Yoga and SAP

Yoga and SAP? Apples and Oranges? Maybe. But let's look closer. Maybe, there's more parallels than what first meets the eye....

So why examine Yoga and SAP together? It's never been done before, that's for sure (trust me, I've looked :)) Well, mainly because, tomorrow, I have been asked to explain Yoga to a group of SAP Consultants. And Yoga and SAP are, after all, both integral parts of my life. I am a Yoga teacher and an SAP consultant. So, here is my attempt at using SAP analogies to explain Yoga.

"SAP is an ocean", Ram Sir (from Wockhardt IT) used to say. Well, so is Yoga. It is vast, all-encompassing and easy to get lost in without a proper guide. SAP has several modules, and it depends on each client how many of the available choices they decide to implement. It also depends on the client which project team they choose for implementing SAP. A poor implementation results in blaming SAP as a product. Yoga is similar in that has multiple limbs too. The ultimate goal of Yoga is Kaivalya - we can call it enlightenment for simplicity, but each limb serves its own purpose too. An organization may decide to do without certain modules of SAP like SAP QM - Quality Management, for example, and can still have a full functional solution that helps it achieve its goals. Likewise, a practitioner of Yoga can decide to do without a tough part of Yoga like Yama-Niyamas - the rules of personal and social conduct which include moral guidelines, and can still get a lot out of Yoga to enrich their lives. Ultimately it depends on what you want. Aside from the limbs of Yoga, there are several specialized, customized modifications of Yoga, like Yoga for Pregnant women and Yoga Therapy. SAP -- IS-U, need I say more?

And to explain how some Yogis can still have sugar-cravings, how about an IT contradiction to match that? People with a six sigma black belt and and ITIL Certificate can still have a sloppy desk, can't they?

Well well, more than a page full of analogies! Not bad! Maybe I should try explaining SAP to my Yoga group next :)