7 Things You Need to Know About Backbends

When people hear about bending backward often visions of a contortionist with their head resting on their buttocks comes to mind. Bending back looks pretty tough; even a bit painful. A few years ago a student expressed feeling pain just by looking at the backbends postures on the wall at my yoga school in Toronto.

“Hm, I thought, they look good to me!”

But if the truth were told even for practitioners like me who have been practicing backbends for years know it is not so easy. For those interested in the practice here’s how to take backbends into your yoga stride.

The 8 things you should know:

1. Backbends shake you out of your comfort zone.
If we stop and think about it most (if not all) of our daily movements are limited to moving forward. Rarely do we spend time defying gravity by moving upside-down, backward or sideways. It just feels natural to bend forward. It’s also the obvious thing to do when picking something off the floor. However, backbends offer an exciting way to move the spine. This creates better balance between our normal activities and breaks-up the rigidity of the spine spent sitting for too long. It is a journey from our habits and into something not so familiar.

2. Keep your brain healthy and your heart active.
Medical studies have shown many people suffer from chronic back-pain. An interesting study conducted in an American university linked the effects of continuous low back pain to lowering the grey matter of the brain. Read ~ Losing Your Mind From Back Pain. Yoga Master B.K.S. Iyengar recommended backbending as a cure for depression. He also advised that backbends be used as a holistic alternative for heart patients. Because backbends stretch the heart they relieve tensions stored in the muscles and send off natural pain-killers. They may also cure depression and boost the immune system.

3. Backbends are a great teacher of life skills.
When we come face-to-face against our physical edge our minds our challenged. This presses us to develop patience or to drop-out. If we to stick to the task we will benefit from the practice in learning how to slow down as well as breathe. The practice also takes energy, devotion, will, discipline and care; all good things for life. And being true to life, backbending is no exception in that there are set-backs. Sometimes we stretch too much and need to learn our limits.

4. There isn't any traditional system of Hatha-yoga that omits backbends.
To name just a few of the traditional systems of yoga Sivananda-yoga contains the wheel (chakrasana), bridge (setu-bandha sarvangasana) and locust (shalabhasana) as its basic postures. In the primary series of Ashtanga-yoga the pickings are slimmer, but wheel still shows up. In AtmaVikasa Yoga developed by Yogacharya V. Venkatesha (check out ~ www.atmavikasayoga.com), a full system of backbends is taught. These range from the crocodile posture (makarasana) to full locust (shalabhasana) to camel (ushtrasana), with a closing sequence offering both bridge and wheel.

5. A backbending class is a not just a class of non-stop backbends.
In the charming city called Mysore (perhaps more famous for being the home to the late Shri K. Pattabhi Jois), Yogacharya Venkatesh has been teaching for over 20 years special backbending classes to a handful of students at a time. His classes are not for the elite, but a wide range of older, stiffer bodies to younger and bendier ones. These classes are structured to suit individual need. As well, they are not just a class in non-stop backbends. Forward bends and other counter postures are given a lot of emphasize by holding them for double the time as the backbends. FYI: If you decide to go to Mysore you can only study under one teacher at a time (no cheating).

6. Backbends are uncomfortable but one way to work on the mind.
Frankly speaking, what can you honestly expect if you have never bent backward before? Notwithstanding medical issues or injuries backbends extend the entire spine and move the body laterally, forward and backward. They are challenging and no teacher should tell you differently. It's at that point the theory of the practice gets kick started. We practice to move beyond physical tension and use the 'breath' as the force. Is a misconception to think the practice is only about contortionism. There are some extreme and unusual positions, but that’s the means to a indirectly working on your mind. Remember: we use the body to work on the mind.

7. The practice never promised Cirque du Soleil.
In the end, the bud of yoga appears differently from one practitioner to the next. In other words, getting your feet to your head may or may not be your goal. And if it isn't does that make you less interested or insincere in your practice? No matter how the flower of the practice appears it is the promise of Patajalim's Yoga for growth. Of course, Patajalim never promised it would be easy. But we are guaranteed success with a consistent practice and a sincere effort.

If this sounds good...you can see more on my youtube channel.

