By Betsy Kase, Owner/Director of Yoga Haven
Every yoga class at the studio begins with 5-10 minutes of “centering”. This time is devoted to everyone in the room; including the teacher. Taking these moments to sit in a comfortable position on the floor, and start to focus and quiet the mind. Many of us rush in from a very busy day. All sorts of things have just happened (i.e: quick trip to the supermarket, dropped one of the kids off at school, last minute phone call, the traffic getting there was horrendous, and the Bronx River Parkway was closed and you are going to be late!).
The process of taking a seat and sitting as comfortably as possible is a necessary step in the process of a yoga practice. The teacher leads us to “check in with the body”. She says, “Sit up tall, stretch your spine through to the top of the head, relax your belly and close your eyes.” She continues with something like “Notice how the body feels right now, what is happening inside of you?” As the student, I say to myself, “Why can’t I take a deep breath or why do my eyes keep fluttering? Why doesn’t my body respond quickly to the calmness within the yoga studio?” As encouragement, the teacher continues, “Watch your body inhale and exhale without any effort. Notice how the breath moves in the body. Try not to pass judgement on yourself regarding what is happening right now.” I think to myself “How did she know I can’t take a deep breath. And I am the owner of this yoga studio?” How CRAZY is this!
The teacher knows this because we all have these experiences. She is going to lead us through this class encouraging us to keep focus throughout it. As we progress, the directions from the teacher become more interactive. We are instructed to take deep breaths into our body. “Consciously, take a deeper breath in and allow for the breath to move to all parts of your torso. As you exhale, consciously, allow the breath to leave. Squeezing out the last bit, by drawing your belly button back towards your spine.” She continues with something like, “allow the thoughts and things of the day to pass through you. Start the practice of coming to the present moment.” In my head, the voice is saying “Don’t do that! You have to keep thinking about what already happened today and how are you going to continue to obsess about it!”
The teacher here is the guide and her prompts and suggestions slowly quiet me a bit. But now, I have to move. Sitting is too hard, my body is getting achy and I am tired. So the warm-ups begin. Thank God!
As the class moves through the warm up, directions are given; when to breath, monitor your body, etc. My brain says something like, “Wow are you stiff, when was the last time you did yoga? Can’t you get to class more often? After all these years, why does it still feel like we keep starting at the beginning again?” I then say to myself “This is a serious mind-trip!” Gratefully, the teacher reminds me to breath in and then out, and I allow myself to close my eyes and experience the sensation of the stretch. Ok, now I am out of my crazy thoughts and into it. “This is finally feeling good.”
In yoga, the physical postures are called ASANAS. They consist of standing and balancing poses, backbend and forward bends, twists, hip-openers, and inversion. This part of class last about 45 minutes. Throughout the whole class the teacher continues to remind me where we are moving to, how to do it, what parts of my body to focus on….and don’t forget to breath throughout the whole thing. During these 45 minutes, my mind probably goes on vacation 20-30 times. I can’t even recall where I go, but the body moves and the mind has no idea how this is happening. You know, it is like driving a car somewhere and you have no idea how you got there, but you did! Between those 20-30 vacations, there are glimpses of time, when I am focusing on my big toe, stretching my fingers, opening up the back of my knees, allowing my head to hang heavy along with 1000 other instructions that are said to keep me focused.
Some days are easier. Some days are just plain hard. But, more and more, I find long stretches of time, where I sense my whole body, completely integrated. No pain, no stiffness, a great ability to breath, a sense of easy moves and I feel I might even be able to hold this pose forever. A lightness comes into my mind, and everything integrates…mind, body, breath. Was that a little bit of full consciousness I might have been feeling? Some may call it a connection with everything in the universe, or a total and complete awareness that brings every cell of your body into full alignment. Some even say, a palpable feeling of energy pulsing through the body. Who knows? But I must say, I have a full experience reaching out to my fingers and toes and all of a sudden thoughts stop moving through the mind. I am absolutely content, and there is a brief sense of perfection? Could it be? Is this what my teachers from many moons ago spoke about? I watched it on their faces as they practiced in front of me. Teaching me not with their words, but with an intimate display of the essence of what practicing yoga is for them. And that is…pure joy.
