I was on a friend's facebook page last night and saw a post about lucid dreaming that included a link. I've always been interested in the idea of lucid dreaming so I clicked the link. The very first part of the site that loaded was the words "the key to a happy and fulfilling life resides within your dreams". I hadn't seen the rest of the page but I knew with certainty they were going to try to sell me something.
This makes me sad. So many people are unhappy in their lives that the idea of having a tool to help become happy is now a successful marketing tool. (Don't even get me started on pharmaceutical companies)
I can't say lucid dreaming won't help you become more fulfilled and happier. But I know yoga will. It's not that yoga itself makes you a happier person. Yoga asana may help your body to feel better, but actually it's the awareness and mindfulness that is cultivated in a regular yoga practice that will help you see what you need in your life to be fulfilled and make choices that lead to greater happiness.
Yoga (the entirety of yogic practices, not just asana) helps to clear away the cluttered chatter of our thoughts. As we are free of the distractions we are free to act in a way that makes our lives worth living.
This does not mean we will never again suffer, feel sadness, or pain. Life is full of challenges, but we can choose how we meet those challenges. The decisions we make about our reactions will determine whether we wallow in suffering or watch it, learn from it, and rise above it.
This week we will practice mindfulness. Asana will focus on strength. We will practice standing and balancing postures in order to prepare ourselves physically and mentally for coming challenges. You will learn so much about yourself as you practice moving through difficulty.
Watching the breath as it moves without manipulating it proves challenging. It is not something we are encouraged to do. When do you just sit and breathe? My love makes jokes. I tell him I'm going to breathe. He tells me he's going to blink. :) Maybe we should focus on blinks one day. The point is, as we focus on something without trying to control it, we create one pointedness in our attention and become more mindful.
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Perspectives
This weekend I had the pleasure of camping with family I only have the opportunity to see once or twice a year. It is a grounding experience to camp, and I took the opportunity to sit and breathe. I picked a place to sit that afforded me the most comfortable seat, given the terrain. It gave me a nice view of the lake and the hills on the other side. It was pretty. After I practiced some pranayama, I noticed that I was sitting with some young trees quite close to me. I was so preoccupied with the horizon that I didn't even notice how close I was sitting to those trees. It would have been an interesting scene to come upon. If someone happened to notice me they probably would have thought my choice of seat strange. It would have looked like I was staring at a tree at a pretty close range.
I have this trouble conceptually as well. There are things I hold carefully within myself so that I don't have to see them. Those things that are closest to me are out of focus. Fears, emotional issues and anything I identify with that I don't like about myself, I can't see clearly. I have no perspective. But there are those who are close to me that are able to see these things.
This week's class is an exploration of perspective and a celebration of those people in our lives who can bring some to us. Physically speaking, our asana will help to create space internally, so that we can create our own perspective. There will be twisting and forward folds, so we squeeze out our physical and emotional toxins and let them go. We will also make use of visualization to create sweeping vistas we can access any time we're feeling claustrophobic. And, of course, pranayama will be an important part of our spacious plan.
If you're still having trouble with gaining perspective, this is the perfect time to celebrate someone close to you who has it. Kids are great for this. You can either be a better person because you want to be a role model for your children or you can perpetuate your own neuroses in the next generation. Have you ever had your kid do something that you just know is from you and you cringe because it's not a very flattering representation? Yikes.
If you are having difficulty, think of a person with whom you have mutual respect and trust. If you can avoid, or get over, being defensive, that person becomes invaluable in the process of personal growth.
I have this trouble conceptually as well. There are things I hold carefully within myself so that I don't have to see them. Those things that are closest to me are out of focus. Fears, emotional issues and anything I identify with that I don't like about myself, I can't see clearly. I have no perspective. But there are those who are close to me that are able to see these things.
This week's class is an exploration of perspective and a celebration of those people in our lives who can bring some to us. Physically speaking, our asana will help to create space internally, so that we can create our own perspective. There will be twisting and forward folds, so we squeeze out our physical and emotional toxins and let them go. We will also make use of visualization to create sweeping vistas we can access any time we're feeling claustrophobic. And, of course, pranayama will be an important part of our spacious plan.
