The keys to the new studio…
…a beautiful early autumn afternoon…
…the perfect start to the new term of yoga classes.
I have lots of new (both to me and to yoga in general) students this term. Lucky them! 
Are you learning anything new this autumn?
Yoga practitioners should know their constitution for the right application of practices… Yoga teachers should have knowledge of Ayurveda to vary the practices that they recommend relative to individual needs.
– David Frawley “Yoga and Ayurveda” (1999)
Yikes! Do you know your ayurveda fellow yoga teachers? Do you know your dosha? Do you have absolutely no idea what I’m talking about?
Ayurveda is Yoga’s “sister science” and, like ancient yoga practice,s is rooted in the Vedic traditions of India. Ayurveda finds its linguistic roots in the Sanskrit words āyus, meaning “longevity”, and veda, meaning “related to knowledge” or “science”. It is is an ancient Indian holistic medical system involving diet, yoga, massage and herbal remedies to keep you at optimum health depending on your dosha, or physical type.
Throughout history Yoga and Ayurveda have influenced each other and different types and styles of asana practice have different effects on the doshas. This in itself goes a long way to explain why there is no right or wrong way of practising yoga, there is just a right way for you and sometimes you have to go looking for it. For example I am Vata dosha, this is the type rooted in the element air. I’ll go into each of the separate doshas in more detail in subsequent weeks but Vatas need a slow grounded practice. Yet for years I practised Astanga Vinyasa which, if I’m honest, always left me feeling high strung and exhausted.
I don’t know about you, but we barely touched on Ayurveda in our Yoga Teacher Training – there is an In Service Training module that can be studied once you’ve graduated but nothing during the course of the initial training. In many ways I think this is a shame because I see Ayurveda as fundamental to the type of yoga a person might want to practice. As yoga teachers we can never please all the people all the time but we can bring postures and practices into all the classes we teach that can benefit the different doshas. We can also use a quick dosha assessment to help develop suitable personal practices both for ourselves and our private students. I often think that whole “finding the right yoga teacher for you” has as much to do with the practices appeal to your dosha as it does with you and the teacher’s chemistry.
How much do you know about Ayurveda? Has it helped your yoga practice and/or teaching?
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Over the next three weeks I’ll look at each of the individual doshas in turn and discuss what food, practices and lifestyle adjustments can help to balance them. Until then you might want to research into what your dosha is if you don’t already know. There are many online resources and quizzes to find out what your dosha is so why not try one of these.
http://www.whatsyourdosha.com/
http://www.internethealthlibrary.com/sq/ayurvedic-assess.htm
(Remember that these quizzes do tend to be rather general and more than one answer may be appropriate to you. Try to answer according to what has been true for the majority of your life).
Recommended Reading
Yoga and Ayurveda – David Frawley
Yoga for Your Type – David Frawley
Ayurveda – Life Health and Longevity – Robert E Svoboda
The Book of Ayurveda – Judith Morrison
Disclaimer: I am not an Ayurvedic doctor and these posts are merely an overview for anybody who is interested in reading more about Ayurveda. If you have a pre-existing medical condition please consult a trained Ayurvedic doctor.
