What is the purpose of the practice?
Nothing about yoga is permanent, static, or universal. As of course you know already, the only consistent part of our human life is impermanence. Within that fluidity though, I am going to share my personal {current} thoughts on the purpose of the practice so that I may take a stand for something.
I would like to take a stand for a yoga {asana, pranayama, meditation} that cultivates clarity. I would like to advocate for a practice that teaches us to be present in the face of discomfort and hardship, but does not ask us to be happy and relaxed about it.
I hope to teach that anger {and other “negative” emotions} aren’t bad or “unspiritual”, but are an important part of our practice that shows us what isn’t working in our life anymore.
I saw a quote from a popular “spiritual” teacher that said, “When I am upset it is always because I have replaced reality with illusions I’ve made up.” And I thought, “Or maybe it is because something terrible has happened, and upset, sad, and angry are totally appropriate emotions to feel.”
Right y’all?
I once saw on Facebook a popular yoga teacher commenting on the state of her students as they left class, “They were so high there were coats and sweatshirts totally forgotten and left behind. They were so blissed out I saw people hopping over curbs as they drove out of the parking lot.” And I thought, “Is that the purpose of our practice? To be so “high” that we are spaced out and disconnected from reality?”
I would like to argue that it is not.
Often practice IS enjoyable and makes us feel better. If it is a real and deep practice however, it won’t and shouldn’t always cultivate a feeling of “blissing out”. Our practice can and should provide the friction that helps us wake up to our current experience.
Yoga {asana, pranayama, meditation} is the process of uniting the mind and body in the same place and time, via the breath. This is practiced with the intention of waking up, again and again, to the present moment. Our current experience may sometimes be blissful, but will also be uncomfortable, tired, or sad. It is in being able to sit with those feelings in an accepting and compassionate way that we cultivate a practice that is useful.
My brilliant friend, Natalie Miller {Co-owner of Willow Street Yoga}, said it best:
“Perhaps most importantly, practice expands our awareness, so we are able to see ourselves, our lives, our situations more clearly. By clearing and calming our headspace, practice enables us to prioritize- and invest in- the pursuits that resonate with our deepest intentions.”
Francesca,
I agree with you. I used to love the high that came with certain yoga classes. When I was new to yoga I thought this feeling was the purpose of the practice. Having a vata imbalance myself, it was not what I needed.
I need a practice that is grounding, bringing me off of my cloud and into reality. Once grounded, it is easier for me not to be carried away by that high.
After a balanced practice, I feel more spacious and clear.
Thank you so much for sharing Jamie. Here’s to a practice that helps us wake up. <3
I really appreciate this post, Francesca, and whole-heartedly agree with your perspective. The quote you mentioned – “When I am upset it is always because I have replaced reality with illusions I’ve made up” – is from A Course in Miracles, I think, and I too have struggled with how to reconcile this kind of teaching with real suffering. The yoga teachers I appreciate most are those who, like you, acknowledge that life involves real, hard things, and that yoga’s purpose is to help us see ourselves clearly as beings who are the same time perfect and imperfect, both whole and broken. I love the often-used analogy that our emotions are like the weather, while our true essence is the sky behind the weather – always clear and blue, in spite of the clouds and storms that inevitably pass through. The purpose of my yoga practice is both to acknowledge the storms and seasons that are present, and find comfort in the ever-present sky. One breath at a time. 🙂
That is really really beautiful Elizabeth. Your yoga students are some lucky people. In honor of the sky and weather that moves through us, I bow to you.
Well said, Francesca, thank you for the insightful reminder! If we strive not to be controlled by our emotions, but to instead observe them, without judgement (ahimsa) then an emotional high will likely lead to a crash later on! When I relied on getting that sweet, blissed out feeling after a practice I often found myself getting upset later when the circumstances I found myself in weren’t as pleasant as my incense-filled savasana. The biggest purpose I have found in my practice lately to continue inhabiting the present moment. Being content in the NOW and using my breath and asana to calm the chatter of my mind is the biggest gift my yoga practice has given me 🙂
Well said, right back at ya, Marlee! Thank YOU for the insightful reminder. <3
The purpose of my practice is to reel me back into my own body, back into the present moment. Over and over. To help me soften my neck, relax my shoulders, and open my heart into whatever is happening now, no matter how boring or irritating or wonderful or challenging.
Yes ma’am. Just like we do for our students, right? Reel them back in, over, and over, and over, and over again. 😉
Hi Francesca! I really like your point about anger. It’s funny – I was just talking with some folks the other day about this topic. I used to think that anger was inherently bad. I didn’t allow myself to feel it. I pushed it down and numbed out so that I didn’t have to look at it. Some years ago I reached a turning point in my life where I realized that I couldn’t numb out anymore. The things I was using to keep myself numb were killing me. As I opened up to the world of my emotions I discovered that I had a lot of anger. As I processed it, I began to see that anger contains information. All I have to do is feel it, explore it and then make a decision about how to move on. Sometimes I feel angry when I haven’t been true to myself. Anger is a signal that I need to set a boundary. Sometimes anger is a sign that I need to do things differently. Fear or pain might be beneath anger. When I’m truly present for all of my experience I can take better care of myself. If pain is lurking underneath anger I can tap into my support system and ask for help. I can use something in my yoga tool kit to help ease the pain, fear or anger I might be feeling. Learning how to sit (with meditation and yoga) with my anger allows me to process it and then it passes quicker! Anger is no longer the bogey-man I thought it was. It is just another emotion in the spectrum of our human experience. Thanks for bringing up such a great topic! I love your website, your videos and your blog! You are definitely an inspiration to me!
Hello Allison love, thank you for your openness and lucid insights. You are right on, anger does contain so much useful information!
Clarity! Absolutely! I certainly practice to gain clarity and, rather than sitting back in perpetual observation, I hope to gain insight into which actions are appropriate to take.
I also love Feuerstein’s idea that the purpose of the practice is to become more ordinary. Many of us, myself included, came to the practice assuming we had all this garbage to work out. That’s certainly been true for me and it can make for some very solemn asana and meditation sessions! However, I’ve recently been experiencing the child-like wonder that flows from exploring the body and mind with curiosity and compassion, as we do in all of the yogic practices. Rather than expecting that the practice to grant us supernatural strength, flexibility, and patience, I now see that it is ordinary for us to sit and stand up straight, to move our limbs through space, and to be present for those we care about. The ground of our being is awareness and the practices show us that anger, bliss, and all of our other emotional states rise from and fall back to that totally ordinary ground.
Also, the practices are super-fun!