DRU and Restorative Yoga, Pre-Natal Yoga Mid-Term Paper

Mid-Term Project and Presentation: Laura Douglass Yoga; Theories, Culture and Practice

Lesley University

Open Meadow Zen, Lexington, MA

DRU, Restorative and Pre-Natal Yoga: Energy in Motion with Regine Detremmerie-Carr

February 29, 2012

I chose to take classes with Regine Detremmetrie-Carr of Great Brook Yoga at Open Meadow Zen Studio on Marrett Road in Lexington, Massachusetts.  I discovered this Zen studio when one of my friends asked me to practice this form of yoga with her following a DRU yoga retreat at the Arlington Center. There is no advertising or marketing for Open Meadow Zen studio and no train service to Lexington, therefore the people served by this beautiful location are those fortunate enough to have a car and know of such an intimate spot for yoga.  My interest in the practice and study of yoga is as a complement to medical treatment for the relief of chronic pain and elimination of diseases.  There is no affiliation to a hospital with this yoga practice, however, Regine has spent years teaching yoga for pregnancy and childbirth. She has also used  DRU yoga practice in her own recovery from breast cancer.

DRU and Restorative Yoga became interesting to me after reading about yogic energy in the Practical Yoga Psychology (Vivekananda, 2005) and from your course lesson on kosha.  The body/energy/mind dimensions of human existence from the yogic point of view are divided into five parts known as kosha in Sanskrit meaning sheath.   Vivekananda (2005) describes these five kosha: “beginning with the physical body (Annamaya), next to the energy body (Pranamaya), then the mental body (Manomaya), the wisdom body (Vijnanamaya) and the finest level, the bliss body (Anandamaya)” (p. 25). The yoga classes that I attend explore this prana energy with motion for soothing and calming restlessness, anxiety and pain from the core of the body.

 The word “Yoga” means “yoke” in Sanskrit and implies a harnessing together and a unifying of body and mind (Kabat-Zinn, 2010). My training as a teacher of MBSR (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction) has primarily focused on mindful yoga.  Jon Kabat- Zinn describes mindful yoga as meditation in motion while maintaining moment to moment awareness. It includes not striving to get somewhere, just allowing yourself to be as you are, and letting go of any judging of yourself.  This form of Hatha yoga consists of postures done mindfully, with an awareness of breathing and extremely gentle movements.  For me, the Hatha yoga study and practice, both in class and with Regine, has added to this awareness a discovery of energy flow and potential blockages, primarily stretching my flexibility  in body and thoughts. 

When I first tried to find Open Meadow, I must have passed the dirt road several times before driving down to enter the serene house of Zen surrounded by acres of conservation land. There was just a row of shoes and no way of knowing which stairway or door to enter to find the Yoga studio. There is a library filled with books and a community kitchen, a still yet welcoming atmosphere. There is an open spirit that I recognized similar to the Zen house that my teacher at the Center for Mindfulness lived in with her family. The Open Meadow Zen Studio follows the Korean Zen tradition taught by the Kwan Um School of Zen. Dharma teachings from this school describe that the breath should breathe you; similar to the way that the environment feels when you are present in it, relaxed, natural and quiet.   The Zen surroundings and feeling of community at Open Meadow impact the practice of DRU and Restorative Yoga.

When I picture “Zen,” Open Meadow Studio is the picturesque scene that comes to mind.  There are large windows with the sun shining in, a large stained glass picture of Quan Yin, “mother of compassion,” overlooking willow trees, a huge open meadow, and a bubbling carp pool. There is a porch for outdoor yoga practice, with a bird feeder visited by cardinals and rare yellow birds. I asked Regine (personal communication, February 25, 2012) why she chose Open Meadow Zen to teach DRU and Restorative Yoga. One of her reasons was the capacity to work with the energy of nature, both indoors and outdoors.  There are times when yoga takes a person to serious emotions even tears, so Regine begins by warming up and sweating the body to free the mind for the hour and half practice with expressive dance to lively cultural music.

In Regine’s yoga practice, nature is integrated into the postures for each season with flowing sequence. Students tune into what postures work best for their body. Weather and planets, like the full moon sequences and sun salutations, have impact on the flowing sequences. Spring postures incorporate flowing spinal twists for the cleaning process and easing liver functions and digestion, including an understanding of diet and nutrition. Summertime is the time when all body parts are used in a balanced way, with playfulness, creativity and cooling. Regine takes yoga classes outside in the summer, where students can lie down and feel their backs cooled by the earth below, under the willow trees.  Early winter is a time of introspection and gratitude, particularly in the months of November and December.  Bending forward, bows and gestures inward are the dominant postures during this season. The first months of the New Year, when it is coldest, include an effort to energize with postures like backbends. Fall is the time of bounty, lending to standing postures for feeling grounded and rooted to the Earth.

