Rey Cardenas on Teaching Yoga in Rhythm: Astrology and Seasonal Practice

In this episode of Leadership and Yoga, I sit down with Rey Cardenas, Austin-based yoga teacher, and co-studio owner of Practice Yoga Austin, to explore what it means to teach yoga in rhythm with the seasons. We talk astrology in the yoga class, the relationship between the sun and our bodies,consciousness, Ayurveda and seasonal practice, burnout and sustainability for yoga teachers, and how presence, sound, and language shape a truly transformational yoga experience. Rey also shares insights from Rudolf Steiner, yoga therapy, and his philosophy on teaching yoga as a co-created experience rather than a performance.

Practice with Rey at Practice Yoga Austin:

​​https://practiceyogaaustin.com/ 

Yoga Therapy program: 

https://practiceyogaaustin.com/yoga-teacher-training/practice-yoga-therapy-training/ 

Rey’s instagram: @reys.awareness

https://www.instagram.com/reys.awareness/ 

Rey on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/@reysawareness 

Find Shawna on instagram: 

@shawnakru - https://www.instagram.com/shawnakru 

Try OfferingTree for free with my link here (My sponsor)

Ayurvedic consultation with Art, TEND https://www.tend.eco/collections/consultations 

Yoga Teacher Roundtable free community events & mailing list:

https://www.shawnakru.com/fam 

Time stamps:

00:00 Intro

03:53 Welcome back & why Rey’s teaching stands out

05:38 When astrology entered Rey’s yoga teaching

07:23 Scientific materialism, burnout, and losing rhythm

08:38 Rudolf Steiner, cultural ages, and the zodiac

10:38 Western vs Vedic astrology: personality vs karma

13:08 Why astrology belongs in a yoga class

14:48 Capricorn season, liminal time, and seasonal support

17:23 Teaching with the seasons instead of against them

19:58 Forward bends, backbends, and seasonal consciousness

21:58 Fall energy, overthinking, and teaching to what students feel

23:08 Introducing new ideas without alienating students

24:13 Going against trends and trusting your teaching path

26:58 Living and teaching yoga in rhythm at Practice Yoga Austin

27:59 Ayurveda and seasonal yoga practices

29:00 Summer vs winter yoga: heat, yin, and balance

30:08 The three gunas: tamas, rajas, and sattva

31:43 Cycles of life, injury, aging, and sustainable practice

34:38 Karma, grace, and trusting the unfolding path

36:28 Making mistakes before and after 35

39:28 Ascension, service, and responsibility on the spiritual path

43:18 What makes an exceptional yoga class

45:28 Presence, attention, and co-creating experience

48:33 Advanced cueing and anchoring awareness beyond the body

51:38 Sound, mantra, and the meaning behind language

54:28 Poetry, tone, and shaping the mood of a class

56:13 Mantra yoga, Sanskrit, and sound consciousness

58:13 Yoga therapy as “grad school for yoga”

1:00:13 Science, yoga therapy, and medical integration

1:03:13 Billboard question & Rey’s message to the world