DEFINING MOMENT

I have almost quit yoga a bunch of times. Not seriously, of course. I get about as far as a pouty seven year old threatening to run away from home. As soon as I start to pack up all my favorites I realize two things: (1) I have nowhere else to go, and (2) I actually really love where I am. I just get frustrated some times.

A few nights ago, my girlfriend Amanda and I were talking at the end of the day, and exchanging the ubiquitous "How was your day?" Q&A. There was a lull in the conversation, and I hesitantly shared a thought I'd had stuck in my head all evening: Sometimes I wonder if I should just stop teaching and do something else. It was short and clear, but piercing and seemed to linger like a bad odor. It felt like a confession; like I needed to brace myself for an ensuing value judgment. That single thread of words had been revolving on a pretty continuous mental-loop for several hours (maybe longer; days), and I hadn't yet thought much at all beyond the one sentence. I didn't even have any real intentions of saying it right then; it was spontaneous. I just waited, almost frozen, because I didn't know what else to say. And I didn't know what she was going to say. I took a very deep breath to soothe the thumps in my chest.
::inhale fully...exhale completely...::
She had a question, two of them in fact. She said first Have you ever, since you started yoga, stopped completely? And I quietly but matter-of-factly said No.
::another deep breath...::
And then she said Do you think that might be because it's a necessary part of your existence, like eating and sleeping, without which you would cease to be You?
::and another...::

I don't remember the details of the rest of the conversation, but I do remember that internally I felt like a knot had been untied. My whole body slumped a little as muscles which I didn't even know were tense softened. And the broken record playing in my head stopped immediately. I knew she was right; I just needed to be reminded.

The reason why that thought had occurred to me that night is because I am frustrated with my yoga right now. It's in a different state from what it used to be, and that is difficult to accept. I was very lucky for a very long time to have yoga as my full-time job. I owned the studio, and there are definite teaching and practicing perks to that role. I taught many times a week, often even many times a day, to students I had gotten to know after years of bonding. I knew some of their practices as well as I knew my own. Whenever I wasn't teaching, I could have my own practice (and it would often last 2, 3, 4 hours) or write for multiple blogs or study/prepare for upcoming classes or seek out new trainings for myself or be a student in someone else's class. It was a fulfilling privilege.

Don't hear me wrong; I am definitely not saying that I'm currently unfulfilled or unprivileged. I have been welcomed into a new community of wonderful teachers and students, and am very much enjoying the opportunities to grow within all new circumstances. However, for the first time in a long time, I have to have one of those "real jobs." I spend 40 hours a week clocked in doing what other people tell me to do. I know I know most of you do, too. And lots of people who want that don't have it. I promise I am not complaining about having a job; I am grateful for my paycheck and for all that it provides me. I am simply acknowledging that my reality has shifted, and it doesn't always feel good.

The truth is that yoga defines me. It is necessary. Not in the sense that a single pose or lack-thereof makes or breaks my sadhana. Or that it is a rigid or static thing for me. The individual everyday activities of yoga are not defining. They change, ebb and flow, strengthen and weaken, transform and evolve. But the presence of Yoga is critical to My Big Picture. Preferably more often than not.

Right now it's less often; hence my recent feelings of frustration. Right now yoga is competing with my j.o.b. And the job is winning. Rather than other activities fitting in with whatever time is left over after yoga has claimed all that it wants, I find myself squeezing in bits and pieces of yoga here and there. And sometimes not at all. I find myself wanting to nap on my days off rather than practice or write. I am inclined toward the television in the evening rather than a copy of the newest Sutra translation. And my laundry basket is suddenly full of work shirts and no leggings. It's a little disorienting; even sometimes disappointing. And I would be lying if I pretended that it wasn't.

What I realized is that I have been having a little internal pity-party for a couple of weeks -- wishing for something that isn't rather than appreciating the things that are. My yoga has changed, but it hasn't stopped. It probably never will. I know that partly because this isn't the first time my yoga-life has shifted. And, so far at least, I have always come back stronger than ever. I love the practices that I do get to have. I love the classes that I do get to teach, and the students who are there. I love writing and reading and researching and planning no matter how much or little time I get to do those things on any given day.

Yoga is hard! It's hard even when we are lucky enough to have everything happening just right, when there are no obstacles or conflicts, when we feel energized and focused and capable. And it is really f---ing hard when that's not the case. And it is OK, even necessary, to admit that, and to choose taking a nap over Down-dog once in the while. Maybe someday the balance will shift back for me to a whole lot of yoga and just a little bit of everything else. Maybe it won't. But I am a Yogi; a student and a teacher. It is the home I get to take with me everywhere I go. It is as essential to me as my humanity. And that will be true even if I never unroll another sticky mat. Or wriggle into another pair of leggings.

"The [path of yoga]...can be summed up individually as "Getting more of what I genuinely desire and less of what I don't." The trick is to recognize which is which and then act on it. The paradox arises in that to train ourselves to achieve this, we have to start by doing a fair bit of what we don't want to do, and rather less of what we think we do. Yoga calls this tapas, which I've translated as sustained courageous practice. The French philosopher Descartes said happiness does not consist in acquiring the things we think will make us happy, but in learning to like doing the things we have to do anyway. Try this when you're waiting for a late train or doing the washing up" (Iyengar, Light on Life, 112).

