Yoga can be a way of life. There are practices for cleansing, stretching, healing, expanding our mind and making life more meaningful. We breathe continuously, think continuously and grow whether we try or not. Doing Yoga can be continuous, affecting the way we breathe, move, think and relate to others.
When students first begin they say, “I am doing Yoga this morning at 7 am”, and after they pick up their mat from the floor they say, “I am finished Yoga now”. This is a reference to the practice of asana which after a time can expand to include the other wonderful Yoga practices.
The more we do and understand Yoga, the more we apply it to our daily life. Yoga is not only a physical practice but a way of seeing and thinking. It is a way of breathing, caring and achieving success. Ancient as Yoga is, the tools it offers us are timeless.
Ashtanga Yoga practice is often done in the morning before the working day begins. It is a great process for connecting within and opening the mind and body to the possibilities of the new day. Afternoons are equally fine, the body is certainly more flexible at that time, however, and there are usually other things to do which can take priority. A regular morning practice can become an essential part of your day.
Yoga practice requires consistency, regularity and patience. The body opens at its own rate, so too the mind. Our limitations concerns are our ability to let go and move on, and that is a very individual thing.
Sri K Pattabhi Jois, the father of Ashtanga Yoga, is renowned for his response to enthusiastic and impatient westerners visiting his home studio in Mysore, India, asking for insights into the asana practice. His response is classic as he avoids buying into the Western exaggeration of Yogic philosophy. He says, “Just do the practice and all is coming”. In other words, just do it without expectations or limitations and with regularity. Expansion and growth occurs without external force. To this end he has no book on the philosophy or rules of Ashtanga practice, nor does he expect any austere disciplines to be adhered to.
Pattabhi Jois is one of the first great Yoga masters of India to let go of the literal translation of the ancient texts of Yoga and focus on the inner development that Yoga itself offers.
So the suggestion we have for budding Yogis and Yoginis is “Do the practice, do it daily, do it well, do it consistently and above all do it for the love of life”.