Regine is a native of Belgium.  She began by teaching classes in macrobiotic cooking, studied Iyengar Yoga with intensive immersion, and then became a student of Vipassana meditation. Inspired by the natural childbirth of her daughter, Regine added a focus on the work of Janet Balaskas for yoga to prepare for birth and motherhood. She also became certified in pranic (energy) healing under Grand Master Choa Kok Sui. After being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000, Regine discovered the healing power of DRU yoga and completed the four-year teacher-training program in Wales (Detremmerie-Carr, 2012). When I spoke with Regine on February 25, 2012, about what led to her teaching DRU yoga, she said that it was a progression of studying natural healing modalities including  pranic healing, restorative yoga, prenatal yoga and nutrition.

 DRU Yoga is unique as a graceful form of yoga based on flowing movements, directed breathing and visualizations.  Two decades ago, a small group of idealistic Welsh university students sought to change the world through yogic practice, and the teachings have grown internationally from Canada to Australia (Dru Worldwide, 2012). The letters DRU come from the Sanskrit word, dhruva which refers to stillness. DRU Yoga is based in ancient yogic traditions to improve strength, flexibility and rejuvenation of the whole being--body, mind and spirit. The therapeutic approach works on the healthy movement of the spine to reduce back pain, increase energy levels, improve breathing, encourage emotional balance, and overcome negative thinking.

The chanting that we practice in Laura Douglass’ class raised my curiosity about what sound, toning, chanting and mantras do physiologically to help restore the body and mind. I experienced this occurring in Regine’s class, as well. She guided us in poses to strengthen the upper body, breathing the vertebra up and toning with the letters “F- exhalation releasing tension on the spine” and “V- exhalation releasing tension in the jaw.”

DRU sound works to put cells back in harmony and restore balance with our inner and outer world frequency (Dru Worldwide, 2012). The practice of DRU sound can bring into balance the body and harmonize our inner vibration frequency in stillness. Every atom, electron, proton and neutron in our bodies is carrying an electrical charge. The energy created by these billions of little charges, in turn creates a vibration frequency or sound- every organ tissue, muscle and bone emit sound. Uncontrollable noises from modern technology and electronic pollution can potentially disrupt our inner balance. Practices in toning, chanting, verbal affirmation and mantras can be used in yoga to become in tune, inside and outside our bodies.

Restorative Yoga involves passive stretching of the entire body, while the body is supported by pillows, bolsters, blankets and other props. The spine and organs are alternately stimulated, supported and soothed in guided restorative postures. The poses range from forward bends, backbends and gentle spinal twists, some for the overall body to poses for specific areas. Restorative poses often focus in these areas of the body; chest, supporting heart and lungs, abdominal cavity, assisting the abdominal organ systems, legs, movement of blood and fluids by changing the legs relationship to gravity. This passive yoga practice helps address ailments like high blood pressure, migraines, digestive issues, immune system support, nervousness, insomnia.  Restorative Yoga is taught in a separate class by Regine but postures are included in the teachings of DRU yoga (personal communication, February 25, 2012).  The experience of the calming place that I go in deep meditation with my mind is equal in the body to me with restorative yoga. The body deeply rests and revitalizes as the mind does in meditation, in contrast to the rest of sleep.

      In addition to DRU yoga and Restorative Yoga, Regine has working for decades as a yoga teacher for pregnancy and natural childbirth. Her teachings incorporate the extensive trainings listed in her background (Detremmerie-Carr, 2012) and are primarily based on primitive cultural birthing.  Regine finds a trend today of about 80% of women who chose to receive drugs for labor. The yoga and energy practice she teaches focuses on the mother’s physical and emotional experiences that accompany changes in pregnancy. Her teaching views the attitude of consciousness versus sleepiness.  Learning includes poses that alleviate pain and discomfort, simple breathing techniques for birth and labor, sound and vocalization techniques and visualizations. The weekly pre-natal yoga teaching is nurturing for building a trusting relationship with student and teacher similar to that of a doula in childbirth. Yoga class is a place to share concerns about pregnancy, feelings, anxiety and to release tensions in the body being held physically and mentally.

Dru Yoga taught by Regine at Open Meadow Zen studios works with patterns, challenges and energy blockages on the muscular skeletal physiological, emotional and mental levels. The connection with nature and the nurturing guided movements of the DRU and Restorative Yoga practices taught by Regine help to open and clear an awareness of where energy is flowing. Open Meadows Zen is a spot in Lexington, with a touch of Korea, a hidden gem out of the mainstream of city Power Yoga studios.  Students in these classes, offered at 10:30 on Fridays, tend to be women, middle to upper class, generally over forty years old interested in a healthy holistic lifestyle.  The environment of Open Meadow Zen and Regine’s clarity seen through her electric blue eyes and flowing movements represents not just lessons in Yoga. She lives the practice.

