What's the Point of Yoga?

A colleague of mine was recently asked by a client “what is the point of yoga?” My colleague, who is not a yoga teacher, said she did not know how to respond and asked me what would I have said?

The point of yoga depends on who is doing it and why.

Yoga has a long history, and has changed significantly over the past 150 years. Depending on who is teaching, what their training has been and the nature of the class you can get almost anything you desire these days.

​Originally Yoga was experimental in nature. It was a hands on method for you to explore social constraints, moral principles, poses, breathing and meditation. Over time people observed they achieved greater tolerance levels, increased well-being, less reactivity under pressure, ability to regain composure after being pushed sideways and more. In short - they matured.

This was glorified into more mythical ideas of becoming self-actualized or enlightened. I prefer to think of maturity as the development of clarity or being able to see things as they are with less distortion.

Results were not a quick fix. They required diligence and consistency over time. In other words you had to have a burning desire to disengage from a householder’s lifestyle and often live under extreme conditions with unwavering conviction to attain the promise of freedom.  

Yoga was a system and methodology to guide you through the process. Usually the teacher was considered a guru. Yoga was still mainly a patriarchal dominant activity.

This emphasis shifted (and continues to shift faster and faster) from the beginning of the 20th Century. In the early 1900’s yoga became more prestigious as a national “sport” for India. Yoga at this time adopted gymnastic and martial-art moves and sequences. Have you ever noticed how similar chair pose is to a squat? Or sun salutations look like burpees?

Many myths were attached to yoga’s benefits and it soon became medicalized in nature. Yoga was seen to make your body more beautiful, elegant and flexible. Meditation was to relax you and drop blood pressure levels. Breath work could basically cure any malady. This appealed to women and there was a dramatic shift as more and more women embraced yoga. Many powerful women teachers emerged in the west and still dominate the yoga landscape today, to the point it is uncommon to see a class with many men.

In the 21st century it takes on a whole new level of zaniness. Yoga features goats,  kittens, beer, nudity and just about anything you can imagine. It has become a multi-billion dollar industry selling fashion, props, vitamins, get aways designed to transform you into equanimous, beautiful and flexible beings. In my four years as a teacher I have taught aerial yoga, Boga (yoga on a stand up paddle board), Rock your Flow, Yoga sculpt, Yin Yoga, Restorative Yoga, Yoga for a healthy back, chair yoga, yoga for athletes, cardio-yoga, Yoga Nidra and more!

While many clients are looking to yoga as something that can help them manage stress, anxiety, stiffness, imbalance and mental focus the truth is, you are embracing something whose roots are calling you to reprioritize your values.

Self actualization (maturity) starts with self acceptance and self care. These concepts are not easy for the modern western mind which is trained to value worldly achievement, conquering  and constantly judging and criticizing others. 

New social mores, political unrest, new norms, new protocols, new ideas and social media gone wild make the future uncertain.  Uncertainty tends to be emotionally unsettling. Unsettled emotions tend to lead to many irrational conclusions and an existential tension. Not fun to feel in oneself or others.

Many are looking for ways to navigate stressful and anxious times. Yoga can teach simple awareness and bring a sense of sanity to your day.

To me, that puts you in the perfect place to consider yoga, meditation and breath work as tools for self-regulation and on the road to changing your priorities. 

In a word I like to think of yoga as a pause. A slowing down. An opportunity to introspect, reflect and contemplate for oneself - free of dogma. I believe the world needs a deeper thoughtfulness at this time. One way that can come is from letting go of worry and anxiety about worry and anxiety. Pausing will help you cultivate the knack of letting go.

I can recommend some great reading for the history of yoga. Better still I recommend you start or continue with your own practice. I can support you with many resources (free yoga videos and my 9 short guided meditation cd / mp3) as well as live stream classes.

Contact me for further information at anytime.

​Good luck!

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