May 15-17, 2026
Shiva Shack
Register: https://chiyogashack.com/yoga-workshops-chicago
This workshop is suitable for anyone interested in Ashtanga who is motivated to learn.
This weekend is a deep, practical immersion in the inner and outer engine of Ashtanga yoga. We will study how the mind develops through practice, how vinyasa creates the rhythm and power of the method, how true strength is built through calm intelligence, and how all of it comes together inside a real led practice and pranayama.
The Yoga Sutras offer practical insight into how to work with the mind, both in daily life and in your asana practice. In this session, David will give a talk on Book 1, Sutras 18 to 22, a key passage that points to the inner qualities that support real progress on the path. We will explore five essential qualities to cultivate: • Sraddha: faith • Virya: energy and strength • Smrti: memory • Samadhi: meditation • Prajna: wisdom and insight These five can be understood as inner “containers” you keep filling through steady practice. David will unpack each word, what it means, and how to apply it in a grounded way.
This class will deepen your understanding of vinyasa, one of the central technologies of Ashtanga yoga. Vinyasa refers to the dynamic transitions that link postures together in a precise, ordered sequence. You will learn how to bring more rhythm, vitality, and confidence to your transitions, and how skillful movement between poses prepares you to arrive in a posture with steadiness, clarity, and a quiet, focused mind. We will also explore how training transitions teaches you to know your breath as a powerful guide for self inquiry, helping your practice become more intelligent, more meditative, and more alive. These same techniques will be further applied on Sunday morning during the Half Led Primary Series class, so you can feel how this work shows up inside an actual counted practice.
This class explores how strength in Second Series is built differently than in Primary. Along with physical power, we train the steadiness of mind that lets you stay calm, discerning, and patient while you breathe and hold steady through challenge. We will work step by step with options and progressions, so everyone can benefit. We will also explore a fresh emphasis on the jump back, and draw strength-building lessons from key postures such as Bakasana, Pincha Mayurasana, Karandavasana, Mayurasana, and Nekrasana, plus the seven Sirsasana variations that complete the series. We will finish by looking at how inversions in both Second Series and the finishing sequence support strength, stamina, and meditative focus.
Start the morning with a guided Half Primary Series led in the traditional Ashtanga style, emphasizing steady rhythm, clear breath, and intelligent transitions. This is a chance to bring the techniques we explored over the weekend into a real counted practice, so the work becomes embodied and practical. After asana, we will do an Ashtanga pranayama sequence to settle the nervous system, refine your breath, and deepen concentration. Expect a focused, grounding session that leaves you clear, steady, and energized.
Got a pose that’s been haunting you? A mystery you can’t crack? This session is your chance to get it all sorted. Come with questions, leave with answers.
To register for the entire weekend and learn more details visit - https://chiyogashack.com
