Auto-ethnography On the Power of Yoga
Practicing yoga is something that has impacted and moved my life into an overall better perspective. The power of yoga is something that I feel in all aspects of my life. My physical, mental, and spiritual health has improved, allowing me to be very content. With the practice of yoga, I have healed myself. I am happier and healthier. Many people who practice yoga share the same amount of thoughts on how loving and healing yoga can be. Yoga is a spiritual practice that uses the movement of the body and mind to create balance within the people who practice it. Yogi’s use their body’s movement and tap into their breath to create balance within themselves. Yoga has helped people improve their quality of life within all the factors it can ease. Yogi’s often have a better quality of life because yoga has been proven to help people improve their mental and physical health. Often when I am in a yoga studio, I observe the power of yoga and how peaceful people’s energy can be while practicing it collectively. I have spoken to other yogis as well and they also seem to find that the power of yoga has healed them and changed them to a completely different person for the better. I have observed Yogi’s in their element, moving their body’s and using their breath work to align themselves. I as well have interviewed a fellow yogi, who shares the same love and passion for yoga as I do. The notes that I have gathered from these fieldwork’s are impactful in conveying the power of yoga.
During my fieldwork observation I decided to go to my favorite yoga studio in my community. This yoga studio is incredibly special to me because it was the first yoga studio that I went to when I first started taking yoga seriously. In this yoga studio I perfected my craft and improved my positions with accuracy. The yoga studio that I observed was a place called Harlem yoga studio. It is close to my house, so I sometimes decide to head over there and clear my head when I have the time or am highly stressed. I always feel more aligned and balanced after my yoga class. Which is why this yoga studio was the perfect place to observe and use to speak on the power of yoga to uniquely heal an individual. I first entered the yoga studio, and the aroma of Lavender incense and patchouli essential oil lingered in the air which let me know my class was going to be so peaceful. Most yoga studios require you bring your own yoga mat, so I checked into my class 15 minutes earlier with my personal yoga mat. I rolled my mat out and sat Criss cross apple sauce waiting for the instructor to begin the class. We began a divine feminine vin Yasana flow. We eased in and out movements naturally at the instructor’s command. We all breathed in and out of our poses; throughout the class, I observed my yoga experiences and others. I noticed that the more we spent in and out of our yoga poses, people seemed to fall into the poses easier. Their body and the overall energy in the room felt light and relaxed. By the end of the class, we were dismissed with the instructors naturing, “namaste.” The namaste that was followed by the rest of the class as a response to the instructors revealed how grateful and whole, we all felt for the yoga experience we just went through in the class. One of the main things I observed during my yoga class was that many people were tense and stressed before the yoga class while after it seemed as if all that stress and anxiety was eased. One specific case that revealed this was that there was a woman who was late to her class, she was five minutes late and was alarmed because most yoga studio do not give refunds if you are even late to a class let alone miss it. The receptionist let her in the class because it was only five minutes, but I could understand her feelings of anxiety because of the whole situation. The woman in the beginning of the class seemed exhausted and stressed. Her energy seemed scattered and chaotic after the class, she seemed peaceful. I also observed that many of the woman before the class were loud and joking while after the class they interacted more calmly and grounded. Many of the woman came out of that class revitalized and confident. The woman came out of the yoga class overall grounded and content. All their worries and anxieties were left on the mat. This observation and the feeling I had as well confirmed that yoga has the power to heal people. Yoga has the power and ability to heal people and create a balance within them. Yoga is a powerful spiritual practice and exercise that grants people healthier bodies and minds.
