It was created in honor of his 2005 visit to the United States, when he The Body Is My Temple, Asanas Are My Prayers came to Estes Park, Colorado. The video shows Iyengar’s yoga demonstrations over the years, spanning over five decades of devotion. The video begins quoting Iyengar who says, “The body is my temple, asanas are my prayers”. In 2000, Time Life magazine pegged Iyengar as one of the top 100 most influential people of the century. The latest edition of Oxford Dictionary of English defines “Iyengar” as “a type of Hatha yoga focusing on the correct alignment of the body, making use of straps, wooden blocks, and other objects as aids to achieving correct postures. – ORIGIN named after B.K.S. Iyengar (born 1918), the Indian yoga teacher who devised this method.” He was a victim of malaria, typhoid and tuberculosis in his childhood. At the age of 16, his Guru Sri T. Krishnamacharya introduced him to the physical discipline of yoga. Gradually he mastered the art and science of yoga and took it to a higher level.

Enjoy the video, or join in for 108 sun salutations as a dedication to Guruji!

I am excited to share the results of a study done on bone loss and yoga. The study was conducted by Dr. Loren Fishman and Ellen Saltonstall, who presented the results in March of 2009. All participants in the study had already been diagnosed with osteoporosis or osteopenia (a pre-cursor to osteoporosis). Participants were an average age of 68, and had a bone density test done at the start of the two year study for a baseline.

The control group made no changes, while the experimental group only performed ten minutes of yoga a day. They were given ten yoga poses, holding each pose for 20 to 30 seconds, with a 5 to 10 minute Savasana following the sequence.

After two years, another bone density test was performed. The control group showed a T-score loss of -.12 of the spine, and -.07 of the hip. The Yoga group showed the average T-score improvement of .69 of the spine, and .87 of the hip. (Bone Mineral Density is measured in T-scores, as provided by DEXA scans, as well as blood and urine tests).

We’ve all heard that impact exercises stimulate bone growth, but gravity is only second best to the action of muscles pulling on the bones. Yoga poses act on the bones by “applying forces of opposing muscle groups to them that greatly exceed gravity, stimulating bone cells (osteocytes) to create more bone.”

Dr. Fishman also said, Yoga helps grow bone mass, but because yoga poses pull and stretch the bones from every conceivable angle, yoga also may stimulate the formation of a bone structure that is able to resist greater amounts of pressure, as well as many different types of challenges”. Dr. Fishman also found the bone stimulating effect was found to begin at 12 seconds of holding a pose, and continued to increase until 72 seconds, after which there was no increase in effect.

In conclusion, yoga has been proven to be beneficial in stimulating bone growth, even in older patients already displaying bone density loss.

Doesn’t it make you want to get your Down Dog on?

Savasana is not a nap. During Savasana you remain aware, with focused attention, while relaxing as completely as possible. “By remaining motionless for some time and keeping the mind still while you are fully conscious, you learn to relax. This conscious relaxation invigorates and refreshes both body and mind. But it is much harder to keep the mind than the body still. Therefore, this apparently easy posture is one of the most difficult to master”.

Mr. Iyengar is encouraging us all to practice Savasana as a separate practice, separate from any other activities, and put aside at least fifteen minutes for the practice. “The stresses of modern civilsation are a strain on the nerves for which Savasana is the best antidote”.

Savasana, as difficult as it is, is a favorite pose for most people. Ah! You get to lie down and close your eyes! I’ll describe my own understanding of the pose, in the hopes that it helps you to deepen your practice.

But first, think of this:  Infrared goggles use thermal imaging to show us the heat emitted from people’s bodies. We’ll call it the Energy Body. Our naked eyes cannot see the energy of our heat, but thermal imaging reveals it to us. (Remember this concept of an Energy Body provided by the goggles, because I’ll be referring to it later).

Lie in Savasana, flat on the floor, using whatever props your body needs to be comfortable. Be warm, adding a blanket and socks if necessary. Use an eye pillow if you would like. Plan to stay for at least 15 minutes. Relax the body completely. Concentrate on your breath, focusing on the exhales to release more tension with every out breath. If the mind wanders, simply bring your attention back to the breath, and relaxing deeply.

The practice of Pratyahara is employed during Savasana, the practice of withdrawing the senses from the external world. In Sanskrit, Pratyahara literally means “to draw toward the opposite”.  The eyes don’t just close, but we find use of our internal vision. The ears relax, and we can hear within, listen to what is inside. You can taste your own mouth or notice the no-taste, and smell your own internal scent.

