Insights and Inspiration

Between Anxiety & Ease | Weaving a Rhythm of Fire, Earth & Breath

Between Anxiety & Ease | Weaving a Rhythm of Fire, Earth & Breath
"Today I am choosing to be mindful of what I’m giving my energy to.” — Morgan Harper Nichols

Good morning dear friends,

As always, let this read be an opportunity to pause, soften your gaze, and bring a relaxed steadiness to your posture. Take a slow breath in. Release fully with your exhale.

This week a simple reconnect to share in my offerings as we come to the culmination of Virgo season — on the cusp of the autumn equinox.

I’ve been feeling — and noticing in community — the delicate space between anxiety and contentment. Vascillations of the mind in the work of discernment, being okay not being okay, and the process of surrendering with what is. Not striving for different, but staying awake, meeting the moments, focusing attention with grace and commitment. Virgo, the caregiver and steward, brings the call of duty and responsibility. With Mercury energy swirling, eclipses and the volatility of our wider world stressors and violence pressing in, drawing us apart- I too have felt the tug between restlessness and ease, overwhelm and clarity, fatigue and the need to replenish.

Yoga- connection and integration within your layers of body, mind, emotion- gives us tools, a path to come back home to the heart. I've been starting again. An honest breath. To return to the body. To soften the mind. To pause. To ground. To enliven. To create more space. And to reconnect with courage to meet each moment. To listen and respond. The possibility of wisdom, and if nothing else- the potency of presence- to shine.

Fire & Focus into Fall

We are in the final rays of late summer sun, where fire (agni) helps us purify and prepare to turn inward. In Ayurveda, this transition is a time to digest and release - clearing space for the harvest of fall. I consider the element of fire also as focus.

This week, my offerings will focus on Samana and Udana Vayus — the winds of digestion and expression. When these currents are balanced, we can ground our scattered energy, uplift our fatigue, and clear the gateway between head and heart: the throat chakra- for thoughtful expression & ingestion.

Expect practices that support digestion, clarity, thoughtful expression:

  • Bhramari (humming bee breath) and chanting (or even singing) to vibrate the throat and regulate the nervous system.
  • Twists like Marichyasana to support stomach and spleen meridians, aid digestion, and reset circulation.
  • Simplifying what is in front of you — Saucha (purification) in daily life.

Gather your anxious parts, the scattered energy, the fog of fatigue,(the gunas out of balance) and draw them in. The world needs you — clear, nourished, and grounded in heart-centered service.

A Gift of Rhythm, Song, Heart & Home

I've been loving into this track, weaving this rhythm into my own practice, returning to self, to mantra, and to steadiness and a fuller heart within.
🎶 Sat Nam – I Am : Listen here

Feel free to revisit our more grounding and heart centering tracks here: Coming Home Playlist.

Reflections from Virgo Season

This month has been a practice of harvest, digestion, and refinement. Earth energy with a seasonal shift. If you’d like to revisit past reflections for the richness, the centering, the song, the themes and inquiries:

These all Live Here: https://www.mayalakeyoga.com/tag/insights-inspiration/

Each thread invites us back to the balance of nervous system and heart, to the invitation of Santosha (contentment), and to clearing space for what truly matters. Balance within as we come toward Libra season, to support harmony in connection.

Weekly Offerings & Invitations

A single practice is always nourishing — yet the deeper impact unfolds with consistency. Like the ripened tomatoes, the apples becoming, it is our fire inward channeled for the blossoming, the expressing, the shedding. As we move into fall, I invite you to give that gift of rhythm, clarity and steadiness to yourself, with your prana, and for your life. Join me in practices and connections that support you.

✨ Community Circle (Online) — Wednesdays @ 11 AM PT
A 30-minute midweek pause for centering, nervous system reset, and heartfelt check-in.
➡ Join Us From Anywhere

✨ Friday Flow (Online) — Fridays @ 8 AM PT
A mindful, 45 min flow with pranayama and seasonal themes to ground and uplift.
➡ Flow @ Home

✨ Morning Yoga @ Humberside Farm — Saturdays @ 9 AM
NEW WEEKLY RHYTHM | Beginning with a Gentle Equinox Flow this Saturday. All levels welcome. Practice among the gardens and celebrate the harvest as we turn toward fall. Space limited as the weather turns!
➡  Details & Registration

✨ Heart Spring Health (SE Portland) — Small-group therapeutic yoga

✨ Yoga Therapy 1:1 Sessions — In person & virtual
Trauma-informed care for nervous system support and embodied healing.
➡  Learn More

✨ Supporter Membership & Support My Work
Access 70+ class replays, seasonal practices, playlists, and more — or support accessible yoga therapy for the under-resourced with a one-time gift.
➡  Join the Membership
➡  One-Time Donation

Responsibility, service, connection — these are the threads that weave us together in our shared humanity. Let us honor the shift from greens to gold, from summer to fall, by tending to our inner fire with clarity and care.

In radiance & rest,
With love & light,
With steadiness, kind focus & heart,
Maya

💌 Comment on the blog and share: Where are you finding contentment amidst the anxious currents? Where can you simplify in your commitments? Where are you mindfully giving your energy to?

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