Monday, November 15, 2010

My Morning Practice

One of the intents of this blog was to resurface some of my old writings on yoga.  Here is one on a morning practice and why it has to be in the morning.

My morning practice.

Most of us know that if we are going to integrate a yoga practice into our lives we are going to have to eventually establish a morning practice.  All of us who have ever tried to do this know that establishing a home practice can be perhaps the most difficult, challenging and heart wrenching aspect of yoga.  So the question often arises – why mornings, why at home?  Why isn’t going to class in the evenings once or twice a week in the evenings enough?

One answer is of course tradition.  By tradition we face the east as the sun rises and salute it as it begins its ascent.  This salute to the sun as it rises in the morning is so ingrained into the tradition of yoga that the front of the body is called the east side of the body (purva) and the back of the body is called the west side of the body and poses such as paschimottasana (seated forward bend) actually translate to mean extreme western stretch.   But the tradition of rising at dawn and saluting a sun god that we are not a hundred per cent sure is going to feel like rising that day is far removed from most of us practicing yoga today so why does the emphasis on a morning practice continue.

From experience I can cite hundreds of reasons – but three really matter.  One is that a morning practice is like preventive medicine.  An evening practice, while often wonderful, fun and dynamic, is more like a treatment plan for the stresses of your day whereas a morning practice sets you up in such a way that those stresses are minimized before they even happen.  The second reason to practice in the mornings is that the mind, like the day and life around you is quieter and clearer and more at peace.   In the seemingly hopeless battle to control the negative chatter of the mind starting with a clearer plate just helps.  And the third major reason is that a morning practice will be your own practice.  By practicing in the morning at home by yourself you claim ownership of your practice and mark the maturity of your yoga.  So tradition aside it is time to start.  Just take five minutes in the morning to salute to the sun and then let it all grow from there.

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