On the occasion of my one hundredth post, I shall permit myself a moment of reflection and publish what perhaps is my manifesto. En la ocasión de mi centésimo post, me permito un momento de reflexión, publicando lo que podría ser mi manifiesto.
I bought the domain alteayoga.com five years ago. I was still in my teacher training and dreaming of wowing the world with my yoga teaching. I started the blog a year later, with a post for an introductory yoga course. No one signed up for the course. That was when the harsh reality of yoga teaching first blew me a bitter kiss bonjour. Since 2010, I have been offering yoga classes. It is now 2013. I have 8 regular students. I love them all. I have had people contact me through my website and by blog, but the commercial side of yoga teaching and an online presence seems to elude me yet.
But you know what? I don’t mind one bit. Because, in the intervening years, I have carried on my personal work and grown on so many levels. I have let go of a lot of stuff, too, so perhaps I have shrunk a little too. I internalized my belief that every student finds the yoga teacher they are meant to have. I realized that my teaching yoga is a vocation, not a job. It is what I am meant to do, and my students are the people who are meant to receive the message of yoga via me. That’s all. Simple eh?
I keep blogging because I love writing. I have always loved writing. Through all my moves, turmoils and travels, I diarised, rhymed and wrote. I have years of journals packed lovingly away. I still use pen and paper. A more sanitised and coherent version appears here and in my songs. It’s been three years and I have less than 30 followers. And you know what? I don’t mind one bit. Wordsmithing was my dad’s job. It’s my passion. I write this blog because I enjoy writing it, not because I have an audience.
So, indulging myself some more, I shall now make a list of a few things I believe, and publish it, knowing that the world isn’t interested in the slightest!
1. Living well is the best revenge. I haven’t even bothered googling it’s origin. In these times of savings-grabs and banks going bankrupt and houses sitting empty while families are turfed onto the streets, I realised that living well is, indeed, the best revenge. When wages go down and hours go up and everyone is on the dole, the thing The Man can never take away is your smile. No matter what shit they throw your way, shout back “show me the hoops!” And as long as you are not starving and sun-struck on a lost Saharan dune, vultures casting the only shadow for miles around, as long as all is not lost, LIVE WELL! There is always something good going on. Money doesn’t stop you having fun…worry and fear do. The Spanish may be bad businessmen, but they sure know a lot about what I have just written. Viva la fiesta, que es la vida!
2. Hemp is God’s gift to humanity. I eat hemp seeds, hemp protein and hemp oil every day. My daughter eats hemp seeds every day. Hemp grows fast and high and can be used for so many things. The use of marijuana is safer than the use of alcohol. I would rather meet a stoner than a drunk in a dark alleyway. I think that some of our current anxious depression could be eased by using more weed and less tobacco.
3. I believe in the family. I am lucky to be with an Italian, whose attitude to family is totally different to what mine was. Mine was all about fracture and trying to get away. Theirs is about love. It’s simple. My Italian family takes love as the preface to everything else. Even when you fail, you are loved. I was definitely raised with the feeling that love had to be earned, and could be taken away without warning. Although I have strained and struggled to live in the confines of a mono(tonous)gamous relationship, through it, I have found a reserve of love far deeper and stronger than what I had known before. This font of love gives me strength. Family ties give us strength. Let’s not get carried away here: some families are toxic, and some relatives have to remain at arm’s length. But when there is sanity and fairness, families give us the roots we need in order to fly.
4. Always seek the middle way and trust in the path you are on. Don’t be tempted by mountains to scale. Don’t be frightened by valleys so deep. Just be patient, go as fast or as slow as seems right at the time. Don’t be afraid to change gear, reverse, or even choose a different path from the one you’ve trodden all this time. Approach life with a curious. grinning enthusiasm. Leave room for uncertainty and error. You never know what the Universe has in store for you. That seemingly annoying deviation or delay might just lead you to the Nirvana you’d never have found on your own. Everything that is in your Path is there to teach you. So learn.
