Spiral Dynamic
It’s kind of odd to think that a simple pirouette can spark insight into the body’s laws of physics. In my case, it took many pirouettes to hone a seamless spinning craft. One day, it dawned on me that when you spin, you are actually spiraling. And the secret was revealed while I was doing a simple tree pose in yoga class. Battling with the external rotation of my hip, the rootedness through my standing leg and the evenness of the pelvis I pictured a spiral flow moving from my core outwards, and another spiral sinking from the periphery to the center. One line of energy ascended inwards and upwards, the other descended outwards and downwards – like two converging spirals with an opposite spin. Once I got the gist, I could spin eternally in dance class. What’s more, I started to apply this spiral dynamic principle in my asana practice. It was revelatory. Every pose felt like a swirl into wholeness. Every energy line curved my awareness inwards into the essence. I felt stronger, suppler, leaner, taller. My muscles toned, the definition revealed a body that was structurally integrated and spiritually sane.
The law of Spiral Dynamics also employed in psychology, argues that human nature is not fixed, but adaptable to the environment. Our core values and collective intelligences housed in our bodies are constantly in flux, undulating like a spiral from oneness into dispersion. Yoga asana teaches us that every spiral motion moves through three main stages: a still point, a curve, and a plateau. The point of stillness is the background from where the initial impulse arises. It is the primary sparking of our creative potential. The curve shows the picking up of momentum and the natural ascent up into evolutionary consciousness. The plateau is that magical and deceptive moment of gestation when we feel stuck and blocked, but when the thoughts and emotions simmer to crystallize into responsible choices.
If we are moving through one of the spiral modes that lead us away from the center of integrity into dissolution, our access to power is limited, our faith and trust are constrained and our beliefs are restricted to what you see or perceive. In Yoga, life or dance we gain coherence of action when our choices and intentions converge in a common point like two spirals with opposite spin. This powerful dynamic pattern is intrinsic to every process of creation. Whether our goal is to gain flexibility, release tension, expand the lung’s capacity, promote circulation or simply tone we are subtly propelled by this interdependent dance. Each thought, feeling and action, every movement of a wave or particle, and the activities of the entire Universe all follow the basic principles inherent in spiral dynamics. This sacred geometry is embedded in the proportions of all life forms, from tiny crystals, to the human being, to an entire planet. In fact there is nothing that doesn’t follow this same geometric pattern. Our brain, every process of growth and transformation in the body, the complex situations of life and the laws controlling politics, justice, education, etc., all use the mechanism displayed in this dynamic interplay. The key lies in the point where the two spirals converge. From the oneness of the gap emerges the destructive mode of duality in order to give rise to its constructive mode, converging back into wholeness. Whatever you feed into the gap will determine your new reality. Every thought, feeling, and emotion emerges from the thought of being that you are one spiral until it is fully expressed. It then collapses back into the gap and disappears into the screen of the conscious mind. But it shows the seeds for the next moment of your reality. According to the laws of karma, as you sow, so shall you reap. If you feed fearful thoughts into the gap, more fear becomes manifest. If you feed love into the gap, more love gets generated. The gap materializes and amplifies everything you give to it. Yet whatever you create has to be destroyed, has to come to an end again, and descend into the void to reemerge again into substance.
The cycle of life is continuous because both modes occur simultaneously and are present at every moment. The gap represents the Universal Consciousness of your higher self; the opposing spirals are the destructive and creative aspects of individual consciousness experienced as duality. Life is complete when we know ourselves as all three of them. The still point, the curve and the plateau are all the vital ingredients to a healthy spin. Are you ready for the next pirouette, a magical, whimsical turn in your life?
A giant “thank you” to our brilliant and elegant “Yogea ArtFlow” teacher Sofia Belen for designing this intermediate/advanced toning sequence, and inspiring us to embrace life with ardor and grace.
Toning Yogea Routine: Spiral Dynamic (Intermediate level)
Designed and performed by Yoga Alliance certified teacher Sofia Belen
This Yogea sequence is both empowering and stamina promoting as it encourages students to get in touch with the structural integration of all body parts while cultivating a sense of spiral dynamics. The toning and sculpting effect happens naturally as the core is ignited through various abdominal strengtheners and all the muscles, tendons, and ligaments are tended by a well-rounded palette of backbends, forward bends, twists, hip and shoulder openers. Special emphasis is placed on bound and twisted, standing and balancing postures. The sequence kicks off with a variation of full yogic breathing to integrate the physical and the subtle sheaths and then progresses into a centering warm up that zips the core, while massaging tendons and elongating the entire spine and the sides of the waist. Reclining arches provide a strong core and open the thoracic spine for deeper kneeling and standing backbends. Soothing forward bends bring the mind back into an introspective mode, and a gentle head rub activates the pineal and pituitary glands to elicit insight and intuitive intelligence. A progressive aura cleanse strikes the final cords of the sequence as you are asked to journey into the colorful spectrum of you chakra system and the interlocking spirals that allow you to ground and uplift.
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