Being at the water always inspires me. Simply the way the sky melts into the ocean, how they “speak” to and dance with each other.
Yoga means union – ”yoke” or bringing together. Behind the philosophy of yoga, we are not separated; neither from others, ourselves, nor nature.
The issue, or suffering, emerges when we take one piece of the whole as an independent truth. When we identify with one thought, one opinion, one side of the story. When we take one drop as the ocean itself.
The truth reveals itself, ancient yogis say, when we recognize the interwovenness of it all. The journey of yoga then is about reconnecting to this truth. Not mentally, but experientially.
In asana, when we move one arm, it is not just one arm. The rest of the body is always involved.
At a mental or emotional level, a thought is not just a thought. Our history, context, own biases count too.
At the larger, spiritual or Heart, level is where it all clicks: We are not separated. Just like for water and sky in this picture, the apparent separation is indeed always mutable.
“Compare is despair.” Comparison and judgement are just expressions of that perceived separation. The good news is that we can change that.
Next time you compare yourself, pause. Let it go. Notice you don’t need that judgement. Go within instead, see what is there…
“Upekshanaham” is Sanskrit for equanimity; literally “seeing in the right context.” Equanimity is also a state of deep inner peace and stability; a result of many repetitions of the experience of oneness, one moment, one breath, one move at a time.
Keep practicing. Trust your commitment, although the mind might find excuses. It will pay off – for you and the world around you.
Because in the end, we are one.
With love,
Cédric
