Bottom on the floor

Yoga is about where we find ourself. Its about this moment. Being aware of the bottom touching the floor, the feet on the floor. It is the sensations, perceptions, thoughts, feelings, emotions, ideas, visuals all that we are aware of right now. How can we then limit the understanding of yoga as a posture, a movement , a value , an attitude?? Is it not all of our life? The totality of what is going on, what we are present to, right now?

in own practise and life, I have come to question everything. I have reached a place where labeling things is just not interesting anymore. It seems futile and quite meaningless. Everything is such a constant state of change, of flux that pinning things down is pointless.

When I have so much beauty around me, how come I overlook it? Beauty in so many expressions of life. This doesnt mean that there is absence of unpleasantness or pain. It means that there is the pain and also here is something beautiful. Here is joy and something else which could be repulsive or worth rejecting. Something that can overtake the senses and engage the mind fully so as to ignore other present aspects of reality.


The challenge is how to remain grounded in reality. All of it, even if at times we narrow our focus. Zooming in and zooming out! This image I found on the net, nails it

I am more than my thoughts and emotions

I recently paid a visit to one of my favorite places in mumbai - The Yoga Institute, Santacruz E. This where i started my journey of understanding yoga and the process to a saner me.
Well, this was a long overdue visit, went after my 3 years stint in Pondy. So naturally things change, growth and offer a fresh perspective on our perspective. I joined in a group who was discussing Kleshas -  The basic 5 problem roots. The group was comfortable enough to discuss and address our most common but revealing behavior patterns. The talk was about how we want things to be done in a particular way - say our maid had prepared lunch and its not quite good, so we have a negative word for her and a certain negative thought towards her. This is just our ego acting up, refusing to be in the moment but identifying us with the role of employee, desire of particular taste. what really got me was the statement by the mediator - all actions or thoughts that create pain have a klesha active.

There is too much of I in our thoughts. It feeds the ego, creating just so much of pain, irritation and rift in relations. I want people to behave in one way, they behave in whats seems fine with them. even within our loved ones, major conflicts rise from strong opinion on how things are to be done. If we just let it be, relax and realise that trusting the person to do the best will make all our lives so much easier.

However, its so difficult to be this calm when we start getting angry and irritated. One way is to reduce all we are doing. As Jackie Chan says " Daily reduce rather than increase what we do", we can actually be present in whats going on in my mind and see how anger rises. Just this awareness will create distance and we can choose how to respond. Let anger reign, then feel guilty or see how anger begins but just breathe, acknowledge it and know that I am more than this emotion. Lets not even judge it as postitve , negative emotion, just another emotion. And then see what needs to be done.

Long standing habits and perceptions are strongly embedded in our mind. Only being detached w,hen emotions rise can we begin to see whats really happening, cause, and then letting the entire drama play out in our head so we can figure out why so in the first place. Our learning emerges and that is the real story. This the main act of our lives rather than all the other bussiness we indulge in.

Calm down a restless mind, be a child

The thing about restlessness is that its such a waste of energy! you think about a thousand things you want to do but unfortunately cant do anything since your energies are all scattered. The kindest thing to do is literaly surrender to the highest good! what that means is forget about everything and take a bow! ok ok, no more teasing, do the childs pose - just get down into varjasana and bend forward. If possible let your forehead touch the ground. Make it more comfortable by spreading your knees apart so you dont get too compressed on the tummy. Stay here for atleast a couple of minutes. Gently lift the head and breath easy.

The blood flows into your brains which are in need of it real bad. So this relaxes the mind and you can now think afresh without too much distraction.

Variations are yoga mudra, where you sit in padmasana or simple cross legged- sukhasana with your head down. If you can reach your head to touch down keep a cushion and rest on it. Paschimottasana also has same results. If at work, then just get your head to rest on your table for a couple of minutes. You will feel suprising refreshed and most certainly more centred, quieter.

Just a thought . . .

I found a new way to tackle my monkey mind. Every time it gets agitated, irritated or desires something, I tell myself to watch it & say "Its just another thought". The hitch is that you gotta see this irritation, desire soon enough before it gathers too much of my attention & energy. The times that i manage to do so, its pretty interesting. It then seems that its just a thought like so many others, a passing thing. Im saved from anger or losing my self to a want. Im saved from harming myself or someone else. It feels like a small step towards discipline. It feels good :)