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| Ok, I'm a little excited, I just did the full primary for the first time, with full vinyasa as well! Yippee!! I know very well that it's a bit un-yogini-like to rejoice in this, since it's pretty meaningless how many poses I can or can't do, and it's all the process that matters, but gee, I'm just so pleased that my efforts have paid off to a degree and I had the endurance to keep up and do it from start to finish. It was during a led class so the pace was pretty fast since we were doing it all in 90 or 100 minutes, and some of the poses I was doing for the first time, so it was a bit disorienting after supta kurmasana, but I pulled it off. My feeling is that supta kurmasana is really the "peak" in the series and that the rest of the primary asanas come fairly easily after that one. At least, to me they did, in comparison.
I'm also pleased to report that my jump forward to standing forward bend has suddenly morphed into a float and I land with straight legs, I'm not sure how it happened but it was actually an effortless effort to do it properly. I was also able to jump back into chatturanga dandasana directly rather than starting in plank and lowering down, although that didn't keep up throughout the practice as I started to get a bit tired towards the end and started to think I was going to smash my face into the ground,  . I also did my first chakrasanas, which I'd never bothered to try before, and I was stuck at first and my teacher was just about to help me push off my hands when I succeeded on my own!
Of course, there is a HUGE difference between doing and doing well, so I still have ages of work ahead of me before I can say I have really gotten the hang of the first series, but I'm prepared for that! I think in my mysore sessions this week, I'm going to pick a particular aspect of practice to really focus on for each day (like ujjayi breath one day, mula bandha the next, etc.) to try and get a deeper understanding of each pose and how they affect these things. As for particular poses, I messed up my garba pindasana again, I got my arms through (my teacher helped pull the second one) but then toppled over on my side on my first roll back and I was stuck, so I pulled my arms out, much to my teacher's dismay... Oh well, next time. I'm also having a hard time with urdhva padmasana as I'm always on the verge of rolling backwards for some reason and get really afraid of hurting my neck or something, so that definitely needs some particular attention. And I can't cross my feet alone in supta kurmasana. And every single pose needs a lot of work, but it wouldn't be any fun if it came naturally!
Thanks for sharing in my jubilation even for a moment! Feel free to share your own recent victories or reminisce about the first time you did the full primary or anything else.
 sp |
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| Well I got up into pincha mayurasana (at the wall) all by myself yesterday, so that was pretty awesome for me. Yet today, my handstand just wouldn't come, in spite of having floated up for several months now. Some days you're on, some days you're off. Either way, you're always you.  Congrats, sp, on your victory! I like your idea of picking a different focus for your practice each time as you described, different ways of approaching the same end result. So this Mysore class is basically a supervised personal practice, yes? I'd never heard of such a thing before here, but then again, I don't practice strict Astanga. Sounds like a wonderful learning environment.  |
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| Hi SP,
Very impressive. Well done!
Jonathon |
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| Hi OM,
Yeah, Mysore is really quite amazing and addictive... I had a hard time adjusting to the idea at first, but once I overcame a certain sense of intimidation, it's gone wonderfully. I had been forwarned by my teacher and others here that many people who start attending Mysore then want nothing to do with led classes, and it seems to be happening to me a bit. I still go to led classes 2-3 times a week, but prefer Mysore the other 4-5 times. It really allows you to practice your way. And yeah, I guess it could be called supervised personal practice, but it's different. Since you are someone who is so in tune with "energy", I think you would appreciate it. Even though you are practicing at your own pace and focused on your own thing, you feel the presence and intensity of the other students in various sensory ways (like feeling their heat, or the slight movement of the air they create, or hearing the movement of their breath, etc.). At times, I find myself distracted a bit because of visual stimuli, but I'm getting better at focusing inwards since I'm not already tuned outwards because I'm listening to verbal instructions as I would in a led class. Sometimes, my whole practice is almost unassisted, with the teacher only stopping by me a couple of times, and other times, he spends a lot of time modifying me - it seems as though it's one day off, one day on, like the first day I'm given space to define my own practice, and he observes, and the next day he comes to guide me further or correct me on something particular (usually, it's a theme that continues through many poses, so that for example, in one session, I'm being reminded to pull my ribs in over and over again, or my shoulders are being adjusted in every other pose, etc.), and then the following day I'm left alone again, I suppose to assimilate and develop on my own. I find it really very amazing and fulfilling. I guess this form of practice is unique to ashtanga, as it is called mysore after the way ashtanga is taught by Jois in Mysore... In some ways, it feels like having a private lesson since you are not given any instructions that don't apply to you, it's really about your own place, your own body, your own pace.
I'm a convert, anyways. And if you should ever consider trying to learn the primary series as part of your exploration of the various styles of yoga, I hope you get the opportunity to attend a few of these mysore sessions too... I imagine that it depends greatly on the quality of the teacher, however. I'm very priviledged as I have great teachers. I usually practice under the supervision of my main teacher, who is certified, or his son (who is not certified, but was born in Mysore and has been living yoga his entire life since both his parents are certified instructors), and occasionally his wife. I really enjoy having more than one teacher to study under too, as they each seem to have a slightly different focus when they come to adjust me, and a different approach too.
