What a Backbend Can Reveal About Your Life
What a Backbend Can Reveal About Your Life
When I'm not working as a dashingly handsome acupuncturist, you'll often find me in the yoga
room. I have a scheduled class once a week at Equinox Pasadena and
often step-in a few times a month as a sub; It hardly qualifies as a
second job. I do it to keep up my practice as a teacher. More
importantly I have an intimate vantage point to watch consciousness flow
through my students.
The
principle of energetic flow in the philosophy of yoga overlaps with the
ideas of traditional Chinese energetics. As we move our body in an asana,
we dance in both our energy and that of our surroundings. When our
consciousness surrenders into the universal, a radiance grows until we
blossom into a fuller expression often resulting in a sense of
timelessness, a feeling of joy, or a laugh. When my students connect to
that "something" bigger and greater, it’s beautiful to watch.
For some, yoga is just an exercise
to treat the physical form; lengthening tight muscles using leverage
and body weight to get a desired stretch. With such a singular approach,
what you often see is a willful mind with a non-compliant body. The
consciousness gets stuck. The pose Ustrasana (Camel pose), a kneeling
back bend, can illustrate this stagnation.
Ustrasana is a challenging posture because it invites the student
to relax and open the front of the body. The advanced expression
requires both physical grounding in the legs and the willingness to
expand into a backbend. One is required to be daring and brave,
surrendering apprehensions to move deeper. If the student moves into the
posture while trying to keep absolutely in control, the neck grows
tight, shoulders tense, the chest closes. If forced further it becomes a
grotesque dance performed with the head jutting forward, feet slack,
hips rocked way back, and curled shoulders accompanied with driver’s
license worthy facial expression.
There are a
few reasons for this occurrence (aside from injury). The first usually
is unfamiliarity. This can be a fine and right place for new
practitioners. A beginner can’t be held responsible for a restricted
expression. The muscles are tight and the body is unaccustomed to this range of motion. He or she needs to put in the time and work.
The
second reason for this muscular constriction, one that becomes apparent
in practitioners of a few years, is energetic constraint. No matter how
long one works, the posture doesn't change, expand, or grow. When there
is fear, anger, or compromised expression in an individual there is an
unconscious hunching of the shoulders, shortness-of-breath, a tight neck
among other symptoms. This is consciousness and energy constrained.
We’ve all seen this classic defensive posture. It’s uncomfortable and
often painful. I’ve never once heard anyone complain of an unbearable
openness of their chest, fluidity in the neck, and open, swivelling
hips. We instinctually know what it means to have energy flowing freely.
Blocks
in energy due to insults, occasional sadness, or even fear will pass
because the natural alignment of the body will eventually reassert
itself. The underlying structure is healthy. But, if the restriction is
an expression of lifelong negative attitudes, early trauma, or chronic
stress then the body is like a gnarled tree. These blocks are harder to
resolve because the physical form itself has been shaped under stress. A
negative energetic state is reasserted whenever the misaligned
structure is stimulated. When people like this often come to my office
suffering from internally generated pain and emotional constraint they
have a hard time yielding to treatment, intervention, and advice. When I
do acupuncture
in these cases, the needles feel like they are going into bricks. The
experience is usually painful. The situation is no different when these
people try to practice difficult asana.
So far
things sound terrible if you have an ugly Ustrasana. At this point you
might think all is lost or that I’m a jerk. It’s not and I’m not.
Remember,
we all move to practice, but we need to work to expand. We can first
start by being completely open to receive something new to challenge
that which is old. It can be a healing, an idea, or a difficult pose.
This is not a bullshit new age sentiment; You have to want it and bring
awareness to it.
The second step is the
breath. The breath must be the focus. It is our connection to the
limitless energy of the universe. It is the most powerful conscious
motive force in our body. Most of those who are straining in a posture
are often holding their breath. They likely hold their breath in life
off the mat as well.
The third step, do not let
your will exceed your available energetic space. Go slower and work at
your edge. Use a prop. This is about unfolding and evolving your energy,
not forcing it; Subtlety reworking the musculature and alignment using
our breath. You don’t not know what a flower looks like until it
blossoms so do not presume to know the final shape of your body. Be
patient, work diligently and surrender to the process.
Ultimately
this is a reminder that our yoga does not end at the mat. The major
obstacle to our fullest expression is that we keep getting in our own
way by forcing rather than yielding. Use your physiology as a road map
to navigate the underlying energetic patterns that are both free as well
as blocked. This is not blame but an invitation to cultivate awareness,
let go of what you don’t need, and expand into your greatest self.
But hey, if all else fails, I do know an awesome and handsome acupuncturist.
Namaste everyone.
Comments
Post a Comment