Namaste

Yoga is more than exercise. If done correctly, Yoga can expand a child's imagination, teach respect for everyone and everything and connect a child to the Divine. Children are naturally drawn to Yoga because that have an inner wisdom that guides their heart and soul to authentic ways of living.

I am certified as a Level 2 Radiant Child Yoga Instructor. Radiant Child Yoga is a type of yoga developed by Shakta Khalsa, who is one of the best yoga instructors in the country. It is based on Kundalini Yoga and incorporates creative visualization, meditation, breathing, chanting, mantras etc as a means to involve the "whole child" in a process of inner peace. I trained with Shakta Khalsa for an entire weekend in April of last year(from 9 am to 9pm Fri - Sun)while:

1) Getting a Master of Arts degree in Education with an emphasis in curriculum & instruction
2) Trying to take care of a family being poisoned by toxic mold. Read My Toxic Mold Story or go to ToxicMoldStories.blogspot.com for complete details.

California, who is only two, loves yoga. I teach my children a combination of Kundalini Yoga and Hatha Yoga. Both forms of yoga use various Sanskrit words and phrases to express thoughts and concepts. California often speaks in Sanskrit when English just doesn't seem to express his true feelings.

For instance...

Last week, he bumped his lip on the metal railing of our staircase and began to cry as it bled. I gave him ice to suck on and after it was gone he said "More ice, please?" I hugged him and gave him another piece. As his lip became numb, he smiled at me. Then he bowed to me and said "Namaste".

Here is a pic of him after the bleeding stopped showing me his boo boo. See his how his top lip is swollen...and all of the cookie crumbs on his face? For some reason cookies make all boo boos better.



Namaste is often used as a saluation. However, Namaste is a deeper form of appreciation and gratitude as it means "the light in me sees the light in you". California just does these things naturally, it is like second nature to him because it resonates with his inner being. He learned the word and a little song that goes along with it through Yoga and chose to apply it to everyday situations on his own. He learned this song from a great yoga DVD called Yogakids: ABC's.
CLICK HERE TO CHECK IT OUT:


Here are pics of Tennessee demonstrating the ghasso pose and Namaste bow:





It is not uncommon for one to hear California chanting "Ong Namo Guru Dev Namo" throughout the house either. This is primarily used in Kundalini Yoga and is chanted before each session to fine tune our energy and frequencies. It translates to mean "I call upon Divine wisdom". California loves to start this chant and get everyone in the house to chant this mantra as well.

He also loves to chant Sa Ta Na Ma...

Sa Ta Na Ma is also primarily used in Kundalini Yoga.
Sa = Birth
Ta= Life
Na = Death
Ma= Re-birth

California seems to chant this as he goes about his daily business...it keeps his mind focused on his task at hand.

If you would like to do Yoga with your kids at home, I highly recommend all of the YogaKids DVDs as listed above and ALL of Shakta Khalsa's books, CD's and DVD's, which can be found on her website. I will be attending Level 3 training with her this May, which will focus on kids with special needs like Autism, Asperger's Syndrome, Sensory Processing Disorder etc. I plan to offer Yoga classes to kids in the Los Angeles area this Spring. Check back often for more information regarding these classes :)