(The last sense of touch is a big key for me. I begin to retreat from the external sense of touch to an internal one. When I do this, the layer of skin becomes fuzzy, my perceived boundaries blur. Then, letting go of even this feeling of numbness, I continue).

This is where the thermal imaging idea comes in. When the body is physically relaxed, and even the sense of touch is released, then the concept of the Energy Body can truly be felt. No image is necessary. Just feel the energy of your own body. When feeling the Energy Body, notice there in not a specific boundary, no exact edge.

Allow your Energy Body to expand, beyond what your mind might try to design. Let go of the idea of a form, allow formless to be. Then, just be. It is at this point, if you ask yourself, “who am I” that a completely different answer will come.

Letting go of the last sense of touch allows us to be present, without form. Here, but not contained in any walls. Detach from even the perceived boundaries of your body as the definition of “you” and see what happens.

Citations:

Iyengar, B.K.S. Light on Yoga. Schocken, 1977.
Iyengar, B.K.S. Light on Yoga. Schocken, 1977.
Iyengar, B.K.S. Light on Life, The Yoga Journey to Wholeness, Inner Peace, and Ultimate Freedom. 2005, Rodale, Inc.

Another one of the eight limbs are the yoga poses you already practice. Yoga poses are called asanam in Sanskrit. This means that if you practice the yoga postures and meditate, then you only have six more steps of yoga to incorporate into your life to be able to say you “do yoga”! But don’t lose heart, you may be surprised at how many are available to you right now.

Listing the eight limbs here, with explanation following:

1. Yama (general ethical principles, self-restraint for social harmony, vows of abstention)
2. Niyama (code of conduct molding individual morality and behavior, personal discipline)
3. Asana (yogic postures, literal English translation is seat, or to sit)
4. Pranayama (breath control, the regulation of Prana)
5. Pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses from the external world)
6. Dharana (concentration)
7. Dhyana (meditation on the true Self, prolonged concentration)
8. Samadhi (contemplation, superconsciousness, absorption of the consciousness in the Soul)

Keep in mind the eight limbs, or steps of Yoga are sequential and progressive, and yet each step is equal in importance and necessity. All the limbs lead us to the ultimate goal of yoga, emancipation of the Self.

The first limb of yoga, Yama has five ethical principles.

1. Ahimsa is non-violence. Practicing harmlessness in speech, thought, and action brings an end to one’s aggressive nature, and allows for others to abandon hostility in one’s presence.
2. Satya is truthfulness, sincerity, genuineness. Gandhi’s entire life was devoted only to this principal and the previous one, and look what he accomplished.
3. Asteya is non-stealing. Taking what does not belong to you may seem obvious, but watch for what the mind tries to justify. Swami Satchidananda said, “these things seem so elementary but are, at the same time, “elephantary”.
4. Brahmacarya is continence, chastity, which normally creates quite the reaction upon hearing this Yama! But think of this as conservation of energy, and as “behavior that respects the Divine as omnipresent”.  Brahma means Supreme Being, while carya means living, so literally the word is translated as living in the Supreme Being.
5. Aparigraha is non-greed, non-hoarding. It also means “freedom from rigidity of thought”.  Be open-minded, and non-possessive of opinions, even of opinions about ourselves.

The second limb of yoga, Niyama also has five personal disciplines.

1. Sauca is cleanliness of body and mind, purity. Mr. Iyengar says, “With cleanliness the body becomes the temple of the Seer and feels the joy of self-awareness”.
2. Santosa (also spelled as Santosha, like our lovely yoga studio) is contentment.
3. Tapah (also known as Tapas) is self-discipline and purification, austerity, that which burns all impurities, accepting pain and not causing pain.
4. Svadhyaya is the study of one’s own self, and the study of spiritual books.
5. Isvara Pranidhanani is surrender to God or the Supreme Self, devotion to God or one’s chosen deity. Note:  Patanjali does not ever direct us to believe in a certain religion or specific God, but the practice provides the roadmap for each individual to direct energy into his/her beliefs according to their own values.

The third limb of yoga, as stated above, is Asana, or Asanam, the practice of yogic postures, the yoga poses. Classes at your studio and home practice set a firm foundation for learning. According to the Gheranda Samhita, a text dating to the 15th century, written by the yogic sage, Gheranda says, “The body soon decays like unbaked earthen pots thrown in water. Strengthen and purify the body by baking it in the fire of yoga”.  Asana practice strengthens the vessel of the Soul.

