I have finally begun a Mysore style yoga practice. Ummm.... what does that mean? Great question...
Mysore is a teaching style of Ashtanga yoga, named for the place in India where it originated. In a Mysore class, beginning to advanced level students practice side by side at their own pace. Each individual receives one-on-one instruction from teachers who walk around and make adjustments as the students progress through a set sequence of postures, starting with the Primary Series, which is a series of about 75 asanas done in a flowing Vinyasa style. The entire series takes about an hour and a half to two hours to complete. It begins with sun salutations and moves on to standing poses, seated poses, inversions and backbends before relaxation.
This style of teaching is very different than the traditional guided classes that most of us are used to where an instructor calls out the positions and slowly leads you through asanas. A Mysore class, in contrast, looks chaotic and confused. Some people are standing, some are seated, some are moving through a vinyasa, while others hold a pose. The self-lead practice style allows each peron to set her own pace and to take time to work on difficult asanas.
In a Mysore class, each student can only go as far as her body will allow. When a posture proves too challenging, the student will finish that day's practice. The idea is that repetition will allow one to eventually access the posture and move on, which is why a Mysore teacher ususally requires students to attend at least 4 classes a week.
When I found out I was moving to DC, I decided that I needed to have a healthy way to deal with the change. And having just come off training for a half-marathon, I also longed for something that would challenge me. A close friend has been practicing Mysore for years and I have watched it transform her in wonderful ways. Selfishly, I longed for something that would work a similar magic in my life. So, I googled "Mysore and Washington, DC" and came up with two studios that offer Mysore-style Ashtanga.
Many people think yoga is yoga is yoga. But there are vast differences between styles of practice. Mysore is not that common and also requires a heafty morning commitment. Which meant that in order to actually start a practice, I needed to live within a close walk of one of these two studios. Which also meant that I would have an hour-long commute to work each day. I struggled with this at first, but eventually realized that chosing to live close to a yoga studio is no stranger than choosing to live in a place due to its approximation to an office where you are required to go each day: you choose what's important to you. It's more important for me to be able to practice this type of yoga than to live a stone's throw from work.
Most mornings, I wake up at 5am, have a large cup of coffee and head to the studio. By the time I get in, there are already a few people deep into their practice. I grab my mat, say a quick thanks for the ability to be there, and begin. I work my way through the series of asanas, gradually warming up my body and muscles, so that I can feel myself able to reach further in certain positions, can sense that my body is adapting to these asanas. Then I get to Marichyasana A. This is where I must end my practice each day, since I cannot yet fully get into this position. Click here.
I stop myself from continuing on and repeat this same position over and over. Each day in class, the instructors come around when they see that I am close, offer me encouraging words, prep me for the asana and often physically move my arms into the position so that I can grasp my fingers behind my back and feel what it's like to get "the bind." There are days where I get it and we celebrate; there are other days where I don't and we sit and talk about how the body can be fickle. Then I stop and rest and repeat the same mantra that I have been saying since I started practicing: "Praise your body for doing a wonderful job, your mind for letting it happen."
As I leave the studio each day, I am amazed at how alive I feel; how fully I occupy the space within my own body; how peaceful everything seems. Yoga makes me feel strong and connected to what's around me - even if it only lasts the few steps it takes to get back to my apartment.