My focus of study is in the therapeutic modalities for working with chronic pain including pains in pregnancy.  Swami Multibodhananda (1998) believes through the practice of Hatha Yoga, one’s entire being is made fit and strong, as a shelter from the effects of the pains which come with life. According to Hindu symbols it is the tortoise that represents patient endurance. The tortoise can extend limbs or retreat into the protection of the hard covering when threatened. (p35). The practice of DRU and Restorative Yoga requires patient endurance, a combination of DRU yoga for extending the limbs and restorative yoga for retreating and protecting.

References

Detremmerie-Carr, Regine. (2012).  Regine’s Personal Journey with Movement and Health.  Retrieved from http://www.greatbrookyoga.com/about/

The Kwan Um School of Zen  [Brochure]. Cumberland, RI.

Muktibodhananda, Swami. (1998). Hatha Yoga Pradipka: Light on Hatha Yoga.  Munger, Bihar, India: Yoga Publications Trust.

Vivekananda, Rishi. (2005). Practical Yoga Psychology.  Munger, Bihar, India: Yoga Publications Trust.

What is Dru Yoga? (2012).  Retrieved February 25, 2012 from http://www.druworldwide.com/yoga/what_is_dru_yoga

Vinyasa Yoga

          Vinyasa Yoga

           Like any culture, yoga is seen to have its own set of beliefs, values, and religions. Some of the main goals of yoga is to clear the mind and not to get attached to the body. Within the culture of yoga, there are a numerous amount of subcultures embedded in it. Each style is unique and practiced differently. For this assignment, I chose to focus on the culture of Vinyasa yoga. This specific type of yoga focuses intensely on the importance of breathing while holding each pose longer than one normally would. Through my experience of practicing Vinyasa yoga, I was also able to become familiar with the meaning and theories behind this wonderful style of yoga.   

            When deciding which site I should go to for this assignment, I initially had two or three places in mind. The real issue I had was choosing which one would be the best choice for this assignment. After much research into each of the sites, I decided that the Karma Yoga Studio in Harvard Square would be the best fit for me.  What initially drew me in was that it is located in a great area, and their website really gave a great overview of how each class was structured.

            The Karma Yoga Studio is located in three different areas. There is a studio located in Harvard Square, the South End, and Allston. These studios focus on looking at fitness as a whole. They provide individuals with either private or group classes taught by experienced and certified instructors. The population that these studios serve are mainly teenagers and adults. There are many special offers and discounts for students around the area. The Karma Yoga Studio’s main goals are to allow individuals to find enlightenment, clear the mind, and alter one’s body or “sarira”. They work to improve our planet through acknowledgment of issues within humanity, animals, and our environment.

Also, they believe that care for one’s self as well as care for the environment is the key to good health. These studios offer an eclectic group of yoga styles. They offer Anusara yoga, Forrest Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Kundalini Yoga, Yin Yoga, Power Yoga, as well as many other styles. In addition to yoga, they also offer Bollywood dance classes and Chi Kung, a Chinese exercise similar to yoga that incorporates breath work, and meditation while in a standing position. 

            The style of yoga that I focused on was Vinyasa flow yoga. In this class, every level of experience was welcomed. The class incorporates various amounts of breathing exercises while transitioning from pose to pose. Between each pose, one is to go into Downward Facing Dog, which is seen to be the “resting pose”. Within each pose, one is encouraged to hold it for a longer time than a standard pose should be held. This is done with the motive to improve one’s balance and help with one’s configuration of the body. It is also seen to help with posture and flexibility. In addition, it can also strengthen one’s body by the use of muscles that aren’t regularly used. This can leave an individual feeling re-energized by the end of the practice.

After experiencing my first class of Vinyasa yoga, I felt inspired to find some background information on what exactly this branch of yoga is, the history behind it, and how it has developed to be so popular and still practiced today. While doing some research, I found that this branch of yoga originated from the sacred Yogi, Sri Ramamohan Brahmachari. This Yogi spent much of his life living inside a cave in the Himalayas and only had fruit as his form of nutrition. He was one of the many Hatha Yogis of the 19^th century that had been chosen to teach about Hatha yoga. Sri Tirumala Krishnamacharya, a well-known Guru spent about seven years studying with Brahmachari.

In the duration of this time, he perfected the skills in this branch of yoga as well as gaining powers that were seen to be incredibly unique. After a couple of years had passed, Krishnamacharya was given a spot in one of his friend’s palace to teach yoga to others. It was through that experience that different branches of Vinyasa yoga began to be introduced and taught to individuals. It wasn’t until about forty years later when it was known to be a form of yoga in the West.

I also found that the word vinyasa is seen to have four basic meanings. It is understood to be the connection between the breath and the movement of the body, the breath work in between each posture, creating an individual purpose or meaning for one’s self throughout the practice, and lastly, a type of yoga practice that is widely taught. When breaking up the word vinyasa it can be seen into two different parts. Vi means, “in a special way” and Nyasa means, “to place”. Some of the most common poses in this practice are the Twisted Hip Pigeon Bow, Warrior 2 Side Triangle, and the Scorpion

Vinyasa. All of these poses require great balance and composure as well as a steady, calm breath.

