Joey returns to Brighton this September for another inspirational weekend workshop

I’m very pleased that we’ll be hosting Joey again this year after his very successful workshop in Brighton last year. Read the review from last years workshop.

You can read all the details and book an early bird ticket from the workshop page. We sold our first ticket within hours of the page going live so we’ll very likely sell out quickly. We’ve got 11 early bird tickets left – so snap them up. If you’ve never worked with Joey before then this is going to be a real treat!

I’d met Dylan a few years ago through a mutual friend Shari Berman and we’d stayed in touch since. He travels half the year teaching Ashtanga Yoga and is based in Hong Kong the other half of the year where he runs a Mysore programme. He also teaches each year for Prem and Radha in Bali. He’ll be there again this year in late June.

I’d describe Dylan with two words: Radiant and balanced. The man has a beautiful complexion and bright shiny eyes. He’s a picture of vitality and health, which I assume is a combination of genetics and many years of dedicated practice. He’s the kind of guy who makes women’s hearts flutter and men grind their teeth resentfully. What I also found very attractive about him was his balanced disposition and I’m not just talking about his handstands. There’s a tendency amongst Ashtanga practitioners towards rigidity and dogmatism. It’s got something to do with the A type personality and the commitment required to maintain daily morning practice. Dylan is very much part of the living tradition of Ashtanga yoga having just spent two months in Mysore practicing with Sharath and yet he exudes a confidence and lightness about his practice and the lineage.

Saturday morning – Led primary

On Saturday we were joined by quite a few guests from London. In the morning we kicked off with a traditional Sanskrit counted primary going as far as Baddha Konasana before doing back bends. But before we started our asana practice Dylan demonstrated Nauli kriya and we all had a go. He spoke about the relationship between Prana, bandhas and the breath. In this context he introduced the 5 vayus – Udana vayu, prana vayu, samana vayu, apana vayu and Vyana vayu.

Dylan reminded us of the need to ground as well as lift during our practice. He also emphasized awareness of the bandhas and initiating movement from within the breath. So starting the inhale or exhale and then following with movement rather than moving and then breathing. I found this really challenging as I’ve gotten into the habit of moving first and then breathing. So it was a timely reminder to change my pattern: Breath initiates movement.

Saturday afternoon – Yoga philosophy

We took a two hour lunch break and the afternoon session was a whirlwind tour of the history of yoga philosophy and it’s roots. Dylan spoke confidently and astutely for two and a half hours. I was worried about this in the planning stage as I thought people might find it boring but Dylan is not hard on the eyes or ears and he knows his subject intimately. We touched on the Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the Buddha, Tantra, Advaita Vedanta, Hatha & Ashtanga Yoga. The session was informal and relaxed and there were good questions and discussion.

Here’s a brief summary of the session: There exists something divine and changeless and a spark of this unchanging divinity exists in all of us and that our role in life is to discover, connect and live this truth (Dharma). This truth isn’t a single truth for everyone but rather many truths for different people at different times. These different truths aren’t exclusive but rather co-existent. We also touched on the role of Karma in our lives. This plays an important role in discovering and living your Dharma.

Dylan gave the example of Arjuna before the great battle of Kurukshetra. Arjuna a mighty warrior sees that great death, suffering and destruction is coming in the battle and is reluctant to fight. Krishna convinces him to fight saying that inaction is not possible. Krishna asks Arjuna: “O Arjuna, how can a person who knows that the Atma is indestructible, eternal, unborn, and imperishable, kill anyone or cause anyone to be killed?”. Krishna goes on to add: “A Karma-yogi gets freedom from both vice and virtue in this life itself. Therefore, strive for Karma-yoga. Working to the best of one’s abilities without getting attached to the fruits of work is called (Nishkaama) Karma-yoga.” Arjuna’s admirable compassion is in this case overruled by his need to fulfill his truth as a warrior. We have a tendency to emphasize skillful action as being that which brings the least or no pain to others or oneself. But in Arjunas case many die in the battle as a result of his skillful action. This is philosophically rather challenging and even unpalatable to the Western mind.

