The seeds of our vision were planted one evening in May of 2010, during the twilight hour at Lake Tahoe, California. Stefanie Krasnow lay sprawled out on an expanse of wood floor gazing out through the window at the dance between sunlight and moonlight. Stefanie and Jeremiah Sheffield found themselves initially brought together to undergo Yoga Teacher Training, but soon discovered this encounter would produce inspiration that could not be described on any certificate. On this twilight, they played music and shared ideas; ideas that couldn't fit in boxes. While their fellow warriors-in-training frolicked in the yard or rested after a day of hiking and 5 hours of asana practice, Jeremiah and Stefanie were filled with more juice. They felt there was more to observe and burn off...more veils to uncover. The music that played vibrated deeply in them, inspiring spontaneous discovery of new practices, creative movements and artful flows. Stefanie danced, Jeremiah meditated through Qi Gong. They experimented with Budokon. They laughed..and sweat..and discovered. They loved..and laughed some more. Their fellow trainees wondered what they were up to..what they were inhaling?!...and as such the power of vibration fueled the vision. On TWILIGHT: -Twilight..The soft, diffused atmosphere of light that occurs when the sun is just out of visible reach. -Twilight..A state of uncertainty, of liminality, of passing, of change. -Twilight..A critical phase, after full development, success, eg: the twilight of her/his life. -Twilight..The period during which both the qualities of light and darkness equally prevail. On TAPAS: -Tapas..Giving it up, the practice of renunciation or of austerities. Giving up what? Our addictions, our fears, our habits which do not serve, our negative relationships and mostly: Our limited, false, misleading conceptions of self. In Twilight Tapas, we discover "tat tvam asi"..that thou art, through the process of "neti neti", I am not that. This is the renunciation of the veils over our eyes, the discarding of the "layers" of identity we wear over our truest selves. "I am not this thought of I" - Ram Dass. -Tapas..Giving it up, that we may be us for them. Giving it up to what, or whom? The ones we love. For others who inspire you to raise your vibration even higher. For others in need. For greater causes in the world than "i". Twilight Tapas yoga believes the highest intention or vibration is love. As such, Twilight Tapas is also a practice of Bhakti Yoga. "Being is dying by loving" - Ram Dass HOWEVER, we do not limit "tapas" to the practice of asceticism, which is not in every instance the appropriate practice for those living in this modern culture: -Tapas..Light the fire, utilizing that which the person requires for ignition. We are inspired by others, by collectives, by Spirit. However the individual is the striker, the fuel and the flame. Brahman - I am ONE, the one without a second. -Tapas..Light the fire, which burns off impurities AND lights the path. The dialectical unfolding of the relationship between DISCIPLINE and RADICAL FREEDOM. |
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