Living & Arts

Yoga symposium calls together practitioners, flexes body and mind

In print | April 3, 2008

Have you ever wondered how yoga practice could benefit you in ordinary life situations? Well, you would have found the answers at this week’s Yoga Symposium, which enabled Swarthmore students, faculty and residents to learn about the significance of yoga from the some of the best practitioners and theorists in the field.

The Symposium, called “Practice in Body, Mind and Spirit,” took place this past Saturday in Swarthmore’s Troy Dance Lab in LPAC. Sponsored by the William J. Cooper Foundation and the Departments of Music and Dance, the symposium presented a range of discussions and performances on yoga and the body.

One of the most well attended and prominent events of the symposium was a talk called “Contemplating the Role of Gravity in Yoga.” Irene Dowd, a renowned anatomist from the Julliard School, was scheduled to speak, but at the last moment could not make it. Instead, her assistant Sarah Plumer gave the talk. Plumer began her discussion by pointing out that the muscular skeletal system and breathing is greatly affected by our relation to gravity. “We can conserve our energy by knowing how much effort should be exerted through each body part,” Plumer said. She distinguished between different kinds of muscle contractions and lengthening contractions that all have an effect on how we make simple gestures with our bodies.

Plumer went on to talk about the relationship between the spine and shoulder gurdle, using a student demonstrator and a model skeleton to further illustrate her points. She showed the audience how the spine and scapula allow a tremendous amount of movement in humans, movement that we usually take for granted. Plumer also addressed how the eccentric muscles and abdominals aid our breathing. Overall, Plumer emphasized that we want to minimize how much of our muscles we are using in order to prevent injury or strain.

After a lunch break, “devoted practice) for Our Beloved Teacher Sri. B.K.S. Iyengar in this, his 90th Year” was performed by distinguished yoga practitioners Lara Warren, Carrie Owerko and Michelle LaRue. The first of the performance’s five movments, “Invocation,” began with the dimming of the studio lights as the three dancers emerged in black leotards. In this movement, they did downward dog poses, stretched their arms forward and backward while keeping their backs straight. Accompanied by music, they lifted their legs in the air, performed controlled flips, fluid movements and even put their legs behind their heads.

“I really see how it builds upon what we did in class. The control that they have and the connection they have with their bodies is amazing.” Hadley Roach ’11 said. "It was amazing not only what they were doing

but how they sustained it for such a long time," Camille Rogine ’11 added.

The music that accompanied the movements sounded surprisingly contemporary, characterized by elements of Indian fusion with a reggae beat. The poses were so incredible and difficult that they resembled those of body contortionists. “It was interesting seeing the poses that I do in class and seeing how I can improve, but also seeing the beauty and strength necessary to do these poses,” Erin Floyd ’10 said.

The Yoga Symposium concluded with a reception for all presenters and participants in the LPAC downstairs lobby. “The teachers and the theorists are also practitioners. They always reflect on the text and it is a commitment to all aspects of the form of yoga,” Assistant Professor of Dance Sally Hess said, referring to the presenters of the symposium. Hess also expressed to that she has gained tremendous happiness through exchanging the body, mind and spirit of yoga with other people.

“In my life, I know that a consistent yoga practice supports my physical health and strength,” Dance Professor Sharon Friedler said. “Additionally, it connects me to a community of like-minded people who are, for the most part, living in a nonviolent and respectful way, something I strive for as well.”