Today has been a long day. Up at 5am to catch the 5:49 train to London to practice at the Dharma Shala in Euston. I had a mid morning client meeting which meant that I had to buy a peak-time train ticket – £42! So I thought why not use the opportunity to go and practice at the Dharma Shala, aka Astanga Yoga London (AYL) aka Hamish’s.

Hamish is one of 2 certified (see footnote) teachers in the UK and he’s backed by a team of highly regarded authorised teachers at the shala. You can check out their biographies on the AYL website. You really do get a sense of the lineage of Ashtanga Yoga at the shala which I really appreciate.

Door to door the journey took 2 hours. The shala is a house with the front rooms converted into practice rooms, changing rooms and what may have been a shower or toilet. You start practicing in one room and Hamish calls out ‘One more’ and you move into the bigger room as someone else is finishing up.

The room was much warmer (hot!) than I’m used to so I was sweating profusely half way through the sun salutations. I was also really nervous. I’ve not practiced Mysore style outside of Brighton and I’d never met anyone (teachers or students) so it was all new, exciting and a bit edgy. In order to keep myself grounded I really focused on my breathe and dristi.

I may have been a little too focused because I couldn’t identity in a police line-up any of the people who I practiced with this morning!

The atmosphere in the shala is amazing and it reminded me of the first time I experienced a Mysore room here in Brighton. It’s a place of warm, silent, sweaty devotional intensity. I love it! I flew through my practice and what normally takes 2 hours took 1.5 hours. I’m not sure how that happened!

It’s well worth the trip and I’d love to do a couple of weeks practicing there and am just in the process of working out the costs. A big thank you to my friend who shall remain nameless for all the details on getting to the shala, most helpful indeed

Now it’s time to cook dinner and get an early night to get to practice in Brighton tomorrow. Oh the luxury of a short walk!

Footnote: The other certified teacher is Philippa Asher who teaches at Triyoga Soho.

Kino seems to be popping up all over the place these days. We had a review of her recent Edinburgh workshop at Union Yoga in our April newsletter which was attended by a Brighton Ashtangi. This rather interesting article by Kino has also been making it’s way around the web and is definitely worth a read. It’s on the topic of working through physical and emotional pain in practice. Kino runs the Miami Life Center in the US. Her personal site has loads of free podcasts from her workshops and is also worth a browse.

The Elephant Journal is also worth checking out, they describe themselves as “your guide to what we like to call ‘the mindful life’: yoga, organics, sustainability, genuine spirituality, conscious consumerism, fair fashion, the contemplative arts…anything that helps us to live a good life that also happens to be good for others, and our planet.”

Firstly, thank you, to Guy for such an interesting post which was thoughtful, well structured and certainly  made me stop and think about my practice.

I was sat on a beach in Egypt, when I jotted down these thoughts and around 1630 I would return to my room, collect my mat and go out onto the balcony to do my practice whilst it was still warm. Easy when one is relaxed and warm with your body feeling flexible and strong, very different from  having the alarm go off at 5am, when it is still dark with the weather cold and wet and yet I still drive the half hour into Brighton, to go through my practice with like minded people and then head off to complete a days work. So why?

Am I addicted? For me the answer is no.

I came to my practice 9 years ago. My reason for wanting to study yoga came from a need to be calmer, more relaxed and to find some sort of peace of mind. Like most people who come to the practice I was quickly drawn to the physical aspect of the practice and marvelled at the ability of the students around me. I wanted to be one of them, my ego had kicked in and I decided I was going to be a “super yogi”.

Over time i became more interested in the spiritual side of the practice and understand what the practice was about. Whilst I have only scratched the surface of this side of the practice, I know now and accept  that asana, is not the beginning or end, that it will not deliver me to enlightenment and I will probably never see the end of intermediate and that’s fine.

There are days when I cannot practice due to other commitments and having a non practicing wife,  means there are times when my practice has to take  second place. I  try to accept my practice for what it is, for all the complications that crop up and for the good and the bad days.

This is my attempt at non attachment and my idea of commitment to the practice,  we all have so many other things to juggle in our busy lives in order to fit in a daily practice. I believe that if all students that come to the practice would just stick with it then they too will have a deeper understanding  and experience the pleasure a daily practice can be bring without feeling guilt if  practice is missed one day but accept where they are and see it for what it is.

I am reminded of  the Niyamas, and in partcular Santosha. Contentment – so be content  with where you are  and enjoy.

This post was sparked by something I’ve been mulling over for some time now: the addictive aspect of asana practice. Last week on the Twitter shala the topic generated some interest so I decided to get some of my thoughts down.

It’s worth making a note about context here. I practice traditional early morning Mysore style Ashtanga yoga and aim to practice 6 days a week with the exception of moon days. This post is an exploration of my own change processes and observing the changes in other practitioners in our group over a period of years.

