What makes Yoga asana a tool for self-growth?

With so much focus on the visual execution of yoga poses (asana) in the media it can be easy to wonder, how does yoga asana makes us better people besides simple getting bendier bodies?

We see yoga poses everywhere. When we think of yoga in general we think of the physical aspect; the postures and the handstands, the practice of yoga asana.

We think of young women perfectly showcasing a pose and more often than not, an advanced one that would make the most flexible of us gawk in amazement! What marks it as a spiritual practice and a tool for self-development as opposed to any other physical movement practice such as dance or gymnastics? Surely it’s just contortion and stretching, as I once thought!

The understanding I have since developed through my practice and study over the years is that the magic and the spiritual juice of practicing yoga asana seeps into our lives from our journey towards reaching our toes. On this journey we come across many polarities that, provided on the path we choose, can present to us gateways for spiritual growth and self-development. How we navigate these polarities determines where this journey takes us.

As an example, when I am holding a hip opening pose such as a wide-legged forward fold, my adductor muscles (groin) and hips are tight and so I am met with a limitation for how far forward I can fold. I could perceive this as an obstacle, offering a breeding ground for my inner critic to declare that I am ‘not good at yoga’ or ‘not flexible enough’ - a green light for my ego to push or force my body towards my toes but the beauty of yoga is in its invitation to see this ‘obstacle’ as opportunity. An opportunity to allow my body to open, soften, lengthen and eventually gently fold forward. In our practice we are invited to meet resistance with surrender, to balance effort with ease, to release or hold, to breath into our bodies and see obstacle as opportunity. Here we can see that the magic is in how we navigate these polarities and respond to these invitations.

When we stumble and fall in a balance but get back up again and allow for the wobble we learn resilience. When we breathe through a deep stretch rather than force we learn surrender. When we open our heart space as we bend our spines we learn to breath into vulnerability, when we focus on our breath we learn presence, when we spread our toes and place are attention onto our little finger we learn focus and awareness and in simply meeting ourselves on the mat, meeting our limitations and struggles, we remain humble.

The icing on the cake is that we get to take these teachings off the mat with us until we find that the goal was never about folding all the way forward or touching our toes at all.