to stretch the voice muscle. In fact, that’s the only muscle that gets a workout; you don’t move at all, so flexibility isn’t a factor. The idea is that repeatedly singing these simple Sanskrit phrases eliminates thoughts of exams, kids, money, and anything else that’s on your mind.
And it works. I was pretty skeptical and afraid of being the new kid in class. But my fears immediately disappeared when we closed our eyes and began singing. It was unlike anything I have ever experienced. I wasn’t the only person mesmerized by the instructor’s beautiful voice. At one point everyone got up from their seated positions and started dancing around the room. Afterwards we sat in a circle and enjoyed a traditional Russian meal cooked by one of the participants–each time the class meets, a different person brings a dish.
The next session is 8 p.m. Wednesday, the 30th. If you can’t make it, check out the class on April 13th, which will include local musicians.
This entry was posted on Monday, March 29th, 2010 at 8:53 pm and is filed under Events, Music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
