Yoga Style Highlight | Yin
Are you familiar with the yin yang symbol? Called the Taijitu, it is a symbol rooted in Taoist philosophy that illustrates the balance and harmony between two opposing forces. The idea is that without the dark, there could be no light and vice versa. It also shows that there is light within the dark, and dark within the light. The light half of the Taijitu is yang— heat, light, movement, active. The dark half is yin— coolness, darkness, stillness, calm.
The roots of yin yoga
Yin yoga is deeply rooted in both Taoist and Yogic philosophies. In yogic philosophy, it’s understood that the Prana (lifeforce or universal energy) is brought into the body and controlled through breathing or pranayama. It moves through the body along Nadis or energetic channels and pathways in the body and travels to the chakras, our energy centers. When we do yoga, we are working to ensure that prana can flow freely throughout the body without obstruction. There are similar concepts present in Taoist philosophy as well. In Taoism, the universal lifeforce is called Qi (Chi) and it travels along the meridians in the body to the Dantian or the energy centers. Similarly, the idea is that we never want to have obstructed flow of Qi in the body.
Yin yoga combines the two philosophies. In doing yin yoga, we are opening up the body and supporting the meridians through our practice to allow Qi to reach the chakras.
Why yin yoga?
Going back to the Taijitu— we as human beings need balance and harmony in our lives so that the scales do not tip too far in one direction. The world as a whole needs balance and harmony. Too much of any one thing can be damaging in one way or another. Yin yoga seeks to bring that balance and harmony back into our practice on and off the mat.
As modern people, we live very yang lives. We are busy, often stressed, and even when we think we are resting, our minds are still working steadily. Our asana practices are often much the same. We build heat, we work the muscles, and only a small portion of the practice is truly reserved for stillness. Yin yoga gives us the opportunity to slow down and invite some yin energy to balance out our very yang lives.
Our bodies also have yin and yang components. Our muscles, which are generally the focus of most physical activities from yoga to simply walking, are yang. They are flexible and elastic and benefit from heat-building yang movements. But our bodies are not all muscle. The yin aspects of our bodies, connective tissues like the joints, tendons, ligaments, and fascia, don’t benefit from the yang movement. In fact, too much yang can be damaging to the yin parts of our bodies as they are less elastic, and continue to lose elasticity as we age. Instead, in order to maintain healthy connective tissues, we need to take a more yin approach.
So…. what is yin yoga?
Yin yoga differs from more yang styles of yoga (like Hatha or Vinyasa) in both its approach and execution. In a yin yoga practice, you can expect to spend a lot of time on the ground as all of the postures are practiced from kneeling, sitting, or laying down. You spend anywhere from 3-10 minutes in each posture, usually around 5 minutes, and poses are often supported by props so that you’re able to really settle in for the entire duration of the hold. These long, slow holds are not held in place by our muscles. Instead, we use our body weight and gravity to keep us in place, allowing for gentle stress to be placed on the connective tissues. This gentle stress will, in the long run, create more supple and mobile connective tissues and joints. The postures also help to open up the meridians of the body in order to allow for a healthy flow of Qi to the chakras.
But it’s not only the body that benefits from these long, slow holds. We live in a world where information is constantly being thrown at us, and it can become increasingly difficult to quiet our minds. Yin yoga not only helps to strengthen our connection between our physical, mental, and emotional bodies, but it also gives us the opportunity to find a state of calm and quiet.
Where to start?
As mentioned, yin yoga often uses props to support the body. While they’re not a requirement, they do help to ease into postures at the pace that is best for you. Two blocks, a blanket or towel, and a pillow or bolster are good places to start. You can find props for purchase at The Aura Store, or DIY your own props using our BYOP (Bring Your Own Props) guide to help you make props using things you have at home.
As for classes, you can practice Yin yoga at The Aura House with Danea every Monday at 7:00 PM for Beginner/Intermediate Levels Yin. We also have a Contribute-What-You-Can All-Levels Yin class with Maya coming up on Wednesday, March 16 at 6:00 PM. Register for those classes on Wellness Living.
If you have any questions regarding classes, yin yoga, or your personal practice, we are happy to help as best as we can. You can always reach out to us on our Contact Page. Here’s to a practice that will truly help you to unfold.
Blog Post Written by Maya Price-Baker
