Day 43
Indra Devi (Mataji ‘Mother’) is a legendary yogini. I’ve quoted her in a couple of the daily emails and she is featured in the 40 day manual. Devi has been called The First Lady of Yoga”. She was Krishnamacharya’s first female student (outside of his family). In the early 20th century women were not allowed to learn yoga. She asked Krishnamacharya to teach her and he refused. His orthodox views prevented him from teaching women. She had a friendship with the Maharaja (King) of Mysore and he convinced Krishnamacharya to teach her.
Krishnamacharya gave her a punishing discipline hoping to scare her away from. She turned out to be a better student than the others! Her aptitude and attitude for yoga caused him to change his views on women and state that women and children are the future of yoga. He believed that the men had lost the humility to be taught. He is quoted as saying, (at age ninety eight) “I think if we do not – encourage women, the great Indian tradition will die because most of the Brahman’s are not following the vedic rules and regulations and are all becoming business people.” Krishnamacharya was also the first to teach women vedic chanting. Largely through Indra Devi’s perseverance, practice and prayer the ancient art and science of yoga has travelled across the globe.
Devi initially went to China and taught. Then moving to Hollywood, she taught all kinds of people including the very famous (influencers!) and developed a community in yoga (including Baron Baptiste’s parents - Indra Devi is his God Mother!). Devi reached prominence globally, eventually illegalizing yoga in Russia, traveling there in 1960 to convince the Government that yoga is not a religion. Devi was the first westerner to teach yoga in India and has written many books which are available online. I heard that Devi spoke 7 languages. Devi travelled to many countries and lived in Mexico for many years giving training courses in yoga; she finally settled in Argentina and spent the rest of her life there. Passing away at age 102 in 2002. Devi managed to break all cultural boundaries and spread the ancient discipline and message of yoga for many decades.
In Her Own Sweet Words...
"We women must listen to our inner voice. It is easier for women to do this as they are not afraid to say what they feel. We must keep both our femininity and our strength. Men have to descend from their pedestal and learn how to be more broadminded and spiritual.
A human being's full freedom is to find himself (i.e., be loyal to himself), with independence of judgment, thinking and being flexible and malleable in order to reach harmonization and mental peace. Freedom is living without chains. Yoga is a way to freedom. By its constant practice, we can free ourselves from fear, anguish and loneliness.”
“Movements in yoga are harmonious, slow, soft, plastic, relaxed, always conscious, and require a permanent and active mental participation. The whole work rests on the dialectic tension-relaxation. It's important to stimulate, turn elastic, tonify, to make oneself conscious of limbs, superficial and deep muscles, joints, and spine, achieving a gradual and progressive limb decontraction, loosening, and relaxation.
Yoga is an art and science of living. Yoga means union, in all its significances and dimensions. Through a certain amount of physical and mental disciplines we can learn how to stay healthy, alert, receptive and to improve our perception of the external world in order to feel internally harmonized, with a better life condition and spiritual balance.”
“Nonviolence is one of the keys of yoga, and we should begin it by ourselves. Learning to recognize and respect our own peculiar rhythm and working on that base is essential.”
"Try this visualization: Look at the sky and at the stars. Choose one, the one you like the most. You want that star to guide you, it's so pretty! Looking at that star, you would like it to get down. Then you think on really getting this star down as much as possible, going more and more down and down, until you feel it on your chest, disappearing in your heart, and your entire being fills with joy because this is the day in which a star got into your heart and stayed to live there. Now you realize you need to change many things in your daily life for it to stay there; otherwise, it will slowly go away, leaving a huge empty space. Suddenly you feel so happy, knowing you've got a light in your heart which can get bigger and bigger, shining through our eyes, deeds, words and thoughts. We realize we'll never be alone anymore. We've got our own daylight to get bad thoughts away, and we talk with that light—our star in our heart. We take away what's unimportant. If it's the divine will, we ask it to guide us to what we have divine and eternal in this life and in the next one. And let the light in the heart carry us."
Missed Sophie’s class yesterday or want to take it again?
Click below to replay until Saturday at midnight PST.
REPLAY SOPHIE’S CLASS
THE DIGITAL STUDIO CLASS SCHEDULE
Today, Friday February 12th
7-8am PST Vinyasa with Guest Teacher Christine Chénier
10-11am PST Vinyasa with Peter Elmas
4-6pm PST Vinyasa Practice + Talk with Ryan Leier
Tomorrow, Saturday February 13th
9-9:30am PST In Conversation with Guest Bennie Fowler
12-1pm PST Spa Flow with Carolyn Budgell
4-5pm PST Vinyasa with Risto Duggan
6-7:15pm PST Yin with Malina Dawn