The Delicate Time of Life
While the inner path is sometimes arduous, long and painful, it is also immensely rewarding, filled with timeless joy and one of the only sources of real, lasting peace. Each practitioner of yoga goes through periods of injury, pain and discomfort but not every practitioner has the dedication, heart and courage to find the light at the end of the tunnel. Those who maintain a relationship with their practice over a number of years begin to understand just how much it takes to make yoga a lifelong practice. There are moments of doubt, intense suffering and emotional turmoil as well as moments of bliss, ecstasy and realization. What commitment to yoga over a lifetime really demands is total devotion.
What's stopping you from simply rejoicing in this very moment? Surfacing from the past like a sleeping giant, it is often past hurt, drama, pain, sadness, or anger that hasn't found its way out of your system. Sometimes these patterns seem larger than life and you spend months, years and even lifetimes running from them. Yet that is never actually true, for you are stronger than you know. The thick patterns of past hurt are enticing temptations and, when you react to them, it is a moment of weakness rather than strength. Daily discipline is a slow, steady and methodical way to retrain the habit pattern of your mind. When you commit yourself to daily practice, your yoga has the opportunity to live through you. It is through your dedication that you will find real and lasting peace. Great stores of strength reside deep within you now; yoga is how you can experience, practice and expand your hidden strength.
Each human being holds the potential of a great and beautiful unfolding, a delicate dance whose musicality graces the halls of Earth with powerful presence. Your life energy is vibrant and alive, full of the desire to flower. Yet your seeds must be watered well to grow in a healthy way. When you practice, you water the seeds of consciousness. In this gentle, yet powerful way, you honor the preciousness of your life. Your presence here and now is as magnificent and ephemeral as the tender opening of rose petals in the morning light. In terms of spiritual practice, time is truly of the essence.
Tibetan Lama Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche teaches that a human birth is as rare as a twinkling star in the noonday sky. Look up in the sky tomorrow and see if you can find one. I have never seen anything but the sun.
by Kino MacGregor
Copyright 2009 Kino MacGregor |
All rights reserved
Developing Devotion
A yoga posture demonstrated by a master level practitioner is often the epitome of grace and ease. Yet when the novice student attempts to mirror these same movements the degree of difficulty is immediately evident. The real test of a yoga practitioner comes when the path ahead is laid out clearly and the student choose whether to commits to each step of the journey regardless of difficulty.
While the inner path is sometimes arduous, long and painful, it is also immensely rewarding, filled with timeless joy and one of the only sources of real, lasting peace. Each practitioner of yoga goes through periods of injury, pain and discomfort but not every practitioner has the dedication, heart and courage to find the light at the end of the tunnel. Those who maintain a relationship with their practice over a number of years begin to understand just how much it takes to make yoga a lifelong practice. There are moments of doubt, intense suffering and emotional turmoil as well as moments of bliss, ecstasy and realization. What commitment to yoga over a lifetime really demands is total devotion.
It is through the practice of dedicating yourself to your yoga practice everyday regardless of pain or pleasure that you learn the meaning of devotion. By traversing the murky jungle of the body and mind through yoga you develop the strength and fortitude of spirit needed to face life with dignity. By devoted yourself totally to the path of yoga you learn what it really means to surrender yourself to something. Before that moment of complete dedication there is always the chance to pull out, draw back or quit. But when you devoted yourself wholly your intention, energy and spirit moves mountains to create the real possibility of transformation. It is through the power of devotion that yoga changes your life.
When I started practicing yoga I was not a naturally strong person but I was deeply inspired by the masterful articulation of handstands and arm balances. For nearly five years I devoted myself entirely to the study of yoga with a special emphasis on the development of strength and steadiness in the body and mind. It is because I lived and died for strength in my yoga practice for a number of years that I now consider myself much stronger. It is because I followed the path of yoga through injury, pain, doubt, discomfort and disillusion all the way through into peace, joy, acceptance and love that I now share what I have learned through teaching. It is yoga that lead me to discover my own inner strength, a quiet voice that was always there though I did not know how to awaken it. When you begin your practice you will learn how ready you are to be truly devoted to yourself and to yoga. When you commit yourself fully to your chosen goal, be it in your yoga practice or in the world, there is nothing that can stop you.
