One of my favorite morning reads is my battered old copy of the Bhagavad Gita (The Song of God.) I purchased it in high school at Peace of Mind Bookstore, and my copy was old and used when I got it. Now it looks to be almost as old as the 3,000 year old Vedic scripture contained within; but the message is ever shiny and new, and as deeply relevant now as it was when it was first told. Whenever I read it my heart fills up with love, peace and a deep sense of purpose for my life.
The Gita is nestled within a larger poem The Mahabharata, the longest epic poem ever written, which tells many wonderful stories of "Great India" (another fascinating and illuminating read.)
In the Bhagavad Gita, the great warrior Arjuna is on the battlefield, faced with the horrible dilemma of impending war. He is soul sick about how he should proceed and calls on Lord Krishna for help. The poem is a conversation between Lord Krishna and Arjuna, and is a deep metaphor for the struggles facing all of humanity on the "battlefield" of Life.
There are many lines from this poem that come back to me again and again, but none more than these:
The Atman* is light: The light is covered by darkness: This darkness is delusion: That is why we dream.
* One's true Self.
This is the primary meditation for my own journey with yoga. To constantly return to where I truly am; to lay down the cloak of darkness that swallows me in delusion and makes me think that I am something other than a being of light in union with all things. I repeat the mantra to my self: Sat Nam. I am That, I am.
As you move through your day with yoga, or head to the mat for your sadhana, I encourage you to write these words from the Gita on a peace of paper and make them a part of your contemplation and meditation into your own true nature.
Yesterday was certainly a day full of immense energy here in the United States, and around the world, as we witnessed the inauguration of President Barack Hussein Obama. The swearing into office of this president was particularly significant for many reasons, but I think the thing that struck me most about the ceremony, is the same thing that amazes me each time we have a new president: the peaceful transfer of so much power. We need only look around the world today, or in the annals of human history, to see what a rare, and impressive occurrence this is. It makes me very proud of my country.
As I watched the inauguration yesterday it was wonderful to see so many happy, hopeful people. As a yogini I know that there is nothing more powerful, more initiating of great change, then the power of unity, optimism and positive thinking. I feel this country has suffered a great, "dark night of the soul" in recent years, and I too, feel that yesterday was the dawn of a new day, in many ways.
However, I also felt a great level of concern about the unrealistic, and somewhat excessive nature of the enthusiasm. Without getting into what I personally perceive Barack Obama's strengths and weakness as the leader of our country may be, I am absolutely certain that he is a man, not a messiah. And man, does he have his work cut out for him.
Listening to the almost frenzied way that some people have been talking about him over the last year, I've really come to feel a bit sorry for the guy. People have put him up, I think unfairly, on a very high pedestal, and it is a very long fall from there.
I am also concerned by the ferocious hatred I see coming from both "sides" of the political spectrum. I feel it in myself. I have opinions, strong ones, and sometimes it is hard for me to accept that others are entitled to theirs. I can feel the tightness and separation this causes in myself, and I see it in other people. We must work with great vigor to recognize that this separation is illusion. We must, as the Dalai Lama says, "find through compassion that all human beings are just like me." This is the tallest order of all, but I believe it is a worthy goal that we must strive towards.
How can yoga inform a situation like this?
Yoga is at it's core a set of teachings focusing on union, and on staying firmly rooted in "the middle path," where we are not subject to the highs and lows of excess in any area, including emotions. As the Bhagavad Gita teaches us, "A lamp does not flicker in a place with no wind." Powerful emotions can set us on fire with enthusiasm and energy, but they may not sustain us over a long haul when the initial "glow" of an exciting situation has worn off.
I say all this not to rain on any one's parade, not to diminish the excitement and power of this time, but to offer a call for a level of rationalism and realism, that will help us as a country, and throughout the world, to sustain a positive momentum for all the hard and long work we, and our new president, have ahead of us.
On this day I have a wish and prayer, from the bottom of my heart, for this man, for my country, and for this planet.
It is a portion of the Saha Navavatu Mantra that we often recite at the beginning of a yoga class, and it helps to define the scope and the nature of the work before us. I think it beautifully expresses the energy of enthusiasm, realism, and unity, we must have on our journey of "the middle path."
OM saha navavatu saha nau bhunaktu saha viryam karavavahai tejasvi navadhitamastu ma vidvishavahai OM shanti, shanti, shanti
Om May we be protected together May we be nourished together May we work together with great vigor May our study be enlightening May no obstacle arise between us Om peace, peace, peace
As one year comes to a close, and we begin to contemplate the next, a lot of us make these interesting lists called, New Year's Resolutions. They are usually brimming with hope and optimism, and chock full of things we want to “fix” about our selves, and our lives. So, how does the modern yogi or yogini go about creating a New Year’s Resolution list; and what does the ancient science of Yoga have to offer us as we consider the changes we want to make?
