This weekend I attended the Dirty South Yoga Festival in Atlanta, GA. This was my second year attending and it was awesome. The teachers, the energy, and the connections that were made with people from around Atlanta were inspiring. I had planned this blog post to be about the DSYF but felt led to write on another topic…..What A Yogi Looks Like. Now don’t worry, I will be writing about the festival later this week, but today’s blog is about a topic that needs to be discussed.
For those who know me well, you know that I’m not one that normally speaks on race, religion, or politics; but I do believe in speaking truth (satya), educating, and standing for what is right. So, you may ask, “Steph, why the blog on what a yogi looks like?” Well my friends let me tell you my “why.” We were on a lunch break from the festival and people were shopping with vendors and going out to the food trucks to relax, chill, chat, and obtain nourishment, when I was privy to a conversation.
I was sitting on the curb of the parking lot next to 2 young ladies eating my tofu rice bowl, when they begin a normal tone conversation on yoga, physical attributes, etc. The two young women appeared to be in their early 20s, thin/lean build, lululemon apparel, Birkenstock shoes…. most like someone you have seen on a magazine or in a television advertisement for yoga or fitness apparel. Before you say I’m judging on their physique please know that I am not; I have no qualms against thin, lean women or lululemon. I actually bought 3 pair of leggings from lulu last week; and I enjoy working out like anyone else does. I hope that cleared the air before the negative juju was released into the universe.
One of the 2 ladies recently finished yoga teacher training (YTT) and is a spin instructor. She reports to the friend that she has to keep teaching spin because she has to be “in shape” to be a yoga teacher. That statement caused me to look up but then I shook my head and went back to my rice bowl. The conversation continued, and the yoga teacher stated she can only attend classes with “strong teachers” that can achieve certain poses (asana) and that students want to “do what the teacher does.” Now, you know I looked up and over, thinking to myself, what is going on here, where did you go to YTT, and why do you feel this way? I shook my head again and thought maybe I’m not hearing this correctly, so I just kept eating, minding my business and they continued to chat. The yoga teacher then proceeded to repeat that yoga students want to be in shape, take classes from fit yoga teachers, and achieve advanced yoga poses. Once again, I looked over to them and shook my head. I wanted to say something, but I think my throat chakra might have been blocked because I did not have words to express how disheartening this conversation was and how uninformed the ladies were regarding what student’s desire and about the overall practice of yoga. I disposed of my lunch and walked away.
The conversation between these women perpetuates the Western idea of yoga. That conversation, those words that were spoken, they sat on my heart and I had to say something. I had to speak out and on what yoga is and what a yogi looks like; so, this blog is me speaking my truth…it’s what I wish I would have said to the young ladies. Yoga is the union of the mind, body, and spirit. We are all connected on a higher level. Race, culture, politics, and socioeconomic status may divide us as a people, but the practice of unity, the practice of yoga brings us together. Yoga is more than asana; yoga is greater than the physical poses. Yoga doesn’t care about what you look like on the outside; it’s about your soul, your spirit, the deeper parts of you. Yoga is not a workout but a work-in. The daily activity of truthfulness, charity, kindness, non-violence, and gratitude are all yoga. Sitting with self in meditation, breathing, and shifting your awareness inward is yoga. You DO NOT have to be young, female, thin, muscular, or flexible to do yoga. You NEVER have to hold chair pose, plank pose, or downward dog to do yoga. You do have to treat yourself and others with love. That my friend is yoga.
So, I ask you, what does a yogi look like? A yogi looks like you. Go in the bathroom, turn on the light, and look in the mirror. I invite you to look from the inside out, and you will see what I see: Love, Light, Peace, and Joy.
A yogi can be tall, short, thin, wide, brown, white, black, red, or yellow. A yogi can be male, female, non binary, young, middle aged, or older. A yogi can be a paraplegic or quadriplegic. Anyone can do yoga if they choose. Yoga is about so much more than the physical poses. My hope is that this message will reach you and you will see that the work you do off your mat is true yoga. You are perfectly and wonderfully made. You are yoga, I am yoga, we are yoga.
