No Self-Examination

Finding hope in a difficult situation

- Smt. Geetu Kalani

Let us practice Yoga sincerely, regularly without any expectation till an inner strength is built up deep within, which we need not announce.” - Dr Jayadeva Yogendra, Editorial, Yoga and Total Heath, November 2008

I was aware of The Yoga Institute in 1991 as I moved to Mumbai for my higher education to pursue a B.Sc in Microbiology. Due to some health issues, my uncle went to The Yoga Institute for guidance. I keenly saw and read the yoga material given to him, only to tell myself, “The Asanas look very easy!” That was the first opportunity sent by God or Existence to go to the Master but I was not ready!

The second opportunity to learn Yogasana and Pranayama came under Shri Ambika Yoga Kutir, at the factory premise of the erstwhile German Remedies, a pharmaceutical company that had sponsored me for an MBA under the German system. The Production Manager, Mr. Shukla, had taken the initiative for all employees – including management and workers – to learn Yoga. This was in 1994. I discovered how flexible I was and could do difficult Asanas with ease, so much so that my then Manager from the HR department and workers from the company union would stop and look at me. After a while, I became conscious of the unnecessary attention I was drawing to my body as a young girl of twenty-one. I stopped going to the classes as what I had learnt was sufficient for me; I didn’t feel like learning more even though the Manager urged me to pursue it further.