What is (zen)yoga

Zenyoga is suitable at any age — we are not attempting to perform impossible postures but are adjusting the practice to the abilities of every practitioner. What we primarily try to deepen is the quality of attention, of being present in this moment.

Zenyoga applies three aspects of the Chan practice that represent a model for a wholesome approach to life:

1. Harmonizing the body
2. Harmonizing the breath
3. Harmonizing the mind

How? Let us begin.

Harmonizing the body - relaxation and joy

We harmonize the body using variety of postures, sequences, breathing exercises, postural diagnostics, corrective exercises, massage and work in pairs. That is how we develop endurance, flexibility, relaxation, strength, balance and improve the vital energy flow through the body.

An important aspect of the practice is relaxation, both in movement and in stillness. To relax in activity requires training and experience, but it is a very important type of relaxation as it can be applied into daily life with a more lasting effect.

An equally important aspect Zenyoga is the joy of practicing and happiness which arises as a consequence of the physical and mental relaxation as well as the mindfulness of the present moment.

Zenyoga also has a range of special therapeutical methods which are employed from time to time and during seminars. That is why we call it a therapeutic yoga. They consist of postural diagnosis, corrective exercises, massage and acquiring healthy eating habits.

Harmonizing the breath – deepening and collecting

To harmonize the breath in the Zenyoga context means to deepen the breathing, to breathe abdominally and to connect the breathing with the movement. The way we breathe indicates the state of our body and mind. Shallow, fast and unrefined breathing indicates the restless, dispersed and confused mind, as well as a tense, unbalanced and unhealthy body. Influencing the breathing through practice and changing the quality of the breath directly affects the state of the body and the mind.

Harmonizing the mind – lightness and inner peace

The third aspect of Zenyoga is harmonizing the mind. Mind and the body are deeply interconnected, but mere physical practice doesn’t bring deep insights and thorough changes in the way we approach ourselves, others and life in general. To do that, it is not sufficient just to train the body but to have a clear knowledge on how to simultaneously train the mind.

If the method is clear and one is willing to follow it, there is a whole new experience waiting to be discovered in this simultaneous practice. The process develops in stages, from unrefined to refined, from external to internal, from body to mind. That is the practice that leads to the attainment of a Zenyoga ideal: the complete union of body, breath and mind. It represents the deep meditational experience of Samadhi and has the power to change the way we perceive ourselves and the world. It deeply changes the way in which we perceive ourselves and the world, and is characterised by lightness, inner peace, lack of conflict and clarity.