Downward Dog
"...I bark to protect everything /I hold sacred, and when I speak to myself / I cock my head to the side and listen as if everything / I am saying needs to be heard." - Corie Feiner, from Downward Dog
Hello yogis, poets, and seekers of inspiration!
When I first started to write the poems for what would become this book, I remember thinking that I could not dare write a poem for Downward Dog. I was intimidated by this iconic pose. But there it was asking to be written, much like a dog by your side with a sweet expression of wonder and a look in her eyes that says, Don’t you want to play?
So here it is–
Perhaps today this poem will land with you on another level and inspire you to take a moment of pause to sit with your dear self and give yourself the gift of one small sip of good old fashioned self-love.
Perhaps it will inspire you to get on the mat (or the dirt) and stretch. And perhaps it will leave you contemplating what it would be like to be your own best friend.
Ready?
Downward Dog
By Corie Feiner Here, I become my own best friend. I follow myself from room to room and lick my face with love. I sit at my feet when I read and when I throw my heart away from myself, I leap to fetch it and bring it back in my panting mouth with glee. When I see danger, I bark to protect everything I hold sacred, and when I speak to myself I cock my head to the side and listen as if everything I am saying needs to be heard. When I wake up from a nap taken smack dab in the middle of the day, I rise to my hands, spread my paws, curl my toes, raise my knees, shift my stomach toward my thighs, lift my hips as high as they will go, and wag. Here, I become the union of the sun and moon, and all that appears to be opposite in this world. All my life, I was scared of dogs in the same way I was scared of myself, until, one night I came to share the same small bed with a large red dog who kept me warm and safe from my once terrifying dreams. Now, I wait for myself by the door every time I leave and when I hear the familiar jingle of my keys, I bark, so excited I have finally come home. Sanskrit Name: Adho Mukha Svanasana
Please feel free to comment even with an emoji. I love hearing your thoughts on the poem, the pose, and… anything you want to share about dogs!
Dedication
This poem is dedicated to Bogey who is the “large red dog who kept me warm and safe…” and to my oldest and dearest friend, Kristin, who turned me onto yoga several years ago. Also, I am compelled to also dedicate this poem to Benji, the companion of Yoga with Adriene who gives us permission to be distracted and still carry on with our practice.
Announcements
I am excited to share that I have started doing poetry readings, again! I will be performing a selection of poems from, A Poem for Every Pose on May 20th at the Bucks County Yoga Festival. If you are local-ish I would love to see you there!
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2 am woke and saw yoga asana. Read your poem drawn to the light of sun and moon and earth horizon downward dog. Remember the days of 🧘 yoga but why did I leave? Found disharmony. My meditations grew shallow and pebbles were tossed into streams only to be carried away by the swift currents. Life dreams pull me aside to share your passion for yoga. There are no accidents. Meant to be . I must do salutation to the sun , stay young though I am old, but not in my mind. So now I subscribe, take deep breath let the energy rise though chakras to my third eye. See the pathway to enlightenment.
I loved this, especially the part about being my own best friend. About a decade ago I had just moved to a new city on my own for the first time in my life, and I was totally overwhelmed and panicky. For the first few weeks, the only practice I could do was down-dog, child's pose, shavasana, over and over again. Your poem reminded me that the down dog was what helped me come back to myself in that new place. Eventually I settled in and discovered a yoga studio just a block away that I came to treasure, and when it came time to leave that city for home, I didn't want to go ;) Thank you Corie! PS. I always enjoy the gorgeous artwork that accompanies your poems too.