Greetings Sadhakas,
This week in class we will be exploring facing our habits in
Yoga asana.
Genius . . . means
little more than the faculty of perceiving in an inhabitual way.
– William James
Attention is very
much like a searchlight, and it should be mounted in such a way that it can be
trained on any subject freely. When we are caught up in some compulsion, this
searchlight has become stuck. After many years of being stuck like this, it is
hard to believe that the light can turn. We think that the compulsion has
become a permanent part of our personality. But gradually, we can learn to work
our attention free.
As an experiment,
try to work cheerfully at some job you dislike: you are training your attention
to go where you want it to go. Whatever you do, give it your best
concentration. Another good exercise is learning to drop what you are doing and
shift your attention to something else when the situation demands. For example,
when you leave your office, leave your work there. Don't let it follow you home
and come into the dining room like an untrained dog, barking at your heels.
All this is the
spiritual equivalent of kicking exercises in a dance lesson or knee bends in an
aerobics class. By practicing these exercises, anybody can learn to direct
attention freely.
Words to Live By:
Inspiration for Every Day – Eknath Easwaran
The homework is to notice how your Yoga asana
practice brings to light your habits, likes and dislikes. Challenge yourself
when you find you are going on automatic when practicing asana and make your
practice more in the mom ent and more
dynamic. Learn how this practice can then be generalized to your life off of
the mat.
Blessings,
paul cheek
Rushing Water Yoga
360.834.5994
www.rushingwateryoga.com
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