YogaTalk

Practical reminders for ordinary splendour

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PLANET WONDER

I don’t mind sounding corny – some things just can’t be said enough:

Our home planet is unique…

Close enough to our sun to be warmed, but far enough away not to be scorched…

Half-days basked in light and half-days cooled in shade…

So much potential for life – this earth could be heaven. How lucky we are. 

Here are some personal thoughts on how experiences of everyday wonder can help lift us from the swamping rigmaroles of personal life. I think of it as giving things a yogaturn. Because…

Because, it’s just so easy to get wrapped up in our own little world.

I got bogged down this summer. A health crisis was consuming too much energy; I could manage to teach well enough but had no creative urge to write. Small things got to me. I could get anxious about the least thing and, in the continuing rainless weeks of baking heat, I did not thrive.

One day, we couldn’t bear the screeches of our neighbours’ grandchildren on their trampoline, swings and slide. With no quiet indoors we went out to escape the noise.

On the market, two blokes stood smoking as they faced into the hatch of the little snack bar. They seemed oblivious of our efforts to get served, as we manoeuvred forwards and back to avoid their clouds of smoke.

We headed for the clean air of the hills, escaping with the curlews on the hot scorched moors.

Soothed but hot and thirsty, we then took refuge in the coolness of a favourite pub in trendy right-on Hebden Bridge. The place was busier than we’d ever seen it. People with drinks wandered uncomfortably from room to room looking for seats. Two ladies eating pickled eggs and drinking wine were comfortably sprawled across all the bench seating for three tables at one side of the room. I managed to squeeze up next to a guy’s big rucksack which he did not move from the seat; he and his stuff were monopolising a space which could have seated five or six. He looked the sensitive type but clearly wasn’t!  I couldn’t help noticing that the book he sat reading was called “Higher Consciousness”.

How come people seemed so uncaring and oblivious to each other’s needs?

I like to people-watch. I learn a lot. Normally I’m upbeat in observation with a light-hearted yogaturn overview – but not that day. I longed for planet simple, where social interchange was always easy, caring and thoughtful.

I often head off to the hills in my heart and mind – it helps me see a bigger picture which is more compassionate and kind. But not that day. I just felt annoyed. Husband said I needed to get on the yoga mat, and he was right. Getting on the mat does always seem to sweeten life and set things right. I had been unwittingly sinking into my own realm of the unwell, yogaturns somehow slipping away in my preoccupation with personal affairs and health.

These yogaturns are for any time, whatever our situation and however we’re feeling – we just sometimes need reminding.

Selfish and defensive behaviour are often rooted in uncertainty, ignorance and fear.

Remembering this is in itself a yogaturn, which helps us feel compassion toward the inconsiderate or unkind, at times saving us from our own knee-jerk reactions.

Yoga helps us raise a more attuned self-awareness which is not self-obsessed.

Remembering this is another yogaturn, so we don’t take ourselves too seriously and can have a light-hearted default mode, even if we’re not in a good place at the time.

I like to lie down on my back on the yoga mat, semi-supine, open-handed, arms out wide. Eyes closed, I imagine a starry sky on a clear moonlit night. Having seen such skies and felt sublime I can invoke those feelings once again, purely through memory.

Letting such wonder be part of the ordinary everyday is yet another yogaturn. It uplifts and enriches life.

When I remember to gaze up at the heavens , I’m overwhelmed with wonder at this vast display of space and time.

Such feelings bring a shrinking sense of self without denting self-esteem. We can be reminded of our own short transient life without fearing its end.

Gobsmacked by starlight, I know that I am but one of similar billions, with each of us a tiny part of this boundless ever-changing universe. Such feelings humble me, helping me feel more connected to others and our world.

Perhaps the word ‘awe’ is overused today – but not felt enough.

Feelings of wonder, awe and the sublime are not so rare – they can just easily be missed or overlooked.

It’s not necessary to visit exotic locations, have bucket lists with bungee jumps, be an astronaut, blow our mind on drugs… to be uplifted by a transformative experience.

Such feelings come at different levels, take varied forms and induce a range of emotions. But all will help steer us away from self-preoccupation.

Shared experiences of awe and wonder can help people bond, to have more respect and love for our home planet and for each other.

Soaking up all the small wonders of our daily life adds up to an awful lot of awe… Reminding myself and others of this is the reason for this blog.

“It is one of the greatest glories of this universe that the common and inconspicuous life of ordinary men contains a thousand daily opportunities for spiritual splendour.”

From Seven Schools of Yoga. By Ernest Wood, 1931 

Here are some suggestions for wonder-triggers:

  • Look at an insect up close.
  • Don’t miss a chance to get out in the natural world.
  • Visit a cathedral or some similar awesome building or engineering project.
  • Expose yourself to be blown away by someone’s creative talent, music or art, from the past or the present.
  • Close your eyes and conjure up memories of awe and wonder, evoking similar feelings just by remembering them.
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PRACTICE

TASTE

Too many humans, all needing food, in a volatile, ever-changing world, which they don’t look after…?

Not really a good recipe for peaceful eating!

When such creatures, full of desire and emotion brew alcohol…

Well it doesn’t seem to make for moderate drinking either! 

Food and drink can be such a pleasure, but going by the present state of the nation which I love …

It seems our consumption is doing more harm than good. 

Enough said. Rant over. This website is not about preaching, and likes to focus on the fun and the positive.

So here are some light-hearted reminders of things we can do which make for happy eating, pleasant drinking and good digestion. 

As usual it’s about making a practice out of everyday behaviour. It’s a way of replacing bad habits with good ones using awareness and repetition.

We may not always remember, so it’s best to be more amused than self-critical when we don’t always manage it. The way I think about such things is: I’ll give it a yoga-turn:

STOP TO EAT

Practice not doing anything else while you eat, especially if that’s not the norm.

