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| Bay Guy - 2005-04-30 8:32 AM
On Coulter's book, almost everyone who has touched that book seems to ocme away
saying what you've said. Impressive, detailed, surely important, and VERY hard to read
straight through. 
The book is amazing. I like to read my books all the way through from start to finish and I even started this one that way. I didn't make it very far. I now use it as a reference book. When I'm thinking about a posture or a part of the body I consult the book (I also consult other sources but this post is about the book). This is the single most important book I've found that deals with the physics of yoga.
I just read the first part of Chapter Four, Standing Postures again. He begins by talking about locking the knees. He devotes a full page and a half to it and, in a nutshell, while he states it can be problematic if someone "absent(s) themselves mentally from the posture" while standing with a hyperextended knee "for several minutes" he also says, "there is nothing inherently wrong with simply saying, 'lock the knees.'" He talks about locking the knees being a natural thing to do and at the same time agrees with "instructors in dance, athletics and the martial arts" who argue that the "backs of the knees should never be thrust to the rear in a completely locked and hyperextended knee." My favorite line, though, is when he says he will "suggest... essentially locking the knees without using that troublesome phrase."
I don't mean to suggest that this guy is the final authority but he has my trust. His credentials are impressive, in anatomy and yoga studies. In three years of consulting this book as an aide to my teaching of Bikram Yoga I have found nothing in it to suggest that there is anything unsafe or 'wrong' with the Bikram Yoga Method.
Anatomy of Hatha Yoga by H. David Coulter
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| Two brief comments about the mirrors:
They were instrumental in helping me learn to be more comfortable with my body (not easily, mind you, and after much resistance).
I heard Bikram say that one of the primary purposes of the mirrors was that he hoped by staring into our own eyes we would eventually fall in love with ourselves.
They're about a little more than alignment...
(To My Cat's Mom: One of my reasons for being in this forum is to help correct what I see as a lot of mistaken assumptions about Bikram Yoga. Thanks for speaking up.)
Edited by ebenjen 2005-05-01 7:13 PM
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
  
Location: A Blue State |
I practiced in front of mirrors daily for two years while I was doing Bikram yoga,
and, if you are in a position to see yourself, they can be quite helpful in aligning
poses. I haven't used mirrors at all since quitting Bikram yoga, and it was a bit of
a transition to learn to go without.
Without mirrors, I do find that my proprioception has been improving steadily. I have
much more of an internal feel for alignments (say the outward rotation of a knee or
foot, or whether an upward extended leg is straight and vertical). It is also more
meditative not just in the sense of an internalized personal practice, but also in the
sense of being in class without having to see everyone else in the mirror ahead of you.
Where I would sometimes like to have mirrors would be for working alignment in
some standing poses and some headstand variations. My substitute is to make
somebody take a photo that I can study later. Photos have been HUGELY helpful
to me in discovering problems that I didn't know about.
Of course, a teacher beats a mirror or a photo hands down, if the teacher is giving you
a one-on-one adjustment.
One downside of mirrors is that you don't always see the things that need work.
A hyperextended knee will go unnoticed by you if you are facing the mirror in
standing bow, standing forehead to knee, or balancing stick. It can be hard to
see hip alignments from the front as well (they're pretty easy to see if the mirror is
to your side).
I've often thought that having a mirror in the room where I now practice would be
useful *if* it had a curtain that I could pull over it most of the time.
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 8442
 
| Yes Bay Guy - a picture can be worth a thousand words! My teacher has been on a yoga friend's case about his headstand for years. When I brought a camera to take photos of a workshop she had me take a picture of him and in one second he saw exactly what she was talking about. And we DID have some sessions in a room full of mirrors a few years ago and he didn't get it then. Of course, perhaps he wasn't ready to see it at that time, either.
I have set up my digital a few times to take photos of myself in poses I can't see the mirror in. Down dog, for instance. I did try the mirror for chaturanga once and wrenched my neck really badly. The camera is better! |
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| When I first started teaching, I was told how mirrors are so bad, and it's terrible to have to work in a gym because they always have mirror walls. For many years I practiced without a mirror, and you can't imagine the surprise and delight when I accidentally spotted myself in a very lovely and aligned Warrior II for the first time! I had been doing that pose for 9 years before I saw myself do it.
I tell my beginning students, the reason we practice without a mirror is so that they can start to learn how to listen to their bodies and get to understand how their bodies work from the inside out. Also, with a mirror they sometimes become distracted by the fact that a bra strap is showing or their butt looks big in this outfit, etc. Of course, I can really only tell them this when we are practicing in a room that doesn't have a mirror - they get so used to mirrors that they want to know how the heck they can "exercise" without one.
