Living the Wisdom of Yoga in Modern Times

Is Ashtanga to Blame For Yoga's Movement to Complete Physicality?

Many yoga studios, classes and styles have been built on the belief that you don't have to study the spiritual side of yoga. That by physical practice, the student eventually will want to know more & will intrinsically turn inward.  This belief may have been birthed from Ashtanga. It is commonly believed that Pattabhi Jois taught this and many modern westernized forms of yoga are based on it. What if this is not true & just a misunderstanding birthed from Jois's limited English?

I have always postulated that Pattabhi Jois would have taught more philsophy and theory if his English would have been better. An interesting artcle released from one of his earlier students seems to suppor this. Below is an excerpt from, Reflections on "Guruji: A Portrait"-Interview with Elise Espat- Part I. 

When I arrived in Mysore in the early '90s Guruji used to give regular theory classes, but his ability to communicate was often thwarted by language problems. 

Guruji spoke a little English but he had a strong accent which was often hard for English speakers to understand and mostly impossible to understand for non-native English speakers when he started to talk about philosophy. 

In the first few years I was there, there were 15-20 students at his theory classes. We were French, German, English, American, Dutch, Swiss… a jumble of languages with varying limitations on the grasp of Guruji's broken English and Sanskrit. So his efforts were often mired in frustration. I felt for him (and for myself - I was also frustrated we were unable to learn more from him in this forum).

There were also increasing numbers of students who did not want to think too deeply. For them being in India with Guruji was perhaps a bit of a lark and not an opportunity to absorb the fullness of what he had to offer. Often they turned Guruji's theory classes into a bit of a circus.

Guruji was a scholar and had the desire to share the gems of the Upanishads or the Yoga Sutra with his students, but as time went by, the quality of the interest was often brought down to a lowest common denominator by questions such as "Guruji, what is the best kind of yoga clothing or mat to use?" or other perhaps important, yet mundane subjects. 

In the end Guruji would often shake his head in frustration and resignation and say "You don't understand! Just do your practice and all is coming!" This was accepted by increasing numbers as a motto, and for some, as an invitation not to question any deeper. But I felt it was said in the context of frustration that direct teaching through the mind was not possible.

According to this article, it was frustration that led Guruji to drop the philosophy. I have also taken workshops from Guruji's earlier students that support that he did have these types of conversations and they were dropped later. 

Recently Gregor Maehle, arthor of two popular Asthanga books, 

broached this subject on his Facebook Page.  

"much of todays Ashtanga Vinyasa culture is lost in physical prowess, acrobatics and athleticism. Don’t get me wrong, I do practice asana (posture) daily (including Advanced A if my body let’s me) but after practising one form or aspect of yoga or another for over three decades I feel that asana makes up about only 20% of yoga total. Now the belief that you actually get to the other 80% merely by practising asana I consider a myth. In my practice life I found that you get to the other 80% by practising them. 

 
Another myth of Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga that I would like to dissect is the belief that any practitioner, if they only would practise enough, could progress through to the Intermediate and Advanced series and from there straight into yoga heaven. After having taught thousands of students including being able to observe their progress I have to say that the single greatest determinant factor of your progress is your genetic make-up (including shape and articulation of your bones) followed by the age with which you start (the younger the faster the progress). Only after those two factors come things like the frequency of your practise and your ability to technically improving your practise either through your own insight or input from your teacher. Additionally the practitioners that look the most flexible are often not even the most healthy as there flexibility is often linked to ligamentous laxity deriving from a liver and metabolic imbalance. Often these very flexible people have greater instability problems later on and their flexibility represents imbalance.

Through my 10 years of practicing and my 4 years of teaching, I am starting to see this as so. As more and more people come to studio just for a workout, I have been discouraged from speaking about the higher limbs of yoga in my classes. I am told that, "The students just want to move. They are not there to hear you talk. They will naturally progress to the other limbs on their own." I bought into it because I am an Ashtangi and Ashtanga classes are not about theory. After all, I did started to study yoga philosophy on my own, so it must be true, right?

However when I started to look back on my years of practice, my most influential teachers managed to get some philsophy into a highly physical practice. My first Ashtanga teacher, Adele Gail, used to always so "Yoga chitti Vrritti Nirodha, yoga is the cessations of the fluctuations of the mind".  While I was attempting to bind or stand on my head, these words were sinking into my mind. If it wasn't for her and many other teachers, giving little nuggets of yoga philosophy throughout class, I am not sure if I ever would have seen my practice as more then exercises that help me with stress and focus. 

