position will show up in the BEING version of the pose. But in the BEING version, you will have to address the challenges. The floor beneath you will prevent you from doing anything other than facing yourself, and so it goes with all BEING poses.
The support that is required in the BEING variation sheds light on what is or isn’t happening when practicing the pose classically and can skillfully guide the outcome of any change necessary. BEING poses require little or no effort, meaning that they do not recruit the same level of muscle effort as DOING poses, other than getting into the pose and maintaining limb alignment. They are generally considered cooling poses.
STILL POSE (SAVASANA: CORPSE POSE FOR FINAL RELAXATION)
Savasana (Corpse Pose) is crucial to all styles of asana practices but especially to the completion of a Yapana practice. Because BEING poses have prepared the body for final relaxation, shortening or altogether ignoring this part of the practice would leave the student feeling incomplete. Savasana is a pose for integrating all that has come before. When we stop planning, organizing, and managing, we are able — if only momentarily — to experience the death of our doing. When this occurs, the full experience of a present moment’s dying is only a breath away. Death teaches us that time and space are temporary and that clinging to life is an aversion to change. Savasana acts as fertile ground that creates an opening for the passing and going of all that keeps us bound.
In a Yapana practice, we allow a minimum of 15 minutes for final relaxation. Studies show that within that time, many people can drop into a state of deep relaxation, or what’s considered the alpha state of mind, in which time and space become irrelevant to, or rather nonexistent in, your consciousness. As in all other yoga poses, levels of experience occur and change with time spent in Savasana.
Disturbances in this pose are not unlikely, even after a complete practice; they can surface from physical, mental, or emotional agitations. Everyone responds differently to a practice; however, both thoughtful and skillful sequencing of the Yapana BEING and STILL segments will encourage the greatest amount of rest with the least amount of effort.
How Would You Like Your Savasana?
There are many ways to take rest in Savasana, with or without support. Savasana does not have to be practiced the exact same way every time. Determining the kind of Savasana for the practice is based on what kinds of poses were practiced before Savasana. For instance, if the asana sequence addressed a stiff lower back, a logical choice may be to offer a Savasana that gives support to the lower back. If this is the case, consider practicing Savasana with either the legs elevated or weight on the top thighs to release the lower back into gravity. Or, if the sequence focused on opening the chest and shoulders, a logical choice may be to offer a Savasana that includes an eye pillow to support going inside.
Savasana as Preparation for a Pranayama (Breathing) Practice
Perhaps you offer a pranayama practice toward the end of the asana practice. If so, you may have taught poses that focus on opening the front, back, and sides of the waist and the chest and shoulders. Practicing a “mini”-Savasana (approximately 3 minutes) is recommended before a pranayama practice. This can help further mentally prepare for pranayama. Of course, after pranayama practice is completed, a full Savasana is recommended.
YOGA THERAPY — IT IS WHAT IT IS
Like so many others, I became interested in therapeutic yoga because at some point I understood that the value of an asana practice goes far beyond that of a physical workout. Yoga therapy is the new buzzword in the yoga community, but what does it mean? After all, isn’t all yoga considered therapeutic? Yes, but in varying degrees.
All yoga is therapeutic, whether it is practiced passively or dynamically. What makes an intelligent yoga practice therapeutic is not one approach or the other, but whether the approach addresses the needs of the practitioners. Yoga therapy is not solely about practicing a relaxing yoga pose. It is about rightness: using the right pose at the right time, in the right way for the right purpose. It fulfills an intention, a purpose, and a direction. And it is a process and a road map for discovering what works for you while giving you the tools to integrate a vigilant understanding of how you do life on and off the mat.
After all, yoga (yug = to yolk, unite) is trying to teach us that its practice is not just about “me” (the ego) or what I’m trying to achieve (the pose, breathing practice, life skill, etc.). It is about joining the two in a way that is mindful, is meaningful, and extends well beyond the yoga mat. Simply stated, therapeutic yoga is about skillfully reconciling differences specific to your needs while drawing from the rooftop of your awareness to what is happening, while it is happening.
OVERVIEW — WHY USE YOGA PROPS?
B. K. S. Iyengar introduced props into the modern practice of yoga to allow all practitioners access to the benefits of the postures regardless of physical condition, age, or length of study. The central purpose for using yoga props is to address a need for support. Some people like to rename yoga props to sound more appealing, like yoga “toys” or “tools.” I am not opposed to doing this, although personally I’ve never found the need. A “prop” is just that. It is supportive and helpful when facing obstacles on the mat because it helps to meet us where we are. That’s the job it is intended to do. A prop is a prop. No amount of calling it something other than what it is will change the purpose. What will change is our understanding of props and their popularity, with intelligent, creative, and confident use.
Props help practitioners at all levels gain the sensitivity of a pose while receiving the benefits over time without overextending themselves. It allows students to practice asanas (postures) and pranayama (breath control) with greater effectiveness, ease, and stability. Still, some may be resistant to receiving support from yoga props because relying on props somehow diminishes their sense of success. If you have a negative attitude toward prop support, you may feel as though you are “cheating” in your practice and may generally oppose support in other areas of your life. Or perhaps requiring additional support shines a light on a shadow that you would prefer not to reveal. This I know for sure: if yoga instructors do not value using props, their students won’t either. My experience over decades of teaching is that those instructors only lack the knowledge of how to intelligently and creatively use props. I wrote this book to help students and educate yoga instructors in how to use yoga props, to demystify them, and to inspire yoga enthusiasts everywhere to play and soften their edges on the mat with strategic and creative prop support.
We’re ready to move forward.
WHO BENEFITS FROM PROPS?
Don’t believe anyone who says using yoga props on the mat is cheating. One of my yoga teachers taught that asana practice is more about subtraction than addition (thank you, Richard C. Miller), and using yoga props can help every sincere student drop into that understanding.
It’s perfectly fine to practice without the support of yoga props. It’s just that in all the years I have shared yoga with different people at different levels of practice, I have yet to find one person who didn’t benefit from using a yoga prop in one or more yoga poses. For everyone from the most flexible and strong practitioner to the least, a strategically placed yoga prop can elevate the physical and spiritual trajectory of the yoga practice.
In case you’re not sure how this is so, I’ve highlighted how prop support can benefit yoga practitioners. Perhaps you’ll recognize yourself in one of the groups below.
Yoga Newbies
If you are new to yoga, this book will help ease your way into the restorative journey. It will prepare you for practicing in a full-service yoga studio where use of yoga props is commonplace. Beginning students have much to learn.