The forth limb of yoga is Pranayama, which is the yogic breathing practice. Prana is the vital energy in the body giving it life. Ayama means expansion, extension. Thus, Pranayama is the expansion of the vital energy or life force through restraint of the breath.

The fifth limb of yoga is Pratyahara, the withdrawal of the senses from the external world, a mental detachment. It is a mental discipline, aligning with Pranayama. Learning this skill frees us from the power of the senses, which otherwise are like wild horses pulling the chariot, going where they want to go, instead of where the charioteer wants to go.

The sixth limb is Dharana, translated as concentration, attention, focusing. Mr. Iyengar says concentration is an unbroken thread of awareness. Dharana is contemplation of our true nature. This limb and the next two are grouped together as an integration of the body, breath, mind, intellect and self.

The seventh limb is Dhyana, meditation on the true self, reflection and “prolonged concentration, saturates the mind until it permeates to the source of existence, and the intellectual and conscious energy dissolves in the seat of the soul. It is then that Samadhi (the eighth limb of yoga) when you lose the sense of your separate existence is attained. Nothing else remains except the core of one’s being:  the soul”.

The next time you hear someone say, “I do yoga” you’ll smile to yourself knowing just what that really would entail.

Citations:

Sri Swami Satchidananda.  The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, translation and commentary by Sri Swami Satchidananda. Integral Yoga Pub, 1990.
Stiles, Mukunda. Yoga Sutras Of Patanjali, With Great Respect And Love. Red Wheel/Weiser, 2001.
Iyengar, B.K.S. Light On The Yoga Sutras Of Patajali. Thorsons Pub, 2002.
Iyengar, B.K.S. Yoga, The Path to Holistic Health. Dorling Kindersley Pub, 2001
Iyengar, B.K.S. Yoga, The Path to Holistic Health. Dorling Kindersley Pub, 2001
Iyengar, B.K.S. Light on Pranayama. Crossroad Pub, 2009

This is just one of the problems caused by a “monkey mind”. Iyengar describes this mind as “a drunken monkey who has been stung by a bee and is crashing through the forest, swinging from tree to tree”. Yikes! But so true.

Our mind’s normal process of association is like a monkey swinging from tree to tree, from thought to thought, on and on, keeping us from having any peace and stillness. Our mind is a thought producing organ. That is its job. How could we change that? Are we really just innocent victims of circumstance?  Bodies attached to the thought producing organ, with no control?

Of course not. We do have control, but it takes practice to learn how to apply that control. Whose mind is it anyway? It is yours. You do have the ability to control the monkey by learning to meditate. But the skill of meditation isn’t second nature. It must be learned, practiced, and developed over time. In the mean time, your mind doesn’t want you to learn how to control it, like a 5 year old who runs amok and doesn’t want a new nanny learning how to contain him.

But give it a try. Again and again. The best advice for those of us learning how to meditate is “begin again”. Imagine this scenario:  You decide to meditate. You choose your position, and bravely sit to calm the Dixie-cup-in-a-windstorm of a mind you have, and for two breaths it feels like you might succeed. Then, your mind slips one in on you. A thought. You didn’t even notice how it got there. Sigh. So you “begin again”. Then the mind whispers to you, “don’t just sit there, do something”, and you remember something you should be doing. Ack! Thinking again. After a few rounds of this, you feel like you’ve been tricked so many times by your mind, you just “can’t do it”. You give up and walk away from your new meditation practice asking, “what’s the point!?” Your mind has won again.

The point is to find the diamond within. The best analogy is that the mind is like a mountain lake:  with thoughts whirling around like the wind, the waters are stirred up creating waves on the surface. The waves increase in size the longer the wind blows, until even the mud at bottom of the lake has been stirred up and the water is dark and murky. But if you still the wind, the waves will slowly calm. As the water becomes still, the mud and silt sink back to the bottom of the lake, and the water becomes clear. Sunlight penetrates the still, cool water, and glints off a diamond at the bottom of the lake. The diamond reflects the light, filling the lake with light, enlightening the lake… The diamond is your true Self. In fact, this is the whole purpose of yoga, finding the true Self within. “Yogah cittavrtti nirodhah”, says Yoga Sutra 1.2, translated as “Yoga is the cessation of movements in the consciousness”. “Tada drastuh svarupe avasthanam”, says Yoga Sutra 1.3, translated as “Then, the Seer dwells in his own true splendor”. Meditation is only one part of yoga, one of eight parts to be exact. All the parts put together guide us in stilling the mind so that the Seer within can exist clearly. I’ll write my next blog about the eight limbs of yoga, for those of you who are interested. In the meantime, don’t just do something, sit there. With a consistent and patient meditation practice, it gets easier. Then the next time your mind wants to run amok, you’ll have an easier time quieting down, and dwelling in splendor.

