“I Rush through Yoga so I’m not late for Work”
A friend said that to me recently. Then, I heard myself say, “Just do Savasana, it will do you more good in 10 minutes than rushing through the set”.
Later, I looked it up. It is a meditative posture in which one lies on one's back that is typically considered the final resting pose in yoga.
Savasana is a pose of total relaxation—making it one of the most challenging.
Savasana allows us to reflect and notice what is different after a set.
The purpose of Savasana is to integrate the set….to integrate body, mind, spirit. My sense is that we are in such a rush that we become dis-integrated.
We crave connection, with ourselves, each other, and the unseen world.
However, we are in a rush. On to the next thing, saying things like, “I don’t have time….” Time to get enough done, time to think, time to breathe.
If Savasana is so important, why do most western yoga classes race through it?
Traditionally Savasana lasts for up to half an hour. In many classes, that is cut to 1 or 2 minutes and dropped altogether from personal practices. The reason may be part of our contemporary culture, which values speed and efficiency.
As an older person, (I know, here we go Boomer), I am concerned by this need for speed. I am concerned that our children will miss the magic of our world by being in a hurry, being busy doing things, and not being present to the moments they are experiencing.
One of the beautiful experiences of having spent decades working in early childhood has been being reminded of the magic and mystery of just BEING here. My grandson gets off his bike when he sees a puddle just to throw rocks into it and then walk through it over and over. Simple joys.