WATCH, LISTEN, AND LEARN

In exchange for the lack of my own insights to share with you this week, I offer a little B.K.S. Iyengar himself. His physical demonstrations are, of course, breathtaking. But his wisdom and pure humanity are what is truly inspiring. Enjoy!

teaching in Pune, India in late 1970s

a 2007(ish) interview

WEEKS FOURTEEN & FIFTEEN SEQUENCE

We are finally ready to practice the Weeks Fourteen and Fifteen Sequence in its entirety! It will take place on Sundays, November 9 and 16.

     Sanskrit names are in bold.
     (English names are in parentheses.)
     [Numbers in brackets correspond with illustrations.]
     Poses with an * are new to the sequence.

*Salamba Sirsasana I (Supported Headstand first variation) [184]

Utthita Trikonasana (Extended Triangle pose) [4 and 5]

Parivrtta Trikonasana (Revolved Triangle pose) [6 and 7]

Utthita Parsvakonasna (Extended Side-angle pose) [8 and 9]

Parivrtta Parsvakonasana (Revolved Side-angle pose) [10 and 11]

Virabhadrasana I (Warrior pose first variation) [14]

Virabhadrasana II (Warrior pose second variation) [15]

Virabhadrasana III (Warrior pose third variation) [17]

Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon pose) [19]

Parsvottanasana (Intense Side-stretch pose) [26]

Prasarita Padottanasana I and II (Standing Wide-angle forward bend first and second variations) [33 and 34, 35 and 36]

Padangusthasana (Standing Big-toe pose) [44]

Padahastasana (Hand-under-foot pose) [46]

Uttanasana (Standing forward bend) [48]

Parighasana (Gate pose) [39]

*Salabhasana (Locust pose) or *Makarasana (Crocodile pose) [60 or 62]

*Dhanurasana (Bow pose) [63]

*Bhujangasana I (Cobra pose first variation) [73)

Urdhva Prasarita Padasana (Upward Extended Legs pose, aka UPP) [276 to 279]

Paripurna Navasana (Full Boat pose) [78]

Ardha Navasana (Half Boat pose) [79]

Salamba Sarvangasana I (Supported Shoulderstand first variation) [223]

Halasana (Plow pose) [244]

Karnapidasana (Ear-pressing pose) [246]

*Supta Konasana (Reclined Angle pose) [247]

*Parsva Halasana (Side Plow pose) [249]

Ekapada Sarvangasana (One-legged Shoulderstand) [250]

Jathara Parivartanasana (Revolved Abdomen pose) [274 and 275]

**Mahamudra (Great Seal pose) [125) [250]

*Janu Sirsasana (Head-toward-Knee pose) [127]

*Dandasana (Staff pose) [77]

*Paschimottanasana (Seated forward fold) [160]

Ujjayi Pranayama with inhalation retention (Section 203) in Savasana [592]

Take a look at each of these poses before practice, particularly the new ones. Make note of their Sanskrit and English names, their rating (printed just next to the name), the instructions (including how long he recommends holding each one), and their effects. What stands out? What is interesting? or unclear? or surprising? Come to class with questions and comments.

**We are leaving Mahamudra [125] out for now as it requires the use of some techniques we have not yet focused on; namely, bandhas (energy seals) and kumbhakas (breath retentions). You are welcome to read the information provided for the pose on your own, and ask questions if you have any. But it will not be a part of our sequence until further notice.

ANATOMICALLY SPEAKING

How much do you know about how your body works? Do you know, for instance, what happens to food after you've put it in your mouth? Do you know how your heart circulates oxygenated and deoxygenated blood? Do you know what gives joints their articulations, or that there are three different types of muscle contractions? If not, why not? It's your body; your life's vehicle, and the only one you get. Your entire physical existence takes place within the parameters of your flesh and bones; aren't you a little curious about how it works? Perhaps the nitty gritty details don't interest you, and that's fine. But if you want your body to work well, wouldn't an understanding of its basic mechanics, functions, and structures seem useful? How do you propose to take good care of something without knowing how it operates?

The human body is complex, sometimes mysterious, endlessly fascinating, and admittedly not an easy subject to study. I have no delusions about all of us being anatomists or kinesiologists; some of us are just naturally more or less scientifically minded than others. But yoga very clearly affects us both anatomically and physiologically, so it's probably worth perusing at even the most elementary level. And that's my way of pep-talking you into indulging me while I share just a little bit about how muscles work!

Muscles exist in order to move joints. Which muscle contracts is what determines which joint moves and how. They, of course, come in different shapes and sizes with some resting very near the surface of the body and others much deeper. Some act as free-movers while others are better at stabilizing. And it's shape, location, and attachments are what dictate how a muscle behaves.

Each muscle attaches to bone in (at least) two places: the more stable, unmoving end of the muscle is called the origin, and the end which is more likely to affect joint movement is called the insertion. For example, the hamstring muscle (which is technically three separate muscles joined by a single tendon and commonly referred to as a single unit) originates on the ischial tuberosities (the sitting bones at the base of your pelvis) and inserts on the tibia/fibula (your lower leg bones). Therefore, the hamstrings are primarily responsible for two movements: (1) posteriorly tilting your pelvis (we often call it "tuck your tail") and (2) flexing (bending) your knee. Stretching a muscle requires the origin and the insertion to move away from each other, while firming and strengthening require the origin and insertion to move toward one another. So in order to stretch the hamstrings, you want to either tilt your pelvis forward or extend (straighten) your knees or both of those things simultaneously. And to stabilize and/or strengthen the hamstrings, you want to tuck your tail or bend our knees or both.

