Yoga Beyond the Physical
Practicing Yoga begins in trying to imitate the pose/asana.
Very quickly you realize that as you begin to apply yourself, something that looked fairly
simple to do, involves a plethora of explanations, corrections and detail. Is your head
aligned to the center, your shoulders relaxed? Are your fingers spread out and your
breath in rhythm.? You find yourself checking and chasing the myriad of little remarks
your instructor seems to be able to find no end to! Indeed, your mind as well as your
body is being challenged. And this is good. You are now in the present. Thoughts of your
job, your commitments in life, your worries cannot occupy you when you are diligently
participating in Yoga.
A Yoga class is an exercise in mindfulness. It is a taste of what life can be like, were the mind focused in the PRESENT moment. Your thoughts are not filled with future fantasies or past tragedies. It is a clearing and sharpening of your awareness.
There is more to the present moment than we know. Quieting the mind of what it thinks it knows and directing it consciously to what it is NOT aware of is our goal. It can start with awareness to breath, to body sensations, to spontaneous criticism. Once we are aware of these more subtle levels of reality we can begin to alter them. An inspiring and incredible fact to contemplate is that the deeper you go - the deeper you can go, and 'subtle' takes on a whole new meaning. Science tells us that our brain can perceive of tons of bits of information per second of which only 5% we are consciously aware. Someone is coordinating your reception of information, someone is directing your thoughts, wouldn't you like to be that conscious director?
You can. It starts by being mind-full and present, by engaging your mind in everything that you do. BUT it is not accomplished in the usual logical sense of judging or assessing, nor by emotionally evaluating every circumstance. Rather, learn to be an active observer, a witness. Virtually creating a third aspect of yourself, another viewpoint beyond your body and beyond your personality. There is a presence there within you that is aware of it all. This is where your true power lies. It is calm.It is the eye of the hurricane. It is from this place changes can occur.
It is a process that requires great courage and great patience. Great courage to let go and release current patterns of thought that are no longer supporting our growth, our journey. And great patience with self - a gift only we can give to ourselves.
Why would you want to be your own witness/observer? Ever heard the saying "there is more to you than meets the eye"? It is not merely a saying; it is a profound discovery on the path of a Yogi.
Become your own witness:
- Because it gives you the attestation that you are more than your body.
- To discover about yourself what is not evident on the surface (self discovery, self realization).
- To realize the causes of the effects in your life...(bring to your awareness the hidden programs that are running)
- To create your desired reality. Where your attention goes energy flows and results show.
Next time we will go into more detail about the Power of the Observer, because once you are aware that you are aware, you can also choose to be aware of whatever you want!!!
Namaste,
INNER COMPOSURE