Turn off the TV. Put down devices. Let any music be quiet and unobtrusive. Let yourself sit peacefully with no distractions.

SIT TO EAT

Be upright and imagine your head floating upwards. Notice any slumping (as if trying to get closer to the food!)

If on a chair, try not leaning on the back of it (especially if it’s shaped like a bucket!) Try not to cross your legs, but have both feet on the floor and if the chair’s too high, put something under the feet.

DON’T RUSH

If you’re a habitual fast eater or drinker this one can be a real challenge… you’ll probably keep forgetting!

Chew the food completely. Put cutlery down between mouthfuls.

TASTE IT

Let the food or drink move around in the mouth before swallowing. If it tastes good, savour it.

A FAVOURABLE SETTING

Try to eat and drink in pleasant and friendly places, and if not alone then in congenial company.

THANKFULNESS

Pause in gratitude before eating and drinking. Thank the cook or provider if possible. Show appreciation.

MOOD

Try to avoid eating and drinking when upset or angry: it can influence our choices and hamper digestion. Notice thoughts as you eat and cultivate pleasant ones.

SNACKING

It’s easy to deceive ourselves about what we consume, and the quantity. “All I’ve had is a cracker…” Yes, but what about the half-inch slice of cheese on it and half a jar of pickle!

Whether through greed or need, some people eat too much, some too little.

If you’re lucky enough to have plenty of food, then it’s just a case of noticing what and when you eat between meals, or during preparation.

TABLE MANNERS

Notice the way you eat, especially when alone. Are you a lazy or messy eater? Eat mindfully, as if in company.

CHOICE

Obviously, some people’s diet is restricted through medical issues.

If we are fortunate enough to select what we consume, then remember to appreciate this freedom.

Why not pause to notice if what we’re about to swallow will nourish or harm us?

There’s always a moral and ethical aspect to food and drink. It’s worth considering what the environmental, human and animal costs are, and how much we value that.

It’s wonderful to be able to enjoy our food and drink. And what fun to be able to treat ourselves and be a bit naughty when it causes no harm!

A personal afterword about my own relations with alcohol:

So far (touch wood!) I’ve managed to avoid the devastation of long-term addiction… because in this area I know I could easily have had problems.

I’m obviously a huge fan of yoga, and it’s for a very good reason. Without wishing to sound dramatic, I do feel that yoga continually saves me.

At some point I realised that yoga’s benign and practical influence was percolating into all aspects of my everyday life, helping me manage myself better, leading to wiser choices. I really do feel that it saves me from a more impetuous self.  KX

 

 

 

 

 

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WAKEY WAKEY


There are times when life seems to take on certain flavours, often evoked by particular sights, sounds, tastes, smells and touch…

Here’s a blog about the senses… our unique senses, through which we experience the world.

These senses are a powerful stimulus for thoughts, feelings, and how we respond to whatever’s happening at the time.

With their help we humans have evolved to be the most dominant, creative, volatile and destructive creatures on the planet – after a few million years!

Our brain lives in its dark closed shell. Signals from the senses are its gateway to beyond. These signals, translated into the common currency of electro-chemical impulses, then permit us to adopt our own individual slant on the world.

Our senses collaborate:

Vision is a whole-body experience.

Touch influences how we see.

Sight informs what we hear, taste and smell.

When trying to remember something, some people reach for their glasses… in fact, I admit, I’ve done it myself! It’s that feeling that somehow seeing more clearly helps us think more clearly.

And whilst I am grateful for my glasses, I do resent having something stuck on my face!

I encourage people to manage without them on the yoga mat… to enjoy a more carefree experience. Make friends with that blurry, fuzzy world!

At home on bright days I like to go spec-less. Or go walking! Otherwise all the bits that need cleaning and dusting are far too apparent in the sunlight…

But my light-hearted way of putting off housework unfortunately mirrors what may in some become a problem – namely, dulling the senses in order to bypass pain, or closing our eyes and ears to things which don’t reinforce our opinions. We thus cheat ourselves of our natural vibrant awareness and impartiality.

Yoga practices can help us appreciate and evolve connections. For example, the way we breathe reflects the way we think and feel… and vice versa.

It’s good to be reminded that what affects one aspect of us will always influence the function of our whole self.

The way we practise on the yoga mat is a good pointer to how we are in general.

And sometimes in classes people wisely close their eyes. Why? To better savour their own experience, rather than be made hungry by what the eye sees – thus avoiding the urge to achieve the shapes that other bodies are making!

We can too easily believe our eyes, even if they tell us that white is black and black is white.

Our senses can drive us to unwise and illogical behaviours, make us susceptible to strange beliefs and superstitions. We humans are prone to bias, to adopting moral stances then bending facts around them.

First impressions don’t always serve us well in the long term, if based solely on how someone looks or sounds that day.

Our senses can trick us when in highly charged or emotional states of mind; when asked to recall situations imagination can easily replace fact.

In yoga misapprehension is called avidya. And a purpose of practice is to see ourselves and others more clearly – to remove the veils of illusion, which yoga names maya.

How easily our senses can deceive!

We sense things as solid, including us, yet all is space and energetic particles.

We sense we are still, yet we’re hurtling through space on a fast-spinning planet.

We sense that the world is flat, just because we can’t see past our noses!

Our collective senses lend us our perception of the world, from which emerges our own unique, individual reality… it’s a miracle!

Yet, like all else in the world, our senses are ever-changing; their quality comes in tides.

As surely as the moon draws the ocean, they will be affected by ill health, negative emotion, fatigue.

Yoga helps us to take care of ourselves, knowing that how we behave will affect the world around us.

Clarity makes us better managers of ourselves… so that our senses can serve, and not enslave us. X

 

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