YOGA. REVERENCE,... & Things working out

 Things have a way of working out. 💚🙏

As much as we stress and toil over what happens around us and "to us"... We can really get caught up in a whirlwind of ... "why is this happening to me?" ... but,..

If we are really looking - Did something happen TO YOU?  Or, have "things" in your life come to a point that the decisions and habits and patterns of your life are simply revealing the truth of your choices over time?   The teachings of Yoga are SIMPLE... Did I say 'EASY'? no,.. not EASY.  But, we are taught in the sutra - (chapter 2 specifically ) about practice and that we must find ease and be steady.  We must practice with effort and ease.  In recent study, I had an even deeper understanding of this teaching.  The EFFORT, the steady part of this teaching has to do with our connectedness to the earth.  How are you on the earth? WHO are you on this earth? One of my favorite quotes, teachings,... is something I learned while studying Anthroposophy, steiner and Waldorf Ed. - "BE WORTHY OF IMITATION"... It is a principal I lived in my daily life as a Waldorf teacher and something that I TRY each day to practice as a mother.  How are you? When no one is watching? When you are talking to yourself? Are you kind to yourself? This week, we are practicing AHIMSA.  Ahimsa is non-violence.  Not harming yourself or others - We look through the lens of non-harming with what we eat, how we speak to others, as well as to ourselves and in how we care for the earth.  Another word that I learned in Waldorf study is REVERENCE.  My favorite story to share is handing out crayons in 1st grade, in the classroom that I held.  20 first grade students - a beautiful mix of boys and girls, all walks of life... In the mountains of Arizona.   In this classroom, the way that we approached caring for "gifts" in the classroom was with REVERENCE.  So, on a special day... I told a story about .. the bright bold sun and how much life she offers, the brilliance, the boldness - the glowing light.  The gift of light and warmth and how the sun listens and gives.  How the animal kingdom and plant kingdoms benefit, the yellow of the flowers and on the bees body.   A beautiful story told to the children.  At the end of the story, I walk around the classroom with a special basket filled with brand new YELLOW crayons - the wax shared from the bees - A huge GIFT! As I would approach each child, their eyes would be wide and their lips sealed - lovingly looking at this special and beautiful gift.  First graders in the waldorf school begin with block crayons, therefore this beautiful yellow block of pure color is coming their way.  The child, as if asked, opens their hands, ... forming a chalice to receive this offering.  The child gazes at the crayon- imagining parts of the story told and also imagining that they will create a beautiful image on paper of something from their heart.  The child closes their hands around the crayon and feels the texture, noticing the rectangular shape and says, "THANK YOU".  THIS is reverence.  Throughout the year, the children take good care of their crayons, their gifts,... they have special hand sewn crayon holders and they clean their crayons and use them in a way that preserves their beauty, they also share them if need be.  Are you treating your life with reverence? Are you steady and at ease with the earth and yourself?  Are you offering effort without worry of attaching to the end result?   Are you doing these things with truth, without taking from others? Are you disciplined and do you feel content in your life?   Are things messy and out of balance in your life or clean and pure?  Are you holding too tightly to a person or "thing"... There are many ways to study Yoga,.. many paths that take us on the journey.    The journey is inward - The journey is to the true self and sometimes the road may not be EASY... but the yogic teachings, in my opinion, are simple and if we are steady and at ease... if we practice principles like non-harming ( ahimsa) then we are more open to seeing that things "have a way of working out".... We feel less like " this is HAPPENING TO ME" and more at ease and steady,... connected to the earth below us.  If we have reverence and practice aspects of yoga like - non attachment, there is a peace within that reveals itself.  Take a breath... right now,... JUST CLOSE YOUR EYES,... take a deep breath and just sit for a moment.  LOVE. 

10 MINUTE guided & stillness MEDITATION: St. Barth's

Doing it yourself.