5. Take magnesium. Chloride. Salts. Every day.
6. I only have my own two hands. I yearn to change the world for the better, but spent years frustrated by my seeming inability to change anything about this mess we are in (or not, depending on your perspective. I actually believe we are in transition, not heading for disaster. But I think that I am in the minority…) Then I realised that what little I am able to do counts. I offer everything up to Ishvara, the universal consciousness. Every massage, every yoga class, every meal. I only have my own two hands. May my tiny effort tip the balance of happiness in this world. Ishvarapranidanah.
7. Creativity is key to good health. I play music. My guy does ceramic. My kid loves to draw. I bet you have your special little thing that you like to do – patchwork, card making, crochet, dj’ing, gardening, photography…Whatever it is that floats your boat is what you need to dedicate a bit of time to every week, if not every day. Creation heals. So, get your hands and heart engaged- now! – and marvel at what lil’ old you can do!
8. Adopt an attitude of gratitude. Stop judging and start loving.
9. The European Union is a peace project. I moved to Europe from Canada to be part of this grand effort. I believe in in wholeheartedly. It has been derailed of late by banking woes and austerity programs, but at its core, it is a project designed to prevent the outbreak of war. It is unfashionable to voice pride in European culture and values. Well, I believe in our culture. I would much rather be a woman, raising a daughter, in Europe than practically anywhere else. The EU may be flawed in its execution, but the core is sound and I am glad to be a part of it.
10. We are antennae, not ants. It is easy to get caught up in the mundane rushrushrush of life. It is easy to think that we are only drones, with no purpose other than pleasure, pain and procreation. But this is not so. We humans are upright because we are the planet’s antennae. Alone, we are specks of cosmic danruff. United, we broadcast the cosmic wave. When enough of us sit down to meditate, we shall connect with the Universal Consciousness and nothing will again be as it was.
La traducción español en breve…
1. Vivir bien es la mejor venganza. No siquiera conozco el origen del refrán, pero no dudo que sea verdadero. En estos tiempos de incertidumbre que estan trascurriendo, nuestro único recurso es nuestra sonrisa interior. El Hombre no to puede quitar eso. Cuando te mandan mierda, grita fuerte “por cuanto alto salto?” Mientras que no está todo perdido y los buitres no se estan acercando, VIVE BIEN! Siempre hay algo de bueno. Falta de dinero no te quita la alegría…el miedo y la preocupación, si. Los españoles me han enseñado eso – viva la fiesta!
2. El cañamo es un regalo divino para la humanidad. Como diariamente semillas, proteina y aceite de cañamo. Mi hija come semillas de cañamo a diario. El cañamo crece fuerte y rápido y se usa para un montón de cosas. Creo que la marijuana es más sana que el alcohol. Prefiero cruzarme en una calle oscura con un fumador que con un borracho. Creo que nuestra ansiedad y depresión colectiva podría mejorarse emplando más verde y menos tobacco.
3. Creo en la familia. Los vínculos familiares, siempre mientras sean sanos y equitable, nos dan las raices que necesitamos para volar. Doy gracias a mi familia italiana por enseñarme que el amor antes todo es lo que más vale.
4. Busca el camino del medio y confia en tu camino actual. No tengas miedo de cambiar la dirección, poner marcha atrás y a veces incluso frenar. Deja espacio para cometer errores. A veces las equivocaciones nos lleva al Nirvana que ni siquiera esperabamos. Ten fé, respira honda.
5. Toma magnesio. Cloruro de magnesio. Sales. Todos los días.
6. Solo dispongo de mis dos manos. Aunque mis esfuerzos sean pequeños, los hago con humildad y entrega. Ofrezco todo a la conciencia universal – Ishvara. Ishvarapranidanah.
7. La creatividad es clave para la plena salud. Haga lo que hagas – música, dibujo, dj, jardinería, – hazlo sabiendo que tu arte es tu sanación.
8. La actitud de gratitud. Deja de juzgar y comienza a amar.
9. La Unión Europea es un proyecto de la paz. No hay otro proyecto de tal escala con pretensión de prevenir la guerra. Estoy orgullosa del proyecto europeo y orgullosa de ser parte de el.
