Ashtanga Yoga is a dynamic type of physical yoga in which the static postures, asanas, are as important as the movements or transitions, vinyasas, that connect them to each other. During the practise of Ashtanga Yoga, the breath guides each movement and serves as the vehicle to bring your awareness inside the body. Ashtanga Yoga is composed of a fixed sequence of asanas and vinyasas. Each asana prepares you for the next one, so the Ashtanga Yoga sequence is designed to always be practised in the same order.
In the traditional way of teaching Ashtanga Yoga, the teacher helps the student build the entire sequence step by step and at a pace based on their own readiness. Once the first sequence, Primary Series, is mastered by a student, the step-by-step process of building up the second sequence, Intermediate Series, commences again. A similar process is followed with each one of the four subsequent Advanced Series. Far from being monotonous, the practising of a fixed sequence of asanas and vinyasas provides you with the wonderful opportunity of witnessing how your body changes day by day. And, as you learn the sequence by heart, it allows you to take your practice with you wherever you go.
Ashtanga Yoga is best taught in Mysore-style classes, which allow the students to practise at their own pace and the teacher to focus on helping each one of them according to their specific needs. Hence, Mysore classes provide the best environment for students to correctly and safely learn the practice. Furthermore, they allow students to concentrate and turn their attention inwards, both of them necessary to get into a meditative flow. They are normally taught at dawn, when the energy in the air is at its highest and thus they give you the boost you need to shine through your day!