We also touched on the importance of viveka or discrimination. This quality is needed in order to discriminate whether a course of action is skillful or unskillful. The Buddha was revolutionary in that he encouraged his followers to question even his own teachings and to rely instead on their own experience.

Sunday morning – Mysore style class

On Sunday (the biggest Moon day of the year) we did morning Mysore style practice. The room was busy, hot and sweaty with more of the local Brighton Ashtangis joining in for this session. Dylan has sure, experienced hands when it comes to adjustments. At the beginning of the session he gave people permission to make whatever modifications they needed and to do their own practice as usual. The two hours flew by.

Sunday afternoon – technique work

The afternoon session was good fun. It started with an introduction to the Ashtanga Yoga Pranayama series – normally taught after intermediate series is completed. Then we moved onto exploring jumping into handstands with the help of a partner, jumping through, jumping into bakasana, jumping into bujapidasana and exploring the role of gluteous maximus in back bending. Again the emphasis was on moving from within the breath.

There was also a Q & A session at the end where people had a chance to raise any questions that had come up as a result of the workshop. I really enjoyed the workshop and got lots of positive feedback from those attending. Dylan had a great time too so hopefully we’ll be having him back again next year.

The next workshop in Brighton will be on September 1st and 2nd. Joey Miles will be returning for another weekend workshop – definitely a date for the diary. You’ll be able to book online and the details will in the workshops section of the site in a few weeks.

She is a medium haired, black cat, six years old, litter trained, up-to-date with all her jabs, and very independent. We are looking for someone who loves animals and would enjoy her company (ideally with no other animals and a bit of access to outside space).

All expenses will be paid for in advance, plus extra gift for time and kindness.

If you would like to foster her or know someone who does, then please give me a call on (Laura) 07512 702210 or send an email to this website (news@ashtangabrighton.com) where Guy will no doubt be kind enough to forward it to me and I’ll call you back.

I never thought that I’d be able to come up to standing without having gone to Mysore – a strange notion I know, but I just sort of always assumed it was something that I’d do there. I’m planning my first trip at the end of this year which I’m very excited about!

Coming up to standing has been a long journey of over 5 years of early morning Mysore practice for me. I’m a 6ft man who is not naturally flexible or gifted when it comes to asana practice. I’ve also struggled with back pain during and after practice for years. It’s taken me a long time to work out how to use my upward dog so that I don’t feel a pinching sensation every time I do a vinyasa. A lot of this has to do with my shoulders, hip flexors and the curve of my spine. I’m certainly not out of the woods either. I still normally have back ache after practice every day. I know – I should just give up and do something else right? Well, that’s what my Dad says anyway.

Dropping back

In order to come back up to standing on your own you need to be able to drop back on your own first. Here are a couple of blog posts about my journey towards dropping back (seems like a lot of drama when I reread them!) The post Back again is all about the fear of dropping back and was written 9 months before I actually managed it successfully on my own. I did it! I dropped back written in August 2010 is very aptly titled and doesn’t need any further description.

The journey

20 months after first dropping back I managed to come back up to standing. That’s all with daily Morning Mysore practice. I seriously doubt I’d have been able to do it without daily practice – ever. It seems like a long time and the road has been anything but straight forward in terms of my practice. In this time I’ve suffered the worst back pain ever (yeah I know – stop doing it!) and at one point I was reduced to just being able to do 1 sun salutation and having to build my practice up one posture at a time – after 5 days I was doing the standing sequence again. During this time my faith was tested to the point where I seriously considered giving up and even discussed quitting with my teacher.

Coming up

In January 2012 I began dropping back on my own again after spending many months building up my strength and stamina with consistent daily practice and really working on my Urdhva Dhanurasana, making sure I was in no pain when doing my back bends. The big day was on Wed April 4th that I came up to standing after my 3rd drop back for the first time. On the second drop back I surprised myself by pushing up and leaving the floor – then came crashing down – I was so surprised. Something felt different – up until that point I’d been dropping back and then pushing with all my might but not being able to get my hands off the floor no matter how hard I tried. So on the final one I really went for it and came up with a little step back. Not pretty but I was up! Hannah and Nicky who were practicing next to me both witnessed it and gave me a little cheer. My legs were shaking with adrenalin and I felt breathless with excitement!

