Sequences

Last week I went along to some "intensive" Mysore-style yoga classes, which were run 6-8 AM by Matt Ryan, whose classes I used to attend when I lived in Didsbury. After the first day, it was no problem getting up at 5 AM to walk down Brinny hill and catch the 192 bus to Heaton Chapel.

We started with pranayama, which are breathing exercises involving deep breathing and holding the breath either on the inhale or exhale (which is harder - after doing that a couple of times for 8 seconds a go I was struggling a bit). After that we did our normal self-practice, which is the Mysore thing, while the teacher wanders around correcting people as he sees fit. He got me started on the second series, which was cool, I hoped for that but from my previous experience with him I thought he might not let me progress so fast. However, he seems to have chilled out a bit in the two years since I last saw him, and I was on to the leg-behind-the-head move by the end of the week. (He corrected me for calling it the secondary series - as in not as important, but then isn't it primary, secondary, tertiary education, and that has a definite progress to it?)

Anyway, the point of this blog wasn't to tell everyone about my week, instead I've been meditating on the idea of a sequence in yoga. Ashtanga has quite a strict sequence of postures, linked by the vinyasa (jumping back, upward/downward dog).

Having a rigidly defined sequence has the potential to become very regimented and boring, and make the yogi reluctant to practice. Also, as the harder moves come later in the sequence, it can instill the tendency to want to push on, to get to the next move, rather than being "in the moment", and also give rise to big egos as you see you are more "advanced" than the people around you (this can happen anyway if you happen to be better than most in certain postures).

Some people complain that there are easier moves towards the end of the first series (e.g. bandha konasana, the butterfly stretch, and salabahasana in the second series) which are beneficial to beginners, and that in the traditional Ashtanga method they wouldn't be able to do these moves until they'd mastered the likes of Marichyasana D (twist and bind with one leg in half lotus - hard enough but dangerous or impossible if you are carrying knee injuries).

On the other hand, one of the things that attracted me to Ashtanga was the sequence. The progressive nature of it gives you something to aim for, and more importantly you can then practice on your own, without feeling like you're freestyling (i.e. making it up). Some of the frustrations that come out of the practice (I was more bendy than this yesterday!) are actually useful - dealing with them in a meditative way might help to improve how you deal with frustrations and set-backs elsewhere in life.

Also, the sequences in Ashtanga have been designed in a certain way, with a gradual build up of difficulty and heat (and sweat) up to a certain point, with a couple of easier ones on the end. So its fine to practice the later postures even if the previous ones are to difficult, but that way misses out some of the benefits of the Ashtanga system. Another point that ties in with the paragraph above is that if you start missing out moves, or doing whatever you want, you will naturally avoid the harder moves and not improve in the ways that you might need to (in other words, spend more time in the positions you find the most uncomfortable/difficult).

I think it is quite normal for the human mind to seek out sequences and patterns. Any yoga class, or exercise class for that matter, will use some kind of sequence for the various exercises (maybe this is the difference between "exercise" and "sport"). Some people respect the purity of a system, and will not tolerate any change or innovation. The history of evolution tells us though that those that don't adapt almost invariably will die. Unless you're a crocodile or something.

Rishikesh

Woke up this morning, came out of my room and was face to face with a large monkey who was going through the bin. This seems quite normal now. I'm staying in an ashram, its a bit like a cross between a prison compound and a cheap guesthouse. There are a lot of other travellers staying there so the main thing is I'm able to meet a lot of new people, which was a problem in some other places as the standard guesthouses (basic hotels) can be quite antisocial in design.

Current location is Rishikesh in the north of India. Very scenic, the ganges flowing past, blokes dressed up in orange robes (most pretending to be holy men on the run from the law), monkeys and cows everywhere. I've been doing a lot of yoga, there's not a great deal else here but I've found a good ashtanga teacher (Kamal, teaches at Tatvaa yoga by ram jhula). I'm happy. Had a wash in the river today after class then had a huge bowl of fruit and muesli for 75 rupees (just over a pound). Shame I have to leave tomorrow, it would have been great to have another month.

My three months in India have flown by. No wonder they give out 6-month visas. And I've hardly spent anything. The next week has a lot of travelling for me, first to Haridwar tomorrow, then Delhi and on to Mumbai (a long train journey, I managed to get the last seat booking a month in advance) and finally flying back to snowy old blighty. Can't complain though, I haven't had to get up for work for over a year (apart from a few weeks in Christchurch).

om shanti shanti!