For many students who have come to this workshop, this is their first time. Students have come from as far away as Surat – a testament to their commitment to growth and Iyengar yoga. Their enthusiasm is awesome.
RIMYI Experiences Yoga & Vedanta Philosophy
The Ultimate Surrender – Intersection of Yoga & Vedanta
May 10, 2023
At the beautiful temples of Belur & Halebidu.
The philosophy of yoga and Vedanta sometimes intersect, and I love spotting this overlap in different classes.
During the last RIMYI class I took, Raya spoke about letting go. When we talk about letting go of something, there is an assumption that you’re holding on to something. It’s important to analyse this something. How are you holding on to it? Why are you holding on to it? Once we analyse it, can we let it go?
To make it relevant to the asana practice Raya asked us to ask ourselves what we were feeling in the asana we were holding (Uttanasana). What were we truly feeling? Were we feeling our hamstrings hurting, or was the back hurting, or were we holding the abdomen too tight? When you can identify what you are holding – you can begin to let it go. “I let go of my back, I let go of my abdomen, I let go of….” He asked us to do the same in Sirsasana, but focus on mental conditions/conditionings. He asked: Can letting go be voluntary? Can we actively let go?
He gave us the example of how he came across a ratty old t-shirt when he was cleaning his cupboard. Everyone tells you to let go of this old tee that you don’t even use anymore, but you can’t. We need to understand that it’s not the object that we can’t let go – it’s the memories associated with it that we’re unable to let go.
What are we actually holding on to? Can we analyse that similar to how we analysed Uttansana? Mentioning yoga sutra 1.11 he asked us to ponder over what is the role of memory and cleansing the memory. Can we actively identify and do something about? Letting go of an old t-shirt is easier than letting go of memories. Memories can be good, troublesome, traumatic, ecstatic. How do we deal with this baggage of memories and how does it impact us? Can we let go of attachment to the memory? Can we actively let go of sad memories? Going into parsva sirsasana he asked us to contemplate looking at the memory from a different angle.
अनुभूतविषयासंप्रमोषः स्मृतिः PYS 1.11
Memory is the unmodified recollection of words and experiences.
He spoke about two sutras that he would frequently speak to Guruji about:
सुखानुशयी रागः PYS 2.7
Pleasure leads to desire and emotional attachment.
दुःखानुशयी द्वेषः PYS 2.8
Unhappiness leads to hatred.
A person with a sense of discrimination should strive a balance between sukha and dukha instead of living a the mercy of these two. There are so many triggers in life today – we are all used to certain manners, ways and customs. But can we let go of getting triggered? Raya told us that us to actively open our drawers and pull things out and look at everything that comes out and ask ourselves if we are using it. Have we been keeping certain memories in the cupboard, maybe even in the freezer. And even in the freezer have they become rotten and started stinking? Can we actively bring these memories out, clean them up and throw them away?
How do we throw these memories away? By turning it from klista to aklista.
वृत्तयः पञ्चतय्यः क्लिष्टाक्लिष्टाः PYS 1.5
The movement of consciousness are fivefold. They may be cognizable or non-cognizable, painful (klista) or non-painful (aklista).
The fact that it happened remains, but the feeling associated with it goes. Raya also stressed that we all want happiness, but we remember the sad things more – happiness has a shorter shelf life. Happiness is like camphor or mercury – you can’t hold it, it evaporates.
Next in Sarvangasana, Raya asked us to finally consider what we can let of of intellectually. He spoke of fear and how we’re all fearful of something. But some are able to face their fear because they have practiced handling this fear. Practice analysing your fears and insecurities – once analysed can we let them go? After giving daanam in a temple, we pour water over our hands symbolically ‘washing away’ our attachment with what we’ve given. We need to let go of claiming things – ‘I’ did this, ‘I’ own this etc. The most difficult thing is to let go of this claim. After letting go of these claims, can I let go of the ‘I’ itself?
When one moves from the grossest to the subtlest, neither the beginning is seen nor the end.
My Vedanta teacher always stresses the importance of balance in life. It is important for us to seek pleasure, but also to accept that pleasure and pain come together. As seekers we are encouraged to go after our dreams and desires, but we need to remember that the result of our pursuit depends on many factors. Therefore, we can’t be swayed by victory or defeat, sukham or dukham. We should pursue life according to dharma, and with the best of our physical, emotional and intellectual intent. And surrender the results, fruits, fear and even happiness to a higher purpose.
What is left to surrender when I have surrendered everything?
My teacher explained the idea of surrender using verse 18.66 of the Bhagawad Gita.
सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज |
अहं त्वां सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुच: ||
In this shloka Lord Krishna is asking Arjuna for the ultimate surrender – the surrender of the ‘I’ or the ego. Letting go of the ‘I’ in all the claims that I make. Once I have surrendered everything, I surrender the ‘I’ too. And in that way I merge with the One, the universal consciousness.
At the Blue Temple, Chiang Rai.
pc: @khan.clicks @deavalin_david_dsouza makeup: makeupbyhennaanbaree location: Cubbon Park
I had a late class yesterday. It started at 7.10 pm and went up to 8.40 pm. The teacher was new to me. After the usual queries (“Where are you from? Who’s your teacher?”) I spread my mat and got ready for a class.
