When I talk to people about coming to a Mysore class, I get a lot of reactions, most of them are negative:

• I do not know the sequence of the postures well enough

• My own practice is not good enough

• I am not flexible enough

• I cannot do all of the postures

The list goes on and on but the above form the bulk of the responses I get.

Let me break down and explain about the Mysore class:

Chaos

The first thing that strikes you when you walk into a Mysore style Ashtanga yoga class is that it seems like a total chaos. There is one person doing headstand at a corner, while another is coming into triangle pose and a third is struggling to balance on her arms.

What is going on here?

If you observe and watch closely, you start to notice a pattern emerging: Everyone seems to be on a path, following a precise choreography.

Silence

Compared to other yoga classes, the silence is striking. Occasionally, the teacher will say something to a student but the dominant sound is the collective breath. You will notice the teacher moving swiftly from student to student, giving adjustments whenever appropriate. Pretty much all you are going to hear is the collective sound of many people breathing.

Personal practice in a group setting

The class is not “led” as a whole but rather all instructions is given one-on-one within the group setting. You practice your own portion of the Ashtanga sequence of asanas at your own pace. You follow your breath and move forward at your own rhythm. The teacher will assist you individually by giving you physical adjustments & verbal instructions as required.

The person next to you may be doing easier or harder poses, going at a faster or slower pace. It does not matter to you. You are doing your practice and they are doing theirs.

Where did the name come from

This style of practice is named after the city of Mysore in South India. This is where Sri K. Pattabhi Jois taught Ashtanga Yoga since the 1930s using this style of individual practice within a group setting. Mysore style Ashtanga Yoga is the only yoga class that truly works for students of all levels.

Traditionally, Pattabhi Jois taught yoga from 5am until 2pm and students arrived at the class at different times throughout that duration. A Mysore-style class in other part of the world is usually offered for 2-3 hours in the early morning. You pick the start time that works best for you. You may start at the very beginning of the time slot or you may want to start later. Or perhaps due to bad traffic, you might come a little later than usual. All of these do not matter. There is not stress about getting to a yoga class on time. Students arrive whenever they can. This will cause disruption to other students in the class. Remember they are doing their own practice and you will be doing yours.

The only important consideration for the start time is to pick a time that permits you to finish your practice before the end of the allowed time for the class.

Your breath, your pace

In a regular yoga class you are following the teacher’s guidance for the breaths and the movements. These are the possible outcomes:

• The pace is just right and matches the pacing of your natural breath. 

• The pace may be faster or slower than your natural breath rhythm and you will feel a little awkward.

In a Mysore-style practice you follow your own breath. You move at the natural pace of your breath. You are not forced to follow the teacher’s breath count and pace. If someone else is going faster or slower than you, that is fine. You follow your own natural breathing rhythm.

If today you want to do a faster paced practice, then it will be entirely up to you. Similarly if you want to move at a slower pace, then that is no problem either.

Moving with your breath and setting your own pace will also result in a much hotter and better practice. You will be breathing at your own natural rhythm and bring in a lot of air to heat up the body. The warmer the body gets from the inside out (not the outside in!), the more flexible the muscles will become.

Your practice in a group setting

Most yoga classes are group classes, full of students with all different levels of experience, strength, and flexibility. An instructor leads the class through a series of poses and everyone works on the same poses at the same time. Often, such classes can be too fast or too challenging for beginners and, at the same time, they can be quite easy for advanced students.

In Mysore-style classes, students learn and practice Ashtanga Yoga at their own pace. Everyone in the room is practicing Ashtanga Yoga, but they each are working on different parts of the series. For example, beginners may be working on the sun salutations and basic standing poses, while advanced students may be working on backbends and handstands or even the Intermediate (second) series .

Everyone is challenged, without being overwhelmed. 

If for some reason you need to do a modified practice or a shorter practice, then you have complete freedom to do so.

You are not locked into what the teacher had planned for the class.

Individual attention

The teacher works with each student individually and you can spend extra time working on the things that are particularly challenging to you. New poses and transitions are added as flexibility and strength develop, so the practice is always changing and growing. The teacher is not constrained by the needs to keep the group moving forward. When you or someone else needs the attention, the teacher is available to assist. The rest of the people in the room continue on with their own practice at their own pace.

More intence

Because you move at your pace and to your own breath, you will find that your practice becomes more intense. More heat is generated in the body because you are moving with the natural rhythm of your breath. You are not pausing while the teacher is giving some instructions to the group. You are maintaining your breath, your rhythm and as a result the heat will go up in the body and there will be an increase in flexibility.

Increased focused

You will find that the mind will become significantly more focused and that the focus will be inward to your practice and your breath. You will lose awareness of the other people in the room. Outside activity will fade from attention. You are alone in the middle of the room doing your own practice. You will not notice people’s arrival or departure.

