We had the most wonderful full moon last week. Hopefully, you caught a glimpse of it between the rain clouds.

For the past two weeks, my personal practice has been saluting the moon with the chant Om Somaya namaha. This refers to Lord Chandra, the deity of the moon. Chanting “Somaya” is said to invoke the energy and essence of Lord Chandra, seeking his blessings for emotional balance and inner peace.

The moon’s association with water also signifies emotional fluidity, making this mantra particularly beneficial for those seeking emotional healing and release. Chanting this mantra regularly is said to bring emotional stability and harmony to relationships. It is believed to help individuals overcome mood swings and find inner balance with the soothing vibrations of the mantra.

Today most of our education is secular, and learning is intrinsically linked to reading rather than chanting. In ancient times most knowledge, particularly sacred knowledge was transmitted through chants. Thus chanting and learning were intimately linked. As well as preserving knowledge it develops the intellect and memory. Learning to chant refines our capacity to listen and listening requires an open mind. The ancients used chanting to cultivate and celebrate our relationship with ourselves, our society, our environment and our source. If you want to learn more about chanting, we have a monthly Vedic Chanting class with Sarah Ryan on a Saturday.

This month the yoga centre will be full of chanting as we have the third module of the Viniyoga Yoga Therapy course UK. This is taught by Dr Kausthubha Desikachar, of the Viniyoga tradition of which mantra and vedic chanting is an essential aspect following the holistic and classical teachings of Professor Sri T Krishnamacharya. The 10-day module will mean there may be disruptions to the timetable so check the calendar for your usual classes as 5 of our teachers will once again be immersed in the ancient teachings and yoga philosophy and techniques from the Viniyoga tradition.

Many of us are used to the various sun salutations but maybe not so well known are the moon salutations, above is a beautiful moon salutation.

New Classes

Traditionally meditation has always been done either as a morning or evening practice and so we are delighted to have a new meditation class to complement our established Morning Meditation Class with Marj Snape.

Claire Pullinger will be leading a meditation class starting from March 19th every Tuesday from 6:15 pm to 7:30 pm. The class will be based on the Buddhist wisdom and techniques of the Theravada and Mahayana traditions she has trained in.

You can read more about Claire.

Sharon Morgan plans to start an early morning Pilates class on Wednesdays from 8:00 am to 8:45 am, providing an opportunity for early birds and those who want to exercise before work. Also, check the workshops page as she has some more Sunday shorts coming up in April. The men’s workshops are proving popular as are ‘basics’ for beginners.