If you're still having trouble with gaining perspective, this is the perfect time to celebrate someone close to you who has it. Kids are great for this. You can either be a better person because you want to be a role model for your children or you can perpetuate your own neuroses in the next generation. Have you ever had your kid do something that you just know is from you and you cringe because it's not a very flattering representation? Yikes.
If you are having difficulty, think of a person with whom you have mutual respect and trust. If you can avoid, or get over, being defensive, that person becomes invaluable in the process of personal growth.
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Anti-Clench (Spelunking)
Today is a rainy day and, I think, a nice metaphor for the idea of going with the flow. This week's class will focus on understanding what you cling to and attempt to begin to release it.
Whether it be a physical reaction when you're upset (such as clenching the steering wheel when aggravated at traffic) or tight shoulders after a particularly stressful day, or an interior energy blockage around such things as emotional reactions to a situation with a loved one, we all have moments of clenching in our lives.
More over, we are subject to clinging to certain behaviors or feelings. We all have egos and, to varying degrees, are at the mercy of their demands. One of those demands is individuality. We want to be seen as special; unique in our predilections. Over time, we become dependent on certain emotions that make us feel like ourselves. We identify with that feeling; we become the feeling. Because it reinforces our sense of self, we cling to that sensation. We don't feel "right" when made to feel something other than this. We will avoid certain people, situations or even thoughts that challenge this feeling.
Spelunking is a fun word, but more than that, it is apt to this kind of exploration. One of the first things I learned about myself as I practiced yoga was that my mind (everyone's mind) has the capacity to compartmentalize to such an extraordinary degree that I can create the circumstances that allow me to lie to myself. As we move forward in our journey of self exploration, we must create a powerful headlamp that will allow us to see in to the darkest depths of our psyche. You are the only one who can make it possible to see what has been buried for years.
Asana will make it possible to have a tangible experience of this cling/clench and let go idea. It will be important to practice without incurring injury. Mindfulness will be key. As we work strongly and let go, we will begin to create an evenness of effort. So instead of relying on just one muscle group, we will strengthen evenly along all muscles to support joints and create a smoothness and grace of movement. As we work the body we can not help but work the mind. Therefore, we will develop that same evenness of effort and grace of movement in our thoughts.
Whether it be a physical reaction when you're upset (such as clenching the steering wheel when aggravated at traffic) or tight shoulders after a particularly stressful day, or an interior energy blockage around such things as emotional reactions to a situation with a loved one, we all have moments of clenching in our lives.
More over, we are subject to clinging to certain behaviors or feelings. We all have egos and, to varying degrees, are at the mercy of their demands. One of those demands is individuality. We want to be seen as special; unique in our predilections. Over time, we become dependent on certain emotions that make us feel like ourselves. We identify with that feeling; we become the feeling. Because it reinforces our sense of self, we cling to that sensation. We don't feel "right" when made to feel something other than this. We will avoid certain people, situations or even thoughts that challenge this feeling.
Spelunking is a fun word, but more than that, it is apt to this kind of exploration. One of the first things I learned about myself as I practiced yoga was that my mind (everyone's mind) has the capacity to compartmentalize to such an extraordinary degree that I can create the circumstances that allow me to lie to myself. As we move forward in our journey of self exploration, we must create a powerful headlamp that will allow us to see in to the darkest depths of our psyche. You are the only one who can make it possible to see what has been buried for years.
Asana will make it possible to have a tangible experience of this cling/clench and let go idea. It will be important to practice without incurring injury. Mindfulness will be key. As we work strongly and let go, we will begin to create an evenness of effort. So instead of relying on just one muscle group, we will strengthen evenly along all muscles to support joints and create a smoothness and grace of movement. As we work the body we can not help but work the mind. Therefore, we will develop that same evenness of effort and grace of movement in our thoughts.
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