Brahmaloka Yoga: Classes & Workshops
Brahmaloka Yoga, developed by Maya Devi Georg & Chris Kiran Aarya is a deliberate form of yoga asana that is deeply meditative and precise.
In Brahmaloka Yoga each movement and posture is unpackaged in a sequential manner to help prepare students for the next level of practice, rapidly developing the body and mind to go beyond preconceived limitations and attain a true yoga practice.
Brahmaloka Flow is a slow, powerful, and precise form of vinyasa yoga that builds mental, physical, and emotional strength and flexibility while finding and exploring the edges of our abilities and beliefs.
We are still booking workshops for summer 2016 so please take a look at some of the workshops we offer (see below) and if you’d like to invite us to your studio or yoga festival/conference, please contact us at
2021 Classes and Workshops in Kefalonia, Greece
YPSK Yoga, Argostoli
Monday:
7:30-9PM, Maya, All levels yoga
Tuesday:
7:30-9PM, Maya, All levels yoga
Wednesday:
7:30-9PM, Chris, Vinyasa yoga
Thursday:
7:30-9PM, Maya, All levels yoga
Additional winter 2021 classes in Kefalonia and workshops in Greece – stay tuned!
Chris Kiran Aarya’s Workshop Descriptions:
Brahmaloka Flow Advanced Vinyasa Practice
What makes us doubt ourselves, our beliefs, and our abilities? Come on an adventurous journey with Chris, who channels his experiences as a mountain guide and yoga teacher into an exploration of ourselves, our beliefs, and our abilities.
In this two-hour vinyasa practice, he’ll guide you through a slow and mindfully paced ashtanga-inspired flow laced with humor and generous helpings of kick-your asana power flow sequences in which you’ll safely find your own edge. Along the way, we’ll break down some challenging poses to enable you to sneak across old barriers to new levels of ability and self-belief….laughing all the way! (Asana and laughter). Counts as continuiing education credit for registered yoga teachers recognized by the Yoga Alliance.
Brahmaloka Vinyasa Fundamentals
Fear of Flying: Arm Balances For Everyone
Do you run for the door when your yoga teacher calls out an arm balance? Do you suddenly “remember” that you need to call the babysitter when you hear the words bakasana, handstand, or pincha mayurasana (much less just mayurasana)? Then this workshop is for you!
Join Chris for a playful and fun filled workshop where we’ll explore how to build arm balances from the ground up. Reviewing the fundamental building blocks and “gateway” asanas to build the technique and strength for more advanced arm balances, we’ll push our edges outward breaking through barriers of self-belief and ability.
Arm balances are more than just exotic party tricks, they teach balance, coordination, and engaging the bandhas so we can move toward a feeling of laghima – the siddhi of becoming almost weightless.
Students of all levels are welcome and encouraged to sign up and attend. Active participation in this workshop is not recommended for students with shoulder, arm or wrist injuries however they can benefit from listening to the discussions and observing the techniques being practiced. (Asana) Counts as continuing education credit for registered yoga teachers recognized by the Yoga Alliance.
Yoga For Rock and Ice Climbers.
One major benefit that a yoga practice brings to the rock climber is balance: many levels of balance. Using the principles of Kenosis Yoga and Chris’ many years of rock and ice climbing and working with climbers to improve their performance, this workshop is a great way for climbers to try yoga and see how it can help them reach their performance goals.
Yoga brings balance to climbers in many ways.
So much of climbing involves applying power through pulling, stepping with balance, and turning the body into ideal positions to apply this power. Yoga balances the body out by working the pushing muscles which stand on the opposite side of the body from the often overdeveloped pulling muscles, and makes it easier for the body to twist and support body weight in different positions on the rock.
When you take time to separate yourself from the many thoughts swimming through your head, you can find ease and grace in the present moment. Many climbers love climbing for this same reason.
Looser hamstrings and hips are incredible for everyday maneuvering, but on the rock and ice, high steps and open-hip stem positions will no longer pop you off the route with cramps.
Climbing, Breath, and Yoga.
The rhythm of focused and slow breathing brings a calm and restful state of mind, allowing the climber to practice parasympathetic nervous system response which helps to stay focused and balanced during those hard crux moves.
Breathing practices learned in yoga offers a simple and effective way to increase the flow of oxygen to the body and brain while working hard on the rock.
This keeps the blood oxygenated and muscles supplied with fuel. Often without knowing it, the breath is held during tricky cruxes, thus depleting the muscles.
This is beneficial in delaying “The Pump” when muscles are overloaded with lactic acid.
Undesking: Freeing The Psoas and Spine!
