Our emotions play a major role on our yoga journey. If this 'energy in motion', which if label e-motions this way, it helps to understand the body as being a vessel of energy ( life force energy ). This is either blocked if there is resistance, or overflowing if there is no grounding and stabilising. If e-motions have a negative quality they will pull us in all directions distracting us from even getting on the yoga mat to focus on practice.
During a connected yoga asana practice, in other words when our breath leads our movement in and out of postures; breathing deeply into the visceral layers of the body allows us to feel and know, where that resistance lies, the body is our map to all of its stories of the past, the hurts. every cell in your body has a memory. they signal to us how we are holding on in the hips, shoulders and even the jaw for example. Do we shoulder too many burdens? do we stick our kneck for others? Do we bend over backwards. In other words what do these patterns signal to us? When we focus on the resistance, we also need to focus on what is the oppositional force, this allows a deep release on the gross level and the more subtle level, it allows us to journey deep into the many layers of the body ( the Koshas) the interface in the body of the different layers is the nervous system, the key to relaxing the nervous system and also mental activity ? The breath.
The Breath is the key to a more positive mindset.
The two quickest routes to change a turbulent mind is the breath or willpower. When the nervous system is more relaxed it is much easier to feel more positive, it is much easier to switch from those negative reactions, to feelings which are more heart focused, such as compassion and forgiveness, letting go and accepting what is arising in this present moment.
