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
Karen F.
3/25/2014 02:33:54 pm
This bit of truth applies to more than ashtanga yoga. Thank you
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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.
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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?
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Paula Vital
10/30/2014 01:14:19 am
Hi Enya,
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Karoubalo
7/9/2014 08:12:29 am
Was there an answer to these last questions in a later post?
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AuthorJason owns and directs Portland Ashtanga Yoga. Archives
February 2018
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