Flowing with Freedom

Encourage creativity in practice with fluid, dynamic sequences that embody the essence of freedom, personal expression and intuitive movement.

Welcome back, yogis. This month, we explored the concept of freedom as it relates to three different facets: mental clarity, physical mobility, and emotional freedom. This week we will close with a discussion about what may result upon successfully unblocking the mind, relaxing the body, and allowing love and joy to flow more easily: creativity. 

On the act of creating

I began participating in Sui’s Ally program this month, sharing my time and writing in exchange for access to the yoga studio. Much to my surprise, I gained so much more beyond this simple transaction and have a newfound appreciation for the simple beauty and power of practicing yoga. Between the physiological benefits of movement, grounding effect of focusing on my asanas, the handful of Sui Release Breathwork classes I took (and cried through), and the simple practice of creating on a consistent basis – I feel much lighter after four weeks of engaging with the subject of freedom and and practicing yoga more consistently at Sui.

Creativity and freedom

Creativity is much more accessible than we think it is – it is not some special talent reserved for a lucky few but rather a muscle that we can strengthen like any other. Take yoga for example. Here, there is also space to be an artist in your own yoga practice. This month, I have been finding joy in movement: in the transitions between asanas and trying different variations, like bird of paradise and side crow. I’ve been drawing and a lover of stories for as long as I can remember. Due to a combination of pressures, I stopped making art for myself for nearly ten years. And now, I feel the joy of writing and drawing again. The fear of filling a blank page doesn’t weigh as heavily on my drawing and writing hands anymore. It’s not that my abilities or admiration for the arts changed but other factors that have shifted. This is why I have come to believe that creativity is not a talent but simply an act, a relationship between yourself and the world. 

I make no claim that my writing has improved drastically over the past month, but my attitude throughout the creative process is a world apart from where I began three weeks ago. When I sit down to write, I feel lighter and each word comes easily and without judgment. While I know I will have a great deal of editing to do later, the fear does not deter me from starting. 

I used to think that this feeling of inspiration was like a rare flower blooming, fragile and hard to find. But this month has given me hope that there is so much I can do to empower my creative journey. This feeling of joy and desire to make art in all aspects of my life began emerging from the snowy landscape of a long creative winter much earlier this month. 

Creativity as a practice

Since I’ve been using the term “practice” in the context of creativity and yoga, what does it mean anyway? The way I see it, practice is an act of habitually doing something you aim to master. In my opinion, the most meaningful kind of practice is practice without judgment. There is effort involved, but no expectation of immediate perfection. 

There is also something to be said about creating your own identity and reality. Earlier this week I was catching up with an older friend who shared with me that when she was around my age, she admired people who always remembered others’ birthdays. Then, she realized that she could be that person too! If you want to express yourself creatively, you can simply start doing it: drawing, painting, dancing, DJ-ing, singing, sewing, coding, or whatever method speaks to you. There is no prerequisite, a degree or a gene that is required. As long as you are doing it, who’s to say that you are not being creative? 

Creativity, spirituality, and yoga

A book that has influenced my thinking about creativity and creative blocks is the seminal The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. If you feel like you are creatively blocked, this book has been recommended to me as a guide to creativity recovery/discovery and breaks it down into a “teachable, trackable, spiritual process.” If you are trying to determine if you have a creative block, Cameron writes that the presence of jealousy is a helpful clue that one may be present. 

According to Cameron, everyone can be creative – the question is not if you are creative but rather how you can unblock, discover, free, welcome-back, embrace your creativity. Below are Cameron’s basic principles of creativity. Because The Artist’s Way is essentially a spiritual path that is initiated and practiced through creativity, Cameron refers to “God” throughout the text. While she encourages the reader to be open-minded, you are also free to substitute God with good orderly direction, flow, creative energy or even spiritual electricity. To paraphrase Cameron, the point is not what you name “God” but that you try using it. Like with any practice, there is a certain amount of trust in the process involved. In Cameron’s words, “Just as doing Hatha Yoga stretches alter consciousness when all you are doing is stretching, doing the exercises in this book alters consciousness when “all” you are doing is writing and playing.”

Basic Principles of Creativity from The Artist’s Way

1. Creativity is the natural order of life. Life is energy: pure creative energy.
2. There is an underlying, in-dwelling creative force infusing all of life — including ourselves
3. When we open ourselves to our creativity, we open ourselves to the creator’s creativity within us and our lives
4. We are, ourselves, creations. And we, in turn, are meant to continue creativity by being creative ourselves.
5. Creativity is God’s gift to us. Using our creativity is our gift back to God.
6. The refusal to be creative is self-will and is counter to our true nature.
7. When we open ourselves to exploring our creativity, we open ourselves to God: good orderly direction.
8. As we open our creative channel to the creator, many gentle but powerful changes are to be expected.
9. It is safe to open ourselves up to greater and greater creativity.
10. Our creative dreams and yearnings come from a divine source. As we move toward our dreams, we move toward our divinity.

When I was taking this picture on the Subway, a young artist visiting New York thanked me. Someone recommended The Artist’s Way to her but she forgot the title and had been searching for it. 

As someone undergoing creativity recovery myself, I have personally found hot yoga and breathwork to be complementary practices to this experience. What I’ve found most striking about this practice is that the concept of a second chance – unlike other aspects of life – is so central to yoga. In every practice session, you flow through Sun Salutation A multiple times and have the chance to practice sequences on both sides of the body. Repetition provides the space to observe what it feels like to progress from baby cobra to upward-facing dog within a single class or how your energy levels feel different in the moment compared to last week. 

This week, I was passing by the building across the street from Sui Yoga whose facade blooms with orange trumpet flowers every summer and I realized that I felt much lighter than when I passed by this very building two summers ago. Whether your practice is in the studio at Sui Yoga or in moments daydreaming on your daily commute, I hope that you have begun to experience more joy and freedom on the mat and beyond. 

Although they are a reliable source of greenery in the neighborhood, even these flowers change season after season.