I am ashamed to say, the first time I experienced a long lived experience of contentment was a full 10 years after starting yoga. From the start, Yoga made me feel good and I always enjoyed the rush and peace that came with the physical yoga practice. But it never felt like it lasted long enough. And so around the age of 30, while living in London, I was moved to start a more sustained daily pranayama (yoga breathing) practice. It was winter, the days were late to start and the mornings freezing, but I would wake around 5 (no mean feat when the sun itself doesn’t even bother to show up til 8.30), and sit in a mound of blankets about 10 inches from the radiator. The house was quiet and still and I would breathe through a series of practices.
Never had life felt so light. Nothing was too much trouble, I felt my heart opened to all people and should conflict arise, I could easily give them the benefit of the doubt and wish them well. I generally had a smile on my face and heart as I floated with grace through the days, and the London underground. Life felt gooooood. I discovered it is not for nothing is contentment (Santosha) considered to be one of the 8 rungs of yoga
I have found yoga breathing is an excellent way to ‘trick’ the mind into meditation. For most of us with active minds who find instructions like ‘empty the mind’ fairly unhelpful, it helps to give the mind a little job to do, (say, count the breath, or extend the exhalations) and this will drop us into the present moment awareness. Present moment awareness is the key to inner peace, as many thousands of grinning buddhist monks can tell us.
What is contentment anyway? Well, it’s better than feeling happy, which we tend to tie to external objects and people and which we know. Contentment is a deeper, quieter and more ongoing experience. It’s more clearly something from within. It’s something which empowers us and which a change in circumstance (death, divorce, scratched bumper bar) can less easily strip away.
So, to help coerce the minds of my students away from fuss, fizz and clutter and into contentment is why I generally include a breathing practice or two in my yoga classes. And it’s the motivation for this Saturday’s workshop on discovering your own breath. We will look at classical yoga techniques (and and some less classical fun ones too) and each student will leave with a short home practice to suit their needs, goals and time available. Spaces still available Saturday 2-4 and more info below.
If your body is grumbling after Winter, check out our class timetable, and consider signing up for early morning classes for October.
And be proactive – stop your mind grumbling over school holidays. It’s just not fair mums have to miss out on their health over the holidays so read below for 4 ways to keep the cobwebs away.
-Christina