WAIT! I HAD A TEACHER TRAINING THAT NEEDS TO BE BLOGGED ABOUT!
Cindy Maddera
Last month in yoga teacher training we discussed the eight limbs of yoga as defined in the Yoga Sutras. Each limb is a step in the path to becoming a true yogi. You can't skip ahead; they have to mastered in order. I realized I was in serious trouble when I haven't even mastered the first limb. The first limb is yama and sort of like the ten commandments except there are only five: 1. Ahimsa = nonviolence, 2. Satya = truthfulness, 3. Asteya = nonstealing, 4. Brahmacharya = continence, and 5. Aparigraha = non-covetousness. Forget about all the other yamas except ahimsa. Now, just like people study and pick apart the scriptures, the same is true for the Yoga Sutras. And I know you're thinking "Why is Cindy worrying about the first limb? She's not a violent person.", but it's not as simple as that. Or at least my brain wants to make it more complicated. You see, I lumped anger into the definition of ahimsa.
Chris and I talked about this while we ate lunch outside behind the yoga studio that day. I told him I was angry all the time and then he asked me what it was that I was angry about. I blinked a few times and then told him it would probably be easier to tell you the things I'm not angry about. The crazy thing is, I didn't feel this way on vacation. I know! Enough with the Portland trip already! I am just going to say this. I felt less volatile while we were in Oregon.
The last yoga teacher training taught me that I have a lot of work to do. The idea is that as you start practicing yoga, you start to want to learn more. The physical practice leads you to a spiritual practice. I've been resisting this for some time because I was having a hard time separating spiritual from religious. But I know now that practicing and focusing on the eight limbs doesn't make me religious. The limbs are just tools for making me a better person. It's time to start the climb.