In the late 70’s I was studying to become a mime in Milan, Italy. The first half of the class was always the same: moving and stretching every part the body, from the muscles of our eyes to the phalanges of our toes. As we were getting warmer and more flexible, in the second half, we were using the increased awareness of our body to put it into strange shapes and unusual sequences of motions. It was basically an exercise in controlling the body.

Yoga has similarities to this process. Controlling the body enough to put it and keep it in certain positions.

At the very least, this is what it should happen when students come to class. A slow, safe and methodical work on the body to heal it first, if necessary, than stretch it and strengthen it.

One posture at the time, one class at the time.

Every type of “Yoga”, as we call it in the West, is Hatha Yoga. Ha means sun, Tha means moon, Yoga means union. The union of positive and negative energies, of the light side and dark side, of the happy and the sad, and so on. Any Yoga practice is part of a process to bring these opposite currents in perfect equilibrium and harmony. If we accept this explanation, coming from the ancient sages of India, then we know that Yoga cannot be just another physical form of exercising.

Once we decide to take on Yoga, we already decided to do some sacred work on our self, whether we are aware of this or not. Body, Mind and Spirit will be worked on. The physical aspect is only the first and crudest step we will take, on our way to discover our Self.

A bigger, more difficult step is the work on our mind. This work will bring focus, the ability to concentrate for any length of time and mental strength, all of which will come handy in other areas of our life.

After that, when we get to the process of starving our ego, we are working on a spiritual level. This last step will change our understanding and our approach to the practice.

The mental and spiritual work can be done anytime, anywhere during the day but, for sure, a Yoga class presents several opportunities to focus on this kind of self discovery work.

Everything we do in class affects the rest of the group and its energy. There is an energy flow that a teacher sees clearly. It is initially composed by individual desires to improve our self but, in class, it becomes group energy and it will be guided towards a positive direction.

At this point, isolation should not be an option anymore.

It is the job and responsibility of the teacher to orchestrate this energy so that it stays positive, that is nurturing and strong enough for the beginners to lean on, and challenging enough for the advanced students to further their work. Either we add or detract from that energy. Either we help our self and others, or we let our issues drag our self down taking part or all the group energy with us.

The teacher will help us to find the balance between the speeding force of our will and the slowing force of our body limitations. Neither of these two forces can overwhelm nor ignore the other. If an aggressive, blind will ignores the body’s temporary limitations, a set back of some kind is around the corner waiting to happen. If we let our body’s limitations overshadow the will, a resigned perhaps lazy class with little results is what we get.

In every class, the proper balance between the two has to be found. With that, the edge of our postures is found. One class at the time this edge will be moved towards flexibility and health.

A Yoga class is therefore an opportunity.

It is a very interesting journey that everybody should take on at some point.

If you decide to come to this school, be prepared to do much more than just exercising.

I hope to see you in class!