Savasana

I recently went to an amazing workshop at Bloom with Leslie Howard called The Last Savasana. Leslie focuses on both pelvic floor yoga and Savasana. The parts of the body related to creation and birth, and the pose related to death. She’s got us covered full circle. 😉

She created space for a topic a lot of people avoid discussing: death.

In the past handful of years, my friends and I have become comfortable talking about death. Not because we wanted to, but because it became a common part of life. Both of my parents, my father-in-law, and my uncle died within an 18-month span in 2020–2021. Many close friends lost parents in that time period too. Lots of real-world experience with Savasana. (Not to mention a global pandemic.) It was sad and it provided lots of reflection, bonding, and learning.

Fortunately, I was able to get back east in time to be with my dad for three nights before he passed, since it was before the pandemic shutdown. (And I was prepared for the realities of the process thanks to an incredible book, Advice for Future Corpses (and Those Who Love Them) by Sallie Tisdale.)

According to his doctor, my dad was in a “deep coma.” My cousin and I noticed that he responded to conversation and other inputs. You could feel his energy shift depending on the people and tone in the room, or when lifelong friends whispered memories and I-love-yous as we held the phone to his ear. Tears rolled down his cheeks when we played one of his favorite Byzantine hymns. He could not verbally communicate but he had responses, there was some level of awareness. It was sad and fascinating.

He was here, and he was somewhere else.

Not unlike Savasana at the end of a yoga class.

In class, Savasana is more than just relaxing and zoning out at the end of practice. It’s a way to practice pratyahara (sensory withdrawal), to release to an in-between space. It might also allow you to notice how your yoga practice reflects a life cycle. Think about the end of a yoga class, and how you often you roll out of Savasana into fetal pose — ready to come back to life again.

Leslie’s workshop was beautiful and life-affirming. When we think about death, we tend to think of practical things: powers of attorney, lists of accounts. There are lots of important details to gather for your loved ones, but what about the things that really matter? Is there anyone you want to talk to, or reconcile with, before you die? Do you have any unfinished business? What do you want your legacy to be? What teachings or qualities do you hope to pass on to your loved ones?

She had us move through different versions of Savasana, with journaling prompts along the way to consider these life legacy aspects.

Now that my son is a young adult, my husband and I have been updating our estate plan, and it was so meaningful to think about the non-administrative side — to get clarity on what I want our kid to know, beyond the emergency items like “where to find the account info” and “who to notify.”

The journaling helped me picture it all, like a little movie.

As I continue to process the loss of my loved ones, the workshop gave me space to think about the end of life in a more holistic way. More like a story — one that started long before my parents and will continue long beyond my son.

Thankfully, at this point in my life, Savasana is a symbolic pose only (knock wood!). One that gives me time to rest, to spend a little time “in between” and come back with renewed perspective on how I want to live.

(Thank you to Zac Taheriyan on Unsplash for the photo.)