Now is Yoga.
Yogis, please don't get mad at me, but I believe that creating Asana classes towards a Peak Pose is mean. I fully lean into creating a clear map for our classes, actively sequencing. But anytime we instill an ultimate destination, we create the conditions for what we might call Winners and Losers.
Yoga is the art of paying attention. That's another way of saying what Ram Dass famously extolled: Be here now. If we are in Yoga, we are in Union. Union with what? Mind, Body and spirit? Our individual consciousness with the universal consciousness? Movement with breath? The individual with the whole? Yes, yes, and yes.
I think the path of yoga, and its ongoing evolution, centers on each of us finding a way to experiencing and sustaining Union. I believe that virtually any means of experiencing union is Yoga. The violinist finds her harmony with the other musicians in the Orchestra, and all are in harmony moment by moment. If one musician spaces out, then the union, the harmony is lost. This harmony, this union of sound is created by ongoing presencing, and this I suggest, is Yoga.
What about the painter, mixing a bit of pale blue with a tiny bit of pinky-red finding the perfect watery shade of purple? If her attention wavers, she may find herself in a too-blue moment, and will need to start again.
And the Yogini, with her morning breathing practice? Inhale, pause, exhale, pause. And then, somewhere in her mind this arises, “Oh! I forgot to call Richard..” and she too, must begin again.
To linger, to sustain oneself in Now is Yoga. As my teacher in the '80s, Swami Satchidananda said, “Paths are Many, Truth is One.” In today's quick-paced world, we focus on where we are going. We seek the next step towards whatever goal we believe we must attain. Other times, we look back to enjoy a memory, or wish it had been different. Yoga asks us release judgement and expectations. Yoga asks, no insists, that we tip toe through the continuum of time resisting the before and the after to rest in Now.
If we show up to teach with a clear plan leading to handstand, or some hard arm-balance or favorite backbend, then some will cheer and dive in knowing they are headed for fun and success. Others will feel disappointed or even afraid, and see themselves in the lane called Losers Only. Yes, we want to challenge our students. Not to do fancier poses, but to stay awake. To stay present, here and now. Can we bring a map that has hills and valleys and a clear path of increasing effort? One that always has a dip, a valley and a place to pause and enjoy the view. Can we encourage a very specific exploration where everyone picks their own peak, and finds their own rhythm? Can our students leave each practice, feeling more awake and aware of who they are? Can we encourage presence as our peak experience, rather than a pose?
> How do you stay present and awake?