Mantra – “I am open to answers in all their forms.”

Class Theme: Listening and Trusting Beyond Your Terms
Introduction (with Saul’s Story):
We’ve all asked for help, looked for signs, or prayed for guidance—and then waited for the answer to show up just the way we wanted. But life often answers in ways we don’t expect. They say God speaks to us in wispers.

There’s a story about a man named Saul, who lived in a peaceful valley. One morning, the dam broke, and floodwaters began rushing in. A neighbor drove by and shouted, “Saul, get in the car—the flood is coming!” Saul shook his head and replied, “No thank you, I have faith. God will save me.”

The waters rose higher. Another neighbor came by in a boat and begged Saul to get in. Again, Saul said, “No thank you. God will save me.”

Soon Saul was sitting on his roof, the floodwaters swirling below. A helicopter appeared and the rescuers yelled down, “Grab the rope, we’re here to save you!” Saul still refused, saying, “No thank you. God will save me.”

Saul drowned. When he reached heaven, he asked God, “Why didn’t you save me? I had complete faith!” And God answered, “Saul… I sent you a car, a boat, and a helicopter. What more did you want?”

We laugh at this story, but how often are we just like Saul? We pray, we hope, and we ask—but we only want answers on our terms. Tonight’s practice is about learning to listen fully and trust the process—even when it doesn’t look like what we expected.

Topic 1: Are You Really Listening?
Reflection:

Saul had unshakable faith—but he couldn’t recognize the help that came because it didn’t match his idea of how it should look. In yoga, we do the same. We push and strive, expecting practice to unfold a certain way, and sometimes we miss the subtle wisdom that’s already present.

Tonight, as you practice, ask yourself: Am I really listening to my body, or am I forcing my own plan onto it? What signals have I been ignoring?

Metaphor:

Like tuning a radio to one song and missing all the other beautiful music that’s playing.

Quotes:

“There is your way, there is my way, but there is no right way.” – Wayne Dyer

“If we don’t change our course, we will end up where we are going.” – Lao Tzu

“To philosophize and take action is the path of a yogi.”

“Wisdom is knowing we are all One. Love is what it feels like, and Compassion is what it acts like.”

“When you get tired, learn to rest, not to quit.”

Topic 2: The Whisper of Wisdom
Reflection:

Wisdom doesn’t usually arrive with flashing lights—it whispers. And often we are too distracted or too forceful to hear it. Your body is the same. The tiniest adjustments in breath or alignment can change everything, but you have to be paying attention.

Tonight, practice listening to the soft spaces: the pause between breaths, the quiet stretch between movements.

Metaphor:

A whispering breeze can shift a boat’s sail—if the sailor is listening.

Quotes:

“The nature of yoga is to shine the light of awareness into the darkest corners of the body.” – Jason Crandell

“I am rooted, but I flow.” – Virginia Woolf

“Breath—the universe is taking care of everything else.”

“Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.”

“Yoga is especially necessary at this point in time, when life appears especially confusing.” – Yogi Guptan

Topic 3: Course Correction – It’s Never Too Late
Reflection:

Even if you’ve been moving in the wrong direction for a long time, it’s never too late to change course. Flexibility of mind is just as vital as flexibility of body. Notice tonight if you’re pushing somewhere that doesn’t feel right. Stop. Adjust. Trust the power of even the smallest course correction.

Metaphor:

A ship that changes course by just one degree ends up in a completely different place.

Quotes:

“Even backward is a direction. No matter how long you’ve traveled in the wrong direction, you can always turn around.”

“It is better to walk alone than with a crowd going in the wrong direction.” – Diane Grant

“Inhale the future. Exhale the past.”

“If the things behind you are tripping you, you’re moving in the wrong direction.” – Steve Maraboli

“The most important part of yoga is not what happens outside the body, but what happens inside the body.” – David Scott

Topic 4: Boundaries and Edges
Reflection:

Every pose, like life, has its edges—those places where growth and discomfort meet. Notice where your boundaries are tonight, and instead of pushing past them, ask: What can I learn from this edge? Let the breath meet you right there.

