Two years ago, I never imagined I’d mark Saddle as a favorite. My very first question to Devi was actually, “What if I can’t do Saddle?” Even now, my version is still supported with plenty of props, but I can mindfully settle into both half and full variations.

There were long stretches when I chose other shapes instead, yet over time my body shifted. Each time I revisited Saddle, there was just a little more ease, a little more space.

It turns out Saddle wasn’t impossible after all, it just asked me to practice patience as much as the pose itself.

I try not to go on and on about an old injury (broken clavicle and scapula), but my oh my, this practice made me realize how much healing had taken over the past two years due to the Yin/Devi combo.  These twists archetypes and adjustment directions were perfect.  Might be time to gather some crystals for an altar.

So nice for my neck and shoulders.  Least I forget the lower back.  After which, The Radiance Sutras:

Yukti Verse 4

At the end of the exhale, 

Breath surrenders to quietude.

For a moment you hang in the balance

Suspended

In the fertile spaciousness

That is the source of breath.

At the end of the inhale,

Filled with the song of the breath,

There is a moment when you are simply

Holding the tender mystery.

In these interludes,

Experience opens into exquisite vastness

With no beginning and no end.

Embrace this infinity without reservation.

You are its vessel.

I am often amazed at the gradual greeting of the morning, of the moves, of the gradual ways a pose can find new growth and direction.  I held my left arm in a different way during spinal twist and it drew my spine in a completely, more comfortable and deeper direction.  The favorite part of my day...Devi Daly.

Lots going on in my busy mind tonight. Keeping me from sleep. This was a peaceful release. Thank you 🙏

Here I am about to devour a kale salad on my 72nd birthday.  I was searching for a gentler practice on YouTube and happened upon your site...the rest is history.

Day 1 is listed under the date of January 19th on the calendar.  Heading to the mat shortly.

Beautiful. The breath, the way it settled into my spine, the widening awareness, everything felt luminous. I was bathed in energy; my whole spine seemed to glow. Your guidance, woven from your own experience, somehow becomes a space where I can discover my own. This belongs in a place beyond favorites.

What a wonderful practice.  I was keenly aware of the breath and empty space I found.  I was draw to open the sutras again and this verse found me.  

"Breath flows in, filling, filling, In this moment, drink eternity. Breath flows out, emptying, emptying, Offering itself to infinity. Cherishing these moments, Mind dissolves into heart, Heart dissolves into space, Body becomes a vibrating field, Pulsating between fullness and emptiness."

It's beneficial to find time on the mat, when angry, frustrated, ashamed.  Releasing stress is good to start the day.  Doing my own child pose means moving my hands in prayer behind my head with elbows on the flow.  This my shoulders in a healing way.  I remind myself today I am a man, not a country.