What changed?

I suspect that there’s been an opening in the front of my body – my chest, shoulders and or hips which has meant that my hands are slightly closer to my feet when I drop back but it’s not something that I was aware of.

Show me that again

The next day I was wondering if I’d be able to do it again – and I did 3 times in a row. I’ve heard it said that if you can do a posture 3 days consecutively then you’ve nailed it. The moon day fell on a Friday so we had two days off before I got a chance to try it again.

I managed to come up first attempt and twice more in a row on Sunday which was really good – especially after 2 days off.
I’ve been able to do it each day since – sometimes crashing down on the first attempt but then getting it, sometimes staggering back but still doing it.

What next?

I’m working towards keeping my heels flat (a few more years for me – I think on that one!), not taking a step back, and then finally dropping back and coming up with the correct vinyasa count: exhale – drop back, inhale – come up, exhale -drop back, inhale – come up etc… without any extra breaths in between. So lots still to work on there!

Well done

I have to say it’s an awesome feeling coming up from drop backs and I also feel like I now have a complete primary series. Of course still lots of opening and improvement/refinement to come but it feels like I have all the bits of the puzzle in place now. I’ve actually been really surprised by the whole experience – trying to drop back was such a drama and I was sort of expecting the same thing with coming up – but it’s all happened so suddenly.

Keep going

If you’re working on this yourself or if dropping back seems impossible – just don’t give up. One day you’ll surprise yourself too!

Setting the scene

The Heroic King Vikramaditya once ruled the city of Ujjayani. He was an intellectual philanthropist of a king who protected his citizens like his own family and they in turn looked to their king as a father. He was a righteous man anxious to relieve his subjects of their misery. When he ruled goodness and right conduct permeated every corner of his kingdom.

A man of wisdom and insight who radiated the luster of the the guardians of the 10 directions, King Vikrama drew all the greatest minds of the age to his court like bees drawn to a particularly sweet flower. As bees help a flower to multiply so the king multiplied his own knowledge by drawing these experts into discussion and debate on the issues of the day. The king would consult his court of sages, ritual specialists, strategists and pundits and they would extensively deliberate and debate before finally reaching consensus.

One day the king sat serenely in his finely decorated court, the incense coiling silently around his throne. There had been much debate that morning until a question that was dear to the king’s heart was raised: Which of the nine planets is paramount? The assembled court possessed many great mages who had traversed the vast ocean of astrological knowledge and upon whom had been bestowed the blessings and benefits of the various astrological deities. Each planet had a champion represented at the court in whom the attributes of the celestial beings was embodied.

Stillness descended then on all sides as a space was cleared and the experts gathered to each make their presentation to the benevolent and wise king.

The Sun

The Sun’s champion stepped forward to speak first as the Sun is the brightest of planets. His broad confident face was framed with mane like hair. His steady burning eyes radiated dignity, power and authority. As he spoke his proud and modestly arrogant voice boomed out across the space: “The Sun is superior among all the planets, and he becomes pleased with whoever reveres him consistently. Among the planets he is God incarnate in solar form. Those who regularly and devotedly remember the Sun lose all their worries, disease and poverty – for unwavering worship of the Sun destroys all obstructions and fulfills all cherished desires!”

The Sun wears red flowers and saffron coloured clothes. He carries a red lotus in his hand. His metal is gold or copper and his Gem is ruby. In the body he rules the bones. On earth the Sun rules over Sunday and in the heavens he rules the constellation of Leo.

The Sun’s vehicle is a chariot drawn by 7 green horses. The 7 haritas represent the 7 vedic meters: Gayatri, Tishtup, Anushrup, Jagati, Pankti, Brihati and Ushnik.

