“Why are we doing yoga? For health reasons? Perhaps a walk in the park would be better. Out of sense of duty and discipline. Or for some obligation towards ourselves? No, nothing of the kind. No motivation, no aims, only an agreeable appointment for the body to look forward to. We do it for the fun of it. To twist, stretch, and move around is pleasant and enjoyable, a body holiday.” By Vanda Scaravelli
I love this quote by Vanda Scaravelli because it reminds me of what yoga is really all about – a holiday for the body. Vanda Scaravelli’s approach continues to inspire me and the classes I teach. So who was Vanda Scaravelli and what made her so special?
Vanda Scaravelli was born in Florence in 1908 and her early life was very much influenced by music – later she became a concert pianist. She was introduced to BKS Iyengar, a world famous yoga teacher, by the violinist Yehudi Menuhin. And thus she took up yoga late in life, in her 40-es. Iyengar became a friend of the family and taught Vanda for many years.
She learned the importance of the breath or pranayama, which became one of the principle themes in Vanda’s teaching, developing her ideas surrounding the breath, gravity and the spine.
Vanda Scaravelli’s key observation was that the human spine has a natural division (at the fifth lumbar vertebrae) which allows it to move in opposite ways simultaneously: from the waist downwards pulled by gravity and from the waist upwards, through the top of the head, lifting us upwards effortlessly.
And so, she had found a way of working with the body to do the posture as opposed to using muscular effort and will-power. Vanda writes so beautifully , “Elongation and extension can only occur when the pulling and pushing has come to an end; this is the revolution.”
Vanda lived and taught yoga until the old age of 91. She remained very supple and physically active. On the above photo Vanda is 83.
