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What is Yin Yoga?

“When I let go of who I am, I am become who I might be” – Lao Tzu

Yin Yoga is a quietly powerful way of doing yoga that affects the body deeply, encouraging the letting go of tensions held there. It is a way of doing yoga that gives space for thoughts, emotions and whatever we are holding onto to arise, move through and ultimately leave us feeling free.

The description comes from the ancient Chinese eastern philosophy of the Tao that says everything in life (from human beings and nature to the inanimate and what we can’t see) is composed of Yin and Yang: Yin is being, Yang is doing. In any given moment, everything is a combination and thus an expression of these two energies, says the Tao.

In practicing Yin yoga, we are developing or remembering, or Yin nature in body, mind and spirit. This is much needed and beneficial in today’s lifestyles which are fast, over-stimulated, externally focused and demanding of our energies. With Yin, we come back to things just as they are and learn to make peace with that.

The Mental Practice of Yin

On the mat or wherever we are practicing Yin yoga, once we have aligned the body into a posture, we are asked to commit to being there in physical stillness – unless a pain arises or we are overwhelmed, to which we always respond to kindly.

In the few minutes of inhabiting the pose, the challenge becomes as much mental as it does physical: bearing witness to the thoughts, emotions, memories, projections and planning that shows itself and tried to distract us from the here and now while we are in the physical posture. In this way, Yin yoga doubles up effectively as a meditation practice and time to learn how to: be with how we are feeling and thinking (mindfulness), surrender to the moment (being in the now), develop awareness and self-awareness, and find mental and emotional refuge in something beyond the thoughts and our habitual ways of responding.