Jivamukti Yoga Workshop
It was BEAUTIFUL. A bit of yin to begin, a boatload of beautiful chanting, a vigorous asana practice, and a lovely meditation to end the practice. The teacher interwove the story of Hanuman into our practice, occasionally linking our postures to a key transition in the story. It was a beautiful 120 minutes of practice ~ sacred, moving, and something that ~ me being me ~ I immediately came home and started researching "how can I do more of that". The tapping in was deep, it was effortless, it was lovely. Unfortunately there appear to be no Jivamukti schools closer than NYC, (a sub 2 hour train ride?) but that certainly isn't out of the question for workshops and whatnot.
While I would not wish away a moment of this beautiful summer of kids all around all the time, I do find myself getting excited to have more opportunities to seek out more yoga classes and opportunities once the kids get back to school this fall. I'm missing being a (direct) student of yoga. I say direct meaning having the direct student/teacher relationship….I think that anyone who is practicing daily with the intent of deepening their practice is a student of yoga. I don't believe that yoga can be studied through videos, or learned only through solo practice on ones own mat. I think that yoga is way too interactive, too energetic for that. There is too much that videos simply cant convey about energy, about creating sacred space, about honest intention and about group synergy. I also admit that I have never "taken" a yoga class via an online recorded class or a yoga video……so my perspective is certainly slanted. I've put one on for the kids before ~ But after 20 years of practicing yoga I have a hard time understanding the benefits of "learning" from a teacher who can't see me or my practice. Is there merit for the beginner student? Perhaps. I mean, if you are self conscious about your body or your practice it offers you a way to learn the basics of yoga within the safety and security of your own home. Then again, are you "learning" them right if you are a beginner and no one is there to help you? Yoga is SUCH a community event to me ~ the laughter and hellos and friendship shared on both sides of a yoga class are as important as the class, at times, to me. Practicing alone you miss out on all of that community. Even worse, in the continuing move to copyright and "own" this ancient practice, companies are now suing for the right to "own" online yoga (http://www.theyogablog.com/yogaglo-patent-bs/)! I've complained about the ego of yoga, from Baptiste to Bikram to YogaGlo before, but it just seems like everywhere you turn these days you see it more and more. Even Jivamukti, with a heavy focus on social justice, vegetarianism, custodianship of the earth etc….is trademarked and for profit.
Today is my big match at 2:30. If I win this I'm in the semi finals, and then the Championship would be next Sunday, the day before we leave for 2 weeks at the beach. Right now its a lazy gray day and we are snuggled down in bed still watching the British Open. Wish me luck…….I'm nervous. My opponent is very nice but I've never played with her. Direct single head to head competition is incredibly nerve wracking……I'll be the girl Om'ing around the course again!
I had one dvd that I used a couple times...there wasn't anything wrong with it, but of course, no spark. My teacher talks about how the vast majority of the teachings are communicated psychically. And from what you've said, I'm sure you've experienced classes where the energy of the room really just came together, and it felt like intuition kicked in some. My personal asana practice is generally of the maintenance/therapeutic variety, maybe sometimes working on a particular pose. But my main practice is really the advanced class I've gone to every week with limited exceptions (postpartum, travel) since 2008. Since I started teaching it's brought another dimension - to have the community and my teacher and fellow teachers to ask questions that come up in my classes, and to replenish my own well, mentally & spiritually. Which then gives me more to give to my students!
ReplyDeleteI love the stories of Hanuman - and Hanumanasana is now one of my most loved poses, probably in no small part because it took me 6 years to get there :)
Yep, yoga on DVD is VERY different from yoga in a class. I much prefer the class because of the energy in the room and the presence of the teacher. I am also much more focused on myself when I am in a class than when I am at home with kids running around. :)
ReplyDeleteThat being said, there is a time and place for it. I use it to fill in the gaps. I will probably bring a DVD with me for some practice when I travel this weekend.