A lifetime commitment to yoga teaches you the power of the deepest level of devotion. Whether you practice six days a week or only two times a week as long as yoga remains in your life over time you will delve deeper into the inner world and know what it means to fully surrender yourself to the path of yoga. When you are able to maintain your attention on your deepest dreams with the type of unwavering focus and heartfelt dedication that yoga teaches you, then you will also know the exhilarating feeling of actualizing your dreams in the world.
by Kino MacGregor
Copyright 2009 Kino MacGregor |
All rights reserved
The Dirty Sounds of Silence
Have you every noticed how noisy we all are? In the last twenty years, we have invented and now need iPods, iPhones, CDs, portable DVD players, louder motorcycles, super jet engines, walkie-talkies, reality TV shows, music videos and Starbucks.
Silence is like a dirty word in the modern vocabulary. When you sit with another person there is an almost irresistible urge to speak. Sometimes you converse about important subjects and sometimes you just talk. This meaningless, friendly chit-chat about light-hearted matters is a kind of social sport. Imagine the awkwardness of a first date where you sit together without this lively banter--a boring disaster.
Modern, or shall we say post-modern, life has a soundtrack. Make a playlist for a long drive, flight or walk. Throw a party, hire a DJ. Go to a yoga class, move to spiritual tunes. At least, this is what you are conditioned to expect when you live in a world ruled by constant audio-visual plug-ins. SoHo in Manhattan is a larger-than-life-size Website advertisement for sleek, urban living. Yet there's nothing inherently wrong with reaching for the TV, the iPod, the computer, or your own chatter to fill in the blank space of your life. Ask anyone who knows me well and they'll happily tell you that I enjoy chit-chat, computers and my iPod. However, it's the automatic nature with which society conditions and cultures you to expect a sensory experience in every moment that is where the danger signals fire.
What is so unbearable about the entertainment vacuum left when you turn the TV off anyway? Oh silence. There is it again. As if you thought it would finally bugger off and go away. It's always waiting like a powerful undercurrent of your life--this immense silence underneath all the white city noise. The quiet space of your own mind will never leave you. Yet, you're afraid because at first glance your mind is not so quiet after all the external stimuli are turned off. It's a claustrophobic, tight and unprocessed maelstrom of leftover thoughts that haven't been heard for a long time. Silence demands that you listen, experience and feel the undigested hunk of your own stuff. Silence demands that you pay attention to yourself. Scary stuff indeed, better run.
But, perhaps there is a way to be enjoy the soundless quiet if you learn to accept facing the inner reaches of your own mind? Practice the Mysore Style Ashtanga Yoga method and the class epitomizes the kind of deep inner world that's only tangible in the protected sphere of silence. In the space of your own breathe, your own body, your own practice, you build a relationship with yourself that stays with you even in the deepest and most profound silences. One of the great ironies of the human race is that we spend our entire lives running from ourselves. This tragedy when seen in spiritual terms is heartbreakingly futile. You can never ultimately escape yourself. You can never really be anyone other than who you are. You can never get away from your fundamental nature forever. And yet you run.
by Kino MacGregor
Copyright 2009 Kino MacGregor |
All rights reserved
Everyday Awakening
Awakening and enlightenment are two of the most objectified and misunderstood signposts along the spiritual path. Often construed as something outside yourself, many true and genuine seekers mistake the process of gaining spiritual insight as a process of looking for the missing element in their own being. Yet awakening cannot occur to anything outside the realm of what already exists in your own being. Or else, by definition, it would not be awakening.
Do not think that the spiritual journey is one in which you will finally at long last gain access to a realm that you have otherwise been forbidden to enter. Allow yourself to understand the process of your awakening as more like making friends with an aspect of yourself that has always been with you, but that you simply have been unaware of until now. It is not that this is a new part of yourself, although it may surely seem new or be experienced as such. It is instead a part of yourself so natural and so totally you, yet so far away from what you have previously known. Not because it is not of you, but because it has simply not been awakened until the moment it is.
In a perfectionist sort of way, you may believe that enlightenment is a kind of place where you will one day arrive if you do all the right things, a conceptual heaven that hangs in the mist like a prize for a good day's work. This too is not the case although you work patiently and persistently. In your search you may look to your teachers for inspiration; yet each being is different and you must find your own way. The greatest teachers know and respect the differences apparent in their students and their peers, leading with compassion, integrity and humility.
