Recently, at a sitting with Nishat Khan, the sitar virtuoso, he related a story of how at a performance he paused for a moment before playing a raga. The audience automatically burst into applause. He told us that in fact he was merely tuning his sitar - a complicated guitar-like instrument. However, his audience thought he had just completed a song. He went on to tell us that is take several minutes to re-tune his sitar in between songs. He explained that the sitar is an extremely complex instrument containing several parts and four joints. As a result he has to retune it after every song.

          As a chiropractor I immediately thought of the spine - the central and very complex human instrument consisting of twenty four spinal bones, twenty three discs, one hundred and thirty four joints. The spine makes up nature's most powerful and intricate architectural masterpiece. I thought about how this channel or conduit of our prana, also needs constant attention and fine tuning to allow the free flow of life force to flow through it. The state of the spine determines the state of vibration - or music - of its owner.

Although the spine is built for protection, flexibility, locomotion, respiration, it is also the means for achieving super conscious states of being - a means to tap into the inside - through this fortress of light. This light or life force (or prana, or chi) uses the nervous system to transmit life to every cell in the body. The nervous system consists of 72,000 nerve channels with the most essential, the spinal cord, or shusumna nadi, flowing down the middle. The spine is the medium to contact the Central Nerve System. Any dysfunction of the spine will lead to distortion of the nerve system. This distortion in the physical system creates a situation where the body is unable to integrate the experience.  It creates tension and the music begins to play out of key.

That is why spinal hygiene is so vital for the yoga practioner. There are plenty of opportunities for our spine to misalign and go out of key simply by our daily use of it. Thus the innate need to retune it...realign it...recalibrate it.

 The concept of yogic spinal hygiene is similar to dental hygiene. Consider the analogy of forcing a backbend in a yoga class. It is what biting down on a hard candy is to the teeth. As routine dental care preserves the teeth for healthy ongoing use, in bending the spine forward and backward, side to side and then twist to each side....delicately, the same care is accomplished with this essential instrument of well being. With this understanding, the yogi's practice might begin with an activation phase...focusing entirely on lubricating the joints. After all, the goal of the yogi is to properly move the body within a prescribed natural boundary designated by their only innate genetic architecture, not what the person in front of them can do.

Some yogis push their spine to the extreme. The result is usually a straining/ spraining effect of the spine and its related structures. The solution is to eradicate the irritation of the deranged joints, remove pressure of the strangulated nerves, decrease the spasmodic contraction of the muscles which would result in pure harmonious movement of the joints, optimal tone/ tension of the muscles, and a free flow of nerve energy to every cell in the body. Once all the joints are lubed up, the next element could be to engage in their normal standard hatha practice.

          Chiropractic along with yoga are essentials to tuning the instrument on a structural and energetic level. Both provide the essential ingredients for a healthy spine...movement. Without movement, or with trauma, the spine degenerates and can interfere with the transmission of life music.

The solution is to unlock the spinal bones in a specific and scientific manner, like an activation/ lube-up phase (or a chiropractic adjustment) and then move with intelligence so the energy gets deposited in the right places and in the right concentrations.

Unlike a beautiful string instrument, we are dealing with a living structure. The integrity of our spine is of supreme importance to our life expression. If we activate our spines in a prescribed sequential order, it will not only be great for the integrity of our entire physiology, but it will make our yoga practice more malleable, stronger and  perhaps most importantly.... more fun.

See you at the concert!

LA YOGA MAGAZINE

 
Check out his article written about chiropractic and yoga by Felicia Tomasko from LA Yoga Ayurveda & Health Magazine

Our upright spine is one of the hallmarks of our human body, and one for which an owner's manual might be welcome. Yoga practice and the science of chiropractic have the potential to serve as that missing manual. Both methodologies are focused on the idiosyncracies of the spine and how to maintain the optimal alignment, health and well-being of this crucial living structure.

Los Angeles chiropractor and yoga therapist Dr. Jeremy Brook describes the two methodologies as being virtual brothers and sisters. Both address alignment, structural integrity and the nervous system from the perspectives of physical, psychological and spiritual wellness.

Integrating the two disciplines, a number of chiropractic doctors practice or teach yoga themselves, and even present information on the spine and its mechanics at yoga teacher and therapist training programs. Dr. Brook is one example of a teaching chiropractor, enlightening yogis and teachers as to the anatomical and energetic nature of human anatomy and physiology, including the spine.

Few chiropractic colleges offer yoga, which would be a helpful addition to their programs. Dr. Brook reports that he studied yoga on his own, partially in an effort to recover from rugby injuries. He found the two came together naturally. Because of this natural affinity, interest in yoga by chiropractic colleges is increasing. Dr. Rick Morris, who contributes his expertise to the yoga therapy program at Loyola Marymount University, has developed a yoga video geared toward chiropractic students.

Although yoga is much more than simply moving the body, in the physical realm, both yoga and chiropractic science share similar goals of maintaining mobility of bones, joints, muscles and especially the spine. To accomplish this, the two practices can work together to create harmony in the body-mind. There are times when a yoga practice or even a therapeutic application may not be enough to adjust a fixated, out of alignment or immovable segment of a joint, including the multifaceted joints of the vertebral column. At least, not so the change takes hold. In these situations, a skilled chiropractic adjustment can set things right and realign bones and joints.

In this fashion, Dr. Brook sees chiropractic adjustment as a precursor to yoga. Working with a skilled chiropractor can help unlock a specific bone that's stuck and jammed, can realign the spine and can help the body move with intelligence. For maintaining that intelligence on a day-to-day basis, yoga reigns supreme, says Dr. Brook.

A chiropractic adjustment often needs to be accompanied by postural corrections, mind-body education and changes in habitual patterns for a lasting effect. While chiropractors frequently employ visualization and other mind-body techniques to assist an adjustment, Dr. Rick Morris admits to the limitations of a chiropractor, particularly in their available time for physical reeducation. "Not all chiropractors have an hour to spend with you." Additionally, a chiropractor's knowledge of yoga varies widely. Some doctors, such as Jeremy Brook, have enough expertise to suggest poses and practices. Dr. Morris suggests that other doctors would do well to partner with an experienced yoga teacher or therapist to provide an educational supplement for an expert adjustment.

"Life is a constant vinyasa."

Along these lines, there are times when yoga practice should be avoided or curtailed when working with a chiropractor. According to Dr. Morris, these situations occur primarily in the acute phase of an injury, which is generally during an injury's initial few weeks. A person might not be ready for yoga classes that offer a full range of postures until some healing and adjustment takes place. A restorative practice may be an exception and expert guidance to choose the most appropriate practice is critical.

Dr. Morris cites one of the benefits of an appropriate yoga practice as being the relaxation and focus obtained when coordinating breath and movement. Since the vertebral column, the skeletal structure of the spine, interfaces with the nervous system, breath affects physiology and psychology. Breath also influences the subtle or energetic body through the movement of prana.

Prana in Sanskrit means both breath and life force. In yoga, the spine is the conduit for the movement of prana through the nadis, or subtle channels of the body. Prana is often coordinated with our human electrical currents. Misalignments in the physical structure can interfere with this flow and the associated movement of prana. Dr. Brook muses that the spine is a precious instrument, one that enjoys greater longevity with careful playing.

"Life is a constant vinyasa," says Dr. Brook. We are always sequencing from one movement to another, from the moment we get out of bed, as we flow through the activities of our day. Vinyasa with grace, accompanied by a sense of unimpeded and painless movement is essential to live joyfully and well in our bodies.