MOVING TOWARD GRACE “After his diagnosis, Ryan began the yoga of his life and death, which he approached with the same equanimity and clarity as he approached assessment,” says Cindy. “He inquired of his teachers, sought out the writings of Mr. Iyengar, and kept on living—right up until his last exhalation. On his bedside altar sat a photo of Guruji in Savasana. I imagine them practicing together on the yoga mat of the great beyond.” Years of practice prepared Ryan for death. He accepted and spoke openly about his disease. He said cancer was the greatest spiritual teacher he ever had. With a smile, he told us he wished this teacher wasn’t deadly, but its relentless nature required him to pay attention in every moment. His practice shifted from vigor to restraint and eventually to an exclusive focus on Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi. Showing yogic intelligence, Ryan conserved his energy through the dying process, at the end withdrawing from the attention that so many admirers would willingly have given in order to save precious words and emotions for his wife, son, and mother. When I visited Ryan toward the end, I read to him from
Mr. Iyengar’s translation of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, and we discussed Light on Life, one of the few books he was able to continue reading even as his energy faded. We agreed that its clarity delivered a penetrating, life-affirming message. Facing his own death, Ryan never stopped being Ryan—selfless, whole, loving, and joyous. Ryan once told me that a student at the Estes Park convention yawned during one of Guruji’s speeches. Although the person was far from the central stage, Mr. Iyengar saw and made it clear to everyone that it was important to pay attention because he would not be around forever. In the last class Ryan taught, he caught me yawning and called me out. I hear you, Ryan, and yes, I do miss you. I cherished Ryan. I am his student. I will always be his student. “It’s our job to stand on the shoulders of the teachings of B.K.S. Iyengar and his students and all the people that we consider to be teachers and then become our own teachers.” Ryan Conrad, Dec. 11, 2016 For more tributes to Ryan, please visit http://onecenteryoga. com/remembering-ryan-conrad.
SHARON COWDERY: BEHIND THE SCENES
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any IYNAUS members know Sharon Cowdery as the voice at the other end of the phone when they call IYNAUS. Others recognize her as one of the people who staffs the IYNAUS stand at our conventions. She does an immense amount of work behind the scenes keeping IYNAUS operations running. Recently, the IYNAUS Board of Directors voted to change her title from General Manager to Director of Operations.
Here is a short Q&A with Sharon for those of you who would like to know her better. TELL US ABOUT YOUR HISTORY WITH IYENGAR YOGA. In 1994 I was unsettled and searching for “something” but unsure exactly what. My physical body was stressed from running and cycling, and my psyche was hungry. As luck would have it, I stumbled upon Iyengar Yoga at Yoga Northwest in Bellingham, Washington (thanks for your marketing efforts, Ingela!). I think my first class was with CIYT Kim Lacy. Over the next 10 years, I was lucky to study with and draw inspiration from CIYTs William Prelle, Lauron Ray, and Ingela Abbott. I can still recall the palpable fear about whether I’d be able to endure the whole weekend of my very first workshop with Dean Lerner. Decades later, his insistent voice still resonates in my brain, reminding me at regular intervals to lift my collar bones and expand my chest. 30
Kristina Bavik, IYNAUS store manager; Sharon Cowdery, director of operations; and Hiroko Karrfalt, operations assistant
Yoga Samachar Spring / Summer 2017
