Backbend Bliss
Something tells me I was supposed to deepen my understanding of backbends this weekend. I practiced backbends extensively with Shiva Rea, Edward Clark, and now Rodney Yee. One would think that two really uplifting classes on backbends would be enough for a person, (don't get me wrong I was really beginning to understand what a backbend should feel like after the first two classes), but I think I really needed Rodney Yee's class to solidify the intelligence in my body.
Rodney has some magical aura in his voice that made me want to get everything perfect in this backbending class. Perhaps it's the way he's so precise in his instructions. Or maybe it's because I heard him gently correct other students (and his assistants), and I didn't want to be next. More likely, though, it was the chat he had with us about what our yoga practice should be doing for our lives.
"Yoga isn't about stretching," he says. "It's about eveness."
He talked about how he recently worked with the most amazing athletes, but even though they were at this superhuman level of fitness they weren't happy with their bodies. Sure, our practice should challenge us and keep us on our feet, but it should also make us love bodies and ourselves.
"Sometimes you need to take a step back and just ask yourself: Why am I pulling at my leg like this?" says Rodney.
Anyway, I was inspired and I can honestly say that I worked harder than I've ever worked in a yoga class. Even though this was a backbending class, I don't think my Downward-Facing Dog will ever be the same. I found strength and eveness.
When I returned to my room, I tried to do, Eka Pada Rajakapotasana (One-Legged King Pigeon Pose), a backbending pose I've been practicing on my own for weeks upon weeks, and I actually backbend far enough to touch my head to my foot!! And I didn't even collapse in the lower spine! This is what yoga conferences are all about, and I am SO grateful for this opportunity.
Rodney Yee is codirector of the Piedmont Yoga Studio in Oakland, CA. He is featured in 30 yoga videos and DVDs and is coauthor (with Nina Zolotow) of Yoga: The Poetry of the Body and Moving Toward Balance. Rodney conducts workshops, retreats, and teacher trainings worldwide.