I interviewed a woman named Esthersy Castillo on her personal experience with practicing yoga. Esthersy Castillo is my mom’s friend who practices yoga occasionally. I wanted to interview Esthersy because she is a stay-at-home mom of two girls, ages five and one. Esthersy is a normal woman who can help convey the power of yoga for normal everyday people. Yoga is often viewed as something you need a lot of time for or accessibility to when it is flexible and accessible for most humans. The main thing I was looking for when interviewing Stacy is I wanted to know how the power of yoga has healed and improved her life for the better. The interview began when we sat at my dinner table drinking coffee. The interview vibe felt natural and easy going because I already knew Esthersy and this was not her first time at my house. I began by asking Esthersy simple questions like what Is your favorite yoga position and why. Esthersy replied by saying my favorite yoga position is child’s pose because it is such an easy resting pose. This was a surprise to me because child’s pose is also my favorite. Childs pose is when you let your knees touch the mat and set them at a mat’s distance apart and let your big toes touch. Then you sink your body down onto the mat and reach your hands towards the top of the mat while resting your head on the floor. This allows for complete relaxation and resting after repeated movements and balance required in previous poses. I secondly asked Esthersy how long she has been practicing yoga, she said she has been practicing yoga on and off for about three years now. Esthersy said that she does not practice yoga as much because she rarely has the time or energy to do so since she has two girls to look after. This ties into the third question I asked her which was how difficult yoga has been for you. Esthersy elaborated more on how being a stay-at-home mother of two young girls means that she constantly must be taking care of them and watching out so that they stay out of harm’s way. Meaning it is a lot difficult for her to relax and stay focused on breathing and working out the yoga movements properly. Which made me ask where does she practice yoga and how, Esthersy replied by saying that she practices yoga when the girls are asleep or when she has someone who can take care of the girls while she does yoga sometimes Esthersy says that she feels guilty doing yoga and leaving her kids in other people’s care because she feels as if yoga is so calming and soothing, but she cannot relax without knowing that her kids are one okay and two not causing anyone else any stress. This made me curious and so I asked her why she even started practicing yoga in the first place. As a mom she has so many obstacles in the way, but she still manages to practice yoga and loves it deeply. Esthersy said she started practicing yoga because she felt depressed after having her first child, Amaia. Esthersy specifically said, “I wouldn’t consider myself to have had post-partum depression, but I always felt sad and lonely, I was a stay-at-home mom who felt guilty because she didn’t feel what most moms feel when they have their first child.” Esthersy told me that the reason she started doing yoga was because she wanted to be happier and healthier for her daughter. This made me follow up with my main interest throughout my experience with discussing the power of yoga. I asked her How has yoga improved your mental health. Esthersy said that her mental health has completely changed for the better. Esthersy said that her mental health had completely shifted from a sad unmotivated woman to someone who is powerful and happy. Yoga had changed her from someone who was sad and felt guilty to someone who was cheerful and ready to let go of all her self-doubt and be the best mom she could be through all her flaws. Esthersy said that yoga has helped transform her quality of life for the better. She says that even though she does not practice it every day the lessons of mindfulness and wholeness it brings allow her to remember that peace she can create within herself. So, whenever she is overwhelmed, she knows she can always come back to herself. Esthersy said that this has made her a better mother because she is more patient and gentler even when she is frustrated. Overall esthersy conveyed and confirmed to me that the power of yoga can heal people’s quality of life for the better. The practice of yoga propels people to bigger amounts of peace, love, and resilience that help them fight against the barriers and limitations life puts on them.
Yoga’s ability to heal people’s quality of life stems from yoga being able to improve their mental health. Yoga transforms people’s mental health and habits allowing them to create healthier mind patterns. When they create healthier mind patterns, they become happier, grounded, balanced people with the potential to make peace in all areas of life. This includes physical health. Physical health plays a huge role in how yoga can improve people’s quality of life. A person’s physical health helps them be healthier enough to live life and utilize all their bodily functions. According to Urban Balance’s article the impact of yoga on improving mental and physical health is conveyed. The following quote mentions, “The long-term benefit of yoga is a higher quality of life. The many tools of yoga, including physical postures, yogic breathing, use of meditation, mantras, and affirmations, help balance the emotional and physical body. This provides individuals with greater awareness so they can better cope with difficult situations and feel more connected to themselves and their surroundings,” (Refresh MH, Urban Balance, Page 1, section 2). This quote reveals how yoga helps improve the overall well-being of a person. A person’s quality of life can vastly improve and heal for the better. The use of yogic movements allows for people to align their over well-being and be better equipped to deal with all of life’s difficulties. After yoga, most people feel highly aware of their surroundings and can stay grounded in the present reality. This is something that I noticed within my observation of the yoga class and with Esthersy Castillo’s personal experience with yoga. Yoga has the overall ability to connect people to themselves. With that comes healthier mindsets, physical health, emotional health, and spiritual health. All these qualities let them live beautiful, impactful transformational lives.
Throughout my experience with yoga, I have recorded me doing yoga or just my simple everyday yoga set up. I often do this because it helps me track my progress with yoga to see how I am improving. I looked back on photos and videos of me practicing yoga and I can really see the difference in my poses and how accurate they are. I also observed within the media that I look calmer in the video, not so focused on perfecting the positioning. Below I have provided some content of me in my element practicing yoga or little things apart of my yoga experience.
