Misogyny in the Yoga World. What Happens to the Practice When We Allow Abuse to Continue The most essential gift yoga gives us is the ability to practice self-awareness, kindness and compassion. In embarking on this self-development journey we seek guidance from teachers who have been on the path longer and have more experience. And unconsciously we trust that because …
When we allow ourselves to experience misogyny and abuse, whether firsthand or through others, we are admitting to the universe that we believe certain people are more powerful than we are. We allow ourselves to exist in a world where we are less than. This mentality sabotages our self-esteem. Continuing to victimize ourselves leads us to perpetuate our ingrained feelings of not being good enough. Ultimately, if we continue to have relationships with the abusers, we will repeatedly internalize the idea that we are not love-able.
It’s common knowledge that yoga originated in India and is thousands of years old. The practice was developed by ancient yogis in order to leave their community and contemplate the meaning of life in solitude. Their intention was to sacrifice and rid themselves of the ego and to stop clinging to the material world which is the cause of much …
Every one of us has that inner voice that guides our thoughts and actions. Most of the time this conscience keeps us on a progressive path toward our futures. She helps us reach our goals, she keeps us focused, and she gives us the motivation to strive for our dreams.
But other times she’s just plain mean.
When our inner voice has gone mean she’s turned into a critic, blocking our positivity and stunting our development. Like a little seed, she burrows deep in our minds and sprouts. As she grows she spreads doubt, fear, and even anxiety.
Is your yoga practice a vehicle for mental health and self-actualization or are you content with just the physical practice? Yoga was originally intended to be a practice to facilitate self-actualization, meaning to realize who you are and be comfortable being you. More recently, in the western yoga world, there has been a separation between physical development and spiritual development. …