Losing Your Balance is Contagious

Last night, during our home Yoga practice, E and I both started wobbling in tree pose. Soon enough we were both wobbling more and more and finally, we both fell.

E commented:

Unbalance is contagious

And, in that wacky mind-state that yoga can sometimes produce, I thought

That is true.

Yoga teaches us to focus on our own breath, to maintain our inner calm, and to stay with the yin and yang of our own breath in the midst of the chaos that our mind thinks our body or the outside world is throwing at us.

But, if you are anything like me, you find that it is much easier to focus on your own breath when you are in a room full of other people practicing intently, focusing on their own breath as well, insulated from the madness outside the yoga sanctuary.

Several of my yoga instructors have talked about taking your yoga practice with you, outside the studio, into every day life. And no doubt, that is the ultimate goal -- to breathe and have perspective so you can be calm and peaceful while moving throughout the storm of everyday life.

But, I've also heard many instructors talk about the importance of regularly coming to a class. The importance of giving yourself a supportive community, an instructor, and a space where you feel immediately calm -- where you can focus and breathe and increase the strength of your practice.

E's comment made me realize that these two goals -- 1) to take your yoga practice with you into the chaos; and 2) to seek a supportive peaceful environment where you can deepen your practice -- are not at odds.

Just as unbalance in the yoga studio is contagious, so it is in real life. So yes we can seek to bring our balanced perspective and life with us wherever we go and with whomever we interact. But, it is important to recognize that while we are developing our sense of balance, we need to be mindful of our environment -- we will find it easier to be balanced in a supportive peaceful environment (with supportive, peaceful people). Similarly, we may need to limit our time in unsupportive, chaotic environments if we find that we are "catching" the unbalanced energy that often exists there.

Alright, that's enough new age hippy crap for now.