Community

This month, I’ve been musing on something that feels essential to yoga, sangha, or
kula meaning community.

Yoga isn’t just about the poses we practice in a heated room. It isn’t just about flexibility
or strength. Yoga runs much deeper than that. At its core, it is about connection, to
ourselves, and to one another. It asks us to consider how we move through the world
and how our actions affect the people around us.

So I find myself wondering: Can we truly call ourselves yogis if we’re not working toward creating a better community?

A couple of years ago, I traveled to Vrindavan in India, and I witnessed sangha in a way that changed me forever. The Vrindavan Parikrama is a sacred pilgrimage walk that circles the holy town. Each day, thousands of devotees walk roughly seven miles in devotion, chanting, praying, singing, or moving quietly in reflection. The walk itself takes about two to three hours.

 But what moved me most wasn’t just the walking.

 Some pilgrims choose to perform what’s called Dandavat Parikrama in devotion to
Krishna.“Dandavat” comes from danda, meaning stick. The body lies flat like a staff. The
practice looks like this:

 They stand with folded hands in prayer.
They fully prostrate, lying flat on the ground with arms extended.
They mark the spot where their fingertips reach.
They stand.
They step forward to that mark.
And then they prostrate again.

They repeat this for the entire seven-mile journey. It can take days. Weeks. Sometimes longer.

And this is where I saw community in its purest form. When these men and women grow hungry, they simply sit quietly on the dusty roadside. They do not ask. They do not beg. They do not call attention to themselves. And the community brings food. Water appears. Care shows up. Without announcement. Without transaction. Without expectation.

That image has stayed with me.

Can you imagine a community or a world where we cared for one another in that way? Where needs were met not because someone demanded it, but because we were paying attention?

To me, that is yoga.

It’s not just what happens on the mat. It’s how we show up for each other. It’s how we serve. It’s how we build something bigger than ourselves.

At Ignite, we aim to create space for this spirit of community. One that welcomes you exactly as you are, whether you seek connection or quiet personal practice. A modern expression of an ancient truth: we belong to one another.