© The Yoga Way, Toronto, Canada 2012.

Being vs. Doing

How the practices of yoga are about the state of 'being' and 'doing' in which they both cohabitate.  

A well-known practitioner of Ashtanga-yoga jokingly said once, "Don't make an ass of yourself practicing yoga-ass-ana." This is paraphrased, but it brings to mind how yoga is not just for the sake of the postures. Paradoxically, it is a journey of doing in which we discover our state of being.

Inherent in the practice is a unique method of using the breath combined with moving the body. As we move from one posture to another with a focus on staying focused, there are often pockets or moments of feeling connected to our deeper self. As intangible as these moments might seem they gradually bridge the gap between the state of 'doing' to that of 'being'. One of the biggest complaints about yoga in the West is how it gets taken up for manic reasons without shedding the layers of pride, egotism and arrogance. Rather than letting go there is more pride, conceit and vanity created. Given how the West is generally known for being less evolved spiritually than the East there tends to be less awareness about practising for a higher purpose. I myself came to yoga with the work-out mind-set.

But I would argue none of this is worth getting hung-up over. How many blogs, posts and debates exist about why Ashtanga-yoga, as an example, is only physical and another yoga is better. Or as one student asked during a backbending workshop I was offering, "Why does everyone resonate so much with Ashtanga-yoga?' (Eh?)

Certainly, I have no answer which would be the same as answering for other people why they prefer the taste of a green apple versus an orange. This question, however, shows how our attention and awareness is diverted from what's really important. Not to mention it was a workshop in backbending and not of Ashtanga-yoga.

In the end, every practice of yoga including Ashtanga-yoga is a clear set-up to elicit stillness. These are through the breath, gazing points, the length of time a posture is held and the resting posture at the end of class. A typical class contains a clear beginning in which the mind is directed inwardly, a series of postures practiced to help the mind from going out and the resting pose completes it.

The whole practice is laid out in the Yoga Sutras. The first verse states, "Yoga is the cessation of thoughts (1:II). This simple statement contains a great deal of insight but also questions. That is, what does cessation mean since we know we cannot actually stop the mind? Do we first achieve this through struggle? How can this be mastered? Usually we think of mastery as a skill we acquire. It can mean, however, an on-going skill and process that lies beyond gripping one's jaw or losing one's breath. If yoga is about stillness then it is not mastery of the outer form alone.

Patanjalim's yoga makes this clear.

Another verse speaks about the efforts made in practice becoming effortless. Confusing indeed. This Sutra says the when efforts cease and the quality of the postures arises.

"Perfection in an asana is achieved when the effort to perform it becomes effortless and the infinite being within is reached." B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.

The best way to understand this is to be reminded of the fact that postures are not static. Each pose contains an element of struggle and one of relaxation. That is, both the state of being and the one of doing, which are not the same in every pose. The point of relaxation is not the same in the wheel as it is in the bow. If we only fight to get into the postures there will be less of a chance to relax, reflect and expand. It is more like an elastic band stretching with great care and skill.

In many ways practice is like learning to ride a bicycle. In the beginning you have to really concentrate and put in a great deal of effort. I will never forget when I was learning I forgot how to use the brakes and hit a fence! As you one learn how to cycle a natural rhythm gets started. The practices of yoga are equally about good health and fitness as it is a continous path to touch our inner state of being. All the systems of yoga are the perfect place to practice 'doing' and 'being' and 'being' and 'doing'.

We learn to take both and become one with them.

That is how the postures lead to a state beyond just being an ass-ana. And perhaps more importantly, why spending your time over why one practice is not for you is a waste of your time and energy.

Really Yoga: Understanding Pain as a Teacher and Working with Injuries

It is true pain, discomfort and disturbances surface by practising yoga.

"Pain? But isn't yoga supposed to be a 'feel-good' activity?" 

Pain is not a Qualifier to a Good Practice 

While I am implying that it isn't and for those already familiar with the rigors of the practice, a nodding look might be surfacing. What I mean is just because you feel uncomfortable does not mean you are doing it wrong. Conversely, having pain is not a qualifier for a great practice either. The trouble lies in understanding that no spiritual practice (whether it be yoga, meditation or any other related practice) was never meant to be an unobstructed or easy ride.

