AshtangaNews Ashtanga Yoga Matters (as taught by Sri K Pattabhi Jois)

Supta Kurmasana lasted forever… but shortly after my mat neigbor whispered to me “oh no, it’s almost over”. And now it’s done.

Friday concluded Sri K. Pattabji Jois’s World Tour, 2006 in New York. Typical of the last day on any tour stop; it wrapped up with us standing for the closing mantra (a prayer for peace and happiness for all beings), a final sun salutation, and then disobedience.

The Midtown Loft where the 2006 World Tour took place
Accomodates 250 for cocktails, 200 for yoga

We were told to lie down and take rest. But eager Ashtangis just can’t be told… we sat up and clapped and then stood up and clapped some more. Then the line formed and snaked between the scattered exhaused bodies lying ’round the room so that everyone could say thank you and goodbye-for-now to the man who has brought us all this practice.

Heartfelt as it was, there seemed to be less emotion this year. I saw no teary eyes on parting. There was just something about Guruji this time that could not evoke sadness. Only thanks for his presence and inspiration… Nonagenarian guru that he is, travelling the world over and whipping us all into shape on every level of our being.

The good news is there’s more to come for the world outside of South India… Eddie Stern announced to the group that stops in Europe among other places were planned for the summer and then something about more touring in October. Not the regular route by the sounds of it. Everyone will have to stay tuned though as the details were murky.

A Guruji World Tour write-up wouldn’t be complete without a top ten list … so here are my top 10 favorite Guruji-isms:

10. Close Your Ears! (as an alternate to Lock Your Ears in Karnapidasana)

9. Lose Your Feet! (in Halasana or Karnapindasana - to anyone who doesn’t have the tops of their feet on the floor)

8. Take Your Hands. Look Nose Center. Straight Back. Deep Breathing. With Sound. (in the last Padmasana)

7.Eh..! (often but not always followed by the infamous Bad Lady! or Bad Man! )

6. Straight Your Legs! (generally occurs between the last few poses in Primary Series where you lie on your back before going into Supta Padangusthasana, Ubhaya Padangusthasana, or Urdva Mukha Paschimottanasana)

Waiting for Guruji in the Midtown Loft
World Tour 2006 New York

5. Straight Knees! (in Navasana)

4. Wopen Your Feet (in Baddha Konasana)

3. CHATWARI!

2. Last One (always to be followed by…One More! - this is generally after the fifth or sixth Nine during Uth Pluthi)

1. Five, Six, Seven, Yeeeee-Eight

Friends catching up before practice
World Tour 2006 New York

The past three days are melding into one sleep deprived blur. My body is starting to adjust but I certainly won’t complain about the moon day tomorrow.

Guruji just walking in
World Tour 2006 New York

Balance is one of the first things to go when I’m tired. Luckily Guruji was kind enough to whip out a double assist in Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana for me and my practice neighbor this morning. Otherwise I might have taken the room down like dominoes. If ashtanga were a democracy, I’d vote we move that pose into at least Advanced A Series. Good for us all that its not.

A yoga democracy would assume we all know what’s best for us in our practice. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the past few years, it’s that I have much to learn. A good teacher is a must. I think left to our own devices, we human beings tend to gravitate towards the things we are good at and run and hide from the things we’re not. The rigidity of Ashtanga encourages us to face our flaws. To deal with our pride and to take a step beyond our misconceptions of our own limits. It also stops us from charging ahead before we are ready. There are good lessons in every layer of this practice.

Still dark outside before practice
World Tour 2006 New York

Some wonder what there is to learn at a week of led Primary once you know the series. I say lots. One thing is to pay attention. I’m known to bust out bad lady moves now and then. I think I know what’s coming and so when I hear Guruji speak, I move ahead. Maybe it’s a “pancha. inhale.” I’m expecting to hear that has me moving into upward dog too quickly only to be made aware of my inattentiveness by the bellow of “ehhhh… chatwari!”.

