NAMASTE

A fellow Yogi asked me the other day,

-What does Namaste mean?

I paused, and stumbled over a reply, not because I didn’t feel its meaning within me, but because I didn’t know what definition to give. I have heard dozens of translations of the word Namaste, and there are definitely some I like better than others. My favorite being:

"I honor the place in you in which the entire Universe dwells, I honor the place in you which is of Love, of Integrity, of Wisdom and of Peace. When you are in that place in you, and I am in that place in me, we are One.”

This translation seems the most comprehensive. I also have run across this translation which I like:

"All that is best and highest in me greets/salutes all that is best and highest in you."

A translation that I often hear in the yoga community is:

“The light within me honors the light within you.”

And then finally, how about this version, which is a little more spiritual:

"I respect that divinity within you that is also within me.”

The word is Sanskrit, and used through Hindu, Indian, Nepalese and Yogic culture. To get down to the roots of the word, ‘Namas’ means to bow or salute and ‘te’ means to you. So at the very basic level we are saying “I bow to you.” As most of us know, meaning is often lost in translation. The varied definitions above are trying to capture the essence and connotation that is given when the word is said in different settings. The word can be a greeting, a parting, an acknowledgement, etc. It is usually spoken with hands together in front of the heart in Anjali Mudra. For me, whether I extend this salutation to my students at the end of class, or I am the student bowing to my teacher, I am saying it with an abundance of gratitude, respect, appreciation, and love…

And with that I say,

Namaste.

Yoga and Health

People often ask, will yoga help me lose weight? A reply often heard from western ‘experts’ is “the only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you consume, and yoga doesn’t burn a lot of calories.” In one view of the story this is true, but this is also an oversimplified narrow view. I believe there is a need that Americans have to oversimplify, to create a more black and white world. This philosophy spills over into the world of physical health and creates a great deal of confusion and stress. The truth is that there is no one right way of losing weight for everyone. The truth is that there are many factors that contribute to a person’s physical health, and simply ‘burning calories’ isn’t going to bring the overall sense of well being that people are searching for.
Along those lines, I can’t say yoga will work for everyone. I can only tell you what it has done for me, and the people in my life. I have had a struggle with my weight since I was a child. I would try diets on and off. My weight would go up and down. I would try exercise regimes where I would intensely exercise every day of the week and usually end up gaining weight and being confused. I didn’t understand my body at all and I longed to be one of those people that had it ‘easy’ and didn’t have to worry about their weight.
I began yoga 11 years ago, on and off, slowly integrating it more and more into my life. Along the way, the pounds began to fall away and stay away. I enjoyed the more tangible benefits of the practice so much that I didn’t even realize everything that was happening inside me on a more discreet level.
I believe yoga is often misunderstood because most of its work is done on the more subtle layers. These seem to be areas we haven’t researched as much. Or, if we have researched it, we haven’t quite connected all the dots. I may not have empirical backing for all of what I share, but here are some things I have noticed, read, experienced in my years as an instructor and student:
-Yoga reduces stress. Stress produces cortisol, which triggers the body to hold on to certain types of fat as a form of protection. Relaxation triggers the body to release the hold on these forms of fat. Relaxation helps the immune system function better. Relaxation brings the nervous system into balance.
-Yoga focuses on the breath. Aerobics at its basic definition means ‘with oxygen.’ Improved oxygenation of the body improves function on a multitude of levels. Even western medicine realizes this and implements oxygen and breath control in many procedures.
-Yoga is probably mostly known for the stretching. Yoga does create flexibility. Stretching and lengthening the muscles and connective tissue of the body. What many people don’t know is that stretching causes the body to produce more of the protein elastin in all its tissues. This not only keeps muscles limber, but also keeps the skin and connective tissue supple.
-Yoga strengthens and tones. Using the body in specific postures strategically strengthens a wide range of muscles. Yoga often focuses on muscles that receive less attention in the weight lifting forum; where only the larger muscle groups that noticeably change outward appearance tend to receive recognition.
-Yoga is a practice for the mind as well as the body. Yoga invites the practitioner to bring their awareness to their actions, to their body, to their breath, to their senses, to their thoughts, to their emotions. This awareness begins to translate into other aspects of life. Subtly and slowly habits done unconsciously for years begin to present themselves in the forefront of the mind where they can be understood, evaluated, gently modified or let go.
-Yoga focuses on improving function in all the different systems: circulatory, endocrine, nervous, respiratory, musculoskeletal, digestive, etc. Each of these systems plays a part in your health. If toxins block these systems and they function poorly, the effects will cascade through the rest of the body. The body is completely interconnected. Health relies on the optimal function of all our working parts, and our parts working together. Other forms of exercise tend to only focus on the more gross aspects of the body, leaving the more subtle areas completely neglected. Before yoga, I never paid much attention to my glands, my internal organs, the synovial fluid, the spinal fluid, etc. If we are not conscious of, and working these parts of our body, how do we know if they are functioning optimally?
-Yoga teaches the mind how to use the controllers of the body. Through practice, yogis can learn how to slow their heartbeat and lower their blood pressure. They can learn how to control reaction to pain and the sensation of pain. Yogis can even learn how to raise and lower their body temperature.
-Yoga pays attention to balance. Not only the balance of holding weight center, but the balance of right and left, front and back, top and bottom, inside and outside. The farther we are from balance, the farther we are from health. In fact, a good definition of health is everything in balance.
-The yoga community tends to invite its practitioners to individualize their practice to their own needs. To discard anything that does not serve them. To focus internally on their innate worth as a human being. To use yoga as a tool alongside their other physical, spiritual, and mental practices as a way to enhance what they have already found works for them.

