Yesterday I was working on a yoga pose called Scorpion ( Vrischikasana). This is a very challenging inverted pose. It involves balancing on your forearms, head raised and a strong backbend so that your feet touch your head. This pose requires strength (particularly in the upper arms and shoulders) a supple back, a strong core and a great sense of balance. When executed properly this pose is like a work of art. It has a beautiful flow. It has curves and balance and is exquisitely beautiful to look at.
Before I attempt an advanced pose such as this I spend a few moments finding my breath and my centre. It requires all my concentration to find my balance once I am inverted and before I move into the backbend. I know that it is going to take me many many attempts to master this pose and that before I do I am going to fall, and fall again, and again.
There are so many beautiful parallels between yoga and life and the lessons I learn on my mat I transfer to my life. I am going to fall in life too. Again and again, but thats OK so long as I keep trying.
I was alone in the studio at the gym on a quiet sunday afternoon. I don’t suppose anyone even knew I was in there. There was no one to catch me when I fell…but I faced my fear and did it anyway. It took a huge dose of courage and intense concentration to even get myself inverted as I am not used to balancing on my arms in that way. It took an even bigger dollop of courage to bend and lift my head. There is an immediate tendency to fall down as you lift your head as your centre of balance has shifted. The only way to stay in balance is to bend in the opposite way to that which our bodies are used to. I concentrate on my breath. If you don’t breath you won’t have the strength to stay inverted.
Some people use props when trying a new and challenging pose like this. Support from a wall or perhaps a block or a strap to keep the arms in the correct position. Personally I don’t like the use of props in my yoga or in my work. I like to just go ahead and fall, over and over, tumbling about in all my beautiful ridiculousness until I find my way.
So how does this pertain to life and our work as an artist. Well it’s pretty simple really. You are going to fall. Probably a lot of times and if someone is always there to catch you then you will never really master things. It’s OK for a bit but eventually you just have to go ahead and do it on your own. You are going to make mistakes that’s for sure. You are going to mess up and and look silly for a while but guess what….no one is watching. They are all too busy messing up and falling over themselves.
You need to keep doing it until that sweet moment arrives when you find your balance and your work of art is finished. If you don’t keep trying you will simply never master it. Go ahead and fall. It doesn’t matter how many times. Take a thousand photographs before you find one that has all that perfectly balanced light. Write a thousand pages until the one before you has all the right curves and sweet spots.
You are all alone in your studio and no one is watching. Go ahead and fall but but please just do it. Face the fear and fall because one day you will master that art and the world will gasp at it’s beauty.
nikivanvelden 