While I don’t believe yogasana are addictitive, I do think that the traditional Ashtanga method can cause problems for certain personality types. The motivation/effort required to practice two hours of Yoga 6 days a week can and does highlight a certain disposition which could lead to a certain rigidity to the practice and life in general.

While Ashtanga yoga is often described as a physically intense form of asana practice. It seems to me that while the physical changes can be various and impressive these changes should and are accompanied by internal, mental, emotional and spiritual changes. Integrating these changes in one’s life can be challenging.

My own journey has led me to study and explore Patanjalim’s Yoga Sutras, Buddhism, Zen, Advaita, Ayurveda, Tantra and yogic philosophy in a desire to deepen and nourish my own Ashtanga practice. I’m not however an authority on any of these topics.

I’ve structured this post around certain questions that I have that seem to keep recurring:

Who is drawn to yoga practice and why?

Yoga is a process of change. Desikachar describes yoga as the process by which that which was impossible becomes possible. People are drawn to yoga because they want to change something. It could be for physical reasons: perhaps cosmetic changes like losing weight and staying in shape, or theraputic reasons: recovering from injuries or accidents, or performance reasons: to improve flexibility, develop strength and build stamina. Or it could be mental or psychological: to help unwind, relax, help to manage stress or mild depression.

Now wanting to change for the better is a good thing, but this can be problematic if this desire is rooted in low self esteem or a lack of self acceptance. For instance issues around body image, eating disorders or competitiveness could be aggravated by an intense yoga practice.

I was drawn to yoga initially for it’s relaxation benefits and the philosophical aspect. It’s interesting to note that there are parallels between Patanjalim’s 8 limbs of yoga and the Buddha’s noble 8 fold path. But I suspect that’s a topic for another blog post!

What is the purpose of asana practice?

The purification and strengthening of the body in order assist the practitioner to gain direct experience of unconditional reality or truth. I’m avoiding using the word enlightenment here as I don’t find it a very useful term. This may sound a bit complicated but what it essentially means is that the purpose of asana practice is not physical.

However the process of learning and practicing primary and intermediate series is experienced very strongly in the physical body. The primary series is called yoga chikitsa or yoga therapy and this cleansing purifying therapy is achieved largely by sweating it out on the mat. This purification process is never completed (for example we never become pure!) although with years of practice it does become more refined. The generation of heat and therefore sweating is essential for this cleansing process.

What is Ashtanga Yoga?

I’ve been fortunate enough to have had two opportunities to interview Manju Jois in Brighton over the last 2 years and I put the question to him: “How would you describe Ashtanga yoga to someone who has never done yoga before?” He described it very simply as: “The practice of Ashtanga yoga is a discipline”. I found this rather interesting as I was probably expecting something more of a description of the intense nature of the asana practice for which Ashtanga yoga is renowned.

Does Ashtanga yoga attract a certain type of personality?

I’d say that would be a definite yes! Sustaining an Ashtanga practice requires commitment, dedication, patience, kindness, perseverance, self discipline, emotional flexibility, acceptance and most importantly surrender. Now unfortunately none of us have all of these all the time and cultivating these qualities can be challenging. Because there’s a fine line between commitment and obsession and self-discipline and rigidity. Is it kindness to practice 6 days in a row when I feel run down and exhausted? The thing that comes to mind when I’m writing this is that there is no right or wrong answer and that we have to trust our intuition or our inner guru in any given situation. We each have to take personal responsibility and accept the consequences of our actions.

Personality type, diet and Ashtanga yoga

Anyone interested in diet? Ok ok, we can all put our hands down. Ayurveda is fascinating particularly for Ashtanga practitioners as you’re able to identify your constitution and then tailor your diet to support your practice and enhance emotional well being. It’s definitely out of the scope of this blog post but I’d recommend checking out the references at the end of this article if you’re interested. Prem Carlisi’s “The only way out is in” is a good primer on Ashtanga, Ayurveda and Tantra and how the three can support each other. AG Mohan’s Yoga Therapy offers in depth insight by one of Krishnamacharya’s own students. I mention diet because it’s absolutely essential to sustaining long term well being and plays a critical role in Ashtanga yoga. Remember to listen to your body, it knows what it needs! The rules for diet are very different for yogis and the average person and it’s really worth exploring this area. I’ll leave you with 3 words on this: coffee, ghee and milk! (I suspect there’ll be at least 1 blog post on this topic soon.)

Is asana practice addictive?

This came up in my interview with Manju too, he said that after a while the body craved asana practice. So after some time practicing the body gets used to feeling a certain way. The repetition of the practice has that affect on the body. For instance if the practitioner has a history of drug or alcohol abuse and part of their recovery involves the practice of yoga they are likely to have a tendency towards obsessive Yoga practice. Addiction is characterized by repetitive compulsive behaviour accompanied with obsessive thinking. Obsession and compulsion consumes the life of the addict. I’m not saying that asana practice is addictive but it’s our relationship with ourselves and how we approach life that can be highlighted here.

