The variant Jivamukti yogacreated by the Americans Sharon Gannon and David Life in New York about 40 years ago, seeks to find the path to liberation.
The name they gave it is not coincidental: jivamukti It derives from two words that in Sanskrit mean liberation while living. “You don’t need to isolate yourself or become another person to achieve total happiness. Jivamukti reflects that it is possible to live an enlightened life and progress spiritually with the circumstances that one was faced with. Nothing more is needed,” its creators revealed in an interview years ago.
Jivamukti is based on the hatha traditional yoga although their asanas – the name given to the postures – are performed in a more dynamic and fluid way. “Unlike other yoga practices, In Jivamukti, each month a new specific topic is worked on and prepared, which generally emphasizes the yamas and niyamas –ethical foundations of yoga that its practitioners must comply with and respect to live the essence of the discipline–”, explains Abril Varela, certified Jivamukti yoga instructor. As he explains, on each occasion an intention is “set” in order to develop a higher and more conscious spiritual practice; “The postures, the initial mantras, the spiritual talk and even the music are related to the focus of the month (FOM)“, account.
The idea behind the classes is based on ahimsa (in Sanskrit, non-violence) since yoga is not only practicing the different asanas, but also transfer what has been learned to daily life: to what is consumed and all the acts that one performs; It could be synthesized as live ethically and correctly 24 hours a day.
“When I found Jivamukti, I felt as if I had discovered a hidden treasure. “I was relieved when I realized that with the practice of yoga I can go into the depths of my being and embrace my spiritual self.”says Juana Etchehoyen, 32, who discovered this discipline two years ago when she lived in Barcelona.
Some celebrities from Hollywood and the music industry are also devotees, such as Gwyneth Paltrow Christy Turlington, Uma Thurman, Russell Simmons and Stingwhich are usually photographed at the Jivamukti Yoga Center in New York, the best-known studio in the United States for practicing this discipline.
Abril Varela explains that to know the meaning of life and become aware of actions, thoughts and words, this type of yoga works with five fundamental principles or pillars.
There are several styles of Jivamukti class. Abril Varela explains that, on the one hand, there are “BASIC” which last 90 minutes and work on the basis of postures, alignment and slow breathing technique ujjayi. The style of “spiritual warrior” is a 60-minute, physically and dynamically challenging sequence. A third type is that of classes “open” whose duration ranges between 75-120 minutes and is characterized by offering the complete experience. At first, mantras are quoted or chanted in Sanskrit or a reading is done on the ancient teachings of yoga and then followed with sequences that focus on the alignment of breathing with movement.
“Each posture represents a challenge for the practitioner, where one faces one’s fears and mental limitations. Breathing calms those fears and aligns with the purpose and intention,” adds the instructor. Breathing is understood in Jivamukti as the tool that can cross barriers: “It relieves mental and physical tensions and solves intellectual blockages and debilitating thoughts,” adds the instructor.
In general, the purpose of yoga is not to work at the muscular level, but to focus on ligaments, joints and fascia. For Abril Varela, the key to Jivamukti is that teaches to be more compassionate with others and with oneself. “You begin to see things from another perspective and with a warmer gaze, understanding that everyone brings a story and baggage that sometimes they don’t even realize they have but that it is there,” he says. The instructor considers it essential to understand that the physical and mental part “is all part of the same” and that, When one begins to cleanse one’s thoughts, benefits manifest in the body such as the comfort of inhabiting it and acceptance of it.
