Bikram returned for Tuesday’s evening class (#46). He was up to his old antics, yet at the same time I got the feeling that he was telling us he wanted to see us do better. We are at the half way point and he wants us to continue to improve, as do I. Bikram actually participated in class with us that evening and said the best thing for the extreme sadness he was feeling after loosing his childhood friend Bisnu was to get back here and to perform yoga with us.
He actually interrupted the class numerous times for a variety of reasons and I have to say that the teacher (Michael from Bend, Oregon) did a fabulous job of maintaining the continuity of the class. He did a masterful job of balancing both the feedback and energy Bikram was providing and yet at the same time not allowing that same energy to overwhelm his efforts to guide us through the 90 minutes. I took the time to tell him afterwards what a great job I thought he did and the class has come to be called the “Fuck You” class as Bikram told Michael at some point during the class that his presentation was far to nice and he needed to toughen it up, to which Michael replied by starting to curse at us in a quite humorous fashion. It really was a brilliant interaction that made everyone feel better with the unease over how to address Bikram’s recent loss. Nicely done Michael!
That evening, Bikram treated us to some film footage of him and his friends performing feats over the last number of years. It was really fascinating to watch and everyone enjoyed it quite a bit. It covered everything from US and Japanese television show performances to events held and filmed at different locations. They filmed a variety of performances ranging from elephants walking on top of yogis to Bisnu driving a motorcycle over Bikram while lying on a bed of nails. Bisnu was also shown performing feats of strength like snapping a metal chain over his shoulder. Quite impressive overall and it reminded me of many a martial arts demonstration I have both seen and participated in. This footage reminded me of material I have seen of Shaolin Monks performing feats of strength and agility to show what could be achieve with the development of focus and concentration. I guess, in all honesty, I did not realize that yogi demonstrations were like this and viewing this footage has changed my impression of yoga once again. I don’t know if I have already written this or not, but one of the first things I resisted about participating in yoga was I thought it was for women and men who could not make it in the gym. Nothing could be further from the truth!
Wednesday evening we were treated to a beginning and advanced demonstration of Bikram yoga by a group of longtime practitioners that included national champions as well as many that placed in national competitions. I can’t tell you just how exciting and inspirational it was to watch. Beauty, grace, strength and agility were all on display and it was everything physically one as a yogi aspires to. There certainly is far more to yoga that performing asana (the postures) in a perfectly prescribed fashion, and someone like myself may never realize that level of expertise, but it was magnificent to behold. Several Mexican television stations were present filming in the lobby of the hotel, which is unbelievably beautiful with its marble floors, mood lighting and open spaciousness. Hundreds of people filled every nook and cranny as Bikram started to give his introduction. Flip the switch brother and stand back, it’s Bikram time! Like he has done too many times to count over his lifetime, he guided the uninitiated through the story that is Bikram/Hatha yoga, as only he can do. I know there is a perception that, at times, there is a lot of Bikram worship that goes on and that turns some people off, but just like watching a legendary cellist or a world renowned tenor perform, you must respect both the passion he exhibits, as well as the technical expertise he has cultivated over a 50 year period for performing as well as spreading the practice of yoga around the world. It was simply incredible to watch the way he captivates an audience. You see this during his classes, as he is always the performer, but turn a camera on and watch out! He then brought out about a dozen participants who performed on command as Bikram quickly explained the health benefits of each posture performed. They almost did the entire beginning series prior to moving on to a demonstration of a number of advanced postures. I made it a point to address many of the participants and thank them for sharing in the fashion that they had. What was really nice was that you could tell that they appreciated the sentiment and to watch their eyes light up as we talked was a little extra bonus. You could feel both the passion for their yoga as well as the heartfelt gratitude for saying thank you. Overall, it was a night I’ll remember forever.
Happy Mother’s Day Mom…
