Nappper ask in her comment to my previous post how the ankle grabbing kapo felt yesterday.How it feels? guess I never really do that huh, such a guy : )
I don't get any of the bells and flashes of light, the epiphanies, ekstasis, buckets of tears or kundalini rising, perhaps guys are wired differently. I mean that's a pretty deep kapo, if I was going to get that kind of thing I'd get by now right?
I remember feeling a little more open on the first one which is why I got the camera, I'd just about managed to catch my heels and seeing as I'd just written about that I wanted to catch the next attempt.
So on this one I went to grab my heels, missed but felt comfortable enough to reach for it again. Got my heels and there still felt space in my back to go up to the ankles, felt a bit deep, bit extreme but then felt good when I lowered my elbows and settled in, felt I could have stayed longer than usual. That said there's still the uncomfortableness in the back, not pain exactly but just letting you know not to push it any further for now. Lifting up into kapo B felt very good, quite refreshing if that makes any sense.
Heel lift dropback
This is new, an experiment with the heel lift. usually my feet turn outwards(actually only the one turns out now) when I come back up but here I've gone for a narrower stance and am allowing the heels to lift a little. interesting, kind of feel that i might find it easier to eliminate the heel lift bit by bit rather than stop the feet turning out on the other approach so might explore this for a while.
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"I don't get any of the bells and flashes of light, the epiphanies, ekstasis, buckets of tears or kundalini rising, perhaps guys are wired differently?"
Tim Miller talks about all of these and he is a guy too. No need to dismiss it as a women's thing.
Thanks Grimmly. I did remebered when H held my elbows down on the floor (which I can't on my own), I did feel that comfort you talked about, like you feel like you could stay there as you wish. For my experience, the comfort is in my shoulder and I enjoyed it so much that I didn't remeber how my lower back felt... mayber next time.
I wonder if there is something at the further extremes of a body position that is not available at the milder positions, even if the feeling of intensity is the same to different levels of practitioner? I'm inclined to think there is, meaning something can happen in a deep kapo that isn't going to happen in a mild cobra. But maybe that is just asana madness talking--the ever receding goal of the perfect pose, something like that.
Or maybe there really ARE flashes of Something Big possible in a deep backbend that you aren't going to be able to get at in a shallow bend, because the nadis aren't open, or whatever. I've wondered this for a while.
In my more minor backbends, I get panic, pretty much every time, and I have to breathe through it. Bells and epiphanies would be nice. :)
hi V : )
'No need to dismiss it as a woman's thing'
Is that how you read this? If anything I think i'm being dismissive of the 'seasonless world' in which we (guy's) so often seem to live, .'..where we laugh but not all of our laughter and weep but not all of our tears'. I was reflecting on how I never seem to write about how something feels (caught out in that here by napper), just the practical aspects. Besides ekstasis is almost an honorific in my field.
I even try to explain how it did feel and fail miserably 'felt very good, quite refreshing', how British is that : )
I totally accept that I don't understand the intense, often emotional, experience so often described particularly in relation to backbends but in other aspects of Ashtanga too, but I'd say I'm more bemused by it than dismissive. It's so other to my experience which tends to be calm, meditative and generally quite pleasant. I do tend to put it down to different emotional, physical and social wiring between the sexes but am quite prepared to convinced otherwise.
hey Napper, thanks for the question hadn't noticed how little I talk about how something feels, hadn't noticed. I always seem to be aware of my back in the deep ones, where I'm pushing the envelope, think it's more a scanning that everything is OK and that your not pushing too far. The comfort in lowering of the elbows makes sense to me as you seem to be taking pressure of the back, it's no longer taking all the strain.
Yeah Maya, nothing against bells and epiphanies here. haven't bought into the nadis or meridians, still to be convinced of that, or the deep seated 'memories' residing in the spine somewhere or activated by the backbend.
The intensity of the backbend comes the closest to explaining it for me, the panic/fear coming from dropping back, the trust or just letting go, 'leap of faith aspect' or just rolling of the dice.... can see how that could have an intense psychological reaction.
You look like you have an incredible practice, Grimmly. I'd like to talk with you about some affiliate opportunities, but I can't find an email for you anywhere on this site. Perhaps you can email me directly? dailybandha@gmail.com
Thank you eryn. Sorry but I have an aversion to affiliation on yoga blogs that borders on abhorrence. I actually had your blog on my blog list but took it off after taking exception to an anonymous comment directed at one of the commentators on one of my posts that linked to your site (worst kind of spam). That said your books look excellent as does your website. I'd be happy to review them here. My email is on the 'About me' page (left sidebar) under contact me.
From your reply it sounds like you just describe it as having fear/panic but just letting go and doing the asana anyways, as if it's no big deal. I guess for people like me, the letting go part generates epiphany because I am often don't let go and try something if I am panicking.
I don't know, I think I build up to it a lot first. I used the dropping back to the wall then futon technique with extra cushions etc to build it up. I seem to have to prove to myself rationally that my body will/can actually do it then I can let go and trust to that. Same with dropping into Viparita dandasana from headstand had to go up to it from the floor first to make sure it was 'doable'.
Of course there's the time and space to do that practicing at home, in the shala I guess it's more a case of putting the trust in the teacher who says you can do something. Bit like that old game where you stand up blindfolded and fall backwards trusting your friend to catch you, they use that too interestingly in team bonding exercises, very similar to the teacher assisted dropbacks, no? Perhaps that's one reason why it's more of an emotional rollercoaster for some people, especially if you there are trust issues, it's a big deal, leap of faith and all that.
Perhaps I'm missing out on something by rationalising everything, hmmmm
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