With all of the theories of this style of yoga, there are specific aspects that can be seen as the basis for the practice. One of the most important key points Vinyasa yoga stresses is the breath. Learning to tune out all distractions and focus on the breath moving throughout the body allows one to be able to sit further into each pose they are performing. Becoming internally aware of the pace of the breath can almost be seen as a distraction from trying to perform the pose correctly. An ideal breath pace is a steady, unrushed inhale and exhale. The breath should be calm and relaxed. By doing this, it can further one’s development in creating a strong connection to his or her body. This is also referred to as asana.  

Having the opportunity to practice Vinyasa yoga myself, I noticed a couple of differences from the Hatha yoga that we practice in class. The Vinyasa class that I attended seemed to be incredibly fast-paced, whereas in the in-class practices, I feel as though everything is at a much slower pace, and there is much more meditation involved. I also feel that the importance of breathing throughout the practice is stressed a lot more throughout Vinyasa yoga.

One of the biggest things that stood out to me throughout my experience in the class at Karma Yoga was that the class itself was incredibly Americanized. I wasn’t sure if it was just the instructors way of teaching the class, but it seemed as though the main purpose or goal of that class was to get in shape or get a better body. The instructor kept on making comments on how to get a “tighter butt”, or how to tone certain parts of the body throughout the practice. In the moment, I didn’t really find myself noticing these things. It wasn’t until after I left the class that I came to the realization that the class didn’t seem to be properly executed.

 I suspect that the instructor may have possibly set up the class that way to make it sound more appealing to individuals. This is because in our culture, body image is everything. We see ad’s constantly promoting the newest fat burning pills, or stick-thin models portrayed as having the “ideal body”. By describing Vinyasa yoga as a great form of exercise to lose weight, it will more than likely draw in a greater amount of people than if one were to say that this style of yoga could result in forming a better connection between the mind, body, and spirit.

            Also, the class seemed to move at an extremely fast past. When I was reading the class description, I was under the impression that the transition from pose to pose would be slow. I may be biased being a beginner at yoga, but I felt as though the class was more of a power yoga class rather than a flow yoga class. With a couple other yoga classes that I have gone to, one is allowed to go into Child Pose when needed, but with this class, the instructor did not recommend or praise it. I believe this is what made the class harder for me because I felt as though I didn’t really have any time to rest or focus on my breathing throughout the practice because I was just so focused on my exhaustion.

Overall, even though the class wasn’t what I expected, I still enjoyed the experience. I was able to try out a new style of yoga, and learn about the culture in addition to the practice. Being able to learn the culture made me more aware of the different forms of yoga that there are. It also made me appreciate how sacred the distinctive cultures of yoga are seen to be to others. In the future, I would like to try out another Vinyasa yoga class. I’m curious to see if my second class will be taught the same way as my first class, or it will be approached differently in a way that I will gravitate more towards.

  

      

Class Descriptions. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.karmayogastudio.com/classdescriptions/

Gaspar, L. (n.d.) The Many Nuances of Vinyasa. Retrieved from http://www.yogachicago.com/nov03/vinyasa.shtml

Giubarelli, M. (n.d.) History of Vinyasa Yoga. Retrieved from         http://www.yogacards.com/vinyasa_yoga/history-of-vinyasa-yoga.html

Giubarelli, M. (n.d.) Vinyasa Yoga. Retrieved from http://www.yogacards.com/Vinyasa.html

Pizer, A. (2010, May 14). Vinyasa. Retrieved from  http://yoga.about.com/od/howtospeakyoga/g/vinyasa.htm

Pizer, A. (2011, August 21). Vinyasa Yoga- Flow Yoga. Retrieved from      http://yoga.about.com/od/typesofyoga/a/vinyasa.htm

Welcome To Karma. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.karmayogastudio.com/

Bow Street Yoga, Amaryllis Hager

Amaryllis Elaine Hager

2/19/12

Mid-term Yoga Project

CSOCS 3452 Yoga: Theory, Culture and Practice

Laura Douglass

Bow Street Yoga

            Bow Street Yoga Studio is located in Union Square in Somerville, MA, on the first floor of one of the historic homes on Bow Street. When I walked into the studio, there were a bunch of people leaving because a class had just finished. There were several women (and some men) all who looked to be in their twenties and early thirties. I began taking off my layers and hanging up my coat. When the herd of people thinned out, I went up to the register to pay, and was happily greeted by a very warm woman. “Amaryllis—what a beautiful name! I’m Theresa, by the way”, she said as she extended her hand. After I paid for the class, she asked me if I had any injuries or anything she-(Theresa was my yoga teacher for the night) should know about. I said I didn’t think so, and she made it very clear that this was a class always open to questions, concerns, and modifications. This, alone, made me feel comfortable upon entering the room. Theresa followed me in the room, and told me to grab 2 blocks, a blanket, a tennis ball, a strap, and my mat and find a place on the floor. The class was very small; there were seven women including me, and everyone in the class was older than I was. There were a few women in their twenties, some in their thirties and two women who were middle-aged. Many women in this class had injuries and seemed to be just getting back on their feet. Some may have been at Yoga for the first few times and needed a safe place for beginners. 

