Faculty Yoga Study in Pune, India

The Institute itself is an incredible building. Designed by Mr. Iyengar, it's built in the shape of a half circle. In the main studio on the 2nd floor, the teacher stands in the center of the straight side of the half circle on a two-foot high platform. As stone is a common building material here, the platform is white marble and the main floor is a dark grey slate. (During headstand, the crown of my head misses those relatively soft wooden floors at home!) The students set up in a fan-shaped pattern facing the stage, which gives all of us a great view. Since I'm used to practicing in a square room, the curves and angles of the studio both delight and confuse me. In fact, that's a good metaphor for my whole experience here - everything is so different that I'm constantly delighted and confused. The ceilings are high and the upper walls are covered with enlargements of photographs, many from Light on Yoga, so that everywhere you look you see Mr. Iyengar doing an incredible pose

The curved side of the studio is all windows that open onto trees and greenery and, unfortunately, the traffic noise on the street outside. Below the windows are piled dozens of wooden props - every kind I've seen and many more: benches, back benders, halasana boxes, and all kinds of other contraptions. When I observe the medical classes I get to see how these props are used to help people with a wide range of problems: backs, necks, knees, digestion, infertility, deformed limbs, mental health issues, cancer, asthma, and countless other maladies.

My schedule consists of a two-hour class every day of the week except Sunday with Geeta or Prashant, Mr. Iyengar's daughter and son. Every day I also attend open practice in the studio and observe other classes, including beginners’ classes and medical classes. Studying yoga here is a far cry from the retreats that are advertised in Yoga Journal with beautiful tropical settings, gourmet meals, and spa treatments between classes. I sometimes struggle to understand the Iyengars' accents as they rattle off the Sanskrit names of poses in rapid-fire speech. The local Indian students are the experts and I try to follow their lead. The classes are huge, usually 80 to 90 people. Setting up for shoulder stand is a frenetic adventure since it requires tight coordination to fit everyone in. People will steal your props and your spot so it's best to pair up with a friend who can guard your props while you get other things. The traffic noise can be very loud and the air quality abysmal due to pollution from vehicles and trash fires.  On most days I would describe the air as smelling like a toxic campfire. On the brighter side, Mr. Iyengar has returned from his book tour in the U.S.A. and practices in the main studio during open practice where we have the chance to observe him. At age 87, he routinely stays in poses for 10 minutes or more when I can barely hold for 30 seconds.

I am so immersed in this different world that I can't really process how it's affecting me. I've never had the chance to attend six classes a week or the luxury to practice for 2-3 hours per day. The heat and humidity here make me feel more limber and open, but I have learned the hard way to be very aware since it's easy to injure myself in such an intensive class and practice schedule. Although I have adapted to my life here, everything reminds me of my newness - hearing the cacophony of the birds in the morning, being the only woman in sight not wearing a sari, and watching local Indian students who have been taking the Iyengars' classes for decades. Here at the epicenter of Iyengar yoga, I am certainly getting new perspectives on myself, my practice and teaching, and my life in San Francisco. I am humbled to be a student at the Institute and I'm constantly reminded of how much I have to learn. I go through a range of emotions every day as the yoga challenges me to look at myself and to be present.

I am reminded that ultimately, yoga is an internal practice. A teacher can guide us, but true transformation comes from our own internal experience as we unite our body, breath, mind, and spirit during an asana. As Prashant said this morning in class, "You are all always *doing* the pose, trying to make it look photogenic, instead of *learning* the pose from inside, from yourself." Every now and then I catch a glimpse of what I can teach myself when I am able to find that quiet place in my poses, that moment where everything feels suspended and in balance.

I hope you are all well. I look forward to seeing you all in January.

Warmly,
-- Octavia