10. Somos antennae, no hormigas. No te quedas atrapado en el día a día. Los seres humanos somos las antennae del planeta Tierra. Solos, no somos más que caspa cósmica. Unidos, emitiremos una frequencia cósmica que nos unirá a la Conciencia Universal y, entonces, nada será como lo era antes.
AUM. The Guru is in you.
My personal yog: To thine own Self be true
My personal practice has been suffering of late. Time, but also boredom, has kept me off the mat. Granted, I have been practising a lot of yoga of daily life, being aware, present, joyful, honest and patient. Well, most of the time.
Then I read this article, about how to be an inspiring yoga teacher, in which the author says:
When you give yourself permission to abandon the rules, to listen and truly explore and celebrate your body through the shapes and then share what you discover with your students, the movement becomes medicine. My partner and Laughing Lotus co-founder, Jasmine Tarkeshi, always says that to be a good teacher you’ve got to be a soul scientist. You truly must go into a laboratory and investigate your sacred self through your body, every single day.
Heck yeah! I need to remember that sometimes.
The system I know and teach is called Viniyoga. The central tenet of this system is “the yoga adapts to the person, not the person to the yoga”. It is a system that can be considered the peak of Krishnamacharya’s life’s work and investigation. I believe wholeheartedly in that core message and have iron faith in my teacher, Carmen, and my lineage (Krishnamacharya -> TKV Desikachar -> Claude Maréchal -> Christina S. de Ynestrillas -> Carmen Sánchez Segura). And yet, and yet…lately something hadn’t been quite right.
I embarked on the second phase of my teacher training, the “Post-Formation” last autumn. The format was different than the first part (once every two months, a residential weekend away) but the content built solidly on the earlier teachings. Perhaps a bit too solidly…more sutras? more posture analysis? etc…Boredom has always been my bugbear, so I knew I need not heed that little voice inside saying “something new…something new…go and find something new…”
What was putting me off? Boredom, yes. But more than anything, a distinct lack of joy was bringing the whole tone down. I felt the need to knuckle down for the seminars rather than blossom out. In the meantime, I had enjoyed the wonders of Stretch Therapy and the deep relaxation of Yin Yoga.
I began to doubt…was Viniyoga too limited? Are the postural compensations too often, too indulgent, not challenging enough? Why is it that those who practice Viniyoga seem to do so for a very long time without ever developing the stunning and deep flexibility that other lineages develop? Why do my teachers, who evidently know a lot about yoga and have practised for years not seem to smile, not seem joyful (with the exception of Claude) ? The questions rolled round my head and I found no answers.
The second, then the third seminars dragged on. One of the group dropped out. Doubt, head-scratching, the decision to stay.
Then, I read this article and realised something both simple and profound. Having completed the teacher training, having practised solidly since 1999, I had earned the right to innovate, create, both in my personal practice and in my classes. Of course, I had always done this, I know that I am creative when it comes to sequencing, bhavanas, important details. But, still, I limited myself.
I think I will grant myself a little more leeway from now on, find out how Viniyoga adapts to Rachel, not Rachel to Viniyoga.
I still believe that the training I am pursuing is the highest quality teaching I can receive here and now. It is I who needs to transform. OM. May you find your own path, too. The Guru is in you.
Musings: The unsung note
I had the great pleasure of returning to the stage this Thursday past. Yes, dear yogis, in my spare time I am a singer-songwriter.
I began this odyssey years ago. In fact, I could say that I have always been a musician. As child I played the oboe, and the recorder. I used to sit there with my tape recorder, registering a harmony to then play the melody on top. Too bad I only had one track! I gave up classical music, as most teens do, only to then buy a red Yamaha bass at the age of 18. I played in a band, and enjoyed mild local success, before shyness and nerves forced me off the stage. Life continued apace. I began writing more and more, diaries, poetry, laments, and soon, songs. It took me 10 years to buy a guitar and another four before I could tune by ear and play with some fluency. At this point, I bought my lovely Taylor 414CE cutaway and began composing the songs that I still play today.
