Every day we wake up. Most days are everyday kind of days. It is the poignant ordinary days which add together, one after another, to become our whole lives. For most of us, even our extraordinary moments are rather ordinary. But, each of these ordinary moments is the entire universe.
When we come to yoga, it is not to change the tangible aspects of our days- but our perspective. During those first few practices, we notice something in ourselves we want to explore. We eventually find a sense of peace in asana, a sense of connection during savasana and a fuller heart as we step off our mats. The objective becomes to bring this practice into our everyday: to find a sense of peace while doing dishes, a sense of connection during traffic jams and a fuller heart as we navigate our personal paths towards enlightenment.
Very few of our personal paths will call us to a life of solitude, or a mountain top vow of silence. Those paths sound romantic, and in some ways luxurious, to an over-worked and stressed student. But, we do not really want to experience such trials. And most of us do not want to leave our ordinary lives to find enlightenment. We want to find a way to bring the light into our everyday. Our days have more then enough trials built into them and the only vow we have to make is striving to live them in authenticity.
When we approach a new asana, it is often uncomfortable. Those first few minutes in downward facing dog can be difficult, especially to a new student. Week after week the asana becomes more comfortable. Of course the student has gained strength and flexibility, but they have also stayed with the discomfort. The brain has warned them the arms are tired, and they made tiny adjustments to the shoulders or hands. The brain has warned again “ I cannot stay like this any longer”, and they have deepened the breath and remained still. The student is more comfortable and can find peace in the pose, because of the practice within the mind, not just within the body. This is the part of our yoga practice we can take away from the mat. We learn how we control our body, our brains and emotions. We begin to find a comfortable place within the discomforts of life, a place where we can be at peace (mostly). The deeper we can immerse ourselves in finding peace in the everyday, the deeper we can fold into the mental and emotions practices of yoga.
Since yoga is a practice, we are in a constant process of growth. Always stretching until we can go a little deeper, in asana as well as our hearts. Sometimes, we disappoint ourselves. We are unsettled by our own anger, we are aggravated when our peace is disturbed. Sometimes, we think we are being broadminded, only to note something we missed. We continue practice, and we try again. Taking moments to contemplate our values before engaging with our crying child or entering a staff meeting may help us stay true to our values when confronted with discomfort or confusion. Staying in our authentic self is not easy, even when we are alone with our own thoughts. Little comfort objects, tokens and reminders make it easier to keep the true self on the surface of our minds. When we operate from the authenticity of the true self, we are often less scared or uncomfortable about what is happening around us. It is easier to be accepting of the emotions, be them happiness or pain, that we feel within ourselves and others. As our minds and bodies stop struggling against that discomfort, our path becomes easier to distinguish.
We are each walking our own special path towards enlightenment. Like a custom designed workshop or training, our lives provide all the necessary study we need. Every moment holds pain and pleasure and a balance of both. We have the ability to connect to ourselves, each other and the universe in each moment and every breath. When we can bring our practice off the mat, we can note the divine nature in any given moment. We can accept the poignancy that exists in our joy and our tragedy. We can celebrate the ordinary extraordinary in the everyday. We can accept the honor of our lives.
Like a child who brings something from home as comfort in a strange situation, we too can bring something of comfort from the peace we find on the mat into the everyday.
Many yogis develop a sankalpa or intention, which expresses their true self or values. Bringing this intention into as many parts of the day as possible, can gently guard our purpose from distraction.
- Wear a piece of jewelry we associate with our sankalpa can help connect us to the true self we know on our mat, the one we want to bring out into the world to share.
- Imbue our current daily rituals with an expression of our true self. If we make a cup of tea or coffee every morning, place a small stone or photo near the pot to trigger deeper thoughts as we start the day.
- Replacing computer passwords with a word from our intention.
- Braid a piece of string, ribbon or twine and tie it to the rearview mirror as reminder of the person we want reflected out into the big wide world.
- Light a candle or incense while transitioning from the work to rest part of our day.
- Keep a journal by the bed and write a word of gratitude or note an important experience in your day just before going to bed.
Namaste.
