For best results, practice yoga poses with intent and focus

Yoga reminds us of our sovereignty and personal power to make choices and align ourselves in ethical and moral ways for the betterment of all beings. Our personal freedom is connected to collective liberation. I turn to this quote generally attributed to philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti: “It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” To be truly well is to acknowledge and cultivate a transpersonal state of harmony, where mutual respect and care are extended to everything you are in relationship with.

Entering states of relaxation might be a side effect of practice, but it was never meant to be the ultimate goal. Through the stillness, silence, and sensory withdrawal of pratyahara (fifth limb on Patanjali’s eight-fold path), and one-pointed concentration, we seek to still the mind so that we really know ourselves, and in turn the nature of consciousness and the world. By knowing ourselves, we can free ourselves, understand the roots of suffering, and then work to free others. Asana is shared as a tool to steady the mind, not the end goal.

However, the asana classes I have been part of have included loud, bumping music, mirrors all around, and too many people squeezed into a small room—these factors present abundant sensory distractions. This, to me, does not create the proper conditions for the mind to focus on the practice and find steadiness. Loud music can be distracting rather than focusing. The mirrors can lead you to focus on what your physical body looks like, drawing attention away from yourself. Consciously or unconsciously, being in a room with that many people might encourage students to compare their practice with that of others. To compete with the person next to them.

This comparison and competitiveness result in the mind losing its steadiness. Instead of focusing inward, the attention shifts outward. Yoga is not meant to be about being perfect in comparison to others. In my opinion, this causes significant harm. Many modern yoga classes don’t encourage inward focus, instead emphasizing the importance of outward focus on achieving perfect postures.

They’re a way to explore and understand how our bodies move and function. Asana is not about perfecting postures or attaining the perfect shape. They’re a way to explore and understand how our bodies move and function. In the long run, the focus isn’t on mastering any particular pose but on utilizing these explorations to cultivate greater strength, skill, and a deeper connection with our physical intelligence. Ultimately, asana aims to empower us to use our bodies with intention and awareness, allowing us to be fully present in the moment. We learn how to live more comfortably and skillfully in our bodies.

Asana practice is one wonderful way to move from awareness of gross (large, obvious) sensations to smaller and subtler ones. An example of this can be seen in a student I worked with every week for three months. When I would ask him to observe his body and mind and share what he was feeling, the first few times we met, he would say something like, “My lower back hurts and I feel tired.” Then, slowly over time, he began to notice the breeze on his skin, the feeling of his body in connection with the ground. He was able to describe in more detail how he was feeling beyond just tired.

Yoga teaches us about the importance of silence and going within, to the source of all that exists. Asana’s function in classical yoga is to train the body so that it does not disturb or distract the yogi’s mind in any way when sitting in meditation.

Sensing internal signals from the body

This is interoception, the ability to sense internal signals from the body, like knowing when you are hungry or thirsty, hot or cold, or being able to sense the speed of your heartbeat or the feel of your breath. Interoception is crucial for us to self-regulate and understand our internal state. There have been more than a few times when I’ve pondered why I felt so anxious and began to spiral, thinking I needed to make drastic changes in my life. Then, when I really checked in with myself, I realized the dull ache in my stomach wasn’t due to anxiety but hunger! We need to be able to check in with ourselves to attend to our physical needs. Otherwise, we are liable to make mountains out of molehills.

I encourage my students to spend at least 30 minutes every day in quiet, silent reflection. No phone, music, TV, books, or podcasts. This time can be spent seated or lying outdoors, listening to the birds and sounds of nature. I often do this myself, to ask what wisdom and medicine nature holds for me on any given day. By utilizing this skill of deep listening, I have received messages from my body and the natural world. You might choose to spend this time meditating, whether seated or walking, or engaging in a creative activity with your hands. I have called this time my scheduled “boredom time” or my deep listening time. Learn to tune in to the natural world around you. Since 2018, I have dedicated sixty-eight days to complete silence during Vipassana Meditation retreats. These extended periods of deep meditation have been profoundly clarifying and revealing, offering insights that continue to shape my understanding and awareness.

The poem ‘A Great Yogi’ by Mirabai inspires me to return to silence to tune in. Mira is a celebrated Bhakti saint, renowned for her devotional poetry and her profound love for Krishna.

In my travels I spent time with a great yogi.
Once he said to me.
‘Become so still you hear the blood flowing through your veins.’

One night as I sat in quiet,
I seemed on the verge of entering a world inside so vast
I know it is the source of
all of
us.

True realized teachers of yoga taught that yoga brings us to self-authority. To trust in ourselves and our inner wisdom, not to outsource to external sources. Yoga teaches us about the importance of silence and going within, to the source of all that exists. Asana’s function in classical yoga is to train the body so that it does not disturb or distract the yogi’s mind in any way when sitting in meditation.

So, how can we practice asana in a yogic way? The objectives of practice matter here—an asana class needs to be presented in a way for students to be more concentrated and find ways to keep their attention anchored. This reduces the possibility of distraction and a wandering or comparing mind.

Asana shouldn’t be practiced in any old way. Beer yoga and goat yoga are bewildering to me. How can you focus when a goat is pooping on your mat? And how can you find clarity if your mind is being clouded by alcohol?

I offer these suggestions for asana practice:

1. Set an intention, or sankalpa, for your practice. Greater awareness begins with intention. Why am I practicing or teaching? What’s the why here? An intention can give the busy mind a place on which to anchor as we move through the movement. And so what should the intention be? We the contemporary yoga practitioners tend to associate the English word intention with a goal. In Sanskrit, intention is sankalpa. Sankalpa is less about goal setting, about asking what we can get, and more about asking, ‘What do I promise to bring?’ Sankalpa is not a goal but a commitment. Your sankalpa is where you’ll rest your active mind.
2. Observe everything. Observe your sensations, reactions, and wandering mind, among other things, without criticism or judgment. Yoga is about increasing self-knowledge. Notice what your mind and body are doing while practicing asana. Continue to bring your focus to yourself and your practice.
3. Practice dharana or one-pointed concentration. During practice, have an anchor for your mind to find steadiness and absorption, free from distraction. Focus on your breath, focus on what is happening in your body, or focus on where your gaze (drishti) is directed. Commit to noticing the breath. Commit to witnessing your movement without aversion. Commit to staying present. You get to choose.
4. To reduce outside distractions, try practicing without music.
5. Practice slowly. There is no rush or sense of urgency needed in practice.
6. Practice ahimsa, or non-harm. Be gentle and kind to yourself during practice. It does not matter if you can hit perfect alignment in posture or place your leg behind your head, or if the student next to you appears “more advanced.” This also reduces the likelihood of injury! I have often seen students pushing themselves in asana practice, neglecting this principle of ahimsa, and violating their boundaries.

This book extract has been adapted from Liberating Yoga, copyright © 2025 Harpinder Mann. Published by permission of Broadleaf Books.

About the Book

In her debut book, Harpinder Kaur Mann shows yoga practitioners a path to reclaim yoga from appropriation and recenter the practice where it belongs.

Liberating Yoga: From Appropriation to Healing, by Harpinder Kaur Mann, 200 Pages  Hardcover; $25.99; published by Broadleaf Books on June 3, 2025.

You can order the book from Broadleaf Books, or Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, etc.