KUWAIT: With Adrenaline rush and awareness levels at miles high, Sattva yoga in Kuwait is portraying the concept of the warrior's core enhancing mental wellbeing, physical strength and spirituality. Sattva yoga, founded by Guru Anand Mehrotra in the Himalayas over a decade ago, focuses on intense and energizing yoga practices and themes to spread wisdom and self-mastery of body and mind. Speaking about the merits of the concept, Romanian Yoga Teacher Natalia Medelet, Kuwaiti Yoga Practitioner Mansoor Al-Mansoor and Kuwaiti lawyer and yoga practitioner Moudhi Al-Raish all described their involvement in yoga as of a 'physical and mental sense'. "Sattva means you are creating new things on the spot, connecting with people's energies in the class," Medelet, who has been living in Kuwait for seven years, explained. "There are different kinds of music prepared, if people are down, you shift up the energy and Sattva flows like the ocean, rising and dropping down, heating up the physical form," she added. Her credentials include a 200-hour yoga-training course conducted by Kashmir Shaivism School of Yoga and a 300-hour teaching training program conducted by Sattva Yoga Academy in Rishikesh, India.
Re-learning to breathe
Medelet's classes focus on concepts such as re-learning to breathe and teaching the mind how to breathe properly; including 'Breath of Fire', which clears the respiratory system. Another technique, 'Warrior Breath' shifts energy and revitalizes, while 'Chest Expansion' is a type of 'Warrior Breath' that causes intense body heat. "In life you are a warrior; you are in a constant battle with yourself. You have two choices: either suffer from the past pain or move forward because future will come no matter what and it is an illusion," she said. She further explained, "Warrior means the battle inside of the mind, with society misunderstanding or it can be different kinds of battles. It is about how you choose to be a winner."
During class, the group did sitting poses such as 'Siddhasana,' 'Sitting Forward Bend' and 'Butterfly' followed by standing poses such as 'Warrior One,' 'Warrior Two' and 'Bow and Arrow.' Then 'The Warrior's Dance' allowed the group to harness the energy of the warrior and strengthen their immediate presence, connecting them like a single consciousness. Her classes start and end in silence to cool down the brain. "Ego is the lower mind, it judges, it does not know the future, it just knows the past but the past is wrong because it judges you strongly, detach from it and overtime destroy it," she stressed.
Refocusing on the end goal
Meanwhile, Mansoor works at Kuwait Drilling Company (KDC) where he prepares a range of equipment including forklifts, pickup trucks and mud pumps, in addition to pulling and picking up pipes; a highly charged and quick-based work environment. Yet, yoga centers him. Yoga teachings allow him to detach immediately and refocus on the end goal of what matters, helping him with his aches, injuries, breathing, flexibility, psyche and control over muscles. "Negativity can be good, negative thoughts are going to push you through and further yourself. Acknowledge negativity without being consumed. Everyone controls their stress differently," Mansoor said. He added, "Self-awareness and mindfulness both deviate from negative thoughts towards your ideal mindset of creative freedom. Empathy towards people and being aware of what they think and how they act strengthens self-awareness intelligence. When you know yourself, nobody would be able to gaslight you."
Yoga fooled his mind to stir away from the fact he is in the scolding desert heat, until he realized that yoga is "mostly mental, everything in life is fooling your mind," he said, emphasizing that "ego cannot be killed, it can keep bleeding. Be aware that you will die, the focus shifts to yourself."
Another truth seeker, Raish is impeccable with her statements at court because of mindfulness. "Meditation helps with productivity and better decision making," she said. "I know what to say to get the defendant silent or make them feel guilty. I make my own reasoning and destroy them with a few words. Perspectives are from every angle." Raish and Mansoor confirmed the yoga teacher's outlook on why Kuwaitis do yoga, with the latter saying "I don't do yoga for spirituality, it is for physical abilities and it allows me to stay calm and meditate under stress in extreme environments." - KUNA