In fact, it is the most challenging and demanding path an individual can pursue (Georg Feuerstein, The Lost Teachings of Yoga).

With the increasing number of people practicing yoga (estimated over 40 million since 2004 in the United States), which is absolutely incredible it is bound to stir hidden tensions and stresses in the body and mind. The practice is carefully designed to uncover what has been repressed and neglected. The unexpected takes place, it looked easier than it is and demands so much more than the 1,2,3, you’re done approach!

Push, Relax or Do Both? 

When I first started practicing yoga I had some flexibility but certainly not to the degree I later developed. I also lacked strength in many parts of my body as well as my mind. Studying under Indian Yoga Masters helped drill this latter point into my head. That is, the practice of the physical asanas is a direct route to training the mind.

Practice for everyone at no matter what level of expertise should not miss this point. That's why telling students to relax more and not push too much might not be serving them. Perhaps a habit has been made out of relaxing and chronically not challenging themselves and resting on their laurels. That said, I am also not in favour of throwing a student into the lion’s den, pushing people over and watching them fall and calling it “building up fear tolerance”. It's ignorant, counter-productive and gives teachers a bad rap for being 'bad' teachers, but more that Yoga HAS to hurt! It also leads people to think all pain is good. Yoga is pain and without it maybe I am not working hard enough.

Because yoga has been narrowed into the physical stream with pain as a trophy for many (i.e., I suffered this and achieved that) there is a slow landslide in understanding why, how and what it is all about. Paradoxically, we work with the physical postures to heal the mind, awaken the dormant energies and develop a better understanding of our strengths, weaknesses, habits and ultimately an inner purpose.

Pain as many great teachers say is the greatest teacher of all (Jon Kabit-Zinn, a meditation teacher in America). And yet learning or rather finding out how to use and work with pain is the biggest challenge for us all.

The Tools of Yoga 

Yoga provides us with these tools in a real and tangible way. If we want to walk on the path it will challenge us in all directions revealing what it is we need to know and where it is we need to go. It may also reveal what we do not want to face, which is equally difficult in working with personal mental resistance.

I used to have a lot of pain in my knees when I studied under Shri K. Pattabhi Jois in Mysore. I brought that pain with me so I do not see it as the fault of yoga or the Guru. Early on in my practice there were many impurities and weaknesses to work with. As a former figure skater I used my right side more and my left side became quite tight. As I learned lotus and other postures it was during the time of a lot hands-on assistance; there were also very few students present and the popularity of Ashtanga-yoga was yet to come. The approach back then was to let me practice, strap my body into the asana (ready or not) and continue to practice. Each day I hobbled into class Pattabhi Jois was not baffled at my pain. Call it my ego, my impure body and mind or that I was not fit enough, I struggled like a worm trying to break free of its cocoon every day.

Guruji (the affectionate name for Pattabji Jois) used to say, "little pain today, gone tomorrow." I don't think I appreciated this until tomorrow became many, many tomorrow's and much later (even years later).

What I have discovered is the journey of yoga is built upon how to work with the breath, the gaze point and the bandhas. It was not until one day during my practice that something inside of me totally recognized my physical pain was connected to both mental and emotional barriers.

Intuitive Knowledge is Under-rated 

Working or rather practicing alone on the body only takes you so far. We have been conditioned in the West to look for the teacher to give us the solution or to make it right for us. However, it was on my own and from countless practices that inner guide slowly awaken. As teacher this is what we owe to our students. To show them how to do this. The external teacher can only reveal where we are stuck physically and mentally. And like it or not, it is up to us (you and me) to find our way home. That is why Guruji did not hold my hand or wipe any students' tears. I never saw him phased by all the people groaning and moaning either. I was actually happy he did not speak a lot of English. And the reason I say that is because I think many teachers talk too much! Of course, it is better than not talking at all. However, words are limited and talking can potentially over-intellectualize the practice and prematurely make assumptions and conclusions.

Silence as a teacher is stronger than verbal discourse and Guruji was not a man of many words. He let me practice and watched; supporting me with his energy and his gaze.

