Yoga Therapy for the Creative Soul
Do you dream in color?
As a creative person, it might be unfathomable to you that some people dream in black and white or don’t care what shade they paint their bathroom or refrain from singing and dancing when they clean the kitchen. As it turns out, not everyone is in touch with their creative essence.
How do you know if you are a creative person? There is a simple test for this: Do you exist? If the answer is anything other than no, then you are creative.
The operating premise is that we were created; thus, we are of Creation (however you define that word). Since we are of Creation, each of us is connected to a powerful creative force greater than ourselves.
Despite this truth, it’s natural for a creative person to go through dry spells. Even you may have gone through phases where you can’t settle on what song to listen to, aren’t sure what to draw, or are no longer interested in the color of autumn’s changing leaves. The reality of being a creative person is that most of us possess only a tenuous connection to inspiration. True, flowing brilliance can be fleeting. However, it doesn’t have to be.
Rather than an elusive force, inspiration can be a sustained flow, like hydropower. When we are in touch with our creative essence, we are able to draw from the power grid. Whether you are someone who has never written a line, danced a step, or drawn a picture, or you are a professional artist who needs a steady stream of ideas, this book can support you in following a personalized approach to tapping into your own creative wellspring. You don’t even have to be experienced in self-expression, art, or yoga—this book is written for the average person. Although, in the case of creative people, there is no “average”! This book is for all readers, no matter your age, beliefs, creative abilities, or physical fitness. Effective yoga philosophy and practices combine with expressive arts and personal reflection to guide you through a process of self-discovery and creative freedom.
Origins of Yoga for the Creative Soul
When I began my Master of Arts studies, my focus was to relate trauma healing to expressive arts. I had recently discovered the power visual expression has in releasing information and emotion that is held behind heavy walls. It was inspiring to see colors and shapes so clearly express what I barely had a verbal sense of. Words had always been my fortress. Since I began composing fables at eight years old, I knew I wanted to be a writer. Yet my journaling sessions often failed me as I endeavored to express my deeper pain or understand where it came from. Images set me free and told the tale.
Despite this power, I found within a year of grad school that my true inspiration was where I had worked for years: with the body. At the time, I had been attending bioenergetics therapy for four or five years and enjoying yoga for two. These body-mind approaches were helping me not only move stored trauma out of my cells but also fill them back up with health, relaxation, and care. Ultimately, my Master of Arts thesis was “Yoga Therapy for Post-Traumatic Stress” and this launched me into an enjoyable career as a psychotherapist, yoga teacher, and, eventually, studio owner. While I continue to train and mentor yoga teachers, meditation teachers, and Comprehensive Yoga Therapists, it is in balance with a creative life where I write in the genres of fiction and yoga therapy. I turn to my visual creations for investigation, solace, and inspiration, and I have spent the last few years leveraging that combination to build the life of my dreams.
I believe that each of us, when we truly listen to ourselves and act accordingly, can create the life of our dreams. I do not believe this is done in selfishness. When we investigate and heal our pain (or “burn our karma”), there is a flow of enlightened joy, gratitude, and compassion that comes into us. We interact with other humans and the planet itself with more reverence and appreciation; everyone, including us, benefits from this. When we understand the joy that is possible and see suffering in the world, we are less likely to tolerate it.
Artists have always been the conscience of a culture and a culture well-measured by how it treats its artists. As you connect to your own creative essence, your everyday life is likely to become evermore harmonious with your inner visions and the world around you. This means you are affecting change simply by the uplifted presence you carry. I think of this as Enlightenment Activism—the self-realized person acts to bring improvement to the world (be it in their own being, home, work environment, or local/global society). The inspiration of Enlightenment Activism is what brought this book into being.
This yoga therapy book is based on yoga teachings and techniques that have been recommended for generations. Although society has changed, these ancient approaches to well-being remain potent and effective. The expressive arts components draw on the creative essence that is in all of us.
The Creative Process
Think of creativity like a river. When there is no dam, the water flows unimpeded—fresh, bubbly, and musical. This is like us when our own creative juices are flowing; we feel powerful, beautiful, and like we can go anywhere with our ideas. All is possible! When the creative flow is dammed, however, we feel as stuck as that barricaded force of water—trapped and unmoving. Let us keep in mind that dams exist for a reason. Whether it is to house beavers so they can procreate or harness water for hydropower, even dammed rivers are still in some kind of creative process.
