The Wave and the Ocean is a filmed talk given by yoga renowned yoga instructor Erich Schiffmann at his 10-day teacher training in June 2006. The talk is subtitled is “yoga philosophy made simple,” and it is truly a straightforward presentation meant to communicate the meaning of yoga to others. Erich makes the point that meditation is the main strategy of yoga, but he maintains that meditation is performed not only though the experience of sitting but also through the practice of asana as well as the act of moving through everyday life—or, in other words, all the time. Using a white board, Erich draws three waves, explaining that while each represents specific and unique self-expression and is different from the others, all three represent the entire ocean. Through continued use of this metaphor, Erich talks about how our ego is the line which separates the individual wave from the rest of the ocean, whereas yoga is the wave relaxing into itself, experiencing the depth of the ocean, and having access to all of the love that is available there. In other words, the combination of being/existing and now/consciousness leads to bliss/joy, as represented by the Sanskrit term “sat-chit-ananda.”As you can probably tell from my unimpressive summary above, I’m no philosopher—but Erich is, which is why you should listen to what he has to say. This talk lasts a little over an hour, with the last 25 minutes or so dedicated to questions and other discussion from students in the class (most of the students’ comments appear as subtitles on screen, although some statements are either not translated or marked “inaudible”). I would recommend this video to anyone who is looking for a simple introduction to the meaning of yoga or who simply enjoys listening to Erich’s soothing voice.
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