lingua franca

It's been really challenging maintaining an asana practice while being in school. At least I value what I'm learning right now. I haven't been to a class I wasn't forced to be in for over a week. It's funny how there's consensus about getting to class being the biggest challenge - it's really the truth. (Does anyone else identify with this?) Who hasn't thought "Oh, I know how to do a few vinyasas and sun salutes. Why bother driving to the studio when I can do this at home"?? Unfortunately, I usually compress a proper class into 3 minutes of adho mukha svanasana (downward facing dog), utanasana (forward bend), and adho mukha vrksasana (handstand). Nevermind that I don't really do any official sequences at home.



So what is Sanskrit, beyond the language of krishna tongues and yoga poses? On second thought, I'll leave that to the wikis, though I really do intend to read more. I've noticed my own teachers always use both English and Sanskrit names for all the poses. I'm glad my teacher James Brown has a pretty good grasp of the lingo (at least, as it pertains to yoga) that almost noone in the world can speak. I'm lost without a dictionary...apparently, he said, the University of Cologne has the most comprehensive Sanskrit dictionary in the world. I promise I'll be there too, since I'm that special brand of gabacho who can only brave slurring through foreign vocabulary in my head.