For this conversation, over the years,  I have taught two different classes.  These are Strictly physical & Physical with philosophy thrown in. The Strictly Physical group usually stays that way. Their yoga evolution usually takes them to harder more intense forms of physical yoga. The group that gets a little bit of philosophy either heads down the intensely more physical path because the philosophy is not for them or they continue wanting classes that include philosophy and eschew classes based on physicality alone. 

Don't get me wrong, if people want to teach and take yoga just from a physical standpoint, it is fine. There are still alot of benefits to be gained. I am also not saying that I will starting incorporating sutras into all my current classes either. However, the argument that a strictly physical class will take you into the spiritual realms of yoga is a little flawed.  I know yoga teachers who just call out poses and talk about anatomy and alignment.  They barely talk about breath & they would never quote from the sutras. It is hard for me to believe that if the average student looking for a good workout only took from that person, that they would eventually start asking questions about the other limbs.

 The idea that Guruji felt that physical practice is enough, which actually may not be true, may have set the foundations for our strong physical yoga culture today. It let teachers, studios and wanna be yoga Gurus off the hook. Filling up a studio or class  with the same rhetoric you would use to fill a gym aerobics class  is much easier then getting  students to listen to you talk about the sutras. Is it a coincidence that once Guruji went more towards the physical side that Ashtanga took off? Reading the book, Guruji or talking to his older students will reveal that his classes were extremely small in the beginnings. Now Mysore is so packed that people are now doubting if there is any real benefit to going.  I am no Ashtanga scholar. As a matter of fact, I have never been to Mysore to study with him, Sharath or Saraswati. I am however an avid scholar of yoga. What do you think? Weigh in below.

 

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5 Questions To Keep Scandal and Drama Out of Your Life

I have written about this ad nauseum, but after the whole  Anusara Yoga Wiccan Sex Cult crap lately, I had to comment on it again. When practiced as a system , yoga balances us out and makes us better people.  When the focus is just on the physical, the ego continues to grow. Some teachers even speculate that  the energy transfer that happens in Yoga actually compounds everything that is jacked up about you.

You don't have to spend hours in meditation, chant Hare Krishna or get rid of your strong sweaty hot yoga practice to miniaturize your ego. Lucky for you, Patanjali, wrote the yoga sutras and laid out  the Yamas to keep you sane.   The Yamas form the universal morality code for yoga. By practicing just these 5 observances, many unpleasant situations in our lives can be avoided. Below are 6 simple questions , based on the Yamas, to keep you from doing something stupid.

1. Will This Harm Myself or Others? (Ahimsa)

2. Do I Know This to be the Truth?  (Satya)

3. Am I Taking Something That Doesn't Belong To Me? (Asteya)

4. Am I In Control  of  My Emotions or Are My Emotions Controlling Me? (Bramacharya)

5. Will Having This Make My Life Better or More Complicated? (Aparigraha)

 

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Happy Easter: 6 Reasons To Come Out of Your Shell & Speak Your Truth

1.  You Only Have One Life To Live -Even if you believe in reincarnation, you might come back as a bug or a house cat. You will never come back as the person that you are now. This is it. You don't want to be on your death bed full of regrets.

2. You Never Know When You Will Bite the Dust-You could die today or 50 years from today. You don't have time to waste!

3. Those Who Matter Don't Mind and Those Who Do Don't Matter-Dr. Seuss was right. People who really love you and support you want to hear what you have to say. They may not agree or like it, but they want to hear it. Anyone who chooses to not associate with you afterwards, was not meant to be in your life anyway. We are all in different places. In order to grow and prosper, you need to be surrounded by people who want to lift you up. If someone is not "smelling what you are cooking" it is okay to let them go. That doesn't mean they have to agree with you 100%. It means they need to respect you & give you space to have that experience.

4.“No person is your friend who demands your silence, or denies your right to grow. Alice Walker-This goes right along with number 3. A friend would want you to express yourself and blossom. People who aren't your friends want you to conform and be quiet. You deserve better friends.

5. You Create Your Own Life- If you are not speaking truth, your life is built on lies. One day you will wake up and your life will be one big unrecognizable mess. Your energy of confusion will manifest confusion. A few years back, I was looking for a job because I needed money but deep down I didn't want one. I went into every interview with this confusing energy and I kept getting passed over for positions. When I finally landed a job, management was confused. Everyday there was a new policy. Everyone was two faced and the business closed down before I was even there a year. I really didn't want to work, so everything in the universe conspired to make that happen. If I would have lived my truth and found an alternative way to get the cash, I would have saved myself some stress.

