My student, Murthy, and the art of rolling gracefully from the headstand

Murthy is a quiet sort. If you announce a meditative class then, u are glad he is in it because his energy is very gentle, calm, soothing. He wants his little corner, occasionally be allowed to throw admiring glances at those who are doing some poses better than him (though I sometimes muzzle him there, because, of course not all like to be looked at while doing a crow:). He will do only what is asked of him, and not get too elaborate.  And though yoga classes can be where u meet interesting people, often, he just dashes in and dashes out of my classes, very shy:)

The only thing he may ask for, if he permits himself that luxury, is adequate space to roll off from a headstand, gracefully. With him, my voice is goodnaturedly despotic, because one, of course, I don't want him to roll down a headstand, however graceful!!  Two, because he is a Sivananda TTC graduate, one qualified/certified to teach, so I expect him to push himself harder, than other students, into some poses!

He comes daily, for both Mon-Wed-Fri and Tues-Thurs in the evenings.Since he works on shifts, he may do mornings sometimes, in which case, he comes six times a week.Occasionally, if I am not attentive, after a class, he may duck and touch my feet, embarrassing me no end! Because, of course, heavens, I am not that sort of pedestal-seated/halo-tainted  yoga teacher...

He tells me he learnt the headstand with me, and the crow and the wheel:) And most other `advanced' poses. Sometimes, when I have pushed him too hard, I laugh, to relieve his tension, and say, "Hey Murthy, u are going to assist me when I start my center, na? He smiles. But yes, if I start a center, I may like to have people like him about, gentle, to temper my own whirlwind temperament.

Oh, and he has made falling from the headstand into a perfect art form. Rima Ray also does that -- a soft, gentle rolling down, backwards... it amazes me. Theoretically, that is the way u must drop into the headstand. My counter to that has been, if u only had that sort of control, why should u fall? Seems I was wrong:) So these two, and yes, I recall Arvind, who had disappeared after a short stint with me, who execute this soft fall from the headstand. I always thudded backwards, when I fell, hard on my back, sometimes upper back, sometimes lower back, sometimes the feet, or sometimes my butt, always shocking my system and my ego, no doubt ... but never so beautifully as these soft gentle souls do it:  which may explain why I don't fall now, from the headstand. Those who roll down gently --they somehow, keep on doing it! With me, somewhere, the pain became a brake perhaps:)

Below, u can watch Murthy, go up into the headstand, attempt the butterfly and roll down from the headstand...looking more embarrassed than  surprised!