P - Glossary
Padma: Lotus, lotus flower. Another name for the chakras, because sometimes they are visualized as spoked wheels, and at other times as lotus flowers.Padukhas: The Guru's sandals, objects of the highest veneration and a figurative term for the Guru's teachings.
Panchakarma: A series of traditional cleansing and balancing treatments.
Panir: A type of soft, fresh cheese.
Paramahansa: Parama meaning 'supreme', hansa - 'soul'. This was the name give to Yogananda by his guru. Who wrote the famous "Autobiography of a Yogi"
Patanjali: The author of Yoga Sutras, the foremost scripture on Raja Yoga, The Yoga of meditation and mind control. He lived around the time of Christ and brilliantly summarized and synthesized the yoga practices of his time.
Phalam: The fruit of Karma, the results, outcome or consequences of our actions.
Pitta: The dosha governing all digestion, metabolism, and transformation in the body.
Pradakshina: The act of worshipful walking around a holy temple, shrine or place. Always done clockwise.
Prajapati: A name for the father of creation and protector of life.
Prana: Prana is the energy that animates everything and is a fundamental concept of Hatha Yoga. Prana is also breath, the life force sustaining the body.
Pranayama: Breath control, consisting of conscious inhalation, retention and exhalation. Breathing is the essential element of all yoga.
Prana Vata: The chief subdivision of vata, it governs the mind, the heart, respiration, and life itself.
Prem: Prem is Love, the highest form of Love.
Puja: Hindu Worship; flower offerings.
Props: To Use or Not to Use?
The original yogis didn't practice with foam blocks, D-ring straps, or purple sticky mats. But as yoga evolved, many practitioners discovered that props could help deepen their explorations. Among modern yogis, attitudes toward props range from the Zen-like minimalism of those who shun all but a sticky mat to the abundance of those who travel with an extra suitcase filled with yoga accessories. Regardless of where you fall in this spectrum, a few guidelines can help you make the most of your props:1. Be clear about why you're using them - mindlessly using a block to support your hand in a standing pose just because your teacher told you to won't deepen your practice. Ask yourself what purpose the extra support is serving and let that answer guide the way you use it. Are you using the block to move into a posture you aren't yet supple enough to manage on your own? If so, consider ways to lessen your reliance on that aid over time.
2. Be your own teacher - use your body's signals to devise new and effective ways of using props to enhance your practice. When you sense a certain part of your body crying out for extra support in a resting pose, for example, wedge a towel or shirt beneath that area and observe what happens. Or if you're struggling to master a new pose, ask yourself whether any props within arm's reach might help. You might be surprised by the ingenious solutions you unearth.
3. Explore new territory - if a rolled-up blanket is supporting your back during a restorative pose, you might like to explore how varying the size and position of it alters your experience. Or if you're using a strap to help you understand a particular action or direction in a posture you know well, you may choose to repeat that same pose without props from time to time to explore the differences.
4. Be creative - yoga basics include mats, blankets, straps, and blocks. But if you consider a prop to be any aid that helps you access a posture more fully, your world will widen considerably. Walls, tables, balls, books, socks, neckties, even the helping hands of a friend can all be used to deepen your exploration.
5. Try to practice nonattachment - because yoga leads us toward greater flexibility and adaptability. So don't grow so attached to your chest of yoga toys that you can't practice without them. If you use props regularly, challenge yourself every once in a while to stow them away and practice without any aids at all (that's right, not even a sticky mat). On the other hand, if you're a yoga minimalist, incorporate a few props into your practice every now and then just to explore how they might be helpful. You might be surprised by what you learn. Remember, the best yoga prop is always an open mind.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
