It was the end of our first yoga class in our first ever yoga training. We had specially prepared the class to highlight specific movements and techniques. Because this was a learning opportunity, after the other students left and the teacher trainees remained we asked
"How was your experience in the yoga class today?"
Their responses had some common themes (as we wonderfully social creatures like to build upon what the person before us said), and yet, their responses after experiencing the same class were myriad. One focused on how early it was which made them feel groggy and a bit resistant (it was an 10:30am class on a Saturday). Another said they were distracted by their toenails. One said they was hyper aware of sensation through the back of their legs. Yet another said the class really helped with their depression and they felt bit lighter for the first time. Every answer was so personal even in a group class.
As the yoga teacher in the room, of course I came in with a specific intention. I had planned and made sure that the class would be safe, adaptable, and leave everyone feeling, in general, better off. But, because I have been teaching for awhile, I was expecting that each of the individuals in the room would have a very different individual experience. In fact, that is one of my favorite things about yoga. No two people will have the same experience even when doing the same movement, breath, or being guided through the same meditation practice.
Due to this phenomena, I have come to see the practice and teaching of yoga through a framework I heard on a yoga youtube documentary: the 3 E's - Experiential, Experimental, Existential.
The discipline of yoga has always been highly experiential and filled with intention. For this reason anyone who practices yoga can increase their individual wellness even while having a distinctly different experience from the person next to them in a yoga class. A teacher creates the conditions under which a student will have a certain type of experience. The intention might be to help the practitioner relax more, so the teacher tailors the experience toward gentle and calming movement and deep breathing technique so that they can experience relaxation during the yoga class. The two work together: intention and experience.
The philosophy, anatomy, asana traditions, and history of yoga have always been geared toward more fully experiencing our reality in every given moment. What we bring into the practice of yoga in this contemporary era is who we are and our personal intention while weaving together the ancient intent all for increased wellbeing. When a contemporary teacher creates a new yoga sequence, they add their intention to the long history of creating experiences for students that help them develop increased wellness and lifelong health.
The experiential nature of yoga also makes it highly experimental. The fun thing about continuously learning through practice is that as you practice you are adapting to the practice. This ongoing transformation makes yoga a continued science experiment in which we pay attention to the input and outcomes in order to find the best results. You, as the practitioner, are the scientist and the subject continuously adjusting the parameters of practice for your own benefit. Your study and practice begins with you. The more you adapt to the practice - for good or for ill - the more it will necessitate change for continued growth keeping the emphasis back on your own personal experience.
This changes somewhat as you move into the teacher role when recognizing that however intentional you are in sharing a given practice, any new student is a new subject in the experiment which will skew the results. So you adapt and learn from their experience as well making the experiment broader, more inclusive, and endlessly interesting. Whatever the teacher may say could possibly land for one student and augment their experience where it may go completely unnoticed by another student. Any given technique may be experienced differently at the same time by multiple people. For one it may be soothing, for another agitating. For yet another person it may open up enlightenment. There are so many possible outcomes in this experiment! We continue to learn, adapt, and practice. The scientific approach to learning through experimentation is one of the secrets as to why yoga has been around for so long.
Even though in contemporary yoga we are most likely to experience and experiment with yoga practices and techniques under the umbrella of the ‘health and wellness’ industry, its most potent and powerful intent has always been tied to understanding who we are on the deepest of levels. The practices of yoga were tied specifically to the experience of oneself as a divine being in order to know our existential purpose. Even in a sweaty hot yoga studio room with 20 other humans, the movements implemented were originally designed to help each individual practitioner of yoga know themselves from the outside-in and the inside-out. This is where yoga gets the reputation of being ‘woooo-woooo’ and mystical. It is. Intentionally, who we are and what we bring to the practice is integrated into who we ARE in our day to day lives. The little experiment of a one hour yoga class in which we pay attention to the full experience of BEING connects us to something beyond ourselves and deeper within ourselves.
It is no wonder that the holistic approach of yoga increases wellbeing throughout the many different styles that have evolved and in all of its continued contemporary settings and uses. Yoga is experiential, experimental and connects us to our existential nature.
Are you wanting to deepen you practice and learn more how to improve, personalize, and have a more connected experience? Sign up for one of our completely themed weekend trainings and start experimenting with yoga on a whole new level!
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