Tags
asana, ashtanga yoga, balance, common sense, david swenson, fear, health, marichiyasana d, mysore, patthabi jois, pose, practice, progress, rules, self doubt, shallowness, stuck, workshop
so i had a david swenson class last night. went for the the FUNdamentals class as haven’t been on the mat for a loooong time.
david started by opening the floor to questions and a few things that were discussed kind of provoke strong feelings in me so i am jotting them down:
- first came from a girl who said she had stopped ashtanga having reached Mary D because she was stuck on it for so long and her teacher would not let her move on. She asked him, I am back now but will you be the same and not letting me go further. David explained that he does not understand why this is. He said he trained with Patthabi Jois back in the 70s and he was never one to trickle giving out new asanas. Truth, back then, he only had a handful of students while today, there are hundreds. However, he believes, that poses can be adjusted for all abilities level and you can still have a fulfilling practice. he also made a good point that if binding a certain pose is so important, dancers, gymnast and athletes would be all yogis -but flexibility is not the point! Yoga is not a competition, people seem to forget and it is all about unifying your body and mind though a harmonised asana flow.
- second questions almost made me upset… just a proof that today everything is becoming so shallow and for show only. basically, the girls asked David, so how come you are not bored with doing the same thing over and over again, no more new poses to add! ;-o i mean, talking about obviously missing the point! i wonder why she does her practice? for her body figure? for her flexibility? what does she think during her practice? what is the point? again, yoga is not a competition, people!
- there was also a case of fear/ self doubt mentioned which is contributed to all the teachers pulling your practice apart and leaving you feel shit…
- another girl asked what is she meant to do: she is working really long hours and she can either afford enough sleep or sacrifice sleep time to fit her practice in. Before david offered his reply, i really wanted to shout : ‘quit your job! that does not sound like it is a sustainable living and will lead to a burn out’ i would think that is quite common sense too… anyway, david was much more gentler. he said, you do not have to do all your practice every day. you should adjust it to the time you do have. you can have practice as short as 15 min, but just do it (apparently, the same was said by Patthabi Jois). doesn’t this make sense?
i think maybe being 7 years older, i don’t buy into so much crap sold all over the place. where are these rules coming from and why? is it not in everyone’s interest to have as many people practicing and enjoying their time on the mat? we are not all of the same abilities and will never be. this insistence on pushing people into more demanding poses is just asking for injuries and that seems senseless, correct?
I love that man! i forgot how normal he was!
what are your thoughts on all of the topics above?
ps. going to my first mysore practice tomorrow after 7 years at ashtanga shale. let’s see how i favour and if i can still play by the rules?!?!