ASHTANGA YOGA SHALA - YOGASANAS BUDAPEST  

on the Buda Side: FORINT UTCA 8, 1st floor (behind Mammut shopping center on a quiet side street)

Our studio is in a beautiful apartment in the heart of Buda, right behind the Mammut shopping center. It is convienient to get to from anywhere in Budapest via the 4/6 tram or by taking the metro to Moscow Square. The studio is bright and warm and there is a very good vibe about the place. Our goal is to have small classes to give personal attention to our students. We strive to keep the practice room warm to recreate the heat of India, the original source of yoga; and a place near and dear to our hearts.

At the Ashtanga Yoga Shala - Yogasanas Budapest, we practice yogasanas vigorously, but our aim is to help you move beyond just a physical practice. These postures date back thousands of years. When practiced correctly, they have a powerful effect on the body, and also calm the mind and enrich the spirit. Practice them and you will bring your body, mind and spirit into unison.

To begin yoga, and continue to practice it effectively, you must practice yogasanas and pranayama, (breathing exercises) and do them often. Most masters say every day. We recommend that you choose a schedule that works for you and that you keep to a consistant and regular yoga practice. With commitment, yoga practice reinvigorates and restores the body, mind and spirit.

Using your inner recourses of tenacity, concentration, determination and will power, you should commit to your practice. Stick to it! It is good for you!  Make yoga a priority in your life to take care of your body and mind. In yoga, honest effort is always rewarded, or to quote Pattabhi Jois "Yoga happens in the 'doing' ". Pattabhi is also often heard saying  "Do your practice, and all is coming."

ASHTANGA YOGA SHALA, YOGASANAS BUDAPEST - PHILOSOPHY & COMMITMENT TO OUR STUDENTS–

At Ashtanga Yoga Shala, Yogasanas Budapest, yoga practice re-energizes us and keeps us interested and open to new experiences both in the classroom and in our lives. We encourage our students to take yoga with them when they leave and use the lessons learned on the mat in their daily lives. We can help you achieve balance in your body, mind & spirit. We will practice postures, and also focus on yogic breathing techniques. Most classes will end with a short session of pranayama exercises.

Our commitment to you, our students, is that we will deepen your yoga postures, to make you more flexible and powerful physically and mentally. We believe that for our bodies to open up, our minds must be willing to open. We also believe that positive energy is much more powerful than negative energy and that we can cleanse our bodies and our minds through our practice. It takes time to understand this, and feel the effects, but it is very powerful and very real.

BEGINNER’S –

Our Beginner’s classes have become a popular place to start a yoga practice. They are active classes geared towards different fitness levels. If you are a beginner who hasn’t done yoga before, you can definitely participate in our active beginner’s classes.

Many of the students who come to our Yoga Shala have solid yoga experience, but many have little or no previous yoga training. Our beginner’s classes are designed for those who have less than perfect yoga practices and are not as flexible to start. (We also offer private lessons). We have put this class together to reverse stiffness and inflexibility and replace it with free movement. But it is only through hard work and sticking to your practice that we are able to achieve a balanced and purified body and mind. Through this practice the goal of yoga can be realized. Please do not come thinking this class will be easy, hard work and sweat will be the foundation of your practice. 

The Beginners class starts you off with simple versions of postures and you always get full benefit of the postures. You will see that the postures will deepen quickly with dedicated practice. We take five breaths in most postures and practice deepening into the postures slowly. They are fun, challenging classes and we hope you will have a chance to join us. We have the current schedule of classes listed on this website for more information.

