asana Archives - James Happe Yoga

March 13, 2018

To headstand or not to headstand

A lot of my students ask me about if I think that headstand (sirsasana) should be taught or not. My general answer is a diversion: "headstand is a very complicated posture with many moving parts and considerations and it's very difficult to do it correctly without some distortion or subsequent damage."

April 29, 2015

The difference between yoga and asana

A great post about the difference between yoga (as a broad discipline) and asana (as one of its components). “Are you always doing yoga in an […]

July 27, 2014

…but is it yoga? : Seeking a definition of yoga

There is an increasing trend of new activities being branded with the word “yoga”. This is usually included as part of a more marketable name (kite-flying […]

July 14, 2014

The usefulness of tolerating discomfort

In his lecture series “The Science of Enlightenment“, Shinzen Young discusses the possible implications of not being able to sit with discomfort. In a nutshell the […]

May 3, 2014

May 3, 2014

A physical expression of thought

One way to look at the asana practice is as a expression of your mind/consciousness/intelligence. Our words and actions reflect the state of our minds, so […]

January 3, 2014

Extending ourselves

When we extend ourselves in our postures we extend the physical form. But we can and should also endeavour to extend past the physical form. What […]

March 5, 2013

Do you have the right body for yoga?

Although I have never actually asked myself this question, I think it’s definitely an idea that’s out there circling through the minds of yogis around the […]