There is no reckoning of time without the Sun, and without time there can be no poetic meters, no seasons and no rhythm in the world. The year is the wheel of the Sun’s chariot. That wheel has 12 spokes which are the twelve months. Each month has it’s own deva (deity), apsaras (celestial dancing maidens), Rakshasas (protectors), Serpents, Yakshas (demi gods), Rishis (seers) and Gandharvas (celestial musicians).

Each deva is a divine being who occupies the Sun’s mansion during that month and presides over the sun then. These devas increase the Sun’s own superb splendor with their own divine characteristics. The Rishis compose hymns with which to eulogize the Sun. The gandharvas and apsaras serve the solar deity with song and dance. the yakshas and their attendants worship his rays. The serpents carry the Sun and the rakshasas follow him. From sunrise to sunset the Valakhilyas, the 60 thousand thumb-sized Rishis, surround the Sun and lead him on.

The 12 solar devas are the 12 Adityas the sons of Aditi. The 12 Adityas are: Vivasvan, Aryama, Pushan, Tvashtri, Savitri, Bhaga, Dhata, Vidhata, Varuna, Mitra, Shakra and Urukrama.

The Sun’s champion went on to recount numerous tales of the greatness of the Sun. I’ll share one with you: One day the notoriously peevish Rishi Durvasas visited Krishna in his capital city Dwaraka. Lord Krishna welcomed him and showed him every courtesy but Krishna’s son, Samba mocked the ill-tempered Rishi. At first Durvasas managed to control his temper out of respect for Krishna but Samba continued to tease him. Finally Durvasas lost his cool and cursed the boy with white leprosy. On hearing this Krishna went to Durvasas and begged his pardon asking him how the curse could be lifted. Durvasas answered: “Have the boy follow the Sunday Vow and worship the Sun.” Samba did so faithfully and when he was cured he built a beautiful temple to the Sun in gratitude.

The Sun’s champion then addressed the king saying “It is therefore wise to perform regular, disciplined worship of the omnipotent Lord Surya Narayana. By doing the Gayatri the Brahmanas obtain clear discrimination and by doing the sun salutations (surya namaskara) yogis gain health, strength and awareness. Those who regularly repeat the sacred Aditya Hridaya hymn conquer all their foes as surely as Lord Ramachandra slew Ravana in battle. It is to that Sun that I prostrate myself at dawn each morning.”

Next week’s blog post: The moon.

In the spirit of his words I’ve decided to do my bit to share the story of the Greatness of Saturn as a series of weekly blog posts. I’ve set aside the time and space to do this each week on Saturday morning – the traditional Ashtanga rest day. ‘Saturnday’ is also the day governed by Saturn so it seems a fitting day to begin.

A thereapeutice myth

The book’s sub-title is: “A therapeutic myth”. Svoboda’s introduction makes for a fascinating analysis of the fading position of myth in Western society. In order to fully experience the therapeutic benefits of the tale he invites us to create a sacred space in which to interact with the story. I invite you to do the same.

A space for Sadhana

• Create a sacred space in your home where you will read the story, remove any distractions, turn off your phone etc…
• Try and sit at the same time of day each time
• Bathe before you sit, or at least wash your hands, face and feet
• Light a candle or a lamp
• Burn some agreeable incense
• If fresh flowers are available – make an offering of one or more
• When you sit down place a small amount of something sweet in front of you – this will absorb some of the vibrations as you read or listen – when you’ve finished reading consume this and it will help you further digest the story more deeply
• Sound is important – even if you read silently try and pronounce the words and names as if you’re saying them out loud
• Experience the fullness of the tale, enter into it and allow it to enter into you.

About Shani

To wet your appetite I thought I might share some interesting aspects of Saturn or Shani as he’s known. Shani is son of Surya (Sun God) and his wife Chhaya. He’s the elder brother of Yama the Hindu god of death.

When Shani first opened his eyes at birth the sun went into eclipse which shows Shani’s powerful influence in astrology. He’s known as the greatest teacher and well wisher for the righteous. He’s also known as the greatest punisher of those who follow the path of evil, betrayal and unjust deeds. He’s dark in colour and wears black. He holds a sword, arrows and two daggers and his mount is a crow.

