Asana practice – part 4
Traditionally, except for the surya namaskar, all asana poses are being held over a period of time with deep focusing inwardly in a relaxed manner without challenging the highest ability of our physical body. And if we continue to practice for some times, the overall level of stamina, strength and flexibility of the physical body is improving from moment to moment as we keep training the body regularly. This will allow us to be able to perform some asanas that we couldn’t do at the beginning. And we will feel easier and more comfortable in each asana and can hold the asanas longer than before. The physical limitations also become less.
We will also be able to perform some other more complicated asanas without the notion of being in competition with somebody or challenging our physical ability or to show off – “look, this is what I can do”. And there is no frustration or disappointment about what we cannot do yet. There is no “failure” in yoga practice. It is just that we cannot do it at the present moment or the body and mind is not prepared enough to do certain poses. We should keep trying and keep practicing until we master the technique for performing the asanas.
The sequence of the Surya Namaskar (the sun salutation) are a continuous flow of 12 movements for the purpose of warming up the body to perform asanas after that; to improve blood circulation; to improve the cardiovascular system (stamina); to improve the suppleness of the muscles, tendons, joints and ligaments (flexibility); to maintain and improve muscles tone (strength); for detoxification; to improve concentration and to have a healthy body and mind.
That’s why sun salutation is a very good foundation practice for any new or old practitioner who wants to improve overall fitness and it allows us to be able to do all the other asana poses easily and effortlessly, which is the main goal in our asana practice – to be able to hold any asana for a long period of time comfortably and effortlessly.
In hot and humid weather, we will be sweating a little or a lot depending on individual’s body system when we practice asana especially doing the sequence of sun salutation. But whether we will be sweating or not sweating is not an issue at all in asana practice. Sweat is just a by product during the activity of the physical body or the mind – sometimes we will be sweating even when we are in stillness but the mind is very busy with fears and anxieties. Sweat glands are being stimulated when we are in fear or nervousness and there is chemical exchange in the body system, and thus sweat is produce as a waste product to bring out the toxin. Toxins in the body need to be flushed out from the body through the kidneys in the pee, through the liver in the shit, and through the skin in the sweat.
Even when we don’t feel or see the sweat on our skin in a dryer climate, sweat is still being produced during physical activities but it evaporated very fast into the air that we didn’t notice it. Anyway even if we don’t sweat much, toxins will still be flushed out from pee and shit.
That’s why it is advisable to drink plenty of water after asana practice to replenish the dehydration after physical activities and to help flush out the toxins that had been released from the practice.
Since yoga asana is a gentle form of activity, and there should be sufficient time for the body to be cooled down and return to a normal state during the final relaxation, and so there is no harm to drink water immediately after the session but not advisable to drink too hot or too cold temperature drinks. This might crash with the body system even when we didn’t do any activities.
Anyhow, it is not advisable to practice asana under hot sun and in a stuffy room or in a room that is too high temperature (such like enclosed room in a hot climate place) or too low temperature (such like air-conditioning enclosed room). The place should be airy and accessible to fresh air but not expose to strong wind and sand storm. All these conditions will be very uncomfortable for our body and our mind. It will be better if the place is secluded from noisy street and human traffic for easier concentration and relaxation. Especially while people are attending an asana class to learn how to practice yoga asana, the students need to be able to hear and see the teacher’s instructions and explanations clearly.
But at the end, in our own private practice, we are learning not to be disturbed by the surrounding of noises and activities. Of course at the beginning of our practice, we need to find a suitable and comfortable place for us to start our practice. Later on, there should be no problem for us to practice in a very disturbing environment also if we can’t find a suitable place for our own practice.
Empty stomach will be good for asana practice. Drinking water during the practice is not advisable also because it will be very uncomfortable for the body when we do inverted poses or certain poses that are compressing the stomach.
Wearing lose comfortable natural fibre clothing will be fine. We shouldn’t be looking for any particular design or branded fashion as long as we can stretch and move our limbs and the body easily.
A piece of cloth or a towel to cushion our body and to keep away from dirt on the floor is good enough for a session of asana practice. A clean and even floor will be good even though it is not a big problem with uneven floor. Like practice on the sandy beach or on a hill slope or on a grassy field. A floor full of insects crawling all over the place and on our body is not very comfortable too. Or if there is sand covering all over our face and we are breathing in lots of dust is very uncomfortable as well.
Always start with an initial relaxation for the body and the mind. Bring the awareness to the present moment focusing on the breathing. Be aware of the inhalation and the exhalation, and the movement of the abdomen when we breathe in and out. Forget the past and the future. Forget our name, status, culture, belief, responsibility and what we like and don’t like. Forget how we felt earlier, what we did, saw, talk and heard earlier. Slow down the breathing to calm down the body and the mind.
Once we are calm and relax, we can concentrate better, learn better, remember what we have learnt and the body can absorb the benefits of the exercise much better.
Gently and slowly move into each pose and hold it for a period of time as long as possible comfortably according to our own ability. Observe the breathing through out the whole session. Let go any judgment, comparison, criticism, competition and expectation.
Take a rest for at least 30 to 60 seconds in between each pose. Allow the body to restore and re-stabilize the prana before moving into another pose. Allow the body to adjust to different body positions which affect the blood pressure differently. Especially after the inverted pose, never lift the head up or stand up immediately or suddenly. This might cause dizziness. People who have low blood pressure will easily get dizziness if changing the body position too quickly like stand up suddenly from standing forward bend or holding the standing poses like warrior pose 1 and 2 for too long. They need to move the leg muscles or lying down for helping the blood to flow back to the upper body and the head effectively.
Never rush into poses or try to do as many of poses as possible in a rushing manner and without having enough rest in between each asana.
Remember to breathe evenly through the nose in all the poses. Many people tend to hold their breath (it’s a normal reaction) while in the pose and this will create discomfort, headache and dizziness. Some people also tend to exhale through the mouth, and this will cause losing lots of Prana from the mouth.
In all the poses, besides focusing on the breath, it is very important to relax all the other muscles except the muscles that are supporting the pose. Especially the facial muscles, the jaw, the teeth are not clench tight together, the mouth, the eyes, the eyebrows, the space in between the eyebrows and the forehead. This will help to relax the mind and make the whole practice so much easier and relaxing.
Observe any sensations that we feel during the practice without identifying with them, let them come, change and disappear. We don’t need to give any value to any of these sensations (whether comfortable or uncomfortable sensation), not to label them as good or bad, not to categorize them as comfortable or uncomfortable, not to generate like and dislike, and not to react to these sensations. They are very temporary and don’t last long.
During the practice, especially at the beginning stage, we will feel discomfort here and there through out the body while doing the poses, but after the practice finished, those uncomfortable sensations will be gone. What left is a feeling of lightness in the body and calmness in the mind.