Sometimes students feel this is a cold and uncaring approach. However, it is the student who has to do 80 per cent of the work and the teacher 20 per cent. Having worked through numerous layers of the body, I slowly developed a system that allowed me to keep building posture after posture after posture. I encourage all students to start like this and how I taught yoga at my school ~ The Yoga Way. Start off with a basic element of a posture and practice it 3-4 times each time you practice. I never heard of a musician running through a piece from start to finish. So the same logic can be applied when working on the postures of yoga.

Goals and Pre-Goals 

Take for example the desired lotus pose. First, understand it will not come from shoving the knee into the pose. It will grow like the lotus from a deep place and with an intelligent approach that starts from working from the outside in. If the goal is lotus then the pre-goals need to be in opening the hips, the lower back, developing stomach control and loosening the legs. The umbrella to this is the connection of the mind and its habitual clinging to the disturbances of the body. This umbrella will also be the bridge between them: the breath.

The Breath

Breath directs thoughts, feelings and consciousness. Through the breath the body moves (not vice versa). Through the breath the mind moves (not vice versa). This is a fairly simple revelation but a critical aspect to practice.

When working through intense pain this is the approach. While working through layers of physical or mental resistance this is the approach. When having fun this remains the approach. That is, breathe.

Technique is Not Enough

Knowing the technical aspects is also not enough. In fact, the techniques can be learned pretty quickly in just about any posture. I sometimes think you really do not need a teacher for that. You can read it in a good book, watch youtubes or sit down with a dvd. What takes time (a life-time) is the understanding of the multiple layers of the mind, the nuances of the postures and bringing the scattered mind to a still place in a single posture. That is why my teacher Yogacharya Venkatesha had me practice less postures for more internal work.

And he would often say, "You have worked a lot on the physical level, how about your mind?"

Today, we either have people saying pain is necessary for practice and let’s bull-doze through it. Or feeling afraid of the pain and becoming paralyzed. The fact is as many Buddhists discuss life is pain, life is suffering and yet it is also beautiful (Chogyam Trungpa).

Patience - Where Can I Get Some 

One of the most wonderful things my teachers demonstrated consistently is patience. They did not scorn or ridicule but offered encouragement by saying, "it will come."  Having worked through many injuries with my knees, pain in my back and joints as well as a car accident (before yoga), it is because of pain that the practice keeps going.  I once even walked to class because of the pain to Yogacharya's class. It was my last class and I was very disappointed.

He only said, "It will go."

Pushing through pain only creates more of the same. Therefore, working carefully, gradually and consistently is the only way to understand pain as a teacher and not to remain in pain. Practice is not about getting rid of it, but slowly ironing it out and leveling it down.

Breathing, meditation, postures, chanting, reading scriptures and working with a qualified teacher creates a practice and space that teaches you how to work with your own body, your breath and your mind as it is, and in any given state.

Understanding yoga (really) is having yoga work for you as a life practice and partner; sharing in all that comes, goes, is, isn't and remains to be seen and yet to be experienced.

Birds of a Feather

one leg to eat cheese . . .
one leg to phone . . .

Recently one of my students sent me this; comparing how a bird can eat cheese with one leg and how I use the phone with one leg.

This little bird definitely has an advantage, I think, being able to eat with one leg. Birds are not missing much by not being able to make a phone call. They can deliver their messages first-hand.

The Practice of Doubt

There comes a point in most practitioner’s journey when the questions of 'why' am I practicing and 'if' the postures of yoga are worthwhile begin to surface themselves. Doubt (one of the 9 kleshas) as laid out by Patajalim in the Yoga Sutras is an affliction or mental aversion. As my teacher Yogacharya Venkatesha told me it is best to deal with doubt as soon as it arises otherwise it will follow you and wreak havoc with your practice. But this is not to imply that it doesn't come up again later on. In fact, it may be masked by other feelings such as frustration, pain or recklessness. The main point is not how it appears but rather that it is acknowledged and dealt with. From the perspectives of the teachings of yoga it is a part of the path; not something to be thrown away or rejected. It can be used to strengthen practice and oneself provided it is properly understood.