I look forward to sharing the journey with you!

Here is the first post in the series: The Greatness of Saturn part 1

G

Happy birthday Hanumanji!

The word out on the street is that it’s Hanuman’s birthday – So rock on Hanuman! Check out Tim Miller’s blog post about this most auspicious time. Not only is it full moon but it’s also Easter! I particularly like this part of Tim’s post: “Hanuman is considered to be the embodiment of what ayurveda calls the ‘three vital essences’ – Prana, Tejas, and Ojas. Prana is the life force, the Air element that gives us energy, intelligence and adaptability. Tejas, the purified Fire element, gives us glowing health, strength and courage, and penetrating insight. Ojas, the essential Water element, keeps us juicy in mind, body, and heart and gives us endurance and devotion.”

The Hanuman Chalisa and other prayers are usually offered to Hanuman during a dawn puja when it’s said that Hanuman’s power during this time is amplified over a 1000 times.

Origins of the Hanuman Chalisa

The great sage Tulsidas wrote the Hanuman Chalisa while imprisoned by the Indian Emperor. On completing the verses of the Hanuman Chalisa an army of monkeys started menacing the city of Delhi. The story goes that the Emperor tried unsuccessfully to control the monkeys with his forces and finally realised that they were the manifestation of the wrath of the Monkey God Hanuman. He released Tulsidas and the monkeys stopped their mischief immediately. Check out the Hanuman Chalisa on Wikipedia.

Hanuman is an incarnation of Lord Shiva. He’s worshiped as a symbol of physical strength, perseverance and devotion. He’s a devoted disciple of Lord Rama and also the only deity not afflicted by Shani (Saturn).

A couple of songs for your iPod today: Rock on Hanuman by Mc Yogi and Sita Ram from Narayani’s beautiful 2nd albumn Maatri Sharanam.

Jay Hanuman!

Well it’s a long time since I’ve posted on here, but I’m moving back to Brighton this weekend and looking forward to getting back on my mat by the sea. Thought I might share a blog post I made a while back:

How good are your non-attachment skills? And what exactly does that mean anyway, non-attachment?

On the most basic level, we are all attached to stuff, whether it’s a favourite item of clothing, a piece of jewellery, a vehicle (self-powered or otherwise), electronic equipment, handbag, or whatever. We’ve all experienced that feeling of anger mixed with sadness (possibly even anguish), when something ‘bad’ happens to one of our favourite pieces of stuff. The more valuable the item, whether in financial or emotional terms, the greater the depth of feeling engendered by its loss, but what real difference to our life does this loss actually make? In many cases, absolutely none, yet the negative emotions can stay with us for periods ranging from hours to days, months or even years.

That’s not to say that these feelings aren’t completely natural or indeed to be expected, but holding onto them is nothing more than sadomasochism, no matter how little control we may feel we have over the state of affairs. Being child-like doesn’t mean behaving immaturely, although that can certainly be quite therapeutic in itself. Rather it means experiencing a negative emotion, then letting it go. We’ve all seen how a screaming child instantly forgets what is troubling them when given a treat of some kind. We were all able to let go of negative emotions like this when we were children, so what has changed as we age?

In a word; EGO.

Our ego, like Satan (if you believe in that kind of thing), has pulled off the trick of making us believe that it does not exist. We cannot distinguish between our true selves and our ego, and so this skewed picture we are being fed becomes who we are, and not only that but we will defend this false picture with every molecule of our being. We are not attached to these things I have mentioned, it is our ego that is attached, and wants to be attached, for these things nourish it and make it feel good. And that is what the ego is all about, being massaged and feeling good. It is the ultimate sensual-pleasure seeker.

A few years ago, when I was living in London, I had an experience that brought home to me just how powerful non-attachment can be.

I had gone into a shop to pick up a couple of things, and when I got to the till I pulled out the change in my pocket, along with my house keys. As I selected the correct change the shop assistant commented on how nice the key-ring was, an aluminium dolphin with a blue glass centre, and then asked if she could have it.

