Yoga during June
week beginning Monday 1st June
Namaste all,
Yoga during June will focus on the summer solstice and the warmth and energy brought by the longer days.
Greasby Centre: Mondays 11.15 a.m.
1st June, 8th June, 15th June, 22nd June and 29th June.
Hoylake Parade: Wednesdays 10 a.m.
3rd June, 10th June, 17th June and 24th June.
“The sun does not shine for a few trees and flowers, but for the wide world’s joy.”
— HENRY WARD BEECHER
June is the month of full unfurling — hedgerows thick with blossom, evenings that linger until late, and the body finally asking to move outdoors.
At the summer solstice, the sun pauses at its zenith — a breath held at the top of an inhale. It is a threshold moment, perfect for turning inward with gratitude, for burning bright without burning out, and for rooting ourselves back into the earth that holds us.
RADIANCE & VITALITY
Ignite your inner sun
The solstice carries the energy of Surya — the sun — the luminous force that animates all life. In Ayurveda, this is the season of pitta: fire, transformation, and clarity of vision. Our practice this month is an invitation to harness that solar energy consciously.
If possible, begin each morning session with slow Surya Namaskar (sun salutations) before the heat of the day builds. Moving with the breath rather than against it, let each round build warmth from within rather than striving for intensity. This is vitality, not depletion, in the context of sustainability.
BALANCING & COOLING
Tending the inner flame
Fire without water scorches. The wisdom of the solstice is not only to shine, but to temper — to find the still point between effort and ease. Cooling practices honour the body’s intelligence, preventing the excess pitta that can manifest as frustration, inflammation, or burnout.
CONNECTION TO NATURE
Rooting into the earth’s rhythm
The solstice invites us beyond the mat and into the living world. Ancient traditions gathered at standing stones, lit bonfires, and slept under open skies — not for spectacle, but to feel the body’s deep attunement to the turning year.
Take walks in nature, connect to the earth beneath your feet and feel the warmth of the sun and the caresses of the breeze. Take time to smell the flowers and appreciate their beauty and scent, appreciate the splendour and majesty of trees and woodland, the scent of the sea breeze.
“In every walk with nature, one receives far more than one seeks.”
— JOHN MUIR
THE LONGEST DAY JUNE 21ST
Gratitude
Mark the longest day with practice and reflection. Walk barefoot (in the house) or garden where it is safe to walk barefoot, contemplate, practice forest bathing (a focused walk in nature’s woodlands), breathe and connect with gratitude.
I know a bank where the wild thyme blows,
Where oxlips and the nodding violet grows,
Quite over-canopied with luscious woodbine,
With sweet musk-roses and with eglantine:
There sleeps Titania sometime of the night,
Lulled in these flowers with dances and delight.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare (Oberon, Act 2, Scene 1)
Shanti Om
Sue 🙏 x
