Why do YOU do yoga?

Recently, an internationally known belly dancer, Aziza Sa'id, contacted me and told me that she is moving from California to Missouri. The fact that someone would move FROM California TO Missouri boggled my mind, and made me want to learn more.  So in an effort to understand this curious being, I decided to read her blog. It was there that I came across the following entry, and it blew my mind wide open because it is something I have been trying to express for YEARS to friends and loved ones when I am asked about why I do yoga, but have been unable to put into words.... until now. 

The first of today’s Big Questions is one of my favorites… Why Do You Do What You Do? Dance? Yoga?
 
Think about it......  Because it’s fun; Because in it I find acceptance, of myself and others; Because I feel beautiful; Because I feel at peace; Because it is a way to create and express myself; Because I feel healthier; Because I feel better in and about my body when I do.

Because I love it.

And here’s where I need to say… No. You don’t. You do not love yoga, or dance.

You think you do, but you don’t. The “it” is not the object of your love… you do NOT love yoga or dance.

What you really love is Who You Are when you do it.

The dance, the yoga, it is a vehicle. It is the way, the path, the mechanism. It is Your way, it is what is working best for you right now, and may always be what works best for you, but it is still just a tool.

Consider this… when I taught ballroom dance for a living, nobody ever came in because they needed to learn to waltz. They THOUGHT they needed to learn to waltz… but… did they really? Was it that they needed a box step and a hesitation and an underarm turn to make their life complete?

"Really, I just desperately NEEEEED a box step! Pleeease! I am not whole until I have one!"

Or did they need what those moves were going to give them? The ability to go and do something fun with their spouse? The confidence to talk to a beautiful woman and know they were going to be able to entertain her? The knowledge and relief they would not look like fools on their wedding day?

What you really love is Who You Are and How You Feel when you do it.

It’s like strawberries. I say I love strawberries. But really, is it that I love them? Or is it that I love the sensation of their taste? The feeling of delight that comes from looking at their shiny redness? The stimulation of feeling their smooth and stubbly brail exterior? The sweet and sour satisfaction of eating them? What I love is the sensation of strawberries. I am grateful for their existence, but what I love is how I experience them.

What you love about yoga, about dance, is how you experience yourself and the world and others when you do it.

You can read more from Aziza by clicking here.

~Jenn