I was completely stunned at her cheek!

‘No, of course you can’t have it!’ I said as I proffered my cash. Who on earth was this woman to just go asking for another persons belongings, especially a customer she was serving!? The keyring had only cost a few quid, but held a lot of sentimental value, as I had purchased it on a trip I took to France with kids from the first school I worked in after qualifying. Not only was it beautiful, but it brought back the happy memories of that time.

As I walked home my incredulity at her brazen request played over and over in my mind, but another through crept in. Why was I so determined to keep hold of this item (because it was mine, I remember my ego shouting)? The memories would still be with me whatever happened to the dolphin. What, exactly, would change in my life if I no longer possessed it?

Absolutely nothing, as far as I could intellectually determine, but I still felt a deep discomfort I could not explain.

I made my way home, but I could not shake these questions and feeling of confusion that her request had raised, the experience popping back into my mind at random intervals over the next several days.

I don’t remember how I came to the decision to give up the dolphin, but I remember very clearly walking back into the shop a couple of weeks later, going up to the till and placing it on the counter, saying something like ‘I don’t know if you remember me, but you can have this if you’d like. Please take good care of it.’

She said thanks, although seemed nowhere near as grateful as part of my brain thought she ought, but these feelings were almost completely submerged in the quite shocking feeling of absolute joy I seemed to be experiencing. I remember having to work very hard to stop myself from bursting into tears as I walked down the street, grinning like an idiot and marvelling at the depth of feeling giving up this meaningless piece of ‘stuff’ had produced.

I would love to say that my non-attachment skills have gone from strength to strength from this point on, but alas it seems that the lesson needs re-learning over and over. I still find my state of mind being tugged about by attachment to things as well as how I would like situations to turn out. Attachment to events, and how I perceive they should be, turns out to be far more difficult to give up than my attachment to stuff, but if relinquishing a piece of metal shaped as a dolphin can make me so happy, I can barely imagine how blissful my existence will be when I am able to be happy with things as they are and not how my ego tells me they should be.

Daily Ashtanga practice

Firstly lets clarify what daily Ashtanga yoga practice actually means: It’s practicing early morning Sunday to Friday with a rest on Saturday. Easy eh? It’s not even daily! But wait a minute! We also don’t practice on new or full moon days either – Bonus! And if you’re a lady you also get the first 3 days of your period off. By now we are all punching the air as we get ready to unroll our mats right? But hang on a minute, why the heck should we practice 6 days a week? What are the benefits?

The benefits of daily practice

The benefits of yoga postures are well recorded. Guruji, the late K Pattabhi Jois documented the benefits of the Ashtanga primary series in his book: Yoga Mala. Although the practice affects different people in different ways it will make anyone stronger and more flexible. I’ve never been overweight by western standards but I’ve also lost and kept off a fair amount of weight (around 15kg), My body is toned and my skin is healthy, my immune system is strong – meaning that I suffer from a brief mild cold once every 18 months, my hair and nails grow at a rate of knots, I have good posture, balance and core strength. Harder to measure are the mental/emotional benefits which I consider to be: an increase in humility, patience, sense of humour, perception, honesty, empathy, and self discipline. I’ve also directly witnessed someone with bowel difficulties, indigestion, excess gas and irritable bowels experiencing dramatic immediate alleviation of these symptoms as a direct result of daily practice of the Ashtanga primary series. All of this however is anecdotal and I can’t say specifically what the benefits will be for you but I can share with you my journey to daily early morning Mysore style Ashtanga yoga and invite you to experience it yourself at a shala near you. The chances are if you’re still reading this then it’s something you’re interested in.

Getting it

I’m not one of those lucky few who got it (it being daily practice) immediately. For me it was a slow progression to daily practice – one that could have been quicker. So let me say this: If you are serious about giving the practice of Ashtanga yoga a good go – I’d like to encourage you get up early tomorrow morning, go to your nearest shala and present yourself to the teacher there regardless of having ever done any Ashtanga yoga. Do the same thing a minimum of 5 days a week for at least two months. After that make an informed decision as to whether it’s something you’d like to pursue. Put aside your reservations and find out for yourself! There is nothing more compelling than your own direct experience. Go for it!