How does this relate to yoga?
Vishuddah chakra and overcoming fear.
Singing is related to the throat (vishuddha) chakra. Mine was most definitely blocked. I used to speak in a whisper and was plagued by the sensation of something in my throat. (In TCM, this is called plum-pit throat and is related to the Liver Qi). I bought a couple of books (Finding Your Voice, Zen Guitar), took a workshop (The Healing Voice with Jill Purce), but, mostly, I just sang. Over and over, through smiles and tears. Overcoming my incredible fear, I took to stage in open mic nights and small gigs in and around London. It was terrifying but I knew it did me good. Still, the fear was being pushed down, not truly overcome. But, I think that in yoga we have to push past our fear, be brave and have great faith, in order to grow. So, that was one phase of my growth.
Control of the diaphragm
Another phase of my work was taking control of my diaphragm muscle. The diaphragm is fundamental to the singer. My yoga teacher gave me a short personalized practice in which I did krama in the exhale. This means, the exhale was broken up into two or more parts, and then the breath retained with the lungs empty. For the first time in my life, I could actually locate my own diaphragm. My colleague Santi, a fantastic osteopath, adjusted my diaphragm and pericardium, loosening the tendons and leaving my breath much freer.
Control of the perineum
By now, my voice was vibrating nicely in my chest and abdomen. It was mellower and sweeter and easier to control. But, still, on the high notes, something was missing. In my ongoing reading – I am voracious, and practically only read on theme – I came across a few lines in The Anatomy of Hatha Yoga by H. David Coulter.
A famous conductor…once shouted…”No! No! Squeeze it in – push it up!” He may not have known it, but he was telling them to seal off and control the anatomical perineum – the base of the pelvis -and thereby cultivate what we have been calling abdominopelvic energy. All trained singers have learned that the purest and richest sound originates from this region. In the language of singers, the base of the body “supports” the voice.
Wa-hey! that’s the secret. On the high notes, all that perineum work I’d been doing in yoga would pay in by holding my voice up in a clean, sweet note. Hallelujah!
Believing in myself
Yoga teaches us that within each and every human being there is a tiny spark of Divinity. We don’t need any mediators when we talk to God because God is within. When we first learn, then internalize this, our faith in ourselves grows and grows and we begin to value ourselves for who we are instead of what we do. Through yoga, I realized that my music, my words, my beliefs and my message are not only valid but beautiful and even Divine. And having that behind me, I take the stage with courage and honesty, and never try to emulate the music or sound of anyone else. This is freedom. And now, the fear is not being suppressed. It is no longer there. I offer it all to God with the simple mantra, Ishvara Pranidanah.
There is karmic cleansing here. My grandfather went down to London in the 1920’s and played his clarinet in the earliest SoHo jazz clubs. From my limited research, there was only a handful of jazz clubs in the UK at that time, so both he and my grandmother – they met on the jazz scene – were well ahead of their time. They married, and moved up to Yorkshire where dreams of jazz music were replaced by granite houses and the family woolens mill. A frustrated musician to the end of his days, Grandsir, as well called him, would get drunk on G&Ts and pull out the clarinet at Christmas, even as his dentures popped from his gums. My mum sang. In the choir, in Gilbert and Sullivan productions, in the singalong Messiah every Ottawa Christmas. My father was the greatest music fan. He wept and danced and collected music. His LP collection filled the basement of a huge Saskatchewan house by the time he died. I come by it in honestly. Music is in my blood. But yoga helped – and helps – me realise it in a sane and safe way.
When our karma (work) and our dharma (lifepath) unite, we find liberation (Kaivalya). Let yoga guide you towards Self-realization. And don’t think for a moment that Self-realization means isolation in an ashram. For some, maybe, but not for everyone. Sri Aurobindo’s contribution to modern yogic thought was the idea that liberation can be found here and now, in daily life, not only when the soul leaves the body. Be happy here and now. Bless y’all.
