During my class I became emotional

[siva]

To those reading this thread, if you feel that emotion should be allowed to be fully expressed in a class, ask your teacher their opinion. If they say no, then find a new teacher. And of course vice versa.

David buddy,

If the teacher says no, then find another???

I taught myself to type with two fingers, which is very slow and time consuming. I would desperately love to type more quickly. My teacher says “use all your fingers,” but it’s so uncomfortable and I don’t want to. I’m looking for someone who’ll teach me to type faster with two fingers. Would that be better for me?

Om Shanti,
Siva

[David]

[quote=Alix;14498]Alright David, let me take this one step further because I truly believe you do not see what I am saying. What you are saying is that the expression of emotion…ALL emotion is good and right. Yes?

In that instance then, lets hypothesize that someone in my class becomes angry and chooses to [B]express[/B] it by saying something nasty to me. My response is an angry one and I choose to express it by yelling back. This then descends into more anger and disharmony. We both feel safe enough in your class to express this to one another. [/quote]
That is not a release of emotion, that is a personal attack. I have NEVER seen someone going through an emotional release attack someone. What you speak of would absolutely NOT be tolerated in my class. What I speak of is a physiological-based release where the emotion is tied into deep chronic tension that has been held in the body.

Forgive me for sounding rude, but that is just crap.

I would agree

Rather than allowing an expression of emotion that disrupts others one should be teaching their students that the release of emotion is expected, and normal BUT they need to merely tolerate the feeling NOT express it. The definition of “express” means basically to expel or get rid of. That is not a healthy thing to do in all cases.

We’re talking about very different things. If I, in the middle of class start to feel mad because the person next to me does a better handstand and I yell at them, that is not an emotional release. Now, it IS based upon something from the past (which the releases I speak of stop from unconsciously taking place), but it is not a release and it is not healing to express. What I speak of is the release of emotion that is trapped within the physical confines of the body due to “what fires together wires together”. Someone having such a release will have a vastly different experience. As that emotion releases, they will experience shaking as the deep chronic tension tied to the emotion is also released. Someone who experiences rage during such a release may yell out and make some pretty interesting noises, but they would NEVER attack someone because it’s not an unconscious REACTION, it’s a healthy RESPONSE to trapped emotion from the past being brought conscious.

I would agree wholeheartedly that what you speak of should be tolerated if the person feels it. “I want to yell at that person” should be observed, tolerated, and allowed to pass. What I speak of should be allowed to release because it is the root cause of what you speak of and allows that unconscious reacting to finally be a thing of the past.

And thank you for clarifying what you meant by your suggestion to find a different teacher. Your words carry a lot of weight here since you own the site. It certainly did seem to me that you were merely paying lip service to appreciating other points of view. I am glad to hear that is not the case and I misinterpreted your intent.

My apologies for not being clearer in the original post. But that’s the beautiful thing about communities. We have civil discourse until we come to an understanding or decide to respectfully disagree.

[David]

Hiya Siva :)[quote=siva;14504]If the teacher says no, then find another???

I taught myself to type with two fingers, which is very slow and time consuming. I would desperately love to type more quickly. My teacher says “use all your fingers,” but it’s so uncomfortable and I don’t want to. I’m looking for someone who’ll teach me to type faster with two fingers. Would that be better for me?[/quote]
My statement is true ONLY if the issue is so important that you no longer feel that the teacher is the right person to be guiding you because of that viewpoint. Allowing expression of emotion may be a sticking point for some, it may not be for another. That’s for each of us to decide.

With that said, I agree with what (I believe) you’re trying to say. If something makes us feel uncomfortable and we don’t have a logical, sound reason for avoiding it, then we should allow the teacher to hold up that mirror for us to look into. Discomfort is a sure sign there is something for us to examine.

[Alix]

I am confused then David. Are we saying the same thing with different words?

I have been in classes where expression of emotion is not only tolerated but encouraged and found them unhealthy as said expression could be exactly as I described above.

I confess I do not understand.

[David]

I am confused then David. Are we saying the same thing with different words?

We’re talking about different things with the same words.

This is a GREAT lesson for me as I now understand that I have to be infinitely more clear when I speak about this. [B]Thank you SO MUCH[/B].

There are emotion laden attacks and there are emotional releases. These are VASTLY different things.

1. If I look at you during class and get mad because your handstand is better and yell at you, that is an emotion laden attack. This is NOT healthy nor should it be condoned. In the end, it has nothing to do with your handstand being better than mine. I yell at your because I am unconsciously reacting to something in my past. Let’s say that when I was five years old my dad told me I wasn’t good enough at sports. When he told me that, I got mad and clenched my stomach. Those words traumatized me and because I didn’t integrate the experience correctly and the “what fires together wires together” rule takes hold, I developed a chronic tension pattern in my stomach where I clenched and the anger also got trapped there.

