Maria Grima

I've been practicing yoga for over 17 years now and it has brought a great deal of peace and balance to my life. In fact, my life has changed completely through yoga - I used to be a Data & IP

engineer for a telecoms company!I qualified as a Satyamvidya Holistic Yoga Teacher, Therapist and Causal Healer in 2006, after spending over 4 years studying with Lisehanne Webster at the Satyamvidya Integral Yoga Centre in Somerset , a small school where the emphasis has always been placed on supporting fewer students to go further through self enquiry and spiritual development during their years of study and beyond. Although now in her 70’s and no longer training yoga teachers, my teacher continues to support and mentor those of us who are out there doing our best to continue to share her remarkable work. For me, what started as personal development work, led to so much more. I feel enormously fortunate to be doing what I love and consider my role as a teacher of this material an immense honour and will never tire of watching people gradually blossom through their yoga practice. Many of my students have been attending my classes since I first began teaching in 2006, becoming lifelong friends - this is the joy of the space that we share.I also offer 1:1 Yoga Therapy sessions that take an integrative approach to wellbeing, creating a safe space to go much deeper into the therapeutic aspects of yoga. It’s a wonderful journey to embark upon when the time is right.A bit about Yoga and the style that I teach:Yoga is an immensely rich and highly complex spiritual tradition, with a history that is thought to span over 5 thousand years. Though it may seem to be shrouded in mysterious and complicated practices, yoga is in fact a very practical tool which we can all benefit from in everyday life. The actual system of yoga taught in my sessions is "Satyamvidya Integral Yoga", which is a holistic and therapeutic yoga, based on the 5 layers off consciousness called the Pancha Koshas: the body, breath, mind, soul and spirit. The name "Satyamvidya" in Sanskrit breaks down into 3 separate words: Sat=TruthYam=Love Vidya=KnowledgeIt’s an adaptation of Purna Yoga (the total Yoga), which is an Integral Yoga that embraces the many paths of Yoga, such as an understanding and amalgamation of Bhakti, Karma, Raja, Hatha, Svara, Tantra and Jnana Yogas. It is a gentle and deeply nurturing form of yoga where students are encouraged to honour their bodies and not force, push or pull themselves excessively, as the body will grow more flexible over time. It’s a lesson in patience, as we live in a world where instant results are often demanded of us, so we in turn come to demand the same from ourselves. In Satyamvidya, we use the breath to move into and within a posture. We look not so much for advanced techniques, but more towards advancing in the techniques and moving slowly and mindfully, to encourage full attention and awareness. We synchronise breathing whenever possible, and let the breath "do the work". Our meditative practice gives us the space to reconnect to who we really are and what we really want, because in the silence, we learn to listen to our inner voice once again and connect to our highest truth. It helps us to build a new way of life and a new way of being, over time – a life that is more in alignment with our authentic selves. And the wonderful thing about Yoga is that when you become confident and competent with certain gentle postures, breathing and relaxation techniques, you can practice yourself at home, thereby becoming empowered to make a real difference to your own health and well-being. It’s something you can use to nourish you throughout your whole life.At the core, Satyamvidya helps us to develop sympathy and consideration, patience, tolerance and compassion for ourselves and others, as well as acceptance and understanding of where we are at, in order to progress. You are encouraged to let go of expectations... and enjoy your practice with non attachment. What my classes include:Pratyahara/Awareness: A withdrawal of the senses, this is used for developing awareness as we learn to bring full attention to the body, breath and our thoughts. It is a very important aspect of Yoga, which is required in greater intensity as we progress. We become able to withdraw our awareness from our surroundings and turn our attention to the inner workings of the mind, at will. Kriya/Cleansing breaths: This form of breathing is a way of releasing impurities and acidity from the body, as well as encouraging a balanced metabolic rate. It also assists in letting go of stress and emotional blockages. Asanas/Postures: The Satyamvidya system is very gentle and therapeutic. The postures are modified to suit individual ability. Individual sessions of Yoga Therapy are recommended for personal needs. Pranayama: With the breath flows Prana; this means “vital life force”. It is directed through the physical pathways in specific patterns and channelled through more and more subtle nadies, in order to create positive change in the physical, mental and emotional layers of consciousness. Relaxation: Yoga has become one of the most successful ways of dealing with stress. This is largely due to the deep and powerful relaxation techniques, which involve not only the de-tensing of the body, but also the slowing of the breath and calming of the mind. Clinical trials have shown that 45 minutes of deep relaxation will lower the metabolic rate to the equivalent of 5 hours sleep. Visualisation: By using our senses inwardly, we are able to enter into an experience of “conscious dreaming”. We access the intuitive knowledge of the subconscious and, with practice, also the unconscious and super conscious levels of mind. It can bring about a deep sense of relaxation, help us to see life more positively and change our attitudes, as we are guided through wonderful landscapes and images, releasing tension and stress along the way. Mantra: As the classes progress, we introduce mantra, the chanting of single seed sounds (beeja) or a combination of sounds. It is one of the very successful ways in which Yoga is able to enhance and profoundly affect all physical matter, as well as thought patterns and emotions.