But, as long as the practitioner has learned to pay attention to how a pose FEELS and not just how it LOOKS, the mirror can become a useful tool. Once a pose is learned, the mirror (or camera) can help to refine your alignment for sure.
Now that I teach in a gym regularly (complete with mirror wall), I'm finding that a lot of the students begin the class staring in the mirror, but once they get into the poses they start to turn their attention inside and automatically close their eyes! From this, I see that the yoga is teaching them to listen within, I don't even have to prompt it. But, for balance poses I do sometimes tell them to gaze at a point on the floor instead of the mirror. Watching one's body wobbling often leads to more and more wobbling! Fortunately we have a lovely wood floor with lots of knots that make a great drishti. |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 5098
Location: Somewhere in the Mountains of Western NC | I love my mirrors!! I have a contracting business. Whenever I get a job that a customer says take that mirror out, the very large ones goes to my house. There are 2 very large mirrors that I have in my mini Yoga studio. When I do Yoga, these mirrors are situated to give me a front and side view of myself and when I'm in triangle, I can see every aspect of the posture. This to me is very valuable for my home practice. For instance...how many people can actually say they are in alignment for Triangle pose without the mirror?? Like the bent knee NOT being aligned directly over the ankle and how would you be able to know if you didn't have a mirror to tell you? I know for me it would be very difficult to judge this posture without the mirror....although, I'm sure someone will pipe up and tell me how to do it without the mirror..but until then, I like my mirrors. Has anyone priced glass lately?? They are outrageous...my 2 mirrors are worth at least $600.
Oh yea, in Tadasana and Awkward pose...mirrors are also great for judging whether or not your belly is sucked in to get the full benefits for these postures. But, you really need to have 2 of them...better yet, there is nothing like an entire room full...I just try to avoid the seams...I hate seeing myself double - ick! |
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| When I first started Bikram, I was self conscious of looking in the mirror. Now I don't even notice myself unless there is something I specifically want to check out. In no way did I feel the mirrors hurt me or prevented me from going inside myself. When I do yoga, most of the time I don't even notice others in the room. I've had people say to me, "Oh -- did you hurt your knee? I noticed you weren't doing such & such in class . . ." and I'm thinking, "I didn't even know you were in class -- why the heck are you paying attention to me?" |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 8442
| Cyndi - actually, the seams can be very useful! If you stand sideways to the seam in tadasana, try to have the seam coming directly through the centre of your ear, shoulder joint, hip joint, knee and ankle. That is REALLY tough! and of course, you can do it facing the mirror and having the seam run through the center of your body and see how symetrical you are/n't. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 338
| I thought about this subject while I did my at-home Bikram tonight. I have a big mirror which is about a foot off of the floor. I feel the key here is sensuousness, not in the velvetty jazz sense, but in that senses become sharpened when I do yoga, especially when I do it at home.
The whole experience is so focused on my body and the internal feelingsand thoughts connected to movement thorugh the asanas. I notice which of my legs is stronger today, how my knees feel, if my feet hurt less etc. Part of this is seeing what I am doing and how my body looks. So much of my day is focused on doing and especially doing for others.
Its important to lookat and feel ourselves, not just to check up on weight loss, but
to focus outside of our heads.
I wish I could say there was a great spirituality happening, but noticing myself seems pretty spiritual right now. Yoga works at what ever level you are at. Just as I pay attention to finances, relationships etc, I now pay attention to how my muscles, tendons and internal orders feel at I stretch, compress and NOTICE them
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 5098
Location: Somewhere in the Mountains of Western NC | Gogirl,
I love my mirrors at home. There is nothing like looking into your own eyes and seeing the depths of your inner soul. Then to transform your physical body into doing these asana's it quite an experience. I cannot get the same experience in a studio, than when I am at home. Sometimes when I release blocked energy in a posture I can go so deep to the point that sometimes I cry, I laugh and I feel so connected with myself. Its a wonderful feeling and it is why I love the Bikram series of asana's. There is much to say about the order of sequence of these asana's and frankly, Bikram put together a very nice set. I have never felt this good and complete by doing other sets and other types of yoga, but that is my experience and I am happy with this practice.
Glad to see another at-home Bikramite BTW, how hot is your room at home?? |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 338
| Not hot enough. I have two small heaters and I may have to buy another. It's in the 80's or 90's i would guess. I do not have a thermometer.
peggy |
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locked knees