All the teachers at RIMYI have a distinct style of teaching. The strong teacher-student tradition of yoga ensures that your attitude, approach and philosophy towards the practice reflects that of your teacher. Your students will be able to see the ‘Iyengar’ or ‘Ashtanga’ shades in your classes. If you go to multiple teachers/don’t go to any teacher – that is pretty evident too.
There isn’t much of a crowd at RIMYI this year. Last night’s class had about 15 students. We had enough space to spread out. The class was quiet. It wasn’t action-packed or fast paced. We did very few asanas. We held each asana for a very very long time.
As you continue to hold, you’re able to go deeper into the pose. You can intensify the stretch. You can observe which limbs are working, which are sleeping. I worked on lengthening and opening my torso in Trikonasana – I noticed that I could actually activate the hamstrings more. Similarly in Parsvakonasana.
“You may be feeling a stretch in your hamstrings and on your groin,” said the teacher. “But feel the quietness in your abdomen.”
I blinked a couple of times. It’s a mannerism Ive noticed recently. It’s an automatic response if I’m surprised or intrigued.
“Most of us go after the stretch. We think asana works only if we feel the stretch. But all asanas bring quietness in the abdomen too. Find this quiet.”
And with these few sentences, he changed my asana practice forever.
A few weekends ago I attended a friend’s house warming party. In India there is always an element of ritual. So while a housewarming can be a little party for a bunch of close friends, here it becomes an event of larger significance. So a purohit is called. You get the stuff for the puja together, you plan for caterers, you send out invites….
When we celebrate a house warming or a ‘griha pravesh‘ we celebrate new beginnings. We hope that the new abode brings the owners good luck and prosperity. Some incense, a few mantras, a coconut and some ‘lucky’ plants and we actually start to feel better about the house. These are all the accoutrements of the ritual of cleansing a space of any negative vibes so that the new owners can live peacefully.
Big celebrations so dressed to the nines.
A yogi’s abode is the body and mind. Since we get only one body and mind per lifetime, we need to exist within them peacefully and authentically. A yogi is constantly torn between one more drink or slice of pizza and an early morning twists or backbend practice. You control yourself from snapping at a pesky sibling and try to stop fuming at the guy who just cut you off in traffic. But the disturbances in the mind have already been created, and they now impact your being.
How can we maintain equanimity while living in a world designed to trouble us?
The answer lies, as usual, in the practice. Every morning when you step on your mat and start at the beginning, you create a new story. Each day gives you a chance to start at the beginning and go somewhere different. Yesterday’s limitations don’t exist today and today’s won’t exist tomorrow. This impermanence can be a deterrent for many, but for the yogi it means hope. You return to your practice throughout a constantly changing life. You practice life like you practice yoga, with a spirit of exploration and the core belief that this too shall pass.
Practice and detachment are the means to still the movements of consciousness. (PYS 1.12) Picture taken at the Bhoga Nandishwara temple at the foot of Nandi Hills.
I’ve practiced more in these 16 days than I ever have in my life. In Mysore practice used to be for an hour and a half. That was for 15 days. During my teachers’ training at SVYASA we used to have practice for up to 2 – 3 hours a day. Here we practice for up to 5 hours a day. Some students even opt to observe classes, so that’s more yoga during the day. It is intense, it is powerful, detailed, thorough and it’s amazing (I may already have mentioned that before.) In the past 2 weeks I’ve had time to really work on my asanas. I’ve also had a chance to see the practice in a different way. To kind of lift the asana lid and peer into the pot to find the importance and relevance of yoga in our lives. My own steadily improving practice and watching all kinds of people practice day in and day out. Doing the Trikonasana (and other asanas) over and over again drives home a few important lessons.
- Practice makes perfect. But nobody’s perfect. So perfection is a process and practice is the means to it. In the age of beautiful Instagram filters, it is difficult to believe that even the jaw dropping and awe inspiring pose has scope for improvement. There is scope of improvement in everything. Your projects are a work in progress. Your relationships are a work in progress….your life is a work in progress. You are a work in progress! So accept your mistakes. Internalize the lessons they teach you and don’t make them again. Remember, a mistake made over and over again is a habit.
- Spend a lot of time on your fundamentals. Here we have practitioners of all levels. However, what we practice day in and day out (yes for 5 hours daily) are the fundamentals. Trikonasana, Uttanasana, Downward dog etc. The other day the entire 2 hour class was about Uttanasana. That is all we did during the entire class. In fact, I’ve heard Abhijata say that your inversions will never be stable unless your standing poses are stable. Next time you find yourself fumbling in a pose, try and analyse why and what you can do to make the pose better. And next time you find yourself getting impatient or bored of the fundamentals, remember there’s always scope for improvement.
- Cultivate discipline.Be strict with yourself because when it comes to your body no one else will be. Make the time to move your body, however inconvenient it may be. Make the time to cultivate a hobby which requires you to move. Enjoy the process of movement and getting in touch with yourself. The tragedy of our times is that people will set reminders on their phones to take the medicines they have now become dependent on, but they won’t throw back the covers and go for a quick jog. Every little bit matters, but you need discipline. To start and to stay on track.
[Above: Healthy food choices always. Remember my 80/20 rule.]