Yoga says,
“ You are already whole, already perfect. There is nothing to do, nothing to fix.”
Wow. Do you feel a tremendous load off your shoulders? You are done! Hooray! There was never really anything you needed to do. You are already perfect, beautiful, radiant and whole, and you always have been.
Yoga teaches us that our feelings of inadequacy stem from the illusion of separation. We often experience this “duality” or sense of separation as feelings of isolation, loneliness, and fear. We may constantly criticize our bodies, actions, and thoughts. Yoga teaches that there is no need to do this, and that these himsic, or harming, thought patterns, are toxic and keep us from enjoying the full experience of our lives.
Yoga also teaches us to practice santosha, or contentment by letting go of our grasping to the negative stories we tell ourselves, and cultivating right thinking and equanimity. This does not mean that we do not experience all the ups and downs of life, but that we are able to view them with perspective and balance.
However, there is a paradox in the idea of Contentment. If we were all completely content all of the time, we would never do anything. A feeling of discontent is what motivates all of our thoughts and actions; from getting up to get something to eat because we are “discontent” with hunger, to making a major life change because we feel a deep dissatisfaction with something in our lives.
This brings us back to the idea of making a “self-improvement list” for ourselves in the New Year. There is nothing wrong with wanting to change or “improve” something about our selves; tremendous good can come from making changes to our lives. The problem comes when we use the opportunity for constructive change, as another means for destructive self-abuse. The first and foremost aim of any yogini should be to practice, ahimsa, or non-harming, toward herself and all other sentient beings. So, as we make our lists we need to check our approach constantly against this benchmark, to insure that we are being kind and loving to ourselves, and others, in the process.
Let’s take a very common New Year’s resolution as an example: the desire to loose weight.
A common scenario is that we begin in January filled with a fire to loose weight and get in shape. We are joined in yoga studios, gyms and walking paths by others trying to “whip themselves into shape.” By the end of January those places are far less full, and we are home feeling increasingly dejected, eating more, exercising less, and feeling pretty bad about our selves.
The Yogic perspective on loosing weight would say, “Anything can be done in time, and with kindness.”
Making changes takes time, and it takes a plan; add in the component of kindness and you are bound for success. Without kindness, self-doubt and self-criticism beginning to chip away at our “resolve”, and make us feel like the task in insurmountable.
Let’s take a look at what a Yogic New Year’s Resolutions for Loosing Weight List might look like:
I (your name here) love my body and support and nourish myself with healthy food and exercise.
I give myself this love and support to increase my physical strength, cardiovascular health, and mental health.
I show my commitment to loving and nurturing my physical and emotional growth by attending a yoga class 3 times a week for 60 minutes, and walking in my neighborhood, 3 times a week for 30 minutes.
I have a positive relationship with food, and I choose foods that will give my body the optimum nutrients and calories I need to thrive in radiant health.
I am living in a healthy body, at a weight that is beneficial for all my physical systems. My body is energetic and strong and contains all the vitality I need to live my fully realized life.
As you can see this kind of list combines concrete actions with positive affirmations. This enables you to formulate a realistic course of action for self-improvement that harnesses the power of creative visualization, and reinforces the focus on self-love and the practice of ahimsa (non-harming) toward yourself and others.
Keep your list short, affirmative and in the present tense, as if you are already living the life (in this case living in the body) that you desire to have. Remember, once you think and believe these things, they already exist, all the remains is for you to manifest them into your life in a physical way. If you cannot imagine yourself in the body, or leading the life you want to lead, it will be difficult for you to realize those things fully in your life. See it, then be it!
Another helpful concept brought to us by the science of Yoga, is the focus on action, rather then outcome. The great yogic scripture, the Bhagavad Gita states, “Have no attachment to the ownership or result...” instead the focus must always be on each individual action.
We can apply this to our weight loss example by releasing our concerns about how much weight, or how many inches we will loose, and instead focus on each thing we are doing moment to moment to reach that goal. For example: focusing on the quality and attention we bring to each yoga posture, in each class; or by placing our attention on the energy we put into cooking each healthy meal, and eating it slowly with loving care for each bite.
This focus on one thing at a time, keeps us deeply grounded in the present moment, which in reality is the only thing we can influence, and the only thing that really exists. We may start with a certain goal, and find that it ends in a completely different outcome due to circumstance beyond our control. However, if we have cultivated mindfulness and focused on actions, instead of outcomes, then it is easier for us to release that result, and know that we have done our best, and that is all that we can do.
So, as you continue working on your list of resolutions for the coming year remember to keep them positive, be kind to yourself, focus on action instead of outcome, and remember that you are already perfect, beautiful, radiant and whole, and you always have been.
Image via Wikipedia
