Lately I have been wondering, "why yoga?"
The whole scene has become a gossipy, drama fest filled with pencil thin brand named clad "yoginis" talking about their heart chakras while admiring their yoga butts in the mirrors of cool zen minimalist bamboo floored studios.
& why do I teach? What do I think I can offer in my raggedly faded yoga pants and baggy t-shirt Dujour?
Throw a couple of Mala beads into a group of beautiful people at Whole Foods and you'll probably hit at least one yoga teacher and possibly someone who has just come back from or is preparing to go to India & studied or will study with SwamiGuru Watchyacallitji or some such thing. And they talk of the expansiveness of the ajna while admiring the abs of swadhistana.
It just seems like "yoga" has become everything that I am not - Flashy and expensive and ......status-y....
stylish ..... & sometimes kind of bitchy (o.k that's one thing we have in common). In fact, I am waiting to see an advertisement extolling the idea of putting yourself into "fashionistasana" or some fool thing. I mean isn't that commercial showing the girl hanging out in a deep eka pada pranamasana while talking on her bluetooth thingy enough??? I mean - really?? Talking on the phone while practicing asana? Do you know how many karma demerits that must be?
Honestly, I tend to be more comfortable practicing in the privacy of my own home because I often feel ..... not comfortable at many studios. They feel too .... I don't know ... appearance driven & ...... clean.
You know, not all places are like this. Once in a blue moon I practice here at One Tree and I have taken a workshop here and felt quite cozy. I also feel welcomed here when I go for workshops/special classes. Not that these places are dirty. They are just not so high gloss that I feel that I am tracking metaphysical mud everywhere.
And then there is all the nonsense of late - the article about the dangers of yoga in the New York Times, the whole John Friend thing, yadayadayada ........ and the yoga blogosphere's reactions. Some were defensive, some were condemning. "Yoga never hurt anyone. John Friend sucks."
Very sad were some of the comments on facebook in response to Yogadork's posting about John Friend. Many people came out condemning both the idea of covens and tantra. Without Tantra, there would be no yoga. And really, imo, a "coven" is simply a very exclusive "Kula" which can be quite exclusive as well. And have these Anusara folks never heard about not putting your eggs in one basket? Or your faith in one man? I mean, a guru, a mentor, is just a person. Place anyone on too high of a pedestal, & you are going to get very hurt when she/he falls off.
And you know what? You can get hurt practicing yoga asana - very possible. Very real. Instead of getting snarky and nervous, we need to take responsibility for our practice and our teaching and move with awareness.
But listen....
Yoga is not a person or group of people.
Yoga is a practice.... a deeply personal practice.
When I am on my mat. I am on my mat. Flowing with My breath, feeling My movement, calming My mind, balancing My nervous system. I can be in a class with 50 other people and I am on My mat, enjoying My practice. The only competition at that point is in My head.
The release that I experience is my release. My choice to awaken & move towards awareness, or to stay sleeping. My choice to rest in the challenge of my edge or push past it towards injury. My choice to adore my teacher or to listen to my inner guru. My choice to let go or hold on.
The release is an individual one. The energy is expansive.
I think that we have a hard time knowing what to do with our energy. Often we are not quite sure of it - what it is, what it feels like, how to harness it, how to use it. & maybe that is where the nonsense comes in to play. Yoga is a whole experience - a practice of connecting the dots of body, mind & spirit, of riding the Kundalini. & it's sometimes a bumpy ride. It's easy to get stuck somewhere - in your head, or your physicality, or your expectations and/or judgements. I understand. I spin my wheels in these places quite frequently.... especially that judgement place. :)
So, this is one of the reasons I practice - to move onward, upward, outward. The other reasons? Too many. But to keep it simple - basically I feel better in all aspects of myself & with all areas of my life when I practice yoga.
The whole scene has become a gossipy, drama fest filled with pencil thin brand named clad "yoginis" talking about their heart chakras while admiring their yoga butts in the mirrors of cool zen minimalist bamboo floored studios.
& why do I teach? What do I think I can offer in my raggedly faded yoga pants and baggy t-shirt Dujour?
Throw a couple of Mala beads into a group of beautiful people at Whole Foods and you'll probably hit at least one yoga teacher and possibly someone who has just come back from or is preparing to go to India & studied or will study with SwamiGuru Watchyacallitji or some such thing. And they talk of the expansiveness of the ajna while admiring the abs of swadhistana.
It just seems like "yoga" has become everything that I am not - Flashy and expensive and ......status-y....
stylish ..... & sometimes kind of bitchy (o.k that's one thing we have in common). In fact, I am waiting to see an advertisement extolling the idea of putting yourself into "fashionistasana" or some fool thing. I mean isn't that commercial showing the girl hanging out in a deep eka pada pranamasana while talking on her bluetooth thingy enough??? I mean - really?? Talking on the phone while practicing asana? Do you know how many karma demerits that must be?
Honestly, I tend to be more comfortable practicing in the privacy of my own home because I often feel ..... not comfortable at many studios. They feel too .... I don't know ... appearance driven & ...... clean.
You know, not all places are like this. Once in a blue moon I practice here at One Tree and I have taken a workshop here and felt quite cozy. I also feel welcomed here when I go for workshops/special classes. Not that these places are dirty. They are just not so high gloss that I feel that I am tracking metaphysical mud everywhere.
And then there is all the nonsense of late - the article about the dangers of yoga in the New York Times, the whole John Friend thing, yadayadayada ........ and the yoga blogosphere's reactions. Some were defensive, some were condemning. "Yoga never hurt anyone. John Friend sucks."
Very sad were some of the comments on facebook in response to Yogadork's posting about John Friend. Many people came out condemning both the idea of covens and tantra. Without Tantra, there would be no yoga. And really, imo, a "coven" is simply a very exclusive "Kula" which can be quite exclusive as well. And have these Anusara folks never heard about not putting your eggs in one basket? Or your faith in one man? I mean, a guru, a mentor, is just a person. Place anyone on too high of a pedestal, & you are going to get very hurt when she/he falls off.
And you know what? You can get hurt practicing yoga asana - very possible. Very real. Instead of getting snarky and nervous, we need to take responsibility for our practice and our teaching and move with awareness.
But listen....
Yoga is not a person or group of people.
Yoga is a practice.... a deeply personal practice.
When I am on my mat. I am on my mat. Flowing with My breath, feeling My movement, calming My mind, balancing My nervous system. I can be in a class with 50 other people and I am on My mat, enjoying My practice. The only competition at that point is in My head.
The release that I experience is my release. My choice to awaken & move towards awareness, or to stay sleeping. My choice to rest in the challenge of my edge or push past it towards injury. My choice to adore my teacher or to listen to my inner guru. My choice to let go or hold on.
The release is an individual one. The energy is expansive.
I think that we have a hard time knowing what to do with our energy. Often we are not quite sure of it - what it is, what it feels like, how to harness it, how to use it. & maybe that is where the nonsense comes in to play. Yoga is a whole experience - a practice of connecting the dots of body, mind & spirit, of riding the Kundalini. & it's sometimes a bumpy ride. It's easy to get stuck somewhere - in your head, or your physicality, or your expectations and/or judgements. I understand. I spin my wheels in these places quite frequently.... especially that judgement place. :)
So, this is one of the reasons I practice - to move onward, upward, outward. The other reasons? Too many. But to keep it simple - basically I feel better in all aspects of myself & with all areas of my life when I practice yoga.
