I have been practicing chandra namaskar the last two days. Why? It’s in the air, India is over the moon! This is the result of 9 years of tapasya.

Chandra namaskars are a great way to start a practice. It is deep, slow and very prayer like. Unlike the surya namskars, this feels very feminine and restorative. Everything about it is mild, chaturanga is done with the knees on the floor, the cobra is so small it is called a baby cobra. Try practicing this a half dozen times before you continue with the slow lunar practice. Start by taking the right leg back. Do the entire sequence and then try with the left leg.

My yoga practice has completely been transformed to just home practice. I do not have access to cool yoga classes like I had in SF. So, it’s just me and my mat. All the inspiration has to come from within. So far, not so bad.

Every time I roll out my mat, I notice there is no power (electricity). Bangalore is pro conservation, by force. There is no power for a minimum of 5 hours a day. When I practice in the evenings, I would have just started with the first tadasana pose and there is a power cut. In India, darkness sets in just as the sun goes down. There is not much light left for long after the sun set.

Nowadays, I know better and I keep a few oil lamps ready, anticipating the cuts. To my surprise, I find that practicing with the lamps is so much more interesting. I tend to hold the poses longer and there is no hurry to go the next asana, no hurry to go anywhere. If I look around, there are some cool shadows. I like the shadow of virabhadrasana, warrior pose a lot. Sirsana the headstand is pretty cool with the lamps on the floor. Of course, there are a few mosquitoes around. But, they don’t bother me too much.

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