Listen To Your Body
It wasn’t until recently that I realized that my yoga practice makes me stronger inside and out. I recently left my husband in search of a “better life”, only to find myself in a whirlwind of emotions that were, at times, to difficult to handle. When I moved to inner Oklahoma City, I began practicing at Art of Yoga. That is where I learned about sound therapy.
I will never forget my first restorative and sound therapy yoga class. I have practiced Hatha and Ashtanga for a few years, but at the time I was a little hesitant. It has always been difficult for me to meditate on my own. Anyone with a busy lifestyle can relate. Your mind is constantly jumping from one thought to the next. Admit it, you’ve laid in Chavasana and thought about what you were going to have for dinner. It’s difficult to focus, a lot of the time. Especially for females, who are constantly thinking multiple thoughts.
Sound therapy changed the way I let go. In this class, we use a lot of props. I used to see all of these blocks and blankets and sandbags and thinking to myself, “There’s nothing wrong with what I’m doing now, I don’t need that”, and now that I know better I am a little dissapointed in myself for being so closed minded when it came to my yoga practice.
In a typical class, we start with two bolsters and two blocks. One bolster lays horizontal against the wall, this becomes your seat. A smaller bolster goes behind your back, against the wall, along your spine to provide alignment. Start by sitting in bound angle pose , or baddha konasana. Place a block beneath each knee. In this practice, every part of your body is supported. Here is where you begin to relax.
The class progresses into a series of comfortable variations of child pose, and while in childs pose April Helen, the teacher, comes and places a singing bowl on your chest and plays it in a circular motion. This sound resonates through your body and creates an unusual calmness. For me, during meditation, sounds are disruptive and annoying, but not so with the singing bowls. She also hits the gong above your head which creates a similar feeling, but you become aware of where the sounds are coming from and how they are making your body feel.
The entire point of the class is to put yourself in a solid medatative state, while being fully aware of what your body is telling you. Your body knows when something is wrong, but most of us never stop to take the time to listen, we just go on about our daily lives. Listen.
Sound therapy is an excellent way to experience how to feel. After my first Restorative class, I felt more clear and I felt like I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life from that moment on. Now, if I miss, I feel incomplete, like I’ve just been existing, not living. Even if you are new to yoga don’t be afraid to try it. If you are a practiced yogi and/or meditate regularly, try adding some sound therapy to your routine. You’d be surprised what your body says to you.
Take a moment, listen to your own heartbeat, listen to the sounds within your body. Listen to your lungs, listen to your energy as it moves within you. With your attention follow that breath, that energy as it enters your body, as it fills you with the life force of the universe. You are that energy, you are the intention that holds the body you inhabit together. With out you, with out your will, the atoms that make up your body begin to fall apart, to decay.