Practice as Ritual

Based on the article by Nevrin, my yoga practice can be analyzed as a ritual through each Nevrin’s points of consciousness, rehabituation, flow, embodiment  and kinesthesia. Once the mind is at peace and is at ease during the practice, being able to change the physical body seems to come easier. After getting use to changing positions and breathing movements together to the point where it comes naturally, I feel that our movement and attention to movement does produce more of a sense of calmness and creates a deeper understanding of our surroundings. The more I practice, the more I feel comfortable in my own skin doing the set of postures. Subsequently, after practice it reflects how I feel of myself on a day to day basis. This is where I believe kinesthesia comes into play because it provides us with a “less rigid sense of self.” Although I have only been practicing for some time now, I have felt more of a sense of full embodiment meaning I see myself as a “full human being”, or what I like to believe is what it feels like to feel like a “full human being.” The flow of yoga practice is definitely something that will take me time to get used to. But this element of yoga is definitely one component that makes the yoga experience seen as a  ritual. To be able to master the flow ritual as a function of the practice means to be able to practice yoga with full mind and body intact without thinking about either of them simultaneously. This can be difficult if you are a beginner to yoga because most of our attention is set on understanding on how to perfect the postures properly.

This ritual function can change the nature and intensity of my yoga practice because it can allow to reach certain aspects that I could not otherwise reach if I was engaging in another form of physical activity. For example, hyper-focus is something that I would rather enjoy being able to do in my yoga practice, but I feel as if this would not be attainable even for the most experienced. Once certain qualities are mastered in yoga such as perfection of breathing, postures, meditation, I believe it will make the overall impact of my yoga experience mean that much more and make me feel much more intact with my mind and its ability to focus greatly on what it going on around me.

Being able to undergo the ritual progression  of separation, transition, and incorporation is what makes yoga so much more than just a physical practice. As humans, we really don’t know much about how our bodies are actually capable of. Practicing yoga helps us to empower these embodied experiences. Although I have only been practicing for a few weeks, I can feel a positive difference in how my body moves. I focus on my movement which in turn makes me realize that this movement that I am accomplishing is just one of many forms that can shape my mind, body, and energy into a completely different realm that lies outside of just the physical aspects of it all.

After watching the short documentary Ashtanga, NY, many people would come to Pattabhi Jois’ classes because the session was so ritual based. Emotionally, it seemed as though these people enjoyed the increased sense of community relation within each other. They had stated how amazing it feels, even in a hot room, how everyone is doing the exact same thing at the exact same time for the exact same purpose; maybe it created a sense of “shared community” among people who have like minds. The way he taught his classes seemed to heal those who never though they were capable of doing much. For example, one lady who was in two car accidents had broken her hip twice and had a few knee surgeries was able to indulge in embodiment so much that she was able to experience the health of her body again going back to normal.