The word “resolution” has always troubled me. It is defined as “a firm decision to do or not to do something.” It has a future orientation that gets away from the here and now. So I will post some of my New Year’s “aspirations” as I continue to blog in 2015.
In my personal practice, I will continue working toward my Junior Intermediate 1 certification. 2014 was a year checkered with family crises that required me to do my Yoga as a householder doing his dharma, and not so much an aspirant. On the weekends, my mentoring teachers have been offering informal teachings to some of us going up for the next level. I appreciate the informality of their process this time around, as going up for Intro II was very painstaking. At this rate, I may be ready for certification by the 2016 assessment season.
The poses in the JI-one syllabus are a tier more advanced than in Intro II. They include basic arm balances and more elaborate forward bends than in intro II. But remember that in Iyengar yoga, one has to know each pose from about 20 different approaches to just get a “basic understanding.”
The quality of teaching is expected to be one tier higher as well. We can no longer get away with showing the shape of the pose and a few instructions. Now we have to link heavily from the origin of action. That does not always come from the base of the pose like we learned in intro II. Again, this process is radically changing my views on asana from once cherished “truisms.”
As far as blogging, I don’t intend to change much. I had a wonderful year with about 40k views and 850 followers. My goal is not to blog to get attention, but just to share my practice and insights with those who don’t have access to Iyengar yoga either because of costs or because of lack of teachers in the area. I also like to clarify the practice for those who are getting muddled in a sea of selfie and commercialized yoga posts out there. So whether I get 10 viewers or a million followers in 2015 is inconsequential to me. I am just doing my dharma by passing on what I know (which isn’t actually that much).
To put it out to the universe, I would highly prefer a more stable year free from family crises. I would also prefer a more stable year for my case manager job for severely mentally ill people. I wish my clients would find peace and less suffering from their illness and hope that I can in some way help them find that peace.
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