It may seem obvious that if we want to learn we need to be curious. But curiosity is not just about the desire to learn. It's also about the state of mind one needs to be in to learn. 

Curiosity is the drive to seek out more information, understanding or experience about a topic or practice that is of personal interest. There doesn't need to be a reason why that particular topic is of interest. Curiosity can appear to come out of nowhere or seem unrelated to other parts of one's life. It can be standalone force that finds us and points us in a particular direction. 

That is one part of curiosity. There is another. 

The second, and more important part, is the ability to then approach the topic or practice of interest with curiosity. Meaning, we have to set aside why we think we are interested in it, and what we think we will learn.

​If we do not set aside preconceived notions of what we will find, we will be blinded by them. We will make the new information fit into what we already think about it, rather than allow it to open us up to new possibilities. 

This means that what we will find is out of our control. Once curiosity takes over, it's out of our hands. We have to be open to the fact that what we learn might feel disappointing and frustrating rather than liberating and exciting. It may conflict with what we already think we know, instead of taking us further down the path of understanding that we think we are on. 

This is all an important part of the process. ​If we already knew where our curiosity would lead, we wouldn't need to seek out the information.

To be truly curious is to seek knowledge and experience and to accept it with all of the challenges it will bring to us-- this is how we make progress. 

Until now, we've focused on repetition, frequency and precision. The last aspect of practice we will add is appropriateness.

We must practice what is challenging but also approachable. If something is too easy, we don't make progress. If it is way too hard, it won't be possible to practice it.

We have to find the sweet spot where it is challenging but within reach. This area changes as we progress. What was once out of reach becomes possible. We must always make sure that what we are practicing is challenging for us, but also possible for where we are at.

If you struggle with a posture or practice, try a simpler version. This means, remove an element of complexity either depth, or an aspect of the pose. If you feel that something is not challenging, try a more complex version. 

The space for progress is endless. We must find where we are on the path. 
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Practice is a word that is used constantly. Everyone agrees it is a necessary part of progress. Rarely however, does practice get broken down and explained effectively. This results with many of us putting in immense amounts of time and not making the progress we think we should be making. Over the next few weeks we will explore the parts of practice. 

The first part of practice is repetition. Repetition means that we have to do the things we want to get better at, more than one time.

This is essentially doing second, third or forth sets when it comes to postures. We require muscle memory to carry out any skill, be it postures, artwork, cooking, etc. We must develop the right touch, right amount strength,  right effort, and all of that takes muscle memory. Muscle memory develops with the use of repetition. 

After we can sufficiently do something (an asana, etc), one repetition can be enough for maintenance. A skilled artist can make their art at the drop of a hat, a skilled athlete can perform on command, but that's because they've already repeated the task (practiced it!) an immense amount of times. We won't get better doing something only one time.

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Often in the yoga world, we talk about things like "going deeper". Many talk about the desire to take their practice to a deeper level. Yet, often this all translates into deepening the postures. With so much discussion about depth, we don't often take the time to ask:  What does depth really mean?

When it comes to asana the obvious answer seems to be trying to get yourself into the "deepest," or most advanced expression of the pose. But is this actually depth?

Could the deepest version of a pose mean the most correct engagement? If so, the visual aspect of a pose could have very little to do with depth. 

Does deepest mean the most muscular engagement at one time? If so, then the deepest poses could be Peacock or Palmstand. 

Is depth even about physical performance? Is it awareness, subtlety? What do we actually mean by depth? 

This is a big topic and likely the answer changes with time. It's worth considering, what does depth mean to you? If the answer that arises remains vague, consider that the answer to that might not be in the body or physical postures. 
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Here is the panel that Ida participated in on "Foregotten Foremothers". She spoke about the Ghosh yogi Reba Rakshit. She spoke alongside historian and author Sudhir Chandra. The conversation was moderated by Vikram Iyengar.

​Enjoy! 

This year, Ida will be speaking at the Kolkata Lit Meet. She is part of a panel talking about "Forgotten Foremothers" including Reba Rakshit. 

If you haven't read Strong Woman Reba Rakshit yet, you can get your copy here. It's the story of a star, a yogi, a circus performer and stunt woman from the mid-twentieth century. Reba Rakshit was a student of Bishnu Charan Ghosh and Ghosh's Yoga College. She was one of the early female, physical yogis in India. 

For more details on the panel and the whole literature festival, visit this link: kolkatalitmeet.in/2025/