This post comes from shivanaut Simone Seol, who created this drawing in a recent fit of inspired Shivanautical brilliance. Thanks, Simone – this pretty much says it all!

You guys! This weekend is Roller Derby Championships! And I’m there. In Denver. Which also meant I got to do two hours of Shiva Nata yesterday with twenty seven wonderful people in Boulder. Awesome. Today’s post is from shivanaut Laura Eliason, who skates as Demon Llama for Ireland’s Cork City Firebirds. She’s bouting against Amsterdam [...]

Today’s post is from Rose, who teaches in the UK (Brighton! Whoo!). Yay, Rose!. Shiva Nata Teaching – An Insight of Flight I began “Dancing Shiva” as I call it because I don’t like freestyle movement, nor having to do something a certain way. I loved the idea that I could focus on numbers, spatial [...]

There are a bazillion different ways to do Shiva Nata, more than anybody could ever think of or list. I’m sure Havi could rattle off a whole bunch more (please, please don’t flail while operating heavy machinery).

The trick is not in how you ultimately flail (though some ways sure are a ton of fun – I can’t wait to do Shiva Nata in a group again). It’s in the willingness to be open to possibilities.

To experiment and see what a different approach has to offer. To bring awareness to the practice. And I’m sure Havi would add – the willingness to make it hard.

None of which, of course, applies just to Shiva Nata.

As I wrote down “clarity” in my journal, I immediately decided that it was not clear enough and added “relationship with clarity”.

The original work plan was to mess with level 3, and then I decided that it would be nice to warm up with some level 2 squares, with alternating breath patterns, going very fast.

As it turned out, the “warm-up” was plenty (something that I forget and remember over and over again). After getting as far as H4 V2 starting position, my arms very loudly asked for a break, and every other part of the body was all “yes, yes, break please, let’s lie down”.

So I did.

Because the parts where you are struggling? It’s where new brain synapses are getting made.

The points where you are flailing wildly and ballsing it up and tripping over yourself? They are the physical spots of transformation in your mind.

There is medicine and magic and goodness and would you believe it — a certain kind of grace — as you flail and try and fail and try again.

I’m sure there is a big ole lesson in here somewhere.

This wonderful piece is from guest poster (and beginning Shivanaut) Sol Lederman. He’s @slederman on Twitter. Thank you, Sol! I’m a Math geek. I’ve published a popular Math blog for three years now. I’ve loved Math as long as I can remember. To me Math (I honor the Muse of Math with a capital “M”) [...]

And all of this comes from the most important set of adaptations: the ones that let me do Shiva Nata every single day.

There are only a few: I don’t try to do entire long sequences, I do my best to learn the forms quickly so that I can turn off the DVD and go at a quicker pace (slow movements are far more painful than quicker ones), and I adjust my practice based on where my pain levels are.

On really bad days, I can only do a few minutes, and that’s okay. On good days, I go as long as I can.

For a recovering perfectionist like me, that kind of flexibility is practically a miracle.

I go through these patterns as a car on a kiddie fun-ride follows its track.

But instead of just being in the car, identified with the driver role, I’m also outside, seeing the track. (“Oh, track. Do I want that?”)

Then I did the first practise session today, which felt alternately natural then mind-boggling. Afterward I sat down to write a little about the question I’d gone into it with. My mind was a perfect blank, then suddenly…

Today’s post is from Char Brooks. Super interesting piece. Yay, Char! And thank you! – Havi A new ritual I remembered this morning that I wanted to create an opening ritual for Dance of Shiva. Just asked my body what that would be — turned on a couple lights — and then I inhaled lifting [...]