Bikram Yoga and the Practice of Non-Violence

When I was in high school I started doing Bikram yoga, you know the yoga where the room is 100 degrees, everyone is dripping sweat, and you’re feeling tortured the whole time.

It was mostly awful, but I’d have these glimpses where I saw myself getting stronger, getting more flexible, and afterwards I’d get a nice endorphin high.

Comparison is the Thief of Joy

Most of the class was spent with me facing the pain in my body and mind, looking around comparing myself to more able bodies, and beating myself up for not being more fit for my age.

I can honestly say most of the first years practicing yoga were similar, although when I ditched the hot yoga classes I stopped getting UTI infections, stopped almost passing out every class, and enjoyed the practice of yoga more.

I share all of this to remind you that wherever you are on your yoga journey it’s of no benefit to compare yourself to the other people in class. Everyone has their own baggage, life problems, and obstacles to face, even if they look angelic and free folding into the perfect forward fold.

Also, hyper mobile and overly flexible people have different problems and can start stretching their tendons more than muscle and this causes a whole world of pain you want nothing to do with. So if you’re that stiff person in class, enjoy the stiffness, learn from it, befriend it.

Time and time again I return to the principle of non-violence, most often toward myself.

My thoughts tend toward turbulence and aggressive inner bullying, yet the more I focus on my heart, on love, on compassion and forgiveness, the more non-violence fills my body. It is far too easy for me to cultivate this compassion and forgiveness for others, it’s myself I beat up.

I don’t think I’m alone in this. I’ve seen far too many yoga classes where people’s bodies looked miserably contorted into poses that their body was not ready for.

It’s easy to get into a competitive mindset, even in yoga classes, but that’s not the point of yoga. The point of yoga is to untie your body, mind, and spirit. To feel more love and compassion toward yourself and others.

If your practice isn’t generating more kindness toward yourself and others start to make that your intention.

Intentions are powerful and when we use our minds to focus on what we intend magical things can happen.

Okay I am off to move with my body, mind, and spirit. To remind myself I am a whole person who deserves self-care just like everyone else does. To be kind to myself, to my injuries, to my wandering mind, to my postpartum body. To root my practice in non-violence.

*Also, if it sounds like I have it all figured out and I do this everyday, that’s a lie. I rarely squeeze in an entire practice, but I do what I can when I can.

That’s all any of us can do. One step at a time. One centimeter at a time we slowly inch forward with more strength, flexibly, and kindness.

Love Always,

Danielle Mallett