Around the World

Tiff
Originally uploaded by Altered-Perspectives.

"Open your heart, open your mind
A train is leaving all day
A wonderful trip through our time
And laughter is all U pay

Around the world in a day..."

Prince

Nothing much more to add, just thinking of my dear friend Tiffany (right) and this wonderful song came into my head.

Okay, gotta say something... well I really like travel documentaries, especially ones like "Long Way Round" and its ilk where people set themselves a challenge. But I don't think I could do such a feat because the end result always seems so soulless to me. These people always seem to be rushing through every country they visit, never stopping to gaze or even draw breath. No doubt due to reasons of tv production, but all the same I think if I was doing such a trip I would need to factor in some time to immerse in local culture a bit.

Maybe I should do a world tour :-D

Double Trouble

Double Trouble
Originally uploaded by Altered-Perspectives.

During, before and after my first trip to India in 2005 I kept a blog of my experience in preparation and execution of my trip. Some of you may have seen this blog, titled "In Search of Darshan".

I haven't really posted to this on my recent trips so I decided to call it quits today. However I imported all of that blog's posts into this one, so you will now see posts going all the way back to 2004

Hope you enjoy :-)

Our Photo

Our Photo - B&W
Originally uploaded by Altered-Perspectives.

"The basic thing is that everyone wants happiness, no one wants suffering. And happiness mainly comes from our own attitude, rather than from external factors. If your own mental attitude is correct, even if you remain in a hostile atmosphere, you feel happy."

H.H. The Dalai Lama

All the pics I am using on this blog were taken by me, my growing interest in photography now evidenced by the 3000+ pics on my Flickr page.

This pic was taken in July 2007 in Chennai, India. My friend Claudia and I were on our way to our teacher's house, and I had taken my camera out for some pics of the route there from our apartment. These two wee boys ran up shouting "My picture, my picture!" and were so enthusiastic that I had no option but to oblige.

Can you see the light in their eyes (no it's not the flash from the camera, it was broad daylight)? I think they seem pretty happy.

Which is amazing from our western point of view when you consider that these boys were living on the street. This whole road was littered with family encampments all along it. I think it is a wonderful lesson that these children can teach us, especially during these times of recession.

To have nothing in the world except for the clothes on your back, the love of your family, your smile and a joy for life - is that so bad?

Come again!

1/52 Haikus
Originally uploaded by Altered-Perspectives.

"Come, come, whoever you are.
Wonderer, worshipper, lover of leaving.
It doesn't matter.
Ours is not a caravan of despair.
Come, even if you have broken your vow a thousand times
Come, yet again, come, come."

Jalāl ad-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī

I was mentioning to a student this morning the strange phenomenon of disappearing students. Because Yoga is a long-term process and needs a long-term commitment, I only work with people who will commit to that long term. And the only way of doing this is financially, so all my students pay in blocks (10 weeks for a group class, one year for one-to-one students).

Sure, I am probably lowering my income as a result, but the sense of community in my group classes is far greater than any other yoga class I have been to. However I had been discussing with her the strange occurrences with one-to-one students who pay for their sessions but never come back after the first consultation session. At one time this may have worried me that it was something I did, however I have over the years bumped into a few of these people and it is usually life's rollercoaster that has pulled htem away for one reason or another.

Still, I wonder whether some of them at least have found tYoga process too demanding, have not practiced frequently "enough" and don't want to come back to me again because they are guilty at not practicing. Then time goes on, their not-practicing continues and they belive it's really too late to start over. This, of course, is poppycock.

I read a book by Paul McKenna the other day, and what he said really struck home - that for most situations the only route to failure is to give up. That is, if you could have another chance at success, so long as you keep trying you may well turn your actions into complete success. Aparently on studying succesful (i.e. million/billionaires) it was found that these people factor in a certain element of failure into their plans.

So the people who "fail" in business are just the ones who gave up at their first bankruptcy. Those who "succeed" are the ones who kept on the struggle through one or more bankruptcies and ended up triumphing over adversity. So we must also learn to factor in "failure" to our Yoga practice - I use the quotes because it's not really failure, it is just a life lesson in the form of what some judgemental people may label as such.

Another friend once told me about the known entity in alcohol and drug rehabilitation called "Necessary Relapse". This is when someone falls off the wagon and goes back to drink/drugs for a short while. All they need is another glimpse of how horrible their life is under their drug of choice, an object lesson that allows them to reaffirm their commitment to sobriety, and they jump back on the wagon with renewed vigour.

So I hope that if any of my students left behind their Yoga practice because they feel they "failed", they appreciate that my door is ALWAYS open to them - like the prodigal son, you will always be welcomed back.

