A question I ask when people register for classes, and also at random times, "Why do you (want to) come to yoga?"

Over the years I've heard many reasons but they all fall under wanting to be well in some way or other:

• Physical wellness - prioritising care for the body

• Emotional wellness - building awareness and acceptance of the emotional space

• Mental wellness - managing, stimulating, and strengthening the minds

• Social wellness - cultivating community and deepening understanding of our interdependence between others and nature

• Spiritual wellness - developing our understanding of Self and our nature to the Divine

People find their way to yoga through family, through tradition, through media, and so many other ways. My introduction was through my mother, through a deepening connection and curiosity about our heritage, and her quest for self-transformation. I continue to practice because it is now so much a part of my being, because I have seen the effects of practice, because I continue to strive as she once did.

Yoga is a holistic practice, rooted in a body of knowledge that has evolved over thousands of years. I refer to yoga as a practice and yet, this is the simplified version. The whole of yoga has many practices, philosophies and paths that one can follow according to one’s inclination and abilities.  

This is why people can come to yoga to address different aspects of well-being, and their practice can affect them on multiple levels. As an example, I am primarily an instructor of Hatha Yoga - people come to my classes to work on their body in some way (either proactively with thought of taking care or reactively as treatment and healing) and discover that they begin to achieve a deeper sense of relaxation, peacefulness, and understanding of self. That in working with the physical practice, there is ease in the mind and heart. That attending class cultivates a sense of community. That continuing their practice after class in their own spaces, with discipline and intent, leads to deeper understanding of Self.

What will you discover through your practice? What have you discovered? How has yoga impacted on your well-being?