Sahaja Yoga Mats - Interview with JUDES YANG

TIY sat down with the incredible Judes Yang, founder of Sahaja Yoga Mats. Judes has dedicated her business towards supporting others and has an inspiring business goal of lighting up 108 Million Lives! With every yoga mat Sahaja sells, they give a solar light to families who have no access to electricity in Mozambique. You can literally change someones life with just one purchase! Read on for what lights Judes up and how she came to launch this remarkable business.

Can you tell us a little bit about Sahaja Yoga Mats and how the concept came about?

It was my way to give back to others. I wanted to light up lives, like mine was when I experienced some of the darkest days and trauma of my life.  I was given so much love and support and this is my way to forward that love and support on to others.

What did you take into consideration when designing the Sahaja Yoga Mat? As a yogi, what is most important for you in a mat?

I wanted a mat that encompassed the following features:

• Won’t move around on the ground when I practice

• A towel built in for when I sweat

• Strong grip so that I feel sturdy

• Enough cushioning for when I kneel

So I decided to make Sahaja Yoga Mats longer than the normal standard yoga mats, as well as thicker and wider. Our standard yoga mat is 1.83cm long - 10cm longer than the regular mats currently available, that are similar to ours. Our resident yoga mats are also 4.5mm thick, 1mm thicker than similar mats out there. Of course our travel mats are lightweight and thinner than our resident mat. We also have an extra wide range of yoga mats, which are 66cm wide. Our standard width is 61cm wide.

Your designs are beautiful, where does the inspiration come from? 

All the designs are original artwork, you won’t find our designs on adobe market place or anywhere that you can find artwork etc.  Each of our designs are created from the heart, through the inspiration of life, sacred texts and our experiences of living in the flow of life. See here to read more on our designs.

What sets Sahaja Yoga Mats apart?   

Firstly, our mats are created by a yoga teacher and yogi, for others.  We’re also a certified B corporation (read more)! 

Our designs are all unique and original artwork that were specially created for Sahaja Yoga Mats, they are also all limited editions. The designs themselves are created with alignment cues in mind.  You aren't told where you “should” place your feet or hands, the cues are organic, as every time you step into a warrior or are in downward dog, your hand and feet placement will be different.  The unique and intelligent alignment designs are perfect for those who self practice on their own without a physical teacher there. So staying in the flow, you can look at the mat and the designs will guide you. 

Everyone loves this aspect of our mats.So not only are the mats beautiful and give back, they are also functional with a purpose and a deeper meaning.

Are the mats easy to care for?   

Super easy! You can wash it down with a hose, or even leave it in the rain to clean. Hang it in the shade to dry and it dries super quick. Our mats can even be thrown in the washing machine whenever they get too dirty, without soap and with cold water. 

Where can people buy your mats?  

Through our website or our stockist, such as This is Yoga :)

Do you sell any other accessories?   

Yes we also have yoga straps, awesome eco cork blocks, tanks and we are working on adding to our range with towels, bags, bolsters and meditation cushions. 

Is there anything else you would like to tell us more about?  

We’re more than a yoga mat, we’re about community and lighting up people’s lives.  We call everyone who owns a Sahaja Yoga Mat a light giver, as they get to physically give a solar light with each yoga mat sale. The process of giving lights up the life of the person receiving, literally, but also the giver’s life lights up from doing something good. It’s not about buying a yoga mat, it’s about contributing to the betterment of another person's life, we become agents of change and the only thing we had to do was buy a yoga mat. 

How long have you been practicing yoga?   

Since I was 23 and I have been teaching yoga since I was 26, I am 43 now. 

What is your favourite pose(s)?  

Poses? They’re all beautiful, unique and serve a purpose in their own way.  I do prefer Kriyas and breathwork these days

Read more about Jude’s inspirational and heart touching story here .

To inquire about Sahaja Yoga Mats sold at This is Yoga, contact us at info@thisisyoga.com.au or (02) 8958 8710

Author: This is Yoga

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The Importance of Intelligent Yoga Sequencing

You attend a yoga class with the intention to move your body and to squeeze some exercise in to your busy week. You then, unexpectedly, walk out feeling ethereal! Your body feels equal parts stretched but strengthened, you were intensely focused and challenged yet you feel a wave of calm, you were pushed to your limits yet you felt safe and trusting in the process, you may not have spoken a word to anyone yet you feel a warm sense of community and support amidst the silence.  We often don’t spare a thought as to why we feel this way. Commonly this will be put down to simply just…yoga. However, creating these sensations and emotions in people requires a very carefully curated sequence. Below, Arian Levanael explains why it is so important to fully understand yoga sequencing..

