About Pranayama and Commitment

Today I went to JJS Hospital to see yoga demonstration by our school’s students and to participate to yoga lectures by local doctors and meditation experts. Students did postures from Primary and Second Series and Sharath was at the same time explaining the healing effects of asanas in question. It was awesome to watch closely some nice postures from Second Series. One Indian female doctor gave us quite promoting speech regarding positive health effects achievable through yoga. Yoga among locals here is so much more spiritual practice than in Finland, so the speech was very much indeed focused on, how you can achieve moksa through yoga. It felt that locals were happy to have us here, because all speakers mentioned us on their speeches.

I went for a lunch to Anu’s Cafe again and shared a table with Australian Claire as well as Irish Susan and Simon. We talked among other about Sharath’s view regarding the starting of pranayama. I heard that Sharath’s opinion is that we shouldn’t start pranayama before we have finished 3rd Series. I am not in any hurry to start pranayama or meditation (I see asana practice very meditative anyway), but for some people this is really important topic here. I believe that asana practice is way enough for me, so I can easily agree with Sharath on this.

I think that Finnish people usually don’t disagree with teachers a lot. For us, it’s natural to respect teachers’ views, but quite many other nationalities seems to know all things better than their teachers. At the moment my opionion is that after (if ever) I have finished 3rd Series, I can tell, if Sharath was right or wrong regarding pranayama. Before that I will respect the teachers, whose practices are more advanced in every level than mine, be quiet and just practice. I am not so much in a hurry with my practice anyway. I really appreciated Susan’s opinion, when she said, that Sharath is her teacher and she made a promise to work hard, save money and come back to her teacher every year. So she has been here every year since that and met Sharath also once in London. I think that commitments like that really show, how seriously you take your teacher’s teachings.