At dinner tonight, I had one of those deep insightful conversations with a friend over yoga in general. He has known me for some time, in fact he knows me very well. The questions he raised were genuine and triggered something inside of me that really just set me off on a very positive rampage. I hope this doesn’t come across as hostile towards him or any of the questions, topics, or our general conversation. I am completely grateful for these conversations, and I hopeful they’ll forever come up. These talks are the moments I thrive on!
I’ve recorded much of the conversation we had tonight (hours later when I arrive home and ran for my computer), and overtime I’ll write little pieces on the topic and individual questions that I did my best to answer. Here’s the first for starters:
Friend: So where can I find that “centeredness” you refer to? Why not in running? Rock climbing? What is the difference and how can you differentiate between what people take from each?
Myself: What I take form yoga today and what I took from it 5 years ago are worlds apart. I don’t put either of those individual practices above any other; it is all a part of the greater learning experience. As a past runner and gym-timer, I can answer honestly by saying that yoga is what lead me to be in touch with my deeper spirit, my deeper sense of self. While running a trail, thoughts wonder high, low, past, present and future. I laugh out loud at the sudden memory of a black eye at the age of 10; and a sudden deep breath arrises at the anxiety of a test awaiting in the week to come. While my body is moving, working and warm, my mind is dancing with shifting thoughts, like the changing scenery as my feet take me mile by mile. Versus yoga, where my mind is directed inside. I am aware of myself entirely: my body, my movement, my breath and my connection to each of these aspects with emotion; rising and falling energy. This is where I get more personal than I’d typically like, but when I leave a yoga class, after having the complete practice I’ve just mentioned, I find myself in a complete state of bliss. Words cannot describe the true feelings. After spending some substantial time in the day, connecting movement and meditation, I walk out of the class smiling from head to toe. I’m centered. And after the time I just spent focused on nothing but myself, I am lucky enough to now know myself truer, and deeper, and with even more appreciation. Where a yoga practice can take you, I highly recommend it :)
How to get there: Start small. I began simply by focusing on my breath, and often use this same technique. This is a tool for drawing awareness inside. The body moves with breath; there is literally not a single moment in any one person’s life that we are able to find complete stillness; this is the gift of being alive. So focus on that life force from with in; visualize your inhales as it lifts you higher, expands across your chest, and creates a little bit more space from within. On the exhales, feel your tendency and ability to relax; let go of any tension you hold tightly to. As your mind takes off and wonders from the focus of breath to the dancing images and ideas the day brings, acknowledge those ideas, greet them, and let them pass. Bring yourself back to your breath, and repeat this as necessary, bringing yourself back to you.
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