"Stay healthy" says the Buddha

"To keep the body in good health is a duty... otherwise we shall not
be able to keep our mind strong and clear." - Buddha

..and he might add: "Being skinny is overrated!"

Paschimottanasana

Intense West Stretch

In yoga language, the back is considered west. In Paschimottanasana, the back is stretched intensely.

Sit in Dandasana
- press the legs into the floor
- toes and kneecaps point towards the ceiling
- the torso is straight

to get into Paschimottansasana:
on an inhalation - lift the chest
bend from the hip crease
extend the chest forward toward the feet
get a hold of your toes, the side of your feet, or a strap around your feet
take the elbows out to the side
pull yourself deeper into the pose
relax the back of your neck.

Do Your Duty

It's better to do your own duty
badly, than to perfectly do
another's; you are safe from harm;
when you do what you should be doing.

Bhagavad Gita
Stephen Mitchell's translation

Soft abdomen

I googled "soft abdomen iyengar". I was curious why Geeta always reminds her students to keep the abdomen soft, and I found an explanation:

"...A primary point is that the facial muscles, neck, and abdomen are to be soft throughout this practice. This is key to the inner exploration, discovery, and joy inherent in practicing this sequence as a whole, resulting in tremendous beneficial effects that are described in the text. ..."

Talent is Overrated

Mr. Pretzel
Credit: Flickr

Talent is overrated. What really counts is work, work and work. Norman quoted this (I forgot who though) In yoga lingo that would be sadhana or practice.

"Sādhana is a discipline undertaken in the pursuit of a goal. Abhyāsa is repeated practice performed with observation and reflection. Kriyā, or action, also implies perfect execution with study and investigation. Therefore, sādhana, abhyāsa, and kriyā all mean one and the same thing. A sādhaka, or practitioner, is one who skillfully applies...mind and intelligence in practice towards a spiritual goal."

BKS Iyengar

But talent sounds more exciting than practice, which brings thoughts of repetition, hard work, diligence to my mind. I did find a nice paragraph on practice or repetition in Paulo Coelho's book "The Witch of Portobello" though:

"...Look at a skilled blacksmith working steel. To the untrained eye, he's merely repeating the same hammer blows, but anyone trained in the art of calligraphy knows that each time the blacksmith lifts the hammer and brings it down, the intensity of he blow is different. The hand repeats the same gesture, but as it approaches the metal, it understands that it must touch it with more or less force. It's the same thing with repetition: it may seem the same, but it's always different. The moment will come when you no longer need to think about what you are doing. You become the letter, the ink, the paper, the word..."

Photo: Flickr Credit - Blacksmith at Work