Seek qualified meditation instruction to aid you in your own attempts. Michelle Gindele is a certified meditation teacher of the Kriya lineage, right here at Santosha Yoga. Michelle has been a practitioner of meditation for 13 years. If you are interested in hearing more about her upcoming Beginning Meditation Series, please ask Michelle, or watch the Santosha website for details!

These two Sanskrit words come from the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali:  sthira-sukham-asanam (2:46) Practicing yoga with strength and in a relaxed manner gives rise to harmony with the physical body (asana).sthira = strong; steady; stable; motionless; firm; lastingsukham = comfortable; ease filled; happy; delight; relaxed asanam = asana; posture; seated position; physical practice.

Mr. Iyengar translates this sutra as “Asana is perfect firmness of body, steadiness of intelligence and benevolence of spirit”. He continues, “whatever asana is performed, it should be done with a feeling of firmness, steadiness and endurance in the body; goodwill in the intelligence of the head, and awareness and delight in the intelligence of the heart. This is how each asana should be understood, practiced and experienced. Performance of the asana should be nourishing and illuminative”. – Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

Simply put, without a strong and stable base, our posture collapses and can cause injury, while without enough relaxation in the muscles and delight in the heart and mind, our posture is rigid physically, and close-minded mentally and emotionally. Without a balance of these two elements, we will not be nourished or enlightened. While you’re in your next yoga class, think of these two qualities, and see if you can bring equilibrium to them both.

By the way, there are only two sutras out of the whole 196 that speak directly about yoga postures, and this one is the first of those two. Doesn’t that spark your interest to find out what the rest of the Yoga Sutras are all about?

The whole idea for a blog came about when one of my students suddenly understood the purpose of the Dual Actions. She exclaimed, “If I don’t do both, nothing happens!”

A grand opening can occur in the body as a result of Dual Actions. Dual actions are those actions your teacher is always directing you to do which seem to be in opposition of each other, like counter actions, or at worst, impossible to do at the same time. An example is in Tadasana (Mountain pose) when your teacher says “thighs back, buttocks down.” An even more exaggerated example is Virabhadrasana I (Warrior 1 pose) in the same context. When the thigh of the back leg is pressed back strongly while the tailbone is pressed down, an opening occurs in the psoas major muscle, and the rectus femoris muscle at the front hip of the back leg. The hips and groin opens.

Dual actions are used to create a safe, healthy, and appropriate opening in the body. By following the direction of both actions simultaneously, only the available opening that is appropriate for your body in that moment will occur. Only beneficial change will occur, while you’ll be protected from overstretching or straining a joint or muscle.

What are the most important Dual Actions? Sthira and Sukha. If you want to know what they are, either read Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, or read my next blog…

Honesty and non-greed are two of the five Yamas of yoga, the ethical principals to follow in life. Honesty/truthfulness is called Satya. Non-greed, non-grasping and non-hoarding is called Aparigraha. These two principals fall easily into our life every day. The hard part is adhering to them.

Our yogasana practice is the perfect opportunity to apply these principals, or perhaps discover just how hard it is to follow them. Any pose will reveal these principals if you look closely, but for our example, let’s look at Vrksasana, Tree pose.

Stand in Tadasana, Mountain pose. While the legs are straight, the front points of the pelvis are squared equally to the front. Once you move into Vrksasana however, the balance required on one foot and the image your Ego is chasing may distract you from keeping your pelvis squared to the front. Re-squaring your pelvis most likely requires your bent knee to come forward somewhat. Chasing the image of having your bent knee far out to the side while your pelvis is squared to the front will cause your lumbar spine to sway.

But Satya and Aparigraha will build an honest tree. While being honest with yourself, accept the level of opening your hip has today, and accept the opening it does not have today. With the pelvis squared to the front and buttocks down, the hip joint is placed in the proper position to open only at the hip joint, without secret tricks to make it look as if the hip is open further. Holding the attitude of non-grasping, you release any image in the mind’s eye, and stop chasing after an accomplishment. Instead, you honor your body with present moment awareness, and acceptance. Now the real opening begins, not only in the hip joint, but towards the Soul.