Well woman massage
I have spent the past 11 years of my life as a professional massage therapist, and 8 of those dedicating myself to the gentle art of Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD). MLD is a very gentle and highly specific massage technique that is used in cancer rehabilitation. Many who opt for allopathic cancer treatments such as radiotherapy and surgery are left with impaired lymphatic drainage in the affected area. This manifests as swelling known as lymphedema (sometimes lymphoedema).
In massage training, touching of the breast is generally verboten. In MLD it is an integral part of the treatment, especially in women who have had lumpectomies, mastectomies, radiotherapy, reconstruction (implant or TRAM). I consider myself an expert in the treatment of breast conditions.
Drawing from my massage training, I have always emphasized the importance of the abdominal massage. Deep abdominal massage is used in many healing modalities including, but not limited to, Tui-Na, Mayan massage, modern Osteopathy, Ayurvedic massage, and Swedish massage. MLD includes very important abdominal work, but the touch is light, as it is in all aspects of the technique.
In hatha yoga, we learn and teach techniques to release the diaphragm muscle, deepen the breath and connect with the muscles of the pelvic floor.
I propose to you a Well Woman Massage:
- Hatha yoga to stretch the body and deepen the breath, connecting with the perineum and diaphragm.
- Deep abdominal massage, back massage (lest we forget that the abdominal obliques and the hip flexors originate in the spine)
- MLD for abdomen and breast.
Women have special physical needs not seen in men – hormones and hot flashes and pregnancy and childbirth and breastfeeding and, and, and…If you feel it’s time to care for yourself the way you’ve always wanted to, please feel free to drop me a line. Treatments available in Altea, Benidorm and Teulada. For treatments booked in April 2013, I offer a 5% discount on the normal price of €60. This is a two-hour program.
Oranges – to juice or not to juice
Oranges have always posed a juicing problem for me. I don’t find that they mix very well with greens – not as well as apple or pear, that’s for sure. I find even the sweetest oranges probably prefer to be on their own, or mixed with carrot, lemon or another sweet fruit like mango or peach. I just don’t get orange and celery or orange and chard. And my stomach doesn’t, either.
The Macrobiotic diet is staunchly against citrus. I don’t agree with most of their philosophy, and here there’s no exception. I mean, what does some Japanese guy know about a Valencia orange, in season and in it’s own land? Nuthin.
Ayurvedic diets include seasonal fruits and orange is no exception. Again, seasonal is the key here.
I read once about a high-profile raw foodist who decided to de-bulk his muscular body and used an orange mono-diet to do so, with no ill effects. He lives in Southern California, though, so again we see “seasonal” and “local” pop up.
As a kid in Canada, I remember those wooden boxes of Christmas clementines with great fondness. My mum told me that, in Yorkshire after the War, children would be given a single orange in their Christmas stocking. And perhaps a banana. How times have changed, eh?
So, to juice or not to juice oranges? My conclusion is that OJ is best drunk solo and on an empty stomach. If you want green juice, avoid sweet fruits anyway, all but a little apple or pomegranate or pear.
Musings on Meditation
In Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the path of yoga is very clearly laid out. Book 1 talks about the kind of person who undertakes to stay on the path, and the pitfalls that may arise whilst there. Book 2 talks about the practical part of yoga. It is here that you will find the first mention of hatha yoga – the postural part that we are now familiar with – and the other 7 branches of Astanga Yoga (there are eight limbs in total).
We start with character-building, as Swami Radha calls it in her brilliant book “Kundalini Yoga for the West”. These are the yamas and niyamas. Once this is established, the yogi can then confidently practice asana (postures) and pranayama, (breathwork) leading to pratyahara, or retraction of the senses. I found the concept of pratyahara difficult to understand before directly experiencing its effects. Your path and my path of yoga are each distinct and unique, so I won’t elaborate too much here. But, in my case, pratyahara meant a softening of the impact of external influences – loud noises make me jump less, bright lights don’t annoy, strong smells…well strong smells still bug me. Okay, but you might get the point.
