by Nina
Today I thought I’d let you know about a special book by my long-time friend Leza Lowitz (who is now a contributor to this blog!) that was published 20 years ago and that is still in print. It’s a beautiful collection of poems that Leza wrote that were directly inspired by her yoga practice. She says that stretching and twisting, breathing and calming her mind and body, she discovered places that were very stiff but also reserves teeming with strength, stamina, and grace. And, one day, a funny thing happened. “As I was dangling in Downward-Facing Dog,” she says, “the line of a poem came to me: ‘Within my body, there’s a city.’” She told me that after that, during her practice, the muse would speak to her and other lines would come. Here’s an example poem:
warrior ii
Here there is nothing to fight
except willfulness.
Some lean too far
into the past.
Others stretch way out
into the future.
The true warrior
stays in the
moment,
burning deeper
into whatever comes,
or sometimes with
even more difficulty,
what doesn’t.
You can read more about Leza’s writing at www.lezalowitz.com and about her yoga studio and classes at www.sunandmoon.jp.
Subscribe to Yoga for Healthy Aging by Email ° Follow Yoga for Healthy Aging on Facebook ° To order Yoga for Healthy Aging: A Guide to Lifelong Well-Being, go to Amazon, Shambhala, Indie Bound or your local bookstore.