When you bend your knee via hamstring contraction, the hamstrings are acting as the agonist which means they caused the action of that joint. On the other hand, any time a muscle contracts (tones, firms, shortens), some other muscle is relaxing or stretching in opposition, and that muscle is called the antagonist: i.e. when your hamstrings contract and your knee bends, the quadriceps act as the antagonist. If they didn't, their resistance would prevent the hamstrings from doing their job. Furthermore, because muscles do not act in isolation, the movement caused by the agonist muscle is supported by synergists which move in a similar, though typically less efficient, way as the agonist: i.e. the gastrocnemius (the bulky calf muscle) assists the hamstrings in flexing your knee although that is not its primary job.

What does all this mean to your yoga poses? It's simple really: mastery of any given asana comes from successfully utilizing the agonist(s), synergist(s), and antagonist(s) affected by the posture. Of course, you don't have to explicitly understand this in order to have success in your practice. But knowing how the muscles work, even just a little bit, can help you use them much, much more effectively.

Let's stick with the hamstrings as our focal point, but instead of them acting as the agonist for knee flexion, let's look at how we get them to stretch in a pose such as uttanasana (LoY 92). After all, stretching the hamstrings can sometimes seem like all we ever do on the mat, so it's probably advantageous to our practice to know how to do it well!

It's important to remember that muscles are designed to contract; that is, to pull their two opposing ends closer together. Asking a muscle to lengthen instead is counterintuitive which is why it's such a challenging task. And also why it is so important to understand the function of antagonists and synergists.

When you stand in tadasana, the hamstrings are contracting just enough to keep your pelvis in an upright position and thus prevent you from toppling forward. When you start to bend forward toward uttanasana, your pelvis must tilt so that you hinge at your hip joint rather than round in your waist/lower back. But remember the hamstrings are programmed to prevent your pelvis from tilting forward -- it is their job to keep the very action which you are trying to induce from happening! If you want to convince your hamstrings to release into a stretch, a couple of preliminary actions are necessary.

First, the bones need stability. Part of that comes from moving your thigh bones back and apart in order to widen your pelvic floor. When your thigh bones are sitting deeply and widely within the hip socket, the pelvis itself literally has freedom to tilt. Otherwise your thigh bones will act as a kind of clamp compressing the pelvic floor, and, if the pelvis is stuck, then you cannot hinge from your hips. So start by rolling the fronts of your thigh bones in toward one another, then press them straight back, and widen them apart. This action allows the whole pelvic bowl to anteriorly tilt -- your butt sticks out, your pubic bone moves back between your legs, and, if you think about the pelvic bowl as just that, a bowl, then anything contained within it would be spilling out over the top rim as it is now angling forward.

During the first moments of folding into uttanasana, your hamstrings are actually still contracting rather than stretching. Again, remember their primary objective: to tuck the pelvis posteriorly in order to prevent your torso from toppling over (think of the bowl image again, and in tasasana, nothing would be spilling out of the bowl because its top rim is parallel to the floor). As you attempt to fold your torso forward over your legs, your hamstrings intuitively turn on and work hard to control your descent. They don't know that you are folding forward on purpose; they only know very primitively that their job is to keep you from plummeting to the floor. You need to convince them that your hinging forward is deliberate and that it is safe for them to release.

Therefore, the next step is to stabilize the upper body. This part is fairly simple: press your hands on to something solid. If you cannot reach the floor, then use blocks or a low stool or a chair seat or a counter top. But do not do not do not allow your arms to dangle. As long as your torso is unsupported, your hamstrings will contract which will tuck your tailbone which means you are rounding at the waist/lower back. So put your hands or fingertips on the floor or blocks or whatever else you can reach. But don't just touch down with your weight still leaning back into your heels/legs; you have to actually bear a moderate amount of weight into your arms. Once your body is supported, your hamstrings no longer need to contract and they will slowly relax. Relaxation becomes stretching, and to do more of that you need to employ the antagonists.

In order to actually improve flexibility, you need to coax the hamstrings to lengthen beyond their original capacity. So far all we've really done is maximized their current state by moving their origin and insertion as far away from each other as possible but without much (or any) intentional stretch. The quadriceps on the fronts of the thighs will play a big role here.

Muscle tissue is very elastic. It is made up of teeny tiny strings of cells all braided together. Like a rubber band, it stretches out easily, and as soon as you release that tension, it retracts. When a muscle is in a resting or contracting state, all the cells are knitted tightly like when you interlace your fingers and press your palms together. If you were to then open your palms apart but keep your fingers tightly interlaced, it would be like what we just created in our first stage of uttanasana: length but not necessarily stretch in the strong sense. However, if you slowly pull your fingers apart, you'll start to create open space between them, and that's actual stretching. Muscle tissue works similarly: as you pull on it, the braids separate slightly which creates space in between them. And the good news is that the body pretty immediately (within just a few hours) responds to these open spaces by generating new tissue. So, whereas when you release the tension of a rubber band, it retracts back to its original length, a muscle only retracts a little bit because your body fills in the open spaces. Little by little this creates flexibility.

