(no subject)

[beachlass]

One of the seemingly universal pieces of advice about spiritual practices: They take practice. Especially on the days when you don't want to, and it goes wrong and you are sure it's going to accomplish nothing. In one of Thomas Merton's books, he advises that if prayer always feels great, you're doing something wrong, because you need to pray through the bleak empty times as well.

One of the things I'm loving about yoga practice is the quietness of mind that I reach during it. And yesterday, when I woke up having a crap day, and didn't manage to start my morning practice until 3pm, I knew that quietness was probably going to be out of reach. And knowing that is probably one of the things that kept delaying me from trying. But I'm trying to practice every day during Lent, no exceptions, and I know that the days I am too busy/don't want to/feel useless are days that I really need to push through.

And then suddenly, when I was reaching for a forward bend, and realized I needed to let go rather than stretch, I experienced one of those shifts, and it wasn't just physical. More of an epiphany than a piece of quiet - and I realized that maybe letting go was what I needed for the problem that had thrown off my whole day.

I feel a bit more at peace this morning, and am going to try to carry the sensation of letting go and relaxing into the bend from my physical pose into my heart and actions.

Comments

[rydra_wong]

One of my favourite ever bits of yoga teaching comes from a podcast where at one point the instructor said, "Breathe into the difficulties."

That's helped me a great deal off the mat as well.

[beachlass]

That is a wonderful phrase to carry around, thank you for sharing it.

[viklikesfic]

*hugs*

I think what's most frustrating for me, and what makes it hard to make myself practice every day, is that I first started trying yoga in October/November, and then I got out of it for a month or so, and then I returned. The first "round," I remember it feeling great spiritually and physically. I'd finish the practice and feel totally energized, and during the practice I found it really easy to sink into myself. Total beginner's luck, apparently, because this second "round" hasn't been like that at all. My practice is often frustrating, and even when I get the breathing, I can't make it meditative. I do wonder if the fact that I stopped doing it with eyes closed is part of that, so I might go back to eyes closed. I also have been considering just memorizing the flows I do the most and using plain music, rather than the audio course, so that I don't have the instructor's words to distract me. And since yoga is not supposed to be about asanas, I'd like to get some playlists together that start with plain music to give me some time with my breath before I start a class, have some more music after the class for extra time in shavasana, and then go into a guided meditation that I can do seated on my mat. I'm hoping that that sequence will be more conducive to spirituality and feeling energized.

[beachlass]

Often eyes closed is what works for me as well. And I experienced something similar when I first started, and yeah - discouraged a bit that their are times when I have to find perserverance to keep going, because not every time feels wonderful, gives me that immediate positive feedback. But sticking with it through the flatter times, I'm finding that I get moments of something clicking into place.

Good luck tweeking your practice!