Tel gave me a book the other day, Doga: yoga for dogs. I know it's American, but I can't work out if it's for real or just a piss-take. Or just a book for people who love dogs (most likely). Created by New Yorker Jennifer Brilliant, it features six dogi who posture themselves into oses such as cobra, triangle and corpse. While doing the corpse pose, or savasana, 'Kessie' advises the reader: "Do not allow outward disturbances ('do I hear the mailman?') or private worries ('are we going to the vet today?') to distract you. Let it all go." The art of Dogic Relaxation. Even jump is Doga. 'Buster', a Golden Retriever, says that "Catching a ball is doga." 'Bennie', a little Jack Russell, is one of the leading experts in Doga. His biog says that he studied under Paws Dogananda, and runs workshops called 'Overcoming Hostility to Squirrels, Skinks and Chipmunks.' He says of the triangle pose: "During walks, I do triangle pose with my back leg lifted. I may do up to 20 repetitions during a walk around the block." This book is hilarious. The dogs are not photoshopped into ridiculous poses, they are just pictured doing what dogs do, but seriously enough for this not to be silly. I know dogs can't talk, and that sniffing other dogs balls is not the path to self-enlightenment - or do I? I know that in some parts of America, there are serious dog-lovers who may sincerely believe that their beloved pooch is not howling but 'chanting the sound of the universe'. It is something I would probably like to make further study of when I get to the States, except... I'm scared of dogs. Really scared. They bark at me and bare their teeth. They chase me. And now I know that they are at one with the cosmos, it can only get worse.
Doga - Barking Mad or Canine Consciousness?
25.4.05 13:41
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