First, in the Yoga Sutras the concept of doubt is a mental fluctuation arising from past karmas and deeply rooted in the mind. Second, doubt is not as solid as it looks and feels, but changeable and workable. At a time when you'd love to skip the sequence, jump the track and move onto something else doubt, frustration and impatience keep you stuck. In many ways this is something to be grateful for because the practice will not let you bullshit yourself. Either you have practiced the basics well and are ready to move forward or you have not. Simple. There may also come a time when one thinks they have practiced enough to be deserving of certain postures, but the reality of yoga and its evolution does not work with this equation. In my practice and after learning many of the advanced postures my teacher did not let me practice them when I studied with him. He lead me back to square one; i.e., to the basics. It was a painful place to remain for the ego.

The whole idea behind this was to never forget that practicing yoga is not about physical mastery alone. As well, it should include chanting and meditation, and become a life-time commitment. However, impatience and feelings of wanting it all now can cause a lot of doubt to surface. When someone asks me how long it will take to master a certain pose I usually say for the rest of their life. They roll their eyes and nod at my seemingly trite reply. However, it is the truth. Because even after reaching whatever goal you had set out to obtain the very nature of the mind is to be off in another direction and looking for the next thing to achieve. This has a lot to do with cultural conditioning and if learn to move faster and get there sooner you might get to the top. And yet, 'true' yoga does not gel with this myth.

It really becomes important to be reminded that the practice of yoga is not just an end result in physical proficiency but an inner state of transformation. Or, perhaps one should say being open to this possibility. Asanas are the invitation for creating and developing an inner fire, a heat called 'tapas' that ignites change on all levels. Patajalim stressed seated asanas not handstands and vinyasas. Postures like sukhasan (comfortable seating pose) or padmasan (lotus) are the ultimate goal in then learning to meditate.

The funny aspect of doubt is how it can bring to light the two extremes the mind jumps between. That is, feeling as if it is taking too long for any kind of decent result (usually directed at the physical level) and trying to compensate for this by over-practicing. Or, having the idea that practice owes you something for all your hard work and trying to rush through the sequence to arrive sooner and faster. Yet, the bottom line is nothing can be achieved from a haphazard approach. The sutras painstakingly remind us that practice needs to be consistent and constant.

Certainly this is not easy to swallow in a fast thinking and product orientated culture for which the West is famous for. But this is where yoga outshines other practices and disciplines. If you learn to hang in there you may just see all of this ‘stuff’ for what exactly what it is: the mind’s game to throw you off or away.

The basis of the yoga postures lies in training the mind to move with the body in a continuous stream of prana (or known as the breath). Ultimately, it is not about touching your feet to your head or sitting in lotus as it is about understanding the scattered behaviour of the mind. Usually the mind is good at undermining your practice especially if there are bigger expectations than those which have been achieved. Saying this, however, does not mean that a healthy dose of vim and vigour should not be taken into one's practice. It is more about awareness and seeing the mind’s silly game. In fact, having a sense of urgency in that this might be your last practice is helpful especially if there is a tendency to be passive or in auto-pilot.

Many years ago my teacher actually told me to think while practising, stay longer and be still. It is very similar to Shri K. Pattahi Jois’s well known phrase in which he said, "Practice and all is coming". By this he did not mean practice mindlessly or blindly, but practice with vim, vigour, sincerely and with all that you can devote yourself to. Practising like this will take one further than expected and throw out the mind's limitations, and fears. It is like George Bernard Shaw who said,
“I want to be thoroughly used up when I die,
for the harder I work the more I live.
I rejoice in life for its own sake.”
I feel practice can become like this. That is, for its own sake and not for the sake of only a physical goal. My own teacher’s simple but powerful statement has always stuck with me. By 'think' he meant learn to concentrate. As well, you can go on looking for results or enjoy your practice as it comes. B.K.S. Iyengar (a Yoga Master in Pune, India) was good at repeating something in the same effect. “Do not practice from memory. Forget yesterday’s practice and focus on today’s practice." He was also adamant that one should not practice only what they know, but enter into the arena of what one cannot do. The former helps build confidence while the latter reduces arrogance and unnecessary pride.