Back to the quadriceps. Like all muscles, the quads act to pull their origin (basically the anterior inferior pelvis and anterior femur) toward their insertion (on and just beneath the knee cap). When your quads contract, your pelvis will flex (anteriorly tilt) or your knees will extend (straighten) or both. This is of course the opposite (or antagonistic) action of the hamstrings. And it also happens to be exactly what we need in order to maximally stretch the hamstrings -- straight legged forward folding action, right? By contracting your quads, you will (1) send a signal through your nervous system to your hamstrings telling them to release, and (2) intentionally increase the distance between your hamstring's origin and insertion. Think about the hands interlaced again. Without the contraction of the quads, all you can do is create the stage at which your palms are opened wide but your fingers are still tightly interlaced. When you engage your quads, you create the leverage necessary to pull the fingers apart and keep them apart long enough for the body to start the process of filling in those empty spaces with new tissue. You must challenge the muscle into a new state of length as well as allow the nervous system time to understand that that action is deliberate and safe; otherwise nothing new will happen.

How do you know if you're engaging your quads? One really easy way of finding out is by trying to wiggle your knee cap. Sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front of you (dandasana), and gently pinch your knee cap between your thumb and fingers. If you can wiggle it slightly side to side, then your quads are relaxed. Now tone the fronts of your thighs and try again -- your knee cap is locked in place. If you want to stretch your hamstrings, your quads need to be contracted.

And don't forget about the synergists. Remember synergists are muscles which assist the agonists but in a less direct way. The gastrocnemius helps the hamstrings by bending the knee even though its primary job is to bend the ankle. If your calf muscle is tight, you will struggle to straighten your knee, and, if you cannot straighten your knee, you cannot effectively stretch the hamstrings. Flexible calf muscles mean more stable lower legs, and in turn greater likelihood of affecting positive change upon the hamstrings. For uttanasana, utilizing the synergists means keeping the hips stacked directly over the ankles rather than allowing the hips to lean back over the heels. It is really the combination of the antagonists (quadriceps) contracting and the synergists (gastrocnemius) lengthening which induces the most stretch upon the agonist (hamstrings).

So to recap, stretching your hamstrings requires that your thigh bones are set back and wide in order to hinge the pelvis forward, your torso is supported in order to relax the hamstrings, and your quadriceps are contracted in order to create actual stretch. Or to apply this more generally to the body as a whole, the primary joint being affected needs range of motion, the secondary joints need stability, and the synergists and the antagonists need to cooperate to cue the agonist into relaxation. All of this can be refined with even more intelligent alignment (for instance, we can focus on one side at a time by working asymmetrical poses which are often more accessible, and we can also fine-tune the actions of the upper body in order to minimize eccentric contractions), but this is a good foundation. The take away is: contract the opposing muscle(s) to induce the greatest amount of change upon the target muscle(s). Another (although very simplistic) way to think about it is that forward bends stretch the back body while contracting the front body, and back bends stretch the front body while contracting the back body. It is not enough to simply fold forward or bend back; it is necessary to utilize the body's structures and mechanics.

Our sequence now includes a few simple seated forward folds as well as a few belly-down back bends. These poses are not "easy", but they are fundamental, and are a great way to introduce the basic, gross workings of our flesh and bones. As you practice the new poses, think about what needs to stretch (open, loosen), and how you can utilize the contraction (firming, shortening) of its opposites to enhance the form of the posture.

"Lock your attention within the body. You can hold your concentration on breathing, on tissues that are being stretched, on joints that are being stressed, on the speed of your movements, or on the relationships between breathing and stretching. You can also concentrate on your options as you move in and out of postures. Practicing with total attention within the body is advanced yoga, no matter how easy the posture; practicing with your attention scattered is the practice of a beginner, no matter how difficult the posture...[Y]oga trains the mind as well as the body, so focus your attention without lapse."
(H. David Coulter, Anatomy of Hatha Yoga, 17)

YOGA'S EIGHT STAGES, or PATANJALI'S CUSTOMARY WAYS OF SITTING

I want to revisit a (quasi rhetorical) question I posed a couple weeks ago which considered how much of yoga is really about the asana. A good answer to that is complicated and probably more than I can discuss adequately here, but the short version is "it depends." A more concise question may be to say how much of YOUR yoga is about the asana. Although, the answer to that also depends. It depends on various factors, but very much on your ultimate intentions as a practitioner (i.e. are you seeking a means to physical health, mental health, spirituality, relaxation, stress-relief, socializing, scholarly studies, etc?).

Let's, for the sake of this discussion, assume your practice closely follows the tenets of Patanjali's Classical Yoga as expounded in his Yoga Sutra. After all, we are attempting to understand the wisdom of Mr. Iyengar's Light on Yoga, and Mr. Iyengar certainly considered himself to be a student of Patanjali. And if we want to better understand our own teachers, it is to our benefit to try to understand theirs. In that case, the answer to the question (how much of yoga is really about the asana?) is "not much." In order to really understand why that is, we have to become familiar with the premises of Classical Yoga.

Classical Yoga is composed of eight stages of practice (asana being one of them) which culminate in the mind's liberation from its incessant turmoil. That is a tall order, and a murky one to boot. Basically, Patanjali sees the "human problem" -- the seemingly innate suffering that unifies all of human existence -- as being one of uncontrolled mental agitations, and, if said mental agitations could be reigned in, then the result would be a transcendent joy and wisdom. But, because the mind if complicated, illusive, and purely conceptual, affecting it is extremely difficult. Therefore, Patanjali says, rather than diving immediately into the (dys)functioning of the mind, start with something a little more accessible -- your body, for instance.

In regards to the stages of practice, mastery of the poses is neither the ultimate objective, nor the groundwork. In fact, technically speaking, "mastery of the poses" in the sense of its presentation in something like Light on Yoga (or nearly every modern public yoga class) doesn't have anything at all to do with Patanjali's idea of asana. The word asanam literally means "seat" or "customary ways of sitting." Patanjali could not care less if you have mastered the Triangle pose or the Shoulderstand or the Half Bound Cross Footed Balancing Cockatoo; his only concern is that you are capable of sitting in a stable and comfortable position for extended periods of time. So then why all the poses?

