Yoga

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

What Yoga Is and Is Not.


What Yoga Is and Is Not.

Know What you are getting into, it might not be an “exercise class”!
YOGA IS NOT:
    ·      A physical exercise class


·      A religion


·      Simple


·      Being a contortionist

·      A sport

·      A quick fix to anything

·      Something you master completely on any given day, there is no finish line.

 YOGA IS:


·      Moving Meditation. 

·      Focused Concentration and keen awareness of mind and body.

·      Control of the breath, with movement synchronized to the breath: awareness always with the breath.

·      Vinyasa- a flow through a series of movements - One breath to one movement.  An example is sun salutations.  Vinyasa warms the body from inside and increases meditative focus, awareness of the breath.

·      Asanas- (“poses” and the movement into, with-in and out of them) which build to more difficult Asanas, creating greater freedom of mind and body.

·      A process. Each movement towards, with-in and transition out of an asana is a journey towards mind-body integration, flexibility and strength with-in that asana.

·      Yoga is complex. This is why it is a process! Usually a rather slow process in the beginning.

·      Always a whole being (body-mind-emotions) experience. Expect to change more than your body!

·      Vinyasa and asana are only one of the eight limbs of yoga Philosophy.

·      The goal of yoga is no less than Enlightenment, (knowledge/understanding/insight which brings freedom).

·      The rewards are mastery over the mind and a strong, flexible, yet supple, body.

·       Yoga was originally created so that a person could remain in seated, still in meditation without being distracted by discomfort in the body.

·      It is a philosophy. One branch of Yoga, Devotion, can be devotion in the religious sense, but this is a personal choice.

·      Yoga has been attributed as great tools for religion, or spiritual growth, no matter what faith or philosophy a person believes. The practice of yoga as lifestyle is expanded understanding, compassion, inner peace and peaceful conduct, eventually all of life becomes a moving meditation


Namaste, Christina

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