[note from kelly: chris just returned from a weekend with Shala in Asheville, studying the Yoga Sutras. his quotes come from a translation by Sri Swami Satchidananda. Chris reminds us that no matter what brings us to our practice, the end goal is our mind]
"progressing toward undisturbed calmness"
--by chris brown
Most of us come to yoga for flexibility or strength. Maybe our doctor or our friend told us it would help us to be a little calmer or to relax our high blood pressure. Some come for a spiritual goal or to find some sort of prayerful meditation as they sweat away a difficult day at work. Some practice to give that "Type A" personality a break for a time or to let go of some past difficulty.
Yoga will work for all of these things and more, but none of these things is exactly what yoga was designed for. According to Sutra 1.2 of Patanjali, “The restraint of the modifications of the mind-stuff is yoga.” We have heard that it is all in our minds from Buddhists, psychologists, even Beck. Yoga teaches us to begin learning how to work with our minds.
Yogic philosophy suggests that we come into this world fairly complete and as we grow up we develop a sense of ego that allows us to deal with the world around us and also separates us from the Self, which is thought to be that infinite part of us that connects with all others. Carl Jung called this connection the collective unconscious. Christians refer to it as the Body of Christ.
Other philosophies and religions tell the story of how we all connect in this world or somewhere out there in the infinite. Quantum mechanics explores how all matter comes into being from energy and has begun to explore how our thoughts and actions affect the matter and the force.
Sutra 1.30 states that “Disease, dullness, doubt, carelessness, laziness, sensuality, false perception, failure to reach firm ground and slipping from the ground gained – these distractions of the mind-stuff are the obstacles.” We can use yoga to deal with all of these challenges, but we must understand that the yogic solution to the symptoms of these obstacles requires not force but rather practice, study, and surrender. What we face, we face because we need it to progress on our unique path.
Our society likes blame and responsibility so long as it attaches to someone else. From a yogic viewpoint, we are the authors of our own experience. We are responsible for everything in our worlds. The sutras give an insightful way of dealing with others. Sutra 1.33 states that “By cultivating attitudes of friendliness toward the happy, compassion for the unhappy, delight in the virtuous, and disregard toward the wicked, the mind-stuff retains its undisturbed calmness.”
So in the breath and in the sweat we find that release that allows us to slow down our minds and meditate. Most yogic thought regards Hatha yoga as a way to strengthen the body and calm the mind to prepare for the important practice of working with the mind while relaxing the sense of I and mine, and creating a sense of unity with that which holds us all in grace.
Practice often, Namaste--Chris
[comments, questions for chris? post a comment here]
"progressing toward undisturbed calmness"
--by chris brown
Most of us come to yoga for flexibility or strength. Maybe our doctor or our friend told us it would help us to be a little calmer or to relax our high blood pressure. Some come for a spiritual goal or to find some sort of prayerful meditation as they sweat away a difficult day at work. Some practice to give that "Type A" personality a break for a time or to let go of some past difficulty.
Yoga will work for all of these things and more, but none of these things is exactly what yoga was designed for. According to Sutra 1.2 of Patanjali, “The restraint of the modifications of the mind-stuff is yoga.” We have heard that it is all in our minds from Buddhists, psychologists, even Beck. Yoga teaches us to begin learning how to work with our minds.
Yogic philosophy suggests that we come into this world fairly complete and as we grow up we develop a sense of ego that allows us to deal with the world around us and also separates us from the Self, which is thought to be that infinite part of us that connects with all others. Carl Jung called this connection the collective unconscious. Christians refer to it as the Body of Christ.
Other philosophies and religions tell the story of how we all connect in this world or somewhere out there in the infinite. Quantum mechanics explores how all matter comes into being from energy and has begun to explore how our thoughts and actions affect the matter and the force.
Sutra 1.30 states that “Disease, dullness, doubt, carelessness, laziness, sensuality, false perception, failure to reach firm ground and slipping from the ground gained – these distractions of the mind-stuff are the obstacles.” We can use yoga to deal with all of these challenges, but we must understand that the yogic solution to the symptoms of these obstacles requires not force but rather practice, study, and surrender. What we face, we face because we need it to progress on our unique path.
Our society likes blame and responsibility so long as it attaches to someone else. From a yogic viewpoint, we are the authors of our own experience. We are responsible for everything in our worlds. The sutras give an insightful way of dealing with others. Sutra 1.33 states that “By cultivating attitudes of friendliness toward the happy, compassion for the unhappy, delight in the virtuous, and disregard toward the wicked, the mind-stuff retains its undisturbed calmness.”
So in the breath and in the sweat we find that release that allows us to slow down our minds and meditate. Most yogic thought regards Hatha yoga as a way to strengthen the body and calm the mind to prepare for the important practice of working with the mind while relaxing the sense of I and mine, and creating a sense of unity with that which holds us all in grace.
Practice often, Namaste--Chris
[comments, questions for chris? post a comment here]
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