Yoga Revolution: Building a Practice of Courage and Compassion

(Paperback)

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It is time to address the dissonance between the often superficial way yoga is currently being practiced and the depth of yoga's ancient universal spiritual teachings. In this clarion call to action, Jivana Heyman offers a blueprint for cultivating a practice based in the ancient wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita and the Yoga Sutras in service of those experiencing exclusion and oppression. Heyman illuminates the yogic mandate of seva-or acts of service that see, care for, and uplift those around us-as a way to serve the world without losing your way. Through pose sequences, practice prompts such as "Embracing Failure," and stories from yoga teachers who are implementing seva in their classes, Heyman shows you what it means to serve, how to serve, and how to promote inclusivity through your service. Our job, says Heyman, is not to clear our mind through yoga practice, but rather to expand it so widely that it can embrace the entire universe.

Reviews

What a gift to the Yoga community! This book is transformational, much needed, and revolutionary indeed. Practical, raw, and real. Through Yoga Revolution,JivanaHeyman makes the philosophy livable and the practices doable for everybody.Indu Arora,author of Yoga and Mudra

In Yoga Revolution, Jivana Heyman leads us into the truth of the ancient practice of yoga, which is above all to love and serve humanityand he gives us the tools to do so. By sharing his own stories so freelyand passing along what he has learned on the pathhe encourages us all to discover for ourselves how we can use yoga, in some small way, to ease the suffering in the world.Linda Sparrowe, former editor-in-chief of Yoga International and author of Yoga Mama

Our culture is very good at shutting people and conversations down. What I appreciate most about this book is that it is designed to promote deep and thoughtful conversation about yoga and to open spaces of dialogue, learning, and healing. I cant wait to talk with others about it!Jeremy David Engels, author of The Ethics of Oneness

Yoga Revolution is a critical call to action for yoga professionals and practitioners alike.Matthew J. Taylor, PT, PhD, C-IAYT, past president of the International Association of Yoga Therapists

With depth of understanding and clarity of reason, Jivana Heyman reminds us that its both possible and important to hold past and presentevolution and revolutionin the same breath. Swami Rama once said that we must remember that we are simultaneously citizens of two worldsthe inner world and the outer world. This book helps anchor us in our inner world as we commit to the serious work of the outer.Reading Yoga Revolution left me both informed and inspired. I am deeply grateful.Nikki Myers, founder of Yoga of 12-Step Recovery

A heartfelt reminder that yoga is not about us but a much bigger picture. Although early yogis withdrew from the world to seek spiritual truth, blissing out in a bubble means ignoring injustice. As Jivana Heyman persuasively argues in Yoga Revolution, a more balanced approach is to care for ourselves so that were better resourced to serve others.Daniel Simpson, author of The Truth of Yoga

This book is a deeply personal integration of the spiritual principles of yoga presented in an utterly relevant and engaging format. I was touched by the numerous stories thatJivanashared, as well as by the yoga teacher profiles. A great effort has been made here to process the traditional Indian origins of yoga in a contemporary social and cultural context. This is a teaching every yoga student in the US should certainly read!Kino MacGregor, author of Get Your Yoga On

Yoga Revolution is a love song to the practice of yoga. What a blessing and a gift to us all.Melanie Klein, author of Embodied Resilience through Yoga

Yoga Revolution is an indispensable guide for all contemporary practitioners striving to respect the roots of the yoga tradition while using the practice to guide comprehensive social change.Jason Crandell, Vinyasa teacher, contributor to Yoga Journal

Yoga is much more than asana, and this book explores the intersection of yoga and social justice as a vehicle for revolution internally and externally, which is much needed globally in the time we are inAnusha Wijeyakumar, MA, CPC, E-RYT, author of Meditation with Intention

Jivana has given us the gift of his heart and vulnerability as he invites us to look into the intersections of our yoga practice, activism, and commitment to social justice without abandoning ourselves. He toes the delicate balance of inviting us to hold grief and joy at the same time, to honor the non-linear journey of healing, and to lean into tools that allow us to show up more fully alive for the work we do. A must read for every yoga teacher.Zahabiyah (Zabie) Yamasaki, MEd, RYT, author of Trauma-Informed Yoga for Survivors of Sexual Assault

Yoga Revolution is exactly the book we need right now.Jivana addresses head on the way that spiritual practices like yoga can be harmful and superficial if not practiced with justice in mind, andmore importantlyhe outlines how each of us can help in creating a much-needed revolution!Hala Khouri, MA author of Peace from Anxiety

Through the layers of wisdom revealed in Yoga Revolution, readers have an opportunity to step into the light of activism and service for the greater good of all of humanity. This book is rich with wonderful personal stories and ancient teachings that are sure to illuminate readers hearts.Cheri Clampett, C-IAYT, co-author of The Therapeutic Yoga Kit

