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What is Yoga?

8/4/2014

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Picture
"Yoga is like music:
the rhythm of the body,
the melody of the mind,
and the harmony of the soul create the symphony of life"


-
BKS Iyengar

When one thinks of yoga often they think of stretching and being bendy. I often have students tell me they’re not flexible enough for yoga or that they don’t think they had a strong class because they were so stiff and tight, and that’s what they judge their practice on. However being the strongest or the most flexible doesn’t mean you are practicing yoga at all!

The word ‘yoga’ is derived from the Sanskrit word yui, which means ‘to join’ or ‘to unify’. Through the physical practice of yoga, you unite your body and mind, integrating it with your spirit to become a whole and complete being. Achieving this union allows you to connect to your inner self, ultimately leading to self-realisation.

Body
The physical practice of yoga creates a balance in the body making it both strong and flexible. Specific postures combined with a meditative breath control work your entire body; every muscle, organ, ligament and gland improving the functions of the respiratory, circulatory, hormonal and digest systems, even realignment of the bones.

Mind
Yoga brings emotional stability, clarity of mind and a sense of inner peace and harmony. Learning how to let go of resistance and fear, changing that energy into one of self-belief, confidence and knowledge, chipping away at the ego until you can truly be free. Over time you can turn inward for guidance, bringing your emotions under control and learning how to detach from external and sensory perceptions.

Spirit
One of the important teachings of yoga philosophy is that we humans are divine, we have a purpose and the ultimate goal is self-realisation, realising the God within us and achieving unity with physical body, which is a temple of the spirit. With the help of meditation and tapping into the chakras, the cosmic energy centres in the human body, over time we train the consciousness for a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquillity.

So next time you walk into class, focus instead on the therapeutic effects of the postures, the precision of the alignment, of letting go of what you think you should do and just be.  Use the tools given to you to create your own masterpiece!

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    "I am not what happened to me,
    I am what I choose to become"
    Carl Gustave Jung

    I'm Binny, a full time Bikram Yoga teacher and studio owner that lives in Perth, Australia.

    I started this blog to share the things I love the best in the world: being healthy and happy, food (especially raw), yoga, traveling and most importantly, learning how to love and be true to myself.

    I suffered from severe digestive problems when I was younger, being gluten and lactose intolerant, and developed compartment syndrome and fibromyalgia in my teens. I have lived with constant pain for over 16 years now.

    Over the past 10 years, I've shifted to a mainly plant based diet and realised that being well and healthy is a way of life. I have been teaching Bikram yoga since 2011, in the US and Australia. Due to my health issues I've also had a lot of bodywork done as well as explored alternative therapies.

    I've become much more aware of myself as a result of all this - physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally. Right now I love my life. In my career I love what I do and I do what I love. I have traveled to some amazing places around the world and made lifelong friends. In between working and traveling, I cook up a storm in the kitchen, especially raw  desserts, spend time with the people I love the best, which now includes a yoga husband, a mini yogini Estell, and our dog! I try to listen to my body the best I can.

    I truly believe that we all have the power and the capabilities to heal our own bodies, to nourish the spirit and seek our own happiness and life's purpose. This my journey...

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