Whew, I have to take a break from angsting over all those IEP issues. Today's post is about yoga, specifically teaching yoga.
It is so interesting to me to watch people (particularly women) shift from Tadasana (mountain pose, standing hands by one's sides) to standing with hands in Anjali Mudra (prayer pose at the heart).
Starting with Tadasana: Many of us stand with hips thrust forward, chest collapsed ala sullen, yet cool, teenager. Also popular, collapsing the solar plexus, center of the will. What does this body language say? 'Here I am, all sex, no heart.' Or all sex, no will ~both popular attitudes in today's world, certainly. In relation to the chakras, it pushes the earth, fire and water chakras to the fore. In relation to physiology, these stances make it very heard to breathe. Some of this is learned when we are kids, trying not to take up too much space or trying not to say what we really want for fear of being ridiculed or failing. I am not saying that all people with poor posture have these issues. Rather, I think that many of us once had these issues, held our bodies this way and developed a habit. Yoga can free us of this postural habit and the shallow breating that usually accompanies it. Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP, sure but where did that come from?) and Somatics tell us that once you hold your body differently, you hold your mind differently almost automatically.
Quite a lot of people do stand upright without collapsing their solar plexus or heart centers. Some of these people, once they pur their hands into Anjali Mudra or prayer pose, collapse their hearts and or solar plexus...almost as if the concept of praying rather than lifting the heart and spirit, causes it to sink. Or maybe, praying is like being good and that sinks one's heart--a concept that makes one question "good," eh. Ideally one's connection with Spirit, with Divinity should make one's heart soar and strenghten rather than weaken the will. Well, that is the Mighty Eye's vision, anyway.
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I know this is an old posting, but I've only just recently tripped over your blog and am now reading through your stories.
ReplyDeleteCould the collapse be something to do with prayer being associated with submission and release? Protecting and shielding the breast/heart? That is what comes to mind when I hear your description of what you see in your students.
I'll keep reading... but what happened with the charter school?