When you take a few weeks off your normal life and go on a yoga teacher training you get asked a lot of questions. At least I get asked a lot. And, to be frank, I struggle quite a bit explaining to people what it is all about with yoga and why I am so crazy about it.
There is my passion which is hard to put into words, the teachings I hear at the yoga studio or read in books, and on the contrary the world which is seemingly totally off and does not understand anything. According to the yoga scripts, we are all yoga, yoga is our natural state. We only need to regain that state of connectedness and unity. With all that in mind I am strongly convinced that yoga cannot be explained, but only experienced. Just as you cannot fully experience feeling connected through an explanation.
The yoga school I adore and I learn so much from is called Jivamukti Yoga. In Sanskrit Jivamuktas are the ones being liberated while alive. Liberation is the precondition for enlightenment. A huge promise, right? Instead of being liberated and enlightened, I call it happy and joyful.
For a lot of people, yoga is all about the physical body. As you probably guessed it is not that easy. Our body is just a tool to achieve our goals in the world. This tool can bother us a lot when not in tune and prevent happiness, joy, and any sort of enlightenment. The practices of yoga help us with tuning the physical body, by
putting Focus on Self-study. Ask yourself, why you behave as you behave. Understanding your constant gain for pleasure and avoidance of unpleasant things. To understand and experience the potential of what happens when we let go of all the stories we tell ourselves, the result is freedom.
understanding the Interconnectedness of Everything. Everything we think, say, or do has an effect. The state of yoga is unity within and around us. The effect of really putting this into practice is love and peace with yourself and the world around you. When you deeply understand this, veganismus for example is unavoidable. Putting it into practice brings happiness.
Practice, practice, practice asana, concentration, meditation, breathing techniques, and chanting mantras in order to calm down the fluctuations of the mind. Yoga helps to get rid of too much mental clutter. The result is that you can live a happy life just with What Is. Shifting from constantly having to change yourself and others to just Being.
Yoga can be a recipe for living a content and happy life and has been for thousands of years. As a teacher during my first yoga training once told us: “You don't have to be afraid of teaching. Yoga is a good thing and no matter how you teach, it will have its positive impact.” Practicing yoga lets you feel your power in the world. This power can transform yourself and the world. The way you approach the world is all that matters – for yourself and others.
Suggestions:
- Find something you are passionate about and has the power to move you out of your thinking mind into feeling the body.
- What lets you feel your power in the world? Is it something positive from which the world benefits?
- Close your eyes and take five deep breaths. Deep inhalations and deep exhalations.
This blog post is part of the written prerequisites for attending the 300HR Jivamukti yoga teacher training.