On meditation, diet, identity: An interview with a yogi
Daniel Miller Sandoval is a fourth-year political science and history student and serves as chairperson of the Campus Retention Committee. Click Here for more articles by Daniel Miller
I first met yogi Sayler VanMerlin two weeks ago, on the urging
of a friend who took the instructor’s Bliss Yoga class at the
Sunset Recreation Center and told me that the class was the most
unique leisure she had ever experienced.
Upon entering the Buenos Aires room at the conclusion of VanMerlin’s Monday class – he also teaches Wednesdays – I found him sitting serenely on a rubber mat, wearing a bright yellow fleece. As I approached the 33-year old yogi – VanMerlin reminds me that this was Jesus’ age when he was crucified – his students roamed about the dimly lit room, preparing to exit. I introduced myself with a handshake and the yogi held my hand just long enough to make me feel a bit strange – it seemed as if he were downloading my aura into his soul, my hand the conduit for this transfer.
Even before my first class, that initial encounter left me with a myriad of questions about Bliss Yoga – best described by VanMerlin’s catch phrase, “working smarter, not harder” – and VanMerlin himself. So, at the yogi’s suggestion he and I sat on a grassy hill near the recreation center’s pool, and I picked his brain and heart for an hour.
Daniel Miller: You have a pretty unique name; is there a story behind it?
Sayler VanMerlin: Yes, there is an interesting story. This is after years of yoga practice, when you are doing yoga you start changing from the inside out. There are obvious changes, like you become more flexible and you become more healthy and vibrant but there are inner changes too that happen in your personality. You become more sensitive and you start to notice these changes. After a while, your old name doesn’t feel right anymore, almost like that person died. I asked for a name, I asked my teacher, “Hey, will you give me a name,” and he said, “Okay, go to this Web site (he laughs). Usually they will just come right out with a name. But in this instance, you should go to this Web site, www.kabalarians.com, which calculates your name according to the time you are born.”
DM: Have you legally changed your name?
SM: I have legally changed my name one time, and I am kind of lagging behind on this one – this is not my first name change. (Laughs) Its not like I’m constantly looking for names or anything.
DM: Is your old name worth mentioning?
SM: It is a powerful name. This is more of a traditional yogi’s name, it is a two-part name, first name is Yam, last name is Bam – Yam Bam. That is my current legal name, my bank name. That name has a meaning, it (has) a sound that induces meditation, designed to purify the elements of your mind and body.
DM: During the session I noticed you had a couple of tattoos. Are they related to yoga at all?
SM: That all happened before I got into yoga. Those are things that have a deep meaning for me, even today. I could get into that if you wanted to, but they are basically seven tattoos that I got over time. In my other life.
VanMerlin is rather reticent about elaborating on his past, as he avoids directly answering questions about his life before yoga, and I wonder myself what he was doing. VanMerlin was born in Germany and moved with his family to the United States as a young boy; I imagine he was born with a more common name like Eric or Steven. Yet, it is very clear that he does not want to delve into that subject. So I focused my questions on yoga, something I have always been skeptical about. The session of Bliss yoga I attended was definitely relaxing – it is hard to turn ‘laying on a mat in a dark room’ into a stressful event. So for an hour, the students in the class breathed in and out louder than a fleet of industrial vacuum cleaners as VanMerlin called out positions in Sanskrit which sounded more like dishes one might order at an Indian restaurant. Some of the commentary that VanMerlin gave in his soothing voice seemed hokey to me, and some of the positions strange. I needed him to clarify some of the finer points of yoga.
DM: You mentioned the crown a lot, is that the head?
SM: Yes the crown is the head. If you look at the yogic map of consciousness, you start at the base of the spine and work your way up to the head. There are seven sectors of consciousness that are named chakras – these centers of consciousness cannot be seen or felt with physical instruments. It’s another thing we have to develop sensitivity to. It is a scientific fact that 90 percent of all energy (is) undetectable. Like when they take all these energy readings of the stars, they say, “Wow, we can’t even see where this is all coming from, like 90 percent of what we are getting here – the equations don’t balance.” If it is true that 90 percent of everything is invisible, obviously there must be something going on that is motivating what we see, something deeper that is causing the effects that we see.
DM: We did a pose today, called wind-relieving pose. What is that?
SM: There are several poses that work really well on the digestive system and one is called wind-relieving pose. Another one that works really well is rock pose – which is simply sitting back on your heels. When you sit that way, it really helps digestion. The yogic reason for it being called rock pose, is that it allows you to sit still as rock, and when it is perfected, the yogi can digest rocks.
The affable VanMerlin enjoys teaching at UCLA and hopes to be back next year. VanMerlin also spoke about his teacher Mursshud, a master yogi with the ability to take a vial of LSD and not be affected by it, and the Circle of Friends, a San Diego-based yoga organization with which VanMerlin is associated that has facilities in Long Beach. He was very polite and answered every question that I tossed his way, often including unusual medical facts and percentages, and surprising me with elaborate responses to my ostensibly simple questions.
DM: What kind of diet do you have?
SM: You are going to laugh; this is going to blow a lot of minds. I eat a lot of meat. That’s one of the main things – that I eat a lot of meat. In traditional Hatha yoga, it is advised to not eat meat. The reason I eat meat is because Hatha yoga is not my primary practice, my primary practice is Tibetan yoga. And in Tibetan yoga, there is a strong emphasis on meat.
DM: What is your favorite kind of meat?
SM: It is hard to pick a favorite.
DM: Perhaps you enjoy a nice steak?
SM: Steak is really good. Rare steak. Um ... (I like) turkey, chicken, I love sandwiches. (I like) any kind of sandwich with meat on it.
At one point during the interview when we were discussing the merits of wheat grass, sprinklers suddenly turned on, soaking us through and through. I quickly grabbed my tape recorder and jumped up, my heart pounding. I turned to VanMerlin who was calm and laughing loudly. I guess all that yoga does some good.
CORRECTION:The statement in the story “On meditation, diet, identity: An interview with a yogi” (Sports, May 1) that said master Yogi Mursshud could take a vial of LSD and not be affected by it was incorrect. Correction posted 5/3/2002
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