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I still remember the primary time I experienced a mandala flow in yoga class. It was relatively early in my practice, and until that sequence, my practice had been very linear. Teachers typically cued us into postures that faced the front and perhaps the long side of the mat, starting with our right leg forward. Then we might repeat those poses on our left side.

That day, I used to be led through poses that were sequenced in a way I’d never experienced. As my body flowed in several directions—all the way in which from the front to the side to the back of the mat—what kept going through my mind was just what number of possibilities there are to transition through yoga postures.

I had change into so accustomed to practicing in a prescribed way, I used to be beginning to feel that my practice was plateauing, like there was nothing more to do but repeat the identical postures and sequences repeatedly. After I moved through that mandala sequence, I used to be capable of experience my body so way more intimately and intuitively in those creative transitions.

I used to be hooked.

What’s a Mandala Flow?

“Mandala” is a Sanskrit word which means “complete” or “circle.” A spiritual symbol in lots of cultures, a mandala is a representation of the universe and is commonly used for meditation. It’s believed that when you enter the mandala and journey toward its center, you’re guided through a means of transformation that ultimately results in enlightenment.

When practicing a mandala flow, you make your way halfway or completely around your yoga mat in a circular manner. Often, it’s practiced repeatedly. Transitioning from one pose to a different in this way allows you or your students to experience a type of moving meditation. The repetitive nature of the sequence and the seamless transitions create a rhythm that may appear to lull you into one other dimension.

After my first experience with moving through that mandala flow, I vowed that an identical type of creative movement can be my signature teaching style.

The right way to Create a Mandala Flow

There are two different approaches to making a mandala flow. The more common approach is a half mandala flow. As an alternative of moving entirely across the mat, you make a semi-circle by moving from the front of the mat to face the long side and then you definitely transition to the back of the mat before reversing that movement. That is what I experienced that day and it’s what I teach within the video below.

The opposite approach is to maneuver across the mat in full 360-degree fashion. This implies you make your way entirely across the mat, starting on the front and transitioning to face one long side of the mat after which the back of the mat. Then you definitely retrace your steps by continuing to face the opposite long side and, eventually, you find yourself facing the front again.

In my experience, full mandala flows are considerably tougher to create and to show. Navigating your students’ poses through all 4 sides of the mat in a single sequence makes it harder to recollect your left out of your right. And, in case you lead with the identical side of the body through the second half of the circle and easily repeat the sequence, it may well fatigue that side of your students’ body.

The great thing about a mandala flow is that it’s not as complicated to create because it looks. The next steps give you a basic structure for stringing together poses in a half- or full-mandala sequence. As with all sequence, the progression of poses and transitions in between them will come to you more easily and can feel more natural while you actually move in your mat slightly than serious about moving in your mat.

As you intend poses and transitions that move students from the front of the mat to the back, remember the intention behind your class. Whether it’s a theme or a specific pose that you just are build up to later at school, that ought to all the time be your priority and your underlying reason for including each pose.

Begin Your Mandala Flow

1. Select no less than two standing poses that face the front of the mat. Think transitioning from Downward-Facing Dog into Warrior 2 Pose followed by Side Angle Pose, as within the video below. Or Down Dog to High Lunge to Warrior 3 Pose. Start the sequence in your right side.

2. Select one or two postures that face the left long side of the mat. Consider Wide-Legged Standing Forward Bend and/or Skandasana (Side Lunge). Depend on postures which are helpful in their very own right and contribute to the intention of your class that may function to transition students to the back of the mat.

3. Finally, add one or two postures that happen facing the back of the mat. These may very well be postures which have a lower center of gravity similar to Low Lunge or Lizard, and even poses that take you right into a seated or reclining posture, similar to Janu Sirsasana or Bridge Pose.

Half Mandala Flow

4. From the back of the mat, add a vinyasa that can take you back to Down Dog (or whatever your starting posture.) Then repeat the sequence in your left side. You’ll find yourself on the front of the mat.

Full Mandala Flow

4. From the back of the mat, add a neutralizing posture facing the back of the mat during which each feet are together and your body is symmetrical, similar to Chair Pose, Uttanasana, Squat, even Bakasana.

5. You’ve a pair options in the way you sequence the second half of the circle.

From the back of the mat, repeat your first posture of the sequence, starting again along with your right leg. Proceed with that very same sequence of poses, which can take you back to the front of the mat.

Or, start again along with your right leg and proceed to take students through a latest sequence of poses using the identical principles that take them to face the long side of the mat and back to the front.

The right way to bring creative flair to your mandala flow

If you need to add more creativity to the flow, you possibly can do any of the next. The video below includes examples of every of those.

1. Think transitions
Now that you have got your structure, think more in regards to the transitions between them. Are you able to more fluidly link each posture to the subsequent? As you think that creatively, it’s also essential to remember the intention of the category and the skills of the scholars.

2. Include movement in poses
Consider adding more stretching and strengthening movement to your flow by including options for movement inside postures. For instance, in case you’re teaching a backbending flow, you possibly can include High Lunge and suggest students take cactus arms. If you happen to’re leading a hip-opening class, shifting backward and forward in Skandasana (Side Lunge) can work well.

3. Repeat and add-on
An incredible approach to advance any mandala flow is to repeat the sequence multiple times while adding increasingly difficult options every time. Since that is the second and third times students are practicing these postures, their bodies will likely be open and you possibly can progress each posture. For instance, the primary Prolonged Side Angle Pose may very well be practiced along with your hand on a block or your elbow in your thigh. In the subsequent round, your hand may make it to the ground. For the ultimate round, you would possibly feel comfortable reaching for a half or full bind.

The one approach to truly get a way of how a mandala flow works is to experience it. Below you will see a 40-minute half mandala practice that builds toward Eka Pada Rajakapotasana (King Pigeon Pose). By moving through the flow, you’ll higher understand how it really works—and the way it leaves you feeling during and afterward.

About our contributor

Sarah White is a continuing-education provider based in Dubai. Her creative sequencing style is born from her own curiosity and exploration of the human body and plenty of other movement disciplines. Learn more about Sarah and her Creative Sequencing Teacher Training here or follow her on instagram @Sar_white for more creative inspiration.