Over the years, I have heard a lot of people telling their stories about how they quit their jobs to become yoga teachers. It is a risky move, so these people are courageous and passionate. I admire that. Unfortunately, it does not pay off every time.
Feeling content with who you are and how your life is going, is a deep, strong desire. Ironically, oftentimes we are afraid of feeling content.
Yoga is all about finding peace. Many people think that yoga is just about the positive aspects of life. On the contrary, yoga focuses on the things that stop us from excelling and being free. The focus of yoga is the mind, not the body. It acknowledges how challenging life can be and offers us tools, guidelines, and insights on how we can change our lives for the better and end of suffering.
I started yoga for a healthier, more mobile body. I know a lot of experienced yogins and yoga teachers who started that way. For many people, yoga begins as something they do a few times a week and quickly becomes something they adopt as a lifestyle.
In this day and age, the lower back problems are very common. Many of us spend our days sitting. There aren’t any poses that would not yield postural problems if held this long and this frequently. Most of us sit while working but that is not all. We sit while traveling, eating, watching, talking, drinking, resting, etc.
I started practicing yoga because I wanted to do more with my body. I wanted more mobility, more muscular strength, more control over my body. It was such a pleasant surprise to see that the yoga practices also involved focus on the breath and the mind. When I started practicing yoga years ago, I had no idea how powerful and all-encompassing yoga is.