 💞

Don't ask anyone to do what you YOURSELF,... are NOT doing.... Long ago,...a wise young yogi looked up at me and said, "adults ask others to do things without doing those things themselves...." I simply paused.  From that point,.. I LISTENED more closely, to the demands of others.  You have most likely heard it and,.. well, maybe even SAID it yourself.  DO THIS....maybe knowing, maybe NOT knowing that you, yourself, weren't or WOULDN'T do it...So, this is not criticism but an opportunity to look within.  Are you? ....Are you asking others to do things that you, yourself are not doing?... because, that quote from above, came from the mouth of a child, a child that resembles me... at a VERY young age - that looked around acknowledged truth.  We talked about it, it was PROFOUND for me and I am not perfect but ... I work VERY hard to live in a way that is authentic.... live in a way that my own son would be able to count on the words that I speak.  

Who are we becoming, as moms, parents, people, humans,... YOGA TEACHERS?  Are you asking (even silently in your heart ) of others, things that YOU, yourself, are not willing to "DO" yourself. 

just take a moment.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

 WHAT ARE YOU DOING ?

Is it worth DOING? ARE YOU JUST IN RUT? -.... Are you simply going through the motions,....? or do you LOVE EACH DAY with crazy happiness and joy? You CAN... There is no reason that you shouldn't live each day to the fullest!

oK... WHAT is holding you back?...breathe,...BREATHE deeply - take it all is - How does it feel? How do you FEEL? DO you even remember? - That's what Yoga is all about - remembering - It's all about remembering - your TRUE nature - WHO are You?  you ....YOU - ARE AMAZING - wake up! Be YOU - the AMAZING YOU! 

I love you = You love you - NO - YOU LOVE YOU - that's what you need - you ARE LOVE - you emanate love - you exude love - Think of the first 7 years of a childs existence - they are simply absorbing EVERYTHING around them - drinking it all in - on this great wavelength - it's a vibration like no other ,... or IS IT? you can also access this place in the moments prior to sleep... SO, SOOOOO so,.. what if?? JUST , WHAT if ,?....You filled that time - those last few minutos with amazing good CRAZY good thoughts of ... What are you trying to manifest STUFF?... THAT.. 

Absorb the goodness ... PLAY THE SONG THAT YOU WANT TO BE YOUR life!

What stands in the way?

myyogatree.com

💓WHAT DO YOU STAND FOR?... who do you stand with? Do you feel as though you are living your dharma? ( DHARMA-your truth, order, universal law, your social obligation, the invisible law that governs, fulfilling your role in society, - carrying yourself with respect, your empathy and courage...)  

Do you TRUST in your gift? Doubt and indecision take you away from your Dharma-

💗💙💚💛💜💓💛💚💜💓💓💓💓💓🙏

Patanjali tells us of DOUBT,...( it is one of the 9 obstacles/hindrances ) - DOUBT, disease, lethargy, mental laziness, false perception, lack of enthusiasm, clinging to self enjoyment, lack of concentration, losing concentration....

What is in between YOU and the object that you would like to rest your mind on?....You can become overly focused on this distraction - this can be helpful at times ( doubt) but it can also be a hindrance ( misplaced doubt)... the Buddha says, "test it out"... if you have a doubting attitude - it taints trust.  We should be symbiotic - everyone benefiting.  Boundaries should be soft, mutual goodness, steadiness...

If we look back on our life, we question ourselves, we have to make so many decisions, confidence can become arrogance.  

If we look back at our lives, we see life is flowing, it is not GOOD or BAD,... or right or wrong....instead of judging, - know that it is flowing,... LIFE,... If you don't KNOW,... = you don't need to fill it with knowing.. It's about WATCHING,.. sakshi - observing,... Don't feel that you have to FILL it up.  Acknowledge that previous decisions have brought you to the now . 

If you have doubt within the practice, test it out,... experience clears up doubt.  Yoga emphasizes direct experience.  Yoga motivates you but to clear doubt, is through your own work.  Beginners ask lots of questions, but as we practice more, we ask less, - we have to be confident in what we believe, not doubt.  AND.... if we study too much, as teachers, as students... and not "PRACTICE".... then it's complicated and unclear to (us, students)... and lineage can be LOST here...

what we doubt, ... IS OUR TRUE NATURE- but,... nothing is MISSING... you don't have to go running - you already ARE - a "HOLY BEING" (S. Gannon)...  Yoga is trying to REMIND us... NOTHING is missing! Your true nature is ... YOU - SHINING BRIGHT!  

