Class Theme- Week 1 May 2016- Poetry in Motion

This week I return to another reflection by Liz Huntley in Elephant Journal.  (http://www.elephantjournal.com/2013/11/words-to-breathe-by-10-poems-to-ignite-your-yoga-practice-liz-huntly/), this time on her chosen poem for movement.  I cannot say it better, as she remarks” As long as we are alive, we are in motion.  The transition between asanas, the care with which we move in and out of a pose, are as important as the poses themselves.  Even within the held space of an asana, we find the dance of the breath; the constant subtleties of tuning that align the body [the self] more harmoniously.”  
 
I love the phrase “held space of an asana”.  Just as in conversation, there are subtle and refined skills to effectively hold the space for all parties to be heard.  For this to be achieved, we need to be anchored in the present moment, not anticipating a rebuttal, not pre judging words yet unspoken. 
 
And so it is with our yoga practice.  We hold the space for ourselves with each breath: we listen, we probe, we feel, we begin to understand.  We practice unconditional friendship and compassion toward ourselves so we can then take it into the world.