“Intuition is a direct signal from 
your deepest self that you are navigating from your true center” – Gay Hendricks, PH.D /Kate Ludeman, PH.D, The Corporate Mystic
“People with high levels of personal mastery do not set out to integrate reason and intuition. Rather, they achieve it naturally – as a by-product of their commitment to use all the resources at their disposal. They cannot afford to choose between reason and intuition, or head and heart, any more than they would choose to walk on one leg or see with one eye” – Peter Senge, quote, The Corporate Mystic
“Yoga is both a systematised body of knowledge and a practise. There are many reasons why a person might choose to practise yoga; in broad terms, the purpose of yoga is to reduce disturbance and return an individual to his or her inherent peace and power” – T.K.V. Desikachar, The Heart of Yoga
“Yoga is the ability to direct and focus mental activity” – Patanjali Sutra 1.2, Bernard Bouanchaud,
The Essence of Yoga
Recently I interacted with two men in their 40’s, both sleep-deprived, dads, business owners, high stress, back- pained, more sedentary than they would like kind-of-guys. Conversation turned to me and the question came up, “What is Yoga anyway? I see it everywhere, but isn’t it just for women?” Before I could exhale, they started already with the excuses: “I’m not flexible anyway”.
I had already written a blog on flexibility but jeez, give a woman a chance to express herself …hahaha…
So before we begin, gentlemen, this blog is for you. In fact, I found a little video titled “Real Men Do Yoga“…check it out, and then get back to us here.
So, what is yoga? Yoga emerged in India as one of the 6 philosophical systems in Hindu thought. You are probably familiar with football handbooks, instruction manuals for electronics, the Bible, Koran, Torah…well, the Yoga system as we know it also comes with rich text on how to connect with oneself using different techniques and practises. As quoted above, the Sage Patanjali is credited with codifying yoga, the meaning of the word being “to unite”.
Primarily, it is path to mastery over the modifications of the mind. You know what that is about, the mind channel surfs from sports to comedy to tragedy to stocks to surfing the net to sports scores to what can I eat, what did I eat…ongoing melodrama. The practise of Yoga brings us back to the comfort of stillness, which heals as well as allows us to tap into our instincts and creativity. We build focus. Just as a lumberjack clears a Forrest of trees, the practise of Yoga allows our mind to find its quiet home. If you don’t remember how that feels, it is a great reason to start practising.
Since the body is what we are given to travel with on our journey through time and space, we keep it fit, strong, clean inside and out. It is sort of like driving a car, you need to keep the car serviced, filled with gasoline, and when you drive you need to be relaxed and aware at the same time to use your reflexes and see in all directions.
Is Yoga just for women? The grandfather teachers were male, actually. There are now men and women students and teachers. I have taught and do teach many men. Actually, I think with all the new scientific information on relaxation, meditation, Yoga Therapy as helpful for prostate cancer, cardiac disease (Dr. Dean Ornish), back pain, insomnia, cancer, not to mention all the sports stars who credit Yoga for improved athletic performance, men are taking a more proactive role in their own preventive and curative health care. It also brings us more in touch with our emotions, so maybe that is something that men do when they are ready, like in a transition…just throwing it out there. Maybe women talk about it more. I would think it would be an amazing change for a man to put the whole competitive, performance, rational self aside for a slice of time and just BE, breathe, feel a sense of comfort and inner strength that theflight or fright response does not provide.
Guys, you are everyday heros and you do have dreams for yourselves, I know it. Whether it relates to business, relationships, sports, family, weight loss, getting in shape, swinging a golf club, playing hockey at +55..it doesn’t matter the reason. Yoga as a system, not a sport, makes us feel better, think better, lead a better life from the inside out.
So put aside what you think you know, so that you can experience all there is – perhaps schedule a private class that suits your schedule, start at the beginning, and go with your new flow…Yoga is for everyone. I would love to teach you,
Om shanty shanty shanty
Rana
Rana Waxman is a registered yoga therapist ERYT-500, with 20 years of teaching experience. Rana is a freelance writer and social media expert in addition to leading yoga workshops internationally and teaching alignment focused private and group Yoga Lessons in Hoboken and Jersey City NJ.