            The Yoga class, itself, was a pleasurable one that fit my personal needs very well. The class that I attended was called “Vinyasa for beginners”, and it is described on the website as a slower paced, more meditative format of Vinyasa Yoga, where the teacher spends more time teaching how to do the positions correctly, in order to get the most benefit. Their Vinyasa classes are depicted as “A style of yoga linking movement with breath. Vinyasa classes flow through a series of postures (asanas), choreographed to the rhythm of your breath, each movement matching an inhale or an exhale” (Bow Street Yoga: Classes/Rates). The class was very slow-paced. Theresa focused a lot on the hips, opening up the ligaments around the hips and breathing into the poses. Poses were held for a substantial amount of time, and through breath work, the pose allows for the body to gently open. Compared with many other Vinyasa Yoga classes I have attended, I think that breath work and opening is something that this class and teacher did particularly well. I felt that every time we moved to a new position, the teacher would remind the students to have an awareness of breath, and to move with a breath-based intention. This yoga class was also much slower-paced than any other class I have ever attended, allowing me to breathe into the pose and relax into a more meditative state, which deepened the experience for me. After trying faster-paced classes of Vinyasa Yoga, such as “power yoga” at other studios, I have found that my body benefits more from sinking into a pose and focusing on my breath, rather than rushing through a series of asanas. I enjoyed my experience at this Yoga studio because it fit my personal needs. My hips felt so open and free, and I wasn’t even in pain the next day, like I usually am.

            The different types of Yoga offered at this venue are vinyasa, restorative, and yin Yoga. It is important to have an understanding of the origin of the practice in order to better undertand the practice of Yoga, itself. Vinyasa yoga is rooted in Hatha Yoga, and has a long history. A Hatha Yogi who lived at the turn of the nineteenth century, Sri Ramamohan Brahmachari, lived in a cave at the foot of Mount Kailas (in the Himilayas). Sri Ramamohan Brahmachari was known as one of a handful of true Hatha Yogis at the time, and he was sought out by an influential teacher and Yogi, named Sri Tirumala Krishnamacharya. Krishnamacharya spent seven years with Brahmachari, learning asanas and pranayama and studying Hatha Yoga. Many years later, the Maharaja of Mysore (a friend and practitioner of Krishnamacharya) gave him a place to teach Yoga (the gymnastics hall at the palace), and it was there that he developed Vinyasa Yoga. Krishnamacharya taught many students at this school and one of them, Iyengar, played a significant role in bringing Yoga to the West (Giubarelli). Since then, Yoga has changed tremendously, and culture has played a huge impact on these changes.

            Restorative Yoga is a specific type of Hatha Yoga that has been Westernized and verified in order to benefit all bodies of different abilities. Restorative Yoga has the intention of gently opening the body. This opening can be done in several ways: props can be utilized to support the body, poses can be held for longer periods of time to allow the body to sink into the pose, images can be used to help the mind identify with the opening of the body, and meditation, relaxation and “letting go” techniques can be used to help the body to open up and heal. In Restorative Yoga, the Yogi may hold a pose (possibly using a prop to support different parts of the body) for a long period of time, and really relax into the pose in order to open up the body. This type of yoga can be very healing and is used to relieve stress and tension in the body. At Bow Street Yoga, this class focuses on stillness both in body and mind, with the aid of blocks, bolsters, blankets, and straps. These props are used to allow the muscles and connective tissue to relax and open, which can then allow the body to release toxins, improve the immune system and to let any injuries heal (Bow Street Yoga: Classes/Rates).

            Yin Yoga is an integrated blend of the practice of Vinyasa yoga under the premise of the Chinese meridian system (the same system worked through acupuncture/acupressure). At Bow Street Yoga, the asanas or postures are held for several minutes to allow the muscles to relax and to create tension in the deep connective tissue. At this studio, their Yin Yoga class has a focus on the hips and legs. According to Bow Street Yoga’s website, Yin yoga is “a great way to balance out a more active ‘yang’ practice”.

            Before going to Bow Street Yoga, I conducted a lot of research on the studio, itself. It was evident that there was a lack of information on the website pertaining to the history, the founder of the studio, and how the studio rooted itself and took hold. I took the questions that were not answered on the website or anywhere else on the website, and brought them with me in order to have some prompted questions that I wanted to ask the teacher after the class  in an informal “interview”. When the class was over, I gathered my things and went to talk with the teacher to get a little more information about the studio. When I asked Theresa if she knew who founded Bow Street Yoga, she responded “I did”, with a smile. I couldn’t have had a better experience than getting to talk with the owner, herself! Theresa said that she founded Bow Street Yoga Studio on October third, 2009, which was about three years ago. “I wanted to create a really down to earth and approachable studio for Yogis of all different levels and backgrounds”, said Theresa. When I asked her about what makes this studio different from all the others, she replied, “I know how intimidating a fast-paced Yoga class can be, and I wanted to open a place where beginners would feel welcome, comfortable and supported”. Theresa explained, also, that there are a lot of Yoga studios around Boston with a lot of good instructors, but sometimes a good instructor of a fast-paced Yoga class can be a poor “teacher” if the student is new to Yoga. Theresa felt passionate about teaching the poses the correct way, because so often people do not learn the poses correctly and they not only lack the benefits of the pose, but can damage their bodies. She definitely made an impact on me as being both down to earth and approachable!