Too many of us make our living sitting at a desk and its killing us. Our shoulders slump, our backs get stiff and weak, and our psoas gets shorter…and weaker. What we need is undesking or as we say it with our German students; entschreibtischen! In Greece, its ξεγραφύωση!
The Psoas muscle (pronounced so-as) is a deep core muscle which impacts our overall balance, flexibility, and range of motion. A tight and shortened psoas pulls the spine out of alignment and begins a chain reaction of muscles springing into action to keep it upright – leading to lower back and abdominal soreness and lack of mobility.
And today the combination of so much sitting and our fast paced modern lifestyle chronically triggers and tightens the psoas – making it ready to fight or flee. The psoas helps you to spring into action – or curls you up into a protective ball. At the same time we spend too much time sitting in chairs, further shortening and tightening our psoas, leading to pai
nful conditions including lower back pain, disc problems, and knee pain.
In this workshop, we’ll learn not only how to lengthen, open, and strengthen the psoas and spinal area– but how to keep it that way so we can remove fear from our core, stand and walk with correct posture, feel more powerful and free in our asana practice…and life! Counts as continuing education credit for registered yoga teachers recognized by the Yoga Alliance.
Adjustments and Assists For Yoga Teachers
Review and learn how to give gentle, safe and supportive hands-on assists which help students to more fully feel the energy of each asana – all while honoring and supporting their breath and intentions.
Chris has trained hundreds of teachers, written several important articles on the subject, and he is often asked to review forthcoming books on adjustments marking him as a respected voice on safe and effective adjustments and assists. (Asana, assists, and discussion) Counts as continuing education credit for registered yoga teachers recognized by the Yoga Alliance.
Yin-Yasa: The Fusion of Yin and Vinyasa Yoga. By fusing Yin yoga with Vinyasa flow, we create an integrated, balanced yoga practice. The first 45 minutes of Yin work help release the connective tissues, create space and integrity in the joints and remove blockages to internal energy flow. Focusing on the hips, pelvis, lower back and knees, the Yin postures keep the core supple. The hour-long Yang section is a flowing repetition of movements requiring strength and balance, while emphasizing breath work and internal locks. The heat and internal awareness generated in the Yang portion build on the releases cultivated during the Yin series. A reverse version is also available starting with vinyasa yoga, moving to yin yoga, then finishing with 30 minutes of yoga nidra and deep relaxation. (Asana) Counts as continuing education credit for registered yoga teachers recognized by the Yoga Alliance.
The Warrior and The Yogi
Who are we? Our family tells us, society tells us, laws and customs tell us. But what do we say? How do we get to that place of self-knowledge and conviction where we are able to state without doubt, fear or anger, “This is who I am, this is what I believe, this is how I intend to live my life?”
How do we find our true calling, our soul companions, our true self? In this task, a powerful ally is the Warrior Ethos. Directed inward, it grounds us, fortifies us and focuses our resolve. When we find ourselves taking a closer look at the path of yoga, we see not only parallels to the warrior ethos but also that they are a reflection of each other.
Lifelong yogi and warrior Chris Courtney leads you on a journey to understand how to blend the codes of the warrior and the yogi into a powerful and fulfilling life practice to support your spiritual journey.. (Discussion and jappa) Counts as continuing education credit for registered yoga teachers recognized by the Yoga Alliance.
Maya’s Workshops:
Advanced Brahmaloka Yoga Practice
These are challenging classes for advanced practitioners, teachers and those looking to advance their practice! This class offers more variations of classical postures and shows students how they can go deeper into their asana practice. (Asana)
Scorpion: The Workshop
The scorpion is an animal that is part spider, part lobster, part wasp, and all nightmare. It’s also a yoga pose.
The pose is both a backbend and an inversion, and the attempt is to bring both feet to the head. Energetically, this is a powerful posture that allows subtle energy to flow through the body without obstruction. Symbolically, it represents the decapitation of the ego. And trying to get into the many variations of Scorpion will be ego crushing. Which is good, since the ego is a massive obstruction to enlightenment.
We will work on the necessary flexibility, strength, and ego obliteration needed to eventually master this pose. All while having a whole lot of fun! (Asana)
Let’s Do The Splits!
Splits require us to take extend our legs, stretching them out to the side, or one leg forward and the other back. This requires loose legs and hips, and a range of motion that combines elements of forward and backward bending.
No, its not impossible – it just takes some work! It does not matter if you can do these poses. You may not come into the full versions in the workshop either. What you will learn are the techniques build the strength and flexibility to come safely into splits (hanumanasana) and straddle (side splits). Come join Maya Devi Georg, E-RYT 500 for an amazing workshop on how to approach these challenging and rewarding poses!
