This isn’t a trick question, but a good question to ponder as we turn up to our mat, our cushion or our life, ie. anytime to conscious seek to bring ourselves into alignment through yoga.
Any of you who have done my yoga classes might recall an invitation I often make in the front end of the practice, ‘To stop & consider why we are here today, what quality do we seek to cultivate through our practice of yoga today?'
When I first started yoga (over 25 years ago, yikes!) the objective was simple, I wanted to surf better. I was transitioning from a decade of playing rugby to what I hoped would be a stellar career as a surfer, I’d read that a few pro surfers practiced yoga, I’d always enjoyed stretching, the logic I thought was simple.
It’s a fairly common pathway into yoga practice I think, we come for our bodies & stay for our minds.
To be honest at that stage I didn’t really consider that I might have emotional & mental issues that would one day need a lot of attention, and little did I know that there were systems of yoga well beyond my comprehension that would offer exactly the answers that I didn’t even know that I would seek!
And yet there yoga was, a decade later when I hit a brick wall in my life’s journey and needed to spend some quality time looking deeply into how I was showing up in this world.
The 'Why' of my Yoga Practice had changed, whereas initially I had thought to come to yoga to be strong, sexy & flexible, as my journeyed with yoga, happiness became the goal, as I went further than that (I realised alas that any happiness was going to be temporary) my goal became to remain equanimous, to be content with all of life as it presents, to allow myself all the feelings, sadness, ecstasy, anger, anxiety and joy.
These days I practice to keep my body strong and flexible, as my body ages I feel more than ever grateful of the gift yoga gives, keeping me physically attuned so I can run, dance, play and surf better than ever. The physical practice of asana is as important now as it ever was, yogis learn to move with intelligence, avoiding injury and managing energy to create maximum effect for every action.
However the subtle gifts of yoga are perhaps more profound, the capacity to reset my nervous system and my mind, plus gain deep healing rest through yoga nidra, balance the nervous system with pranayama and explore the machinations of my mind with meditation. All of these practices bring me closer to the divine - align my awareness with that of the source of all things. When I experience this, life is less anxious, I am more content, accepting of who I am and the reality of how things are.
There is also the added dimension of a sankalpa, when practiced with intention, yoga aligns my action and awareness towards specific goals, cultivating immense willpower and fortitude, the kinda superpower that (when used correctly) can change your own life and the lives of many others.
For me, this is why I practice, for the multitude of gifts that yoga brings, the simple things, feeling graceful in my body, relaxed and focussed in my mind, happy in my heart. And for the big picture stuff, yoga supports me to say no to the things that don’t serve, refine my focus and actions towards the things that do. Yoga supports me to achieve my highest potential, to walk the road to happy destiny, one slow breath at a time.
So please, do tell me, why do you practice?