Tripsichore - Edward Clark

Some of the pleasures of yoga are quite subtle.  For instance, the mastery of breathing fully with ease is not as audaciously spectacular as attaining a handstand for the first time, but it is actually the thing that makes performing the seemingly spectacular into a sustainable thrill.  Likewise, the appreciation of the logic of a sequence of postures might appear to be a mostly intellectual pleasure, but one of the delights of yoga is found when the practitioner understands the experience of doing postures in an order which supports increasing physical awareness and difficulty.

Each session in this series of 6 workshops takes the form of a Tripsichore class, but will expand and break down particular segments to give insight into the finer points of the techniques and sequences.  This course will cover a range of Tripsichore Sun Salutes as well as the lengthy and infinitely expandable series we call the Girish Sequence.   Unlike the on-going movement found in Sun Salutes, the Girish Sequence spends more time working the breath in postures.  So, there will be an interesting contrast between how yoga is worked in movement and stillness.   An Inversion (be it Headstand, Forearm Balance, or Handstand) can be quite different when done as a part of continuous movement and when sustained for a long period.  Both present challenge that have as much to do with the mind’s response as it does with physical control.  

Tripsichore Vinyasa Yoga is both challenging and fun.  It encourages the student to explore the furthest range of their physical potential while providing the technical approaches that ensure safety.  The Tripsichore Yoga style has been developed for 30 years and, in investigating yoga, has endeavored to reconcile the idea of making advanced physical practice enhance the ends of a spiritual quest.  While Tripsichore is known for its amazing variety of unusual postures, these have been discovered through the use of orthodox yoga techniques.  These techniques have been experimented with to expand the range of what can possibly be derived from sound basics.  The results have shown that there is a lot more to yoga than just standard asanas.

In a Tripsichore workshop, you’ll be sure to learn some new and interesting variations on inverted postures and new ways to achieve back bends.  You’ll find out how to be more flexible and how to do things that look like they require considerable strength but, in accord with yogic principles, you’ll also discover that these are achieved with grace and ease.

The Tripsichore sequences seek the integrity of the postures by assuming that the mind’s intention can be integrated with the body’s movement with breathing techniques.  The refinement of these techniques – something that seems deceptively simple – provides the means through which the body achieves remarkable shapes of considerable beauty. 

Language: English