I love this pose because it hurts so good! The depth of the side bend, the fullness of the hip opening, plus the sweetness of the twist make me feel alive and content. In this pose, I feel the big sensations of stretch, but also the nuances of breath, heartbeat, and intimate layers of emotion.
I practice yoga because it’s like coming home after a long road trip. It grounds me, calms me, taps me into my ability to care for myself (which I often forget), connects me with the need and ability to slow down and listen to the heart rather than misdirected mind chatter. I can’t live without yoga because it makes me feel whole emotionally, psychologically, and physiologically. It also inspires me to live a full, joyful, disciplined life.

Kapotasana is  my favorite life metaphor. It is the pose that I fear the most. It involves the breath to be so deep, so even and so « easy », at the same time. It requires to completely let go of any fear. After 12 years of rigorous practice, I still cannot find my breath in that pose (and in many others). That is my personal reminder to begin every single day with no expectation and with a complete beginner’s mind. But it is also my personal reminder that we can do anything if we practice, stay open and let go of fear. This picture was taken by my dear friend Anne-Margreet Honing, during a fabulous road trip in Southern California.

Of all of the yoga asanas, child’s pose has probably taught me the most about myself.

When I first started practicing, I was very competitive. Though I heard my teachers say « rest whenever you need to », the message didn’t sink in for quite some time. Through practice I gradually began to have a better understanding of my body, of breath, of being present. It was a big battle between me and my ego to allow myself the surrender of child’s pose. But once I finally did — not because the teacher told me to, but because I wanted to — what a relief. What a joy to breathe fully, to slow, to soften.

Sometimes the hardest postures aren’t the crazy, twisted, upside-down ones. Sometimes the real challenge is slowing down.

I love this pose, I may never be able to do it but I keep trying…

It requires so much patience, dedication and detachment to work on something day after day for years.

Yes I get frustrated but that passes, like everything else.

I feel like that is the essence of yoga, you keep on working on « stuff » regardless of where it’s going to get you.

Picture: Christine Hewitt – yogicphotos.com

Primarily, I practice yoga because it helps me to be a better person and it is the process by which awakening occurs, which is my primary motive. And I’m interested in awakening for the benefit of others. So I strive for enlightenment to help others encounter the realization as well. Yoga practice also feels incredible and is a process that I find endlessly fascinating – from the refinement aspects to the large, sweaty, flowing power of larger scale vinyasa. I enjoy Vashisthasana because of its dynamic exchange of core and periphery as well as the feeling of immense potential energy that emerges from that relationship – it feels like a celebration of life.

Currently, my favorite pose is Balasana or child’s pose. Structurally, it is immensely helpful with releasing my sacrum and glut muscles, especially after a long drive or too much time sitting. The longer I rest there, the more opening I feel through my entire pelvic bowl… after awhile, waves of heat and space rise thru my butt, low back and spine. Simply delicious.
Energetically and emotionally, it is the softest, sweetest and most nourishing pose I can imagine. So gentle and so kind, child’s pose offers a sense of permission and ease that I feel we could all use a little more of these days. I turn to it whenever I am fatigued, frayed, tender or scared. Without fail, it settles me every time.

Before my practice, I am contracted, slightly scared (in that subtle, beneath the surface way we almost all and almost always are), and DULLED. As in, my entire system is somewhat sedated, less vibrant, less alive.

During my practice, my breath begins to deepen and warm and expand- revealing the cracks and tensions and stagnancies inside. Stretching my psoas in a simple lunge proves so intense, a spontaneous lion’s breath emerges. And I am suddenly and without apparent reason, very angry. Moving on… after seven or so improvised sun salute variations, I find what feels like a small pile of gravel in my left shoulder and jaw. It won’t dissolve, no matter how contorted I become, no matter how deeply I breathe, no matter how badly I want it to. Ten to 15 minutes in child’s pose unwinds my right hip, sacrum and glut muscles- too tense from too much driving. And when I remember a strong inhale on my way UP into forearm stand (thanks to my Mysore teacher, JD), I finally find my balance. Hovering there, inverted and upended, all those unnecessary and circular thoughts disappear and the vibrancy returns.

In Padmasana, at the end of my practice, I am still.

A sweet and subtle tingle of warmth, lined with chill, snakes up my spine. The light around me seems brighter- as though a gorgeous gust of wind has pushed a heavy gathering of clouds west, revealing the full spectrum of the sun. My body is not resisting me in any way any longer- it holds itself effortlessly, aligned and peaceful.

I practice because it makes me feel better.
I practice because it increases my capacity to hold steady when things feel shitty, scary, unbearable, ugly and mean.
I practice because it makes me love stronger.
I practice because I don’t mind doing the dishes or cleaning out the litter box quite as much afterwards.
I practice in order to open myself to the awesome sweetness and grace that life offers.
I practice because it makes chocolate taste chocolatier,
and champagne seem bubblier.
I practice because it clears my mind, opens my heart, strengthens my body… and on the really good days, liberates my spirit.
I practice because it makes sleep deeper, joy brighter, rain delightful…
And because it helps me to understand so much more readily and with so much more compassion when someone is tight or rushed or rude.
I practice to know my essence.
And because, ultimately, my practice is the most direct pathway I’ve found to a consistent and dependable relationship with and connection to God.

Shirshasana keeps me from asking myself the question « why »…. and that can be an explanation of why I love this pose….

I’m not sure I would have been interested in practicing yoga if I did not meet Caroline. Yes, I mean that special Caro behind this very website:)

We started to talk about her practice. She was so passionate, and I was very curious, so she initiated me. It took me about a week to recover from the sore muscles but I was enchanted and started to practice at home –I also attend classes from time to time–, mostly Ashtanga. I don’t think I could practice everyday. I do it randomly but it brings me a lot.

Yoga is the best way to balance the body and the mind. When you exercise often, which is my case, you need to both strengthen AND to stretch the muscles. Ashtanga is all about that.

Meditation is not the part I like the most, so I always make it as short as possible. But still, the breathing during the sequences is a meditation in itself, and the benefits are very powerful on the mood.

Also, there is one effect I did not expect. And this is probably because yoga brings more body awareness, I became less clumsy. It really makes a difference. All my movements are more precise, not only when I exercise but also in my everyday life. Even on my bike, I think I am more accurate, sharper and nimble.

The warrior pose is perfect for me because it both stretches and works the legs out. It’s funny that some of my friends call me a warrior as a joke (triathlon at a low level is not that big a deal, folks:) ). I like this picture a lot, even though the pose is far from perfect. So, as my dear Caroline taught me, « practice, practice, practice, and all is coming ». It might take a little time but I’m sure I’ll manage some time, and I’m very happy with what I’ve done so far anyway!

Picture by my dear and talented friend Vianney

Patanjali’s very definition of yoga is of course ‘complete stillness of the mind’.
For me, balancing postures like this one brings me right down to the core of that message, to the very essence of yoga.
To balance I need to be in the present moment which is timeless and still: in fact it is Yoga. The second that the present slips from my attention is the moment I find myself back in the movements of my mind and so loosing my balance and loosing Yoga… Vasisthasana is the first asana of the Advanced A series, and it shows me in an instant if I’m preforming a posture or practicing Yoga.

I like this pose because it is grounding. And while being connected to the ground, you are simultaneously reaching for the sky and all that lies beyond. Yoga brings me the ground and stillness. It also allows me to meet the edges of what I consider possible.