The goal of Yoga, to still the fluctuations of the mind.

Greetings Sadhakas,

This week in class we will be exploring the goal of  Yoga, to still the fluctuations of the mind.

Imagine if all the tumult of the body were to quiet down, along with our busy thoughts. Imagine if all things that are perishable grew still. And imagine if that moment were to go on and on, leaving behind all other sights and sounds but this one vision which ravishes and absorbs and fixes the beholder in joy, so that the rest of eternal life were like that moment of illumination which leaves us breathless.

                                      – Saint Augustine

As I reach the spiritual summit, I hardly feel my body. My mind is still; my ego has been set at rest. The peace in my heart matches the peace at the heart of nature. This is my native state, the state to which I have been striving through the long travail of evolution to return. No longer am I a feverish fragment of life; I am indivisible from the whole.

I live completely in the present, released from the prison of the past with its haunting memories and vain regrets, released from the prison of the future with its tantalizing hopes and tormenting fears. All the enormous capacities formerly trapped in past and future flow to me here and now, concentrated in the hollow of my palm. No longer driven by desire for personal pleasure or profit, I am free to use all these capacities to alleviate the suffering of those around me. In living for others, I come to life.

Words to Live By: Inspiration for Every Day – Eknath Easwaran

The homework is to make the connection for yourself from your own experience how the goal of Yoga, to still the fluctuations of the mind, brings you to a place of being completely present in the moment. Also consider how the practice of asana moves you in this direction?

Blessings,

paul cheek

Rushing Water Yoga

417 NE Birch St., Camas, WA 98607

360.834.5994

www.rushingwateryoga.com

info@rushingwateryoga.com

A Clear Picture of the Meaning of Tapas

Greetings Sadhakas,

This week in class we will be exploring the meaning of Tapas.

On the one hand I felt the call of God; on the other, I continued to follow the world. All the things of God gave me great pleasure, but I was held captive by those of the world. I might have been said to be trying to reconcile these two extremes, to bring contraries together: the spiritual life on the one hand and worldly satisfactions, pleasures, and pastimes on the other.

                                      – Saint Teresa of Avila

Saint Teresa of Avila was a remarkably spiritual woman. Even as a girl she could say passionately, "I want something that will last forever!" Yet this woman who was to become one of the world's greatest mystics went through twenty years of doubt and struggle before becoming established in God. If Teresa took twenty years, can people like you and me think of doing it in less? Her words can inspire all of us, for everyone begins with doubts and conflicts. Little people like us are likely to be haunted by them - and to feel frequently disheartened for a long, long time.

When you have doubts about your capacity for spiritual progress, don't be defeatist. Remember these words of Saint Teresa and keep striving, keep on trying. This is all we are expected to do.

Words to Live By: Inspiration for Every Day – Eknath Easwaran

The homework is to reflect on the effort you have been putting towards your practices -  not just yoga asana.  Consider the third Niyama, Tapas, which is translated as discipline, austerities, and heat.  Tapas can also mean effort.  Here Saint Teresa is presents a clear picture of the meaning of Tapas.

Blessings,

paul cheek

Rushing Water Yoga

417 NE Birch St., Camas, WA 98607

360.834.5994

www.rushingwateryoga.com

info@rushingwateryoga.com

Commit to Practicing for the Long Haul

Greetings Sadhakas,

This week in class we will be exploring practicing for the long haul.

Out of compassion I destroy the darkness of their ignorance. From within them I light the lamp of wisdom and dispel all darkness from their lives.

                                      – Bhagavad Gita

With infinite tenderness, the Lord lets it dawn on us only gradually that we are not separate, that we belong entirely to him. If this realization were to come overnight, ordinary people like you and me would not be able to withstand it; it would be more than our nervous systems could bear. That is why the Lord is so gentle with us; he spreads the transformation from separateness to unity out over many years so that all these changes in the mind and body can take place gradually. Often we are not even aware they are taking place until we look back and remember how we were some years before.

We should not ask when illumination will come. We should have a patient impatience to reach the goal. Finally, after many years, no matter what our past has been, we will begin to live in the light that knows no night. The temple may have been dark for a thousand years, but once the lamp is lit, every corner will be ablaze with light.

Words to Live By: Inspiration for Every Day – Eknath Easwaran

The homework is to remember three of the Niyamas: Santosa or Contentment, Tapas or  discipline, austerities, heat and Svadhyaya or self-study. Learn to be patient and content as you consistently and with much vigor develop your practice. Commit to practicing for the long haul.

Blessings,

paul cheek

Rushing Water Yoga

417 NE Birch St., Camas, WA 98607

360.834.5994

www.rushingwateryoga.com

info@rushingwateryoga.com