YOGA: Exercise vs. Spiritual Practice
My friend Tommy Housworth suggested this blog post over a year ago. In April of 2013, to be exact. I'm a little embarrassed that it's taken me so long to actually write it. I’ve seen the title in my draft folder each week when I come to the blog to write my Weekly Lists. I pause for a moment and then open a new post window. It's not like I have not thought about it, I just didn't have a definitive view. If I had to write about yoga as spiritual practice vs. yoga as exercise in the Spring of 2013, there would have been no question that I would be 'Team Spiritual' all the way. However, now I’m a bit split.
I started practicing yoga at an LA Fitness in Atlanta. I was lucky enough to have an amazing teacher. Paul was Iyengar trained but the practice was largely physical. We did start each class seated with our eyes closed, but I don't remember chanting. He did throw some Buddhist teachings or dharma at the top of the practice or during savasana, but that's not what I remember most.
Somewhere down the line, I started moving with the breath. One my teachers said "it's not yoga without the breath." That was a paradigm shift for me. There was greater awareness of reaching up on the inhales and releasing forward or down on the exhales. There was a rhythm and a dance between the body and the breath. For me, that's when things changed. It's when my yoga practice became more internal and started to incorporate the mind just as much as the body. I no longer forced the physical postures. It became about the breath. And for me that was a spiritual experience.
Over the years my practice has changed and grown. More recently, I have developed my home practice rather than going to a studio. And this past year I lead a number of month-long yoga and strength training challenges. These were purely physical. Since the participants were all over the country, I emailed a list of exercises or yoga sequences for the women to do on their own. I certainly encouraged breathing and added meditation every other day, but I was not there to guide in person and witness their practice. And while there may have been a quieting of the mind, and improvements in the body, I don't know if I could call these challenges spiritual.
However, I am finding that many of the couples I work with are dissatisfied with level of spirituality in their lives. Since many of us no longer equate spirituality with religion, and many of my clients are either anti-religious or just no longer believe in a god, I have encouraged some of my couples to bring spirituality into other activities. I do start with the suggestion of yoga, but if they don't practice, I give the option of walking the dog and going on regular runs, or biking and walking to the subway as a spiritual experience. While it's too soon to tell, I do think this shift of intention and just being more mindful during regular activity is helpful. I'm curious to see if it makes a difference in the long run.
As for my current beliefs on yoga, it doesn't matter why you do it. There are many benefits - increased strength, flexibility, balance and focus. So for me, if it works for your brain & body, mind and soul. Just do it.
Go.