“The yoga pose is not the goal. Becoming flexible is not the goal. Standing on your own hands is not the goal. The goal is to create space where you were once stuck. To unveil the layers of protection you’ve built around your heart. To appreciate your body and become aware of the mind and the noise it creates. To make peace with who you are. The goal is to love. Come to your yoga mat to feel; not to accomplish. Shift your focus and your heart will grow.” Rachel Brathen
About 30 years ago I was drawn to a yoga class and something just felt right about it, so I kept doing it.
I can’t remember now exactly what it was about those first classes that felt so right for me. In fact, all I really remember is that the teacher talked about her daughter’s horse a lot, which I found irritating actually.
Over the years I found other teachers, other styles. I enjoyed it all and I just kept doing it.
I also began studying the whole yoga discipline – which is vast! It takes into consideration every aspect of the human experience – body, mind, emotion, energy, soul…
Through the practice of the discipline of yoga, we come to know ourself, we come to love ourself, find our potential, and become our best self and live our best life. And we come to see this most clearly by the way it shows up in the people and the world around us.
It seems to me that, as yoga has become more mainstream, it has been shaped by the limited understanding of mainstream, capitalist culture and is now commonly understood as something much more basic, little more than a fitness program, which part of it can be. It’s now commonly misunderstood and that is a shame, because there is so much in it and so much available through practicing it – on a mat and especially beyond a mat.
What yoga isn’t…
I just typed in an internet search for “What is yoga?”, and this is what came up:
“Yoga is a type of exercise in which you move your body into various positions in order to become more fit or flexible, to improve your breathing, and to relax your mind.”
This isn’t untrue. It is all of the above. But there’s much more…
What yoga is…
> Yoga is a discipline – a way of living.
> Yoga is old! It’s origins can be traced to northern India over 5,000 years ago. The word yoga was first mentioned in ancient sacred texts called the Rig Veda. In the west today, the Yoga Sutras are the most commonly referenced text on yoga, authored by Patanjali (an Indian sage), dating to 200 BCE – 200 CE.
> Yoga is split into 8 branches (limbs):
~ Yama - attitudes toward our environment / moral integrity / discipline
~ Niyama - attitudes toward ourselves / personal integrity / discipline
~ Asana – action / physical postures
~ Pranayama - restraint or expansion of the breath to move prana
~ Pratyahara - withdrawal of the senses
~ Dharana – concentration / contemplation / collecting the mind
~ Dhyana – meditation / collected mind
~ Samadhi - complete integration / bliss
(As you can see from the above list, physical movement (asana) is only one part of the discipline of yoga).
If any of the above interest you, dive in. Find a class nearby, book a session with me, go to an ashram in India! Yoga is all about the journey, not the destination, and is full of delights and surprises.
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