We're getting there. But first, if asana isn't the most preliminary stage, then what is? Asana is actually the third stage in Patanjali's system. The first is yama and the second is niyama. If a practitioner wishes to obtain the mental harmony that yoga provides, then she must begin by redirecting her worldly inclinations; that is, shifting her perspective away from those tendencies which tether her to the phenomenal world. The word yama means "restraint," so Patanjali's first and second stages are restraints or limitations related to human behavior. In other words, they're ethics because, in order to be a successful yogi, one must be well-behaved, both internally and externally. There are five yama and also five niyama. The yama focus on optimal ways of interacting with others and our external environments, while the niyama are more personal in nature and reflect a healthy relationship with our more internal states. Tomes of commentary have been written about each of them, and this is not the place for additional elaboration (if you want help finding good resources for this material, just ask).

In brief, the five yama are: (1) never injure or hinder another living being (ahimsa); (2) always be truthful in thought, word, and action (satya); (3) don't take what doesn't belong to you (asteya); (4) uphold moderation in all actions, engagements, and consumptions (brahmacharya); and (5) only use/amass those things which are absolutely necessary to your well-being (aparigraha).

And the five niyama are: (1) maintain good physical health, nutrition, and cleanliness (saucha); (2) cultivate contentment, graciousness, and gratitude toward all that you have and are (santosha); (3) cultivate passion, courage, and dedication toward that which is most important to you (tapas); (4) study with the intention of garnering universal truth and wisdom (svadhyaya); and (5) be devout toward that part of yourself that you know is "more-than-just-a-body" (Ishvara pranidhana).

The role of the yama and niyama is to help establish one's character which is important because it shows a willingness and ability to overcome strong (likely destructive) temptations. Everyday life -- its challenges, misfortunes, and inequalities -- can easily lead one into patterns of moral gray-zones, and calming the mind's turbulence is dependent upon a steadfast intention to honor and respect all living beings (yourself included). However, yoga is not about conscience-building; it's about Liberation and Authenticity in the strongest sense. So, while demonstrating that you are capable of playing well with others while taking good care of yourself is necessary, it's only the very beginning.

From here on out, the practice becomes increasingly more internally focused with each subsequent stage. Whereas practicing the yama and niyama lead to freedom from worldly distractions -- envy, greed, discontent, dishonor, etc. -- practicing asana leads to freedom from your own physical distractions -- fatigue, disease, fragility, immobilization, and injury. Over hundreds or even thousands of years, the asana have evolved into elaborate (and sometimes conflicting) methods of positioning the body which undoubtedly develop strength, flexibility, stamina, vitality, resilience, and grace. All of which are good things. But remember what the word asanam means: "seat," "customary ways of sitting." The point is to condition the body to sit. Literally. If the back is weak, the hips are stiff, the knees ache, the shoulders slouch, or the head hangs, sitting still for more than a few brief (and probably unsettled) moments is nearly impossible. So the yogi uses her asana practice as a means of achieving physical firmness (sthira) and steadiness (sukha). We'll see why soon.

The poses target the outer-most body first and most obviously; namely, muscles, tissues, and bones. But in the meantime, they are also having an equally profound effect on the more subtle layers of our physiology; that is, our cells, nerves, and glands. The fact that yoga targets our bodies wholly -- outside and in -- leads directly into the fourth stage of practice: pranayama.

Prana means breath, life-force, energy. Ayama still means restraint and also extension. So, pranayama is the practice of literally controlling one's breath, and, more figuratively, one's spirit. The various pranayama exercises comprise an entire system of practice in addition to asana (Iyengar's manual covering this material is called Light on Pranayama). Most practitioners will never venture beyond the very basics -- Ujjayi, possibly some short retentions, and maybe Kapalabhati. Anything more advanced than that tends to exceed the average student's interests and commitments as it is a quite challenging stage of practice which really demands dedicated focus as well as very close supervision from an experienced instructor. It also requires that you be able to sit for extended periods of time, hence the previous stage (asanam = "ways of sitting"). In fact, stages four through seven (pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, and dhyana) all require a body which is willing and able to endure prolonged periods of quiet and still sitting, so it's really no wonder that one entire stage of practice, not to mention the one most well-known and widely practiced, is nearly exclusively focused on training the body to do just that. Without the physical capacities which come from asana, one would almost certainly not be able to withstand the difficulties of the proceeding stages.

Asana and pranayama work together to tame the body, physically and physiologically, in order to suppress what is otherwise a perpetual slew of distractions and demands. If your most-physical self is in any way unhealthy, imbalanced, or disturbed, your mind cannot rest, and yoga's promise of ultimate liberation will forever elude you. However, please don't hear that and think to yourself Well, I'll never practice advanced poses or breath-control, so maybe I shouldn't do this at all or Oh no, now I've got to find a real Guru to teach me how to sit, breathe, and think or I'll never experience personal contentment. That's not the case. Even if advanced asana or pranayama seem beyond your yogic scope, your practice is absolutely still important and valuable. Yoga is beneficial in its most elementary forms, and you do not have to be a contortionist or a shaman or a vegan or a Hindu or a philosopher or an astrologer to be a good Yogi. You only have to be willing to conform your practice to fit your needs, and not the other way around. All eight stages have elements which are more suited for beginners as well as those which are better saved until one has gained more experience. Even a modest practice can include some aspect of each stage, or even just a few of the stages, so that your practice provides you with exactly what you most need. And that is infinitely better than no practice at all.