In the teachings of the Buddha, it is said that the process of taking refuge is a process that links you to the ability to have faith in the quality of enlightenment that is evident in your own everyday wisdom. While the greatest spiritual teachers inspire you, it is in the light of your own consciousness that you find a real and lasting inner peace.
There is often the temptation to search outside for what you must find within. There is the fascination of eastern culture, the dream of gods and goddesses outside your culture, and the captivating illusion of escape. And there is also the possibility to awaken to a new world as you are in the here and now. William Blake writes of this process, "To see a world in a grain of sand And a heaven in a wild flower/ Hold infinity in the palm of your hand And eternity in an hour." The road is always to paved to lead you back home again.
by Kino MacGregor
Copyright 2009 Kino MacGregor |
All rights reserved
The Evolution of Knowledge
It is said that the Buddha’s definition of truth is "what works." His pithy statement points toward one of the essential teachings about truth also contained within the path of yoga: impermanence. Knowledge and information come into our consciousness at an appropriate time, enhance our being and when we’ve integrated the lesson, it passes. The intelligence to accept the impermanence of all experience is the seat of true knowingness.
Great joy can arise when we experience new layers of truth. It can be so enticing that there is the temptation to hold onto it in attachment and perhaps proselytize to others. We often identify with what we know. Every time you say that "this is the way things should be done", you close yourself down to the possibility of a new, perhaps more evolved, efficient or friendly way of being. You also distance yourself from those who do not know, increasing division along lines of right and wrong. Even in the world of yoga, we sometimes find ourselves debating about the “right” method.
If we look again at the Buddha’s definition of truth as "what works", we see that what works constantly changes. Hence, we already have the basis for a relaxed, open understanding of reality. What works one day will not necessarily work for every day that follows, even what seems perfect will one day pass away and what’s absolutely suited to you in a particular moment changes - try to hold onto it and a small part of you dies inside and remains caught in the past!
Throughout our journey in yoga, we have met many inspirational teachers. One of the most evolved states of yoga involves being both open to new information and ready to simultaneously let it go when the cycle is finished, that is, non-attachment even to the very knowledge which enlightens our lives. Even the great truths of Western science are merely hypotheses that are meant to be true for a given period of time, until refuted. Zen teacher Suzuki Roshi gives us the phrase "Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind" (the title of his influential book) to explain that in the expert’s point of view there are no new possibilities for learning, while the beginner’s experience holds all things possible.
In terms of your practice, if you “know” that your shoulder is weak, how will you approach certain postures? If you "know" that a particular teacher is good (or bad) how will you feel in the class? What would happen if you walked into every situation with a beginner’s mind?
Knowledge in its highest sense satisfies our hunger for the spiritual, elevating us beyond our daily identification with our small self. Knowledge belongs to no one, but can be felt, experienced and uncovered by all - be open to it.
by Kino MacGregor
Copyright 2009 Kino MacGregor |
All rights reserved
Finding Lifelong Inspiration in Yoga part 1
The spark of interest in yoga often ignites an inner obsession that infiltrates every aspect of your life. At first yoga is life and you cannot get enough of it. Yoga reconnects you to long forgotten inner realms and you somehow fall in love with yoga. Yet if your yoga practice evolves into a daily, lifelong relationship it is almost inevitable that at some moment you will get bored with it. The insatiable hunger for as much yoga as possible will shift and change to a space where you will be absolutely full of it. This period of lackluster levels of initiative often comes ironically as a result of your full immersion in the yoga world. While this is a crisis stage where many practitioners quit yoga, change teachers or switch styles of yoga it is actually a place where the yoga practice itself has a unique opportunity to work on the deepest levels of the subconscious if you stay with it.
Anything done repeatedly over a long period of time has the potential to get boring, route and mundane. One of the main reasons why the initial glow of the romance period of yoga fades is because the practice has actually managed to sink down and penetrate a deep layer of consciousness. At this stage boredom is actually an obstacle to spiritual growth not just an annoying thing to face each day on the mat. If you have the courage to move through it just on the other side of boredom is deep and lasting peace, unity with yourself and the strength and determination to live with integrity. Boredom is an important maturing phase of the journey inward and one that is only experienced by a practitioner who has already committed themselves to the daily practice.