Even if you have broken your vow a thousand times ;-)

Bending Over Backwards

Day 184
Originally uploaded by Altered-Perspectives.

"If all men lead mechanical, unpoetical lifes, this is the real nihilism, the real undoing of the world."

Reginald Blyth

There is a conservatism in Yoga that deeply disappoints me.

My thoughts are that once you have travelled through the system, the end result should be to be without the system, the traditions and the processes. To be unfettered by concepts, to live and express yourself as you are, perhaps this is the state of nirvitarka samadhi.

I don't really see much of that going on, people challenging their mental boundaries and comfort zones. Nobody seems to have the stomach for it. maybe because there isn't really anyone teaching that way. How do you deconstruct what took so many years to build? It seems to me that all yoga is aimed at this, but nobody seems to be doing it, not really.

Are we too comfortable in this age? Are we happy to sit with mental-emotional misery so long as our Sky tv is working and there's beer and wine in the fridge? Is there ANYONE out there who wants a little more???

Where the Shadows Lie

Day 228
Originally uploaded by Altered-Perspectives.

"Truly, it is in darkness that one finds the light, so when we are in sorrow, then this light is nearest of all to us."

Meister Eckhart

Yoga so often is seen as a journey of love and light, peace and happiness, but my own experience is that this is more of a hippy ideal than a reality. For people living in the real world and choosing to engage in the yoga process, it is a journey of facing your own demons, and not so much learning to overcome them as learning to live with them. It is at times a journey in the shadows, into the dark side of your consciousness.

It takes a strong person to do this, and often the time is not right. Before spirituality there must be healing. We must be whole before we can begin teh final transformation. And most of us are not ready for this, not willing to put in the work, the sacrifice. The stakes are high and the reward can seem so far away. And to be honest there is no benefit in real terms, as I believe that when the journey ends you will find yourself just back where you started. Only this time, with a better knowling of your Self, and a way to live your life directly, in total connection with the thing we call life.

"What we plant in the soil of contemplation, we shall reap in the harvest of action."

Meister Eckhart

Work Work, Chop Chop, Busy Busy...

“The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence. When mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers.”

Thich Nhat Hanh

Me at Parakala Matha
Originally uploaded by Altered-Perspectives.

So, in an effort to post more frequently...

I started two new classes today, bowing to pressure to provide weekend classes for people to attend that are too busy during the week, and also to provide students who miss their weekday class somewhere to 'make up' the occasional class.

The first one is a Yoga for Beginners class, which does what it says on the tin. it's not that the postures or the ways of doing them will eb different in the class, just a slightly different environment and a chance for me to explain a little more of the theory behind Yoga from the tradition of Krishnamacharya. I am aware that some people feel a little intimidated coming into an existing class full of "experts", so maybe it's a psychological help too.

However I always would say that beginners can come into any of my classes, as the pace and challenge of any posture practice should be set by the individual, not by me. And even the most seasoned Yoga practitioner should approach every practice, every movement with a beginner's mind. I think that comes across clearly in class, I repeat it often enough LOL

The other class is entitled, "Mindfulness Practices for Stress Relief". it has been quieter, probably because many people don't have any idea what mindfulness practices are. They are pretty simple practices where you try to keep your attention focused on relatively simple things like the way your body feels or the movement of the breath through the body. I do bring in shorter versions of these into my Yoga classes and in fact Yoga practices must (IMHO) all include a large degree of mindfulness. The benefits are amazing, calming the mind and helping relax the body.

Still, people seem to associate mindfulness (usually with a capital 'M') with Buddhist traditions but there are several references to this in Yogic texts including the Yoga Sutra. I did a mindfulness course at Glasgow Buddhist Centre and the teacher there told me as she taught the 'mindful movement' part of the course that this would be very different from my Yoga classes -and I told her that she couldn't be more wrong. In the end, I really feel that any Yoga practice done without mindfulness is NOT Yoga - it's just movement or breathing or thinking.

With this class I am trying to develop a regular group of practitioners from the Ayrshire area, something I feel that could be really beneficial in helping people manage stress in their lives. More than any other class I am hoping it will become a practice group rather than a led class - a space for people to come and enjoy their regular mindful practices each week, meet others with the same interests and find the inspiration and motivation to keep practicing at home every day.

It's Been Too Long!

Week 7/52 Haikus
Originally uploaded by Altered-Perspectives.

I didn't realise it's been so long since I posted in this blog. Another year, my yoga classes are doing well and I am finally beginning to bring some projects together... must try harder :-)