This morning my wrongdoing was during finishing postures. I jumped through and Guruji said “straight legs”. I started folding my right leg into Padmasana. So he said “straight legs” to the room again and then looked down at me and cocked his head. He gave me this face… this “hey, you pay attention” face. And it was then that I realized I wasn’t paying attention even though I thought I had been. I’d say that’s a pretty huge lesson. There is still plenty to learn.

Day two of the New York portion of the World Tour, I made every effort to hold each Chaturanga and Uth Pluthi for the full count yesterday.

And today I pay. Soreness has invaded my shoulders and work will feel like sweet relaxation for the remainder of the day (though a nice nap would be preferable).

Led primary doesn’t vary much from day to day. The overwhelming message I’m hearing from Guruji this year is “don’t hurry”. He says it slowly and with patience. Like he means it. A lesson I’m working on in life.

Sharath, Saraswati and Katherine
Guruji World Tour 2006 New York

His wisdom pervades in the simple statements he makes time and again. And his effervescence reminds us not to take our asana too seriously. “Don’t dance” is the reprimand he dishes out to the people hopping about to catch their balance in Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana.

“Bliss Rolls” -Govinda Kai
Garbha Pindasana in SF

The greatest comedy of errors came in Garbha Pindasana. Anyone not perfectly synched with their neighbors’ rolling ended up getting stuck. I think half the room must have metamorphosed into beetles flailing on their backs, sandwiched against one another with no easy way of righting themselves. We were all garbhaed up. It should have been funny, but I think we were all too tired to find it that amusing this morning.

If the growth in number of yoga practitioners in the west is going to continue, then I think it’s time to start buying coffee futures.

Day 1 of the 2006 World Tour New York
from our correspondent, Katherine Stanfield (see more about her below)

Goodbye from San Francisco
“Lining Up to Pay Respects” -Govinda Kai

Guruji’s World Tour moved from the Puck Building into the shadow of the Empire State at the Midtown Loft this year.

Despite my excitement to see the 90-year-old guru for my third time in New York City, my first words to my houseguest and fellow Ashtangi this morning were “Why do we do it?!”

It was 4:15 after all and I was waking up. On a Sunday. Not long ago, it’s quite likely I’d have been going to bed at such an hour. Not unfurling the covers to join 200 other masochists for an hour and a half of physical exertion at the feet of a man who calls his devotees “Bad Man” and “Bad Lady”. But after two solid years of early morning Mysore practice, time seems to have become just numbers on a clock. Somehow it seems lacking in relevance to what’s important. I set the alarm for the numbers that are required and get up.

And so, after a traffic-free commute from Brooklyn, my houseguest and I arrived at 5:30. I was thinking we’d be among the first. To my surprise on exiting the elevator, the room was already packed. The airy space was filled to the gills even though there was still a half an hour to go until the guest of honor would appear and begin the opening prayer. Drop-ins were begging for admission downstairs, but the space just couldn’t accommodate everyone.

As the crowd continued to pour in, the mat arrangements got tighter. Unlike past years, this tour seemed to be lacking some of the tension. There were no mat wars. There were no last-minute demands for a spot in the front row. Perhaps this was due to anticipation. Everyone knew space would be limited this year. Or perhaps the practice is beginning to rub off on us all a bit over time. The type-A, competitive Ashtangis might be tamed after all.

As six o’clock approached, the mats were staged with less than an inch in between each other. We all apologized in advance to one another for what would inevitably become a practice perhaps more resembling a contact sport than yoga.

Practice starts the same everywhere
“Reaching Higher Than the Sky” -Govinda Kai

And finally, what we’d all been waiting for… Guruji and family filed into the room. They nodded with smiles to the crowd that had suddenly hushed. The family made its way into the glassed-in lounge that was now a fishbowl. We stood in silence and awe; amazed at how good he looked. And how adorable in his blue Adidas shorts and knee brace.

And that’s when I remembered why we do it: for the love, of course. The love of the practice and the love of the man who has been passing it down to us all. How can you not love a man who follows seven with “eeee-yeight”?

