Great way to start the year. Great to be around the bright eyed optimisim of yoga practitioners. And it’s great to be a part of the yoga idea; mind, body, spirit united. We all just want to make life better, more fullfilling, and happier. What could be more important? The karma is fantastic.

Met Bill Harper, publisher of Yoga Journal. Smart guy. I didn’t know there are 16 million yoga practitioners, and 6 billion dollars yearlyspent on yoga. But why not? We all just want to live better, and the more people who know about yoga want to try it. Why do people come to yoga? He showed stats that list flexibility number one, then stress, back problems, and weight loss.

Women practicing far outnumber men. But why? Lot of talk about this, even a discussion on the yoga man. Is it because modern man is less flexible? Generally, we guys just don’t have the flexibility in the west. We can’t do it well immediately, so we back off. It looks girlish. Yet, they say Labron James practices and I’m sure there are a lot of burly men enjoying it. But I also think it is because yoga’s benefits are seen by non-practitioners, particularly men, as mostly physical benefits. That’s far from my experience and most practitioners.

But I think many men in our culture think of themselves in physical terms first and foremost. Women think beauty too, but their soft, nututring nature are also culturally important. It comes down to this question: are we defined most by our bodies, our minds, or our spirit? Obviously, it’s not just the physical but the spiritual benefits that affect happiness and fullfillment most. Our bodies decline while our minds and spirts continue to grow and improve. (Or at least they have the potential to grow.) When men start to see yoga as an overall improvement practice, in those areas most important to success and fullfillment, they will flock to yoga studios. This message seems to get buried in the pants, mats and props yoga culture.