I confess I really dislike mess and find it difficult to work in a cluttered environment. This is especially so at home (much to the annoyance of other family members). I love a clean clutter free space and if it was up to me I'd be even more minimalistic.
One of my mantras is live with less, but I don't mind spending money on the things which matter or are used regularly. Finding a kettle I'm happy with has taken a long time! For me it's about being a bit more mindful about the things we use, wear, or have around us. Of course, we can all be a bit impulsive and creative, which is no bad thing either, as we're all different.
In my classes over the last couple of weeks we've been looking a bit more mindfully at 'placing'. How we 'place' our bodies on the yoga mat, especially when moving through sequences. This follows on from 'Vinyasa' in my blog last week. https://www.vikkiyoga.com/post/fidget
Vinyasa means 'placing' the body in a special way. I feel this is important because it requires a good understanding of the physical pose but also letting go of how you 'think' a posture should look (and ego) and 'placing' your body so that you can get the most benefit. This can be really difficult because most yoga spaces don't have mirrors so you can't see if you're misaligned, unless a teacher comes to correct you.
Where we 'place' our body is something which is unique to us. There is a trend which has been around for a while, for markings on yoga mats. There's nothing wrong with having a really nice yoga mat and some of the markings can be helpful, but only if you know what you're doing. Some of these markings come with a big price tag too! At the end of the day we have different length limbs, muscle tone and are all different shapes and sizes.
Also, things change. As we become stronger or more 'open' in our practice, get injured, or even dare I say it age. Then the 'placing' changes too.
Another of my mantras I'd like to share here is price per wear. I feel some things are just worth spending a bit more money on, of course this is all relative to our income. I am not an ambassador for any brand but as a former designer I have an appreciation of good quality, well designed yoga products. I've been having a few conversations recently with some yogi's about their practice being better than their mats, or clothing. I'd be happy to share some ideas if ever you feel you want to upgrade.
Going back to how we place our bodies, and in fact how we place, or prioritise our yoga practice, are lessons we can take off the yoga mat too. But this can also raise some big questions. What do we value and cherish? Where do we 'place' importance. Some of these questions come up in the story of Arjuna and his dilemma in the Bhagavad Gita, which I find really inspiring. Here's a nice link which outlines some of the story.
Ultimately, as in the Bhagavad Gita, 'Yoga is the journey of the self, to the self'. A journey of self discovery of what is important on and off the mat. How we place our feet is as import as much as how we 'place' life stuff.
Have a lovely weekend.
Namaste
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