Experiencing yoga with Prashant Iyengar

This was my second class with Prashant Iyengar; held over a four day period, three hours at a time, back in June. He was teaching from RUMYI  in Pune to 400 students internationally. I'm just catching up on my notes now, although it has definitely influenced my morning practice this past month!

Again and again he made the point that some things cannot be taught but must be experienced first hand to be learned.  Yoga is a heuristic subject that enables someone to discover or learn something for themselves.

"It is a mockery to be teaching this subject in a four day class but I will give you something to work with."

The first day we were asked to hold out our arms for an extended period and observe how different cells are activated the longer we held the pose. We were also asked to 'do' janu sirsana in both 'martial culture' and 'supplicant manner' and observe how body/mind/breath work together to create different states of being. 

The second day we returned again and again to trikonasana as the anchor pose, to see how our experiences of the pose changed depending on the pose that preceded. "Trikonasana should work on you, not the other way around... you are the benefactor." 

Think carefully about the intention of your practise on the day. Is it to relax, to energize, to cool? Think about breathing with that intention; use three exhales to ignite the asana. 

Breath is not ours, it is ageless... body and mind grow old. I like this idea. Breath is an element we have available to us but we do not inhabit it like we do our body or mind.

The third day we considered how to commence, depending on external conditions: the weather, our age, our physical condition. Using exhalation to deepen experience. Considering our body/breath/mind as we activate; are activating; are activated. Being aware on these levels does change the experience. 

The way you commence practice can expel torpor or negative states. Consider sirsana, viparita dandasana, supta bodakonasana & select which is most suitable. Light on Yoga can help with regard to selecting poses suited to certain conditions, but remember that even supta virasana can be done in different ways, it does not always need to be done in a restorative manner. 

Day four, we considered chitta. Asanas condition different parts of the body, but observe how they also benefit the mind or psychology. While asana have temporary effects on the body; breath conditions the mind; pranayama works for transformation. Explore these effects. Don't drive out positive conditions when expelling the negative! Don't overdo or you may undo. Spend as much attention on how you are coming into and out of the pose as you do on alignment while in the pose.

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experiment 

- in forward bends, try breathing from the back

- in pranayama, try: breathing below the lungs

- lying supine, take a brick wrapped in towel or foam brick, and place it under sacrum; then under lumbar; then under dorsal... observe the different effects on breath 

- lying in prone position with bolster horizontal under chest / under pelvis...don't obstruct nose (especially good after backbending)

- try using the different sounds of gods' names during pranayama....Rama on inhale / Krishna exhale (other gods names can also be substituted (Gavinda, Hare), point is that the different names have different effects; try without saying a name and making just a sound... different effects) 

"300 years ago people didn't believe in bacteria but that did not mean they didn't exist"