The next limb of Astanga Yoga is dharana, or concentration. This is not, note, meditation, which is dhyana. Dharana is the ability to focus the mind on a single object for increasingly long periods of time. Eventually, one become “one” with the object, and enters into samana with it. This is the beginning of Book 3 of the sutras. The object can be something external like an icon or candle, or it can be more subtle, like the breath or the heartbeat.
Still, the point I want to make here is that dharana, and eventually dhyana, are the fruits of previous practice. I was a terribly meditator. For years I fidgeted on my zafu, wondering where all the mental peace was. Well, the answer is it’s coming…be patient. Practice and all is coming, said Sri Pattabhi Jois. I use the spinal breathing method described in the book “Advanced Yoga Practices”. (http://www.aypsite.org/)
My advice is: don’t jump straight into meditation without toning the body and breath first. Some people can – hey, we’re all different – but many people can’t. And don’t give up. Propel yourself forward on wings of faith. Look up at the sky and realise that the Universe is boundless and you are a speck and rejoice in all the incredible freedom that gives you. OM.
Calendario de Events – Events Calendar
He decidido juntar en un solo sitio todas las noticias de los varios eventos de yoga que hay por aqui. Siempre hay mucha oferta, pero a veces cuesta encontrar la información correcta y a tiempo. Pincha aqui para ver mi pequeño calendario. Si quieres incluir algun evento relacionado con el yoga, ponte en contacto conmigo. Gracias y AUM.
I have decided to put together in one place all the various bits of information I come across relating to yoga-themes events. Click on my calendar to have a look. If you would like to include your event here, get in touch. Thanks and AUM.
Look at yourself: Yoga & the mirror
Yoga studios rarely come equipped with mirrors, unless you are doing the undeniably self-conscious Bikram yoga. Perhaps this is because yoga itself is the mirror.
A few weeks ago, I posted about still feeling dislocated here in Altea. It takes time to settle in. But, more than that, by writing my thoughts down and sharing them with the world, I continued the process of self-analysis that is yoga. Yoga and mirror. Whatever you give, you get.
I still agree with myself in most of what I said. but I am willing to swallow my pride – and my words – and ask your kind forgiveness for my til-then blindness. When I said that I could not understand how the folk round here could be so glum while surrounded by this wild natural beauty, what I was really asking was “Rachel, how can you be glum when surrounded by all this natural beauty?” Good question, eh?
Since then, I realise that I was simply prioritising my worries about work-family-life (the same ones you have, I am sure) and putting them ahead of my enjoyment of the here and now. Looking at the mountains in the Calpe pass, I would think “what am I doing here” rather than “what beautiful rusty colours, what textures and lines!” This is pretty common behaviour, people. Yoga helps train the mind, keeping it on the straight and narrow and avoiding all wallowing and distraction.
Right now, in my Yoga Therapy training, we are studying the third book of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. In sutras III:9-16, Patanjali exposes the new state of mind that arises when we have fully integrated into our lives the first five limbs of Astanga Yoga (as set out in book 2). We are now approaching contemplation, Dharana. The mind is able to glimpse states of serenity, but theses are interspersed with the usual fluctuations and distractions. Nevertheless, the mind is becoming increasing able to concentrate. I find the sutras amazing because they really are very accurate in their portrayal of the milestones on the road of yoga. Or, in my case they are. Bear in mind that each person’s experience of yoga is unique and precious.
So, Rachel, look in the mirror. Choose happiness and helps others find theirs. This is the road of the yogini and the yoga teacher.
Festival de Danza Consciente
Ojo! Los días 5, 6 y 7 de abril se celebrará el 1º Festival de Danza Consciente en Villajoyosa. En la web oficial del festival, http://valuodesarrollo.wordpress.com/ aparecen todos los detalles, Sin embargo, hay que ponerse en contacto con los organizadores para obtener el programa completo y los precios.
