Subsequent to the challenges of last weeks in-class yoga sessions, I was at a bit of a loss on which branch of yoga to practice this week. Part of me missed the atmosphere of my online class, but the other part was excited to see what Gaia had in store for me this time. Luckily, the platform did not disappoint. A plethora of new videos have been posted in the past week, and the practice that caught my eye was a Fusion of Vinyasa and Kundalini entitled “The Attitude Makeover.” The instructor, Zain Saraswati Jamal, promised that the following 56 minutes of my time would be invested in getting me to let go of my worries, embrace self-love, and chant my way to inner harmony. Though it did not solve the lifelong journey of self-acceptance and human uncertainty that we all experience during our time on Earth, this practice did teach me new asanas and allowed me to utilize my block prop in ways I hadn’t before, something I genuinely enjoyed.
From the start, Jamal states that “We all go through challenging moments in our lives, where we feel down in the dumps, depressed —and more than likely we don’t want to take care of ourselves during those moments. But I invite you to join me for this attitude makeover session. This yoga kriya, combined with asana, will help to shift your vibrations into the upper chakra so that you can operate from a place of love and intuition as opposed to a place of fear and insecurity.”
In order to accomplish this, I started out in a seated position, my buttocks propped up on my foam block, legs crossed. Initially, I had to bring my hands to my heart in prayer, move the stance up to my forehead to acknowledge my third eye, and then bring my hands up to the sky before separating and sweeping down, touching the earth, and then repeating the process several times. Following this, I crossed my arms at 90 degrees, my fingertips touching my shoulder as I inhaled, opening my arms upwards as my upper body, including my gaze, fixated on the sky. I then exhaled, closing my arms and elbows inward towards the middle of my chest in an effort to release tension and open up through my heart. While doing this, Jamal introduced the mantra that would dominate our entire practice “Har Hari”, a mantra that Jamal says has a detoxifying core. Though instructed to repeat the mantra, after the first three times I was feeling rather idiotic, and ultimately chose to instead listen to her voice and do my best to complete the asanas at the same pace she was completing them.
This practice also featured a lot of familiar asanas — Downward Facing Dog, Warrior II, Cobra — so I will be skipping over most of them, only referencing one of these asanas in passing or in reference to a comment during a transition.
To feel a “vibration of strength and power,” I moved from Downward Facing Dog into plank and Low Frog Kriya, where I bounced between the two multiple times. Low frog is when your knees come out wide, your body shifting into an almost crouch before propelling forward into a plank; inhaling when coming out, exhaling when coming in. The impact of the vinyasa on my knees and legs was incredible; I felt the tension of my muscles pushing and stretching, yet my breath remained even, the combination of movement and pranayama serving as my motivation to keep going.
Several asanas later, in Warrior II while transitioning into Standing Frog Kriya, Jamal asked “what are you a warrior for in your life?” While the commentary was intriguing, it threw me out of the zone. Thinking about what I fight for every day was the last thing I wanted on my mind while practicing. Yoga, for me, is a time where I focus on my physical presence and try to stay grounded. That comment made me home in on the more stressful factors of my life, and even though that was not what was intended, all the tension that had been released thus far immediately came back to me. Turning back to the asana, my heel toe turned as I brought my feet inwards, my fingertips landed on the earth and I exhaled as I straightened my legs, focusing on my feet, then inhaled as I slid into a crouched position, my knees wide and face lifted up towards the sky. This is Standing Frog Kriya, which according to Jamal is also known as the “Ego Eradicator.” Focusing on the fluid movement of my body as it shifted up and down, my gaze moved and with it, so did my main line of sight, the shifting energy of my body acting as the conduit for the “lower chakras moving into the upper chakras.”
Immediately after, on the last inhale, I settled further into my seated asana, sinking my pelvis into the ground with my hands in prayer. Here, I engaged in Breath of Fire — and just like the last time I practiced Kundalini, it was immensely difficult to keep going due to the quickness of breath and the crunch of abdominal muscles working overtime to keep up. However, in contrast to last time, I felt much more at peace during the asana itself, and I did not notice how long we took because instead of wondering if I’d be able to hold on long enough to complete the asana, I knew I could hold on long enough.
The final two asanas that I will highlight are the Supported Bridge Pose variation and the initial pose, but with a hug and a chant. For Supported Bridge Pose, I was laying down with my knees up, my lower back resting on my block as my shoulders and head kissed the earth, my arms straight out on either side. This variation allowed me to fully relax and stretch my lower back and upper thighs, resting in an almost meditative state. It was a beautiful moment, a nice contrast to some of the quicker asanas that were prevalent earlier in the practice. After Savasana, which is usually the final asana in a practice, I went back to the initial asana, and gave myself a big hug. This time, I was instructed to close my eyes, feel the energy grounding into the earth, and then to speak the mantra of new beginnings in a mere whisper: “sa ta na ma.” I did this, and for some reason, the mantra worked for me this time. My voice became hoarse by the end, but with this asana, it felt right.
It may be a bit naïve of me to say that yoga is indeed a healing practice, as I am still very much a beginner. Yet, I do feel amazing after doing yoga. Not always while I am doing it, but the feeling of accomplishment, peace, and overall use of both body and mind post-practice always leaves me feeling refreshed and calm. In a world where everything is fast paced and made to be consumed in the quickest manner possible, having to dedicate time to the practice and truly reflect on what I did and how it made me feel has been beneficial to my overall mental and physical health. It has helped heal the parts of me that never stopped to smell the roses, and made me aware of my own limitations, both the ones I cannot exceed and the ones I push past. I hope it continues to do so, and I plan on continuing both this blog and my practice long after this class ends.
Until the Next Reflection,
Moujnir
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