Close your eyes and picture a “yogi.” If that means nothing to you, then picture someone who practices what you understand as Yoga…What is this person doing? Or, more importantly, is this person in your mind a calm, happy, and centered person? Is this someone that looks like he/she has or her “act together”? (Or is working towards it). Now consider this: You, too, are a “yogi”. You could be practicing yoga already, even without the bendy action. In fact, in my opinion, many people who have not stepped foot on a mat are more yogis than me and many famous “teachers”. I know this may upset some, but that’s ok. I spent many years putting much energy into people-pleasing… that is something I’m willing to unlearn in this lifetime :).
Here’s my point: I find myself immersed in what could be called the Western idea of yoga and its culture. That isn’t always bad, but it is also not always something good either. I’m all down for fun, bringing yoga to the masses, and getting creative. But since when a practice that is aimed to self-discipline and discovery became so tangled with entertainment or attaining a shape? More & more, I see a focus on things like achieving postures, dressing like a cool hipster, drinking kombucha, and posting quotes from some wise person whose book you never read on social media…Even I do that! But what worries me the most is that alongside this, I see the culture surrounded by flaky, jaded, or spacey behavior, borderline obsessive superstition about the moon and the stars and zodiacal sign, plus an apparent unwillingness to learn to act like a grounded, responsible and conscious adult. How about being OK with calm, sober, and simple behavior? Why is that not a yoga thing?
Yoga means to yolk that it symbolizes union, but if we create a subculture and strengthen clichés, it cannot unite. Seriously, these stereotypes are not unifying. I don’t mean don’t be yourself. If being a free-spirited, artistic, and funky person is your natural self, go for it!…but ask yourself. Is this being sold as part of yoga? Have I developed new consumerist habits after I got immersed in the pop-yoga culture? Could I be playing a role that gets in the way of my truth? Am I separating myself from my brothers? Am I behaving in a tribal way?
I’ve been asking myself these questions. I decided to focus on another aspect of the path…like a day-to-day yoga off-the-mat experiment. What is this yoga that is better than any posture I can teach you? It is practicing self-study (what many call mindfulness). That is in part, consciously making an effort to be loving, inclusive, respectful, non-reactive and honest…All while acting like a grounded adult. That’s not an easy task, but one worth all the effort in the world.
I still love the asana part of the practice, and I don’t plan to stop it, but like I always say “I don’t care if my students FLOW to some awesome playlist, I care that they BE”. What do I mean? Yoga is not a choreographed dance or sequence. Yoga, to me, isn’t either an esoterically charged practice with crystals, oracle cards, and other add-ons to make it more “whimsical” (If I got my way, I wouldn’t play music in my classes either). Now you are thinking Maria is getting radical :). But hear me out and tell me what you think. I believe in an individual’s inherited ability to find the truth for him/herself. I know that these postures, breathing patterns, etc are tools. Just that. There are tools to help us remember what we already know or, even better, to unlearn some things that get in the way of that knowledge. If I put myself in the shoes of an average individual who has never had green juice, someone who could care less about smudging and has no clue what a chaturanga means …would I feel welcomed in a yoga class? As a teacher, I want all kinds of people in my class: the born-again Christian, the Muslim, the anxious single mom, and the stressed-out workaholic business type…because they, too, need it, maybe more than the young girl with the Lululemon pants and the mason jar drink. Not that I don’t want her in my class. I do, but she may have fewer barriers to cross to get to her first class, and this “common man” may never come back if we get it wrong.
Why create an environment that would make “them” (the nonyoga type – whatever that is) feel uncomfortable if you can help them feel included? Why pretend we are more spiritually advanced than the “common people”? Why use foreign words that intimidate? Why do we think this is helpful? The new student or the skeptical person knows the pain of living disconnected from their bodies. Maybe they are not aware of the power of their mind-body connection yet, but they have the same internal technology we do…We all know better…eventually, and with practice, we can all remember.
Quoting my favorite band, U2, I am asking my fellow yogis to “Stop helping God across the road like a little old lady.” – I think sometimes we get in the way of yoga, and I am not without fault for this. Yoga can be as secular as any daily activity without losing its power. And this also applies to mindfulness or “self-study.” People don’t need a string of beads to meditate. It can help many, but there are other ways. They again don’t need to recite foreign words, and this comes from a person who loves kirtan. These ways of yoga are not for everyone. And I’m writing this because, more than ever, I’m embracing the idea of a distilled approach, that idea that made me fall in love with my Teacher, Max Strom. I don’t want to entertain, preach, dance or sing, I just want to teach. I invite you to come to my classes if you are in Orlando or find a place that allows you to discover yourself on your mat or your meditation cushion. If the space where you practice makes you feel too old, not cool enough, not spiritual enough…not good enough, then I promise you there is a better place for you. A peaceful, quiet, uncluttered, and welcoming place where it is not about how you look but about who you really are. And who you are IS GOOD ENOUGH.
May you find that place. Namaste
