Santosha On The Mat

Posted on december 8 2015 by julienelstrop.

Santosha on the mat.

Practicing santosha on and off the mat. Use asana mantra and mudra to help bring into focus the subtle and not so subtle ways this niyama plays out in your life. Having looked at how we might practice santosha in our every day lives what about finding contentment when we practice yoga on our mats. We accept the feelings that arise in the body and mind during asana practice and detach from the outcome of the poses.

We often slow down during the summer so this is a great time to begin practicing santosha. Be reminded of santosha next time your body doesn t go into a pose the way you would like it to. Santosha on the mat is a tension free body and a joyful mind both flowing in harmony with the breath. Admit it we ve all been there at least once.

Santosha translates to contentment this niyama is about mastering the art of feeling at ease and at peace with yourself. After a few years of teaching now it has become clear to me that the no pain no gain mentality is deeply engrained in people. Santosha is about putting these thoughts aside to accept and appreciate what we already are and what we already have and moving forward from there. Santosha on the mat.

Do this practice on its own add more poses with the accompanying 10 minute video sequence or link. May 23 2017 original. Having patience and willingness to give the practice your sincere effort. You re working your way into a posture and you just can t help but take a peek around the room to see whether you re doing better than someone else.

Anyone who s ever been to a yoga class knows the feeling. To incorporate santosha into your own life and practice start with the pose mudra hand and finger gesture and mantra a sacred utterance repeated continuously below. Tapas penance tapas means willingly accepting adverse conditions without complaining and this extends to your asana practice on the mat being met with a sincere attitude.