Shakti Workshop - The Wisdom Goddesses Part 3 of 3

In Tantra philosophy, a holistic theory and form of yoga that arose around the 5th century, all reality is one.  The wisdom goddesses come from Tantra theory and they represent aspects of the divine feminine which occur in each of us and unveil themseves through our own personality traits.

Known collectively as the Mahavidyas (maha means great and vidya means knowledge), each Goddess offers a path towards awareness as she teaches us about a particular characteristic of the I-self and helps us to understand that each has both a light and a shadow side and that in order to be whole we need to embrace and draw insight from both!  Kali's light for instance is non-violence, her shadow is aggression or being judgemental.  As we gain insight into what fuels our shadow aspects and let go of past aspects that relate to these we can use that knowing to alter our lives now and in the future.

As creative forces the Mahavidyas become metaphors guiding us towards a deeper understanding of ourselves, helping us consider our reactions to stimuli or triggers and offering ways to change these into positive responses where we need to.  Using the persona of the Goddesses as a means to do this enables us to cultivate a sense of freedom from the parts of ourselves that we might be struggling to accept or deal with on a regular basis. 

We will explore each of the ten Goddesses in sequence.  The light of one leads onto that of another creating a radiant pathway and fuelling our practice through the full spectrum of yoga: asana, pranayama, mudra, mantra, meditation and kriyas.

In this third and final workshop we meet  4 goddesses:  Dhumavati, the crone who offers insight and wisdom in the void of emptiness; Bagalmukhi, whose mace stuns everything into stillness and represents all the invisible pauses that offer choices; Matangi, an incarnation of Saraswati goddess of speech and the creative force of knowlege and wisdom and finally, Kamalaatmika opening us up to beauty and bliss in the journey from head to heart.

These workshops are suitable for all levels;  varations for poses will be offered and props used to ensure everyone who attends can enjoy the full benefit of thee entire practice.  We wil approach the Goddesses with a playful sense of investigation and openess, seeing how they resonate in our own lives at this particular moment in time.