My journey is ongoing. There are still many layers to uncover. With each day of practice I slowly understand more about the intricacies of my body. Alan Kristel, a researcher I ran across in my yoga studies, says, “The word here is mindfulness, the ability to observe in a non-reactive fashion, that is what helps change the relationship of mind to body.” I believe yoga is a great tool to cultivate, the fulcrum that can help guide all of the above into the balance of health. Namaste.

NOTICE

While you wait and try
To become worthy of
Becoming what you already know
You already are
You may notice that
You learned to use a pen,
Not by understanding the infinite potential
Of pointed and curving ink lines,
But by taking risks
Again and again
On countless sheets of
Blank, indifferent paper

-Weston

What is Aum?

After attending a few classes early on in my yogic experience, I began to wonder why they would end class with the recitation of 'Aum'. Oftentimes, when yoga is brought up in satire, it involves a person sitting in the lotus position chanting Aum. It is easy to see how amusing this may look, and I wanted to know what the intention behind the practice was. My teachers never gave a very thorough explanation of why we chant this single word. I thought there may be others with the same questions, so I wanted to share some things I have found out.
The definition I have heard most often of Aum, and the definition given in the Upanishads is that it is the derivitive of all speech and thought. It expresses ultimate reality. It is often compared to the passage in the Bible that says 'In the beginning there was the word...'
Aum is often described as the vibration that created the universe. In sanskrit the word translates as eternal or immortal. The Aum symbol encircled by the lotus flower is the symbol of the seventh chakra, the chakra of enlightenment.
So why do we chant Aum? Aum, as most things, can be viewed from many different angles, and its benefits come from finding a way for you personally to connect with it.
On a physical level chanting Aum creates an internal vibration. We can create a therapeutic effect through our own vibrations, the way Western medicine uses machines to create a vibration in the body. Vibration is used to break down kidney and gallstones, release impurities, exercise muscles, and even to see more deeply within ourselves. Sonograms are based off of soundwaves. Chanting Aum exercises the vocal chords and lungs. It can create a vibration throughout the body that breaks down impurities, massages the subtle body, and focuses the mind.
On an emotional or spiritual level chanting Aum with an intention can be a beautiful meditation practice. Many chant Aum with the intent of embracing all their experiences from morning till night. It can represent the highest good and help expand awareness further toward the realm of pure consciousness. B.K.S. Iyengar writes in Light on Yoga that Aum can help with realizing the divinity within oneself.
If you want to experiment with Aum, here is an exercise that Steven Sturgess suggests in The Yoga Book:
Find a place and time without interruptions. Begin meditating by chanting Aum aloud, then chant Aum in a whisper, and then mentally chant Aum, giving about an equal amount of time for each. Use mala beads to keep track of time if needed. Finally, bring your focus to the place between your eyebrows, your third eye, and surrender to the vibrations of Aum.
If you'd like to learn more on Aum, Iyengar's Light on Yoga has a section that talks more about Aum, as well as The Yoga Book that includes the exercise above.

Yin Yoga Workshop
Taught by Reina Forsythe
Living Yoga Studio
www.livingyogautah.com
Sat., July 18th, 10am-12pm

Yin Yoga has the same goals and objectives as any other school of yoga; however, it directs the stimulation normally created in the asana portion of the practice deeper than the superficial or muscular tissues.Yin Yoga also targets the connective tissues, such as the ligaments, bones, and even the joints of the body that normally are not exercised very much in a more active style of asana practice.Suitable for almost all levels of students, Yin Yoga is a perfect complement to the dynamic and muscular (yang) styles of yoga that emphasize internal heat, and the lengthening and contracting of our muscles. While initially this style of yoga can seem quite passive, or soft, yin practice can be quite challenging due to the long duration of the poses. We can remain in the postures anywhere from one to twenty minutes! Yin and yang tissues respond quite differently to being exercised. You need to experience this to really know what Yin Yoga is all about. After you have experienced it, even just once, you may realize that you have been doing only half of the asana practice.
Suggested Donation $20

The Journey

One day you finally knew

what you had to do, and began,

though the voices around you

kept shouting

their bad advice --though the whole house

began to tremble

and you felt the old tug

at your ankles.

"Mend my life!"each voice cried.

But you didn't stop.

You knew what you had to do,

though the wind pried

with its stiff fingers

at the very foundations,

though their melancholy

was terrible.

It was already late

enough, and a wild night,

and the road full of fallen

branches and stones.

But little by little,

as you left their voices behind,

the stars began to burn

through the sheets of clouds,

and there was a new voice

which you slowly

recognized as your own,

that kept you company

as you strode deeper and deeper

into the world,

determined to do

the only thing you could do --determined to save

the only life you could save.

~ Mary Oliver ~