Amrita 6: Asana through the ages - Magazine - Page 69
Get up, Stand up
“For hours I would stand quite still...I was seeking and I finally
discovered the central spring of all movement, the crater of motor
power from which all diversities of movement are born.”
ISADORA DUNCAN
the crater of motor power from which all diversities of
movement are born.”
Whilst most of us don’t have hours at a time for standing
still, we do perhaps get opportunities to do it better. BKS
Iyengar warns of spine strain, fatigue and dullness of mind if
we lean our weight into one leg or slump into the heels. I
don’t know anybody who isn’t up for the ‘lightness in body’
and more ‘agile mind’ that is suggested from practicing tadasana.
The self practice that Duncan writes about sounds wonderful to me. I imagine her poised on a current between
gravity and weightlessness, kind of caught in her own stillness. Long ago the word ‘alone’ was treated as two words ‘all
one’. To be wholly one, oneself, manifesting a cure for fluctuations or anxiety.
Perhaps this explains my experience in class that day. A
somatic oneness in the shared breath of that space. A boon
of energy transmitted by being with others. A myriad of sensations. The yoga mosh pit. A
CARON MAY IS an experienced Yoga Alliance registered teacher. She is based in Hebden Bridge (also on Zoom) and teaches on retreats in
the UK and abroad. Caron finds all aspects of yoga interesting and valuable. Whatever style, area of expertise or theme a teacher brings for
students to practise and think about will be infused into life beyond the mat. ‘Honestly, I’m like a kid in a sweetshop there’s so much to choose
for studying, sequencing, breathing into and I felt like this when I was teaching Drama and English too. What’s the story here? How can we look
at it and enjoy it? It’s continuous and playful’.
www.caronmay.co.uk
www.yogaallianceprofessionals.org
AMRITA Issue 6 / Spring 2021 67
