The inner journey

The inner journey really is the final frontier. Moving away from the safety of a regular guided yoga class, we embark on the deep space adventure of self-discovery. It’s the moment of realisation that the pace of the class isn’t aligning with something deeper or more rhythmical within us, it feels as though the offerings of the class aren’t meeting us where we need to be. Perhaps we lose momentum for practice, maybe we outgrow classes and teachers…if we’re committed, we might begin the journey of finding a new class or teacher who meets us where we are. Or maybe, just maybe, we’re courageous enough to face the unknown, our own inner abyss, to reclaim our power and to connect with and cultivate the teacher within us – our intuition.

This is the point at which our yoga practice takes all the strength, discipline and spaciousness we’ve developed physically, and turns it inward. It’s the place in which we recognise all the power we’ve given to instruction and knowledge and turn it towards the inner teacher instead. It’s the place where we find a new edge; where we look ahead and see only the unknown. It’s here that our practice becomes about taking a leap of faith, it becomes a journey of self-discovery, of taking responsibility for our experience and of cultivating trust with our own inner guidance system.

This is the space in which we reclaim our personal power, and in reclaiming our power we take direction with a sense of discernment, where we become able to listen to outer guidance and take away only that which is nourishing. In taking responsibility, we begin the journey of understanding the condition of our vital energy when we arrive at the mat or understanding our own needs and finding a willingness to meet them when it comes to our practice. Our application of strength then becomes about making choices which serve to nourish us rather than deplete us or create tension within us.

Inner guidance
It’s so easy to fall into the routine of a regular class or teacher, of knowing and liking a particular style of yoga and of showing up regardless of how we feel or without asking ourselves what we truly need. It’s this regularity and known factor which can make it easy to switch off from our inner guidance. But yoga and the yoga journey is about managing our own vitality, the precious life force that animates us, our passion for life and vigour, our wellbeing and creativity. It’s not always the case that in simply turning up and participating in a regular class, that we’re doing something good for ourselves. Without a developed sense of self-awareness and the strength to adjust, modify and rest when necessary, then all we’re really doing is doing what we’re told. We’re trusting that who we’re practicing with is taking responsibility for us, and that they know what we need. In truth, no one but ourselves has that insight.

Arriving at the mat for self-practice becomes about exercising the discipline of taking that trust in others and applying it to ourselves. Trusting our inner wisdom and meeting our own needs. Becoming intimate with the condition of our energy body is vital; we have to know if we’re depleted and exhausted or if we’re vibrant and buoyant.