![]() ![]() It is worth pointing out the the Yoga tradition itself has a similar concept or image, that of Ha and Tha or Hatha. We are using this concept primarily to help differentiate two modes or approaches to the practice of Yoga. Below I offer some opposites to get a feeling for what can be described as Yin and what, Yang. It explains reality in terms of "unity", the Tao (a deeply mysterious and difficult to pin down concept) dividing into two or the duality of Yin and Yang. This concept or in fact image comes from the Chinese Taoist tradition. Sometimes stillness is useful, sometimes dynamic, sometimes no practice at all! Yin Yoga can be preparation for a more active practice to allow the heart, mind and body to arrive into the practice space as well as a wind-down form after a more active Yoga. Discriminative intelligence is always necessary in the application of Yoga.Ī Yin or restorative practice can be seen as a tool in the tool box of methods and techniques we have at our disposal as yoga practitioners. It may be we are tired and feel blocked and stuck and what we actually need is a dynamic practice to raise our levels of energy and break through various tensions and blocks. However, a dynamic practice is indispensable in developing a stronger body, fitness and stamina. ![]() A restorative practice gives the body chance to open and soften and release tension without much investment of energy. A quiet practice largely based around floor postures and minimal muscular effort is useful, especially to counter an already busy life-style with a lot of activity. More recently I have been thinking in terms a Yin Yoga as a restorative practice. For me, it satisfies the pscychonaut within. Each posture offers its own unique "experience" so we are presented with an ever-changing pattern of experience to explore. Yin Yoga can feel like a series of short five minute meditations, with enough movement and change of internal physical sense experience to keep the mind engaged, but not too much movement so that we get lost in the busy-ness of constant posture change. It was obvious at the beginning Yin Yoga was a useful practice, primarily in terms of countering the tendency towards a "pushy", aggressive practice (common to many of us in the modern era) and as a bridge between an active, dynamic Yang practice to the stillness of a sitting meditation practice. She and I were running yoga weekends for teachers to share whatever we were currently exploring or learning in our yoga and teaching practice. ![]() I was introduced to Yin Yoga by my yoga buddy, Padmadarshini who was just back from working with Sarah Powers and Paul Grilley in California. I would like to acknowledge the work of Paul Grilley and Sarah Powers with respect to the art of Yin Yoga. I want to thank all my teachers, especially my first teacher, Dharmacari Narapriya, who first taught me, with so much playfulness and commitment. I feel fortunate to have encountered these arts so early on. I want to thank my father for first inspiring me to take up and self-learn the art of Yoga as a teenager. ![]()
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