Issues in the tissues: What are you carrying in your body?
According to the yoga tradition, there are three qualities, or three energetic forces, that are always present (to various degrees) in all things and beings in the world, including our emotional states and interactions. Sattva guna is the quality of light, love, and life; rajas is the quality of activity, movement, and turbulence; tamas is the quality of inertia, heaviness, and stagnation. The three gunas exist in dynamic interaction and influence each other in different ways. You might experience both or all three gunas within your body at the same time.
The Polyvagal Theory pioneered by Dr. Stephen Porges closely reflects the yogic idea of the three gunas and demonstrates how gunas show up in our autonomic nervous system through the lens of our essential needs for safety and connection to other humans. The Polyvagal Theory looks at the same three qualities of the gunas and ties the interactions between states to the activities of the vagus nerve. Read more about the Polyvagal Theory and four causes of mental and physical suffering >
In this yoga practice, we spend time paying attention to what’s happening in different parts of your body and try to identify what kind of energy is dominant in each area. Then we will use movement and breath to move stagnant energy, drain chaotic energy, and bring balance to your entire system.
For this practice, you might need a block or a chair if you need additional support in Parivrtti Trikonasana pose. In this practice, it is particularly important that you move with your breath, keep your breath steady, and don’t force it in any way. When we use count to measure the length of your breath, you can always count a bit faster or drop the count altogether to accommodate your natural breathing pace. Our goal is to reassure and gently encourage your nervous system to leave the state of high alert and settle into this moment.
Please give this practice a try and see how it feels!
Get four additional yoga practices for the nervous system and many other yoga videos for skeletal, respiratory, cardiovascular, and immune systems in the Zoom In Within yoga series.
