By letting go of harmful desire, I got more of the physical depth that I'd wanted before, yet the shapes of the poses barely mattered now. What did matter was how good it felt to just be with what is and let go of what isn't.

When I started doing yoga, I loved most of what happened in the classes. One thing I did not love, though, was the chanting of "om." None of my early teachers could explain what it meant or why we were doing it.

At some point, every student must leave their teacher. It's a built-in principle of yoga. Parents raise children to be able to survive on their own at some point; its the same concept between teachers and students of yoga.

Okay, so it feels good to say "all is one" in the yoga studio. But during the other hours of the day, aren't we all behaving as if it's you versus me, in a dog-eat-dog world?

Being yoga isn't just doing yoga; it goes beyond hatha, the physical practice. It entails living day to day what "yoga" actually means. In a word: uni...

if you go with the flow and are gentle with yourself in tense situations, you will always be in a better space.