Yesterday, I came to my yoga mat with the hope of quieting my mind and honing in positive energy. What I got was ohhh so much more.
My teacher began by telling the class that consciousness is like sitting at the edge of a river. At first, we notice the surface of the water, the trees around the river and the leaves falling to the ground. But once you focus on the river and tune out the rest of your surroundings, you can see deeper into the water. You can gain a deeper understanding of what is beneath. I took this image with me for the rest of my practice and really focused on tuning everything else out. I focused on my body and my breath. And then somewhere between a downward dog and an eagle, I felt a sudden rush go through my body. I got that light headed and dizzy feeling. That tingling in your toes feeling. “Was that what I think it was?” was my first thought. “Is that even possible?” was my second. When I got home, I did some research. What I found was information about the perfectly coined term, the yogasm.
So how is this possible? One major component of yoga deals with strengthening the mula bandha. In Sanskrit, the mula bandha means the root lock. The mula bandha can be difficult to explain, but easy to find. In order to find it, simply contract the muscles at the bottom of the pelvic floor, behind the cervix. The mula bandha should be contracted for the entire practice in order to stimulate your pelvic nerves, the genital system, the endocrine system and the excretory system. In addition, contracting the mula bandha can help you feel less fatigued, so that you can Chatarunga with ease. It has been found that strengthening the muscles of the mula bandha will lead to more control over your orgasms. I always knew that it was important to contract the mula bandha during practice, but I never quite knew all the benefits.
It’s obvious that orgasms are in a large sense mental. One distracting sound can take someone from “almost there!” to “it’s not gonna happen.” So, the fact that my yogasm happened when I was particularly concentrated on my consciousness doesn’t surprise me. By focusing on my breath and my body, I suppose I was in the right state of mind for a yogasm. The combination of the mental concentration and the contraction of the mula bandha make yogasms possible.
Yes, its true that cycling may get your heart rate pumping, and Pilates may give you a toned butt. But yoga, praised be the Lord for yoga, may give you an orgasm. As if we needed another reason to love yoga.
Sources:
http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-2583/Bandhas-for-Beginners-Intro-to-Yogas-Interior-Locks.html