If you still have reservations and/or like to read blog posts then lets move on:

How early?

There are a number of natural obstacles that appear along the road to daily practice. First off if you’ve never done an early morning Mysore class there’s the ‘getting up earlier’ obstacle to overcome. This is how I did it:

Firstly I’d like to say that I’ve never been a ‘morning’ person. I’d been going to led beginner’s evening classes for a month or so with a friend. I loved the intensity of these led sessions. The teacher noticing that we were coming regularly, encouraged us to come to the early morning Mysore style class. So my mate and I decided at the end of a week that we were going to take the plunge and agreed to meet at the yoga studio at 6:30am the next Monday morning. I found it quite exciting getting up early – like I was going on some exotic holiday. Everything was the same but it looked different at that time of the morning.

My friend soon moved away from Brighton but our pact was very useful to get me over the hump of getting up early. The only way to get up early consistently is to go to bed earlier. Doh! While you’re getting up early and going to bed late it’s going to be a bit of a bumpy ride. It’ll take a while for your body clock to adjust.

Know what you want

You can’t make a big change like practicing daily without it affecting other areas of your life. It will bring into focus what you really value and then you can make decisions based on what’s important to you. You may discover that that you really love cycling and swimming.

To begin with I was practicing on average 3 times a week in the morning and also doing regular martial arts classes 3 times a week. While this may sound like a good balance in practice it meant that I couldn’t fully commit to either activity. Eventually I decided to let go of the martial arts to fully immerse myself in the practice.

You may have another physical activity that you enjoy in your life besides Ashtanga yoga – and you don’t have to give it up. The fact is that we can’t do all the things we enjoy in life as much as we’d like to. In my case I asked myself what I’d still likely to be doing when I’m 70 or 80 and the answer for me was clearly yoga. In fact my inspiration was meeting a 72 year old at a weekend yoga workshop some years earlier. My first yoga teacher was also in his 60s when I met him. In the end it was a relief rather than a sacrifice to make the decision.

Keeping it going

The other thing I was struggling with was consistency in my practice. My ‘flexible’ schedule meant that if I missed practice on Monday I could still make it up later in the week. The problem was I tended to be too ‘flexible’ and then would practice Wed, Thurs and Friday followed by 3 or 4 days off. The body craves routine and there’s nothing quite like consistent daily practice. It’s difficult to emphasize how important this consistency is when it comes to yoga practice.

Hard times

When it comes to daily practice over a long period of time – pain and upset is unavoidable. You can’t dramatically change your breathing pattern, stretch your muscles and open your joints and not expect there to be consequences of such deep and profound body work. It also seems very likely (if you consider Body Psychotherapy) that we store and process our experiences both mentally and in our physical bodies.

Yoga therapy

The work we do on our mats can have a powerful impact on our emotional states as we begin the healing process of breathing deeply into our deepest and tightest places: be they hips, shoulders, chest or back. I’ve shed many tears on my mat and at times collapsed with exhaustion or stomped off my mat in anger and frustration.

Practice with faith

Hopefully by the time the hard times come you’ll have built up enough faith in the practice to know that it’s really a processs of deep healing rather than destructive pain. Very often medicine doesn’t taste nice but it’s good for us so we take it. Being part of a community of fellow practitioners is really important because you very quickly discover that there are many that have gone through nearly exactly the same thing as you are. Ask any practitioner who you admire or respect and they’ll recount numerous harrowing experiences about knees, hips, wrists, shoulders… you name it.

Again not everyone suffers the same difficulties and some are blessed with seemingly minor troubles. It’s best not to judge and instead to cultivate an attitude of gratitude for your own health and practice despite your difficulties. Sounds simple doesn’t it? Good luck!

You can read all the details about the workshop and book a ticket online.