            It is crucial to look at Yoga through a cultural lens; Yoga culture is incredibly diverse depending on where in the world it is practiced, what its roots originated, the teacher’s training, experience and style, the setting/location, the population that the Yoga studio serves/ the kind of people that the studio attracts, the cultural discourse about what type of yoga is appropriate or accepted, and a multitude of other factors. Yoga can range from the stereotype of the extreme lifestyle of primarily older men in India who devote their lives to this practice of Yoga, (which includes an intense practice of meditation, cleansing, celibacy, dieting/fasting, etc.) to the stereotype of the woman on the cover of “Yoga Journal” Magazine; a thin, white, middle class woman in her mid-twenties who practices Yoga to maintain her shape and to relax her body and mind (in a way, to “pamper” her, if you will).

            I recognize that Bow Street Yoga studio is on the latter side of the spectrum, and is a very Americanized form of Vinyasa yoga. There are a lot of cultural “beliefs” within this bracket of Westernized Yoga. One of the messages sent out to our culture is that you must be a skinny, flexible, white, middle class, youthful woman in order to do yoga. If you look at the cover of “Yoga Journal”, one of the most popular Yoga magazines in America, the women on the cover always depicts this exact type of female. Another message is that you have to have all the best Yoga accessories; Yoga mats, Yoga clothes, Yoga water bottles, Yoga electrolyte-replacement water supplement powder, yoga handbags with the “Om” symbols on it, etc. According to Michelis, “In recent years, yoga and meditation have become mass market pursuits in the west” (2008, back cover), which is exactly what has happened. American culture is so based around mass marketing and profit gain, that even practices that were originally so simple and low-maintenance are now incredibly marketed and unnecessarily complicated with our culture’s never-ending “need for things”. Mishra explained that Pierre Bernard was one of the first of many charlatans who popularized yoga (or at least its physical training aspect, hatha yoga), in the United States. As Bernard would put it, “the purpose of yoga is to prepare us from getting cheated, to enable us to make better bargains, and to get what we go after!” (Mishra, 2010, 873.) Ironically, Yoga was initially created, in simplest terms, to connect one with the “all”, and to distance ourselves from the separation of human body and unity consciousness.

            Despite American culture’s tendency to over-market Yoga, the practice of Yoga in American culture has benefitted so many people. To focus in on my particular venue, Bow Street Yoga has benefitted many individuals; even if these individuals are the stereotypical white, upper-middle class, healthy females. Just because there is a particular culture associated with this demographic (as aforementioned), doesn’t mean that they are not in need of Yoga. Bow Street Yoga is a studio that “hope[s] to be considered “home” for yogis of all levels in [the] area” (Bow Street Yoga). The studio claims that their “experienced teachers are committed to sharing their love and knowledge for yoga in a safe environment—providing opportunities for students to deepen their practice and explore their bodies” (Bow Street Yoga). They have also benefitted so many people through being such an approachable place. There are a lot of students that come to this Yoga studio because it is a safe environment for beginners that need a slower pace, for people who have had injuries and need a little more TLC from the teacher, and for people who need a more intimate setting. These people may not be going to yoga studios, otherwise, and therefore would not be receiving the amazing benefits of Yoga in their lives.

            With their motto, “open body, quiet mind” (as shown on the homepage of Bow Street Yoga’s website), it is evident that the intention is not only to exercise, work, and open the body, but there is also an aspect of “quieting the mind”; putting emphasis on the body-mind connection. Also on the homepage of their website, in large letters, there are the words, “Out of the mud, the lotus grows”. This stuck out to me because I have always loved the concept that the lotus; a beautiful flower that symbolizes wisdom in Eastern culture, grows out of the thick, dirty mud. Hawn put it very simply, “The lotus is the most beautiful flower, whose petals open one by one. But it will only grow in the mud. In order to grow and gain wisdom, first you must have the mud—the obstacles of life and its suffering” (2006, p. 25). This really stuck out to me in terms of having a personal connection with Bow Street Yoga.

           

References

Bow Street Yoga: <www.bowstreetyoga.com>.

Giubarelli, M. (n.d.). History of Vinyasa Yoga by Mark Giubarelli. Yoga Videos, Cards and Yoga   Teacher Training Tools. Retrieved February 19, 2012, from     <http://www.yogacards.com/vinyasa_yoga/history-of-vinyasa-yoga.html>.

