Death and Dying HOW IYENGAR YOGA HELPS US EXPLORE UNBOUNDED SPACE BY KELLY SOBANSKI
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efore I took my first Iyengar Yoga class with Elizabeth Kerwin, I didn’t realize that philosophy was part of it. I had tried yoga so I could become more flexible to prevent injury while snowboarding. When I discovered yoga was about more than gaining flexibility, I started to heal and grow emotionally. Then I became inspired to be a teacher. From the philosophy I brought into my own teaching, one student was heartened and asked me to speak in the “Death & Dying” class at Indiana University. These classes typically have around 75 students who are eager to learn about how Iyengar Yoga can be applied in the face of death. Thanks to a Fellowship Grant from the Iyengar Yoga Association of the Midwest (IYAMW), I am able to offer my presentation along with free Iyengar Yoga class passes to these large groups. During slide show presentations, I speak about my own experiences with death and how, at an early age, I was taught to contemplate the mystery when my dearest Aunt Kathy died from cancer. I explain how I found Iyengar Yoga and how the practice has helped me heal through difficult times of loss. In 2016, I learned to death-sit with my dearest Granny who chose me to be in the room as she passed. I believe she asked me because I created a peaceful atmosphere that encouraged nonattachment. I also believe she appreciated that I did not hinder her progression toward ultimate surrender. In the “Death & Dying” class, I tell the students how Iyengar Yoga taught me to cope with the process of watching others transition and has also helped prepare me for my own death. I show clips of Ray Spooner who, after finding out he had ALS, chose to bike across the country to raise money for the ALS Foundation. His story is incredible. Ray attended Lois Steinberg’s therapy classes up until the end of his life. During that time, many of the supported asanas with teachers' adjustments helped Ray to breathe. Check out his blog at www.rideforray.com. I also share a clip from Lois Steinberg’s therapy workshop on the Roads to Bliss YouTube channel (https://youtu.be/ KN8AoPbRrGI). In this clip, Betsy Hearne, one of the students, talks about her experience facing death while overcoming pancreatic cancer and how Iyengar Yoga was a blanket of stability and grace. From these examples, students are exposed to the visuals of therapeutic Iyengar Yoga poses, which enable them to see that yoga can be more profound than simply physical exercise. Inspiration for these presentations also comes from a class I took online taught by Dr. Ravi Ravindra called “Learning to Live by Dying Daily.” Dr. Ravindra says that it’s important to ask ourselves: What am I? Why am I here? How do I feel when I think about death? Where does fear of death come from? What do I hope will happen to me when I die? What do I fear
Yoga Samachar Spring | Summer 2019
Penny Hanna and Jeanine Berlocher support Ray Spooner during his last therapy class in July 2016.
will happen to me when I die? How can I be free of both? What else do I need to be free of? Here is an exercise Dr. Ravindra suggests: Lie in Savasana and imagine that your next breath is your last. Observe how you feel and what comes to your mind. Do you sense a need to forgive or ask for forgiveness? Do you have a memory that is joyous or sad? Do you wish to express gratitude or send love? Dr. Ravindra emphasizes the need to practice dying daily in order to create freedom from being bound by our usual selves. This way, we can explore subtler frequencies that lead to acceptance and spirituality. On this route, we can
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