preparing for practice
Kimmy on the mat
Kimmy getting into...kapotasana?
????
If Kimmy went to the same shala that you go to, wouldn’t you be so afraid?
For those who missed the movie and do not know who Kimmy is:
I think I saw her in the shala today…in her all-black attire sans the gold belt and hair band…with her red yogitoes. 
X: …creating an adamantine body through hatha yoga.
Me: (after looking up the thesaurus) I thought the goal of yoga is enlightenment?
X: Well, that’s the initial goal of hatha yogins so that the body becomes strong and able to withstand the onslaught of the rising kundalini. When the kundalini reaches sahasrara chakra, enlightenment comes.
Me: Duh…. (to the tune of om)
Never ask a question if you’re not sure you’re ready to hear the answer.
Google this phrase, which literally means ‘armpit power’, and a lot of people have been using it, although I am not sure if they are aware how it started. The Martial Law babies like me must have known how it came about. I remember hearing it first in a deodorant commercial (Veto was the brand name) aired on TV when I was still a kid. Lately, I often catch myself using this phrase…and that’s when my yogini-friend and I discuss yoga! We have been sharing our personal techniques on how to get into certain asanas.
In Utthita Parsvakonasana and Parivrtta Parsvakonasana, which are her strengths, for example, she suggested that in order to keep my torso away from the floor, I should turn my head towards the ceiling and try to smell my kilikili…or do the nose-to-kilikili pose.
As for me, in any pose that requires binding, I have to hook my kilikili to a body part–to my shin in Marichyasa A and B, to my knee in Marichyasana C and D, and to my thigh in our vinyasa version of Parivrtta Parsvakonasana (where we had to hook one arm under the bent leg to reach the other and bind our hands behind our back)–before I can rotate my arm.
And as YT often reminds us, kilikili has to be against the (imaginary or real) wall in Urdhva Dhanurasana and the mark where one has to snuggle the shins in Bakasana.
Ah, the power of kilikili…demystified in yoga.
Back in college, the basic of all basics was not coded ‘101’, like how all ‘basic’ things are now called (Yoga 101, Blogging 101, etc.); it’s 11. Econ 11, Math 11, Philo 11….
Now on Ashtanga 11. The basic of all basics is eating my humble pie. I was not at all attracted to ashtanga. Sure I admired the flying ashtangis but never intended to do their stints in this lifetime or the next. I was happy and content with flow yoga. Once I told myself that of all the studios in Manila, I would not set foot on YM, more popularly known for ashtanga. First, because I didn’t like ashtanga. Second, their shalas were not commuter-friendly (yup, location matters to professional commuters like me). Third, ashtanga is the “athletic” form of yoga. Not me. I couldn’t even catch a ball. Finally, er, did I say I didn’t like ashtanga?
Then YM moved to a new, lovelier, commuter-friendlier location. And if you are following my blog, you’ll see that my “conversion”, so subtle it has been, started early last year. It culminated to YT finally telling me “I think the biggest obstacle is your thinking that you are not for ashtanga.” Thanks YT. So here I am now, enrolled in YM, doing what else—ashtanga. Gulp.
As a newbie, I have learned a couple of things. One, YT does not know how to count!
YT: Eight breaths….
My thought bubble: Inhale, exhale, 1,…. Inhale, exhale, 2,…., Inhale, exhale, 8!
YT: One….
My thought bubble: Duh?! Did you start with -8?
*****
YT: …5…6…7… (after a minute)…2
My thought bubble: Teacher, 8 comes after 7.
*****
YT: 1…
My thought bubble: …2…3…4…5…6…7….25…26…27…zzzzzzz
YT: …2…
I also learned how a body part could “open”. In my more than two years of practice, this is the first time I experience having a numb-y, swell-y, tingly, no-pain, but funny feeling in my knees. I poked every part of my knees, yes, all parts were intact. I don’t remember doing unusual pose that could have caused such sensation. YT said they’re just “opening.” Ooh, interesting. A couple of days later, my ankles started to “open” as well.
However, I notice that my left knee has more intense sensation of opening. That makes me wonder. I have long been complaining about my right leg being twisted, crooked, very asymmetrical with my left. Now that my left knee is reacting this way, could it be that it is my left leg that has been misaligned all this time? And why are my knees and ankles opening, both of which are related to the first chakra (or so I was told)?
Hmmm….
Someone googled this phrase, which registered in my search engine record. Intrigued, I followed the path and found this article. I found the forum interesting because the yogi throwing the question faces the dilemma in changing yoga style, teacher, venue while a concerned, reacting yogi touched on the issue of making a business out of yoga.
And you thought…? =D
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