Metaphor:

A dewdrop at the tip of a leaf, balanced between holding on and letting go.

Quotes:

“Experience the boundaries in your practice tonight.” – David Scott

“There is no need to be perfect to inspire others.” – Kathryn Budig

“Raise your words, not voice. It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder.” – Rumi

“The yoga pose you avoid the most—you need the most.”

“A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms.” – Zen Shin

Topic 5: Trusting the Process
Reflection:

Yoga is a long game. You might not feel a huge transformation in one class—but trust that every breath and every pose plants a seed. Keep watering that seed with patience and faith. Just because you don’t see it growing yet doesn’t mean it’s not happening.

Metaphor:

Roots grow deep underground long before the first leaf appears.

Quotes:

“[Of yoga] On this path no effort is wasted, no gain is ever reversed.” – Bhagavad Gita

“Yoga is a light, which once lit will never dim.” – B.K.S. Iyengar

“Your soul is your best friend. Treat it with care, nurture it with growth, feed it with love.”

“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“We are all just walking each other home.” – Ram Dass

God often gives us answer’s but we want to listen under our terms.

There was a very devote religious man named Saul. He lived in a valley. One morning the damn broke and the valley began to flood.

A neighbor quickly pulled up in front of his house and yelled, “Saul get out quickly. The damn broke and the entire valley is flooding. Come with me now…”

Saul answered, “Thank you but I have my faith in God. He will take care and protect me. Go on your way.”

The waters began to rise and the house began taking on water. Another neighbor pulled up to the front of his house in a boat and said, “Saul come quikly, Your house is about floor. You have to leave now!”

Saul answered, “Thank you but I have my faith in God. He will take care and protect me. Go on your way.”

Soon the waters began to overtake the home and Saul had to climb up to the top of his roof, where he sat and prayed. Soon a Coast Gaurd helicopter appeared and seeing Saul, said over the speaker, “Sir we are here to rescue you. We are going to drop down a basket and hoist you to safety.”

Saul answered, “Thank you but I have my faith in God. He will take care and protect me. Go on your way.”

We in a few more minutes the house completely flooded and Saul drowned. As he made it to heaver he saw God and said. “What happened God? I have faith that you would protect me and keep me safe. How did you let me die?”

God said, “Saul, what more could I have done? I first sent a car to rescue you and then a car. I even sent a damn helicopter!”

“There is you way, there is my way, but there is no right way.” – Wayne Dyer

“Forgive yourself for staying too long when you should have left long ago… Begin to distance yourself from things that do not align with your moral compass, well-being, growth and serenity. Move on with your head high without the guilt, shame or fear of being misunderstood.” – David Scott

“If we don’t change our course we will end up where we are going.” – Lao Tzu

Even backward is a direction. No matter how long you have travelled in the wrong direction, you can always turn around.

“It is not our speed or the direction that the wind that determines our final destination; it is our course, determined by how we set and adjust our sails to prevailing forces of nature that we cant change.” – David Scott Yglesias

“If the things behind you are tripping you, you’re moving in the wrong direction.” – Steve Maraboli

“It is better to walk alone than with a crowd going in the wrong direction.” – Diane Grant

General Yoga

“Experience the boundaries in your practice tonight. Explore and identify where the restrictions are in your body, your heart and your mind. What is preventing you from going just a little deeper and farther in your practice and life? Let your practice dance on the edges of these limitations, like dew on the tip of a leaf. “- David Scott

“Practice is about patience, control, and breath. Enjoy the moments when it clicks and the moments when everything unravels — they are both phenomenal teachers.” ~ Kathryn Budig

“There is no need to be perfect to inspire others. Let people get inspired by how you deal with your imperfections.” – Kathryn Budig

“Those who love you are not fooled by mistakes you have made or dark images you hold about yourself. They remember your beauty when you feel ugly; your wholeness when you are broken; your innocence when you feel guilty; and your purpose when you are confused.” ~ Alan Cohen

Why you do Yoga?, What you wish to gain from Yoga? But more importantly, What do you wish to leave behind?”

