The Other 23 Hours
By Chase Bossart
The modern-day Yoga master Mr. TKV Desikachar was once asked “How do you know your Yoga is working?” to which he answered “your relationships are getting better.” His point is simple but important; the main reason for practicing Yoga is to improve our lives. We may develop a more flexible body, longer breath or more powerful concentration, but these are peripheral benefits along the way to becoming happier, suffering less, and enjoying better, more satisfying relationships.
It’s an interesting paradox that the point of a Yoga practice is actually the 23 hours of the day when we are not practicing!
How Yoga improves our life and relationships
In any given situation in our lives there are only three aspects, according to the classical philosophical school of Yoga. There are: 1) a perceiver that experiences the situation, 2) the situation which is perceived (the object(s) experienced), and 3) the link between the two. This link, which allows us to perceive our surroundings and interact with them, is the combination of mind, body and senses.
As long as the link is clear and stable, our perception of any given situation is relatively accurate and our responses are appropriate to that situation. However, when the link is not clear and/or not stable we misperceive situations in our life and thus respond to them in ways that are not appropriate, which sooner or later causes us to suffer.
These misperceptions can be as simple as mistaking a complete stranger for an old friend or as complex as mistakenly interpreting our boss’s gentle criticism to mean we will be fired next week, to give only two examples. In either case, we may take actions based on our misperceptions that are inappropriate to the situation and with negative consequences. For example, perhaps we quit our job to avoid getting fired (when we weren’t in danger of being fired at all).
Yoga suggests that with accurate perception, we can avoid suffering. And if we keep the mind, body and senses clear and stable, we can perceive more accurately. We can keep the mind, body and senses clear and stable by practicing yoga. In fact, the major point of all yoga practice, whether postures, conscious breathing, meditation, chanting, or even the social and personal disciplines (yamas and niyamas), is to positively influence the quality of our link with the world. As we change the quality of this link, the quality of everything we is affected as are our relationships.
The holistic nature of Yoga practice
Yoga practice keeps the link clear and stable by utilizing the holistic nature of our human system. The body, breath, mind, personality and emotions are all interconnected; when one of these changes so do all the others. For example, when I get angry (emotions/mind), my breath becomes short and shallow, my face turns red (body), my communication becomes more aggressive (personality). Or, when I am late for an important appointment, the way I drive (mind), how I talk to the parking attendant (personality), and the way I breathe (body) are all influenced by my being late. When I have plenty of time, I do these actions so differently!
Similarly, if the different aspects of my person are steady and clear, it shows in my behavior, in my breathing, in my body, in the way that I perceive situations and in the way I relate to other people.
This is why one of the most important aspects of many yoga practices (asana, pranayama, and chanting) is breathing. When we are anxious, unhappy or in pain, our breathing tends to be short, shallow and strained, and when we are relaxed and happy, our breathing is usually long and smooth. You can check your breathing at different times in the day to see this for yourself.
By specifically coordinating movements with inhale and exhale, we are working with our breath and as we do so it gradually becomes longer. As our breath becomes longer, the rest of us changes as well: the mind and emotions become calmer, the body more relaxed, and thus the quality of our link with the world improves. As that happens, have clearer perception, make better decisions and enjoy better consequences!
So the next time you practice, don’t worry about whether or not you can do all the postures, let alone how perfectly! And don’t sweat it if you are not as flexible as others. If at the end of the session your breathing is longer and smoother, you feel stable and calm, and your reactions to situations during the day are appropriate, your yoga is working!
Chase Bossart is a KHYF certified Teacher Trainer and student of Mr. TKV Desikachar. He has an M.A. in Religious Studies from UC Santa Barbara, and is a faculty member on Loyola Marymount University’s Yoga Therapy Rx Program. He currently resides and teaches in San Francisco as part of the Healing Yoga Foundation.