I personally believe when doubts surface and questions like 'why' is it taking so long appear it is a call toward understanding oneself at a very deep and profound level. If we can 'catch' ourselves just at that second and remain open rather than shutting down, the same doubt that produced thoughts of inadequacy can be a vital force. Rainer Marie Rilke said it best and I will not copy-cat or even try. He wrote,

“And your doubt can become a good quality if you train it. It must become knowing, it must become criticism. Ask it, whenever it wants to spoil something for you, why something is ugly, demand proofs from it, test it, and you will find it perhaps bewildered and embarrased, perhaps also protesting. But don't give in, insist on arguments, and act in this way, attentive and persistent, every single time, and the day will come when, instead of being a destroyer, it will become one of your best workers--perhaps the most intelligent of all the ones that are building your life.”

― Letters to a Young Poet

Becoming a Master of Yoga or anything for that matter is like being a student all the time. And for those who do they are very clear about this battle and learn to practice.

~ Om tat sat.

Comparing Asanas along the Path

In yoga it is taught that comparing ourselves to others is not a good way to walk along the path. Frankly speaking having a bit of what I call 'heathly' comparison is not a bad thing. Furthermore being competitive is not necessarily wrong either. Let me explain.

First, with respect to comparing outselves I am referring to comparing asanas across the board so that we can learn not just about the posture itself, but how it works in our own bodies. Done wisely and well, this helps us better understand why when I bend my knees my back moves forward and when I lift one leg the other turns out on an angle. Second, I have never had an interest in beating someone else out I do have an interest in improving myself. I would like to stay competitive to my former selves rather than continue with the same stuff, unchallenged habits and general automatic pilot tendencies. I wish to reflect on what I am doing, why and how.

When we look at the postures of yoga we often see them as being separate from the others. There is a fascinating discovery in coming to know, however, they are much more integrated and a part of each other. Comparing asanas and movements help us not only to understand how the body works, but also how the mind gets trapped into thinking about ‘one way’ of practising. There are many ways to practice hence the large number of Masters that have emerged over time.

If we look more closely we may see that the forward bend, backbend and standing straight pose have certain elements in common. These present three different (and polar opposite) movements. When standing straight there is pressure on the heels and the legs are strong. In the standing pose of yoga (samasthithi) the buttocks and thighs are contracted, the abdomen drawn in and the sternum lifted. In forward bend, the legs are strong to support the stretch along the back, with the chest moving out as the shoulders roll down and the abdomen is moving inward to support the lift and stretch in the back of waist. The spine is folding downward but essentially resembles the same way it may appear while standing. In the wheel (a familiar backbend to many), the feet are strong and the thighs are pressing upward. There is more pressure on the waist and back, which is not felt while standing or folding forward. However, the movement of the abdomen as well as the arms lengthening as if they were beside your body while standing is similar. Gradually folding back and into a forward pose can begin to feel like a continuum; different beads on the same mala (a garland used for meditation).

In my classes, I teach people to sit in a vajrasana (kneeling pose) or sukhasan (a comfortable cross-legged position if required) between the postures they are practicing. The purpose of this is to return to a calm inner place and to feel the affects of the asana. An equally important objective, however, is to lead the student indirectly to the threshold of their own mind. If the teacher points out to the student where they are not breathing and where they are approaching the asana with a “fixed” perception it usually does not penetrate the students' mind. This is why at a certain point (unlike the conventional Western way of teaching), the yoga teacher lets the student explore on their own. Self-discovery and self-reliance are two of the best gifts that yoga can offer. I do not believe that the teacher's role is to try to define anyone's practice. Suggestions and insructional points are a must, but the entire premise of a yoga class is to create an atmosphere conducive for self-exploration.

While it may appear like an abstract view for some, it is certainly more of an approach that will nurture what yoga intends to provide. That is, a path to know what works, what does not, how your body reacts and to discipline the mind from its continuous identification with "me", "I" and "other".

One of the greatest points that is often missed is that the teacher guides the student toward being their own inner guide. It is the understanding you have all you need to practice and to travel along the path. What has not happened is the knowledge that this is actually the case.

