Namaskar Oct 2015

DRISTI
INSTANT CONNECTION, JUST
ADD YOGA
Travel out, travel in
BY LISA KAZMER
We fold a few blankets to sit upon and close
our eyes. The teacher prompts us to root the
pelvis and lengthen the spine and guides us to
place our attention on the breath. It’s all so
familiar but I can’t help noticing the sounds
filtering in from the street outside are
anything but average; a mixture of foreign
tones and trills, expressed in a melodic singsong.
The excitement of being in a new place
distracts my focus for a moment.
After a few OMs to welcome in the practice,
we come to Downward Facing Dog and then
fold ourselves forward into Utanasana. By
the time I am standing upright on my own
two feet in Tadasana, my breathing has
slowed down and my body has shaken off
some travel induced tension. The variations
begin from there but the language is always
the same — yoga.
We all have our habits and rituals that help us
feel comfortable and at ease in a new place
while traveling. A friend of mine loves to
attend a Mass at a local church. It’s not that
she is all that religious but she values the
sense of community with which she is able to
connect almost instantly. I feel the same, but
in my case would rather find my way onto a
sticky mat rather than into a church pew.
As I sooth my travel-tired bones and stretch
out my plane-smushed muscles alongside
those who call this foreign land home I have
the opportunity to fall into the rhythm of this
new place by breathing it’s air, grounding my
body into this patch of earth, and sweating
alongside strangers who share my belief in
the benefit of jumping around on a rubber
yoga mat for 90 minutes, give or take.
I’ve taken my place in the room; a spot where
I can see the teacher and those around me yet
not attract too much attention. As an
outsider in the class I try to acclimatize to it’s
energy while still feeling free to be myself.
Teaching and learning styles as well as
classroom behavior vary considerably from
country to country, and particularly from
West to East, so “going with the flow” in a
new country as one participates in a class can
be helpful to learning its ways.
With reverence for ancestors, their elders,
and educators ingrained in their culture,
students in the East treat teachers with great
respect. Discipline is expressed through
openness, acceptance, and quiet
contemplation of the teachings. The typical
practice of taking shoes off upon entering a
yoga studio as well as keeping the soles of
one’s feet pointed away from the teacher or
the altar, are a natural extension of everyday
behavior in the East.
The independent spirit of Westerners shows
in the way they learn. They ask questions
more freely, and readily speak up when they
don’t understand or don’t agree with
something. They think creatively about the
concepts presented and are more
comfortable with taking risks and making
mistakes. Teachers in the West generally
encourage students to find their own way
through the teachings as a way to develop
deeper understanding.
There are many things to learn by watching
others learn. The newness of a place and its
people has the ability to snap us into that
vulnerable, raw, receptive and open
“beginners mind” and enables us to see with a
wider eye — like an artist seeing beyond the
mundane into something a little larger than
our everyday existence. Perhaps this is why
travel is so appealing to many in the Yoga
world — we know the journeys we go on in
the physical world are not so different from
the journeys of self-discovery that our
practice can offer.
journeys we go on
in the physical
world are not so
different from the
journeys of selfdiscovery
October 2015 35