{"id":693,"date":"2011-06-08T16:27:49","date_gmt":"2011-06-08T20:27:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/omsweetom\/?p=693"},"modified":"2011-06-08T16:27:49","modified_gmt":"2011-06-08T20:27:49","slug":"the-music-of-breathing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/omsweetom\/2011\/06\/the-music-of-breathing.html","title":{"rendered":"The music of breathing"},"content":{"rendered":"
Over the course of the past few years, I\u2019ve taken yoga classes at a handful of different studios taught by countless different instructors. \u00a0Naturally, each one has her own style of teaching, and with that style comes a particular type of music. \u00a0Krishna Das and MC Yogi CDs have made countless appearances in classes. \u00a0I\u2019ve also yoga-ed to Jack Johnson, Norah Jones, and Lenny Kravitz. \u00a0Each genre of music, and even each individual song, evoked a different feeling within me and, as my practice has deepened, I\u2019ve become aware that that emotion is subtly manifested in my practice.<\/p>\n

When a song plays that I enjoy, my surya namaskar<\/em> seems to flow that much easier. \u00a0And if I know the song, even better – I sing along in my head as I go through the asanas<\/em>. \u00a0But the moment the \u00a0song ends, I\u2019m actually a bit saddened, and chaturanga<\/em> is suddenly challenging. Simultaneously, my mind is already in anticipation of the next song. \u00a0Is it going to be another good one? Am I going to cringe? And when that truly unfortunate song fills the room, I expend my mental energy on wishing it away, and I irrationally tell myself that if I speed up my next surya namaskar<\/em>, the song will speed up and finish faster. \u00a0It took me a long time to actually realize these not-so-subtle effects.<\/p>\n

Still, I never even considered the idea of a yoga class sans music. \u00a0I even played my \u201cyoga mix\u201d when I practiced at home. \u00a0Music and yoga always went hand in hand. \u00a0That is until I attend a music-free class a few months ago at Ashtanga Yoga NY<\/a>. \u00a0The studio also serves as a temple (or perhaps better put, the temple also serves as a yoga studio) so it\u2019s a relaxed, calming, and quiet atmosphere complete with a Ganesh murti<\/em> up front and beautiful photographs of Pattabhi Jois in various asanas<\/em> lining the walls. \u00a0\u00a0My initial class felt strange. \u00a0The method of teaching was different from any class I had taken, but more than that was the deafening silence.<\/p>\n

Where was the music?!?! \u00a0The room was far from packed that evening, but the sound of my neighbor\u2019s breath was definitely audible. \u00a0It was actually a little annoying. \u00a0So, in an effort to tune that out, I began listening to my own breath. \u00a0By my fifth surya namasakar<\/em>, I no longer heard my neighbor and found that I was instead, listening to my own breathing.<\/p>\n

By my fourth or fifth class, the silence was no longer stark. \u00a0\u00a0Instead of wondering which musician\u2019s words will fill my ears, I am able to concentrate on my breath – coordinating my movements with my breath, deepening my breath, focusing on making my inhalations and exhalations similar in length. \u00a0Without music, there is one less external stimuli vying for my attention, making it slightly easier to concentrate, turn inward, and work toward Patanjali\u2019s stated goal of yoga, \u201cthe cessation of the fluctuations of the mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, there exist countless distractions to keep me light years away from that perfect mental state described in the Yoga Sutras<\/em> and the sacred Hindu text, Bhagavad Gita<\/em>. \u00a0Is my nail polish chipping? \u00a0Did the guy in front of me just pass gas?Why is it so hot in here? \u00a0My senses are constantly at work and do their job well, rarely allowing me to ignore them. \u00a0\u00a0I now realize why the Pattabhi Jois\u2019s of the world taught without music. \u00a0When so many external stimuli are readily available, why purposefully add another? \u00a0The breath is music enough.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Over the course of the past few years, I\u2019ve taken yoga classes at a handful of different studios taught by countless different instructors. \u00a0Naturally, each one has her own style of teaching, and with that style comes a particular type of music. \u00a0Krishna Das and MC Yogi CDs have made countless appearances in classes. \u00a0I\u2019ve…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":390,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-693","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-hinduism-101"],"yoast_head":"\nThe music of breathing - Om Sweet Om<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, nofollow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The music of breathing - Om Sweet Om\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Over the course of the past few years, I\u2019ve taken yoga classes at a handful of different studios taught by countless different instructors. \u00a0Naturally, each one has her own style of teaching, and with that style comes a particular type of music. \u00a0Krishna Das and MC Yogi CDs have made countless appearances in classes. \u00a0I\u2019ve…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/omsweetom\/2011\/06\/the-music-of-breathing.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Om Sweet Om\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-06-08T20:27:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"sheetal\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The music of breathing - 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