Shiva Nata: the Dance of ShivaDance of Shiva on the brain
Guest post from Elizabeth the Bee!
Actually, she wrote this kind of a long time ago and I forgot to put it up, which means that who knows what new and fabulous epiphanies have been going on since then.
Still good reading, though. Yay. Yay!
I’ve got Dance of Shiva on the brain
I’ve got some confessions to make.
Even though it’s hard and Havi says I might hate it, my brain loves Shiva Nata; it just can’t get enough.
But sometimes it’s just not convenient to pop in the DVD and flail my arms, you know? Sometimes I’m in a public place, or sometimes I don’t have a DVD player or sometimes I’m lying in bed trying to fall asleep. These times are just not conducive to doing the Dance with the DVD. But does my brain care? Noooooooo…..
Yes, I’d love to have a regular morning practice, but that’s not where my life is right now.
I’m prioritizing evening time with my husband and morning time with my toddler and sleep time for myself in between. I try to fit the Dance in wherever I can, and I’m looking for a good way to do it more regularly.
It’s still a pretty new thing in my life (Level 1 and proud), so for now I sometimes easily find the time and sometimes I go a while without flailing. And when it’s been too long my brain starts poking me.
If I don’t give it its Shiva fix, my brain will just start doing the dance on its own.
It’s like getting a song stuck in your head.
I’ll be lying in bed (for example) trying to fall asleep, when I notice that my mind is going through the paces: 1-1, 2-2, 3-3, 4-4 …
And I say “Stop! Stop! I’m trying to sleep and Havi says Shivaing at night will keep me up!”
And sometimes my brain listens (it helps for me to cross-my-heart promise to do some Shiva Nata the next day and distract it with something else shiny), and sometimes I just do some mental rehearsal of the Dance.
Other times I just don’t have the will to get up and do the Dance, but my I can tell brain is craving it. So I’ll put the DVD in my computer and just watch the theory or some of the practice sections. If I’ve got just a teeny bit of energy I’ll actively try to pretend I’m mirroring the movements.
Often I can find an empty room at work for a quick Shiva break, but I don’t have the DVD …
So here’s my confession: I’ve spent more time practicing the Dance without the DVD than with it.
I really hope this is okay.
Oh, it goes so slowly, and I suspect I don’t fail enough (ah, perfectionism, you’re so cute. Even when the goal is getting things wrong you think you’ve got to do it better), but my brain wants its fix! A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do.
And once my brain was crying out for some Dance of Shiva and I just had to be sitting at my desk. So I pulled out a pad of paper and started writing out the numbers.
Warning! This was so much tougher than I expected it to be. But I did start noticing patterns I had no idea were in there before.
Here’s the thing:
I know my brain benefits from these too.
When I sit still and visualize myself doing the Dance some of the same brain circuits are being activated as if I were actually doing it.
When I watch the DVD I’m activating mirror neurons and, again, I’m stimulating some of the same neural circuits I’d be activating if I were moving like Mr. Lappa. Going slowly and thinking hard about the patterns gets them into your brain.
People who study brains for a living have spent years researching this stuff and writing about it in peer-reviewed journals. Okay, I don’t know if there’s research on Shiva Nata, but if we trust that the Shiva Nata is good for the brain (and oh, my brain certainly thinks it is), then these other forms must be good too.
Now if only I had a magic extra well-rested half hour to myself in the morning so I could just do it the “normal” way…
Twitter: chloewrites
“Oh, it goes so slowly, and I suspect I don’t fail enough…”
Argh, me too! How much flailing is enough flailing? I can’t work it out. I usually change things up when I notice I’m able to get distracted and still do the moves. But there’s a difference between having to concentrate, and getting completely and utterly lost.
Twitter: williehewes
Elizabeth the Bee! That is an awesome name!
I very much know how you feel. When I first started, I was constantly doing it in my head and sneaking tiny bits of practice in during my work day in the office etc.
When I was still very new to it, I had to go away for a weekend (no DVD player available) so I made a sheet with the numbers on to use instead. It was great, both making the sheet, and using it to practice (it’s slightly harder not seeing the moves) so since then I only use the DVD occasionally. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.
Willie Hewes´s last blog ..Mascots for Life
Hi!
Finally I get the chance (and the guts) to report my progress with Dance of Shiva. I started in the first week of January and practised nearly every day. That’s quite unusual, because mostly I get all excited about something for a few days or weeks, and after that I don’t touch it any more.
Here’s what triggered my attention:
“So here’s my confession: I’ve spent more time practicing the Dance without the DVD than with it.”
