Comments on: Confessions of An Ex-Ashtangi… Oh My!

By: Jane

Jane — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 17:16:48 +0000

Oh my!! I just took the time to read some of her blog posts and now I am beginning to understand where some of her venom is coming. I seems she has been having a rough patch and doing some personal exploration.

All that being said I think it is sad that she felt the need to disparage Ashtanga so publicly. It is clear from her blog and the article that she needs to look deeper into the non physical aspects of yoga.

I hope that she is able to find some peace.

By: Jane

Jane — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 16:19:48 +0000

I’m not sure what happened to make her so disillusioned about Ashtanga. Many of the sins she attacks Ashtanga for are true of other practices.

And I’m suprised at the ad hominem attacks. What does a teacher cheating on their spouse have to do with Ashtanga? I think we can all agree that infidelity is wrong.

As far as the rules of Ashtanga go, if you don’t like them find another practice. No one is forcing you to practice Ashtanga. Yoga has the power to change lives and that goes for other practices besides Ashtanga. So if you don’t like the tenants of this practice, do something else. There is no need to attack something because it doesn’t work for you.

I really take offense with her call Ashtanga a cult. I have to say I think we are better off without her. I’ll say a special prayer that she can move beyond whatever event caused her so much anguish that she felt the need to disparage the practice this way.

By: jenni

jenni — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 04:36:32 +0000

Hi Guys! Thanks so much for your feedback. We totally agree with you, Shanna. The article’s author did lump all Ashtanga teachers together in this piece, as though these disparaging observations applied to all Ashtanga rooms everywhere. Perhaps the specific yoga studio in which she practiced did embody some of these qualities, but this article would have come across as more equitable if the author had gone out of her way to tell us that she was describing her own personal experience. Instead, it seems she used a broad brush to paint over the entire Ashtanga community, which doesn’t seem quite fair.

By: carol

carol — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 00:11:49 +0000

Maybe it’s just that she has found that Ashtanga has too many contradictions to be a workable practice for her. Better not to judge the reasons for her disillusionment or, should I say, rejection. I can relate to many of her complaints, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I would stop practicing Ashtanga. I accept both the negative feelings as well as the positive that come with it and let them go…isn’t that what we are trying to do every time we hit our mat? I appreciate her honesty and laud her courage to speak about some of the darker elements of such an intense practice.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 21:22:48 +0000

Yoga Chickie hates ashtanga because she can’t accept herself and her physical limitations. She also correlates her “last pose” with self-worth.

She embodies the shadow side of this practice – someone who is to self absorbed to learn detachment and equanimity.

By: Shanna Small

Shanna Small — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:29:16 +0000

I read that article and commented on it. I hated that she lumped all Ashtanga teachers into one horrible group. Unfortunately this does happen in many classes but I believe that Ashtanga will start to evolve and change just like everything else in the world. It is a sign of life and growth. I teach Ashtanga and I constantly tell my students to listen to their bodies and be compassionate to their on needs.

I have been back to classes where the teacher was dogmatic in the past and has changed their tune. It is evolution. Nothing is immune to it.