Breaking it Down

Recently my teacher got very excited about about transitioning from a  side crane to Eka Pada Koundiyanasana II. Now each of these are poses I can ordinarlly achieve, but moving from one to the other? I was mostly transitioning from side crane to a disheveled pile on the floor. As I looked up from my disheveled pile, I watched one of my classmates who was also new to this sequence place her legs with great care and determination. She was going to make it into that pose with just sheer focus of attention.

Finally one day we had a small class and I asked for a variation to help me get ahold of the sequence.  Our teacher put a blanket on the floor by his head, then set his head on the floor in side crane, and from there switched legs and extended into Eka Pada Koundinyasana. I tried this variation without a lot of hope but with great determination. I realized that with my head resting on the floor, I had the time to carefully move the top leg to my upper arm, and make sure it was secure before removing the lower leg. Finally I had a way into the sequence. 

I grew up in a family of classical musicians, so I had been taught from a young age that when you confront something difficult, you slow it down and break it down into smaller and smaller pieces until it is no longer difficult. I went to sleep at night hearing my dad break down musical phrases into small chunks, repeating them over and over until they lulled me to sleep. (My dad has amazing precision when her performs; it sound effortless.) When you confront a difficult pose the concept is the same -- break the pose or sequence down into smaller more manageable chunks; add a block, add a blanket, adapt, adjust until the challenge is the right size for you at that point in your practice. The muscles will learn something and remember the experience even if it was achieved with a brick or a partner.

So recently I was playing poker with a fried who could make a bridge out of the playing cards after shuffling them.  "I can do this" I thought "I just need to break it down and pay careful attention." I asked her to explain her technique, and watched carefully how she held her hands. All my life I had thought "I'll never be able to do that. Some people can do it, and some people can't." Today I thought "this is like any new asana, I just need to break it down and practice." Yet another gift of yoga... and all those hours spent in a practice room as a child. Who would have thought.