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OPEN MIND OPEN BODY Ideas for Your Yoga Practice |
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Explore
the Unknown Years
ago, I took a class with a yoga teacher who referred to the "black
holes" of body awareness - those parts of your body where all
intelligence is lost. In a body scan, she asked us to identify the parts
of our body where we didn't seem to feel anything. For example: We might know
that we each have a big toe on the right foot, but was our mind and
sensation connected to the big toe? Or was the big toe a black hole of
awareness? Once we found a black hole, we were supposed to breathe into
that area and find some sensation, some awareness. You
can take this idea one step further. When
you start to feel disconnected from a certain part of your body,
intentionally move it in as many ways as possible. This will help you
find both sensation and awareness. In
a seated or reclining position, scan your body. Where do you not feel
anything? What part of the body feels dull, or even "abstract"
(you know it's there, but you aren't having any concrete experience of
it!)? What part of the body feels frozen - like it hasn't been moved in
ages? If nothing immediately suggests itself, start with the toes or feet.
We can all use more sensitivity in this area of the body. Then
explore that part of the body with simple movement. How many ways can you
move it? What parts of the body move with it? What does it feel like to
move it - where can you find a stretch? Where can you find the sensation
of muscular effort? Does stretching or moving this part of the body send
sensation to more distant parts of the body? For example, stretching the
neck can send sensation to the finger tips. How do you think these areas
of the body are connected? Finally,
choose a pose and a counterpose that both target this part of the body.
You can stay in each pose for an extended time, and practice each pose
only once, or move between the pose and counterpose to find the fluidity
of that body part. What is your awareness like now? An
example from my personal practice: For some reason, my usual
sensitivity to action and sensation in my by upper back was diminished.
Noticing the subtleties of my upper back felt sort of like trying to read
the Braille bumps underneath a thick towel. To work through this
dullness, I warmed up the area with some explorative vinyasas, focusing on
how many ways my shoulder blades could glide over the upper back rib cage.
I then moved in and out of urdhva dhanurasana (which engages the upper
back) and a rounded baddha konasana (which stretches the upper back). This
sequence pierced through my dullness. My upper back didn't want to just
stretch, or just work - it wanted to be called into full action and full
release. Return to Ideas for Your Yoga Practice
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