Enjoyment

Here’s one of the most important of all the Ten Principles of Yoga . . . enjoying oneself.

We practice yoga for various reasons – to improve our physical and mental health, to relieve stress, to become more centered. But what good is it if we don’t enjoy the process?

Do you love coming to yoga class? Do you look forward to it each day/week because it makes you feel good? Then while you’re in class, take a moment to relish this sense of enjoyment – telling yourself “this” is what I love about yoga . . . whether it’s the opening stretches or Moon Salutation or rest pose. Taking note of the things we enjoy makes our lives that much more pleasant.

Sure there will be times in yoga class when you don’t love what’s happening – we all have our “least favorite poses.” There’s nothing wrong with not liking a pose – (as long as you still at least try once to do it, or a modified version of it). I’ve found that the poses I dislike the most are the ones I need more than anything.

I’ve learned something over the years that can be applied to practically every situation, on or off the mat. If you’re stuck doing something – whether it’s frog pose or window washing or navigating a traffic jam – try to find a way to enjoy it. If there’s no clear way to “get out of it,” why waste energy hating what you’re doing? Instead, seek to find some joy in it, some benefit, no matter how small. Hating it while you’re stuck doing it will only make you more miserable.

Finding enjoyment in all the little things we do in life is a valuable practice – especially when we’re challenged to find enjoyment in a root canal, for example, or a long wait at the doctor’s office. But it can be done! And you’ll have so much more peace of mind if you do it . . . or at least try.

Gentleness

While putting the Ten Principles of Yoga into practice, be careful not to be rigid with yourself! While you’re striving to relax, be breathed, feel grounded, and everything else, you may find that you’re trying too hard – either physically, mentally, emotionally . . . or on all fronts. Be gentle with yourself!

Gentleness is a very important practice in yoga -- not pushing your body too far, and respecting your current “edge” (where anything less would feel like not-enough, but anything more would feel like too-much). Physical gentleness is not always easy, especially when we’re trying to master a new posture. Mental and/or emotional gentleness can also be a challenge – permitting yourself to be imperfect is not always a simple thing to do!

When I have trouble being gentle with myself, I imagine a much younger version of me – say ten years old – and direct the mental chatter at that little girl, rather than her grown-up counterpart. It works wonders!

Being gentle with ourselves teaches us how to be gentler with others. No one likes a bully.

Opening & Elongation

Another of the Ten Principles of Yoga is “Allowing Opening and Elongation.” When we practice yoga, we are stretching the body – gently encouraging muscles and tissues to relax, lengthen and un-knot. While we CAN force a stretch to happen, the optimal method never employs force. It is much safer – and more practical – to get into position, and then breathe and gently encourage the body to stretch at its own pace. In this way we are “allowing” the body to open and elongate, rather than “pushing” it to do so.

This one is especially applicable to life outside the yoga room. Because there too, we get the best result when we refrain from force, and instead allow things to occur at a natural pace.

Centered & Balanced

A regular yoga practice will help you feel more centered and balanced. If you tend to feel scattered, yoga will help you put the pieces back together. If you feel off-center, yoga will help to balance things out.

Yoga has a wonderful equalizing quality. It can lift sadness or calm a hyperactive mind. It can create energy or bring calm. Whatever you need, really, yoga is there to serve you. It’s your inner self guiding your outer self toward what’s best for you. As long as you don’t let your ego get in the way!

Sensing Connection

When you practice yoga, you become more aware of how things are connected in your body. For example, when you engage your abdominal muscles in a forward bend you feel your lower back relax a little bit more into the pose. That’s because your abs and low back work in tandem – one engages while the other releases. After a while, this becomes second nature.

Yoga also teaches you how your body and your emotional states are connected. When you breathe deeply and slowly, oxygenating your body, you begin to relax a little bit. In time, you automatically breathe deeply when you need to slow or calm down.

And yoga helps you to feel more connected with your fellow beings. Generally when a yoga class draws to a close, there is a warm feeling of camaraderie among the students. Sharing experiences tends to make us feel more connected . . . and this sense of connection tends to make us feel good!

A regular yoga practice attunes you to so many different connections – which in turn helps you to have a better understanding of yourself, to be more responsive to your own needs, and to be more sensitive to the needs and motivations of others. Just one more reason why yoga is so good for you!