Katherine Stanfield has been practicing Ashtanga Yoga since the summer of 2003. Her practice home is at Ashtanga Yoga New York where she is a student of Eddie Stern’s. In addition to her love for the Ashtanga tradition, she has an affinity for two wheeled vehicles (namely two-stroke scooters) and her dog, Gus. In order to support the yoga habit, she works as a financial planner for individuals and tries to take the lessons of patience and discipline that she has been learning on the mat into her business and pass them onto her clients. She and Gus live in Brooklyn, NY.

[See all of AshtangaNews’ Guruji’s World Tour 2006 entries here. -Ed.]

[We don’t yet have any photos from the New York stop, so we’re sharing a few more of Govinda Kai’s photos from San Francisco. -Ed.]

Getting Crazy To Stay Sane
Supta Kurmasana

Govinda Kai, an American Ashtanga teacher now based in Tokyo, shared some of his phenomenal and intimate photos from his visit to San Francisco for Guruji’s World Tour 2006.

Govinda’s entire Flickr photostream is worthwhile, if you like photos of Ashtanga, Ashtangis or Japan.

He’s really done a great service for Ashtangis by sharing his photos of the World Tour in San Francisco. Photos are increasingly not allowed at the World Tour, which just makes Govinda’s photos that much more special. Plus, because of his closeness to Guruji, he was able to take especially cool photos of Guruji away from the World Tour. Govinda’s San Francisco photosets are:

• San Francisco Workshop with Guruji - photos of the World Tour itself, including many of Pattabhis Jois adjusting students. (Govinda was still adding photos at the time of this post)
• Guruji and Students - Guruji with several experienced Ashtangis and teachers
• Sri K. Pattabhi Jois - close-ups of Guruji drinking tea and listening to an iPod
• John Berlinsky & Lea Watkins’ Mysore-style class at YogaStudio Mill Valley

Govinda took the time to label each of his photos with some thoughtful and insightful captions, so when you look at his set, make sure to pay attention to the photo captions. These really added depth, meaning and warmth to Govinda’s sets.

Thank you, Govinda.

I had a really hard time choosing, but some of my favorites from Govinda’s Flickr sets (captions by Govinda) follow:

Fierce Instruction
Janu Sirsasana

Revolving Door to Samadhi
Parivritta Trikonasana

Hearts Expanding Into Infinity
Urdhva Mukha Svanasana

And, definitely one of the best photos of Guruji I’ve seen…

What Does He See?

For a little more color on Guruji’s World Tour in London and Mysore Style, the new book of Ashtanga photographs, check out this article Yogis flock to ashtanga guru in Brick Lane in the Guardian Unlimited from March 13 2006 (tip ashtanga.com).

The art director for Mysore Style, Giles Kershaw, said about the book:

There was always this myth of Mysore … This book is a way of demystifying that experience and capturing the essence of it. We wanted to show that it was not the body beautiful - we wanted those who picked up the book to be able to smell the hot and sweaty atmosphere and feel the energy.

I think Graeme and Giles definitely achieved their goal. Philippe provided some thoughtful insights about Mysore Style, too.

For more on the London stop of the World Tour, see Lori’s review and photos.

Guruji signs an autograph for a London Ashtangi
Another of Lori’s photos

A few weeks ago we mentioned that a new book Mysore Style had just come out and was being sold at the World Tour 2006.

I’ve had the opportunity to buy it (not cheap at $70, but profits go to the Sri K. Pattabhi Jois Charitable Trust) and read it.

At first glance, Mysore Style seems to be a big book with beautiful photos of yogis practicing interspersed with beautiful photos of India by professional photographer, Graeme Montgomery. But after a while, a pattern emerges which gives it an entirely new dimension.

The photos of the postures appear in the same order as they are in the practice, and all aspects of the practice are represented: Sun Salutations, standing postures, Primary, Intermediate and Advanced Series, backbends, finishing postures and savasana.

David Roche in Samakonasana

The back of the book has some real gems: 3 short articles on Mysore Style, Ashtanga and Guruji. If your friends and relatives are perplexed at your commitment to early morning practice, you’ll do worse than getting them to read these summaries: these are some of the best I have read.