Oh yes, that’s so true for me, too. But I couldn’t have done it without:
“So I pulled out a pad of paper and started writing out the numbers.”
That’s one of the first things I did – my brain just wanted to understand what’s going on and it ordered “write down those damn numbers!” And I use them a lot – I often do Dance of Shiva “by numbers”. I use the DVD regularly too – but since I love doing some Dance when I’m outside, walking along the river, the DVD isn’t always the most convenient solution.
The most remarkable thing (I wonder what pattern that may be) is, that I often forget Shivasana. And if I do it I have no clue what I’m doing it for. Or I get the feeling taht I do it completely wrong.
Whatever. I had many small lightbulb moments since I started doing the Dance and a few bigger insights (some oft them embarrassingly obvious), but what’s even more remarkable: Dance of Shiva makes me feel full of energy.
Sometimes it is annoying, but most of the time I like it. I think it’s the only possible thing to do for people like me: I easily get bored when I know “how to do it” and I hate it when I have to repeat something over and over again. The great thing is – once I know how to do it – I am supposed to not repeat it and move on instead.
How brilliant is that? :o)
Claudia from Austria
Twitter: _i_n_g_e_
Great piece!
I actually hardly ever use the DVD, just watch it to see what’s next, figure out the logic behind it and go from there. It’s not that I don’t like the DVD, it’s more that I don’t like putting it on in the morning, too many acts to turn on the TV, DVD and find the right video. Sometimes I just check if the speed of my movements is remotely approaching Andrey’s. When I’m not home, I also do the mental Shiva Nata or spend time playing with things that will make it harder. Like messing with the sequence, using alternatives to the numbers, messing with the speed, etc.
I also suspect I don’t f(l)ail enough. If the practice is too easy, I start making mistakes when my brain starts wandering, usually near the end of a sequence. That revealed a pattern for me though: I don’t usually follow things through to the end. If I can see or even imagine the finish line, I just wander off or stop completely, then start thinking about the next new shiny thing on my way.
Twitter: pearlmattenson
Hi Elizabeth- this is actually so inspiring. I love the idea of sitting at my desk when I get the Shivanata itch and writing out the number patterns. I have used Willie Hewes awesome sheets several times now when travelling but the brain buziness of writing out the patterns feels cool.
And “Level 1 and Proud” might have to become a T-shirt!
Thank you!
I’ve been meaning/wanting to (re-)start my morning practise again, for weeks. Months? But not.
After reading this, I went to the rest room at work, and remembered the positions. Then a few spirals. It is _so_ _much_ _more_ than nothing.
Alison´s last blog ..16) Getting up earlier
Twitter: bethwodzinski
I also do most of my shiva nata at work. It’s become one of the things I rely on for energy and focus and flow.
But without the DVD, I don’t even know what to flail at. I’m just starting to learn Level 2 and it isn’t in my head or body yet at all. So at work I stick to what I know, and try to flail extra on the weekends when I have time.
Though I’d forgotten about Willie’s chart! Maybe time to haul it out and flail a bit at work.
A brief chance to show off one of my favorite TED talks:
http://www.ted.com/talks/vs_ramachandran_the_neurons_that_shaped_civilization.html
This might explain why writing the numbers or visualizing activates the same parts of the brain that doing it does.
And the blog has me sold in terms of ordering the DVD and stuff as soon as I can, although I’m torn between it and Havi’s yoga DVDs that don’t suck set.
Twitter: humanbeingblog
I made a spreadsheet with the patterns. It made my brain happy to see the patterns all nice and neat, and it made the Dance not so scary to do. Because I don’t have to boot up the DVD every day, I’m doing it more. I have a printout on my office bulletin board, and one on my dressing table. I love having it be portable until it becomes ultra-portable in my brain.
Level 1 and proud–I realize that’s where I’m failing. Not being where I am and being OK with it. I don’t like being bad at anything.
Lynn @ human, being´s last blog ..Days of Grace: 300/365
Wow.
Bam.
So you know how I ended that with “if only I had an extra well-rested half hour in the mornings”?
I just realized that I do. My morning routine has changed slightly and now on most mornings I have that time. It wasn’t even a Very Personal Add. Really! Of course, after reading everyone’s comments and going on retreat I’m less concerned about doing it the “normal” way, but I just realized I now have that opportunity to make it a more regular practice.
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Twitter: gement
Thank you so much for this. I had looked and looked for reassurance on doing it without the DVD and without the traditional flailing, and you’re describing my practice exactly. (I’ve been scared and discouraged by a lack of apparent epiphanies, but with your example I can soldier on until they turn up.)