Backbends and The Subtle Body
In this world, the most immediate manifestation of our karmas is our body; the most immediate manifestation of the divine is love. We can purify our karmas by purifying our bodies, and become divine by expressing love. Backbends are essential to this concept. They open the heart, releasing the tension of things left unsaid in the neck and shoulders, and opening the doors of grief and rage that reside in the ribcage. This workshop, while primarily an asana class, will incorporate pranayama and meditation to better access the subtle anatomy. This allows practitioners to access the flow of energy, purifying both body and heart, and begin the transformation to a perfect manifestation of the divine. (Asana)
Unlocking Hips & Ankles: Accessing Seated Meditative Postures
The oldest known depictions of yoga postures are of seated meditative postures. These postures range from simple to the irrational. Seated meditative poses rely on hip and ankle flexibility; the hips store our deepest traumas and obstruct access to our roots, and our ankles represent both independence and liberation. Opening through these joints allows us to sit and circulate our subtle vital energy in ways that release karmas, and grant us the ultimate liberation: Samadhi. (Asana)
Getting Twisted: Accessing Twists & Binds
Twists are the most challenging of poses. They require the most flexibility, in shoulders, hips and the entire spine. Twists are also the most beneficial of yoga asanas, they keep the spine healthy, massage internal organs, and keep us regular. In this workshop you will learn the necessary steps to safely build the flexibility and strength necessary to make both twists and binds accessible in your everyday practice!
Psychic Development
How do we learn to manifest our desires? How can we better connect to our own flow of creativity, empower our thoughts and concentration?
The Psychic Development Course improves concentration, and helps empower thoughts to be more creative, allowing us all to better visualize and manifest our desires. This practice, originally taught by Swami Kailashanada (Yogi Gupta), is a set routine of pranayama (breathing practices), mantra, visualization and meditation. This routine is also a fantastic preparation for meditation. (Mantra, Pranayama, and Meditation)
Karma, Suffering, & Joy
How does karma work? How does karma affect our communities? Our nations? Our families? How do our everyday decisions affect other people? Why do we suffer and feel pain? How do we find joy through it all?
This workshop and discussion will leave you with an understanding of all of these manifestations of karma, how to expire it, and how to understand your place in this world.
An understanding of karma is vital to a yoga practice, so that you can navigate the material world while maintaining a spiritual life. Enlightenment is related to the expiration of all of ones karmas. If we could simply resolve our karmas without acquiring new ones, enlightenment would be a lot easier to attain! (Lecture and Discussion)
Subtle Anatomy
What is it that animates our bodies? How do our minds, emotions, and bodies interact and overlap? How can you experience, connect with, and manipulate the subtle energies that are in all of us?
This lecture explores all of these topics, as well as the effect our yoga practice has on our subtle anatomy. (Lecture and pranayama, some asana)
Chris and Maya Together:
CHAIR YOGA Teacher Training Weekend.
Yoga is for every body! And chair yoga helps make yoga accessible to everyone – even those with limited mobility and serious health considerations. This course will cover the basics of teaching chair yoga, from sun salutes to savasana, standing sequences, and special needs students. Included will be contra-indications, breathing, relaxation and stress reduction, as well as basic anatomy and physiology.
Advanced Asana Course.
In this weekend course, teachers will learn how to safely practice and teach advanced asanas. The asanas will be broken down into the most basic essence and form, and then slowly built up in a sequential manner to make them accessible to all! This course will cover the 5 types of yoga asanas, as well as sequencing, basic adjustments, counter-poses, and contra-indications.
Pranayama and Meditation Weekend. Deepen your practice with an entire weekend of learning various forms of pranayama (yogic breathing) and seated meditation from the tradition of Yogi Gupta. (Textbook: Hatha Yoga Pradipika and class handouts).
Yoga Philosophy Weekend.
Yoga Philosophy is vast – with Indian, Jain, Buddhist, as well as more modern traditions and interpretations , it is a life time study. This weekend immersive course will focus on the early yoga traditions, with emphasis on Vedanta and Sankhya traditions. Texts discussed will include Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Upanisads, and the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. An in depth weekend immersion into the philosophical basis of yoga.
Yin Yoga Teacher Training Weekend.
An in depth weekend certification program in Yin Yoga, the quiet practice which focuses on not only the connective tissue, but on the anatomical and philosophical aspects of Yin Yoga.
Private lessons and workshops are always available. Contact Chris and Maya via email at kirancourt@gmail.com