I am not sure what it is. Is it my vagabonding through India to study Yoga or is it Vancouver or is it my injured knee? Western “vinyasa” does not make sense at all to my body. This is the style I have practiced for so many years until I went to India. My teachers at my teacher training in San Francisco were primarily trained in this style, for they were direct disciples of the California Yoga queen Shiva Rea. I used to enjoy this style a lot. Not anymore. I am trying to figure out what happened.

I was at a “vinyasa” class last week. Music was Jazz. Sade and others were taking turns to provide the vocals.  The instructor told us to press on the golden egg between the root chakra and the genitals. Some more chakra talk continued. My golden rule of thumb had always been to avoid a class where the teacher talks about chakras. I normally draw the line at bandhas. Most instructors understand bandhas. Chakra talk is so DC (Deepak Chopra) and is what I classify as saccharine sweet. It is mostly mumbo jumbo to me. I understand chakras in the real yogic sense, but not in a yoga class where the instructor is trying to sound cool.

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I am not fond of using music for my yoga practice. I enjoy yoga without music, for I can hear myself better, feel the joints open up and feel the flexibility increase as the class progresses. I think yoga is all about going independent of all dependencies. It is about getting rid of all the layers, not about adding things. I think it is okay to use music in a public class, as everyone is at a different stage of evolution. And for many, it is just a workout.

Using music is alright, if the music used is good. I am aware of the reggae, rock, trance and all the variations.  In San Francisco, the music choice was quite decent. Even though the Sanskrit was butchered in all the new age lounge music, it still had a rhythm. Om Man-ee pad-meh hooooom. During my teacher training in San Francisco, I was even taught how important music is and how it must be used to build a tempo. Personally, I do not want to use music as it is a distraction to go to Apple music and buy the songs. It costs extra and it is unnecessary nuisance. If I do use music in my class, I make sure it is interesting.

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I have always fancied having someone guide me in my Yoga studies. A lot of books say that great progress can be made when you have a guru, as a guru can show you the way. Sounds great, but I am pretty sure I am not going to find anyone who can fit this role. Of late, I do not want it either. I am afraid that the person will let me down. Last year, I was at an ashram in India. I thought I liked a teacher who could explain things very well. I also felt he practiced asanas and everything else that he was talking about. Integrity is super important for a role model. Then I got to know he was after a girl in my class. There is essentially nothing wrong with that. Just that he had claimed a completely different lifestyle in class. That was the last time I ever wanted a guide, teacher or a guru. Now I look for inspiration among my own friends, yogis or non yogis.

I am writing this as I read about this guru called Nithyananda. Normally I do not like to write about such people, they do not deserve my time and space on this blog. This guy has this ashram just outside of my home town, Bangalore. I heard about this guy the entire time I was in India last year. The youngest swami in India. One of the yogis that I had met was a follower of this man. She would meditate on this man and she had told me so much about him. I kept thinking to myself, what would happen if this guru is a fake. It would be such a waste of time and energy. I simply don’t trust anyone who lives in an ashram and claims he is a guru. True to that thought, I read there is so much confusion caused by this man.

This is obscene. Not because they ask you to expose. Asking to expose yourself to yoga is quite clever. Obscene are the prices inside the store. The yoga mats and the spandex clothing are unbelievable. I am so used to seeing the “Ohm” symbol on the asses of my fellow yogis in SF.  I knew they were for cool people.  While I was always content doing my yoga in Old Navy yoga clothes, I thought the name lululemon sounded kuku.

Lulu and lemon sounded silly and quite ridiculous to me.  I did not know these are clothes I cannot afford in this lifetime, or don’t want to as I have no need for them. I spent less than one minute in this store and made for the exit. This is a shop specific to yoga clothing and was started in Vancouver. It definitely has a huge following everywhere I go.  Just when I am studying and going deeper in yoga and realize that you don’t need much at all to be in the Yoga path, here is one store that will sell you so much to look the part. Amazing, how many people fall for it.

I was in India during the Ganesha festival and I remember explaining to an American friend what it was all about. I was telling him that praying to Ganesha who is an obstacle remover has a few asanas involved. One of the main ones is where a person holds on to their ears and asks for forgiveness for all the mistakes. It is called Thoppu Karanam in Tamil. It is nothing but a dynamic utkatasana.

And then I read an article in the magazine Hinduism today, that some nut case has patented this sequence as “Superbrain Yoga”. I could not believe the nuttiness involved in patenting something that is followed in a religion for hundreds of years.

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I am of the opinion that yoga instructors should not give any advice regarding diet, vitamins, rajas, tamas, chakras and gem stones. For one, yoga instructors are not qualified in that field. So, why spew out some half baked knowledge(?) to the poor students. Anyone can be an instructor in a couple of weeks or weekends. There are online ayurveda courses which can get you certified in no time, so one can say cool words like doshas, rajas, tamas and kapha.

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