A Yogi's Smile

A Yogi's smile; 

a slight smile, just a small turn of lips at each corner as an asana is held, a yogi's smile. At first this comes as a reminder, serving to remind us to relax during the most stressful aspects of a pose. It's only later that this smile becomes quite natural, playing easily against the lips, a sign of deepening practice and the joy that comes through motion and settling into the stillness of our minds. 

a yogi's smile. 

in numerous ways it's a contradiction, so many things happening at once that would seem to keep a smile at bay. Even the simplest postures require some degree of concentration, and there are quite a few that demand a high degree of concentration. Yoga is the way of effort, not an easy path, a lot is asked of us and perhaps a smile might be a trivial matter in light of all we do. But really, it's a conscious smile, a recognition of our effort and how it eventually leads to grace. 

at a certain point...a yogi's smile is quite spontaneous. 

a natural response to silence found. 

there's science behind this too, a chemical reaction, hormones released that cause a joyful effect of practice. Yoga makes us happy. What's discovered is that stress doesn't have to be a reactionary affair, that we are not always at the mercy of its call, with little options of our response. Practicing yoga is the lessening of our emotional patterns, over time we become less pulled into reactions and more considerate of situations that once demanded a reflective action. 

we ease into the response of a yogi's smile. 

compassionate. 

natural. 

spontaneous. 

~

Peace, Eric