Overview

I've been practicing yoga for over 17 years now and it has brought a great deal of peace and balance to my life. In fact, my life has changed completely through yoga - I used to be a Data & IP engineer for a telecoms company!

I qualified as a Satyamvidya Holistic Yoga Teacher, Therapist and Causal Healer in 2006, after spending over 4 years studying with Lisehanne Webster at the Satyamvidya Integral Yoga Centre in Somerset , a small school where the emphasis has always been placed on supporting fewer students to go further through self enquiry and spiritual development during their years of study and beyond. Although now in her 70’s and no longer training yoga teachers, my teacher continues to support and mentor those of us who are out there doing our best to continue to share her remarkable work.

For me, what started as personal development work, led to so much more. I feel enormously fortunate to be doing what I love and consider my role as a teacher of this material an immense honour and will never tire of watching people gradually blossom through their yoga practice. Many of my students have been attending my classes since I first began teaching in 2006, becoming lifelong friends - this is the joy of the space that we share.

I also offer 1:1 Yoga Therapy sessions that take an integrative approach to wellbeing, creating a safe space to go much deeper into the therapeutic aspects of yoga. It’s a wonderful journey to embark upon when the time is right.

A bit about Yoga and the style that I teach:

Yoga is an immensely rich and highly complex spiritual tradition, with a history that is thought to span over 5 thousand years. Though it may seem to be shrouded in mysterious and complicated practices, yoga is in fact a very practical tool which we can all benefit from in everyday life.

The actual system of yoga taught in my sessions is "Satyamvidya Integral Yoga", which is a holistic and therapeutic yoga, based on the 5 layers off consciousness called the Pancha Koshas: the body, breath, mind, soul and spirit.

The name "Satyamvidya" in Sanskrit breaks down into 3 separate words:

Sat=Truth
Yam=Love
Vidya=Knowledge

It’s an adaptation of Purna Yoga (the total Yoga), which is an Integral Yoga that embraces the many paths of Yoga, such as an understanding and amalgamation of Bhakti, Karma, Raja, Hatha, Svara, Tantra and Jnana Yogas.

It is a gentle and deeply nurturing form of yoga where students are encouraged to honour their bodies and not force, push or pull themselves excessively, as the body will grow more flexible over time. It’s a lesson in patience, as we live in a world where instant results are often demanded of us, so we in turn come to demand the same from ourselves.

In Satyamvidya, we use the breath to move into and within a posture. We look not so much for advanced techniques, but more towards advancing in the techniques and moving slowly and mindfully, to encourage full attention and awareness. We synchronise breathing whenever possible, and let the breath "do the work".

Our meditative practice gives us the space to reconnect to who we really are and what we really want, because in the silence, we learn to listen to our inner voice once again and connect to our highest truth. It helps us to build a new way of life and a new way of being, over time – a life that is more in alignment with our authentic selves. And the wonderful thing about Yoga is that when you become confident and competent with certain gentle postures, breathing and relaxation techniques, you can practice yourself at home, thereby becoming empowered to make a real difference to your own health and well-being. It’s something you can use to nourish you throughout your whole life.

At the core, Satyamvidya helps us to develop sympathy and consideration, patience, tolerance and compassion for ourselves and others, as well as acceptance and understanding of where we are at, in order to progress. You are encouraged to let go of expectations... and enjoy your practice with non attachment.

What my classes include:

Pratyahara/Awareness: A withdrawal of the senses, this is used for developing awareness as we learn to bring full attention to the body, breath and our thoughts. It is a very important aspect of Yoga, which is required in greater intensity as we progress. We become able to withdraw our awareness from our surroundings and turn our attention to the inner workings of the mind, at will.

Kriya/Cleansing breaths: This form of breathing is a way of releasing impurities and acidity from the body, as well as encouraging a balanced metabolic rate. It also assists in letting go of stress and emotional blockages.

Asanas/Postures: The Satyamvidya system is very gentle and therapeutic. The postures are modified to suit individual ability. Individual sessions of Yoga Therapy are recommended for personal needs.

Pranayama: With the breath flows Prana; this means “vital life force”. It is directed through the physical pathways in specific patterns and channelled through more and more subtle nadies, in order to create positive change in the physical, mental and emotional layers of consciousness.

Relaxation: Yoga has become one of the most successful ways of dealing with stress. This is largely due to the deep and powerful relaxation techniques, which involve not only the de-tensing of the body, but also the slowing of the breath and calming of the mind. Clinical trials have shown that 45 minutes of deep relaxation will lower the metabolic rate to the equivalent of 5 hours sleep.

Visualisation: By using our senses inwardly, we are able to enter into an experience of “conscious dreaming”. We access the intuitive knowledge of the subconscious and, with practice, also the unconscious and super conscious levels of mind. It can bring about a deep sense of relaxation, help us to see life more positively and change our attitudes, as we are guided through wonderful landscapes and images, releasing tension and stress along the way.

Mantra: As the classes progress, we introduce mantra, the chanting of single seed sounds (beeja) or a combination of sounds. It is one of the very successful ways in which Yoga is able to enhance and profoundly affect all physical matter, as well as thought patterns and emotions.