One of the first things we did when we took over the space that is now Sanctuary Power Yoga (http://www.sanctuarypoweryoga.com/), was to take down mirrors that lined two walls. Since opening, I have quite a few people (people who had been in the space before) ask me why I took them down.
For me, this yoga practice is about feeling. When you're on mat - feeling your breath move through your body. Feeling your feet firmly planted on the ground. Feeling if you need rest. Noticing how a pose feels in your body. Feeling yourself in the flow, in the moment. And most important to me - feeling if its right for you.
Mirrors can be useful, but they're also distracting. Our attention is drawn to how we look. How other people look. How we compare to other people. Does our body look right in a pose?
I often tell students, it doesn't matter how a pose looks, it's how it feels. Even if you're new to yoga, if it feels right for you - go with it. It doesn't have to look a certain way. It doesn't have to look like the pictures in the yoga magazines. It just has to feel right. And you have to learn to trust that.
Learn to trust what you feel on your mat - what you feel in your body & your heart & your spirit. And then you can learn to trust that in your life. Your life doesn't have to look a certain way. It doesn't have to look like anyone else's life. If it feels right for you - trust that.
Very nice to hear another teacher echo my sentiments. I check alignment for safety, the rest comes from feeling, where the body is at. In time there are openings, and the 'proper' alignment gets closer.
ReplyDeleteOm Namah Shivaya.
-john
http://www.yogawithjohn.com