For this reason I believe that it’s healthy to take breaks from practice when the opportunity arises. It can be very interesting too! I was recently ill with a cold for a week and didn’t practice for 6 whole days. That’s the longest break I’ve had in over a year. I have to say I found it rather difficult! My body definitely went through a withdrawal from the practice. Most challenging however were my emotional states. I felt restless, frustrated and irritable. Understandably I was ill with a lethal dose of man flu. But it seems clear to me that my physical asana practice has a powerful stabilizing effect on my emotional state.

After all if there’s nothing to achieve or be gained then why not take a break? It’s not like there is a finish line. The structure and progressive nature of the Ashtanga practice does seem to present a rather compelling illusion that we’re working towards something, our next posture. When you can drop back from standing or put your legs behind your head then what? It won’t make your life any better. The first time I heard this I was struck by it’s truth. It also made me question why I was trying so hard.

This brings us rather neatly to tapas. Tapas is one of the 5 niyamas and literally means “to heat” and it is the fire generated by our spiritual practice. By practicing daily we generate great heat and energy. Learning to channel this energy without being controlling or becoming obsessive can be a real challenge.

Mathew Sweeney sums it up so eloquently: “This is one of the most troubling truths that yoga practitioners have to deal with. No amount of asana or pranayama or meditation practice will make you a better person or hasten your development. Nothing will. For there is nothing better than being what you are, right now.”

Conclusion

Finally, I hope you’ve enjoyed this reading this post. Did anything resonate with you? Is there anything that you don’t agree with? Let’s hear it. I’d love to hear about your own experiences on this topic. My motivation for writing is to provoke healthy discussion amongst Ashtanga practitioners. Namaste!

References

Here are some of the books that I consulted while writing my post:

Yoga Mala

Shri K Pattabhi Jois
ISBN-10: 0865476624

The heart of Yoga

TKV Deskichar 
ISBN-10: 089281764X

The only way out is in

Prem Carlisi 
ISBN-10: 0979869803

Yoga Therapy

A guide to the theraputic use of Yoga and Ayurveda for health and fitness
AG Mohan
ISBN-10: 1590301315

This weekend we visited Hannah’s grandparents for a family birthday. We’d opted to sleep over on a sofa bed. We were both slightly nervous about this as the grandad has a penchant for ancient clocks – some of which chime every 15 minutes and strike on the hour. (You’d be amazed by how much you didn’t know about time keeping.) Fortunately the 6 or 7 clocks were easily disabled for the purpose of sleeping.

Now I don’t have much experience of spending time with people in their 80s due to early deaths and a somewhat dysfunctional family background so spending time with Hannah’s gps is still quite a novel experience and I’m enjoying getting to know them.

There is a real sense with them that they are in their last few years and it got me thinking about my own life and how I would prepare for that which we all face (and I’m not referring to taxes here.)

I guess my lack of experience with older people has left me with a sort of naivety that old equals wise… and if you’ve been on the planet a long time you’re likely to know a lot more than someone who’s been around less. After all that’s the message I got from my parents when I was a child. Respect your elders – because they’ve been through more than you have and are therefore wiser.

I can see that this may be useful, even true, when trying to instill a sense of respectful perspective in a child – when nearly everyone is older than them. Obviously with a little of my own learned perspective I know that older definitely does not equal wiser, yet I couldn’t help but pop out the question on our Sunday walk today “What is important in life?”

There were a few answers but the one that caught in my ears was “Show an interest in others, not just yourself.” Naturally the question was returned to me and my reply was “Yoga”. Now one could quite quickly jump to the conclusion that spending 2 hours a day 6 days a week practicing Yoga in varying states of meditative self absorption could be construed as being a rather self centered thing to do.

In a way I think that it is, but I also think it isn’t. Patanjalim’s Yoga sutra states in the second sloka of the first chapter on Samadhi “Yoga chitta vrtti nirodah” – Yoga is the stilling of the fluctuations of the mind. So physical asana practice is not exercise. Of course I know that it is but at the same time it’s not. It’s like calling a raindrop the ocean – both are water.

Daily practice mirrors our lives – each day we are born at dawn with the rising sun, grow, breathe, struggle, fight, love, fear and surrender again and again. The final surrender is our own death which we ritually repeat with Shavasana the corpse pose. We let go of all the triumphs and tribulations of our practice and are absorbed back into true divine nature.

I believe the other great challenge of Yoga or life is how we live off the mat. These equate to the first 2 limbs of the 8 limbs or Ashtanga of Patanjalim’s Yoga Sutra – yama and niyama. In simple terms we apply the yamas and niyamas to ourselves in our asana practice first. Teaching ourselves with the kind persistent training of our physical body and our thoughts. I’m going to end with these wise words by a great Yogi as you probably get my drift and we all have other things to be getting on with!
“Be the change that you want to see in the world” – Mahatma Gandhi.

As you can tell it’s been a rather thought provoking weekend!

Namaste

G