What is Yin Yoga?

My favorite Yin pose currently is the Yin variation of butterfly pose (baddha konasana). Here's a picture of me in the pose this morning (photo by Bob).


Last week someone emailed me asking what is Yin Yoga. Yin poses are passive yoga poses. They are like sitting in a stretched position for 5 or more minutes, without trying to do anything but relax in the pose and breathe. Gravity does the work of stretching the muscles and connective tissue. If you classify yoga poses as Yin or Yang, Yin are passive poses and Yang are active poses. Paul Grilley writes "Most forms of Yoga practiced today are Yang, they emphasize muscular movement and contraction. By contrast Yin Yoga targets the connective tissue of the hips, pelvis and lower spine. Yin postures are held three to five to ten minutes at a time. This type of practice complements the more muscular styles of Yoga and is a great aid for learning to sit in meditation." ~Paul Grilley, from his website www.PaulGrilley.com

I first learned about Yin Yoga through classes with Dina Amsterdam. Dina usually starts her yoga classes with Yin poses. She also teaches a "Yin Yang Transformation" workshop once a month at Yoga Tree SF Yoga Studio, and I enjoyed one of those a couple years ago. She studies with Sarah Powers, and I went to an afternoon Yin Yoga workshop with Sarah Powers about a year and a half ago. I first learned about Paul Grilley through his "Anatomy of Yoga" DVD that I found and purchased through an internet search. After enjoying the DVD, I went to his website and learned there that he also teaches Yin Yoga. And I recently learned from Sarah Powers' website, that she first learned Yin Yoga from Paul Grilley in the 1980's when they both taught at a yoga studio in Santa Monica, CA. It was interesting to read the history of how these teachers started incorporating Yin Yoga into their practice and classes. I just know that I like being in the Yin Poses, I like how it relaxes me and teaches me to be still, and I like how my mind and body feel afterwards.

Anusara class

This morning I went to an Anusara class and I liked it very much. I made my intention "open mindedness and innocence" so that I could most fully experience my first ever Anusara class. When we did triangle pose, it was different for me to start triangle pose with pelvis to the floor in order to touch the floor as opposed to keeping pelvis toward the wall even if my hand doesn't touch the floor. It stretched my brain to try it that way, and I resisted it on the first side and didn't do it the way she instructed until she stressed it again before we moved into the second side. It was an all levels class, but I felt challenged just enough and well stretched. The pace was super slow, similar to an Iyengar class with spending more time in each pose. I enjoyed the steady slow pace, and there was never a moment during the class in which I wondered what time it was or how much longer the class would last. Also, I didn't break out in a sweat although there was a part that I felt heated. I liked the mention of the heart, and the focus of keeping shoulders back and chest forward. That has been something I've been working on a lot since last fall, so it was good for me to practice it more fully in every pose. In uttanasana, it was stressed for us to keep our knees bent in order to have thighs touching the chest, and then to lift the sitting bones to straighten the legs. That teaching counters what I was taught just yesterday, so I felt a bit conflicted about how to do uttanasana in the class. At first I kept my legs straight, but as she continued to instruct us to bend our knees, I bent them.

I feel nurtured after that class. I liked the teacher a lot. Her name is KK Ledford. She has a grounded and gentle presence. I liked how several times in the class she asked if anyone had any questions, and there would be a question and answer with demonstration. This didn't feel disruptive to the class, either, she was able to talk and demonstrate so that everyone could see her without moving off our mats.

Tina Turner

I watched the movie "What's love got to do with it?" Tuesday night. It was recommended by our teacher training teacher, Darren Main. It is based on an autobiography book written by Tina Turner, who was married to Ike Turner, her manager and musical partner. He was physically abusive and sometimes mean, but she stayed with him for a very long time. Towards the end of the movie Tina's friend introduces her to Buddhism, and teaches her to chant. In the movie they show Tina chanting one line over and over on many occasions. The movie shows a clip of an interview in which Tina talks about Buddhism and the meaning of the chant. Tina's character says "In Buddhism we do a chant called 'Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo' and what that signifies is that everything in our life is cause and effect. If there's anything within you that needs to be changed, you do it, you change it."

I researched other translations of the chant, and what I found was that it means to devote oneself to the mystic law of the lotus flower as taught by the teachings of a Buddha or the Sutras. That is my summation of what I learned about the chant on the SGI Buddhism website (http://www.sgi.org/english/Buddhism/nmrk.htm). I also learned there that the lotus flower represents cause and effect because the lotus blooms and produces seeds at the same time, and that demonstrates the simultaneity of cause and effect. Recognizing the law of cause and effect can help us to acknowledge our power and to take responsibility for our thoughts, actions and the results they create in our lives.

I see how chanting is one path to peace. I'm feeling a little more open to try more chanting. I'm curious about it. I've enjoyed the Buddhist books I've read (by Pema Chodron and Thich Nhat Hanh), and I'm learning that chanting is part of Buddhism. I'd like to know the meaning of a line before I chant it, and I suspect that some of the chants won't be aligned with my beliefs, and some of them will.

Slow flow

At a class last week, a new student asked my teacher, Dina, what one of her rigorous classes is like. Dina explained that her classes don't move quickly from one pose to another, that she spends enough time in each pose to attain and maintain alignment, but that you can work hard and sweat in a class without moving quickly. She said she believes in practicing at this slower pace, and I felt extreme agreement and gratitude for being in her class. Her pace is perfect for me, and that is the first thing I noticed about her classes. She is so good at instructing the class to inhale and exhale at a comfortable pace. I have been in several Vinyasa or Hatha Flow classes that move too quickly. 3 years ago in one of those quick paced classes, I injured my elbow while lowering in chataranga (which is like a push up). I was moving too quickly, trying to keep up with the teacher's pace, and I was not holding proper alignment in my upper body. Something popped in my right elbow, and it is still a sore spot and a challenge for me in some yoga poses.

Last night I enjoyed a class taught by Dina. I was able to focus on her voice, and allow it to sooth and guide my mind and body. Sometimes my concentration is better than other times, and last night I was grateful to have the sensation of surrender and devotion. She invited us to set an intention for ourselves at the beginning of class, and she reminded us to think of our intention later in the class. I picked "patience" last night, because lately I've been frustrated by my limited upper body strength. I find a lot of value in setting an intention. It helped me last night, and I had a great experience with little or no self criticism.