Organically Expanding

I have been experimenting lately in classes with not saying names of poses and just allowing a few cues to take us into shapes and then to allow breath to guide us deeper. I am finding this to be extraordinary in terms of releasing expectations and boundaries in practice.

When we say the name it triggers an idea in our brain of "oh Triangle, that is done this way" and we end up pretty much exploring it the same way we did before. Every day we are different and that should be reflected on the mat as well as we work with our bodies. Once we're in it a while I'll say it just so they know a little about the foundations, but also not so much so that they lose the intention of the voyage into the pose.

It's not that knowing where we are going is bad, sometime it is helpful in terms of triggering some memories of things we know feel good always, or things that have felt bad to avoid, or special things we need to do to feel safe in poses. It's also helpful to sometimes practice being OK with exploration, curiosity, and not knowing where you are going until you get there.

The best advice though really for safety in any practice is to deeply listen to the ongoing dialogue between your body and breath. The body is always talking. It's telling you how far it can go, what it can do, what it wants to do, etc. The practice of yoga really is just deep listening and then responding the inner cues. You have to feel invited to do the things you do. Not just do to achieve something.


I like to think of this as organically expanding, or spontaneous yoga. There is a more formal name for this called Spanda.

Spanda can be defined as:


"Spanda is a Sanskrit term for the subtle creative pulse of the universe as it manifests into the dynamism of living form. Spanda can be translated to mean vibration, movement, or motion, referring to waves of activity issuing forth from an unseen Source of spontaneous expression. On a more personal level, spanda refers to consciousness as it orients through thought and intention to organize into authentic action. You may experience spanda as a desire to live according to your own innermost urging, act in line with your interest, follow your curiosity, and attend to your body's natural rhythms as they harmonize within the grander scale of natural life seasons and cycles.

Living in a way that keeps us connected to our core beliefs and desires brings health, stamina, and joy. When we lose our creative "spark" or spanda, disconnecting from our own personal expression of vitality, we lose energy, focus, and a sense of well-being and may eventually fall ill. Connecting with what drives us, feeling that presence in our bodies, is also when we are most aligned with the natural spontaneity that defines life processes.

Yoga practice encourages this conscious connection. Through yoga we learn to listen attentively to our own inner guidance as well as work creatively with the archetypal forms and timeless instructions passed down through the millennia."
---Spanda Yoga www.spondayoga.com


When we tune into spanda we check out of automatic pilot mode. When we lose the names of things and the definition of the poses and allow them to spontaneously and joyously emerge something amazing can happen--we open.

When we go into things with expectations or ideas of what it's going to be or what it should be--we cling, we hold on to, we try to force things into our mold (or the instructors mold).

I'm still sorting all this out--but that's my thoughts on things right now.

I am really inspired by the work Shiva Rea is doing along this line www.shivarea.com

I am looking forward to continuing my studies with her this October.

I am also looking forward to sharing more spanda yoga with you.

Peace!