Un dialog despe yoga

Anca este verisoara sotului meu. Ne stim de mai multi ani, dar de ceva vreme am inceput sa o cunosc si sa o descopar pe Anca, mult mai bine. Mie imi fac mare placere discutiile cu ea si m-am gandit sa impartasesc cu voi din curiozitatile mele, in ceea ce priveste yoga. Anca practica yoga de cativa ani si a acceptat sa imi raspunda la cateva intrebari, cu privire la asta.

Lorena
Anca, te rog sa imi povestesti putin despe momentul cand ai inceput sa faci yoga. Ce te-a motivat sa incepi si ce te-a motivat sa continui?

Anca
Am inceput sa practic yoga la sala de sport de la munca. Printre orele oferite se gasea si yoga. Am mers la pranz sau dupa program, si am continuat sa merg datorita sentimentului de bine si calm, cu care plecam dupa cele 60 de minute.
Lorena
Asta se intampla in Romania sau in America?
Anca
Asta se intampla in urma cu mai bine de 4 ani in America, la sediul central al corporatiei la care lucram atunci.
Lorena
Care sunt, pentru tine, beneficiile practicarii yoga, daca ar fi sa elaborezi putin acea stare de bine si calm, care te-a motivat la inceput?
Anca
O vreme, nu am stat prea mult sa analizez mai mult, decat ca am savurat calmul de dupa practica. Cu timpul, am observat beneficii pur fizice cum ar fi: dureri de spate reduse si disparitia durerilor de cap. In timp, si cu mai multa practica si studiu, am beneficiat de cateva respiratii in plus. Si hai sa explic ce vreau sa spun cu respiratia in plus. Un principiu destul de vehiculat este ca: in viata, ce ti se intampla e 10% si restul este rezultatul reactiei tale la ce ti-a scos viata in cale (fara legatura cu yoga). Yoga a creat spatiul necesar, pentru a respira de cateva ori, inainte de a reactiona la stimuli. De a nu mai deveni la fel de usor afectata de ce se intampla in jurul meu. Evident, e un exercitiu continuu si cu momente mai glorioase sau mai putin pline de glorie.
Lorena
Eu vad yoga ca pe o practica in care se imbina partea ce tine de corpul fizic si o parte spirituala. Tu cum percepi partea spirituala ?
Anca
Eu vad yoga ca pe o stiinta. Una care ajuta la cunoasterea de sine. Aceasta stiinta are 8 trepte. Cea a posturilor fizice (asana), e doar una din cele 8, dar cea mai usor accesibila si cea mai faimoasa. E un start bun. Incepi prin a modela corpul, si cu timpul, se reflecta si in minte si in viata spirituala.
Cele 8 ramuri/trepte sunt:
1. Abtinerile (abstentions)
2. Respectarile (Observances)
3. Posturile (Postures)
4. Controlul fortei vitale (Life-force control)
5. Retragerea simturilor (Sense withdrawal)
6. Concentratia (concentration)
7. Meditatia (Meditation)
8. Contemplarea/Iluminarea (Contemplation)
Sau in Sanscrita: yama, niyama, asan, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana, samadi.
Acestea fiind spuse, fiecare dintre noi se gaseste intr-un stadiu diferit al dezvoltarii personale. Cei mai fericiti dintre noi au parcurs si incorporat toate cele 8 trepte.
Lorena
Cui ai recomanda yoga?
Anca
As recomanda-o tuturor. Daca partea fizica e ceea ce simti ca-ti va fi de folos, practica pozitiile. Daca dezvoltarea spirituala te atrage mai mult, practica tehnicile dedicate. Pentru o abordare completa, e de inteles ca, cel mai de folos e combinarea tuturor tehnicilor/treptelor cunoscute.
Lorena
Stiu ca esti vegetariana. Are asta legatura cu yoga?
Anca
Imi este greu sa fac o distinctie clara a motivelor pentru care sunt vegetariana. Yoga e, fara urma de indoiala, unul din ele. Parte din filozofia yoga este reducerea suferintei pe care o provoci. Deci, una din consecintele naturale, ar fi renuntarea la produse animaliere. Alte motive, ar fi convingerile personale, ca o dieta bazata pe vegetale si produse cu valoare nutritiva ridicata sunt mai prietenoase starii de sanatate.
Lorena
Exista un salut de ramas bun la yoga?
Anca
Folosim Namastei. Vine din Sanscrita. Semnificatia scurta a lui Namaste este: “I bow to the divine in you”. Cea mai lunga si mai mistica ar fi: “I honor the place in you in which the entire universe dwells. I honor the place in you which is of love, of truth, of light and of peace. When you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me, we are one. ”
Lorena
Atunci, Namaste, Anca!

