By Lisa Livstein 

The technological crusade of Western society increasingly puts Eastern contemplative practices right where we are not used to finding them - in the company of executives and over-extended workers in the board rooms and factories of present day industry. The breakneck speed of technological advancement and its demand for results serves to gather energy for its polarized cousins rest, harmony and wholeness.

"Yoga offers a reprieve from competition. Yoga is the way of undoing with infinite time and no ambition," remarks Sandra Callender a Toronto-based yoga instructor with more than a decade of teaching experience in the healing science of yoga. "Personally, I’ve found the experience to be life-altering. It’s been an organic, evolutionary process that has unfolded over two decades from the very first class I experienced at the age of 18."

For thousands of years, hatha yoga has been a scientific method for bringing body, mind and spirit into harmony. Its purification properties provide health and a chance for healing. "Yoga is the not the antidote for old age, it is the return of suppleness known as youth. Practiced with no aim, no ambition, yoga creates harmony and wholeness that comes in response to deep rest," suggests Sandra.

Yoga knows no age limit - one may commence yoga lessons at any age. "Provided the movements originate from the spine and with the care of a well trained teacher, the student will come to understand a new life in the body, a life with resilience and joy," says Sandra.

The emerging popularity of contemplative traditions has prompted the merging of conventional therapeutic tools with reflective practice and bodywork. Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy is one such marriage.

Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy is a combination of classical hatha yoga and elements of contemporary mind-body psychology. Practiced by yoga teachers, psychologists and physical therapists, the method works to bridge the gap between body and mind.

Phoenix Rising is a one-on-one process that makes possible the release of physical and emotional tension. While supporting the client in assisted yoga postures the practitioner encourages the client to focus on what is happening in the moment - physical sensations, thoughts, and feelings.

"By bringing the client to the edge of deep physical sensation Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy invites a profound level of self-presence or "witness consciousness". This awareness leads to the release of underlying emotions or beliefs, which most often manifest in the body as chronic aches and pains," remarks Sandra.

A typical session begins with a centering meditation and is followed by a body scan, supported yoga postures and non-directive dialoguing techniques. Together they heighten the client's body awareness and shine a light on the client's moment to moment patterns. Integrating the somatic experience with the client's daily life closes the session.

Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy encourages witness consciousness on all levels - body, mind and spirit. Through Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy, the body points the way towards the authentic self. The self-awareness skills developed in each session become a means for transforming one's life and discovering one's inner wisdom.

In addition to yoga classes and Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy, Sandra Callender hosts numerous weekend retreats throughout the year in rural Ontario, as well as extended retreats in exotic locations like Bali and Thailand and on the beautiful shores of Canada's own jeweled isle, Prince Edward Island.  

----------------------------------------------------------- 

Sandra Callender is a yoga instructor and Phoenix Rising yoga therapist with more than a decade of teaching experience in the healing science of yoga. A former resident and Program Director at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Lenox, Massachusetts, Sandra taught yoga and self-growth programs in addition to training aspiring teachers. Sandra's love of yoga has prompted her to study with master teachers, including a year of study in Florence, Italy where she explored the work of Vanda Scaravelli. Sandra's work is informed by a lifetime of exploration in movement, dance and sacred bodywork. Currently, Sandra studies Gestalt Leadership and creates yoga retreats in exotic places like Bali and Tuscany, as well as closer to home in rural Ontario and the beautiful shores of Canada's Maritime Provinces.

Contact: Sandra Callender, Breathprint
Address: Upper 16 Acacia Rd. Toronto Ontario, M4S 2K4
Phone: 416-932-1276