Yoga’s inner four limbs
Breath, withdrawing the senses, gathering attention, steady watching: the inward half of yoga’s eight-limbed path, in plain words, with one small way to try each.
Notice3 min read
How it goes
- 01
Settle 10″
Sit or stand. Let the breath be as it is. Do not change it.
- 02
Count to five 30″
At the end of each out-breath, count silently: one. Next out-breath, two. Up to five, then begin again at one. If you lose count, begin again at one without comment.
- 03
Drop the numbers 15″
Stop counting. Feel one breath without a number.
- 04
Return 5″
Look up. Notice what is in front of you.
Counting is a leash for a restless mind. It gives attention something small to hold, so that it has less reason to leave. This is among the oldest focus exercises there is, and the one that asks the least: the breath you already have, and the numbers one to five.
Notice what happens around three. Most people find a thought arrives, a plan or a picture, and the count quietly runs away. That is not failure. The moment you notice is the whole exercise. Begin again at one.
You can use the count tool on this site, or no tool at all. A queue, a boiling kettle, the gap before a meeting: one minute is enough.
Take care. Do not try to change your breathing. If it feels tense, stop counting and breathe normally. Never practise while driving.
Keep reading
Why we don’t score your breathing
No points, no streaks, no rankings. The reasoning behind a studio that keeps only two words about your practice: how you arrived and how you left.
Hold your own3 min read
Noticing without fixing
The fourth passage of a class asks for something unusual: watch what comes, and do nothing about it. Why that is harder, and kinder, than it sounds.
Notice2 min read