Where now intersects with asana. Are you there?

In a culture so set on doing, achieving, succeeding, it's no wonder we approach our asana practice the same way. More is better. Strain is gain. Quick is best.

Step on your mat and tell me it's not true.

"I just love power classes," a fellow student (and teacher) confesses to me. "Gentle? Can't take it; can't teach it.... Can't go that slow," she adds, laughing.

Don't get me wrong. Power has its place. Sending the body into asana after asana is a workout. But what about finding middle ground? Forget gentle, forget power. Step onto the mat with the intention of good old-fashioned, no frills, non-dressed-up hatha. The sweet practice of mindfulness, of sinking in – of recognizing the inner work of the pose and being right where you are, in the moment, at the intersection of awareness and asana.

Awareness, mindfulness of now, is tough to cultivate. Elusive. By nature, fleeting. And nowhere is that tendency to settle in the past or lean into the future more evident than in yoga asana Warrior II (sanskrit: virabhadrasana II).

Where are you? Find a mirror that reflects at least your torso. Stand tall, grounding through the feet, lifting through the sternum, shoulder blades moving down the spine. Step the left foot back three to four feet. Let the soles of both feet ground into the mat; the left foot at a 45-degree angle and the right with the toes pointing straight ahead. Come into Warrior I by squaring the hips and moving the right hip forward, allowing the front knee to bend toward (never) past the right ankle. Lift through the chest again and inhale the fingertips toward the sky. Exhale, keeping the height in the chest.

Warrior I (picture from yogaposeweekly.com)

Keeping the right knee bent, inhale again and exhale the arms parallel to the floor, allowing the pelvis to open to the left. Right arm is extended over the bent leg and left arm over the back leg. Send energy into the fingertips and gaze out over the hand. Pause here, in Warrior II, and turn your eyes toward the mirror.

Me, Warrior II

What do you see?  

Most common is for the torso to pitch or lean forward over the front leg, as though you're reaching into the future or anticipating the next moment, the next asana. (I am, slightly, in the photo.) Are you? What does this say about you? Do you think about plans, where to go, what is always happening next? Or are you the opposite? Is your torso leaning back slightly – and, if so, is your tendency to reminisce, dwell on memories?

Wherever you are, be aware of it. Just...notice, feeling this inner work of this strong, powerful pose. Then square the torso directly over the pelvis. That's where now is.