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ASHTANGA-VINYASA YOGA – WHAT IS IT?
When asked to create a comprehensive write-up around Ashtanga and Vinyasa Yoga, I approach
this with both excitement and trepidation. As a mere traveler on the path of this great yoga lineage, it is near impossible
to do justice when describing the profound and deep art of the Ashtanga-Vinyasa practice. So I will try to explain from my
own humble experience – because the lessons we learn from the mat as life-long students of yoga continue to guide us
for a life-time.
Ashtanga Yoga was founded in Mysore, South India, by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois (1915-2009), known as
the Father of Ashtanga Yoga. Vinyasa yoga as we know it today has its origins in the Ashtanga practice. Today, the benefits
of Vinyasa yoga are widely known and it is practiced daily by tens of thousands around the world.
The ART OF ASHTANGA
Ashtanga yoga is a system of Hatha (physical) yoga which involves synchronizing the
breath with a series of progressive poses known as asanas. The breath is used as a powerful tool, producing and releasing
intense internal heat or Agni (the Sanskrit word for heat or internal fire). The internal heat you produce with your breath
detoxifies the body’s internal organs and adds strength and flexibility to your muscles. Ashtanga yoga when practiced
regularly improves blood circulation and gives you a strong and supple body and a calm mind.
HOW DOES ASHTANGA YOGA DIFFER FROM HATHA YOGA?
While Ashtanga Yoga and Hatha Yoga go hand in hand as styles
of physical yoga, Ashtanga incorporates a series of movements known as Vinyasa (based on Sun Salutations). A Vinyasa links
one pose to the other, creating a journey between the poses. The Vinyasa serves to reset the body, wiping
the physical slate clean, so to speak, preparing it for the next pose – creating a sequence of poses which follow in
smooth succession of each other. As you inhale into one pose and exhale into the other, you create a graceful flow of movement.
Ashtanga yoga to me is ‘the dance of the breath’. It is exhilarating, challenging and yet calming.
IS VINYASA FOR ALL AGES? IS VINYASA FOR YOU?
Several newcomers to Ashtanga yoga are
intimidated by the intense physicality of the practice and hesitate to experience a class. In fact, Vinyasa yoga can be safely
practiced by all age groups and introduced at any age. Always remember, there are several variations to every pose, beginner,
intermediate and advanced. Once you are familiar with the beginner pose, you move into the deeper poses… it is a slow
and smooth evolution. The practice of Vinyasa yoga produces profound physical, mental and spiritual benefits at any level
of practice. It is important to celebrate where you are at, enjoy the freedom the practice gives you – the poses evolve
in their own time with continued practice. In the fiercely competitive world we live in, Yoga offers the gift of a safe and
truly non-competitive environment. Yoga helps you focus on the present moment and live fully in the moment.
A typical
Vinyasa class begins with creating symmetry in the body and calming the mind. A series of Sun Salutations follow to warm the
body, preparing for the strength and flexibility demanded in the standing poses. The class incorporates balancing and seated
poses, twists to detoxify the body and finally inverted and cooling poses. The breath creates the link which threads all the
poses together.
THE MEANING OF THE WORD ‘YOGA’
The meaning
of the word Yoga is ‘Union’ - the harmonizing of our mental, physical and spiritual planes. As students of yoga,
we emerge from the physical practice and weave the teachings of experience from our mats into our daily lives.
UJJAYI BREATH – MAKING YOUR BREATH A POWERFUL TOOL
This dynamic breathing
technique forms the basis of asana in Ashtanga yoga. Ujjayi means ‘Victorious’. Ujjayi breathing involves partial
closing off the back of the throat to narrow the throat passage, the breath producing a sound similar to the ebb and flow
of the tide. This is why Ujjayi breath is also known as Ocean Breath. Focusing on the breath, and creating inhalations and
exhalations of equal length draw the focus inwards, lending a meditative quality to the intensely physical practice of Ashtanga-Vinyasa.
In addition to giving rhythm to the Ashtanga practice, Ujjayi breathing also strengthens the lungs and facilitates
the flow of ‘prana’ – life force and energy. Deep, full and even breathing is the best remedy for stress,
which is why you experience a deep sense of serenity and calm after an Ashtanga practice.
WHAT DOES THE WORD ‘ASHTANGA’ MEAN?
Ashtanga, in Sanskrit means 8 limbs. The sage Patanjali
outlined eight aspects - or "limbs" - of spiritual yogic practice in his Yoga Sutras (literature which forms the
foundation of Yoga as we know it today). The eight limbs of Yoga are: Yama meaning Moral Code, Niyama meaning Study. Asana
or Physical Practice, Pranayama or Breath Control, Pratyahara, the Control of the Senses, Dharana – Intention,
Dhyana – Meditation and finally Samadhi – the ultimate goal of Enlightenment – Nirvana. As we practice on
the physical levels of Asana and Pranayama, we build on the spiritual levels by focusing awareness inwards.
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