Hello everyone! And thank you once again for all your wonderful comments. We are both overjoyed and overwhelmed by the number we are getting. Apologies for not being able to respond to each one… there are just so many! They are very very helpful, so please do keep them coming, because they help keep us going in the right direction.
And Happy New Year! It feels so good to get back on that yoga mat after a few weeks break! Hope you can also begin the year by doing the same.
It’s also good to see the snowdrops… to be reminded, on dull winter days, of the coming spring; to remember that we too are part of nature, and that our own quickening endeavours can also ripen into fruits.
It’s obviously of benefit to have some spark and vigour, to feel light-hearted and in natural rhythm with ourselves. Feeling such benefit is certainly a motivation to take up yoga practices. Some benefits are instant, others creep up over time…
Perhaps one day we notice that some once-familiar ache has faded.
Perhaps our general mood is upbeat and we are not so easily dragged down.
Perhaps we feel more buoyant, less anxious, better able to counter daily knocks and scrapes without being thrown off balance.
Benefits can be numerous, coming in fits and starts, and not always apparent;
We might start with tiny steps, but, who knows?… these could become giant leaps! Why not THINK BIG!?
Be optimistic and stretch upwards like the snowdrop – from the cold earth into sunshine, out of darkness into light.
Yes, the benefits can be numerous – it’s better just to suggest a few.
Fruits of practice might make us more…
ACCEPTING… that whilst we may have little control over events, we can still have authority over the self.
Aware that, though our self-determination may be limited, how we react in an encounter will affect the outcome.
ADAPTABLE… better equipped to handle inevitable change – flexing, not snapping under strain.
Better able to weather storms, knowing when to cut losses by pausing mid-stream and changing tack.
Less inclined to let ill-serving ways set in with age.
APPRECIATIVE… and grateful for our unique world and life.
Not taking anyone or anything for granted – knowing that even seemingly mundane things can be most missed when absent.
ATTENTIVE… and mentally present in more of our moments.
Able to focus and become absorbed at will.
Recognising when and why short and poor attention span becomes a problem.
ATTUNED… more able to read and gauge the frame of mind of those around us.
Less likely to over-react. More skilled in how we respond, interact and intersect with the world.
Better at undertaking and completing tasks.
AWARE… wide-awake to experiences – making life seem longer because we spend less time in mental torpor.
Able to optimise and enjoy varying mental states such as absorption, daydream and meditation.
BALANCED… centred.
Better able to navigate a course between conflicting aspects of life; to reconcile what can feel like a wilful battle of thought versus feeling.
Freer of the urge to accumulate, less enslaved by desire or affected by strong emotion, able to let go.
Knowing what helps return us to an even keel when out of kilter – and doing it.
CLEAR-SIGHTED… unafraid to see all, including ourself, in the harsh light of day.
Impartial, less caught up in greedy self-interest.
Able to gauge when our pleasures will lead to pain in the long run.
COMFORTABLE… in our skin, able to make the best of our condition.
Knowing how to help free ourselves from muscular and mental tensions.
Able to think, feel and move with more grace and poise.
COMPASSIONATE… and helpful. Tolerant of others’ shortcomings, because we know how hard it is to recognise and address them in ourselves.
Knowing that if we sometimes find it hard being human, then so might others.
Unafraid to feel the inevitable contrasts that come with being human – and thus acutely aware… pleasure/pain, joy/sorrow, ups/downs.
CONFIDENT… but free from self-righteous arrogance and hubris.
Self-contained, less troubled by how others regard us.
Feeling entirely equal to, but no better or worse than anybody else.
Having less anxiety and doubt, less fear of failure and more courage in endeavour.
CONNECTED… within ourself and to the world.
Realising that what happens to one part of a living system affects its whole function; our actions will influence those around us, the effect spreading like ripples in water.
Able to link thoughts and feelings with consequent behaviour, and vice versa.
COURAGEOUS… able to face our fears, take responsibility in situations and rise to occasions.
Less prone to social pressure to conform, but living in a way that reflects our own values.
ENERGISED…vigorous.
In rhythm with natural cycles.
Able to optimise, direct and conserve energy, with less time spent in fruitless worry, and less holding on to tensions which can lead to ill health.
More buoyant, less drained by negativity when feeling under par.
FITTER… as healthy as we can be, because we feel inclined to desire and do what helps keep us fit and well.
FREE… whatever our situation, enjoying a sense of liberty that comes from being a more well-managed person.
Free of self-deception.
Able to make the best of what we are born with and into.
Having free will to react and respond wisely to daily challenges, hardships, harshness and critical situations.
FULFILLED… by how we live from day to day.
Living in a manner that suits our nature.
Able to distil maximum pleasure from everyday occurrences – making the most of life.
Living more in the present, yearning less for the future, dwelling less in the past.
GENEROUS… by default!
Having less self-interest, which frees us from the urge to control and accumulate.
More impartial, freeing us from jealousy and bitterness.
Able to share resources, even when limited.
Interested in the lives and welfare of others.
HAPPY… as a naturally regained default setting.
Able to enjoy sensory and sexual pleasures without doing harm.
Content to live by what will nourish us and help us to thrive.
Steadier – free from excessive moods and self-destructive tendencies which debilitate and drain.
Finding pleasure in others’ joys and fortunes.
More optimistic in general outlook.
HARMONIOUS…with less internal conflict, more sense of personal space.
Easily regaining a state of mental equilibrium.
A benign influence and a greater force for good in the world.
HUMBLE… modest.
At ease feeling simply one of many.
Comfortable knowing that life is transient.
Free of the self-righteous belief that ‘our way’ is right and others are wrong.
INSPIRED… creative, imaginative, deductive.
Inspiring others by example.
Finding that good ideas come unbidden into the mind, as if from nowhere.
Undertaking and completing tasks with more ease and less effort.
INTUITIVE… with emotional intelligence, better able to gauge and read ourselves and others.
Interpreting situations more wisely, better able to anticipate outcomes.
Having a feel for what is good and right.
KIND… feeling less fear and anxiety, leading to a kindlier life. Tender and never knowingly cruel.
LIGHT-HEARTED… inclined to take oneself less seriously.
Easily made to laugh or smile.
Having a lightness of spirit that uplifts us and helps others through darker times.
OPEN-MINDED… and open-hearted.
Not closed to wonder, new ideas, transformative experiences.
Believing that all kinds make our rich and diverse world – that mono-systems, without interaction, unaccepting of change, lead to a world which cannot thrive.
PERCEPTIVE… skilful in daily living – more judicious, fair, discerning and considered.
REFRESHED… benefitting from proper rest; busy, but with less frantic haste and stress.
Enjoying restorative habits.
Allowing oneself the time and space for plenty of pauses in daily action… stopping to breathe, to take stock, to notice life.
Viewing each day as a new opportunity.
RESPONSIBLE… accountable for our actions.
Self-reliant – but a good receiver.
Seeing when troubles are of our own making – not blaming others when a fault is ours.
Able to link thoughts and feelings with consequent behaviour, so we act more responsibly.
WISER… learning from daily experience.
Making choices which lead to better outcomes.
Less likely to repeat the same mistakes over and over.
More focussed on the greater rather than the personal good.
More inclined to be well-managed, happy, benevolent.
Enjoying a sense of ease in the self, with room to breathe and think and move, making space for our natural wiser self to emerge.