During meditation this morning I started to focus on what it feels like to meditate. How the process starts, progresses up to that point where I’ve quieted down enough to lessen my loss of focus and just be there. Then, where is there?
As I start the process of slowing down I notice my mind racing with a million images and thoughts that accompany them, as though I’m in the middle of a collage as it’s being constructed. It takes effort to focus on the breath – starting with my nose and then migrating to the abdomen where I can feel breathing in and breathing out. Immediately, an image catches my attention and steals focus until I’m aware of gently re-guiding awareness back to the breath. Then to hearing. Then to breath and hearing as those two senses start to dominate.
Notice the blood coursing through my hands and now my feet. Listen to my heartbeat while I become comfortable residing inside the body and not out.
Outside starts to drift away while the world inside looms large, growing more peaceful with each breath. I notice a slight smile on my face while my tongue hugs the roof of my mouth. Distraction comes and goes, more going than coming. Peace settles within and my body rests contentedly.
And then I’m there. Here. Aware of the quiet. Aware of sounds. Aware of breath. Aware of spaciousness. Inside. Not at all outside.
And your meditation experience?
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Yoga Is Yoga – Right?
Posted in exercise, meditation, mid-life, recreation, spiritual, spirituality, yoga, tagged BKS Iyengar, boomer women, commentary, meditation, new life directions, observation, personal growth, Religion and Spirituality, Yoga on September 30, 2011| 4 Comments »
A beautiful quote that captures the essence of Iyengar Yoga by its mastermind BKS Iyengar. All yoga is rooted in the blend of mind, spirit and body. But this particular style emphasizes correct physical alignment while contorting the body into prescribed poses. It aims to use the concentration necessary for correct posture as a tool in teaching meditation. In order to bend and stretch as required, each pose is deconstructed into its minutiae parts forcing concentration on all nuances of muscle and bone configuration. And that trains the mind to focus.
Image via Wikipedia
I’ve been practicing Iyengar style yoga for 14 years and it’s made a significant difference in my flexibility and attitude toward life. (Though this gorgeous pose is, sadly, not me.) It has also enhanced my meditation practice by quieting the mind and tiring out the body, readying it for silent focus on the breath. And, in all those years, I’ve had just one injury to a shoulder because I rotated my arm farther than my body was ready for.
Recently I’ve branched out to experience other teachers and styles of yoga, maybe because my attitude is one of experimentation these days. I’ve enjoyed the change and the atmosphere in the different studios, but I’m grateful for my Iyengar training because without it, I wouldn’t know how to properly practice the pose. And neither do the other students, evidently, as I scan the room and notice poor body alignment. The teacher may demonstrate the pose correctly, but none explains the process to the students.
Image via Wikipedia
Knees and thighs are not charged, leg rotations are not accurate, spines are not straight, ham strings aren’t being stretched – the list goes on. And the teacher says nothing, does not walk the room and adjust the poses. All students are being left to interpret the instruction on our own. I’m waiting for injuries to occur all around me. It surprises me how teachers can teach without teaching. They demonstrate, they talk the pose through – but none has ever explained flexion of muscle, rotation of limbs, proper knee placement and more.
My suggestion for all yoga enthusiasts is to start with a few series of classes to learn the Iyengar method in order to know how the poses are supposed to be aligned before launching into any other style yoga. Injured necks, backs, limbs and more are painful, in some cases, long term problems that can be prevented with the appropriate instruction.
What are your yoga experiences? And how have they affected your life?
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