The same is true of ourselves. When we feel like the river of creativity has dried up or the waters are caught behind a dam, understand that this is merely a diversion. Even though it’s not flowing the way we wish it to, the creative process is still in action. The juices have been harnessed and when we work with, rather than fight against, all aspects of the creative process, we connect with greater depth and acceptance to our own true creative essence. The expressive arts and yoga therapy exercises of this book will give you practical tools to do just that.
Comprehensive Yoga Therapy not only pinpoints areas of imbalance but also applies yoga philosophy and techniques to create sustained and progressive improvement in all areas of your life. Throughout this book I offer exercises to help rebalance your life for the purpose of activating your authentic creative voice—there is even a quiz relating your basic biological urges to your lifestyle choices. These exercises are designed to help you see your life from new perspectives, shift your thinking, and understand what powerful action steps you can take to begin improving your life immediately. You don’t have to do all of the exercises in the book; however, to read the book and not do any exercises could be likened to prepping a delicious meal and not cooking it.
What Is Comprehensive Yoga Therapy?
Comprehensive Yoga Therapy is a specific kind of yoga therapy. The yoga therapy field is recognized as a scientifically valid approach to physical and mental health. Comprehensive Yoga Therapy is derived from Classical yoga and is accessible to all people, no matter their age, weight, or abilities. Comprehensive Yoga Therapy seeks to identify areas of imbalance in your life and help you practice the kind of self-reflection that motivates true, lasting change. Based on the timeless principles of Classical yoga, Comprehensive Yoga Therapy has a wealth of tools to support you in restoring balance. Yoga postures are one part, as are breathing, relaxation, and philosophy. The real power comes from harnessing the mind/feelings, intellect, and creative personal resources to effect change on a deeper level. Many of the practices in this book tap into the roots of your inspired self to connect to your creative essence, deep within your consciousness.
Comprehensive Yoga Therapy applies the self-realization practices of yoga to daily life and, in this case, creative living. Ancient healing methods are based on creating balance. Nowadays we do a yoga class alongside other people, but a personalized yoga plan for well-being has to be unique and incorporate not just postures but breathing exercises, relaxation, and, most importantly, the power of the mind. That’s what this book provides!
The majority of people in modern society are healthy, but disconnection from our creative essence can slowly lead to health imbalances. Comprehensive Yoga Therapy offers a structure for preventative health care in the “Three Ps”: Proactive, Participatory, and Personalized.
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The 3 Ps of Comprehensive Yoga Therapy |
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Proactive |
Be empowered to take control of the lifestyle factors that predispose you to physical/mental/emotional/spiritual ailments |
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Participatory |
Be engaged in and personally responsible for effecting positive change in all areas of your life |
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Personalized |
Be viewed as an individual and receive uniquely meaningful tools to support your physical, energetic, mental, intellectual, and spiritual health |
Whether you are new to yoga or an adept, this book is designed for you. Practice the yoga postures in a comfortable way, so you enjoy using your body and there is never pain. Sometimes the poses don’t give you detailed specifics. This is intentional. More often than not, it doesn’t matter if your arms lower to the sides or the front, for example, or if you inhale or exhale to get yourself into a movement. What is most important is your awareness of sensations and messages from your body as you move. It was awareness that brought asanas to the ancient yogis in the first place.
If you are familiar with yoga postures, you may notice that some of the names do not match the ones you are familiar with from class. Also, modern yoga postures may not have Sanskrit names. Different styles of yoga have different names for the same posture or the same names for different postures. After developing a tradition for thousands of years, you can imagine how some discrepancies may arise; hold them lightly and set your mind to your own inner process.
You do not need a yoga therapist to work through this book, which was written for the average reader to gain great benefit. That said, this book is not meant to replace professional medical or psychological advice. Continue working with your care providers and seek other help as it would benefit you. If you have any physical or mental health issues, please consult professionals. Should you wish to connect with a yoga therapist, check out the recommended resources at the end of this book for information on finding your own Comprehensive Yoga Therapist.
How to Use This Book
Start anywhere! Yoga for the Creative Soul guides you through a transformative process. Although this book was written in a linear, systematic way, you can jump around it however you want—read it in random segments, back to front, or by matching page numbers to your favorite numbers. Your journey through this book is directed by your own intention, created in Chapter 1, Motivation & Movement. Through Part 1’s perspectives and practices, you will remove the obstacles that inhibit your creativity by exploring and weeding out their deeper roots. With fewer hindrances, Part 2 assists you in discovering and tending creative parts of yourself and Part 3 integrates it all into a joyful, thriving life.