“The most important part that happens during a yoga class, is not what happens outside the body, but what happens inside the body.” David Scott

When you get tired, learn to rest and not to quit.

“I am rooted but I flow,” Virginia Woolf

“Breath, the universe is taking care of everything else.”

“Remember the entrance to the sanctuary is inside you.” – Rumi

Life is a balance of holding and letting go.

Sthira sukham asanam Sthira‘ means steady or stable or grounded or strong and ‘Sukha’ means comfortable or easy (or ‘easeful’) or peaceful.

From the Gita:

[of yoga] “On this path no effort is wasted, no gain is ever reversed; even a little of this practice will shelter you from great sorrow.”

“When he sees all things being equal in suffering or in joy because they are like himself, that man has grown perfect in yoga.”

Inhale the future. Exhale the past.

You’re only as young as your spine is flexible. Quality of life is determined by our health.

I was looking for someone to inspire me, motivate me, support me, keep me focused… Someone who would love me, cherish me, make me happy, and I realized all along that I was looking for myself.

Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.

Wisdom is knowing we are all One. Love is what it feels like and Compassion is what it acts like.

“In meditation and in our daily lives there are three qualities that we can nurture, cultivate, and bring out. We already possess these, but they can be ripened: precision, gentleness, and the ability to let go.” – Pema Chodron

Your soul is your best friend. Treat it with care, nurture it with growth, feed it with love.

“The best thing you could do is master the chaos in you. You are not thrown into the fire, you are the fire.” -Mama Indigo

“The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little bit of extra effort.” – David Scott

When you are looking in the mirror, you are looking at the problem. But, remember, you are also looking at the solution.

“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“A flower does not think of competing to the flower next to it. It just blooms.” – Zen Shin

“Raise your words, not voice. It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder.” – Rumi

“The study of asana is not about mastering posture. It’s about using posture to understand and transform yourself.” – B.K.S Iyengar

“Yoga is a light, which once lit will never dim. The better your practice, the brighter your flame.” — B.K.S. Iyengar

“The nature of yoga is to shine the light of awareness into the darkest corners of the body.” – Jason Crandell

“The yoga pose you avoid the most you need the most.”

“I bend so I don’t break.”

“Yoga is especially necessary at this point in time, when life appears especially confusing and filled with tension, stress and distractions. It helps one to slow down in life and re-align oneself with the harmony of the universe and find peace within. It will help diminish cravings and bad habits, and bring you a disease-free body, a balanced mind, radiant health and long life. Yoga brings very special results. It is the door-opener to intuitive knowledge and Eternal Bliss.” ~ Yogi Guptan

“We are all just walking each other home.” Ram Das

To philosophize and do nothing is for a dreamer. To philosophize and take action is the path of a yogi

“No one ever says, ‘I wish I hadn’t done Yoga today…'” Unknown

“Yoga is not about touching your toes, it is about what you learn about yourself while trying to touch your toes.”

“Try to let go of the idea that you need to do yoga perfectly in order to see its benefits. Rather, let it be a process of waking up to who you really are. If you do this, you will know joy. And that joy will be your gift to a world that very much needs our healing,” ~ Darren Main

“Yoga is the perfect opportunity to be curious about who you are. ” ~ Jason Crandell

“In truth, it matters less what we do in practice than how we do it and why we do it. The same posture, the same sequence, the same meditation with a different intention takes on an entirely new meaning and will have entirely different outcomes.” ~ Donna Farhi

“Yoga uses the body to discipline the mind and to reach the soul.” ~ BKs Iyengar