Yoga on the mat and yoga of daily life. The author, Judith Lasaster, wrote Living your Yoga: Finding the Spiritual in Everyday Life, over 20 years ago, to help us learn how to apply yogic principles to our everyday lives. It seems that when we are on our mats we find peace; peace within our selves and from the distractions that surround us. But, once off the mat all of those distractions come back to roost in our minds which then reflect in our bodies. By understanding how the two: yoga on the mat and yoga off the mat are connected we can address the challenges that may come our way and learn to live in balance.
I have been practicing yoga for a number of years and I so appreciate the gifts it has given me; to cleanse my body and mind and bring a sense of peace and balance into a world of many complexities. Yes, there are times when my practice seemed to be set aside because I had so much more I needed to get done. So much more. During these times I feel a sense of unease, of imbalance, of sadness and I chastise myself for letting all that I don't really need get in the way of what I do. The result, I am mad at myself; instead of looking at what the distractions are and putting them in perspective.
I find myself returning to Lasater's book when I need to remember my physical and mental well being. According to George Feuerstein, Founder-Director of the Yoga Research and Education Center, the premise of her book, "a down to earth discussion of how we can use the age-old wisdom of yoga in order to connect with the sacred in everyday life." I like down to earth. It doesn't have to be steeped in research, but put into real life situations so that one can see how the two relate to each other.
As we find ourselves in one of the most troublesome times in our world Lasater's wisdom is what we need. She has several themes throughout her writings; one that I would like to focus on is Patience. I feel like the ability for many in society to be patient now is so dis-concerning. So many are quick to jump to conclusions; quick to jump to anger and frustration about something that may be out of their control. Have we lost our ability to be patient and practice patience? Can we find, "that time when we feel perfectly content with whatever is because we feel perfectly connected to whatever it, whether things are going the way we want them or things have fallen apart?" What I tend to see now is impatience; impatience physically, emotionally and pyschologically. I see it towards friends who may have different political views. I see impatience towards the checkout person in the grocery store or the manager who has rules he/she needs to follow. Even people who don't know each other seem to be at each other. When does it end?
Maybe we need to do a reset. Begin with being mindful and focusing on the feelings we find ourselves going through when we find yourself being impatient. Don't you wonder how much time we waste being impatient with ourselves and others? A phrase I use in my yoga classes would be a good phrase to keep in mind when you find yourself beginning that road to impatience, "go with the flow." I was a high school teacher for a number of years and this phrase was always present in my classroom. Teenagers are not known for their ability to be patient; but what I hoped, is that when they found themselves getting agitated, their thought would be, "ok slow down, let's look at the situation for what it is." We had many discussions surrounding this topic. I hoped that when they left me this philosophy would be with them.
For so many of us we place a value on what we get done, what we can accomplish on any given day and throughout our lives. Like there is a scale and our accomplishments are on one side and our value on the other. I am very guilty of putting a value on what I do. I am not happy about it and it is something I am constantly working on. It is hard work to keep the balance; maybe we need to take our accomplishments off of the scale and replace them with empowerment. We have the ability to make choices; what we have to decide is what choice am I going to make. We have the power to look at a situation as a situation and pay attention to the feelings that determine it.
In our yoga practice we may find ourselves being tested. Our mind may want to take the body into a particular pose, but the body itself can not perform as we would want. The result is frustration within us. Yoga is not a competition, we are often told. Your mat is your mat. Well, tell that to your mind. Bring yourself to a pose that you can be in for a few minutes, like Easy Seated pose/Sukhasana.
Take yourself there to begin your journey on practicing patience. Once there notice what you notice, feel what you feel. Don't analyze, just be. Notice your thoughts, are they pleasant, worrisome, questioning? Did I remember to focus on my breath? SO many questions can begin to form. The question then becomes, "Can you rest in the present moment, even if it is just for one more moment." Let the questions go and just sit. If find that this philosophy helps me through much of my yoga practice. And, I also find that this philosophy helps me when I am in a situation where I can feel anxiety and tension rise.
Lasater ends her discussion offering suggestions that we could take on that may try our patience. Each can be one that we learn a bit more about ourselves:
- Choose the longest line at the grocery store or wherever you might be shopping. Pay attention to your bodily sensations. Breathe. Focus on the reality of the situation and that everything is moving as it should.
- The next time that your spouse, child, or friend is upset, listen with full attention. Don't make any comments or offer any advice. Practice compassionate listening, or as I would teach my students, "active listening."
- You may find yourself listening to something that does not have any interest to you; again listen actively. Relax the body and breathe.
- Lastly, when you feel yourself becoming impatient, remember that whatever the present situation, it will change. Life is impermanent. Even the most difficult of life's situations will not remain the same.
Mantras to Remember
"Everything is moving at it's proper speed."
"Choice is the most profound freedom."
"It won't always be like this."
"There is always enough time in nature."
"Is the problem the situation, or is it my reaction to the situation?"
No comments:
Post a Comment