Yoga

One of the points that stuck with me from my yoga teacher training is that yoga is not a sport. I always knew it was an ancient Indian philosophy but I hadn’t appreciated its key goal. It is in fact one branch of 8 paths to help you reach enlightenment. The other branches include, as well as yoga and mindfulness, meditation and breathing, also known as pranayama. This 8 path structure of yoga, called ashtanga, comes from Patanjali. This critical yogi systematically wrote the teachings of yoga for the first time around the middle of the 2^nd century BC. Everything before had been by word of mouth and through learning the chants.

Yoga, or that which unites, is the science of holistic living that combines internal balance with health and happiness. It enables understanding oneself whilst having efficiency and self- control, leading to greater connectivity. Overall, it is the conscious process of gaining mastery over the mind.

Evolving the Mind

Our human brains are designed for flight or fight scenarios, much like animals, however, humans have the power of choice. Therefore, we have the ability to free the mind from the ego state, that which only cares for itself. We can then travel through the different levels of ‘evolution’. Yoga helps us to learn to let go and to free the mind such that the ego no longer matters. Instead, we appreciate how we are all connected and our key motivation becomes caring for the universe as part of a Universal Consciousness. We find our true self, or original state, separate from the expectations of society. Over time, everyone is capable of achieving this evolution of the mind. Yoga will enable and accelerate reaching this goal.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is another technique that can complement yoga. Both yoga and mindfulness will support positive mental health. Our stress tends to come from a mismatch of reality with our expectation or desires. We tend to want things to be a certain way when in fact, things are usually different to these expectations. Mindfulness teaches us to view the world without judgement. The more we are able to let go of our beliefs and judgements, then the more we can view the world and people with curiosity and compassion.

We can live in the present without worrying about the future or the past. Much as my dog is kindly ‘demonstrating’ mindful reading, we can be present for any activity. This doesn’t mean that we can’t have action plans for the future but we can avoid ruminating over the potential outcomes because the outcomes don’t matter. Outcomes only matter when we pass judgement on them. However, mindfulness teaches us that each one is an experience from which we can learn something.

What’s Next

I’ll be combining mindfulness techniques into my yoga for those who wish to practice with me. I’ll also share some stories, tips and thoughts I’ve found throughout my training and experience in the blog posts.