Arrival and Departure

First time – If this is your first Mysore class or the first time that you are taking a class with this teacher, take a moment to introduce yourself to the teacher and le them be aware of any limitations you may have with your practice. The teacher will appreciate this and will be able to assist you better.

Enter the room quietly – Open and close the door to the practice room quickly and quietly. We want to keep the temperature in the room constant. We do not want any cooling breezes.

Find an available space for you to use – If there is no available space, quietly ask the teacher where you should set up your mat. The teacher will ask other student to move if there is still space. The teacher may ask you to wait until someone finishes with their practice and left the room before you can set up and start your own practice. Take this an opportunity to practice your meditation.

Set your mat quietly and gently on the floor – Do not stand and fling your mat out on to the floor. This will make a big noise that will cause people to be startled and lose their concentration. It will also create a breeze that can cause people to become chilled and distracted.

Leave the room quietly – Clean your mat and roll it up quietly. Leave the room without disturbing the other students in the room. Open and close the door quickly but quietly. We want to keep the heat in the room and prevent anyone from becoming chilled.

Once again the emphasis is on not disturbing the other people’s concentration on their practice. A loud noise, talking, a cooling breeze can be a problem for some people.

Earlier start or later finish – If for some reason you want to start your practice before the usual start time or you want to finish after the end time, you need to talk to the teacher to determine if it will be okay for you to do so.

Your practice

Cheat sheets – Some teachers do not permit the use of written posture lists or posture charts in the practice room. You should check with the teacher first before you start to use one. Other teachers will allow you to use these sheets with the expectation that you will eventually no longer need them.

What is the next posture – In the event when you forget the next posture, there are a few ways to resolve this:  

• Review the postures that you have just completed in your mind. Usually this will then remind you which one is the next.

• Find someone else in the room that is finishing the posture that you had just finished and see which one they are doing next.

• Ask the teacher for assistance.

Respect your Territorial limits – Try to stay within the limits of your own mat. Sometimes the practice room can become very crowded. Your postures should not be extending into the space next to you. For example you may not have enough room to swing the arms wide in Surya Namaskara A & B or to do a full Chakrasana. You should modify these postures to fit the space available to you.

There are some exceptions to this. For example, the postures Supta Padangusthasana and Utthita Hasta Padangusthasana require you to take the leg to the side. In both of these postures, observe the activity around you and try to accommodate your neighbour’s needs as best as possible.

Assistance

Getting the teachers attention – When you want assistance, you need to get the attention of the teacher. You can do this in a couple of ways. Sit quietly in padmasana (Full Lotus) with your hands together in front of the chest and follow the teacher around the room with your eyes. The teacher will fairly quickly become aware of you and come over to see what needs to be done.

If the first approach does not work, raise your hand to get the teacher’s attention.

Do not call out to the teacher.

Be considerate of other people’s needs – Do not continuously demand the attention of the teacher for all poses.

Finally, let’s address some common responses/opinions/doubts of students who are new to yoga or Mysore-style in general:

I do not know the sequence of postures well enough:

Everyone, even myself, forgets what the next posture is from time to time. The teacher is there to help you with this and will appreciate that you have asked for assistance. While I was in Goa, I forgot what the next posture was several times. Nancy and Jason very quickly and willingly told me what the next posture was. Depending on the teacher, there may be cheat sheets available that will help you to remember the sequence of postures.  

My own practice is not good enough:

Everyone’s practice is at a different level of development. This is true in a led class as well as a Mysore class. The benefit of the Mysore class is that you are practicing at your level of ability. The other people in the room are focused on their practice and will not notice how well or how poorly you are doing your practice. They are probably so focused on their practice that they hardly notice that you are there.

I am not flexible enough:

This is a common complaint for not doing yoga, let alone a Mysore class. See the answer above. Again you work on your practice to the best of your ability and the teacher will come around and offer your assistance, guidance and modifications with a particular pose. This is not something that the teacher can do in a led class.

I cannot do all of the postures:

For the postures that you cannot do, the teacher will recommend modifications or they may permit you to skip that particular pose. You are not expected to be able to do all of the postures. The reason you come to a yoga class is to learn how to do the postures and to improve your ability to do it. A Mysore style class does not require or expect you to be able to do all of the postures. If you were able to do them all, then the teacher would be bored and have nothing to do.

The fact that you cannot do some of the postures will give the teacher an opportunity to give you some assistance and as a result you will both be happy.

Now I hope you have a clearer idea about Mysore-style Ashtanga yoga class, the benefits of the style and how to behave in the class, come on and give it a try!

In Mysore Breathing Room, we offer Newcomer One-month Unlimited at only $170 (regular price $300) to support the start of your Mysore practice. Check out the schedule as well as the list of packages that is the most suitable for you. For more information, visit the Frequently-asked Questions page.

By: Sita Chia