Exploring the unseen in yoga.

In yoga we may find that as we turn inward and connect with our bodies, truly connect with them, instead of unconsciously ignoring them as we go through the motions of our day-to-day that we begin to experience strong connections to that which has been unseen and unrecognised by us - our inner voice or our inner self. It is in these moments we may experience strong memories, good and bad, or notice moments of complete peace and acceptance or indeed feel unexpected movement of emotion and energy in the form of heat or tingling or coolness in our bodies. In other words, we connect, as we connect with ourselves inwardly we begin to feel more connected outwardly; to our community, with nature of which we are a part, and with the wider universe.

Yoga is the practice of exploring and practicing the union of body and mind. Our being exists in an embodied form and that form is fully embodied. We are not minds residing in brains which live in a machine called a body. This way of mapping and perceiving the body is common to mechanistic philosophies of the body emerging within Western traditions. As this paradigm is so overarching, we can at times mistake this map for the reality of the lived experience of being, which is indeed a whole body experience. Yoga helps us connect to that whole body being, which of course is happening anyway, albeit often in our day to day lives with little awareness on our parts.

For those of us who are concerned with the true nature of ourselves and the true nature of that which surrounds us, we may also wish to notice and translate that truth through storytelling, art and creative pursuits.

“Just because it's fiction doesn't mean it's any less true.” ― Jodi Picoult

The practice of yoga can facilitate this space for exploration and meaning making, enriching the practice of expression through the arts.

Now is as good a time as any to begin to allow your embodied existence room to move, breathe and create with conscious and mindful awareness. You never know what you may find and create to share back with your community.