Taoist Yoga is not a set of postures. Rather, it is a system of concepts that can be used to describe the tissues and energies of the human body. These same concepts have been developed in the Orient for thousands of years and have been used to describe every field of human activity, from social order to physical health, mental training, and the liberation of the spirit. They have even been used to describe the formation of the Universe. A set of concepts so rich in application is worthy of our study and can reward us with insights into both the physical and mental aspects of our Yoga practice.
The grandest concept of Taoism is that of Yin/Yang and their unification in the great Tao. All things can be described by contrasting their Yin/Yang aspects. The Yin aspect of something is whatever is hidden, dark, stable, inert. The Yang aspect of something is whatever is light, bright, revealed, and mobile. The Yang side of the cup that I hold is the side I can see; the Yin side of the cup is the side I cannot see. If I am looking at the front of the cup that is its Yang side and the back is its Yin. If I turn the cup around then its Yin/Yang aspects have changed places. I will never be able to see both sides of the cup at the same time. So how do I know they belong together? Such knowledge depends upon my comprehension of the cup's "Tao"-the full nature of its Yin and Yang.
This simple exercise in perception is more important to Taoist philosophy than it at first appears. It demonstrates that seemingly different things are in fact aspects of the same object, even things that seem "opposite." We cannot inhale and exhale at the same time yet both are part of the Tao of breathing. We cannot contract and relax our muscles at the same time yet both are part of the Tao of movement. This alternation of Yin/Yang principles also applies to Yoga poses. Certain poses can be done a Yin way, with muscles relaxed, or a Yang way, with muscles contracted. They are both part of the Tao of Yoga.
To better understand the Yin/Yang forms of Yoga we should elaborate the Yin/Yang natures of the muscles, tendons, fascia, and ligaments we are stretching when doing poses. Yin tissues are relatively "dry," inelastic, and stable. The fascia and ligaments of the body are Yin. If we want to train them safely, we must hold our Yoga poses for a long time with muscles relaxed. Yang tissues are relatively "wet," elastic, and malleable. Muscles and their tendons are Yang. A muscle is 60% water when at rest and up to 90 percent water when it is "pumped up" by exercise. The more fluid in a muscle, the more easily it stretches. When practicing a Yang pose, we can pump up our muscles by alternately contracting and relaxing them. This makes them temporarily more elastic and easier to stretch.
Yin Yoga postures are done on the floor and target the connective tissues of the hips, thighs, and lower spine. These areas must be pliable if someone wants to sit comfortably in meditation.
The Square Pose is one of the poses that especially targets the hips. Sit with one leg placed over the other as shown on page 47 of Yin Yoga. Be careful not to pull the feet in toward the hips, but instead, keep the ankles over the knees. Your upper knee may not touch the foot underneath it. By gently leaning forward, the stress comes on the hip and lateral thigh. Try to maintain the pose for three to five minutes. If there is any strain on the knee, stop and try to reposition the leg at a different position and angle. The target is the hip and thigh, not the knee.
Simple Forward Bend, shown on page 51 of Yin Yoga, is a pose that can be done in a Yin or a Yang way. Sitting on the floor with our legs stretched in front of us, we lean forward and try to catch hold of our feet. Rather than alternately contracting and relaxing the muscles and inching deeper into the pose, which would be the Yang way to do Forward Bend, we would relax the muscles of the spine and legs and gently hold the pose for several minutes. This Yin form stretches the ligaments and fascia of the pelvis and lumbar spine.
Many people believe that the Yin tissues of the body do not stretch or contract, and therefore trying to stretch them is unnecessary or dangerous. The origin of this myth lies in the cursory treatment given to connective tissue in medical texts. The very name "connective tissue" is misleading. My teacher, Dr. Motoyama, has demonstrated that Chi, the life force that is the foundation of Oriental Medicine, runs through specific channels in the connective tissue. So "connective tissue" is actually a vitally important conduit of life energy and should be called "meridian tissue." It is a basic theory of Oriental Medicine that Chi circulation tends to stagnate at the joints. This is no surprise, since the joints are the sites of the densest Yin tissues-fascia and ligaments. If these tissues are not stimulated, Chi stagnation is inevitable.
Modern research has revealed another reason why we should gently stretch our connective/meridian tissue: it is actively shrinking all the time. This shrinking becomes so pronounced as we age that the ligaments wrapped around our spines can literally crush the weakened vertebrae. We don't notice it as much when we are young because our bones are stronger and our Yin tissues are "wetter." The shrinking of Yin tissue is labeled "contracture" by Dr. Laury Dahners of the University of North Carolina. We routinely make use of massage, acupuncture, and Yoga to relax our muscles but chronic contracture of Yin tissue is just as undesirable. To relax Yin contracture, we must maintain a gentle stretch for several minutes. When unnecessary muscle tension is released, we feel as if a weight has been lifted. In a similar way, when we release Yin tissue contracture, we are filled with a sense of ease and peace. So, counter to popular myth, Yin forms of Yoga are not dangerous. They are time-tested techniques that keep Yin tissues from painfully shrink-wrapping our joints.
Another reason to alternate poses in Yin and Yang ways is to alter the flow of Chi. By alternating Yin and Yang forms of Yoga, we can move Chi into and out of different channels and thereby change our thoughts and emotions. When we are creative, ambitious, and extroverted, the Chi is moving in the blood and muscles: Yang tissue. When we are content, peaceful, and introspective, the Chi is moving through connective tissue: Yin tissue. By adapting the appropriate Yin/Yang form of a pose, we can encourage those mental and emotional states we wish to cultivate.