Once the body has been brought under control through asana and pranayama, the mind is actually more distracted than ever! Because it no longer has physical forms and functions to worry about, the sensory world kicks into overdrive. The fifth stage of practice is called pratyahara, and it teaches the yogi how to control her senses; namely, sight, taste, touch, hearing, and smell. The purpose is to continue the disconnection that is developing between the Self and the surrounding world. Our senses -- as valuable and inherent as they are to the human experience -- are the embodiment of external awareness and mental disturbance. In order to entirely free the mind, sensory perceptions must be challenged. Pratyahara is the practice of dissociating from the senses. It is not about turning them off or lacking them completely; instead, it is about learning how to control them rather than allowing them to be controlling.

At this point, the mind becomes the primary focal point more than ever before, and stages six and seven are practices of mental concentration (dharana) and meditation (dhyana). The words "concentration" and "meditation" are often used interchangeably, but for the yogi they are two distinctly different levels of experience and achievement. Explaining just what each one is and how they differ is worth saving for another discussion. It's enough at this point to understand that one's consciousness is slowly brought more and more inward until neither the external world, nor the very body we inhabit, are distracted or agitated; only pure, unadulterated thought is left. And not for long, because that too will be mastered. The eighth stage (Samadhi) is the experience of an entirely liberated state of existence wherein your body thrives, your heart is content, your mind is quiet, and your consciousness is dissolved. YOU in the grandest sense -- the part-of-you-that-is-more-than-your-body -- are incomparably alive. And that is what yoga is really about.

When you put this all together, you have what Patanjali calls "Ashtanga Yoga" because it consists of eight (ashta) limbs or stages (anga). The type of yoga practice founded by Patabbhi Jois which features vigorous vinyasa flow and is called "Ashtanga Yoga" shares its name with the Classical Yoga system because Jois, like Iyengar, was a student of the Yoga Sutra. Despite the many differences between Iyengar and Ashtanga yoga practice, their most basic premises are the same; namely, that yoga is a science and a philosophy capable of promoting incredible physical and psychological transformations if one is willing to be sincerely disciplined and humble.

So again how much of yoga is really about the asana? It still depends. For Patanjali and his eight-stage system (Ashtanga Yoga), it is necessary only as a means to a much, much bigger end. The asana play a very prominent role because our bodies are very tangible and manipulable. We can touch them and change them concretely, which makes them (relatively) easy to understand. We can, through our physical exercises, get a glimpse of all the other aspects of practice: the respect and compassion that comes from following the yama and niyama, the vitality that comes from pranayama, the autonomy of pratyahara, and the clarity of dharana and dhyana. We can even, in brief moments of genuine respite, during an especially pleasant Savasana, for instance, feel what Samadhi must be like. In short, we practice the poses in order to enliven our human experience and to illuminate those parts of ourselves which are superhuman.

Image: Yoga Sutra II.29 as translated by Chip Hartranft, 2003

UNSTICKY BACKBENDS, or WEEKS 14 & 15 PART 3

"Backbends give stability to the body and bring maturity in the intelligence in order to develop ripeness in the brain and ripeness in the emotions."

To the best of my knowledge, all modern forms of yogasana practice include some amount of backbending. Certainly some traditions emphasize it more than others, but you can find it essentially universally regardless of the lineage, philosophy, and degree of vigor (or lack thereof; i.e. even in Yin and Restorative Yogas). And backbends are nothing new: the Hatha Yoga Pradipika and the Gheranda Samhita -- two of the oldest surviving texts expounding on yogasana -- describe positions of the body that we would today recognize as Dhanurasana, Salabhasana, and Ustrasana. Backbends have historically been, as well as continue to be, known for their contributions to physical, psychological, and philosophical wellbeing. Very simplistically, and physically speaking, they strengthen the posterior body and stretch the anterior body. They stimulate, energize, and create heat. And they challenge our sense of self-awareness by forcing us to become familiar with parts of ourselves which we can neither see nor touch.

"...you create tremendous depth and vastness in the chest through the backbends that the emotional center accommodates [absorbs and withstands] all types of pressures and strains. There is no chance for a person who does backbends to get emotionally depressed or distressed."

"That's the beauty of backbends. Emotionally we can never be disturbed, for the emotional center becomes an extrovert. When you do Viparita Dandasana [LoY 375], your head looks backwards, but your conscious mind stretches everywhere. Study by observing how the mind gets regulated. You not only know the freedom in the spine, but also the freedom in the spirit."

"Backbends are not poses meant for expressionism. Backbends are meant to understand the back parts of our bodies. The front body can be seen with the eyes, but the back body can only be felt. That's why I say these are the most advanced postures, where the mind begins to look at the back. Otherwise it is felt on the peripheral level."

The message here is (at least) twofold: (a) backbends are vital, and (b) backbends are difficult.

