Who’s working for whom?

Are you working for your Yoga practice, or is your Yoga practice working for you? A discussion on two different approaches towards asana practice, in hope for a balanced solution Introduction Who’s working for whom? Are you working for your asana or your asana working for you? Are you making your body adapt to suit the posture or adapting the posture to suit you: your body’s stiffness or flexibility, limitations or ability? “Who is working for whom?” is a question that can be asked on different scales: Am I working for my body or is my body working for me? Am I working for my mind or is the mind working for me, my job, house, etc. Yet here in this article specifically, let us stay focused to examine the topic of asana practice and see how our basic attitude towards the posture will directly change the practice. Let us try to observe 2 basic approaches and see the effects that each one will have on the practice, the advantages and disadvantages of each approach will become clear and the need for a balanced approach or a middle way may be discovered the most supportive for the practice. Attitude changes practice, not only where I place my hands and feet, not only which yoga style I learned or my awareness of breath but what is the basic attitudes that leads me. ‘Why do I practice yoga?’ can be a good guiding question that can help make one make the connection with the basic and fundamental approach towards practice. The answer to this question may change, it can alte ate from time to time, become clearer or vaguer at times. It is very useful to go back to this question often and see where I stand; where I was and where do I want to get to. It may help me align my practice with my goals and wishes. Basic two approaches 1) If the asana is seen as divine, ideal posture, a perfect and complete positioning of the body – one will aim with high motivations to achieve the posture and attain the supreme pose that is believed to have been reviled by the gods and passed down to mankind. Accomplishment of a perfect asana may be seen as a noble achievement that may lead to realization. Having high reverence and respect for the asana can be very uplifting; it can be inspiring and may lead one to feel deep satisfaction from their practice and help to develop and maintain a loving and appreciating approach to the body and even see it as a temple, through which one can serve the divine. It is important to recognize that having this approach – where the asana is seen as ideal and divine, a great desire may arise to look like something or someone else, a certain teacher, picture or sculpture. In some cases, one may even find frustration if they don’t manage to get their body to look like the desired image, while other times one may feel very proud if they do succeed whether with or without effort to achieve the goal of “doing” the correct asana. One is even likely to be tempted to push their body beyond its abilities to accomplish the perfect pose. This can lead not only to short term injuries but at some cases to broken bones, torn ligaments mussels etc. 2) On the other hand, if the practice of asana is seen as an aid, a beautiful and powerful way to help keep the body healthy and well then the practice will be driven by a totally different attitude. The poses will be used to feel, strengthen, stretch, flex and twist the body- be it the mussels, ligament, joints or bones (etc). The practice of yogic postures will be used for my benefit, naturally adapting and modifying according to my needs and abilities. This approach sees and respects the difference between bodies, the unique beauty of each person and their body. This approach deeply accepts the variety of ability among people, different levels of strength or weakness, stiffness or flexibility. Furthermore, it takes in to account that the body, as all living things, is subjected to change. The body is not only effect by the changes around it, but it is in constant change itself. The needs, abilities and limitations of each person and each body are constantly changing within as well as without. The seasons come and go, flowing from on the next, day changes in to night, the moon waxes and wanes, youth to adulthood, and adulthood to old age. “The paradox of existence is that we perceive patterns and cycles and yet nothing is ever the same…Likewise in our practice we should develop consistency and discipline and yet our practice should remain dynamic” said precisely by Paul Grilley a fascinating yoga teacher of our times that shows and encourages adapting a yoga practice to suit different needs, acknowledging the amazing power and abilities of yoga while accepting and working within one’s limitation. The body can be protected by not challenging it beyond its capacity, while adapting a wide range of variations of the poses to suit different needs, develop strength and flexibility. Asana Statue If I not only accept this but also respect my body as it is right now, I can incorporate in to my practice a whole world of variations and add fun to the routine of practice. Being careful and attentive I must learn how to let the practice support me without letting a fickle mind or bad mood disturb my discipline. Routine and discipline are not only important and facilitating on one’s path but most probably they are essential. This is true regarding any practice, yoga is no different in this matter and the value of regular practice is not to be underestimated. The benefit of discipline is clear, yet if I allow freedom to flow into my practice, alte ate the pose according to my needs (the time of the day or the month, the season of the year, my physical ability or disability, flexibility or stiffness, my mood etc) I can liberate myself from many “right” and “wrongs” that may not suite my body or my abilities at all or at a certain time and limit my practice. These “right” or “wrongs” can injure a stiff body or in the opposite case, they can lead to a waste for time for their inefficient for a very flexible and open body. Respecting the body I learn to investigate, to discover what it can or cannot do, what is within my limitation, what can be a helpful and positive to help keep it healthy and vital. I fascinatingly observe with patience how my practice changes, how my body changes and yet deeply accept what it is unable to do and maybe will never be. This approach will lead me to fully respect not only my body but others too. This attitude can be seen as a more secular approach and while adapting this approach alone, something can be left missing. Yoga is seen no more than other forms of excises, made for the body. To ‘use’ yoga, to ‘do’ yoga, is to dismiss the greatness of yoga in its fullness - a holistic and divine path to self realization. A balanced approach “To be proud of our yoga positions is bad taste. To be able to do the poses ”successfully” means nothing, nothing at all. Yoga should not become a circus. It must not be done as a refuge from life. Though yoga will somehow protect you, it cannot be used to protect or made to give health. It should instead help us to purify the body and the mind bringing us back to that blessed state of receptivity from which we can start to learn.” Vanda Scaravelli one of the great yoga teachers of the west. A ‘middle way’ must be put together in order for yoga to remain divine while allowing it to be adapted to different and personal needs. An attitude that will allow yoga to be available yet not degraded. Such an approach is a gentle balance that may need time and skill to perfect, as yoga itself.