My first day in Mysore my teacher, Kimberly Flynn, told me that the city is known as the city of eternal spring. She was referring to the weather; at least I assumed she was. Spring is a time of rebirth, a time of growth, of change, of love. These things Mysore provides. It is a microcosm of practice, faith, and connection.
When you arrive in India you are thrust into a dizzying array of sights, sounds, smells, and culture. The language is foreign and the customs unfamiliar. The expected is unexpected and, over time, the strange becomes usual and regular. The human system’s desire for community and support leads to the forming of uncharacteristically strong bonds in a short amount of time. These bonds of friendship and love carry you through the best and the worst that India has to offer.
The practice burns out the impurities of body and mind. Wake up early, breathe, move, sweat, that’s your morning. Anything you have left is melted away by the tropical sun come midday. First you see the body change, then the mind changes, then the emotions and personality. Before long there is a newness that emerges which is beautiful and precious.
The rebirth of spring is palpable in Mysore. You can watch the blossoming of people over time, watch their dullness being stripped away to reveal radiance and shine.
Yoga is sadhana. The word sadhana, at its most basic, means practice; however, yoga sadhana is more than a practice in the vernacular sense. The aim of yoga sadhana should be to know what yoga is. The reward of practice is not to do more poses, or be authorized, or certified. The change that happens within you is the reward. As a yoga teacher, having 300 or 400 students is not a measure of success. The pattern can be seen throughout the modern age of yoga: suddenly yoga teacher becomes famous, suddenly yoga teacher goes crazy, suddenly yoga teacher falls from grace. Success is achieved when you realize yoga inside of you. As a yoga teacher you are always doing research, always hypothesizing, always testing, always discovering.
Persistence in asana brings stability and an awareness of the parts of the body. Stability is found in simplicity; in the removing of that which is extra and not useful. The arm balances and handstands before jump backs are often cited. These are just for showing off, they serve no purpose. Take each posture at its vinyasa count as best you can and remove those motions which are unneeded, which are superfluous. The stabilization and knowledge of the body allows you to sense bodily desires and avoid them.
Pranayama normalizes the nervous system and heightens and clarifies the senses. Ujjayi breathing, free breathing with sound, warms the blood and circulates the blood properly. The inhale immediately follows the exhale and vice versa. Once the breath cycle is correct the mind becomes calm. The breath is disturbed when emotion overcomes the system, whether it is too much sadness or too much happiness.
Steadiness is asana and pranayama provides the foundation for dhyana, meditation. Dhyana results in a pacifying of the ego. When the ego is lowered the lens of the mind becomes clearer and things are seen as they are.
Never practice by rote. Conditioned response and routine, this is a definition of citta vrtti, of a fluctuating mind. Bringing the mind, the citta, into the present is the first step of citta vrtti nirodah, the channelizing of the mind’s machinations. When you leave routine you can take pleasure in every moment. Subduing the citta vrttis puts sattva to the fore, providing the conditions for insight, clarity, and positive thinking. When you see only positive qualities there is no fear.
It is impossible to eliminate suffering in the world because the world is constantly changing – in constant transformation. But we can evolve. If everyone is selfish, if everyone’s happiness depends on having something else, there is limited enjoyment. Evolution is more freedom, that is, less dependency.