Hawn, G. & Holden, W. (2006). A Lotus Grows in the Mud. New York, NY: Berkley Books.

Michelis, Elizabeth. (2008). A Hisory of Modern Yoga: Patanjali and Western Esotericism.            Continuum. Back Cover.

Mishra, P. (2010). The Great Oom: The Improbable Birth of Yoga in America. Biography: An       Interdisciplinary Quarterly, 33(4), 873.

Focusing on the Breath at Cambridge Zen Center

Tedi Mesick

CSOCS 3452 Yoga: Theory, Culture and Practice

Midterm Paper and Presentation

Focusing on the Breath at Cambridge Zen Center

            Cambridge Zen Center was not all what I expected when I first Googled it. I had chosen this particular site for two main reasons; one was that it was close (located at 199 Auburn Street in Cambridge, it’s just a short walk down Magazine Street and then a right turn onto Auburn and you’re there), the other was that it was not a yoga studio. My only experience with yoga has been in the weekly classes, and to be honest I am still not physically comfortable doing even the simplest moves. What I am drawn to in our class, however, are the mantras that we say at the beginning and the end of class, along with the meditative periods we have during certain moves and the practice that we do at the end of our class of laying down on our mats and relaxing our entire bodies and being with our thoughts.

            With that in mind, I set out in search of something similar to the mantras and stumbled across the Cambridge Zen Center’s nightly chanting and meditation, not realizing at all that it was a Buddhist devotional practice. The center itself is a non-profit Zen Buddhist organization founded according to the teaching of the late Zen Master Seung Sahn and the tradition of the internation Kwan Um School of Zen. It provides Zen training, education, and support through formal practice and everyday life (though you don’t realize quite how much it influences every day life until you go to the center itself).

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            Zen Master Seung Sahn was the first Korean Zen master to teach in the West, and it was some of his earliest students who founded the center in 1973. It was established as a residential Zen practicing community, and has more than 35 residents in training and more than 120 practicing members in the greater Boston area. It has been in Central Square since 1982. It provides public programs to both members and visitors (anyone can drop in at any time for morning or evening devotionals, as well as classes) and houses resident training members and families in the 20,000 square-foot urban location. It is one of the largest Buddhist outreach organizations in Massachusetts and is the second largest residential Zen training location in the country.

            It honestly took me a little while to find the center. The center itself on the outside blends in as just a normal house. The moment one walks inside, however, one realizes that it’s far more than that. When you first walk in you enter a hallway where shoes are lined up against either wall of the hallway.

            Tom Johnson met me at the door, introducing himself to me as the resident abbot of the Zen center. He told me as we walked through the building, going from the hallway into a room with a large wooden table and benches on either side of it, that chanting had just started, but that I could join in after the first chant was over. The chanting sessions were broken up into a series of four chants, followed by “sitting”, so I had time to sit in on the rest of the chants.

            He brought me into a coatroom where I could leave my things and instructed me to take off the hat I was wearing. He then picked up a blue robe and had me try it on. Tom showed me how to tie the robe, walking me through the inner ties and then helping Mesick 2

me to tie this elaborate loop on the outside, joking that he was dressing me in the, “latest

in Buddhist fashion.” He then led me down the hall to a door, opposite of which

hung robes like the one I was wearing, however there was a brown, vest like part that went over it.

            When there was a small pause in the chanting I was allowed into the room, in my robe, handed a chanting book turned to the proper page. I was instructed to move as close to the altar as possible and to sit on one of the cushions. I moved passed a couple people already there for chanting who let me pass as though it was natural and ended up standing beside an older gentleman who seemed to know exactly what he was doing. He kept his eyes closed until I stood beside him, fumbling with my chanting book. It was obvious he had all the chants memorized. He quietly pointed to where we were in the chant when I joined him, never once fumbling with what he was saying, and I jumped in about a verse through the chant, attempting the Korean the best I could. The chanting books were spelt out phonetically, with each syllable hyphened out in the book (for instance sa-ri-ja). The beat was kept by tapping a round, hollow instrument with a stick called a moktak. With each tap of the instrument another syllable was said until the chant was finished. Then there would be a moment of silence as we bowed, and the next chant would begin.
           Two chants were done standing and two were done sitting down. They were all chants on the heart sutra, and only one was in English. The rest were in Korean. The chant which was in English was about not holding on to any pain or loss, or even any happiness because it all fades to nothingness anyway.
            We stood and sat facing the man keeping the beat on his moktak, another man, Mesick 3

