Week One of Term Three ~ Mum's and Bub's Yoga

Hi Mummas.  Not too much to write this week other than we hope to see you tomorrow at Kawana Island Meeting Place at 10am for a one hour class.  We will be continuing to strengthen our abdominal muscles over the next ten weeks as well as our back and legs (I don't know about you, but my legs felt like jelly after being pregnant for 9 months!).  For flexibility we will focus on hips, hamstrings and spine - my lower back is still letting me know it needs some love from all the nappy changes and cuddles (oh, love those cuddles so much!).  And our meditation will be on the heart centre so that we can top-up our own cup before being of service to others.  Please check out the schedule and the prices here and Xavier and I will see if not tomorrow, over the next ten weeks.  Much love, Cath xx

Below is the practice we will be kicking off with tomorrow.

Beyond Union

The definition of the word yoga is one that has many layers.  When you ask most people involved in yoga the definition of the word they often say “union”.  And yes, one of the meanings of the word yoga (which is a Sanskrit word derived from the root word yuj) is “to bring two things together, to meet, to unite” (Desikachar, 1980).  Another meaning has similarities to the definition of samādhi which is “to converge the movement of the mind” (Desikachar, 1980), that is to bring the mind to a single point of focus.  A further definition offered by Desikachar in his book Religiousness in Yoga is “to reach a point we have not reached before”.  In line with this, another definition is offered – “to act in a particular way with all of our attention focused upon that action” (Desikachar, 1980).  And finally, one that is often not discussed is “to be one with ‘God’” or the movement towards understanding something higher than ourselves (Desikachar, 1980).

"Another important aspect of yoga has to do with action.  Yoga also means "to act in a particular way with all of our attention focused upon that action." " ~ Desikachar, Religiousness in Yoga.

Let’s go back to the definition “to reach a point we have not reached before”.  This movement from point A to point B is something we can relate to in all aspects of life and what we can reflect, experience and explore in our yoga practice through āsana, prānāyāma and meditation.  From week one we have been slowly developing our abdominal strength and gradually intensifying our two goal postures: urdhva prasrta padāsana and navāsana.  Now at week five, we can feel how our strength has improved because the postures have developed to demand more from the body and yet we can perform them with ease. 

We have also been working on gradually exploring the subtlety of the breath.  We have done this by first noticing the breath, then introducing the inhale and exhale technique and extending upon this with the addition of breath retention.  Through this steady approach to exploring the body and the breath we have had opportunity along the way to reflect upon the changes. 

We have been bringing this altogether at the end of each class with a meditation to sharpen the mind’s attention.  Over the five weeks, the meditation has become more refined to build the mind’s ability to focus intently on a single point.  If we allow ourselves time to reflect on how this five-week practice has impacted our body, breath and mind we will notice that there has been a movement from one point to another.

Each practice I have designed with the intention to encourage us to participate “…with all of our attention focused upon that action”.  This has been done with each movement being anchored to the breath and by allowing the breath to initiate the movement.  As discussed in my previous post by “consciously following the breath…we become one with the movement” and to do this it requires our undivided attention (Desikachar, 1995).  It also offers us a good point of feedback because we will notice if the movement becomes mechanical when the breath changes.

And finally, we may have had a glimpse in this time of feeling in tune with something higher or beyond us.  This often is experienced in our meditation practice but can happen at any time.  It takes a certain awareness which is what is developed in our practice and intensifies the more we practice or indeed perform our daily actions in a yoga way.  This is something that motherhood has certainly helped me with – each moment is an opportunity to be fully present with my son and to feel and be witness to something that seems beyond this human experience.

This Tuesday will be our last class at Bikram Yoga Kawana and we will be re-starting our Tuesday classes at Kawana Island Meeting Place next school term.  Stay tuned via the blog and FaceBook (The Yoga Pod Sunshine Coast) for more details.

Desikachar, T. K. V. (1980). Religiousness in Yoga: Lectures on Theory and Practice. United States of America: University Press of America.

Desikachar, T. K. V. (1995). The Heart of Yoga: Developing a Personal Practice. Vermont, United States: Inner Traditions International.

The Space Between

This week I thought it might be time to discover the space between the inhale and exhale.  In Yoga this aspect of the breath - retention either after the inhalation or exhalation or both - is called kumbhaka prānāyāma.  The beauty of this practice lies in its simplicity - at the end of the inhale or exhale we suspend the breath and the movement, and this must be done with care and attention.  The concept of breath retention is used during āsana, prānāyāma or both to explore the idea of habit formation; to deepen our understanding and connection to our body, breath and mind; and to create that moment where the body and breath are still.  It is therefore in this moment of stillness that we create space for the mind to be still.  This is why it is important that breath retention is practiced mindfully so as not to disturb the breath, body, or mind.  This concept is brought together in Patañjali-s Yoga Sūtra 1.31 which is a great summary tool to use throughout class to keep you on the right track.

In his book, Regliousness in Yoga, Desikachar discusses how we use the space between each movement and breath to help avoid habit-forming tendencies.  The way he explains this is by using the example of raising the arms on the inhalation and pausing for 1-2 seconds before we lower the arms on the exhalation and pause for 1-2 seconds.  If you do this movement so that the inhalation initiates and continues the movement of raising the arms, and likewise, the exhalation initiaties and continues the movement of lowering the arms then you are deeply connected and in control of the breath.  Extending this connection and discipline to outside of the yoga practice your actions are done thoughtfully rather than out of habit.

The length of time we hold the breath is critical as it can determine the affect of the practice and whether it is reducing tension or building tension.  If the breath retention is too long it will be evident in the breath itself.  For example, over the past few weeks in class we have been inhaling and exhaling to a length of four seconds.  If I was to ask you to hold either the inhale or exhale (or both) for four seconds you may find that you need to do a quick breath i.e. that you cannot sustain the four second inhale and exhale.  Without this quick breath you may feel that your body will tremble or not be able to complete the āsana properly.  This is the feedback that tells you you're not ready for this technique.  Instead, allow yourself more time to develop the qualities of the breath in āsana we discussed last week (creating a smooth, long, subtle breath) before introducing the retention.  So if you are practicing breath retention and either your inhalation or exhalation becomes disturbed then return your focus to maintaining the steady flow of inhale and exhale.

All of this information brings us to Patañjali sūtra 1.31 which says:

duhkha-daurmanasya-angamejayatva-śvāsa-praśvāsāh-viksepa-saha-bhuvah |

Frans Moor and Desikachar summarise this sūtra as: the symptoms of mental sufferings are mental discomfort, negative thinking, the inability to be at ease in different body postures, and difficulty in controlling ones breath.  When we reflect on this sūtra in light of breath retention then duhkha (suffering) can be seen as an uneasiness in the body, the body no longer moves cohesively with the breath; daurmanasya (negative thinking) may arise in the form of frustration from not being able to maintain the desired qualities of the breath after retention; angamejayatva (physical agitation) is the response from the body such as trembling; and finally śvāsa-praśvāsāh (short, irregular, erratic breathing) is the disruption to the breath that the retention causes.  Be aware when you are practicing that if you experience any of these symptoms they will contribute to agitating the mind which ultimately is moving away from the purpose of Yoga.

On Tuesday we will begin to explore breath retention in our prānāyāma and at the end of class the meditation will explore the concept of space.  I hope you and your bubs can join me at Bikram Yoga Kawana, 11am.  If you can't make it along to class, check out the practice below and try it at home.

Part (d) in the prānāyāma should read "Even length inhale + exhale x 6 (no hold)"