GasPumpAsana

Ever wonder what happens if you drive away from the gas pump with the nozzle still attached in you car?
I was the brainiac who did that recently. Real smooth move.

Contrary to what I always imagined would happen – a HUGE explosion blowing up the gas station, myself, and all surroundings into flames – in reality the pump effortlessly released from its base and dangled along the ground as I drove away. No flames. Not even a drop of leaked gas.

Upon noticing there was not in fact an explosion of Hollywood-proportions, I practiced yoga instead.
I got out of the car, put my mat on the asphalt, warmed-up my body with surya namaskar, followed it with a standing balance series, a backbend, an inversion, and then lay on my back in the driveway of “Super America” for a long savasana.

Alright, obviously that last paragraph is not what I mean when I say I practiced yoga. Upon realizing I snapped off the gas pump I practiced yoga philosophy: I observed, I took a few breaths, and I found freedom in the moment. Freedom from reactivity. I practiced my yoga, just not necessarily my yoga asana.

Quick lesson for the non-yogi: The word asana roughly translates to posture. Yoga poses have their original Sanskrit name and then most have an English translation. Corpse pose = savasana. Other examples include Eka Pada Rajakapotasana (one-legged king pigeon pose), Parivrtta Anjaneyasana (low lunge twist) and Tittibhasana (firefly), to name a few.

In the United States, the word yoga seems synonymous with poses, the body, movement, and party tricks like, well, tittibhasana. I came to the practice myself as an athlete wanting to cross-train. The asana appealed to the physical competitor inside of me. But the other branches of yoga, namely the philosophy, lit a spark in the seeker within and keeps me coming back for more. The opportunities to practice are endless.
Finding freedom from reactivity keeps me coming back to my yoga – asana or otherwise – because there is always another opportunity to react, panic, defend, judge, flee, freeze, fight, burst. I realized I simply don’t want to explode like a flame anymore. So I practice.

Genpo Merzel, founder of the Big Mind approach to Zen states:
“… realization is always sudden, immediate. But the assimilation of this realization into our life takes time. You can’t ignore that things take time. The awakening is outside of the realm of space and time, but to integrate it into your everyday life is always going to take time.”

So I seek patience in my practice of this mighty pursuit. I have affectionately given sanskrit-like labels to these moments in which I choose to breathe versus flight, flight, freeze or react …. this one was “GasPumpAsana.”
The next time you drop your phone and the screen shatters, practice PhoneShatterAsana. You see a cop emerge behind you and prepare to pull you over, practice SpeedingTicketAsana. Miss your connecting flight en route to vacation and get stuck overnight without your belongings? AirlineTravelWoesAsana. You fall to your knees, head in your hands, bereft, in anguish…sounds like the perfect opportunity for ItDoesn’tGetWorseThanThisAsana.
And If you’re wondering about the penalties for pulling out the gas pump, the store manager told me “it happens all the time,” then she shooed me away like a moth drawn to a flame. So I drove on with my full tank and my grateful heart.

Save the drama for your mama and the reactive explosions for Hollywood. TheEndAsana.

~Rachel Allyn is a licensed psychologist and a yoga therapist. With a background and education in political science, clinical psychology and yoga therapy she blends Western and Eastern philosophies and integrate mind and body to tailor treatment to your needs. Her specialty areas include anxiety disorders, depression, relationship & intimacy problems, stress management, sleep disorders, trauma/loss, and emotional eating.

Dr. Allyn is now accepting new clients at Spark Wellness. www.sparkwellness.net