What the Yoga?


What’s this whole yoga thing all about?

If you’re not doing it yourself, you perhaps know someone who is doing it and expounds its virtues, usually trying to convince you that you should definitely try it and feel its benefits.

What if curiosity gets the better of you and you join said friend ‘on the mat’; a common phrase bandied about ‘Yoga’ circles!
You enter the room, observing everyone wearing white; sitting cross legged with serious, glazed expressions, you start to regret your decision. 
Everybody for sure, appears to be born to do this, they get it!
There is a hushed Soulmnity that transports you back to being at assembly in school or at church: when that irresistible urge to giggle starts to bubble from somewhere deep inside and threatens to spill out exposing you as a non-yogi interloper.
You grit your teeth; focus on floor; gather your resolve; and hold it together, then the room echoes with a loud ‘OOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMM’

All control, like your breath,  flows out the window.  

You are now stuck in a space that is silent, other than the sound of you semi-snorting as you try desperately to control your heaving shoulders, fighting to bring yourself under some semblance of order. You are trapped for the next hour amongst a room of dedicated yogis that spend their days contorting into strange shapes, standing on their heads and chanting  Ooooommmm.

Chances are that’s not going to happen!  Say, you do join your friend, who as far as you know was never flexible, who hasn’t suddenly started quoting Sanskrit but whom you have noticed seems to enjoy the class very much and she would like you to try.
The class will more than likely be a mixture of those new to yoga and some that have practiced for a number of years, there may be a range of flexibility from those who can’t touch their toes to those that could bite their own toenails if they wanted to.  There may be a range of ages from some that have not yet hit twenty to some that have retired, there may be Mothers, Fathers, Singles, Couples, professionals, tradespeople, artists, musicians, there may be some people that hold a lot of responsibility and those that carry none… who knows who may be on the mat next to you?

The fact is we are all different and we will all get something different from any yoga class… it may be its not  the class or the instructor that suits you but if you don’t give it a go you won’t know just what this yoga thing is all about.