But, as in all things vital and difficult (i.e. all things Yogic!), the best place to begin is a fundamental understanding of what you're doing, why you're doing it, and how. We already know that that means breaking down the necessary components of form and function while on the mat. Backbends require (at the most basic level) a great range of motion (i.e. flexibility) in (1) the shoulders, (2) the upper-back, and (3) the hip-flexors. It is important that your practice include both poses which provide the necessary flexibility as well as poses which help you to measure your flexibility. And I have a tool bag full of both which I am happy and anxious to share with you. However, I am afraid that descriptions reliant only upon text will fall short of adequate clarity, and would need the visual assistance of photos and/or videos to be truly beneficial. And since I am not currently equipped to provide either of those, I feel limited in my ability to be effectively informative here. What I will do, though, is name and/or briefly describe a few key poses/actions, and encourage you to seek out more explicit explanations by perusing resources such as Light on Yoga and YogaJournal.com (a general internet search will produce an abundance of resources), and, most importantly, coming to class.

Shoulders. The anatomy of the humerus and its adjoining socket means that the shoulder joint is capable of a pretty impressive range of motion. When optimally functional, the shoulder join can flex (i.e. arms positioned overhead, alongside the ears) as much as, or more than, 180^o, and can extend (i.e. arms positioned behind the vertical axis of the spine when viewed from the side) as much as, or, in rare cases, more than, 45^o.

One of the most effective means of increasing both flexion and extension is with the aid of a simple yoga strap. While standing, hold the strap in both hands a little wider than shoulder-width apart. Keep your arms straight, the strap taut, and your chin up as you lift your arms first overhead, and then back and down so that you end up holding the strap behind you rather than in front. Then reverse the movement to return to the starting position. If it's too difficult, widen your hold on the strap. If it's too easy, narrow your hold. Challenge yourself to cinch in on the strap every couple of rotations. Keep good form, and repeat many, many times.

The ability to position the arms directly in line with (or slightly behind) the ears without bending the elbows and while maintaining strong external rotation of the upper-arms indicates the necessary mobility for poses such as Utkatasana (a backbend only in a very loose sense, but crucial nonetheless), Virabhadrasana I (ditto), and Urdhva Dhanurasana (the "Mountain Pose" of backbends!).

If you can reach the arms backward without bending the elbows and while (relatively easily) clasping the hands firmly together, then you likely have the mobility necessary for poses such as Salabhasana, Dhanurasana, and Ustrasana.

Upper-back. The part of the spinal column situated between and slightly below the shoulder-blades (i.e. the vertebrae upon which ribs are attached) is the least flexible part of the spine. Whenever we try to create movement in the spine, be it via backbending, forwardbending, or twisting, those places with the most flexibility will move much more readily than those with less, and, for the health and safety of our bodies, it is imperative that we learn how to stabilize the more mobile areas while opening/loosening the stiffer ones. In regards to backbends, creating stability in the more mobile areas comes from creating good form in the hips and core in regards to the lower body, and good form in the neck, head, and shoulders in regards to the upper. With that premise established, one can focus on increasing the range of motion in the thoracic area.

Loosening the thoracic spine is like unsticking a rusty bike chain. If individual links in a chain are rusted closed, and you are attempting to free them by yanking, banging, or otherwise cajoling the chain whilst holding on to its far ends, then you will have little success -- the places which are loose will stay loose while the places which are stuck will stay stuck. To be effective, you must place firm and intentional pressure explicitly upon the congested spot(s). You can, say, lay the rusted joint right over the edge of a tabletop so that the corner of the table creates a kind of fulcrum which juts into and helps release the stickiness as you press down firmly very near the affected spot. The thoracic spine works in a similar fashion -- creating flexibility here requires targeted attention, and, in my experience, one of the best ways to achieve this is through long-ish-held, passive, supported backbends.

The simplest variation of this is lying over a rolled blanket. Roll a firm blanket into a long log shape, and position yourself over it so that the blanket rests against the bottom tips of your shoulder-blades. The back of your head, lower-back/hips, and legs/feet should all rest fairly comfortably along the ground. Your arms can extend out horizontally or can reach overhead alongside the ears. The idea being that the blanket will act like a milder version of the tabletop edge as the fulcrum against the sticky parts: placing gentle, but target pressure right where it's most needed. Two blankets rolled together will create a slightly stronger experience. Stay here (mostly) passively for 1-5 minutes. This is essentially a passive and supported variation of Matsyasana (Fish pose, LoY 138-40).

A more challenging (but I think even more effective) variation uses a block in essentially the same manner as the blanket. Because the block is stiffer and sharper, the pressure is more intense, but then arguably so are the results (to a reasonable degree, of course). Place a yoga block (preferably a 4" one, although 3" will work) on its tallest surface, and lie over it so that its long edges are positioned right between the shoulder-blades. Be careful not to place the block under the bony C7 vertebra near the base of the neck, nor under the floating ribs beneath the kidneys. If your neck is strong and pain-free, you can tilt your head back and extend the crown toward or even on to the floor. If your neck feels weak or sensitive, place a second block (or some other firm support) under the back of your head to prevent over-extension. You can keep your knees bent and feet on the floor, or you can straighten (and tone) your legs (ala Staff pose). Keep your hips/buttocks pressed firmly against the ground. You can stretch your arms out horizontally, or extend them overhead alongside the ears while keeping them straight/strong, or you can hold on to opposite elbows while the arms are lifted overhead. Stay here (moderately) passively for 1-3 minutes. When done this way, it is another variation of supported Matsyasana (*note that the traditional full form of Fish pose utilizes Lotus legs, but here your legs are either straight or knees-bent as Lotus would be unnecessarily complicated).

Yet another more challenging variation is to place the legs in Virasana (Hero pose) before lying back against the block. The positions of the head, arms, and hips/buttocks are the same; the increased challenge comes from the deep fold of the legs which intensely stretches the hip-flexors and lower abdomen. Again, stay (moderately) passively for 1-3 minutes. This is a supported variation of Paryankasana (Couch pose, LoY 125-26).