Did you finish yoga teacher training with more questions than you started with? Or are you thinking of diving deeper into your practice and don’t know where to start? Do you feel that you know how to sequence effectively?

For students and teachers on their journey this can be a real problem and not all teacher trainings address the importance of class planning and sequencing. So, what you may be left with is a set sequences (which can be very helpful for the first stages of teaching), but no clear idea how to develop your sequencing skills from there.

With the huge popularity of yoga and literally millions of people practicing yoga all over the world, there is a great need for further education of teachers. With this in mind, why is it that resources that provide information on class sequencing are quite rare?

So here it is, a course that many students have asked me to create, because they resonate with the way I teach and/or the story I tell through their bodies. Perhaps they feel the yoga is working and their body is well looked after through my sequences.

Hopefully.

 As a teacher that mentors new teachers, sequencing is the area I tend to work with them on the most, and one that I thoroughly enjoy.

As an aerial acrobat and performer for over 20 years, my job is to sequence not only my performances, but also often choreograph for other artists. I think this is where my passion for yoga sequencing has come from. I just love attention to details and being able to choreograph a movement journey with a whole class in synchronicity is something beautiful to do. To take the students on this intelligent creative journey is a challenge I rise to every day. I am always learning, ever evolving and expanding in my understanding of yoga and its many facets. Not only sequencing, but also the key elements of asana, pranayama, meditation and all the tools that yoga has to offer.

I have practiced and studied various styles over almost 30 years on my journey into yoga. As a 17 year old that just wanted to learn sun salutations as a way to touch my toes (then get my hands flat on the floor), with no understanding of the deeper layers of the practice, to now a ‘much older’ than 17 year old teaching yoga full time internationally.

I still feel like I’m only just scratching the surface of a deep journey of remembering. I need no answers to questions, simply feeling and experiencing freedom and the mystery of all this practice unfolds is a blessing.

My goal for this training is to offer both experienced insight and practical tips on how to work skilfully with sequencing your classes. This will eliminate the challenges you might face as a yoga teacher or one that is keen to start teaching, enabling your students to remember their true potential through your class and for you to remember your authentic voice.

There are so many ways to sequence a yoga class, so many options and it’s difficult to know how the story will unfold. Making the right choices of what to put in your class is important for your student’s journey, safety and the overall experience of their practice. As teachers we literally have our student’s bodies in our hands and it is our responsibility to ensure everybody is warmed up for often challenging asana and transitions between asana.

For an effective yoga sequence, it is not enough to mechanically follow a series of set postures that together make no sense. We must tell a story to the body and take it on a patient journey of awakening and an adventure of transformation through the sequence of our design. Our teaching can inspire the same flexibility that we are trying to develop in our bodies. Being open to new ways of moving and exploration is where the magic happens.

The yoga sequence you offer may leave your students feeling energised, deeply relaxed or spiritually connected. Hopefully some amazing combination of all three and more! But one thing I do know is that each person has their own unique experience. Just remember that no two classes are ever the same, even if the sequence never varies. The experience on your mat will be unique every single time because no two moments are exactly the same. Yesterday’s practice is not today’s practice, and today’s practice is not tomorrow’s practice. Allow each experience in the asana to be unique and unfold in the present.

Through this fun and informative training we will learn how to adapt asana sequences relative to the level of students, their overall health, life-style and environment. We will dive deep into asana practice and understand the layers of the pose. There are a lot of things to consider even before you decide on the type of journey that you want to take your students on, but do not be overwhelmed, this art can be honed, and it can be very enjoyable.

Teaching yoga is a passion and joy for me to share with others. It is from this devotion to this beautiful art that I humbly share my experience.

We can take yoga sequencing for granted. We often don’t appreciate the skill, heart and time that has been devoted to those sequences that have quite literally helped to change our life in one way or another.

Original author: Arian Levanael
First published: January 21, 2021
Link to article: https://arianlevanael.com/2021/01/21/why-yoga-sequencing-is-so-important-to-understand/

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