and a woman. They sat against the wall facing us, and we sat with our backs against another wall. Later I was told they were Zen Masters Bon Yeon (Jane McLaughlin-Dobisz) and Bon Haeng (Mark Houghton), who are the two guiding teachers at the Zen center. No one sat in front of the altar, and only the man playing the instrument went over to the altar with the Buddha on it to light and put out incense and candles. The altar itself was perpendicular with us as we chanted.
           “Chanting meditation means keeping a not-moving mind and perceiving the sound of your own voice. Perceiving your voice means perceiving your true self or true nature. Then you and the sound are never separate, which means that you and the whole universe are never separate. Thus, to perceive our true nature is to perceive universal substance. With regular chanting, our sense of being centered gets stronger and stronger. When we are strongly centered, we can control our feelings, and thus our condition and situation”, states the Cambridge Zen Center’s website.
            So, chanting allows one to become centered. The key is to reach the point where all the chants are memorized and there is no effort in saying the words, as there is when I fumble through them. I spoke with Mark, the older gentleman who sat beside me and helped me best he could, after the practice and he told me, “Once the words are memorized, the chant is no longer about the words or the meanings. Suddenly it is about the sound. The words blend together and kind of weave in with the beat of the moktak, becoming one continuous note to help you center.” Essentially, the chanting becomes the equivalent of our “Om” at the beginning and end of class.

            Immediately following the chanting everyone stood in an almost fluid motion

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turned around, bowed, and sat down on the cushions, facing the wall this time. Mark once

again guided me in a hushes whisper, showing me the different positions to sit (saying that my legs crossed would probably be the more difficult position to keep for thirty five minutes when I automatically sat down in that position). Many of the Zen students sat with their legs under them.

            “Just focus on your breathing,” Mark told me as he closed his eyes. “At least that’s what I usually do. It’s the easiest thing I’ve done to get centered in silence.”

            The moktak was hit to mark the beginning of meditation. I closed my eyes, focusing on my breathing, and slipped best I could into a meditative state with the Zen students’ breathing being the only audible sound in the room.

            The Hatha Yoga Pradipika talks about the practice surrounding Swatmarama and sadhana.

            “Under normal conditions the mind can never be thoughtless. Swatmaram is actually saying that the mind should be devoid of all thoughts that are irrelevant to spiritual life. Anxieties and worries caused by family and business should be absent during sadhana, as such disturbances affect ones’s ability to concentrate” (Muktibodhananda 1985).

            Both the chanting and the “sitting” meditation practices at the Zen center are practiced to help keep one focuses solely on their practice, and to essentially

‘keep one’s mind absent during sadhana’.

            “An undisciplined mind is like a boisterous child, telling stories, continually distracting you from your sadhana. If you are working in your study, you do not allow the Mesick 5

children to come in and disturb you; the same applies when  you are practicing sadhana. When the mind is assailed by unwanted and irrelevant thoughts, you should cultivate the habit of putting these thoughts aside until later, when you have finished your sadhana” (Muktibodhananda 1985).
            When one finally lets their mind go still thirty five minutes can fly by surprisingly quickly in silence. The moktak was hit again at the end of the meditation, forcing everyone to once again open their eyes. One by one, we stood, went to the door, bowed to the altar where the Buddha sat, and then left the room to fold up our robes, hang them on hooks, reclaim our possessions, and exit the center. Those that lived at the center went upstairs to their living quarters and into the kitchen to begin preparing their evening meal. Mark met me at the door before I left. He lived at the center, and was getting ready for dinner.

            “So, what did you think? Think there will be a next time?”

            I smiled and told him probably, that it was different than I expected. It was structured and formal, but not at the same time, and was never uncomfortable as I had feared. After a stanza or two, saying the chants became natural, and at 7:30 at night a half hour to just sit and rest the mind is surprisingly refreshing.

            What I was invited to participate in was something I would never have been able to experience in the West. Traditionally, in China and Korea, only monks did Zen practice. The fact that the every day person can practice Zen has changed the character of the practice itself. A monk living a disciplined life in a monastery who has the time to practice hours upon hours is very different from the every day person who is bogged

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down with work worries, family burdens, and the pressures of society on their shoulders. Zen practices had to be changed to suit everyday life and the trials of life. Sitting Zen all the time isn’t possible for the everyday person, and so practices like the nightly sittings have become so important here in the West, because for that brief half hour a person is completely Zen.

            “It is a natural tendency of the mind to dwell on past events and to contemplate the future, but this tendency has to be controlled. The mind has to be concentrated on the practice at hand and it must be kept in the present. There is a constant and habitual mental chatter which has to be nullified” (Muktibodhananda 1985).

            The chanting and meditations at the center happen twice daily, every day. Those students that live there eat, sleep, and breathe Zen as best they can in this Western world. Those devoted students that don’t live at the center come twice every day, once at 6:30 a.m. and once at 6:30 p.m., to worship and discipline their mind, always on the quest to reach Nirvana. This is true discipline in search of piece, and it is something that both the center and the practice of yoga have to give.

Sources:

Muktibodhananda, S. (1985). Hatha yoga pradipika. (3 ed., pp. 47-49). Ganga Darshan,       

Munger, Bihar, India: Yoga Publications Trust.

Cambridge Zen Center Website:

http://www.cambridgezen.com/index.php?c=home

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