Twist and shout: a new kind of yoga

By KARON KARTER / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News

Article originally published in the Dallas Morning News, 10/17/03.

Prepare yourself for some hand-clapping, body-bending inspiration: [Living Yoga Dallas] is hosting a three-day workshop that includes hip yoga moves to a kirtan concert of body-swaying chants.

Dave Stringer, a Los Angeles composer and kirtan singer, and Saul David Raye, a yoga teacher and co-owner of the Sacred Movement Center for Yoga and healing in Los Angeles, will be in Dallas Oct. 24-26 to soothe souls and twist bodies into nirvana.

And that puts [Living Yoga Dallas] owner Kendall Inman in Utopia. "Saul is one of the most gifted yoga teachers in the United States, plus he'll be teaching us Thai yoga. And Dave is a critically acclaimed kirtan singer. To have them together ... is particularly special. Not only will this offer great yoga, it also exposes more and more of the different traditions of yoga."

Music and movement have always been part of Far East traditions. Kirtan, or chant singing, comes from the Sanskrit meaning "to sing," and is an Indian call-and-response tradition that goes back to the Bhakti movement of the 16th century. (Bhakti, which means devotion, was a spiritual reformation led by singers and poets. In essence, the belief was that the highest spiritual authority is found in the heart of each individual, and one of the ways to tap into this divinity is through ecstatic singing.)

In kirtan, the leader sings out a mantra from simple Sanskrit words, and the audience responds. During the chant, the singing speeds up to the point of mental and physical transformation. All things are possible during a kirtan: hands waving, bodies swaying and "souls awakening." There are no observers.

"By singing together, we unite. People come together and breathe together, singing to link their minds to move as one mind. Each kirtan offers a different experience. There are no rules. I guide the group, surrender to its will and then just accept whatever happens," says Mr. Stringer, who recently released his second kirtan CD, Japa.

You might not think you have participated in a kirtan, but, in truth, you probably have in one form or another, whether at your child's football games (chanting and cheering along with the crowd) or singing at church. Have you ever been to a great rock concert when the entire audience sings the words of a song?

"Kirtan is no different," Mr. Stringer says. "It's where all music comes from. Although its origins are spiritual, it's no different than a rock concert. It delivers that potent feeling of happiness and community. I can be in not so good of a mood before chanting, but by the end of it I've worked through most of my stuff feeling like I love myself and everyone around me."

Kirtan is part of the yoga tradition in which students seek to feel part of a community and to calm their minds. It's the latest yoga movement in Los Angeles, New York and Chicago, among other cities. Madonna does kirtan in London, calling it her om therapy.

Mr. Raye was introduced to Mr. Stringer at a yoga studio in Los Angeles.

"Dave and I want to give our students a practical, heart-oriented experience of yoga and chanting so they can connect to themselves and ultimately the spirit of life itself," Mr. Raye says.

"Saul, through his unique style of yoga, provides a structure for me to attach my music to," Mr. Stringer says. "Together, we organize the inner silence of a class. All yoga revolves around this inner silence to help people become focused in their practice. I help them to enhance their yoga practice. ... Music helps them to focus."

And for the yoga-curious, Mr. Raye promises an extra touch. The director for the Thai yoga therapy-training program at the White Lotus Foundation will teach a Thai yoga class.

Thai yoga is a healing art rooted in yoga, Ayurvedic medicine and Buddhist spiritual practice. Also called Thai yoga massage, it combines rhythmic massage, acupressure, assisted yoga postures, gentle twists and stretches along with energy work.

Thai yoga aims to release stress and tension while deepening the connection among mind, body and spirit. Traditionally, a qualified Thai yoga therapist gently stretches one student through various yoga postures while touching pressure points, massaging and opening up energy fields in the body. But Mr. Raye will teach an entire class.

"It's the perfect partner class because it's hands-on, so you connect with one another," Mr. Raye says.

Mr. Raye and Mr. Stringer say that what bonds them is their mutual aspiration of building a world community through their blend of yoga and chanting. They see their role as cultivating a sense of connectedness.

"People come out with a feeling of being intensely alive. Every sense is turned up," Mr. Stringer says.
Mr. Raye agrees. "Dave and I are excited about coming to Dallas to share our unique style of yoga and music. I hope the workshop itself cultivates strength, lightness in body, clarity of mind and an open heart."

Karon Karter is a Dallas freelance writer.

BEING THERE

The Saul David Raye and Dave Stringer workshop will be Oct. 24-26 at Goodbody's, 5301 W. Lovers Lane, Suite 114.

For cost information, workshop schedules, or to sign up, contact Living Yoga Dallas, 214-739-1605, or go online to www.livingyogadallas.com.