Also at the back is a series of wonderful portraits of all the book’s models and of newer students who were in Mysore at the time the photo shoot took place. Under each portrait are the Ashtangi’s vital information: Name, Age, Nationality, First Visit to Mysore, Number of visits. The answer to the last ranges from 1 to Home.

Happy yogis, not prison shots

It’s evident that a lot of thought has been put into the choice of “cultural”, non-yoga photos. The series of Guruji’s 90th birthday celebrations bring the event to life. Some of the other photos evoke the essence of the Mysore experience - for example the shot of the Swami in the cave of Chamundi Hill on page 100. Anne has often talked and blogged about him, and it’s a blessing to be able to see him.

Guruji’s 90th Birthday Celebration

If you’ve been practicing for any length of time, this is a book you’ll enjoy. And I reckon that your appreciation of it will grow along with your practice.

Olaf Kalfas in Parsva Dandasana (scratching the edge of impossibility)

On the last day of the 2006 tour in San Francisco, there was a single class at 6 am. The atmosphere was electric, the room was full with over 200 students.

The strong bonds of community were apparent before practice, with groups of people chatting dispersed throughout the big hall - it was still only 5:45.

friends

There was an urgency in Guruji’s voice today. I wondered how many thousands of times he had called out this practice, and at his complete devotion to it.

It is apparent both in the mere fact that he is 90 and continues to teach the same vital teaching. It is also apparent in what he has chosen not to do - he has chosen not to dilute the practice, he has chosen not to call it Jois Yoga, he has chosen not to analyze it.

It was the exact same count of vinyasas, and yet it was completely different, a new and unique affirmation of his belief in the practice. And by extension, all 200 of us were accepting this affirmation and embraced its transformative power. The last few postures were truly emotional. We came back up to standing following a 2 minute Utplutih to chant the closing prayer. Then, Guruji counted a last vinyasa, and with “Sapta - lie down!” everyone burst into spontaneous applause. There were cheers for several minutes.

Sharath took the stage, thanked the organizers and his last two words summarized for me the essence of Guruji’s teaching: “Keep practicing.”

This year the World Tour’s only Intermediate Series class took place in the San Francisco leg of the tour during the second week of practice.

First, a little context.

Sharath demonstrates Kapotasana (part two)

Intermediate is a bit of misnomer for this remarkably challenging series of postures - it starts with a deep twist in pasasana, then off to deeper and deeper backbends culminating in kapotasana, followed by several leg-behind-the-head postures (note the sequencing - straight after the backbends), a strength intensive section including the near impossible karandavasana, and concludes with 7 difficult headstands. You can see a detailed description in David Swenson’s book, or on Arjuna’s site.

In and of itself, it is many handfuls. The way the class is taught though takes this series to another level:

• You are stopped at the posture which the teacher deems too much of a challenge for you
• The more difficult poses are often held for much longer counts that the usual 5 breaths
• The Who’s Who of the Asthanga World (West Coast Chapter) is there practicing along merrily with you

How and when Guruji holds postures really demonstrates his complete mastery of the inner psychological states of the students. In postures such as kapotasana, I often felt as if I was hanging on to a cliff by the edge of my fingernails. It sometimes feels like a miracle not to have fallen off.

Guruji smiles even more after Intermediate
World Tour 2006 in San Francisco

As you go through the class, there is always the worry that this will be your last posture. One thing I did not mention was that there is no prior requirement to attending this class - anyone is welcome. This does not imply you will last through the end, though. During the first class, we started off 60 optimistic yogis. Some uber-optimists were gone by the first posture of the Intermediate series, pasasana. By the end only about 30 were left for the 7 headstands, with the rest watching in stillness.

Guruji also took to visiting the bathroom during headstand. He would count “One! Two!” then you would hear footsteps and a door closing. Quite a few breaths later, he would re-emerge with a booming “Three!” at which point the whole inverted class burst out laughing.

This alone was worth the price of admission.