18/10/2024
What is Mysore style? I've been getting a few questions lately.
I always just tell people that it is small group individual instruction and a chance to develop a personal practice. But, it's a lot more than this.
I really like Mike at Te Aro Astanga's explanation:
"Traditionally in India, people learned yoga from an experience practitioner/teacher one-on-one. The teacher guided students through postures, and tailored the practice to the unique needs and capabilities of every person. Students only practiced postures that the teacher had given them. This enabled people to develop and expand their experience of yoga at a safe, suitable and sufficiently challenging pace.
This is how we continue to practice yoga in our studio today.
Most of our classes are practiced and taught ‘Mysore style Yoga’. As a student, this means that you’ll receive direct guidance from a teacher on what postures to practice, and how. The postures follow set sequences, which will give you what you need over time. All of us start with the same sequence of postures, but we all practice at our own pace.
At first the sequences of postures seem like a lot to learn. With ongoing practice though, you’ll learn the sequence by heart. Then your practice will flow more freely, following the rythm of your own breath. This is where yoga begins to emerge. You won’t need to think about what posture to do next, or wait for someone to tell you. You’ll just know.
And you don’t need to worry about getting confused with the sequence of postures. We’ve all been there! Everyone in a Mysore style Yoga class had to learn the same sequence to start with. And a teacher can always assist you."
Read more here:
https://www.astanga.co.nz/mysore-style-yoga/
I also like this video of one of my favourite teachers, Philippa Asher, teaching Mysore style. I had the chance to practice with her for a few weeks in India in 2019, and it was one of the more empowering experiences of my life... I went from being a primary series queen to actually facing my fears and working towards 'making the impossible possible, and then the possible easy'.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxRz7NB7SVY&t=209s
Mysore style yoga -- Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga; Why our method of teaching and practicing yoga differs from most other yoga schools around town.
