Erich: When I first initiated Freeform in class more than 25 years ago, a woman came up to me at the end and said, "Erich! The reason I come to class is because I want you to tell me what to do. I don't want to think about it." I totally fell for it. I thought, "Oh, you're right. My job is to tell you what to do. You're right, you're right, you're right." It was about five years before I finally got up the courage to bring it into class again.

Then, in the very first class when I reintroduced the Freeform, there was a nice man right in this seat. I explained what we were about to do, that I wasn't going to walk around and give adjustments. I wasn't going to tell anyone what to do, and in fact for these few minutes the idea was to actually listen for Inner Guidance and be willing to do exactly what you feel like doing. And, in fact, that's where you want to get with your practice, where you transcend prescribed routines and get into listening mode.

Prescribed routines are helpful, but they should help you get into listening mode, to where you start channeling it. There is nothing prescribed about that. It will feel brand new the whole time.

And so, I said to the guy, "We're going to do that, and I'm not going to be giving any human instruction at that point." He said, "And I'm paying for this? I'm paying for this?" That was the sentiment that pretty much wiped me out the first time, years prior.

But, by now, when he said, "I'm paying for this? I came to class and you're not going to tell me what to do? I could do this at home." Now I was clear that, "Yes, and this is a most significant chapter. It's an important thing that we are doing together. And what I'm telling you to do is practice listening for inner guidance. You came here to learn. That's the lesson."

It is important to not have someone yakking at you the whole time, and it is equally important to be in a room with like-minded yogis who are actually doing the same thing. It helps you get the hang of it.

And so, even if someone is resistant to Freeform, the more of us that get into it, the more it helps dissolve new peoples' resistance. And by being together like this, and practicing together like this, we are all helping one another get better at it.

Freeform is one of the major lessons in here. It is not the major lesson in class, but it is up there. If you get the hang of how to do your asana practice by channeling it, by being Online and listening for Inner Guidance and then daring to do as your heart and conscience are guiding you to do, you will then find that when you leave the room you will keep doing it. You'll drive home and it will feel like you are channeling it. And then you'll know with certainty that, "Yes, Yoga is a lifestyle. It's about being Online and channeling your life."

With Love and Pranams,

From Erich

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