Why Do You Practice?

Have you ever ask yourself "WHY DO YOU PRACTICE?"   What was your intention when you first started doing yoga and has it changed?  Do you ask yourself why you are not able to come up to a certain pose after you have been  practicing for a long time?

Azmi has written a post on Why Do You Practice? UTMOST IMPORTANCE! at his blog.  He wrote that people move away from their original intention of doing yoga which  may be to alleviate back pain, relieve from stress or become flexible and instead of searching in their own bodies and understanding its capacity, end up injuring themselves as they push, fight and force their way to be who they are not. 

Last Saturday, I attended Azmi's Ashtanga Led class and there were quite a few beginners in the class.  During the sun salutation sequence, Azmi was instructing them to do knees chest and chin pose but I could still see some of them struggling to do chaturanga instead.   Often, instructions from the teacher are being ignored although it is given for their benefit.

 

T.K.V. Desikachar had written in his book "The Heart of Yoga - Developing A Personal Practice" that "Yoga means acting in such a way that all our attention is directed towards the activity in which we are currently engaged.   The advantage of attentiveness is that we practice each task better and at the same time are conscious of our actions.   When we are attentive to our action we are not prisoners to our habits.  There is a possibility of considering our actions fresh and so avoiding thoughtless repetition".

So the next time you practice, set your intention and be aware and attentive whether your actions are in line with your intention. 

Azmi is doing a workshop on "Finding Your Peace In Your Practice" at My Yoga Sanctuary this Saturday, 25 June 2011 from 2.00 pm till 4.30 pm.  This Anchors and Foundation Workshop will benefit you tremendously in terms of your techniques, breathing, postures and etc.  It also intends to especially help beginners who are earnest in pursuing their yoga practice by learning a great deal about grounding foundations, the feet, which by far the most important entity in coming to a posture and also finding anchors so to allow you to move deeper in a posture. 

You can check out more details about the workshop at My Yoga Sanctuary website and call My Yoga Sanctuary at tel no. 018-355 3676 to book  a place for the workshop.