The ability to (fairly easily) press the top of your head into the floor with the block between your shoulder-blades, with the arms lifted overhead, and without lifting your hips/buttocks from the ground is one indication that the thoracic spine is developing mobility. Another good measurement reference comes from Puppy pose. If you can place your sternum against the floor while maintaining good form in the pose overall, you likely have sufficient range of motion in both the upper-back and the shoulders. It is even better if you can maintain good overall form, place your sternum against the ground, and then lift your chin away from the floor to look forward/upward.

Hip-flexors. The hip-flexors are a grouping of muscles positioned basically along the front of the thighs, but they have connecting spots a little lower on the legs, along the lower abdomen, on the lower spine, and within the pelvic bowl. Their primary objective is to flex (aka forward fold) the hip joint; hence they are aptly named. Because they are good at their job, and because we, as a culture, are seemingly perpetually in a hip-flexed position (i.e. sitting to eat, drive, relax, socialize, work, play, compute, etc.), this group of muscles tends to be short, tight, and stubborn. Backbends require that they be strong yet consentingly pliable; the deeper the backbend, the more the hip-flexors must release. Therein lies the challenge.

Working asymmetrically is probably the most effective means early on. By that I mean, working with poses and preparatory variations of poses in which only one set of hip-flexors is targeted at a time; namely, variations of Virabhadrasana I, Anjaneyasana (kneeling lunge), Ekapada Bhekasana (One-legged Frog pose), and Ekapada Supta Virasana (One-legged Reclined Hero pose). There are many, many ways to work with variations of each of these poses which incorporate props and others means of support; far too many to provide here. For clarification, go to your books, the internet, and class.

Adequate range of motion in this area of the body is best measured via Virasana (LoY 120-23) and Supta Virasana (LoY 123-25). The ability to sit without any support in Virasana is a necessary pre-requisite for Supta Virasana. And the ability to recline fully without any support in Supta Virasana is a necessary achievement while pursuing backbends. For even more challenge, work toward the ability to recline fully into Supta Virasana, and then elevate your hips by placing a block under the sacrum which requires a greater amount of length in the hip-flexors.

For some, the limitation of movement is in only one of these areas, or two, and for others, all three. It is important to assess your current capabilities (where are you strong and not, where are you flexible and not), compare that with your standing (and reasonable!) goals, and then work diligently in a way that balances what you want with what you're willing to do to get it so that you do in fact get what you want. Backbends are difficult, but they are absolutely worth the effort!

This is a lot of information, and a lot more should be said. Use these ideas as an outline whose details it is your responsibility to fill in. Below is the sequence of poses we will follow in class on Sunday, 10/19. It is yet another version of Week 14. It includes each pose which we have previously learned AND which is included in the list of "Most Important Asanas" found near the back of LoY. It omits poses not on the list and/or those we have not yet learned. The poses with an * are poses we will include even though they are not on the "Most Important" list because they are currently a part of the sequence and they are important to us right now.

The "Sort've Week Fourteen Sequence" Part 3:

Salamba Sirsasana I for at least 3 minutes

Trikonasana and Parivrtta Trikonasana

Parsvakonasana and Parivrtta Parsvakonasana

Virabhadrasana I and Virabhadrasana III

Ardha Chandrasana

Parsvottanasana

Prasarita Padottanasana I

Uttanasana

Salabhasana

*Dhanurasana

*Bhujangasana

Paripurna Navasana and Ardha Navasana

Salamba Sarvangasana I for at least 5 minutes

Halasana

*Karnapidasana

*Supta Konasana

*Parsva Halasana

*Ekapada Sarvangasana

Savasana

As always, take a look at each of these poses before practice, particularly the new ones. Make note of their Sanskrit and English names, their rating (printed just next to their name), their instructions (including how long he recommends holding each one), and their effects. What stands out? What is interesting? or unclear? or surprising? Come to class with questions and comments.

"In backbends, one touches the body physically, mentally, intellectually, consciously and spiritually everywhere."

(all quotes above are attributed to B.K.S. Iyengar; specific sources are unknown)

PLACE SAVER POST

This is just a short place-saver post, a kind of IOU in exchange for the promise of more to come. I apologize for the lack of communication of late. As much as I try to keep it otherwise, unfortunately my yoga practice (which very enthusiastically includes teaching, writing, researching, etc. along with my own time on the mat) sometimes falls away from the top of the priority list as life's other inevitable responsibilities demand fuller attention.

I intend to share some thoughts in follow-up to the recent back-bends workshop, and provide some ideas which will help the process of incorporating those poses continue for those who are interested. Although the focus of the workshop went beyond anything we'll cover in DK, the premises are certainly still useful even for the "baby backbends" we will begin to learn this week. The very short version of that information is that backbends of all types require a great range of motion in the hip-flexors, shoulders, and upper back. We will experience some of that in our next class (10/12), and I'll write in more depth soon.

I also have more I want to say about the sthira/sukham conversation we began recently, and I am again going to strongly encourage you to invest in a copy (or two) of both the Yoga Sutra and the Bhagavad Gita if you haven't already. They are crucial in deepening one's commitment to and understanding of yoga.

We are continuing our work with Week 14, and will focus on Salabhasana, Makarasana, Dhanurasana, and Bhujangasana I this week. Sneak a peek ahead of time if you get a chance. I am looking forward to class, and I am anxious to say more very soon.