Anca is my husband’s cousin. We have known each other for many years, but for some time now I began to know and discover Anca much better. I really enjoy our talks and I thought I should share my interests about yoga with you. Anca practices yoga for some years now and she accepted to answer some questions regarding this.

Lorena
Anca, please tell me a little bit about the moment when you started practicing yoga. What made you start and what made you continue?
Anca
I started practicing yoga at my workplace gym. Yoga was available, among other classes. I took the class at lunch or after work and I continued going. What kept me going back was the feeling of good and calm, that I would get after the 60 minutes of practice.
Lorena
Was this happening in Romania or America?

Anca
This was happening in America more than 4 years ago, at the headquarters of the corporation where I was working at that time.

Lorena
What were the benefits for you, from practicing yoga, if you would elaborate a little more on that state of good and calm, that motivated you at first?

Anca
For a while, I did not think much of it, just savored the calm after the practice. With time, I noticed physical benefits like: reduced back pains and no headaches. After a while, with more practice and study, I was provided with a few extra breaths. Let me explain what I mean by extra breath. A general principle is that: in life, what happens to you represents 10% and the rest it is the result of your reaction to what life brought your way (no relation to yoga). Yoga, for me, has created the necessary space to be able to take a few breaths before reacting to the outside stimuli. So that I would not be just reacting to what happens in life. Obviously, it is an ongoing exercise with more and less glorious moments.

Lorena
I see yoga as a practice that combines the physical with the spiritual. How do you perceive the spiritual part?

Anca
I see yoga as a science; a science that helps with knowing the self. This system has 8 steps. The one of physical postures (asana), being just one of the 8 steps, is the most accessible and the most famous. It’s a good start. You begin by modeling your body and, with time, this will reflect in the mind and spirit.

The 8 essential stages in the study and practice of yoga are:

1. Abstentions (Yama)
2. Observances (Niyama)
3. Postures (Asan)
4. Life-force control (Pranayama)
5. Sense withdrawal (Pratyahara)
6. Concentration (Dharana)
7. Meditation (Dhyana)
8. Contemplation (Samadhi)
This being told, each one of us is on a different stage of personal development. The luckiest ones of us have gone through and incorporated all the 8 stages in their life.
Lorena
To whom would you recommend yoga?
Anca
I would recommend it to everyone. If you feel that the physical part will be useful to you, practice the positions (Stage 3). If you feel drawn to the spiritual development, practice all the other steps. For a complete approach, it is clearly useful to combine all techniques/steps. As an example: it will not be easy to have your body stand still for a long time in meditation if the postures are not practiced consistently. It can be done but the benefits will be smaller. Asta am adaugat.
Lorena
I know you are a vegetarian. Is this related to yoga?
Anca
It is hard for me to make a clear distinction between the reasons of my becoming a vegetarian. Yoga is, without a doubt, one of them. Part of yoga philosophy is to reduce the suffering you bring into the world. So, one of the natural consequences would be to give up the animal products. Other reasons would be my personal beliefs, that a diet based on vegetables and products with high nutritional value, are friendlier to health.
Lorena
Is there a word for goodbye in yoga?
Anca
We use is Namaste. It comes from Sanskrit. The short meaning of Namaste is “I bow to the divine in you”. The longer and maybe more mystical meaning would be “I honor the place in you in which the entire universe dwells. I honor the place in you which is of love, of truth, of light and of peace. When you are in that place in you and I am in that place in me, we are one. ”
Lorena
Then, Namaste, Anca!