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Self-esteem as Bodily Attitude in Yoga
(this article appeared in the January 2012 issue of the Namaskar magazine)
Watching people walk in a busy airport or in and out of a Yoga class is a fascinating collection of glimpses into unmapped inner territories. A shoulder higher than the other, a head tilted to the side, a tight spine or a fluidic slink could tell a long story about the body’s owner, his or her inner life, brain, condition of the physical structure. It takes only calm observation, real interest and compassion to start deciphering such tales.
In modern times the term ‘body language’ describes best the object of this reflection. ‘The body is really our thoughts, moods, convictions and emotions objectified, made visible to the naked eye’, notes Swami Sivananda, a medical doctor, in Thought Power.
How does a self-confident person feel inside? What is different in his or her body and brain compared to an awkward, shy neighbour?
Biology intermezzo
We live our lives and move around based on a so-called body schematic, a body image reflected in the brain. The length of my arms, how many muscles I use to kick a ball, the straightness of my spine during meditation – these and thousands more are all integrated automatically in the brain, in our subconscious mind. The entire physical structure is reproduced in the brain in two cortical regions: parietal lobe (sensory information, the sensations) and frontal lobe (motor commands, the source of movement). In order to react quickly to the different internal and external requests, our nervous system permanently keeps the muscles in a state of minimal tension called muscle tone. The level of muscle tone is determined by permanent nervous signals travelling back and forth between our body parts and the brain. An induced paralysis during surgical anaesthesia will interrupt this flow of neuro-electrical signals and, consequently, the muscles will become slack and the body will lose its shapes, its personalising features.
Muscle tone and contraction form the engine behind our so-called body language. The integrative function of the brain – our thoughts – permanently interferes with the neuron-based signals determining which muscle is more toned, contracted, tensed. Even closed, symmetrical pairs of muscles can present differences: one shoulder raised, head tilted, a peculiar orientation of various body parts. All of them have an anatomical background in differences of the condition of their soft parts: muscles and connective tissue.
Our emotional life is continuously reflected by the signals of these neurons. As such, our body is ‘shaped’ by the brain, by our thoughts and beliefs. A very bold person feels inside in a certain way and expresses confidence in all he or she does: postural attitude, choice of movements, patterns of muscular tension or relaxation. Going more deeply, on a physiological level, self-esteem can be translated as a specific neural pattern of signalling; some areas of the brain are more activated than others and the connections between certain neurons are stronger.
A person who does not have this pattern in his or her brain might feel incapable of understanding even the concept of confidence. We often hear: ‘I was a coward all my life; don’t ask me to be brave just now’. The yogis disagree and modern science adds further credibility to the position of Yoga.
The concept of neuroplasticity – the malleability of our brain and ability to change it – has been accepted as scientific truth only within the last decades of the 20th century. Neuroplasticity refers to the ability of the brain and nervous system to change structurally and functionally as a result of input from the environment. Learning and memory are some of the functions that constantly induce such structural changes. Recent studies have proven the same effects for meditation and Yoga.
Changing the mind is more simply said than done; everyone who sincerely tried it encountered many failures to start with. Thoughts are volatile and fast-moving, difficult to grasp. Nevertheless, we can better control the other part of the equation: the body. We can change and hold a physical position fairly easily.
Every posture sends signals to the brain which will develop the body image but will also be translated in emotional and psychic terms. As Paul Ekman, Wallace V. Friesen and Robert Levenson published: Emotion doesn't just flow from the inside out; it also moves from the outside in. When Ekman and his collaborators tried to study the facial expressions corresponding to anger and distress they found themselves feeling terrible.* The opposite is also proven: smiling intensely in the right way (reference the Duchenne smile recommended by researchers) convinces the brain to produce a feeling of well-being or even happiness.
All these modern discoveries explain the basic principles of working with the body in Hatha Yoga, how the transformative effects occur on human personality. In a practise of genius, the yogis used the physical postures to alter the more subtle parts of their beings.
Imagine yourself in the warrior pose. Place your body in this position just now. Hold this position for around five minutes and then come to a more comfortable and neutral stance and close your eyes. Become aware of your body and inner emotions. Do you feel heavy, lazy or sleepy? Go beyond the muscle fatigue or boredom of the mind; look into the full body attitude. Is this different than how you normally experience your body?
How do bold people feel their bodies, how do they move? Watch a big class of beginners practising the warrior pose for the first time or simply standing. Can you determine who is the most self-assured person in the group? Most people can.
Individual levels of self-esteem manifest in the body’s position, in the level of muscular tonus, in the facial expression. All deliberate changes in these domains will entail changes at the emotional and psychic levels.