If someone doubts, and they LEAVE carrying DOUBT, - it stands in the way of all that they have learned,... so - TEST IT OUT!  ... don't let doubt take you away from your focus.

LOKAH SAMASTAH SUKHINO BHAVANTU...

namaste'

mucho love and light, 

Kerry ~ YOGA TREE

Yoga Tree Island meditation

BE STILL

 What is holding you back? 👀

What are YOU holding onto that it is time to be free of. Are you living a repetitive, habitual version of yourself or are you living a TRUE you?... How do you find the "answers" to these inquiries?...STILLNESS,....In my life, so far (still going... 50 plus...) I have had and am still HAVING so many wonderful opportunities and I will forever be a student of life. Recently I have been 'REMINDED' that the reason that I love walking on the beach at sunrise, or free diving and moving slowly under water, or walking in nature and listening to snow fall, or simply watching and/ or listening to the the slow and steady respiration of a sleeping child or animal.... is because it is so quiet.....but, what I remember is ....

I love these things because I love meditation, and meditation is:

sitting in stillness. THIS is the "secret" that is not so secret,... the answers are right there... Already inside... we simply have to be QUIET. In the quiet, we Hear...

The whispers of wisdom, When our minds are filled with chatter, it is a great challenge to listen and observe ourselves,.. and even the observation of how wiggley we can be just TRYING to be still, can be a great lesson. We SAY we want truth in the world, but do you really? The truth is right behind the chatter... so, be STILL and sit with yourself....

There are many versions of YOGA in our day and age,...Yoga takes us on a path, a great journey, ... inward... the journey to/in/of SELF. The asana practice (asana = seat or being steady and at ease) ... These shapes that we make with our bodies are meant to purify the "body" but truly, sitting in stillness with ourselves,....that is where the light is.

What light?

The light that always resides within you,..

It is just beyond your darkness and we vacillate between this darkness and light,...What is NOT important is the story of the darkness but the constant returning to the light. I read long ago,.. what makes us yoga practitioners is not the "perfection" of a shape or asana,.. but the coming back to the pose when we "fall" out of it,... The coming back to our breath when we are distracted by our own chattering mind,... It is in the coming back that we REMEMBER the truth,.... the essence of who we are, ... the light never goes away, but are you quiet enough to see the light, to feel, experience, and sit with the light. Yogi's are activist, we believe and stand for what is right. We read in the Gita about our purpose, our dharma. I believe that when we recognize our gift(s) and follow our path, we will be reminded of our similarities to all beings. When we let go of the end result and simply offer from our hearts what we have to offer, JOY can shine through... It has always been there, the joy, the peace, the contentment. Over the course of our lives, whether you are 50, 90 or 15, we develop patterns and habits. These habitual patterns create grooves in our being and it can become hard to see beyond and outside of these grooves. We can become self created prisoners of our own making.

What can I do?....SIT. Sitting is the way,... sitting with yourself. Meditation. How can you sit with yourself? Just start. Right now, Sit, Be Still and Focus. We are fortunate that through all of the shifting in 2020, we have not lost the opportunity to sit with ourselves, you can even "sit" with others, whether it is in person or virtually. (there are great guides, to support your journey, even right here on FB, Satsang) ... Try a minute, find a quiet spot,... CREATE a quiet spot....and then sit, get REALLY comfortable and lengthen your spine, elevate your hips and lower your knees ( this can be accomplished by sitting on a pillow, a folded towel or blanket), close your eyes and focus for a moment on your breathing. Now, just let the clouds in the mind move away so that the sky is clear. The next step is to simply OBSERVE... Without judging or trying to do a 'GOOD' job,... just sit... with your best teacher,....SELF. and after,.. recline and stay still, rest. We say we want peace and well being but, we have to PRACTICE. This is not a NEW concept, a new THING to "learn",.. This is training to simply shed away the old layers, habits, patterns, stories and REMEMBER the amazing being that is ALREADY inside,... filled with light. It is not EASY, but it IS simple. It takes time to unravel and get to know yourSELF, THIS is the journey,... and when you lose your "balance" and "fall out" of the "pose/asana" or feel the intensity of this life fill you with fear and doubt,... simply breath, sit, become still and focus,... start over again....

Lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu

namaste'