Notes from March 13th Conference

Ashtanga Conference
Presented by: R. Sharath Jois
13-March-2011
Gokulum, Mysore India

THE BENEFITS OF ASHTANGA YOGA
“Practice all the angas and the impurities of the body and mind will be eradicated. Then can come the knowledge. Once you get the knowledge, you become wiser and able to judge what is right and what is wrong. This is what the 8 limbs give to us.

This purification system is not instant. It’s not like making instant noodles :) Today everyone wants things instantly. You need to be a student for a long time before you become a teacher. Only once you understand the knowledge are you able to spread it. So many people call us ‘How do I become a teacher?’ First you become a student for 15years, then you can become a teacher.

A bad teacher will have 100 bad students, a good teacher will have 10 good students.

There is much confusion about the different types of yoga. Ashtanga is the only one which has everything. For example, Hatha yoga is Ha=surya nadi and Tha=chandra nadi. These relate to the breath which is also in Ashtanga yoga. Bhakti yoga is the yoga of devotion. The proper complete practice of Ashtanga yoga includes Bhakti. If you do asanas for many years eventually you will want to learn more. One by one you will research ‘what is yama?’… ‘what is niyama?’ etc. The practice helps us to understand philosophies. The shastras are very important. They are the roots, the lineage of where this practice came from.

If you look at the names of the postures, so many are named after great rishis (sages) from thousands of years back. Yoga has not changed. Only the people have changed. And the challenges have changed. For example, we now have TV. When I was 14 the first TV came to Mysore. Since then, less people are moving around. There is more dukha and laziness. When this happens, a person accumulates errors in the body. The body becomes lazy and doesn’t know how to do things. It doesn’t want to do things. Once we strengthen the body and mind through practice we will get the strength to withstand the difficulties in life. When the mind is weak, people do bad things. For example, criminals, their minds are unstable.

It is very sad what is happening in Japan right now. So many people have lost their lives. But we cannot go against nature. We have destroyed nature. We have no respect for nature. When you practice yoga, you naturally want to protect nature. Yoga is the union of jivatma and paratma. Knowledge doesn’t just come to you. You should have a thirst inside of you. ‘I want to learn and get the knowledge.’ For example if you want to be an engineer, you will have that thirst inside of you and pursue it. Once that thirst is inside of you, then you go out and search it. Like a Treasure Hunt. Your treasure is the 8 limbs, first you go to yama and niyama and asana, then you will want to start reading books and doing your research.”

Question: “How do you know if you found it or if its just ego?”
Sharath: “People who have found it won’t praise it. They won’t even talk about it.”

Question: “Is Ashtanga dualistic or non-dualistic?”
Sharath: “Non-dualistic. As I said in a conference before, the Atma inside of you is pure. It is very important that we know what we are and what is the source for us. W are born and we die, in between we are crazy. We are just tenants and we are not even paying rent.

Gandhiji was a true yogi. He practiced ahimsa first. He fasted for the country to gain independence. Not everyone can do this. There is no yogi like Gandhiji. He will be remembered for 200years. Same as Pattabhi Jois. They will be remembered because they have given us the authentic knowledge. Because of them, we are here now.”

Question: “I was practicing second series and my teacher kept telling me to ‘go back to primary.’ Is there a reason he kept saying to ‘go back’?”
Sharath: “It’s difficult to say. Guruji never said to go back, he always said ‘You should progress forward, but don’t rush. Perfect your posture to move onto the next one.’”

Question: “How can you tell when a student understands the asana?”
Sharath: “It is through experience. When you teach so many students, you can tell. It is through their practice, through their ‘asana attitude,’ their dedication and understanding of the practice.”

Question: “Why is there so much emphasis on the asana in Ashtanga yoga?”
Sharath: “Without doing asanas, purification and stability will not come. Without a healthy body you cannot have a healthy mind. You need to activate your body and nervous system, then also the brain will be purified. We cannot progress without this purification. And as a mentioned in conference already, asana is not only physical. It is a very big tool to purify the mind and the body.”

Question: “Why is Ashtanga better than Hatha?”
Sharath: “As I said before, it is the same. It is not better when it is the same process to purify the body through breathing.”

Question: “What about a sick person who cannot do Ashtanga?”
Sharath: “It is not necessary that everyone do jump backs and head stands. Anyone can practice Ashtanga. If you understand the breathing, you can do Ashtanga. You should first learn the breath. There are many poses that can be done to remove the toxins through sweat. After several years, you will see the body change over time. When you practice asana the body becomes light. You might look thin, but you are very strong!”

Question: “What if you are injured in practice?”
Sharath: “There is a method. A good teacher understands your body and can see if there is something you are doing wrong, or improper alignment, or fear. You should be doing a true practice in which you think about what you are doing. If we keep practice, it will come. If injury occurs, sometimes it is the body changing. Relax in the posture. Do the proper breathing. Sometimes if you don’t breathe properly you can get injured.

When I was learning Ekapada Shirshasana (see photo) I had so much hip pain. There was so much pain to walk or change the gears on my motorcycle. Eventually that pain went away, and then a new pain came :) New asana…new pain. Because the body has to adjust.



It is a process. It takes time. For some people it happens quickly, for some it takes time. One student came to me ‘My shoulder hurts’ I said to him ‘Good, now you know you have a shoulder. Do not fear.’”

Question: “If there is shaking in an asana, how do you know if its just the body changing or if its fear?”
Sharath: “Which posture?”
Edwin: “Navasana and Parshva Dhanurasana
Sharath: “It is fear. Ill give you a mantra: ‘Jay Hanuman’ He is the god which gives you strength. That’s what I would say when Guruji was coming to give me backbends. :) “

Question: “Is the Primary Series enough? Some people have back pain because they only practice Primary and don’t have all the backbends of Secondary.”
Sharath: “Through many years of experience, a teacher can determine what kind of pain a student has. Doing asanas will help you get through the pain you got from asanas. Once when I was practicing one advanced posture I was feeling really good and went deeper and deeper until I felt something rip in my shoulder. For two weeks I could not lift my arm over my head and it hurt to breathe. The day after this happened, Guruji told me I was doing a demo. I did not know how I could do it. He helped me and I did the demo. Then for two weeks I only practiced half of Primary series. I do not know even how I did this, Guruji helped me.

There was an older woman who came to me with arthritis. She was in so much pain. For six months she practiced here. Years later her son called me, he was a friend of mine. He asked, ‘What have you done to my mother? She is now hiking mountains!’

The practice has healed so many people. Dick Mortenson was a student of Guruji’s. He came here and he was very hunched. Guruji worked with him for one year and his posture got straight.”

The conference with Sharath leading chanting for the people of Japan.