Bikram Bookworm

I'm a bookworm and I cannot thank my father enough for instilling in me the love of books and reading. My first memory of reading is one of my brothers reading to me and having me repeat the words. If I remember right, I believe I was probably around 3 years old at the time. My favourite memory is of my Dad coming home from work one evening, with a brown paper bag in his hand. It contained a book, a storybook published by Ladybird books. I LOVED that book; I wish I can remember which one it was. I still have some of those books from my childhood and they occupy a special place in my bookshelf and in my heart.

When I started my Bikram Yoga journey in June 2009, and realised right after my first class that this would be THE workout/exercise routine I will be doing on a regular basis, I felt the need to read up on it. I didn't waste time borrowing Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class and Bikram Yoga: The Guru Behind Hot Yoga Shows the Way to Radiant Health and Personal Fulfillment. The former is a very useful guide on how to execute the postures, plus anecdotes from students and quotes from Bikram Choudhury himself talking away during class! I consider it a manual. The latter is quite similar, but it is just Bikram talking: about his life, his childhood, his journey. I feel more enlightened now about the bigger picture of Bikram Yoga. It is more than just executing the postures properly. It is more than just a physical workout. It is about being in the moment, honouring yourself, your talents, your gifts, unleashing whatever special attributes you have and living it inside AND outside of the hot room. The more you place value on yourself, the more you will place value on others.