Mirrors are Evil In yoga practice!

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

One of my teachers said that mirrors stealing your energy. Well, it makes scientific sense, since we use energy to receive and process visual information.
I noted few less esoteric reasons for practicing in the mirror free environment.

  1. Some student tend to compare their “physical” performance to other student. It is easy to do looking in the mirror in front, since you do not have to turn your head to see people around and behind you.
  2. Yoga practice is about bring your vision inside, and it is harder to do when you have an option to look in the mirror. For the same reason some people (i do too) practice asanas with eyes closed and in the silence.
  3. Without mirrors in the yoga room, we feel more unity. Most of the times it is better to mirror your teacher (if he/she is good:) than see your sweaty red face struggling in Utkasana (chair pose).
  4. Another reason for not-to-look in the mirror is that your body must feel the asana. It might look poor sometimes, but it make you feel sooo good. As well as some asanas might look very nice and perfectly aligned (sexy and glamorous :)) but do not benefit to your health and inner peace.
  5. Still thinking what else can I add. You are welcome to propose something:))
    Some might say, “well, but how can I see what I’m doing if I do not have mirror in front?” or something like, “well, but how can I check how my new Yoga pants suites me?”…
    Nevermind, mirrors are not that Evil…especially if you have nice and pleasant music pouring from the headphones during your practice…
    NAMASTE
#2

One yoga studio I practiced at had sheer material flowing over the mirrors!! I loved that!! You could vaguely see yourself without staring into your own reflection and worrying about how you are doing or what you look like.

#3

Mirrors are good for beginners and one on one instruction.
Commands such as brighten, hug to midline, soften, shoulders on your back, etc can be connected to the vision of what’s going on in the mirror.

#4

[QUOTE=CityMonk;28559]One of my teachers said that mirrors stealing your energy. Anything will “steal your energy” if you LET IT.Well, it makes scientific sense, since we use energy to receive and process visual information.
I noted few less esoteric reasons for practicing in the mirror free environment.

  1. Some student tend to compare their “physical” performance to other student. It is easy to do looking in the mirror in front, since you do not have to turn your head to see people around and behind you. Yes many people unfortunately compare themselves to others, but his occurs with or without mirrors. I can see how the mirror makes is easier to do so but the type of people who are inclined to compare would do so anyway without the mirror.
  2. Yoga practice is about bring your vision inside, and it is harder to do when you have an option to look in the mirror. For the same reason some people (i do too) practice asanas with eyes closed and in the silence.
  3. Without mirrors in the yoga room, we feel more unity. Most of the times it is better to mirror your teacher (if he/she is good:) than see your sweaty red face struggling in Utkasana (chair pose). I’m really not sure how your second sentence helps to argue the point here. How does not seeing your own sweaty face help to bring about more unity?
  4. Another reason for not-to-look in the mirror is that your body must feel the asana. It might look poor sometimes, but it make you feel sooo good. As well as some asanas might look very nice and perfectly aligned (sexy and glamorous :)) but do not benefit to your health and inner peace. So you’re making the assumption that people strive for good alignment because its sexy and glamorous?
  5. Still thinking what else can I add. You are welcome to propose something:))
    Some might say, “well, but how can I see what I’m doing if I do not have mirror in front?” or something like, “well, but how can I check how my new Yoga pants suites me?”…
    Nevermind, mirrors are not that Evil…especially if you have nice and pleasant music pouring from the headphones during your practice…
    NAMASTE[/QUOTE]

I’ve been practicing for about 2 years and I still do like having a mirror in the room. In large classes where there are many students and I can’t always have a good view of the teacher (or where the teacher walks around) it helps to see what other people are doing via the mirror. If the teacher is in one far corner of the room and all I can see is the reflection of the person in front of me, well it’ll help guide me to get an idea of what the teacher is talking about. Of course its very important to LISTEN for cues as well but that doesn’t always work.

Also, there are numerous times where I have felt that I have been in a pose properly and then looked up into the mirror to realize that my shoulders were lopsided or that my hips were not level. In these cases, seeing my reflection in the mirror has helped me to know that I have to adjust asana a bit to correct the alignment.

I think if you use the mirror as a tool (like a yoga block or strap or other prop) then it can be of assistance. But if you are too caught up on staring at yourself in the mirror instead of paying attention to what the teacher is teaching, then yes, the mirror can be an unnessary distraction. I think it all comes down to how each person feels about the mirror and what they decide to use if for. If ever faced with a class with a mirror and you don’t like it, you can always position yourself at the back of the class, behind someone. Or ignore the mirror and concentrate on the dristi for that asana.

#5

CityMonk,
I like your points. :slight_smile: They all make good sense, and can be taken however one wishes. I see them as suggestions as to why one might NOT want a mirror in the room while doing yoga.

At one point in my practice, I was very curious as to how I actually looked, as I had been practicing long enough that I felt I had correct alignment. I wanted to be sure, and in that case, a mirror would have been very handy to have around!

I am one of those who would prefer not to have a mirror in the room for general practice (with a class), as they truly can be distracting to beginners and those who may be self conscious, or whatever. :slight_smile:

In the end, as I think amz155 was trying to point out, it’s all personal preference and a noticing of how a mirror in the room may affect you during your practice.

  1. Without mirrors in the yoga room, we feel more unity. Most of the times it is better to mirror your teacher (if he/she is good than see your sweaty red face struggling in Utkasana (chair pose). I’m really not sure how your second sentence helps to argue the point here. How does not seeing your own sweaty face help to bring about more unity?

I took CityMonk’s comment here to mean that it would be better to mirror the teacher, as a class, instead of being distracted by watching one’s self in the mirror. You would feel more as one with the class.

Sometimes it is helpful, sometimes it could be less than beneficial. It all depends on your mindset. When we are new, it is probably best that we don’t have a mirror to distract us from the real work. We tend to get distracted by how we think we are looking to others.

The mirror topic is an interesting one. :slight_smile:

#6

I think that saying that mirrors are “evil” is relying on the presumption that one is using the mirror for a negative purpose (i.e. to compare to other students, to stroke one’s ego, etc.). If used to enhance one’s practice, I think mirrors can be helpful. Of course it’ll depend on the person, the practice, and the purpose.