You know what I've noticed?
Just because I was doing something right last year... or last month... or yesterday... that is no guarantee that I don't have to worry about it today! I've been through this cycle so many times, but it always amazes me a little bit. First you learn how to do something. Then you have to concentrate really hard to make sure that you're doing it. Then it gets easier. Then maybe it gets so easy that you're like "oh great, I can totally do that now, I don't have to worry about it so much." Then you start thinking about other details in the posture. And then you wake up one day, months and months later, and go "uh oh... what the %$#& happened to my locked standing leg in standing bow pose?!" And boom, back to the beginning. It was SO obvious that I forgot all about it.
That's why we have to exercise CONSTANT VIGILANCE!!! (And yes, of course that is an intentional Harry Potter reference. But seriously.) You've got to listen to the dialogue word by word. Every time. If you realize that (uh oh...) your instructors might be leaving something out, then you have to remind yourself of it. Every time. Even (especially!) if it's something totally obvious that you figured out how to do ages ago. Like locking the knee. Like fixing the eyes. (I busted myself for slacking on both of those things this week.)
I practiced to a recording of one of Craig's TT classes one time, and he said something at the beginning that I loved: "Be patient, be passionate, be vigilant. No fear." I thought that was perfect. No fear...
4 comments:
Yes, this happens all the time to me! It's weird because it's not that you don't know how to correctly do the posuture, as you've done it right before...I think it must be because there are so many things going on with different body parts for each pose, and sometimes the focus slips to certain parts rather than ALL parts.
But when you've considered every element of the posture, that's when it feels right. Example: if I don't focus on what I should be doing with my standing leg, my other leg, my stomach, my hands, my arms, my chest, my shoulders and my gaze-I will without fail, fall out of Standing Head to Knee!
ah...no fear. I need to remember that in my standing head to knee. I'm a bit fearful of that very last step. My teacher Thurs night coaxed me to try it and I fell right over. More from fear than my body not being able or strong enough. So much to learn!!!
Shabs - exactly. ALTHOUGH - I do think there's a point at which, after thinking about all those separate details, you have to let go of all of them and just kind of SEE the posture, or FEEL the posture. You assimilate all the details, and then eventually, even if only for a moment, you let your brain step out of the way and you just DO the posture, and BE in the posture. There's a fine line, right? Sometimes you have to think about EVERYTHING, and other times you need to stop overthinking and just DO.
yogachickie - Oh, I hear you!! I'm always just reminding myself - what is there to be scared of?! What's the worst thing that can happen? You put your other foot down on the floor? So what?!? We make ourselves fall just because we are so scared of falling. Trying is scary because it might not work. But NOTHING happens if you don't just try and try and keep trying.
Vigilance and HUMILITY. How about the times that you are in a posture and looking at yourself saying "Wow... there I am, I'm doing it! Why doesn't the instructor see me and praise me??" BOOM. You fall right out. But vigilance seems to help take the ego out. If you are constantly reviewing your body. Is my knee locked? Am I kicking hard enough? Am I stretching forward? Face relaxed, etc? If all of these things happen with total vigilance, We don't have time to let the ego get in the way!
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