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THE INDIFFERENT ASHTANGI

3/24/2014

7 Comments

 
I was moved by my friend Paul Gold to write a response to a post he had created, "The Obsessing Ashtangi."


When discussing the “obsessive Ashtangi,” it’s also important to acknowledge the unspoken systemic values of the Mysore-style Ashtanga system or else we risk merely blaming the victim. To not unearth these values is to remain blind to their risks.

Chief among those values is that more poses is better, and more advanced series or poses are even better.

There are a host of ways this is transmitted as a value to students, such as postures ‘given’ by ‘towering’ authority figure in a public group setting, as well as the general tones of respect, admiration and awe used for those practicing complicated postures.

Beginners to the Ashtanga Mysore system also have no conception of the years of practice put in by those around them, and it is therefore very easy to assume that the floating and bending is what Ashtanga is supposed to look like.

Underneath these assumptions also lies the unspoken promise of our lives and yoga practice as a project that can be ‘completed’ or ‘finished.’

Our hips are not light switches or bits of binary code (on/off, open/closed). Any strength, flexibility and mobility are part of a process that only exists in relationship to conditions (in this case, the movement demanded, the plane of resistance, the joint angle, etc, etc).

Ashtanga Yoga is a process. It is not a scavenger hunt of postures, with the winner collecting kaivalya, or a recipe in which ingredients are mixed perfectly for samadhi pie.

The “obsessive ashtangi” is an important stage people should go through in practice — it is the honeymoon phase of romance.

Hopefully as teachers we can encourage restraint and commitment.

Also, hopefully we can use the honeymoon phase to ask important questions and have enriching conversations: why DO we want to do marychyasana D? Why do we want to stand up from a backbend? What do we think will happen in our lives?

7 Comments
Sondra link
3/24/2014 11:50:20 am

Thanks so much for writing this Jason. You could say I resonate with it, like a lot.

Reply
Karen F.
3/25/2014 02:33:54 pm

This bit of truth applies to more than ashtanga yoga. Thank you

Reply
Paul Gold link
3/26/2014 02:41:12 am

I am so glad to see Jason's insights being shared with the greater Ashtanga community. They are too astute to be buried amongst the comments of my blog.

I couldn't agree more that students need to be taught that practice is not just about asanas, adjustments and the myths of progress and completion. Students cannot be blamed if they get caught up in the physical dynamism of Ashtanga yoga and wrongly confuse the ends with the means. This is particularly true if instructors are not sharing the deeper elements of the practice.

Ultimately, the onus is on teachers to take the time and instill proper values in students. It is more work and more tedious than simply walking the room and giving adjustments.

There are many reasons why a teacher might over-emphasize the asanas - to be popular, to run a successful business, to pad their egos by having "advanced" students or just because they don't have the depth of understanding themselves.

I differ with you on one point. I have observed the honeymoon or romance phase of practice to occur before the obsessive phase. When students are first leaning and they are being given new asanas regularly, they are quite content to go with the flow and just enjoy the positive experience of getting in touch with their bodies, focussing their minds, etc.

It is the experience of negative sensations - pain, frustration, judgement, fatigue - that first challenges students. It  is the first time they have to ask why they are practicing. It is at this moment that students leave the honeymoon/romance phase of practice. Once the initial shine of practice is gone, once they realize that the asanas, in and of themselves, are not an express train to samadhi, the student may start obsessing in the ways I described.

I look forward to more posts from you. I value your opinions and think they are a much needed service to the community.

Reply
enya
4/9/2014 10:18:48 pm

I do most time fight with practice. I suffer long time with body perfection and eating disorder. Teacher tell me practice everyday not matter what reason for practice is. If I stop practice what happens my body? I thought this particular type of yoga to help heal me? I wake 5am everyday to practice before working for 13hrs. Why do teacher tell me practice everyday?

Reply
Paula Vital
10/30/2014 01:14:19 am

Hi Enya,

I too have suffered from eating disorders and we must be careful in Ashtanga that the practice does not become another way to try to fix ourselves or make ourselves better. Practice each day from a place of self-love, devotion to God / the Universe / a Higher Power, and as a source of strength for the rest of your day. Even if it is just sun salutations and three closing poses. The intention of your practice is more important than pushing through.

Reply
Karoubalo
7/9/2014 08:12:29 am

Was there an answer to these last questions in a later post?

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Scarlett link
11/29/2020 03:06:02 am

Good reading your poost

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    Jason owns and directs Portland Ashtanga Yoga.

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