A fellow yoga teacher recently posed a question to a group of friends, many of whom are yoga practitioners and teachers themselves. This simple yet surprisingly tricky question, “What is yoga?”, elicited a wide range of responses. From simple one-word answers like “union” or “wholeness” to lengthy treatises on the historical, physical, and psychological impact of the practice, opening the door to defining the practice of yoga can sometimes lead to confusion and contradiction.
And why wouldn’t it? This is a practice whose roots are deeply embedded in pre-history, roots that were embellished and elaborated on for thousands of years before the tradition was captured in some of the well-known writings that are themselves about two thousand years old. Add to that a cultural environment supportive of experimentation and ongoing change, an intermingling with Hindu traditions, a dose of tantric philosophy (centered around the concept that the body is an expression of innate goodness and divinity), and the fitness craze of the early twentieth century to which even the yogis of India were not immune, and we find ourselves with a beautifully varied stew of philosophies and practices. As a teacher of yoga I wouldn’t want it any other way!
As an aspiring teacher beginning my training I found comfort in the opening statement of Pantanjali’s Yoga Sutras, “Atha Yoga Nushasanam”. Even this classical text from the start of the common-era invites us to join in “the inquiry of yoga”. For many, yoga is viewed as a science rather than a set of already determined practices, a platform for discovery rather than a doctrine to be followed. For me these views opened a most welcome door to experimentation and led me, through my own journey in the world of yoga, directly toward my answer to the question at hand. What is yoga? For me, yoga is nothing less than the science of being human. (In the twenty-first century the term science certainly does apply as yoga shifts in accordance with the scientific standards of our time into a practice with results that are measurable, replicable , and, in many cases, life altering).
As those of you who have undertaken a yoga practice have likely already discovered, yoga applies its own unique methodology to so many aspects of our human selves: body, breath, mind, emotions, intuition, lifestyle choices, and relationships to name a few. And why not? For thousands of years people much like us have tried and refined countless practices of breathing and meditation all with the aim of allowing themselves and their fellow beings to be more fully awake, more fully alive. Out of these practices arose spontaneous movement and a replication of that movement in the form of yoga postures as yet another doorway to full experience. There have been, in fact, so many doorways illuminated for us that question never need be “am I doing this right?” but rather “what do I want to try today?”
So what does this science of being human mean for us as individuals? How can we personally make sense of the many branches of influence yoga offers? Again, the answer is in the experiment. As we aim to awaken our fullest potential and vitality there are few “right” answers. The value of this practice lies not in precise angles and complex directions or in sculpting a perfect body (though this can be a pleasant side-effect!). It lies in using the thousands of years of experimentation that preceded us to uncover our unique potential in whatever we do. Rigid rules meant to bring you toward someone else’s idea of “right” won’t make you a better lover of life and others, writer, runner, grandparent, gardener, friend, or seeker of your heart’s delight. But a carefully guided experiment with your own distinct goals in mind just might.
~Kate Pousont Scarborough, E-RYT 500, is Director of Shelburne Falls Yoga, a Kripalu Affiliate Studio in Shelburne Falls, MA.
Green River Yoga & Movement Arts 