Yoga in India with a disability
What is it like being a stroke survivor entering an advanced yoga training in India?
I can say that I wanted to go to India because it is the homeland of yoga and I thought I’d get an overly loving, warm healing yogic experience and that was not exactly what I experienced. Not to say I did not gain tremendous healing, it was just not as I had expected.
Let me explain.
Yoga in India is a philosophy of life or a lifestyle built around the idea of oneness in the universe. Scholars go to university and study yoga. They then return to share there profound studies. A yoga “school” or I should say as modern yoga has coined it a yoga “studio” is where those that seek this divine knowledge of life gather and practice and share energy together.
I thought Id get limitless philosophical knowledge of Sutras, history and Chakras, brush up on my Sanskrit. What I learned was Asana is taken very seriously. The asana or physical posture in yoga in India was a strict discipline. A way to transcend the body and enter the energetic realm to achieve oneness (samadhi).
Somehow yoga has lost its essence through the years and in America is emphasized as an gym exercise/ stretching full of only love and light.
Yoga is an approach to life, an opportunity to be curious about yourself and the deeper meaning of life, beyond cute clothes and tight bodies.
Yoga is full of love and light yes, but also full of pain and darkness. Yoga embraces all aspects of life, not just the ones that make us feel nice, but it takes us into the shadows and if we are willing. And the Asana is the way in so to speak, challenging the body and the mind.
As someone with limited bodily movement, I will admit I wasn’t exactly thrilled with this.
From the moment I arrived in Rishikesh, India, it was straight to the yoga. we didn’t get many days off and although my disability was met with tremendous compassion from all my teachers, I wasn’t treated much differently than my able bodied counterparts. I got the impression if I walked in with 3 heads they would still say grab your mat and cushion.
Physicality didn’t matter. Although Asana was a strict discipline to be honored only within your level of capability.
The guru or head teacher showed me a tremendous amount of respect, whenever I felt less than or uncapable, he reminded me to try and relax and just do my best. The food at the Ashram was truly remarkable. The schedule was intense but I enjoyed the discipline
All the stroke fears presented of course. How would my spasticity be affected, how would I do on a long plane ride? how would I sleep,how much walking would I need to do, would there be stairs, how can I walk barefoot if need be? and so on and so on. Things most people don’t ever have to consider.
You see it doesn’t matter if you are American, India, disabled, ablebodied or have 3 heads, yoga is truly a practice for everyone.
I travelled all the way to India to find this deep inclusion and completed my 300 hour proudly.
