Reflections on International Yoga Day

A Quiet Revolution Within

Sunday, June.21st is International Yoga Day. I have been reflecting on the concepts & ideas behind celebrating this day; maybe a little differently :)

Maybe some of you will agree, some will disagree; the Sadhana will continue after tomorrow too :)

For 28 years, I have been practicing yoga. For 25 years, I have had the privilege of teaching it.

The deeper I walk this path, the more I understand that the practice of Yoga is not something we display.

It is something we live.

I have never been drawn to the outward expressions of yoga—the perfect pose, the photograph, the appearance of practice. Not because they are wrong, but because the most meaningful transformations cannot always be seen.

But because Yoga, to me, is not about creating an image.

It is about creating awareness.

A photograph can capture a posture.

But it cannot capture a breath becoming steady.

A mind becoming quiet.

A heart becoming softer.

Yoga, for me, has always been a journey from the outer world to the inner one.

From doing to being.

From achievement to awareness.

From the question:

“How does my practice look?”

to the deeper questions:

“Am I kinder to my body?”

“Am I more compassionate toward my mind?”

“Am I more open in my heart?”

My own Life journey has taught me this in many ways.

Living with chronic back pain taught me Ahimsa—not forcing, not fighting the body, but learning to listen with patience and kindness.

Healing began when I stopped treating my body as something to overcome and started treating it as something to understand.

Living through the loss of my father, early in life and my mother, ten years ago, has taught me that Yoga does not remove grief. It gives us a way to sit with it.

There were days when practice was not about movement. It was simply breathing.

Simply returning.

Pranayama became a quiet companion—not to erase sorrow, but to create space around it.

A place where love and loss could exist together.

As life changes, aging, uncertainty, and unexpected turns continue to teach me Santosha—the ability to meet life as it is.

Not because everything is easy.

But because everything is part of the journey.

The body changes.

Roles change.

Life changes.

And Yoga Sadhana gently asks us:

Can we meet ourselves with kindness through every season?

Ishvara Pranidhana reminds me that surrender is not giving up.

It is trusting the unfolding of Life; even when all the plans have fallen through and the sands of change are beneath my feet..

Through all seasons, the Sadhana continues.

The breath continues.

The practice continues.

Over 25 years of teaching, I have also witnessed this same quiet transformation in so many of my students.

People often come seeking strength, flexibility, or relief from discomfort.

But the deeper changes are much more subtle.

I see growth when a student chooses a variation that honors their body.

• When they reach for a block—not because they cannot do something, but because they are listening to their body's wisdom.

• When they step out of a posture because their body is asking for rest; practicing Santosha.

• When they understand that recovery is also part of the practice.

• When they stop feeling guilty for taking a pause.

These moments may not look impressive from the outside.

But to me, these are some of the most beautiful expressions of Yoga Sadhana.

Because the practice is not about pushing beyond ourselves.

It is about developing a relationship with ourselves.

With patience.

With awareness.

With compassion.

I have seen students become stronger not only in their bodies, but in their ability to meet themselves honestly.

I have seen them move through illness, grief, stress, and life transitions with greater steadiness.

These are the victories that rarely make noise.

They are not always visible.

But they change a life.

So, on the eve of the International Yoga Day, my invitation is simple:

Come to the mat.

Come to the breath.

Come to the practice.

Not for one day; not just tomorrow or the day after;

Not for a performance.

But again and again.

Because Yoga is not only something we practice.

It is the way we learn to hold ourselves, our struggles, our joys, and our lives.

A Quiet Revolution within.

The practice is not about becoming someone else.

It is about returning, again and again, to who we truly are.