ASHTANGA VINYASA YOGA CLASSES AT ASHTANGA YOGA SHALA - YOGASANAS BUDAPEST

ASHTANGA VINYASA YOGA BACKGROUND -Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga is a series of yoga postures practiced in a correct sequential order is in the tradition of Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, from Mysore, India. Ashtanga literally means the eight limbs or stages of yoga as described by Patanjali in his classic work, the Yoga Sutras. But Pattabhi Jois’ postures and tradition are what most people nowadays refer to as Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga. Sri Pattabhi Jois still, at the age of 93, is up every morning before dawn at  Ashtanga Research Institute (AYRI) in Mysore, greeting students who come from all over the world to practice under his guidance. Pattabhi’s grandson, Sharath, and his daughter, Saraswati, teach yoga there every day. Ashtanga is a very vigorous series of postures done in a precise sequence. The continuity of deep, even breathing cannot be overemphasized in this system of yoga. Manju Pattabhi Jois, Sri Pattabhi's oldest son, has been teaching Ashtanga yoga for almost 50 years and is the foremost teacher of Ashtanga Yoga. He will be in Budapest at our studio again in September 2009.

We offer two types Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga classes. Please check the current schedule on this website.

1. VINYASA KRAMA- Ashtanga Vinyasa Krama classes are taught in the tradition of Sri Krishnamacharya, the father of Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga. They are accessible, fast moving classes designed at an intermediate level. We sequence in and out of vinyasa kramas, sun salutations, standing postures, and seated postures using our breath. The postures will be familiar to any yoga student who has done Ashtanga yoga. It is listed on our schedule as " Vinyasa Krama".

2. ASHTANGA – This is a led Ashtanga Vinyasa Primary Series class. We do not teach Second Series. The Primary Series will be modified and postures may be substituted or changed by the teacher, as is tradition of the Ashtanga Vinyasa practice.  Please come with an open mind to class as it is a slightly different twist on the practice, but steeped in the true tradition. This class is listed on our current schedule as "Ashtanga". 

1. Eating - You should not eat at least two hours prior to class for a light meal, and four hours prior to class for a heavy meal.

2. Clothing - Bring loose clothing with you. There are changing rooms for women and men.

3. Water - Plan to re-hydrate with lots of water after class! You are welcome to bring water with you and drink a little during class. We sell 1 liter Jana waters.

4. Prior Injuries -You should let your teacher know if you have any injuries that you feel they should know about before each class. Yoga will heal many old injuries with time and dedication.

5. Yoga Mats - We encourage you to purchase your own yoga mat, a cotton yoga mat cover, and a towel, as soon as you begin to practice yoga. They are inexpensive, practical, clean and sanitary. The mat provides a sound foundation for your yoga practice. Bring your mat with you to each class. You are welcome to leave your personal practice mat at the studio. We sell regular and premium sticky mats, cotton mat covers, towels, and yoga mat bags.

6. Menstruation – There is much controversy about doing yoga during the menstrual cycle, especially about doing inversions. We believe that there is nothing wrong with practicing yoga during this time if you feel fit and able to do so and believe that this must be a personal decision. You may want to avoid inversions during this time and you are welcome simply sit out any postures you do not feel comfortable doing. Half shoulder stand is a recommended option instead of any inversions.

7. Perfume – Please do not wear perfume, cologne, or other strong scents when you come to class. Because of the emphasis on breathing, beautiful scents can become distracting to others.

8. Cell Phones – Please remember to turn them off when you enter the studio unless it is unavoidable because of kids, work or emergencies. Please leave the yoga practice room if you must answer your phone. 

9. Clean Bodies, Clothes and Mats– Because you will sweat in a yoga class, it is important to start with a clean body, clothes, and mats. Strong body odor can be very disruptive to others as they practice.

10. Listen to your body! – We like to make sure that our students understand that yoga practice is not intended to overextend, or over-stimulate your body. We are working towards achieving harmony between our bodies, minds and spirits so your practice should be fun! If going too deeply into a posture causes discomfort, or even anger, please listen to your own body and back off slightly and enjoy; or, as Manju Jois says "Take it easy!". There will be many more days to practice your postures. Yoga should never be about competition, and should always be enjoyable and energizing to the body.