Yoga is a process where the impossible becomes possible and the possible eventually becomes easy. If your practice moves to the stage where you are bored it is a result of the intelligent effort you have put into your yoga practice every day. When the specialness of yoga transforms into something that you can do automatically it can be said to be fully integrated. When yoga changes from strange and exotic to normal and ordinary you have succeeded at turning yoga into lifestyle commitment rather than a mere passing fancy. If you tune into the feeling of boredom when it arises it can lead you to the realization that your daily practice has reached a whole new level of awareness within. This usually means that you now have access to a subconscious level. Once you experience this deeper stage of awareness boredom is a natural hurdle to cross as your system gets used to living in a more peaceful state. Boredom itself appears as a kind of itch on the field of your being that seems to crave the initial excitement of the beginning and begs you to scratch it will all types of distractions. This dilemma is like being in a long term relationship with a loving partner and yearning for the uncertainty of flirtation exactly when you begin to really feel the security of trusting your partner with your deepest intimacies. It is when we get everything that we want that the ego kicks in and tells us that we are not satisfied with what we have and that we should search for something more. While desire itself is not bad and in fact leads us to new levels, when unhealthy craving tempts us with actions that may lead us away from a life aligned with our higher purpose the real work of yoga begins. Yoga teaches you how to make peace with your deepest self and feel contentment with the life and body that you have.
Whenever you feel lackadaisical about your yoga practice look for small instances of beauty in each posture and allow every breathe to rekindle the flame of inspiration. Observe your feelings of boredom but do not let them rule your actions and one day you feel a deeper and more lasting sense of peace. Allow curiosity to bring new presence to your practice in each moment. When you the basics of physical practice are established deeply you are more free to explore the subtleties of alignment, breathe, philosophy and inner awareness. Only when you do your yoga practice far past the initial point of infatuation will you know that this relationship has the lasting power to be a lifelong commitment.
Continued in the next section
Finding Lifelong Inspiration in Yoga part 2
Whenever you feel lackadaisical about your yoga practice look for small instances of beauty in each posture and allow every breathe to rekindle the flame of inspiration. Observe your feelings of boredom but do not let them rule your actions and one day you feel a deeper and more lasting sense of peace. Allow curiosity to bring new presence to your practice in each moment. When you the basics of physical practice are established deeply you are more free to explore the subtleties of alignment, breathe, philosophy and inner awareness. Only when you do your yoga practice far past the initial point of infatuation will you know that this relationship has the lasting power to be a lifelong commitment.
One of the greatest tests of any lifelong relationship is the ability to weather some of the inevitable dark storms the make landfall on the coast of our consciousness. As you practice yoga the "truth" about yourself is exposed and it is not always as rosy as imagined. Sometimes facing reality brings about a sharp end to the honeymoon period with yoga. Simply feeling how tight your hamstrings are, how weak your muscles feel, how stiff your back is or how blocked your hip joins are every day for a year can be brutal. Boredom in this case is a coping mechanism that takes you out of facing the sometimes unhappy reality at hand. Another experience that can be very boring to face is a yoga-related injury. Dealing with pain can mean adding in humbling modifications and adjustments to the practice and many people quit at their first difficult injury. While I wish everyone to be injury-free in yoga one of the first steps towards achieving a mature and healthy yoga practice is to have a yoga-related injury and move through it into healing. Remaining excited about yoga even when you are not able to perform cool tricks means that you are willing to go through the full process of transformation. While it can be heartbreakingly boring to let go of all the funky moves that you identify with, injury is a great teacher that you will learn from when you move through it into ultimate healing.
Injury, repetition and simple difficulty naturally bring up boredom and if you move through this state when it arises you will allow yoga to powerfully transform your life far beyond any mere series of postures. When yoga is just as mediocre, mundane and miserable as the rest of your life it really begins to teach you how to make peace with your life. Romantic poet William Blake says that a true test of the human spirit is to find innocence through experience and it is exactly this seemingly impossible state of union that yoga asks you to tap into on the inner spiritual path. Just on the other side of the apparent ordinariness of your experience is actually a much deeper understanding of yourself, your body and your yoga practice. When you can see the beauty of all life shining with the power of creation regardless of time or location yoga has worked its magic through you. Beyond the wow phase of yoga you confront the monotony of doing the same practice everyday and if you stay with your yoga practice through this inevitable period you will one day tap into a limitless wealth of wisdom. You have to do your yoga practice so much so that it is not special anymore so that you can learn to experience a kind of specialness that never fades and a beauty that is truly eternal.
by Kino MacGregor
Copyright 2009 Kino MacGregor |
All rights reserved
