Hold your breath

It’s Yoga’s moment. Teachers and practitioners from the city speak about its changing aspects.

Published - June 19, 2015 08:56 pm IST

20kimp Yoga1

20kimp Yoga1

In a very telling remark young Yoga teacher Nuthan Manohar says that when she first relocated to the city some years ago and began teaching Yoga, people were not interested in it “even if it was taught free.” Today she finds the scene has changed. People are reaching out for it. With the ancient Indian wellness practice getting international recognition and a day being dedicated to it, June 21, tomorrow, it is Yoga’s moment.

Yogacharya S. Rajendran who teaches Yoga at many centres in the city is elated. He says, “This recognition from the United Nations is a gift to our culture. It is a moment of pride for all Yoga practitioners.”

But the recognition for this 5,000 year old practice has taken long to come. Nuthan, founder of Me Met Me, that offers Yoga sessions, life skills training and residential retreats says that though Yoga is tremendously popular in the West and South East Asia, sadly it took a Yoga Day to get our country to sit up and take notice.

Poornathrayee Jayaprakash, Yoga teacher at Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan, Kochi Kendra has been teaching Yoga for the past 15 years.

He says, “Yoga is an important part of the invaluable knowledge systems of our country, which need to be propagated. There is a misunderstanding that putting your legs on the head and such acrobatics is Yoga. It is not. Yoga is a union of the mind, body and exercises to fine-tune both. With the International Yoga Day now being celebrated I think Yoga has finally got its due.”

But most teachers in the city have experienced the slow and hard route to Yoga’s popularity.

Each time she mentioned Yoga to youth, the response used to be “eeks”, says Nuthan. However the situation has changed. Currently most of her students are above the age of 30. “I expect the average age to decrease, as more youngsters shift to a preventive approach to health and wellbeing. Currently it is only when there is a “problem” that people think of Yoga.”

“Stress, diabetes and weight are the top health concerns these days, and with Yoga it is possible to manage these conditions,” says Rajendran. He is confident that a day dedicated to Yoga will draw youngsters toward it. “It has become accessible with the advent of technology which is getting the youth interested. The combination of the internet and smart-phones makes it available for everybody. There is the added advantage of it being inexpensive. Once you have learnt it, it is with you life long. And it is not just about vyayaamam (exercise or postures), it is an entire lifestyle.”

Noted ghazal singer Umbayi, made that lifestyle change early on when a nagging pain in his back troubled him.

“Even before all this hype I have enjoyed the benefits of Yoga,” he says. Umbayi spends an hour every evening doing Yoga asanas and makes it a point to do pranayama for at least 20 minutes and shavasana for five minutes before a concert.

“Many are becoming aware of its cosmetic, health, mental and spiritual benefits when practised regularly. More people are embracing it without misconceptions of it being religious. Earlier research related queries used to come from medical centres abroad; now there is greater interest in hospitals in India itself,” says Nuthan but fears that such exuberance should not result in the proliferation of poor quality teachers and training centres.

“I personally suffered from Yoga injuries, as a child learning in India. Alignments and engagement of the right muscles sets are rarely taught, which leads to injuries that take a long time to heal. There is also the problem of “short Yoga courses”. When it comes to music, dance or cricket, people know that it takes years to learn and perfect. Same is the case with Yoga, a ten-day course or weekend session is never sufficient. What is needed is passion and perseverance to explore our body's weaknesses and overcome them. The aim of Hatha Yoga was to have complete mastery of the body and not the ability to do poses.”

Abraham Xavier, 55 runs the Sanathana Global School of Yoga Studies in Fort Kochi. His Yoga practice is about ‘One World.’ He says, “Whatever you do the breath is very important. Watch your breath and you will realise that we share one universal breath. That is my Yoga teaching. It is about religious pluralism. Yoga is not about standing on your head.”

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