Yoga Insight, Inspiration, and Non-attachment

Written by Super Member: TAMARA


There may come a time in our lives when we have to let go of everything we've become accustomed to in order to accept who we truly are. Every day that I set foot on my Yoga Mat, I am reminded to follow my true path, to be authentic to self and to let go of those intimidating thoughts that tell me, "you can't have, do or be what you really want because it's just not practical!" Yoga has taught me to focus on what my heart needs in order to feel complete.

Several years ago when I began doing Yoga, a whole new side of me began to materialize. I fought with my ego everyday that I was on the mat comparing myself to other yogis in the room and wondering why I can't do what they do. Before I became aware of what was happening, I had created injuries in my body from forcing myself to be a "real" yogi.

One day while I was reading a book by Deepak Chopra (trying to be all yogi-like), something he said hit me like a brick. It was the concept behind non-attachment and ego. I realized after reading this that it's my ego that continues to get in the way of my practice. I needed to learn to just let go and let the practice be what it is; as opposed to some attachment I have to the outcome of my practice. I noticed that once I began to take my focus off of HOW I was doing my practice and started to focus on being IN my practice, the true Benefits of Yoga came alive for me.

Yoga allowed me to go through all of the gunk, the negative thoughts, and the past emotions stuck in my body, etc., so that my heart and my passion could be set free. It's almost like I had to "break down" in order to be opened up. Once I decided to let my mind, my body, and my soul become my practice, instead of following my practice and trying to be something that I'm not; that's when I was truly doing Yoga. I slowly learned to LET GO and permit my Yoga to take me where I need to be on any given day.

It's interesting that on some days, I get on the mat and I'm feeling all cocky and thinking things like, "Oh, yeah… I'm conquering this practice today... I'm feeling strong and I just know I'm going to come up out of my backbend today... blah, blah, blah,…" Before you know it, I'm halfway through my practice and all of a sudden, my body just won't go where my ego wanted it to go... nope, not today. I start to get down on myself and then I realize, "wait, that's not what this is all about". Who cares if my Backbends aren't amazing today, who cares if I fall out of the Tree Pose! These expectations that I have are all attachments to the outcome of Yoga. The second I decided to stay focused on the outcome of my practice, I lost the true meaning. In order to stay connected to my authentic self, I need to let go of my expectations to the outcome and let the day, the practice be whatever it needs to be at any given time.


Yoga has inspired me to be me. This doesn't mean that I don't still have my days of expectation and attachment to outcomes; it just means that every time I come to the mat, I am reminded to follow my heart, and be my true authentic self. Yoga will forever be a learning process. There is no end point or destination, it's a constant voyage of the mind, body, and spirit.

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This Article was contributed by a Super Member:
Tamara Schreyer , MA, C.Y.T, is a certified yoga teacher who has taught in California for over 8 years. She has trained with several well-respected yoga teachers such as: Tim Miller, SRI K. Pattabhi Jois, Richard Freeman, Shiva Rea, Rodney Yee, David Swenson, Doug Swenson, Erick Schiffmann, Bryan Kest, David Life, and Sharon Gannon to name a few. Her style of teaching is versatile and adaptable to her students. Her classes range anywhere from 30-minute guided meditations, 60-minute Vinyasa Flow, two-hour heated Ashtanga Yoga, 75-minute Power Yoga, and yoga with live music! For more information, visit www.tamarasyoga.com.