Meet Your Edge, Explore It and Go Overboard

"Consistent practice leads to changing perspectives. An altered perspective leads to taking greater risks and not just meeting but going over the edge."
While practising the postures it is becoming popular to hear teachers and students talk about meeting 'the edge.' This is usually in reference to the place where you feel challenged or that elicits fear and/or resistance. It can also refer to the place where you are holding back, not letting go and wanting to make it happen in 'your' way. We may perceive our edges as the limit in which we can only physically bend. But what about internal edge? The places of fear and the areas we dislike, ignore, neglect and reject within ourselves?

These are also edges but because they are internal (and ingrained reactions, responses and behaviors) they are far more difficult to explore.

The edge really then can be understood in a number of ways. The main point from what I have understood with my teacher is that this is the place you need to stay; not run away from. Moreover, it is not so much the external edge (that was the edge that got you there) but the internal one we need to turn our gaze (the drithi) toward.

In teaching backbending and in particular the drop-back from standing to wheel the edge or external limit is often reached very quickly. In other words, it is such a challenging move for many students that fears and feelings of doubt surface rapidly. This is the internal edge and quite often the place where many give up or run away. Looked upon from a different perspective it can also become the perfect place to explore 'the edge' and therefore our perceptions.

The zen story about the overflowing tea cup reminds us about how we need to shift our perspective. If the teacher keeps pouring tea into a full cup it will continue to overflow; there being no room for growth or expansion. The same is true when we come to the teacher with fixed notions or want to force the body into a prescribed shape with only an external viewpoint. Lacking an internal focus or awareness in both conditions is like the tea that spills over the cup, onto the floor and into the sewer.

So when the edge appears and we are faced with how to move beyond it, it may become counter-productive if in fact we are not able to undo, let go and challenge our 'known' perspectives. It is like being too full, however, at the same time still wanting more. People tend to forget that the whole purpose of yoga practice (including yogasana) is not to continue to "get stuff" but rather to let go and loosen up. Practice is far from being about acquiring more tools as it is about un-doing and un-learning.

Trying then to push past the edge usually does not work. It will surface again in another posture. Forcing it will not work because the physical muscles have not been trained to endure it and the mind is not familiar with what is happening. Iyengar once wrote you cannot tell the knee to bend with the brain. While everyone may want to learn the classic lotus pose it is not doable with this approach. Iyengar suggests in a very poetic like fashion to study and understand the intelligence of the knee; slowly removing its stiffness. The limits we come across in practice whether in the back or the knee (re: the physical edge or mental one) can be understood as a relative point in time, practice and space. It is subject to change. But more often we tend to perceive it as something solid and not subject to change with time and practice.

Of course writing all of this is just a bunch of words. How does it apply to actual practice? Here are a few ideas to kick around. However, do bear in mind that not every suggestion will be suitable for all. In fact, the cookie-cutter approach leaves many people thinking yoga is only for the born flexible. These are only a few starting points from how to approach the standing pose into the wheel.

Contract and relax the muscles of the buttocks and legs. This is one part of two. The second part is to allow the spine to rise and fall and become aware of this being the natural tendency. The contraction/relaxation should be done over a series of breathings not up/down in rapid movements. It works better to hold the pose, breathe and contract followed by relaxing while breathing and isolating certain muscles over each other. Re: the legs contract and the buttocks relax.

Train your mind to never stop feeling and thinking of the breath. Every move (whether it is big or small) is generated by the breath. This is how it really goes whether you are aware of it or not. Learning to “wait for the breath” and then combining with the body is challenging. This method will aid you in learning to stay longer without letting the mind direct the posture. It is a way of understanding how the prana (the vital force) is more powerful than the physical body and its fluctuations.

While practising consider the central theme(s) of yoga beyond the flexibility of the body. It is the teachings about how the mind is a container of fluctuations. This should not be misunderstood as suppression or denial. It is through the physical body we are working. However, it is not through the physical body alone that you will move the body deeper. It is by channelling the energy, the prana, focusing the mind and then shaping it with the body.