Instagram... or any Yoga Challenge: Part 2

I've done it too - yearned for the perfect image that would inspire a wider following ... But, at the end of the day, you're either living your truth or sitting with an iPhone full of fake-life images that smell like bullsh*t. 

I had hoped to find some sort of profound something with this challenge.  I didn't.  I had hoped to find more depth in postures.  Nope.

What I did learn is how to take a picture of a yoga pose that looks great.  I learned how to tag a picture to solicit more likes. I also learned which poses in the challenge to skip, because after a full day of teaching and taking class - the last thing I want to do is another inversion. Coming to terms with my own ability to say no might have been the most useful lesson of the experience (which still has 8 postures to go... and let me tell you - they're doozies).

Is this yoga?  No.  Is it hurting yoga?  Probably not.  Is it helping yoga? That's hard to say. 

On the one hand, beautiful postures are inspiring.  Maybe another future yogi will lay down their mat after viewing an image.  On the other hand, lighting, editing, take after take, these all cheapen the "moment" of yoga.  Instagram is anything BUT in the moment.  When we can filter our life, crop out the clutter and delete the uglies - we're manufacturing truth.  

Trust me, I've done it too - yearned for the perfect image that would inspire a wider following.  But what I've realized is this.  As with many things, it all comes down to intention.  Why we do something is equally important as how we do it.  At the end of the day, you're either living your truth or sitting with an iPhone full of fake-life images that smell like bullsh*t.  Authenticity is impossible to fake ... or tag.