The Eight Limbs: Asana
Asana are your body postures, the most well-known aspect of yoga.
The physical practice of yoga has gotten a real name for itself the past half a century or so, some parts good, some parts bad, and a lot of it strays from what yoga is meant to be about.
The postures of yoga were initially created to allow ancient peops to be able to have able bodies so they could sit for hours and hours meditating.
Although many of us now days don't meditate for hours on end, the integrity of the practice is still there. Asana practice is about strengthening and cleansing the body. We practice yoga to strengthen and stretch the body, to clear the mind, to balance ourselves. You hear of a lot of elite athletes doing yoga because they want to have some balance in their bodies. The same goes for couch potatoes and anyone in between - you can balance yourself through a yoga practice that suits you.
So, we want to strengthen the body. That does not mean that we want to try and overcome or even change our bodies. The first step in strengthening and balancing is accepting that your body is a part of you, this thing has been carrying you around for your entire life and longer. Respect it. Don't hate on it. You have to find peace with your body and your body image if you really want to make a difference in your life. In yoga we really really have to listen to and work with our bodies so that we can achieve the best outcomes while preventing injury. It is difficult to do but we all need to realise and accept the bodies we are in.
That said, it can go too far the other way. To do an Asana practice we must let go of our ego. You have to be humble. When I first started practising yoga I had a hell of a lot of ego. I would push myself and compare myself to others and basically finish up feeling sore and like I didn't really improve anything. It takes a very long time, lord knows I'm still working on it, but we really have to learn to just go with the flow, accept your limitations and be content with yourself.
I suppose you have to find a balance before you can find balance!
Look all this stuff is mentally challenging, but if you start with someone, attending a yoga class for example, everything else will start to fall into place.
So, my top tips for a physical yoga practice?
1. LISTEN to your body
2. LET GO of any ego
3. ACCEPT where you and your body is at at this point in time
4. GO WITHIN yourself and notice how you are feeling at all times
5. SMILE. It'll help
So that's all for today folks,
until next time,
Namaste x