While yelling at you, if I was able to come intensely conscious and felt my body, I would likely feel myself clenching my stomach because I am unconsciously reacting to that root trauma from my childhood. The same neural pathways are being accessed and I’m reliving the experience (hello karma) as an opportunity to properly integrate and release. 99.999% of the time we don’t take advantage of this opportunity and the same exact thing will happen again down the line.

2. Once in a very rare while during a classical yoga class, we do some stretch or pose that accesses that area of the stomach holding the deep chronic tension in a way that allows it to release. The muscle will begin to shake. If we relax into it, it may REALLY begin to shake and release. At that point, because the emotion of anger is tied to that tension (what fires together wires together) anger will ALSO surface as part of the release. Quite often, the actual trauma will resurface in your mind (it becomes conscious so you can respond rather than react). You’ll know EXACTLY what you’re releasing. To stop the shaking would stop the release. To stop the release of the anger (which would definitely not be directed at someone) would stop the release. To allow both to fully release is liberation. You are liberated from a deep, long held wound that you have been unconsciously reacting to since the day it happened. Low and behold, you no longer get mad at the person doing a better handstand because you aren’t unconsciously reacting anymore. Your whole world begins to change.

To NOT allow such liberation to take place is… god, I can’t articulate it. Whether the practitioner doesn’t feel comfortable with allowing it to happen or the teacher hinders it, either way, what has been lost is one of the most vital aspects of true liberation.

[siva]

David,

For these deeply seated experiences, it takes a lot of maturity and discipline (meditation) to learn the difference between emotions arising out of need for realization, and need for love and attention. Even then, it’s difficult to sort out in public when it’s also a surprise. For that reason we “practice” keeping them private. They have no value in the learning of hatha or meditation. They are separate and as teachers of yoga we want to encourage seeing them as separate.

That doesn’t disallow anyone anything, other than diverting attention to themselves.

Peace,
Siva

[InnerAthlete]

So much to cover…yikes.

It is clear from our studies that the musculature of the human body which is closer to the spine, closer to the nervous system, holds more powerful issues. Most of these muscles are smooth muscles or involuntary muscles (in terms of their contraction). The iliopsoas is a very significant muscle for so many reasons. Therefore it is not only important to address it must also be addressed with a heightened sense of care and mindfulness.

Just as not every student is ready for Pincha Mayurasana neither is every student ready for a floodgate of opening of deep emotions. Some may never be ready. Some may be ready immediately. Like all things yoga, teachers should error on the side of caution because a powerful release (be it Kundalini or emotions) in an unprepared student can be incredibly harmful and damaging.

The neurogenic tremor work looks interesting and I’d have to try it to give more feedback.

That having been said, there are a variety of reasons that muscles quiver, shake, or tremor. All of those trace back to the nervous system. My teacher has written a reply in Yoga Journal that says it far better than I could so I’ll link to that here.

In some views giving action to emotion only serves to continue the enslavement to them. There are some perspectives that suggest the deep grooves of our consciousness (samskara) are further etched by acting out these emotions. Instead it is oft suggested to merely observe them, thus serving as both the seer and the seen.

As we examine the Kleshas put forth in Patajali’s Sutras we see how attachment and aversion are BOTH obstacles. Therefore, in that construct, one would not become attached to emotional release nor would one shove it away and resist it. Many things come in the practice of yoga. And we take them all with grace no matter how the old brain or lower nature wants to view them.

As yoga teachers we must use care in clinging to a particular experience for students. As students we must use care in clinging to a particular experience for ourselves.

[Pandara]

Namaste Saturdaysun,

Your question reminds me of my own emotional issues I had. My own teacher always reminded me that yoga is first of all a purification of the physical body, the mind, the soul and the emotions. During this purification process we are confronted with many aspects of our existence and personality. Initially I didn’t expereince much emotionally, but in my year three of yoga I one day experience this huge bout of anger during and after a class. This continued for a while and I was getting very worried that something was seriously wrong. So eventually I spoke to my teacher about it. The short of this long story is that as a child and well into my aldulthood as well I used to internalise my anger, never showed it. Yoga sort of brought it out and I was confronted with all this anger locked up in my muscles and body for years. After much needed work with my teacher and a psychologist the anger dissapated and I learned new ways to deal with my anger and also how to release it.

We all have emotions, various ones, and yoga has the cunning ability to, if you are ready to confront those emotions, bring them up and to allow you to work through them in a safe way and with the help of compassionate people around you. As my teacher explained, yoga stirs the water and when water is disturbed all sorts of things rise from the bottom. Same with the emotions.

[saturdaysun]

thanks to you all for the interesting replies.