International Womens Day and what it means to me

International Women’s Day is celebrated around the world on the 8th of March. It is a day to truly reflect on how far we have come, and how far we still have to go to achieve gender equality. Personally, I feel so blessed to work in an environment where women play such vital role. The yoga world is filled with empowering and inspirational women.

For me the yoga space is sacred, it is a place where women can come together without ego, competitiveness, inequality or fear. It is a space where women can simply be.

Today, in Western culture yoga has a reputation as a female-dominated practice. However, up until the 1930's classic yoga was a male-only practice. The “first lady of yoga” Indra Devi was accepted to study under Sri Krishnamacharya in 1937. This is so surprising, because when I walk into most yoga classes there is usually a 70:30 ratio of women to men. Imagine if this gender equality existed in other areas of our life. So why is it that women have such an incredible connection to yoga?

Of course Yoga is a very good way for women to stay strong and fit. However, it not only keeps them fit in terms of their external body, but also perfectly regulates the hormonal secretions and can be very effective for addressing many mental issues like stress, depression, anxiety, etc. With a regular yoga practice women can have better physical and mental health.

Personally I feel as women we are pulled in so many directions in this fast paced world, as mothers, students, grandmothers, carers, but also with working long hours and financial burdens due to challenges in life. So coming to our yoga mats is a time to feel grounded and maybe gather perspective on life's struggles.

This year, Australia’s theme for International Womens Day is "More Powerful Together." Yoga is often used as a platform for women to come together. It gives us tools to cope in life by keeping our bodies strong and our minds calm. To me, International Womens Day is a reminder of how important yoga is in not only bringing women together, but also empowering us and allowing us to have a sense that we are all humans and deserve to be treated as equal.

As a way to thank you for taking the time to read my blog post we want to show you our appreciation by offering you a beautiful round yoga mat so you can start a home practice. See the 30% off round yoga mats offer at the end of the blog post with some photos for inspiration for a sacred home yoga space.