I love taking cuttings from one plant, seeing them take root and growing into another strong healthy plant. I've completely lost track of all the (hundreds of) off spring my
Chinese Money Plant has sprung! (Mama plant in photo).
I guess it taps into my maternal instincts. It's also a characteristic I've been tuned into as a yoga teacher. Helping people and sharing the many benefits of yoga has definitely increased through the pandemic and perhaps even more so in re establishing face to face classes.
Traditionally yoga was learned from a teacher and then was passed onto others. This is called Viniyoga. This was the method my teacher Dave Charlton shared in our 3 year teacher training. Slow and steady with very much a personal approach for each student. I remember Dave saying to me when I first started with him, 'I need to teach you how to breathe'. He was so right. I had been a fitness instructor before getting into yoga, so was pretty good at asana (poses) or at least some of them! But I clearly needed to deepen my practice and fully appreciate pranayama (breathing techniques). Under Dave's tuition and it took a long time - I started to get better.
In fact the ancient texts such as the Hatha Yoga Pradipika and The Yoga Sutras focus very little on physical yoga postures, and when the author of the Sutras, Patanjali speaks of ‘asana’ he’s talking about the position you choose to sit (or seat) while meditating. It is understood that most of 'modern yoga' is more focused on an asana practice because in the western world we've become stiff through being less active and too much sitting in chairs.
It's a real privilege to be part of other yogi's journeys and I've been humbled too to have seen several who been to my own classes and now are running their yoga classes too. I especially love hearing how yogi's share with their partners or children, sometimes bringing them along.
Sharing seeds of the yoga practice, however small, feels very special when you see these seeds take root and grow (like the propagated plants).
This is why I love one of the main messages in another of the ancient texts, the Bhagavad Gita. Krishna (God) instructs Arjuna (the main character) not to be focused on the end result. Like how much money we're going to make, or how many instagram followers we have, but what we're actually sharing with others, here and now.
Like propagation or sewing seeds, not everyone who comes to a yoga class will feel this need to share, study and grow. Also, I don't claim to be all 'green fingered' either! I've had absolutely no luck with succulents. I think I 'over care' for them. Part of being a good parent is knowing when or when not to intervene and listen isn't it? Maybe my daughters would say the same thing!
I'm also learning a bit about horticulture, which can feel really overwhelming as there's so much to consider. Positioning, soil quality, pruning, pest and disease control. Not to mention all the species! My sister is a gardener - so I often call for advice. It's good to keep trying. Keep having a go. Sometimes something takes root and starts to grow. That's a great feeling. Sounds a bit like my yoga practice.
Have a great weekend. Namaste.
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