Breathe and Respond

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/08/magazine/how-yoga-can-wreck-your-body.html?_r=4&pagewanted=2&smid=fb-share
Before you read this post, please read the article above.
Maybe some yogis would beg to differ about what the article has to say, which talks about risk of injury in the yoga practice. But from experience, this article is bluntly honest. At least 8 months ago I injured my hip from practicing seated forward bend. My hip popped out of the socket three times. Every once in a while, the pain in my hip comes back. This was and is a difficult lesson to learn for some (including myself). When your insructor tells you to listen to what your body is telling you, please listen to your body. If you are feeling pain in a pose, adjust yourself in a more comfortable and SAFE manner. There is no reason to be impatient with your body. Yoga is about reliquishing the ego. Yoga is not about being the most flexible in the class, it is about bringing your attention within. And in the asanas, it means becoming present to the way your body feels in a pose. There should be no pain in yoga. Listen to your body, it's the only body you have, no returns, no exchanges. So, during your next yoga class, instead of looking at what the person next to you is doing, look within yourself. The practice is about you, not the others around you. The asanas are connected with the mind, with mindfullness, with your inner peace and eventually with the people around you. But start from the basics. Let go of the ego, listen and respond to your body.

Namaste