I'm anxious to see what my Mysore session will be like tomorrow now that I've done the full primary - I wonder if my teacher will let me/make me do it to the end, or if he will have me stop at supta kurmasana again as he has been doing. That's another particular thing about mysore - in principle, you are not supposed to move on to the next asana until you have reached a certain level of proficiency in the last asana, which is determined by the instructor who then "gives" you the next asana when he feels you are ready. In my first mysore session, I was told to stop at navasana, and have since added bhujapidasana, kurmasana and supta kurmasana... and one time, I tried garba pindasana, but that was a failure so I didn't do it again (personal choice).
Congrats OM on your success in pincha mayurasana, I recall how inversions are a challenge for you on a psychological level (rather than physical), so that's really great. I used to practice pincha mayurasana on my own, but I've stopped until I get to that point under supervision as I think this could be practiced very poorly and dangerously... I'm tempted to try it just to see if it comes easier to me now though. But I agree with you, on some days certain things seem to come much more naturally, and other times the exact same things pose a whole new challenge. That's what's great about it. And in many ways, that's what makes ashtanga amazing. When I first heard about ashtanga, I really thought that I would get very bored with a fixed sequence that you repeat every day. I certainly have not found that to be the case, and even more importantly, I'm beginning to feel like doing the same sequence every day allows one to experience more fully the changes in one's body and spirit on a day to day and long term level. It's like taking out the variability in the asanas allows for everything else about the practice to become even more salient. I don't know if that makes sense to anyone but me, but this is how I've been living it. Since I am slightly different every single time I do yoga, as I am a being in constant evolution (as we all are!), my practice is new and unique every single time despite being, in an explicit way, identical...
And lastly, thanks Jonnie, it's a small step really, but it feels like a huge one.
Thanks for listening to me rant! sp
Edited by slowpie6 2007-02-18 2:52 PM
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| slowpie6 - 2007-02-18 2:50 PM It's like taking out the variability in the asanas allows for everything else about the practice to become even more salient. I don't know if that makes sense to anyone but me, but this is how I've been living it. Since I am slightly different every single time I do yoga, as I am a being in constant evolution (as we all are!), my practice is new and unique every single time despite being, in an explicit way, identical... Makes perfect sense to me. As my teacher has said many times, the only consistent thing about life is change. Personally, I never tire of something as basic as downward dog, of what I discover when I'm in it, of how I feel different from one time to the next. And that's only one asana. As Jonnie put it so wisely "I would add that if your practise was to consist only of five rounds of sun salutations A & B (total 10), with the correct alignment, breathing and use of bandha, then that would serve you well for at least the next year." That one sentence has really had an impact on my practice, I must admit. If I didn't before, I definitely now look for that depth in every class I take, every pose I practice. So thanks, Jonnie, from me as well!
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| I'm also pleased to report that my jump forward to standing forward bend has suddenly morphed into a float and I land with straight legs, I'm not sure how it happened but it was actually an effortless effort to do it properly.
I remember when I first tried to jump, ouch. I had a little too much gusto and collapsed. I also jolted my arms really bad. I stopped attempting to jump until yesterday. I did ok, I didn't fall down and it didn't hurt my arms.
I know this is also un-yogi-like but I am excited about the prospect of starting the primary series (someday). I look at some of the poses and think, oh I want to try that, I bet that feels sooo good. This looking forward to trying those poses is not taking away from what I am doing now. I wake up excited that I am doing the sun salutations. I get a woo hoo I get to do yoga today.
I have been picking particular aspects to do as well. I keep a little journal of poses I am working on and what I need to correct and what I feel when I do a pose. It's been really helpful.
Congrats!
I am hoping to find a mysore style class here. How does that work if you're a beginner? Does someone go through the poses at the front of the room or do you have to know what the poses are to do this style?
Edited by osutuffy 2007-02-19 2:21 AM
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| Hi OM,
It's nice to know that someone reads my posts
Jonathon |
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| slowpie6 - 2007-02-18 2:50 PM And if you should ever consider trying to learn the primary series as part of your exploration of the various styles of yoga, I hope you get the opportunity to attend a few of these mysore sessions too... sp -- sent you a PM |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 1738
   
Location: right where I'm supposed to be | This is all so inpiring that I'm going to look for a mysore class right this moment. I hope there's one local
I did a 20 mile radius search and nothing. Can someone suggest how I might search on the internet more thoroughly within this radius? Is there a site? There has to be someone within 25 miles who teaches mysore?????? 
Edited by mishoga 2007-02-20 7:57 AM
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| Congrats! That's great! |
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| Hi mishoga, I am not sure exactly how you could find a class, but perhaps you could search through the authorized teacher database here: http://www.ashtanga.com/html/classes.html#usa . From there, you could try to track down teachers that are in your area, like finding their studio by using their name in a google search, and look at their course listing. I'm not sure if authorized teachers (as opposed to certified) regularly teach mysore - I know that at my studio, it is the certified teacher (and occasionally his wife who is also certified) who teaches. His son (who is not yet even authorized, I think, does teach too. But I think that it takes a very thorough mastery of the ashtanga series (all of them, as students in mysore work on all of the series) to be able to teach this style of class. The other teachers at my shala do not teach in the mysore style, in fact they actually attend as students pretty much every day...
I'm very touched that sharing my experience has been inspiring to you, thanks! Makes the endless ramble I'm prone to seem worthwhile!
sp
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| I spoke too soon, it seems that almost all the teachers listed have links to their studio and e-mails as well, so it might be even easier than I thought. Good luck in your search.
And thanks, joscmt!
sp |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 1738
Location: right where I'm supposed to be | I can't find a mysore class local. I have to call the studios and see if they know of anyone around. 
STINKY!!!!! |
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Victory!!