Building self-esteem through physical re-shaping
Sustained, repeated practise of specific asanas and mindfulness of body position influences the level of tension and toning of different muscular groups. The key points in this process are time and repetition. It takes minutes to produce a real change in the connective tissue during a stretch but it could take hours summed up in daily reinforcement in order to change the neural signalling and synaptic connections.
A recently published study reached the conclusion that there are no mental effects following Yoga practise, only physical ramifications. This came as a surprise for many yogis because experience shows the opposite and many other previous studies even provided a long list of mental and emotional benefits of Yoga. The explanation becomes very clear when one looks into the details of this study: subjects practised once a week and were ‘instructed’ to continue at home – we all know that compliance for daily practise is minimal in unsupported beginners.**
Repetition, holding an asana for longer than one minute and mindfulness are essential in order to produce deep changes. As a top marathon runner cannot be produced overnight, a new body schematic, a confident pattern of physiology and anatomy, requires some efforts. Connective tissues, muscular fibres and neural signals have to build up a new pattern to replace an old one. How common is it for a Yoga teacher to notice that one particular student always has difficulties in assuming one specific posture or fails to sustain a correction for longer than seconds? Rectify a stooping spine and if soon after the mind forgets and falls into its previous trend of thoughts, worries and automatic reactions, and you’ll surely see the curve returning. Abhyasa (persevering practise) and vairagya (nonattachment) are the secrets of Yoga success according to father Patanjali.***
Relaxation
Low self-worth reflects in the body in the form of various contractions, tensions and even pains. Check the abdomen of a timid person. It is stiff and tight almost all the time. Before an exam or interview internal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea are not uncommon.
The practise of relaxation is essential in building a new body image and freeing the inner potential. Sometimes only relaxing certain areas of the body intentionally – perhaps the shoulders or abdomen – can change the level of inner stress and reassurance.
Aptitude
When the body-brain connections are changed, the physical attitude transforms into an aptitude which will never be lost again. The bashful guy or girl is gone and a shining personality takes over. This is the aptitude, the permanent capacity to appreciate profoundly who we are and to react properly to what life brings.
‘People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is light from within’. - Elisabeth Kübler-Ross
It is a fascinating experience to explore all the dimensions of an aptitude for self-confidence. The bodily position, both static and dynamic, the neural controls, the activity in our brain as well as the flow of prana along the nadis, the specific kind of emotions we predominantly encounter, the patterns of thinking and the spiritual abilities that are built on top.
Evolution further on
From the point of view of the spiritual science of Yoga, self-esteem is a function of our inner instrument, ahamkara, a result of integration of the sensory perceptions of manas and support for the discriminative power of buddhi. Achieving the right level of self-confidence is one necessary step in the process of evolution. Without this achievement, one cannot think about the realisation of the true Self, Atman. On the other hand, confusion of this intermediary stage with the ultimate realisation is stressed as regrettable in spiritual sciences.
‘Self-confidence is not a feeling of superiority, but of independence’.
- Lama Yeshe
Self-love
Yoga practise leads one to turn his or her attention from the delusive power of external events to the richness of internal experiences. Every sincere practitioner becomes fascinated by the beauty and complexity of the human structure in a short time. It does not matter how imperfect we thought we were, this changed perspective helps reveal to us fully: we have a wondrous instrument for living this life.
Start with the anatomy of the physical body, with what is material and easily observable: there is no humanly manufactured mechanism that can perfectly replicate an organ of this body. No prosthetic is better than our own limbs and no computer can replace our brain….
Additionally we can explore what is not visible but yet the yogis still describe in detail: energies, the chakras, the subtle structures. What is the essence of the difference between a dying person and a corpse? What happens during our sleep? What is nirvikalpa samadhi?
So many wonders, so much complexity, so many facets of what is called me. Isn’t this mysterious structure worth our love? Most of the time, what is required is only a changed perspective. A wise perspective, a calmer mind and a relaxed body. The union of Yoga.
‘Above the cloud with its shadow is the star with its light.
Above all things reverence thyself’.
- Pythagoras
Mihaiela Pentiuc, MD
Holistic Doctor, Meditation and Yoga Teacher
Integrative Medicine / Medical Rehabilitation / Balneology / Yoga Therapy / Classical Homeopathy
Short bibliography:
Sivananda (Swami) (1996). Thought Power. Divine Life Society.
* Levenson, R. W., Ekman, P., & Friesen, W. V. (1990). Voluntary facial action generates emotion-specific autonomic nervous system activity. Psychophysiology, 27, 363-384
** http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204777904576651230399881192.html
*** Patanjali Yoga Sutras