Here, in the thick of resolution season, the "shoulds" and "should nots" arise to constrict habits and behavior. By the end of the month many of those resolutions fail. We adhere to the "should", maybe even more strongly than our original standard, then we feel like we "should" stay there or "do better". Then, if we fail to meet the increasingly unsustainable standards, we punish ourselves with guilt. A build up of guilt often flips to defiance and we abandon the resolution completely. So how do we navigate this?
Letting go the Autumn Leaf of Approval Seeking
As autumn colors the world with leafy vibrance, it’s the perfect time to reflect on surrender. As natural beings, our bodies and minds move eagerly to the rhythm of the seasons. In the natural world, the trees break down the chlorophyll to free up nutrients. Once that's complete, plant hormones send messages each leaf stem …
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Autumnal Equinox: Transitioning with Curiosity and Joy
Everything moves to a rhythm. From the revolution of galaxies and stars to the vibration of atoms. The equinoxes and solstices offer us a chance to reflect on the rhythm of the seasons. You might have noticed that yoga instructors tend to bring up these seasonal events, as well as the monthly pulse of the …
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Physical Exercise beyond Pain/Gain Myth
No Pain, No Gain. You've heard it. Heck, you've probably grown up with it. The steady stream of Nike ads and fashion magazines tells you over and over: "If you don't go hard, go home." Extremism is built into a capitalist society because it depends on people not ever having or being enough. This is …
The Heart of the Phoenix
There is alchemy in the season, an alchemy we kindle in our hearts, burning away the dross of our own limiting beliefs to let our genuine selves radiate outward.
Five Whirlpools: Yoga Sutra 1.6
Again and again in the literature, the mind is compared to a lake reflecting reality. The smoother the surface is, the more pure the reflection. By analogy, the vritti ruffle the surface with eddies, making it harder to understand ourselves and our place in the universe at any given moment in our brief lives.
Fluctuations of the Mind: Sutra 1.5
Vrttayah Panchatayyah Klishta Aklishtah "There are five kinds of fluctuations in the mind and they can be painful or painless." Vrittayah = modifications/fluctuations (of the mind-stuff); Panchatayyah = five kinds; klishta = painful; aklishta = painless. The precise list of the "five kinds" comes up in Sutra 1.6. For now, though we get the two categories of pain …
Not Abiding: Yoga Sutra 1.4
Continuing from the sutra 1.3, in which the writer sums up the whole goal of yoga (to abide in one's true nature), we come to 1.4: Vritti Sarupyam Itaratra "At other times, [the Self seems to] identify with the mind's fluctuations" Vritti = "modifications" (of the chitti, mind-stuff, mentioned in sutra 1.2), sarupyam = "assumes the forms …
Fiery Breathing
If you've been attending yoga classes for a while, you may have been exposed to several types of pranayama, or breathing exercises. With the sanskrit names and the various translations, it might be hard to keep some of them straight. Throw in the fact that even some yoga teachers use the various titles interchangeably, and the …
Abide: Yoga Sutra 1.3
Tada drastuh svarupe avasthanam Tada = "then", drastuh = "the Seer", svarupe = in one's own nature/form (sva--in one's own, rupe--form/nature) avasthanam = "abides/resides" "Then the seer [Self] abides in its own true nature" Aaaand... we get to our first verb: abides. [Who can hear the word "abide" and not think of the Big Lebowski? Anyone? Dating myself here?] With "abide", …