Jivana does a remarkable job of uplifting important source texts and using them to guide and support us in important modern social justice questions and inquiries. He acknowledges harm within yoga lineages, discusses current racial justice issues as yogic questions, and explains how systemic inequities come to bear on modern postural practiceshadows rarely explored by many yoga teachers and leaders.He presents the possibilities and the obstacles and the grief and the joy so thoroughly that I am compelled to dedicate even more to practice and to meet Jivana there as a comrade and spiritualfriend.Jacoby Ballard, author of A Queer Dharma

I am pleased to say that there is a yoga revolution where a worldwide community of teachers and students are coming together to help ensure that yoga is accessible and inclusive and available for everyone. I believethat this is an important and much-needed book to help us have a greater understanding of yoga.Donna Noble, founder the Noble Art of Yoga

Yoga Revolution unites ancient teachings with a modern call for social justice and equity. Jivana revisits texts often used to bypass collective responsibility through an anti-oppression framework that instead upholds it. This book is ideal for teachers, aspiring teachers, and anyone wanting to deepen their yoga practice and contribute to community wellbeing.Bo Forbes, PsyD, author of Yoga for Emotional Balance

With wisdom and knowledge, Jivana guides us through yoga from the ancient to the contemporary.Thank you, Jivana, for Yoga Revolution; ithas inspired me to live my yoga out loud!Maya Breuer, VP Cross-Cultural Advancement, Yoga Alliance/Yoga Alliance Foundation

Yoga Revolution is a gift to the yoga community and it is also a necessary call to action. Jivana Heyman contextualizes the teachingsof yoga in a way that exceeds any other attempt Ive seen to date. He asks the tough questions while also demonstrating a tremendous amount of care and compassion for the reader. This book is exactly what the yoga world needs.Kat (Heagberg) Rebar, author of Yoga Where You Are and editor-in-chief of Yoga International

Yoga Revolution is a timely, personal, and deeply moving book, offering an applied yoga philosophy for the modern-day, socially-engaged practitioner. Drawing on his decades of personal study, practice, teaching, and activism, Jivanas work bravely combines theGts call for loka-sagrahathe welfare of the worldwith a compassionate vision of yoga that is truly accessible to all.Seth Powell (Harvard University), founder and director ofYogic Studies

This book voices a dream and a hope for what the practice can be, and one shared by a growing movement of teachers, writers and practitionersmany of whose voices are also included. This is a beloved community in action, and one I am honored to find myself apart of.Theo Wildcroft, author of Post-lineage Yoga

In this passionate and inspiring book, Jivana challenges us to change the way we think about and practice yoga. Rather than just focusing on cultivating equanimity or wellness, he shows us how to use yoga to fuel our compassion for others and to support us as we engage in acts of service and social activism while working to create a world that reflects yogas message of unity, equity, and justice. This way of applying yogas precepts and practices enables us to respond wholeheartedly to the difficulties of life in the modern world while at the same time respecting the roots of ancient yoga.Nina Zolotow, author of Yoga for Healthy Aging and Yoga for Times of Change

Jivana Heymans work in the world teaches us that healing lies in connection with others, with self-care as the first step in, and then stepping up to serve others. This is the quiet yet powerful revolution of yoga.Kallie Schut, founder of Rebel Yoga Tribe

In a time when the world is experiencing revolutions on multiple fronts, it is only natural that the yoga community would find itself in a revolution of its own. This is a fascinating, groundbreaking book that offers practitioners a playbook by which we can allow yoga to reveal the truth of our own mind and heart. Yoga Revolution is essential reading.Dr. Terry Harris, co-founder and instructor at The Collective STL

In Yoga Revolution, Jivana Heyman offers profound insight for our contemporary yoga community: open your mind and fill it with a loving, compassionate heart, dedicated to service.He then does the hard work of integration for the reader.He connects the personal, ancient, inward focus of yogic teachings to a clarifying lens for outward action, that of service and social justice.In so doing, Jivana rearranges and updates the yogic landscape for our troubling times.In writing this

Author Bio

JIVANA HEYMAN, C-IAYT, E-RYT500, is the founder and director of the Accessible Yoga Association, an international non-profit organization dedicated to increasing access to the yoga teachings. Accessible Yoga offers Conferences, Community Forums, and a popular Ambassador program. He's the co-founder of the Accessible Yoga Training School, co-host of the Accessible Yoga Podcast, and the author of Accessible Yoga- Poses and Practices for Every Body (Shambhala Publications). Jivana has specialized in teaching yoga to people with disabilities and out of this work, the Accessible Yoga organization was created to support education, training, and advocacy with the mission of shifting the public perception of yoga. More info at jivanaheyman.com.