Los precios no son hiper-economicos, pero tampoco exagerados. Por ejemplo, para estar todo el día el sábado, y comer y cenar allí, se paga unos €64. No se si habrá algún mercadillo, pero supongo que si. Lo cual significa un pequeño gasto extra – este incienso que no encuentras en tu pueblo, ó un zafu super chulo…
Si, estamos cruzando tiempos de malestar económico. A mi manera de ver las cosas, apoyandonos el uno al otro esta cada vez más importante. Eso significa gastar nuestro dinero en una manera consciente. Yo, desde ya hace muchissimos años, control mi impacto en el mundo a través de mis elecciónes económicas. Comprando en pequeños negocios, comprando en rastros y de segunda mano, y regalando las cosas que ya no me sirven.
Un festival como ese, Danza Consciente, es no solo una inversión en tu proprio desarollo, sino en el desarollo de nuestra comunidad. La Costa Blanca está saturada de terapeutas, downshifters y todo clase de busquedor. Aqui y ahora lo estamos poniendo en marcha, con eventos como este.
Y, por supuesto, ¿que es la Danza Consciente? Pues, en las tradiciones Tántricas del Yoga, se considera que toda la Creación está metido en un baile eterno y Universal. Siva, el Dios Védico, esta muy frequentemente representado en movimiento, con una pierna elevada, apoyandose sobre el otro pie, pisando una creatura miserable. Este creatura es la ignoracia. Siva está bailando el Baile Cósmico, aplastando la ignorancia. El yoga es una especie de baile, movimientos muy meditados y coordinados, con el fin de percibir y controlar la energía corporal sutíl, el Prana. Entonces, este festival, con varios actuaciones de lineage Kundalini, será un yoga tántrico con el fin de mover tu prana. Será un lugar salvo y una comunidad de apoyo, seguramente, el lo cual podemos atrevernos a dejar pasar la Luz por nuestras grietas, sin miedo ni apuro.
¡Vamonos, amigos!
Tending the Fire
There is much talk of fire in most Yoga texts and teachings. Fire is one of the 5 elements, the others being Air, Water, Earth and Ether/Space. Fire is felt to transform matter from one state to another. Its sinuous flames remind us nearly of liquid, so despite its “hot” quality, it is also intimately associated with Water, Water being its equal and opposite.
The path of yoga is one of transformation. We learn new ways to move, think, breathe and be still, and thus we transform ourselves from one type of person into another. We are still ourselves, but we have changed, shed a skin or grown a new one. Thus, stoking the fire of transformation is of utmost importance.
In hatha yoga, we do this mainly through postures associated with the abdominal region. We also practise breathing techniques that emphasize the inhale and breath retention with lungs full. Other lineages may follow other methods, and these are all legitimate. You are always in control of your yoga practice, and are free to choose the branch of yoga that most satisfies your heart and soul.
This winter, I have learned to tend the hearth. I have never before lived in a house with a working fireplace, let alone relied upon it as my main heat source! But, I am open to change. I had call to be the sole firelighter for a period of nearly two weeks. I struggled mightily at first, sitting near it, blowing desperately on rapidly dwindling sticks and leaves and bits of paper. Once, I managed a roaring inferno on the first go, but most nights heard me cursing the whole rustic life and yearning to go back to the city and central heating.
But I persisted.
I discovered that the paper I use on my massage couch serves perfectly as a recycled firelighter. Light, and slightly oil-streaked, it takes immediately and burns hot. I learnt the value of the small bits of kindling that my partner lovingly chops, and how to tell if wood if green or dry. I am now a one-match woman. I can set and light a fire in about ten minutes, and tend it carefully for hours. I watch it and poke it and generally feel it to be a living presence in my home.
I think that our inner Fire is the same. It needs the right material to start it up, and the right material and rhythm to keep it burning brightly. We need to pay attention to it, feeding it more when it needs it, and leaving it to rest when it doesn´t. Cared for properly, our inner Fire helps us efficiently transform our food into healthy tissue and keeps us energetic and motivated.
Weak Fire leaves us sluggish, uninspired and waterlogged. We feel like we are walking in soaked through clothing. A Fire burning too brightly manifests in a flushed face, quick temper and impatience. Remember, a person may have imbalance of one Element in the physical body, while having a completely different Elemental layout in the realm of the Mind.
So, tend your Fire, dear souls.