One of my favorite parts of preparing to teach a yoga class is creating a playlist to accompany the routine. I usually start with some ideas about a theme, and some asanas that reinforce my intentions for class. Sometimes its opening our hearts, releasing tension in our hips, creating space in our body and mind, clearing stuck energy with our breath… I love discovering song lyrics that hint at those ideas. My primary intention is to allow students time and space to feel. So much of our time is spent moving from one activity to the next we don't often pause to just be.
Yet, those feelings are not always pleasant. In fact, yoga is known for bringing up sensations that can be uncomfortable. I am not referring to pain - if you experience pain, you should stop and modify. I am referring to the raw emotional release. There is something about folding into child's pose and pigeon or surrendering into savasana that can overwhelm us with emotion. You might feel lightheaded, or you might find tears streaming down your face for no apparent reason. This could also be something you experience during other activities like running, biking, dancing, creating art… whatever it is consider it a gift. It is a gift to feel and to savor the sensations that we are often too numb or busy to notice.
That is why I think the power of musical lyrics is such a good partner for yoga. Music lyrics also invoke emotions and neurological research has found that listening to music can literally change your brain by releasing dopamine, cortisol, serotonin and oxytocin. Music therapy is a now widely used approach to helping people improve their mood and find greater connection with others…. Just like yoga! What a great pairing.
In my last playlist I found myself wanting to include the diversity of emotions that I feel this time of year. Gratitude and love for the people in my life, but mixed with some sadness, yearning, frustration and apprehension. This verse from Jelly Roll's song "I am Not OK" really resonated with me:
"I know I can't be the only one who's holding on for dear life, but God knows, I know, when it's all said and done, I'm not okay, but it's all gonna be alright. It's not okay, but we're all gonna be alright "
I think we can all relate to things not being ok. Whether its personal loss, illness, finances, or global issues of war, injustice, homelessness, natural disasters…. None of this is ok. And it is ok to say so, pretending all is great when it’s not isn’t being authentic. Running from the feeling of it does not help in the long run.
No matter what you feel, I invite you to welcome it and not push it away. How often do you let yourself feel emotions that come up? Our culture is not typically comfortable with displays of emotion. Bursting into tears and yelling in frustration are not welcome in most circles. Finding a place to let yourself surrender to them lets them move through you. Whether its screaming into a pillow or crying in yoga class.
As you let your feelings process through you, consider yourself at this moment. Hopefully you are in a safe, warm place with food and clean water, and someone or something in your life that you care about. If so, I think it’s fair to say that you are alright. Alright isn't perfection, it is the opportunity to persevere and to possibly experience positive feelings again in the future.
That is the other thing I love about music lyrics, they help me process my emotions. Even when lyrics are sad, music is uplifting to me. Listening to music soothes me and helps me feel that there is hope. Hope is empowering. In their book Build the Life You Want: The Art and Science of Getting Happier, co-authors Oprah Winfrey and Arthur C. Brooks define hope as the “conviction that one can act to make things better in some way.”
In yoga, art and many religious traditions hope is symbolized by light. A ray of hope, like a ray of sunshine, gives us something to guide us when we are surrounded by clouds or darkness. Like the light at the end of the tunnel it encourages us along. My hope for all of you as we begin this new year is that you let the music resonate through you to bring your attention to the guiding light.
"The birds they sang
At the break of day
Start again
I heard them say
Don't dwell on what has passed away
Or what is yet to be
Ah, the wars they will be fought again
The holy dove, she will be caught again
Bought and sold, and bought again
The dove is never free
Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in." Leonard Cohen, Anthem
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