6. No One Reads Minds-I was watching an old episode of Desperate Housewives and Lynnette's husband was passed over for a position. She asked him, "did you ask for it?" He explained that he assumed that because of his tenure and hard work, he didn't have to it.  Many of us live by this erroneous assumption. In fact, we were raised to believe it. Many well meaning authority figures told me, "if you work hard and are a nice person, people will notice and you will be rewarded." Not true. People see you through their own mental filters. You may leave an apple on someones desk to be nice and they assume you are trying to say they are getting fat. You can never assume that people understand you. Not even your closest dearest friends and family members. Marriages break up every day over this.  Christmas Dinners are missing an uncle because of this. You have to open your mouth and let people know how you feel and what you want.

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Yoga Fables and Cautionary Tales: Tammy & the Great Yoga Burn Out

Tammy and the Great Yoga Burn Out

Once upon a time there was a girl named Tammy. One of the best yoga teachers in the world opened up a yoga studio right down the street from Tammy's house.  Tammy hears that yoga is the happening thing. Madonna and Sting do it. It is how celebrities loose baby weight. Whats not to love!!

Tammy purchased her Manuduka mat,  monthly unlimited auto draft studio membership, a couple of Lululemon outfits, a Yogitoe and a BPA free water bottle. She is ready to go. She is super strong. She does not want to be spoon fed. She wants it now. Tammy looks at the schedule. She picks two of the most challenging classes  to start with; Hot Yoga and Primary Series Ashtanga Led.  Tammy nods her head as the teacher talks about modifications, taking your time and child's pose but she is not listening.  She just did a half marathon & that does not apply to her. She finds the story of Pattabhi Jois quaint, sweet and colorful. Who cares if he taught one pose at a time, she is going to rock this Led primary and she can't wait to try led secondary.

As weeks progress, she has sets her mind on handstand, jump backs, jump throughs, & full lotus. She will absolutely do the full version of all the poses. No matter how jagged her breath  or how many stars spin in front of her eyes, she will not take child's pose or modifications.

After giving Ashtanga a go for awhile, tweaking a muscle and still not being able to do jump throughs, jump backs and full lotus, she determines that it is the devil and must not be for her. Her teacher tells her to practice Mysore style & focus on breathing & proper technique but she is not interested in memorizing a sequence or practicing on her own. The self deprecating moments she has as she watches the 90 pound girl beside her, who just started last week, effortlessly float through poses is not something she wants to deal with.  It is absolutely Ashtanga's fault that she limps a little bit when she walks.

To take her mind off of Ashtanga, she arranges her schedule to take a few more Hot classes a week. The heat masks the fact that she still limps when she walks so the hotter the better. That way, she can't feel the pain in her body or mind. Hotter,Harder, Faster, Stronger. That is the way to go. The classes soon replace her workouts.  She notices that she is still limping a bit. She asks a teacher what to do and is told  to slow down ,to focus on alignment & **gasp*** even consider taking a break from physical yoga.  Perhaps she should focus on meditation and pranayama for awhile to quiet her mind & speed healing.  Tammy mentally reminds herself to avoid that teacher's classes because that person is definitely not for her.  She is totally glad she did because, score for yoga, her limp goes away! Then a few months later, she injures her shoulder. It is definitely Chaturanga's fault. Hotter, harder, faster, stronger....but with a few less Chaturangas. She heals that and hurts something else.

She continues to come to class and notices  people who started at the same time as her, are surpassing her in strength and flexibility. She still can't do that handstand. To take the focus off her own issues and thoughts, she starts to focus on everything that is wrong about each teacher, class and the studio as  a whole. She is almost positive she saw the 9:15AM instructor smoking a cigarette outside of Wal-Mart and the 11AM instructor is definitely sleeping with the 12:30 PM instructor.  The 1PM instructor talks too much. Terry already knows how to get into poses & who cares about the Yoga Sutras . The 4PM instructor makes her hold poses way too long. That is for beginners. Advanced students do it hotter, faster, stronger.  She searches for the teachers & classes that make her feel good about her conflicted thoughts & behaviors and avoids those who make her face them. Her favorite teachers just call out the poses & the choreography is masterful. This works for her.  The cool kids are starting to talk about Cross Fit. There is one opening down the street. As her current choreography based teacher starts to mess up yoga class with talk of breathing and meditation, the cross fit class is starting to sound real good.....

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