Lesson 1 • Rudis 'Golden' Ratio w/ Jathara Parivartanasana

RUDI’ S GOLDEN RATIO

THE SPIRALING DANCE OF SPIRITUAL GROWTH

WITH JATHARA PARIVARTANASANA

SPIRALS PERMEATE NATURE

The mathematical ubiquity of spirals is undeni-

able: nearly every action we undertake throughout

our day is a dynamic amalgamation of spirals

across multiple planes of movement. From a baby

crawling to a person walking, the act of fastening

a seat belt to the simple reach for a salt shaker—

spirals are interwoven into our everyday actions.

A glance around reveals that nature itself adheres

to this pattern, as evidenced by the absence of

straight lines in nature. Look around your house

and you’ll find straight lines, but look out your

window and you won’t find many, if any, at all.

Whether it’s the meandering course of a river,

the gradual unfurling of a flower’s petals, or the

coiling intricacy of our DNA, the architectural

blueprint of our reality, from the smallest scale to

the grandest scope, is steeped in various forms of

spirals.

THE ESSENCE OF THE GOLDEN RATIO

In mathematical terms, this phenomenon is

encapsulated within the concept of “The Golden

Ratio,” a ratio of 1:1.6 that orchestrates the

emergence of spirals at all levels of existence.

This ratio orchestrates the curvature of spirals

ranging from the curl of a fetus in the womb

to the arrangement of a pinecone’s scales, the

configuration of a hurricane’s vortex, the tra-

jectory of planets orbiting the sun, and even the

configuration of our galaxy and beyond. Our own

physical forms adhere to the spiraling symmetry

of the Golden Ratio—whether it’s the span from

our head to belly button (1) or belly button to feet

(1.6), the measure from fingertip to wrist (1) and

then from wrist to elbow (1.6)—each embodies

the ratio. Furthermore, the intricate design and

structure of our ears, face, lungs, and brain echo

the spiraling principles of this ratio.

RUDI’S GOLDEN RATIO

Within the ShambhavAnanda Tradition, Swami

Rudrananda imparted a teaching akin to the

Golden Ratio, revealing its application to our

spiritual journey. He taught that we should keep

a majority of our attention inside (1.6) while we

navigate the twists and turns of our daily life

(1), and by doing so we can ensure that we will

be able to maintain our center as we move out

through our day. If you were to put the golden

ratio into a percentage, this would mean keeping

roughly 60% of your energy inside while you

write an email, cook lunch, answer a call, build

a wall, etc. Does that sound doable to you? It’s

the equivalent of saving a little more than you

spend, ensuring that your outer actions will

always be grounded in your heart.

SUMMARY & RELECTION

Spirals are ubiquitous in nature and human

movement, embodying the Golden Ratio (1:1.6),

which can be seen from DNA to galaxies.

In the ShambhavAnanda Tradition, Swami

Rudrananda taught applying a similar ratio to

keep a majority of our focus inwards during daily

activities in order to transmute our lives into

spiritual growth.

·

How can you try this in a simple but

real way in your daily life? Perhaps its

feeling your breath while doing pos-

tures on your mat, or doing a mantra

while doing dishes…

Anatomy in Motion

Jathara Parivartanasana shifts the primary support to the upper body and shoulders, illuminating greater consciousness around the shoulders and ribcage at the top of the spiral line. By anchoring the shoulders, it energizes the bottom of the spiral line, enhancing our perception of the diagonal connection from one shoulder to the opposing hip. Through the synergy of the deep core and the spiral line muscles like the internal and external obliques, the ribcage and pelvis should resonate with a sense of unity and cohesion.

Note: Feel free to explore the depths of Ardha Navasana as the setup for this posture, bringing new levels of awareness to your deep core. When the core is truly integrated into this posture we find that there is very little need, and often times it is detrimental, to bring the knees to the floor, or even to the 5 or 7 o’clock position.

Set-up

  • From the back with feet planted and knees bent, reach arms to T with palms face up, allowing the shoulders to remain open and gently ground.  Notice the sensation of the ribcage resting on the scapula.

  • Play with your pelvic tilts to find a neutral pelvis and spine.

  • Float the knees over the pelvis, bringing the shins parallel to the earth.  Notice how this demands more support from the deep core. Make sure the lumbar spine feels long and spacious and is not arching away from the mat more now that the legs are lifted— for deeper support reference Ardha Navasana’s primary movement.

  • Exhale Take the weight out of the hands and arms to integrate the upper body into the core.  Make sure that you feel this action in the core and not the shoulders.

Primary movement (Full body Spiral)

  • Exhale Keep both shoulders down as lengthen your knees to the right, roughly the 2 o’clock position. Notice how reaching through the left arm creates stability across the spiral line into the right hip and leg.

  • Inhale Return to center and exhale to lengthen your knees the opposite way, noticing the sense of connection from each shoulder to opposite hip and leg.

  • Keeping your rotations small allows the deep core to fully integrate with your twist. There is a tremendous amount of potential for full body integration in these smaller twists.

Lengthening Exploration

  • Continuing with the primary movement, allow the top leg to gently extend and reach out through the ball of the foot to take the movement all they way to bottom of the spiral line.  You may need to come slightly out of the spinal rotation to create enough space for the leg to extend.

Circling Exploration

  • From the Set-up, keep shoulders anchored as you draw big circles with your knees, noticing the same cross lateral action as the primary movement as well as the gray area in between.

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