Every Day Yoga by Tara Stiles
One Time at Yoga Camp…
Yoga with Dharma Mittra
Jul 2, 2008
Top 5 Poses
Dharma Mittra is a rare and special yoga teacher. He was born in Brazil in 1939, has been studying Ashtanga and Karma yoga since 1958, and started teaching yoga in 1967. He founded the Dharma Yoga Center in Manhattan, New York City, in 1974 and is the first main independent yoga teacher on the East Coast. He has been teaching class everyday since he started in 1967. Dharma says, “Yoga practice will give one’s body the power and strength to have resistance to common illness and diseases. With proper encouragement and increased faith in the Guru, one can improve his physical body and mental attitude rapidly, thereby igniting the higher motives of making oneself useful to himself and mankind”.
Take what you will of that, but Dharma teaches what he knows works and helps thousands of people.
I see Dharma’s teachings as very straightforward and clear, especially considering some of the convoluted and confusing messages that are trickled down to yoga students over the years from various “original teachers”.
He gets right to the point in his classes. There isn’t a lot of transitions or fancy combinations. Dharma gets right to the poses and sticks mainly with the ones that “get the most done”.
The purpose of Asana Practice according to Dharma:
By doing yoga one develops radiant health, physical power and becomes free of all disease and may easily succeed in meditation.
Every pose has a point to concentrate, which stimulates the glands.
It is not important to put legs behind the head and to do all these fancy poses. The most important pose, the king of the pose requires no flexibility. Headstand.
That sounds like a recipe for success to me. Better than any diet book or self help book, practicing these poses will create vibrant health and keep me free from disease? I’m in!
Dharma Mittra's Top 5 Poses...
Comments
05 Jul 2008, 01:18
12 Jul 2008, 09:02
Thanks for writing! Your job is amazing! Dealing with all you do is really impressive. It's good yoga is becoming so popular and hopefully will prevent a lot of people from coming in your hospital doors!
ps, I only held that head stand with no hands for about a half a second or so! :) I usually practice with both arms down but I had to try Dharma's famous move!
tara
03 Feb 2009, 22:39
Lynn G.