What does poor teaching, misunderstanding, and fear of challenges amount to?—a handful of myths about a most sublime Yoga form, the Ashtanga? While yoga styles such as Hatha or Yin or Jivamukti gain wide-ranging coinage among yoga lovers of all age and levels, Ashtanga is kept at a hand’s distance. But, in reality, a beautiful transformative practice with its roots in scriptural definitions.
An eight-fold discipline with equal importance placed upon moral ethical conduct, dedication, and understanding of the spiritual as upon the physical aspect of the practice, Ashtanga sketches out a definite path of life. The beginner’s, intermediate, and advanced chart of postures are of several degrees of difficulty, and need to be reached through systematic practice. Let’s not dwell upon misnomers like Power Yoga used interchangeably with Ashtanga and the deterrence about its difficulty level, and approach the art with a strong will and true intent.
To clear up the cloud around Ashtanga here is some light upon common misconceptions—
Power Yoga Equals to Ashtanga
Off shooting from Ashtanga, Power Yoga today has become a phenomenon in itself. No wonder why it is so sought-after. The sequencing is free flowing, the charge is strong, and evidently shows significant weight reduction in very little time. At the same time, those who truly want to know yoga beyond its prospect of physical fitness can find Power Yoga something of a fad having more in common with aerobics than any true qualities of yoga.
Sri Pattabhi Jois, a renowned master of the Ashtanga order once wrote a famous letter published in the Yoga Journal. In there, he expressed his view of this new age trendsetting yoga style, and his exact words were- “The title “Power Yoga” itself degrades the depth, purpose, and method of the yoga system that I received from my guru, Sri. T. Krishnamacharya. Power is the property of God. It is not something to be collected for one’s ego. Partial yoga methods out of line with their internal purpose can build up the “six enemies” (desire, anger, greed, illusion, infatuation, and envy) around the heart.” Guru Ji’s contention regarding Power Yoga being thought of as the same as Ashtanga, is solely based on the spiritual connotation of the two practices.
Ashtanga can be arduous, but it leaves out the condition of jumping into flowing motion unlike in Power Yoga, before realizing the nuances of individual postures at depth. While Ashtanga follows certain set sequences formulated for transformative experience of body, mind, and soul, Power Yoga makes participants dependent upon the teacher because only she has the creative license to create the sequences. Power Yoga can hardly be practiced outside of a studio, while Ashtanga can build you a self-reliant practice for lifelong.
Uber Strength and Fitness is the Primary Requirement
The fundamental core of Ashtanga practice is not how flexibly one can bend and move. It is the unobstructed flow of breath and the level of awareness that generates in the practitioner. True, that the postures in an Ashtanga class upgrade from easy to the more challenging, and yet, it is still only a routine of breathing consciously in and breathing consciously out regardless of the upping challenge level the body endures.
Sri Pattabhi Jois, the revered Ashtanga Guru says it out clearly—anyone can practice, the old, the strength-less or a child, all except the lazy.
Ashtanga is Crazy Difficult
Ashtanga is such a practice that any individual is likely to hit a wall of difficulty that she would feel compelled to overcome. That is the whole idea. Some have it coming at the very onset while doing Suryanamaskara, and for others, the difficulty doesn’t hit hard until much later.
Is it not true that the body is also a mirror to our mental state? So look carefully within if you are finding the Ashtanga style too hard to cope with. After you get past the mental block, your body will naturally gather strength and give to your strong intent.
Too Rigid Sequencing
There are six families of postures that come in progression, starting with the Primary Series. The structure and organization of the sequencing have a legacy of a thousand years continued to our masters of the Modern Age, that of the Mysore School. The progressing steps of the Ashtanga structure are like litmus for the practitioners. If you pass the first stage with ease, you are naturally entitled to do the stage next.
Metaphysically speaking, this structural frame of the practice brings mind over matter, creating a gap between what the mind wants to do (the ego) and the body’s impulses (intuition). This process of separation has a special purpose in yoga.
After having mastery over your intuitive wavering, it will be right for you to practice more free-flowing creative sequences.
Ashtanga empowers individuals by teaching the value of being in discipline and practice without attachment to the fruits of endeavor, that’s the beauty of Ashtanga.