^^^ This Image above depicts a major part of my yoga experience. Many people practice yoga and learn as they go but I love to research and read books about yoga. Reading books about yoga allows me to have a better, deeper understanding of its impact on the human body. Me and my friends were in the city just walking around as we often do, and we ran into this beautiful yoga place. The yoga shop was a studio and a shop where they sold yoga mats, yoga blocks, incense and most importantly yoga books. I snapped this picture because these books seemed interesting. The books were not just about yoga but its origin and spiritual connotation which I am mostly interested in. I love yoga and being in this shop surrounded with so much knowledge about yoga and spirituality. This was cool and special to me, which is why I included this picture.
^^^ This image is one of my favorite yoga books. I love this book because it connects the science of yoga to the body. The book shows yoga positions in detail and explains how the body should be feeling. It explains how a yoga position is being utilized by referring to the specific muscles and bones being used in the position. The book also contains the original and Americanized names of the yoga position. Most importantly this book helped me perfect my yoga positions accuracy. I also gained knowledge of how each yoga position impacts the body. When I first got into yoga, I would spend hours on my yoga mat studying the science of these yoga positions and the effects it has on the body. I took notes and studied my body while doing the yoga position according to the book. This book deepened my knowledge of yoga and the positions. I learned how the body is impacted by yoga.
^^^ This picture shows my favorite yoga mat and yoga blocks I use in my everyday yoga practice. This is just what my normal yoga set up looks like. I keep my room dark and usually line my yoga mat with crystals. The picture shows my current favorite spiritual read. Usually, I practice yoga and come out of it relaxed and calm. Which makes me want to stay grounded in that energy and so I read instead of going directly back to my phone or anything distracting from myself. While practicing yoga I usually like to watch “Black Yogi Nico Marie” guided yoga practices on YouTube. I enjoy her yoga videos because they were the first yoga videos, I used to learn yoga. I will provide a link to her yoga YouTube channel because she is wonderful in helping yoga newbies get started in yoga or perfect their craft. Click here for Nico Maries yoga channel .
Overall, the power of yoga is something beautiful and transformational. I have practiced yoga and have felt the power. I became more In tune with myself and who I was becoming. I had a higher sense of alignment and purpose to me that I never had before. I felt more whole as a person. Yoga being in my life has allowed me to have a greater quality of life. I have a unique perspective because yoga allows me to be more grounded and balanced. While interviewing Esthersy Castillo I learned that yoga has the power to transform one’s life and people are not limited to having access to yoga. Yoga can help transform people’s overall well being. Yoga heals a person’s body. Yoga can help a person’s body be healthier because of the breath work and movement involved. While observing the yoga studio class I also learned how much peace yoga can bring into one’s life. Yoga can give people clarity and a sense of purpose. Overall, the power of yoga is highly influential and gives people a higher quality of life.
Works Cited
Castillo, Esthersy, Interview by Karielle Echavarria 18, November 2022.
Marie, Nico, Black yogi Nico Marie, YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/@YogaWithNico
Refresh MH, Practice yoga to attain better mental health, Urban Balance, 2015.
https://www.urbanbalance.com/practice-yoga-to-attain-better-mental-health/
Transcription Of Interview
Interviewer: Karielle Echavarria (student)
Esthersy Castillo: Fellow Yogi (Interviewee)
Interview setting: My house, at my dinner table.
Affiliation with interviewee: My mom’s friend
(Start of the interview)
Interviewer: “what is your favorite yoga positions, and why”
Esthersy: “My Favorite yoga position is child’s pose; I mainly like it because it’s a resting pose Haha”
Interviewer: “How long have you been practicing yoga?”
Esthersy: “I have been practicing yoga for about three years, I don’t practice as much as you do I suppose but since I have two little girls to look after and no one to watch them I’m constantly attending to their needs and the house”
Interviewer: “where do you practice yoga and how?”
Esthersy: “I practice yoga when the girls are asleep to, I have extra free time, while someone is watching them< I often do feel guilty when I leave them, because there never out of my sight. I also hate asking for other people to watch my kids, it makes me anxious.”
Interviewer: “why did you start practicing yoga in the first place?”
Esthersy: “After having Amaia I felt like I was sad, stressed, overwhelmed. Feeling this as a mom when I am only supposed to feel immense love and happiness, I felt guilty. I felt like there was something wrong with me. I wanted to be happier and healthier for her”
Interviewer: “How has yoga improved your mental health?”
Esthersy: “yoga has helped me so much, anytime I am stressed or having anxiety I know that I can come back to myself. I do yoga occasionally and every time I feel better and lighter. I have really improved my mental health from what it was. I am a better mom to my girls because of it.”
