WHAT IS YOGA AND WHY PRACTICE?
Yoga in Sanskrit means concentration, and also translates as union, connection, yoking, joining together. Its objective is to quieten the mind; experience stillness in the dance of life.
The history of yoga is patchy, much of the ancient wisdom being passed on by word of mouth hundreds of years before it was put to paper. Yoga has a reputation for anything from mystical chanting with cult leanings, to a keep-fit celebrity workout. It has been branded and patented by many who want to claim it for their own; so there are many branches out there. Just like music, yoga belongs to everyone, and has its roots in the elements of what it is to be human.
The more research that is carried out just confirms the knowledge the yogi’s realised through sheer experiencing, many hundreds of years ago, proves to be both accurate and beneficial.
P atanjali is thought of as the father of yoga. He is estimated to have lived between 500 and 200 BC. Although we know very little about him, his yoga sutras are the defining influence of the yoga tradition. He sets out an eight fold path known as the 8 limbs. Exploring relationship to ourselves and the world around us as a means to find freedom from the mind; all limbs are a preparation for meditation.
ASTANGA – 8 limbs
YAMA = attitude/behaviour towards others and our environment
NIYAMA = personal attitude/observance and exploration of self
ASANA = exercises for the body.....It translates as “posture” and is derived from the sanskrit root “as” which means “to stay”, “to sit” or “to be established in a position”.
PRANAYAMA = exercises that bring awareness of the breath through exploration
PRATYAHARA = the practice of withdrawal of the senses
DHARANA = the practice of focused attention/directing the mind
DHYANA = the practice of meditation
• SAMADHI = self-realization/enlightenment
Everyone has the capacity for yoga and yet I hear people say “I can’t do yoga! I’m not flexible! It’s too hard! I’m not good at it!”. When yoga is received that way I feel something is wrong. For me yoga is not about doing but about being. It is not about forcing oneself into a posture, gaining the perfect body, performing or competing for ones class, teacher or self. In fact there is no goal, rather an exploration and a journey towards experiencing freedom, and finding space for something different. We work with the body, not against it.
“Do not kill the instinct of the body for the glory of the pose” Vanda Scaravelli - Awakening the Spine
It is important to find what suits you, and maybe start by asking the question: what is it that I need?
For many years, I attended the type of yoga class that consisted of instructions and demonstrations given by incredibly flexible bodied teachers. I performed without question, and pushed my body to uncomfortable places. I use the word “perform” as the process for me felt like an outside job, something I had to do, achieve. Not at all inline with the explanations above. For me, there is an aspect of yoga that has been tainted by those images aimed at attaining the perfect, athletic, body beautiful. This approach lends itself to competition and forcing, hence leading us to look outside for our point of reference. To my mind its essence is lost.
Vanda Scaravelli began her yoga studies under some of the great Indian yogis, Iyengar and Desicachar, quite late in life. Over time she weaved her own unique, creative experience into her teaching. She uncovered for herself a whole inner world through simple sense observation, awareness and exploration. Yoga is continuously evolving, and she has inspired many to look afresh at how they approach it. Leading the way to a whole new thread that brings us back to the essence of what yoga is all about. We learn to trust our own experience through an inward journey that explores our relationship to ourselves, and the world around us. Never wanting her yoga branded, teachers of this method tend to label it “Scaravelli based/inspired”.
S T A F F
Pritika Yamamoto, Founder
João Solakoglu, Founder
Katarzyna Astatke, Instructor
Ólafur Ohayon, Instructor
Adeola Baldessari, Instructor