The last few months I have heard a lot of talk about the astrological movement of Pluto moving out of the sign of Capricorn and into the sign of Aquarius for the next 19 years.
It is believed that this event is bringing us into an energy of fluidity, softness and expansion as we let go of rigid structure, resistance to change and rules.
Even if you are not into astrological signs or horoscopes you will want to keep reading. This article is about energy. Everything is energy, including you.
One aspect of yoga that many are unaware of is that Ashtanga Yoga was created in the 1930’s as a military practice in India.
It was structured for the male adolescent body.
Many postures use immense upper body strength and are practiced in a particular order.
A few years ago, I was talking to a yoga teacher who told me that she encountered a teacher of Ashtanga that excused students from his class if they could not demonstrate the correct pose.
Pretty hard core!
What I have found in my 40-years of yoga practice is that often my body was pushed to fit the yoga posture, not the other way around.
This built a rigid energy into my practice of yoga.
One of attainment, aesthetic, and even critical thinking.
I took yoga classes where we spent an hour in 3 poses.
Breaking it all down, manipulating the body to fit the pose.
An interesting exploration.
When I started my Yoga Therapy training with Phoenix Rising, I was encouraged to feel my way into a posture.
It didn’t matter what it looked like, how far I got into it or what the name of it was.
It took me a while to wrap my head around that.
The freedom to choose where my body landed met my ego in a place of feeling unsure or irritated and my body often looked so different than how I thought it was supposed to look.
What I discovered while practicing this way was an energy of connection to my body.
After a while, I could relax, tune in and find the “Goldilocks” place of the stretch.
The place that was not too much, not too little.
I was able to focus on the amount of stretch that my body yearned for.
Yoga became a place of experiencing my body, not achieving a specific goal of getting somewhere.
All of the pressure and worrying if I was good enough, young enough, strong enough or small enough faded away.
I stopped stressing about modifying movements and took care of my body.
A befriending took place.
No longer did my practice look synchronized with all of the other bodies in the room.
I am not saying that alignment is not important in yoga.
It is.
The quote by Jigar Gor says it all, “Yoga is not about touching your toes. It is what you learn on the way down.”
This is where my practice has evolved.
“What is happening?” is a question I ask myself continuously as I move and stretch.
I am developing my interoception, my brain body connection.
This is one of the gateways to the divine feminine practice of yoga.
Getting to know myself as the energy of my body signals me with sensation.
These sensations often trigger images, feelings and memories giving me insight into my inner wisdom and life path.
My practice of being “yoked” to the present moment and lengthening my emotional fuse has become a priority.
I find it has opened a way to process residual trauma and created the comfort of living in my own skin.
It is a different approach that I have become devoted to, and I welcome you to explore the energy of yoga in your own practice.
Namaste,
Janay
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