At Awhi We Also Say, 'Mauriora'
In the first of our Wānanga Series, Mātauranga Māori meets Yoga through a collective discussion and exploration of the similarities, synergies and connections between traditional Maori wisdoms and yoga teachings.
Our wānanga series is based on 4 concepts: Aro-ha, Waha-ngū, Noho-puku, and Māramatanga. We cover one topic each week. On 21 June we start with Aroha.
The approach is based on a sharing circle - as facilitators, we will offer some thoughts and reflections before inviting conversation and sharing. Each session will include some very light, simple integrated movement. As BKS Iyengar wrote in Light on Life:
As animals we walk the earth. As bearers of a divine essence, we are among the stars. As human beings, we are caught in the middle, seeking to reconcile the paradox of how to make our way upon the earth while striving for something more permanent and more profound.
Following this, we invite you on a journey to reflect and deepen your yoga practice - a chance to explore 'being in the middle' as a pathway to consider the reconciliation of our 'at once earthy and divine existence.' We chart this course using some of the unique storylines of our land - Aotearoa.
REGISTRATION DETAILS
WHEN: Tuesdays 7-8:30pm; 21 June (Aroha); 28 June (Wahangū); 5 July (Nohopuku); 12 July (Māramatanga)
INVESTMENT: $25 each / $75 all 4
FACILITATORS:
Murray Hemi & Tom Brotherstone
Murray Hemi:
And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answer. (Rainer Maria Rilke)
Kia ora mai tātou!
I’m a dad, yoga practitioner, and work as a writer. I came to yoga to address some lower back pain so I could keep playing sport – I was terribly competitive in life (insecure, really). I found I loved yoga so much I stopped playing sport within a year. After practicing now for over 20 years, things seem to happen slower in my life and I get chance to respond in a better way; my sulking three-year old self appears less nowadays. I've also spent a few years running local men’s ‘Bro-ga’ events as well as teaching men’s yoga in prison.
While yoga has been a great pathway to notice and know more about myself it has also helped shed new light on my culture. Over the years I’ve been surprised by the many synergies between yoga and mātauranga. I started gathering them together and reflecting on them. I’m grateful for the opportunity to share some of that work at AWHI in this series.
Yoga continues to unfold for me today – while I still don’t know the right answers – I’m starting to identify the right questions. Mauriora!
Tom Brotherstone:
Tom is Co-owner and Lead Facilitator at AWHI Yoga & Wellbeing. He has completed 500hr YTT in Rishikesh, India, and has been teaching Yin and Vinyasa for the past 8 years. Tom has also been competing and teaching Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for last 10 years. His focus now is on building community through both practices, providing a supportive platform for the growth and self-discovery of others.