![]() The ligaments are also responsible for maintaining the space within each joint. The ligaments, which connect bone to bone across the joint spaces, must be both strong and supple, for they are primarily responsible for defining the optimal positioning and angle of the bones as they meet at each joint. The sequence of postures in this column builds both strength and stamina, but ease in the practice comes only through flexibility, when there is a clear guiding of force through the bones into and across the joints. Thus, the student who needs to work on strength and cohesion is usually the one spending her time lounging around with her feet behind her head, while the student with rippling muscles may insist that 108 sun salutations per day are just his ticket! Noticing your own tendencies can be helpful in bringing greater balance to your own practice. ![]() It is human nature to prefer practicing what we can already do well. Most practitioners have a predilection for working on one end or the other of this flexibility/stability continuum. The practice of hatha yoga begins with a slow unbinding of tension, blocks, and holding patterns that may be limiting our physical and psychological choices. ![]() Both processes are necessary-the first to access prana (or life-force), the second to direct that prana in a way that is life-enhancing. While it is essential to open up the channels throughout the body to allow for a clear flow of energy, it’s equally essential to be able to contain and direct our energies in a purposeful way. But often this growing state of fluidity goes too far and we move to the other end of the continuum: instability. ![]() And if our practice is sound we inevitably find ourselves feeling more and more fluid. This balance between liberating flow and containing flow has its counterpart in the body. The practice of hatha yoga begins with a slow unbinding of tension, blocks, and holding patterns that may be limiting our physical and psychological choices. Finding the balance between too tight or too loose is an ongoing process that can feel like tap dancing on greased bowling balls. Much of life seems taken up with trying to find the balance between narrowing our focus to achieve specific goals and broadening our focus to find new possibilities. ![]()
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