One of the greatest lessons yoga has taught me is that of balance: there is a time to hold and a time to release -- a time to harden and a time to soften -- a time to hug inward and a time to pulse outward.
The asanas are a great way to feel out the principle of balance. In each posture, we are given the chance to feel out the areas in which we need to hold muscle energy as well as the areas wherein we can soften; usually this is tied to the breath -- inhale to pull muslce to bone, exhale to soften. And while this is a very physical, tangible practice, there are applications of the idea that extend far beyond the mat.
In the picture above, the principle of midline is what allows for the "lift" in the pose rather than the "sink" that you see in many beginner crescent lunges (where the back knee is dropped and the energy is in sinking through the pelvis rather than rising out of it) -- without hugging midline, the pose is less pretty and aligned, but more importantly it puts you at risk of tweaking a hip or knee. Midline energy protects those more delicate body parts.
"Usually this is tied to the breath -- inhale to pull muslce to bone, exhale to soften."
On the mat, I feel this principle in action when I am going for long holds or trying a new pose. For example, the other night I was tired and when trying to hold Warrior III for 6 breaths I found that I kept wobbling and nearly losing the posture. What kept me in the posture? Rather than overcorrecting and oscillating out of the pose, I envisioned my midline and tried to ever-so-softly hug into it to give myself more stability. And I found myself thinking, "I'm so glad I was taught this" because it saves me over and over again. However, it didn't always. For the first few YEARS of my practice I didn't understand the cues relating to midline. I didn't "have a feel" for it. But because I was given the verbiage, when I did gain the feel, I knew exactly what it was. For that, I am ever grateful to Ashley, my first true yoga mentor.
Are you sitting right now? Lying down? Walking? Whatever it is, take a moment to be still (no matter what posture) and envision a line straight through the core of your body (it starts in your stomach and extends up and down from there -- through your head, between your legs -- reaching above and below you). Whatever posture you are in, feel your body hug in ever so slightly toward this line. This should be a very subtle bodily shift, but if you scan your whole body you will notice that it is fully integrated. You will also notice that as your body hugs toward this center your alignment shifts. For example, if you are sitting slouched in your chair and then you hug midline, in order for the line to be straight and hugged into from all sides, you will have to straighten your posture.
That being said, it is important to differentiate between being "in alignment" and being "straight". Many yoga poses have twists or binds involved which makes it more challenging to find the midline in those asanas. For example, let's look at the pose pictured below.
This variation of Eagle Pose has full eagle legs, complicating our midline. One way to help center onto that midline is to avoid squeezing the legs together but instead hug muscle to bone (lightly) on each indepedent leg, and then when they are crossed apply just slight pressure at any points of contact. This should not be a large exertion -- think of the slow and slight pressure you apply on your gas pedal when starting a stopped car on ice; control is found in the subtlest of changes. As you are doing this, make sure you that you are maintaining a slow, steady breath. Your breath allows you to feel all the way through the pose and maintain balance when you do find it, so be sure to give it the attention it deserves. Plus, holding your breath makes every pose about 23904823905 times harder.
Like mentioned above, though, this applies to off-mat-moments, too. Sometimes we benefit from hugging in and other times from softening, but always we benefit from awareness of the midline. Off the mat, midline has less to do with one's body and more to do with one's "true self" or "inner body". So use your mat time to find the more tangible midline of yourself, but also apply this practice to the times you feel shakey or imbalanced in other aspects of your life. This is the beauty of yoga: the asanas are only the beginning.
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