Presence

I have been progressively improving my ability to have more of my mind present in any given moment. I look back on my early yoga years and it is a quagmire of emotion. When Izic was at crucial stages I would be easily distracted, easily annoyed, angered and loud. I try not to feel bad about things that happened so long ago. Because that's just pointless. Factually speaking, though, I was not present. 

The pertinent point is that I've gotten better. I've grown as a person. Almost without my noticing, I have more patience, am better able to remember information (most days), and am less distracted from what's happening in front of me. This was not my intention when I began practicing yoga. If you've done it long enough you are sure to have come across unexpected benefits right along side of the one you were expecting. 

I have recently begun to feel an acceptance of the pace of life. I used to live as if there had to be something exciting and grandiose happening in any second. There is an inherent disappointment in that mentality. Focusing on what may or may not lie ahead can only cause pain. I didn't think a satisfaction in a small town and an apartment was in my future. There is a calm in being present. I certainly don't have it nailed all the way down yet. I read books while I wash dishes and I listen to podcasts while I drive or do the laundry. And sometimes I still ignore my kids to check Facebook. But I've achieved what I thought to be unachievable. And I am so grateful. There was only more disappointment and subsequent escapism inherent in my former mentality.

Inherent in all yoga practice is the idea of presence. This week it is the sole focus. How many ways can you stay here now? I've noticed the extent to which I am in my eyes can help greatly in being aware of what's happening. If my eyes are not focused, it's likely because I'm running scenerios in my head. Drishti is the sanskrit word for focus, which is typically used in reference to the gaze. With our eyes focused without tension we are better able to sense our internal environment and are therefore better able to be aware of our experience.

Transition

Happy Spring! Any day now it will start to act like it. The first day of spring marks not only an equalization of light and dark in our day, but the gradual increase of light, heading to the solstice when we have the most light. What a pleasure it is to think that thought!

Spring is a transition between extremes. As we move through our days, months, and years we are constantly navigating transitions. Moving into and out of sleep can be quite a challenge for some. Transitioning gracefully from one phase of life to the next is something everyone could potentially struggle with. And, we all have varying degrees of anxiety around the concept of change. The extent to which you are able to ease into changes in your life determines the extent to which you are stressed.
Yoga gives us tools with which to increase our ability to handle change and thereby decrease our stress levels. Practicing yoga becomes an exploration of the self. As we learn to train our awareness to focus internally, we increase our understanding of our reactions. As we are clearer about our motivations, in the form of seeking out what we like and avoiding what we dislike, we can begin to exert ourselves over these forces to become more adept at navigating our own personal paths.
Awareness of our reactions is not a practice that can only be done on a yoga mat. In fact, it is crucial to the integration of your increased knowledge that you encourage yourself to become aware of your reaction throughout your day. This awareness stems from presence. The ability to corral our mind and insist it focus on one thing at a time is another of yogas' great gifts. It make take years of practice, but what else is there but time to practice?

From Myopia to Focus

How to stay focused without wandering into the realm of myopia?

I drive a lot. I noticed last week a sedan maybe 4 feet from the back of a tractor trailor. I know what it is to drive in a hurry. Your whole awareness is centered on the moron in front of you that's moving too slowly. Figuratively and literally when you're driving you get so close to the person they're all you can see. 

This tendency to let something eat away at you can happen to anyone under a variety of conditions. Anytime you clinging to a thought bubble and can't let it go. Everybody has their own triggers, everybody has the thing that sets them off. Or many things. I am no exception. 

It's just another way in which yoga is proving itself to be incredibly useful over and over again in my life. The ability to create the pause, creating a half a second of space between you and what is making you insane is not something that we are taught. Trying to shove thoughts to the back of your mind, not worrying about it, not thinking about it is easier said than done. It's yoga that brings practical techniques to allow you to progress past something painful. 

Class this week focuses on moving until you meet resistance and then breathing. Notice your reaction to the resistance. How does it change your breath? How does it change your thought pattern? Your breath can help you move through thoughts that tend to cling. In that moment of awareness of the combination of pain and breath is where you can regain your sanity. 

Lila

Lila: Divine Play

My classes are intended to help you learn about what makes you tick. What is the catalyst for your actions? As you begin to understand you become freer. You are less subject to old, out dated conditioning for the basis of your decisions. You can update your conditioning to a mindset that is inline with who you are becoming.

I think this kind of thing is fascinating and it is why I have stuck with yoga through years. It's the longest and most consistently I've ever done anything. 

It is because I am constantly engaged that I continue. It certainly isn't because every day is blissful. I certainly hope one day to be less swayed by my insecurities and doubts. My teacher asked us once: can you open the book of your own life and be fascinated?

This week I want to play. We talked last week about mindset and there is definitely a playful mindset. We tend to move away from it as we become adults. Whether from increased responsibility or just being conditioned to "take life seriously" we move away from that exploration mindset as we age. But we don't have to. And while I certainly do take my yoga seriously, it has allowed me to be less serious in more areas of my life. That and children. If you want to cultivate a playful mindset, a sense of wonder and a carefree laugh, spend time with kids. I'm sure I'm not telling you anything new there.

Imagine if you lived your life in a state of laughter. Where do you give a wink to those parts of your personality that you really dislike, the parts of your body that you find hampering and therefore frustrating, the people you meet who make crazy, that you have to be around because you work with them or you live with them. What if you went about your day with a light heart while everyone else around you trudged? They would be trudging less after an interaction with you.

Everyone has their own personality and I am certainly not suggesting that we all become five years old but within who you are there is playfulness and a sense of adventure. This week all week, regardless of where you are, try to cultivate that sense of adventure. Laugh at how many times you did the dishes or how early you have to get up for work. Wink at the project at work that's draining the life out of you or the illness that is making you an unwilling participant in the changes it requires. 

Because you are not the dishes or the early hour or the job or the illness. And if that's true then who are you? Certainly someone with a sense of adventure in your own body and in your own life. 

You are the divine playing at humanity, not a human pretending to be divine. 

Get Out of Your Own Way

Mindset

One of my favorite scientific phenomena is the placebo effect. There are many people who can produce the effect of a specific medicine just by believing they are getting the medicine. Even when they're not. It is an amazing testimony to what the mind can do. 

Where are you in your body? In your eyes? Brain? Heart? The yogic view of the universe says every cell has consciousness. It's just that we get caught up in specific parts. My go to example is always pain. When you have pain that is where your awareness pools. We have a hard time getting any perspective on it unless we have a lot of practice. 

What we can and can't accomplish doesn't always rest solely on our mindset. There are circumstances. But our mindset will go a long way toward mitigating circumstances. How afraid you are of doing something is going to determine whether or not you do it and, if you try, how strongly you push yourself; how well you succeed.

What holds you back may not even be something as dramatic as an injury. It may just be something ingrained from childhood, something that you never thought you could do that has persisted into adulthood and hampered you.

Each part of our day is determined by our view. The mindset of relaxation, responsibility and even nuances within your personality all will effect the way you behave, and therefore impact your life. The subtle differences in behavioral choices of a mother vs a friend vs a partner vs a coworker vs a boss vs a daughter vs a teacher vs student vs being alone.

This week practice creating an inner sanctuary: it doesn't matter where you are or who you're with, where you practice. Visualize yourself alone in a non-descript, undecorated room. Allow your mind to be absorbed by your practice. This is your practice regardless of the setting or company.