I started writing the monthly blog in 2011 and my second entry in October was about yoga... as in, the practice of this ancient art and the misunderstandings that can arise due to misinformation or sometimes plain ignorance.
The writing had come about when I had a small rant with a friend about the misconceptions of Yoga as a philosophy and way of life. Said friend responded with "don't tell me, write about it!". She knew me well and knew that I loved to write.
You can check out the historical blog entry by scrolling down the past entries if you want to read my initial offering. However the issues that people have challenged me with over the years have always been there and have never really gone away.
Even to this day, I still get asked "Do you still do Yoga?"
The answer is yes, I am still practising yoga and it is still as rewarding as it was when I first started.
That was when I was 14, when due to my enforced leisure after an accident involving facial injuries, I received a gift of two yoga books to keep me amused. One on the practice of Hatha which involves the physical postures and the other was all about the philosophy.
The rest as they say is history, as I was entranced by this approach to well being... both from a mental and physical point of view.
Yoga is a discipline that helps people with their mental health and has done for over 5000 years. Who knew eh... well not me, all those 60 years ago
Which just goes to show that there is nothing new in looking after your mental health...
As many of you know, I taught yoga as a class, over a day, throughout a weekend and even Living It Yoga weeks in Italy.
The practice of yoga has certainly been entwined in my everyday living and it has been a privilege to share the concept of Living It Yoga to many students over the years.
I even recorded CDs!
The following is a poem I wrote many years ago, when struggling to express myself succinctly to help people understand in simple terms what I believe the practice of Yoga is...
Yoga is…
Yoga is… not just tying yourself into knots
Yoga is… straightening out those tangled thoughts.
Yoga is… not just panting and blowing
Yoga is… allowing the mind to keep flowing
Yoga is… not giving into our wraths
Yoga is… breath, with the use of maths!
Yoga is… perhaps even doing, but
Yoga is… staying
Yoga is… stillness
Yoga is… praying
Yes, Yoga is…
But above
All
Yoga is…
Love
by Eileen Auld
1988
Namaste
