Tuesday 22 January 2013

Tictocs, conference

Well, readers of this blog with about a 9:00 start time may have got to witness my tictoc adventure from the foyer today, as I was pretty much in the middle of the room.

It is going OK. Yesterday I was a bit confused, but that was OK too.

3 x viparita chakrasana (tictoc)
3 x drop over and stand up
touch feet to head on the last one (vrshchikasana)

Touching feet to head on the way over in the previous iterations is a no-no and gets a scolding, so I made sure not to do that today. It's more of a wide arc dropping over.

Then jumping. Trying to move my chest forward, in accordance with a friend's advice. That makes sense, but didn't create magic. A few jumps, then Sharath's feet appeared and he helped me back over. And he gives juuuuust the minimal amount of help, so that it requires all my strength; and maybe, just maybe, despite myself, the smallest grunt will escape from my body. The edge.

Actually it's not a lot different from doing it with Cary or Kino, they both give the minimum required as well. Some other teachers just flip you over. I've been well prepared by my teachers!

The difference is, it's a bit nerve-wracking even to just catch a handstand with Sharath standing there. But he is patient.

So, I don't know if I will crack it solo in the next 2 1/2 weeks, that's a short time. BUT -
A) I will bloody well get it before this time next year
B) It is partly not even about that......

Karen and I were discussing this yesterday: it's just a new level of keeping it together. It's another cycle. When you begin this practice, surya namaskara B leaves you breathless. You tremble through the standing postures.

Eventually, it takes something like bhujapidasana to make you lose it a bit.

Kapotasana and/or dropbacks are places where the ante is suddenly upped. Nerve cleansing.... zzzzzzt!

Now it's like this: 'what can we put in the series to really make you shake, tremble, quiver and be breathless, just before you have to bend over backwards and grab your own knees?'

In other words: having the breath together and being collected enough in order to go directly into assisted dropbacks from this routine without missing a beat can be considered a success, even if a bit of assistance is required in the execution. And I can do that :-)

*****

I noticed three people around me doing a few third series postures, and none of them seemed to do the handstand routine as far as I noticed. I don't think it is the case that everyone does it, or at least is given it at the same time. The reasons why don't really matter, but the point is: INDIVIDUALISED TEACHING.

That may bother the haters. This ain't no assembly line, folks!

*****

Sunday's conference was THE BEST.

Sharath was warm and funny as usual, but also fierce. His eyes were flashing. I love that! The energy here is different from last year.... more potent.

I don't do conference notes, and I don't generally like conference notes, filtered as they are through someone else's perspective. However, having said that, here's a link to some pretty good conference notes:
http://www.theyogashala.org/2013/conference-notes-january-20-2013/

What never comes through in the write-ups is the humour.... the electricity.... the pregnant pauses.... the ripples of energy through the room.

The postures are there to help us develop stability of body and mind, that is all.

And I don't want to be a monkey playing cricket with diamonds.


11 comments:

Boodiba said...

Interesting! Some thoughts on whether or not tick tocks should come before or after 3rd - I think it DEFINITELY depends on the person. Kino said it's good to work on them after you've finished 2nd and before you even start 3rd. I can see the wisdom in that, because if they're still scary when you're doing full 3rd, you've really got your work cut out for you.

On the other hand, I was half way through 3rd before I could even somewhat comfortably get my hands on my heels myself in Kapo. And I never got to the point (when I was practicing) of grabbing behind my knees. Two people could assist me easily to free standing, but the highest I ever got was upper calves.

So I think I'd have had an even harder time trying to tick tock before I'd worked on things like Viparita Dandasana...

You seem more than ready! Glad you are having such a fun and intense time there.

Anonymous said...

"a new level of keeping it together"...that's exactly it.

I love it when Sharath gets his groove on in Conference, sounds like the persistent student got more than what he/she was looking for!!

Karen said...

I don't know if this is true for everyone here, but there seems to be no moving past kapo until you can grab your heels -- I'm not gonna say "comfortably," because that seems like such a foreign notion to me, at this point -- but maybe I'd say "with some level of stability."

Karen said...

And yes, I am whining. ;-)

susananda said...

That's OK, whining is part of nerve cleansing, Karen ;-)

Kapo juju today! You have now been PAST your heels!! :-D

susananda said...

Sav addict... yes he did :)

And Linda - thanks for enjoying our fun!!

Anonymous said...

Cool, nice to hear about how your getting on. I like to have at least one posture in my practice that is currently impossible. I have to bring a different level of focus to that pose and I like a good challenge. Which is lucky because Ashtanga yoga is full of them! How long are you in Mysore?

susananda said...

Hey Helen
I have to leave two weeks from tomorrow
*sadness*
Impossible... a good challenge... um, yeah. I will blog about that part later today......

daydreamingmel said...

Looooooove <3

Particularly the bit you seemed to have written about me (haha) - surya B leaving you breathless, then buja, then dropbacks/kapo. Yeah i guess we're perhaps all more similar than we like to think with our special unique problems ;)
And the monkey and cricket bat line was one of the greatest things I have heard in a long while even if it was second hand! Sending love across the country from here to there xox

susananda said...

Aye, true... all of us and our special unique problems! lol
It was a very good line. I like 'when dogs bark, it doesn't bother the heavens', too :)
Lots of love, and please give Kino a big hug for me!!
Xxxx

daydreamingmel said...

yes i liked (reading!) that line too, and it seems appropriate this week. and yes of course i will, but i think you will coincide in mysore anyway so i should probably give HER a hug to pass on to you! xox