Gary Kraftsow Viniyoga Workshop

Asana Unlocked: Reframe Your Understanding, Renew Your Practice, Refresh Your Teaching

Join Gary Kraftsow in a workshop designed for students and teachers of all levels who are interested in
gaining a deeper understanding of āsana. Practitioners will learn to use āsana as a means to better
understand their bodies and begin to transform their present conditions. Teachers can further their
understanding of what is happening in their students’ bodies, and learn how to use adaptation in āsana to
move their students toward transformation.

Yoga is an ancient system that includes a set of practical tools to help us heal and transform. Āsana is
one of those tools and can help practitioners create a conscious relationship with their bodies in order to
develop, maintain, and/or rehabilitate their structures. It is often the gateway that leads to study of other
tools such as prāṇāyāma, meditation, chanting and mantra. Building a strong foundation through practice
creates sturdy roots to help practitioners access the deeper promises of Yoga.

This workshop is appropriate for all skill levels. Yoga Master Gary Kraftsow hasn’t taught an in-person workshop since 2020 so we are very excited for this live in-studio workshop in November. Gary has been a visiting teacher at Moksha since the early 2000’s and has skillfully educated and influenced many of our teachers at our studio and around Chicago.

Introduction to Viniyoga Āsana Principles
Fri, Nov 8, 6:30-8:30pm

Āsana is a means or a tool to help you understand and transform your present condition, not a goal nor an end in itself. In Viniyoga, the function of āsana takes precedence over the form, and we utilize the breath to initiate movement. Both form and breath can then be adapted to best serve the goals of the practitioner. Using a combination of repetition and stay helps to accustom the body to movement to then gain the most benefit from each posture.

The Biomechanics of Āsana
Sat, Nov 9, 1oam-1pm

Explore the core principles and purposes of the five different directions of movement in āsana: forward
bend, backward bend, lateral bend, twist, and axial extension. These core principles reveal the functional
potential for the human body. Learn about “release valves” in āsana, understand what is happening in
your own body, and how you can use these tools to replace dysfunctional movement patterns with
healthy ones.

Form Adaptation in Āsana
Sat, Nov 9, 2:30-5:30pm

The goal of āsana is to serve the practioner, not the posture. Study the use of repetition and stay in āsana practice, and how to adapt the forms of the āsana to serve the functional needs of your body. Learn to make the postures useful and relevant for you, which will help you to further your own transformation.

Breath Adaptation in Āsana
Sun, Nov 10, 10am-1pm

Krishnamacharya once told Gary that if you are not using breath in āsana, you are only doing
calesthenics. Explore the importance of coordinating breath and movement in an āsana practice, the use
of the directional flow of breath, and how breath initiates movement in āsana. As well, learn to understand
the art and science of adapting the breath in asana to create different structural as well as enegetic
effects. Using this powerful tool, you will notice the beginning of subtle transformation in your body and
mind.

The Art & Science of Sequencing
Sun, Nov 10, 2:30-5:30pm

In Viniyoga, we say that sequencing should be effective, efficient and elegant. Learn more about the art and science of sequencing āsana in relation to each other: A well-sequenced āsana practice is logically ordered, context specific, manifests an intention, incorporates the tools related to the intention, and provides maximum functional benefits with minimal risks. Learn more about linking to the deeper tools āsana as part of an integrated practice that may also include prāṇāyāma, meditation, chanting, and/or mantra: Learn what an integrated practice is all about and how the tools of yoga – āsana, prāṇāyāma, meditation, chanting and mantra – can be woven together to serve a myriad of outcomes.

Watch Gary here…

Notes about the Workshop:

Doors closed 10 minutes after the start of the workshop so please arrive on time.
Full refund (minus 5% admin fee) more than 72 hours before the event. No refunds within 72 hours of event.
Please bring your own mat and props.