Be Still

I just finished a yoga class at Bodhi. My intention today was to listen and be still. To listen and find where I'm at and what I feel and then to be still and accept that.

I learned that as long as I'm doing something hard I focus. As long as I feel like it's making me stronger I am completely with it. When I do things that don't seem to be very hard for me though, I get distracted and my mind wanders and consequently I don't feel fulfilled. I get antsy and want to do more. But as I finished up my practice I realized that those easy things were the things my  body really needed today and I just didn't let myself go there. It didn't seem worth it to me. 

So how do I change that? How do I find meaning in the simple, seemingly easy things?
www.gobodhiyoga.com

Sickness

I've been sick. Reallly, nastily sick. And the worst of it is that my throat hurts even worse when I breathe deeply and so I've found it impossible to do yoga. :( and it feels like my soul has been fasting. I am so hungry for air and for yoga.

My best yoga happens when I am balanced. And when I'm not balanced I feel that most keenly when I do yoga. I can feel it. I can sense it in the discomfort of my movements and the wobbling of my foundations. 

It's an unsettling feeling to know that when I do yoga I will be able to tell where I stand emotionally and spiritually and physically. It's scary to want to do that. It's easier to just shut your ears to the truth sometimes and pretend everything is okay. But yoga won't let you do that. You have to face things exactly as they are and work through them. It's hard work. Yoga isn't easy. Sometimes it's not even fun. But I'm always grateful when I've done it and I feel stronger and more full. It's like reading your scriptures or saying your prayers. Hard work. Sometimes a little uncomfortable to see where you're standing. But always worth it and you always feel better afterwards. :)
www.gobodhiyoga.com

Ayurveda

The science of life. Interesting. That's what I'll be learning about this weekend in training.

As I've been studying the manual, I've been intrigued by the Doshas and the need for balance among them. It's also helped me to think about myself and my strengths and weaknesses. I want to be perfectly balanced but I see the strong parts of me really standing out and the others getting crushed. I think that's why a balanced yoga practice is so important. I find myself just wanting to do the yoga that I'm especially good at. But that's not yoga. Yoga is about finding strengths ANd weaknesses and working to strengthen and accept all of you. And so I continue to do the things that I'm not particularly good at and try to get better at them. Slowly. But surely.
www.gobodhiyoga.com