Yoga’s ancient philosophies and techniques appear here in a way that is relevant for the modern world. Go to the chapters and pages that are most relevant to your current questions and struggles. If you already feel strong in an area that we are discussing, skip it and go to the content and exercises that address your personal areas of need. You can always come back and read over the places you missed as your self-understanding deepens and you crave more information. If an exercise in the book seems too complex, boring, or irrelevant, leave it and attend to the ones you are ready to work with or value. Not all aspects are useful to all people and I considered as much variety as possible while writing this book. You may discover that some parts are targeting exactly what you need and are going through right now, while others may be relevant at other times in your life. You are welcome to personalize your journey through this book.
You will likely focus on chapters that relate to your disposition. For example, the work-oriented may follow Chapter 6, Via Purpose; the emotional, Chapter 8, From the Heart; one struggling with addiction may resonate with Chapter 4, Toward & Away; and an alchemist could focus on Chapter 14, Being. Different people operate through different filters and this can change through the course of life. Those who focus on Chapter 12, Play Is a Need, for example, likely filter life through the body. While those relating to Chapter 13, Human, approach life through the psyche. Follow your own frame of reference while also considering points of view and tactics from the other paths as they ignite your creative force.
It is best to get a journal of some kind for working through this book. You can have fun with this and select a notebook or sketchbook with an inspiring cover. Perhaps you can paint or collage your own cover on top of a generic blank book. You may get a special colored pen set to make writing or drawing in the journal more enticing. You can use this activity journal not only for completing the exercises of this book but also for your own creations, rants, visions, questions, affirmations, thoughts, and intentions.
The book is designed with a wealth of exercises so you can choose the ones that are most beneficial to your personal journey at any given time. When you complete the exercises, be honest about how your life is now, not how you want it to be or how it used to be. This gives you a realistic starting point and helps clarify the next steps to unleashing your creativity. Be willing to admit that some aspects of your beliefs contribute to creative stagnation and be willing to make a creative life. I suggest that you revisit this book time and again throughout your life—as you deepen and change, so will the benefits you receive from the exercises.
You will gain new insights about yourself, spirituality, and creative essence. Throughout this book, you have the chance to use many different tools that yoga tradition offers. In Part 1, we address the blocks to creativity. Yoga psychology calls these hindrances klesas and lists five of them. The klesas, or obstacles, are ignorance, egoism, attachment, aversion, and fear. Once we stoke your motivation in Chapter 1, the rest of Part 1 gives you opportunities to explore what dampens that fiery enthusiasm and how to apply creative and yogic strategies to lessen its impact. In Part 2, you have multitudinous opportunities to connect with hidden aspects of yourself. These forgotten or concealed pieces often hold a powerful current of creative juice. We investigate where each of the Five Paths of Yoga leads us as we traverse the inner landscape. Part 3 of this book guides you through practical, personalized ways of using creativity to create the life of your dreams, every day. When connected to our creative force, each of us has great opportunity to impact our own lives, the lives of our loved ones, and the world at large. Through interactions with all five layers of your being (the yogic concept of koshas), this book supports you in calling your dreams into reality.
Each chapter includes elements of yoga psychology, expressive arts (including but not limited to drawing, writing, dancing, humming, cooking, and finger painting), breathing, postures, meditation, relaxation, and self-inquiry. Usually, we give you a range of options for how to express or investigate; you are encouraged to experiment and trust your interest and enthusiasm.
At the beginning of the book there is an Exercise List for each chapter, so you can quickly find techniques that work for you. Yoga posture practices are clearly indicated in this list. It also helps you revisit the book over time, reiterating what was important to you but may have slipped away, and giving you the chance to re-engage with practices that stir your creative essence. Much is to be gained from the creative explorations and modern-day applications of this book. Conversely, if you wish to know about the principles and find your own ways of connecting from there, it is all right to think about the philosophy and skip the exercises or make up your own. Use what fits for you and apply the aspects that make sense and improve your life.
You will notice italicized words throughout the book. These words are from the tradition of yoga, in the ancient language of Sanskrit. There are no direct translations for these words; however, we have included a Glossary to begin to define them for you. If you choose to deepen your study of yoga, broadening your understanding of these concepts may be important. For now, notice how these concepts support your creativity and happiness.
It’s in your power to decide how you want your life to be. I wrote this book to put you in alignment with the truth of your life and who you are. I believe that when you are invested in creating the life of your dreams, you are a part of making the entire world better. May your insights from reading and reflecting on what follows bring much creative power and joy. You can create whatever you wish!