The Journey of a LIFETIME

HEATHER MASON is a yoga therapist who has pioneered yoga and mindfulness in the healthcare sector, including for the National Health Services in the United Kingdom. Here, she is interviewed by EKTA BOUDERLIQUE of the Heartfulness Yoga Academy in the Yoga 4 Unity 2022 program.

- EKTA BOUDERLIQUE

Q: Welcome, Heather. Thank you for being with us.

Thank you so much. It’s a delight.

Q: How were you introduced to yoga?

I started practicing yoga in 1996, when I was 19, while studying in India, but it was really in 2000, when I went to Asia and Southeast Asia to work on my mental health, that I developed an appreciation of what yoga could offer. I was a gymnast, so at first I thought yoga was an adult form of gymnastics. It took some time to understand the real value.

Q: What is the aspect of yoga that has attracted you the most?

First and foremost, the philosophy. For so many people it’s the movement, the idea of doing all these interesting poses, whereas I have always been drawn to the concept of oneness, to the dispelling of the illusion of the mind. From a young age, I have known that the mind can envision things that are not the truth. I wanted a practice that would allow me to cultivate wisdom and let go of confused and false views. Later, I understood that wisdom is also supported through movement, through breath work, through the further cultivation of the yamas and niyamas, the disciplines and observances.

So it is really the philosophy. I always had an inkling that there was something more than mundane reality. I have always questioned the nature of truth. I went to Costa Rica when I was 18, took a malarial medication, and had a really bad reaction to it. It led me to realize that there is not always stability in the mind. It was quite an intense realization for a young person to have; I really thought I was crazy.