Aligning with Grace

Earlier this week, I posted a short blog titled, "To See as Others See" on the "Daily Inspiration" link on my website: www.dwellinyourheart.com But, since different audience read both, I thought I would reprise it here.  "To see as others see" is a spiritual practice that I have been trying to "practice" lately, as much as I am able to do so. That is, I have been trying to envision, experience, and see things, as others do, as much as I am able to do so. It is not always an easy practice, in fact, it is quite challenging at times, but it's fruits are indeed rich and rewarding and capable of shifting energy and enacting profound change. When we are willing to see deeply, we see things as they truly are. I was reminded of this as I read and reflected on this wonderful poem by Mary Oliver yesterday: Look and See This morning, at waterside, a sparrow flew to a water rock and landed, by error, on the back of an eider duck; lightly i...

Of all of Anusara Yoga's Universal Principles of Alignment , the hardest one for me to embody is "Inner Spiral." Of the seven loops, it is "Kidney Loop," and this seems to be the case with many other practitioners as well. We are all students seeking to embody these principles and unlock their hidden wisdom. But, it is not an easy journey. Because of spinal degeneration and other physical issues that I have, the integration of both of these principles of alignment are crucial for me - along with their close friends and partners - "Outer Spiral" and "Pelvic Loop." Just last week, I was chatting with a friend at a social gathering, and sharing with her the details of my summer surgery. She laughed and then said to me, "I can imagine your kundalini is really flowing these days. After all, you had a rock sitting on your snake!" Hummm.... That certainly gave me pause. No one had quite worded it that way! But, in a way, she was right! How...

Last week, I began my yoga classes with the first sutra from Patanjali's Yoga Sutras . Today, I began with a key word from the second sutra, or verse, which is commonly translated as something like: "Yoga is the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind." Or, as one of my favorites renditions by Alistair Shearer : "Yoga is the settling of the mind into silence." The word "citta" is often translated as "mind," though in his new book, The Path of the Yoga Sutras: A Practical Guide to the Core of Yoga , Nicolai Bachman , describes "citta" as "heart-mind field of consciousness," which I find absolutely delicious! So, today in my classes, I continued working with the First Universal Principle of Alignment in Anusara Yoga - which is "Opening to Grace." I chose to work with the aspects of "Inner body bright and side body long," and began my centering by having my dear Monday morning students, envision the su...

I began teaching yoga again this week, after two months of resting and recuperating after surgery. I decided to use as my theme, the first sutra in Patanjali's Yoga Sutras - "atha yoga nusasanam," or, "Now is the time for yoga." Every fall we say goodbye to the summer, and we greet the nascent season, by saying yes to our practice once again. When we begin anything - a project, a degree, a school, a job - there is an initial hesitancy, and fear - and enthusiasm - as we embrace what will be - but what is also, not yet... When we are ready, the universe conspires to assist us in undertaking whatever task or desire we have at hand... The new book, The Path of the Yoga Sutras: A Practical Guide to the Core of Yoga , by Nicolai Bachman , develops key concepts of the Yoga Sutras , in order to shed light on the these simple, pithy directives and assertions. The word "atha" - implies readiness and commitment on our part. The first chapter of this book begin...

Late yesterday afternoon, as I was tackling the grueling traffic on the beltway, here in the Washington DC area, on my way to teach my weekly yoga class at Willow Street Yoga Center, I asked myself, "What do I know?" In other words, what have I learned that has shifted my consciousness, or my perspective recently - or what I have learned or practiced that has enabled me to deal with life's circumstances or curve balls. Earlier this week, I read the article "Who Do You Think You Are?" by Sally Kempton on the site: Patheos.com In this article, Sally discusses how to work with "avidya," a Sanskrit word which describes the basic ignorance of who we are, and she cites Sutra 2.5, of Patanjali's Yoga Sutra . This is what Sally has to say: "'Avidya,' the sutra says, 'is to mistake what is perishable for the eternal, what is impure for the pure, what is sorrow for what is happiness, and the not-Self for the True Self.'" I've r...

I continue to journey through the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali as themes for my yoga classes, and today, we arrive at Sutra 1.33 . Here is a translation by Nischala Joy Devi that I like very much: "When presented with disquieting thoughts or feelings, cultivate an opposite, elevated attitude. This is Pratipaksha Bhavana." This is both a beautiful and challenging practice - but it is one that has the potential to change the world. At the very least, it can shift the energies in our immediate life, by enabling us to choose to see the light that is absent in the darkness, and the goodness that resides in the essence of every person, opportunity, and experience we are presented with. As Nischala Joy Devi notes, in her wonderfully transformative interpretation of the Sutras, The Secret Power of Yoga , Pratipaksha Bhavana it is a personal practice that "helps to change my attitude rather than hoping to change the situation or the people who 'cause me' to be unhappy....

Yeah, I knew that might be a catchy title for a post! I had to take a narcotic last night - and as as someone who made it through the 60's and 70's without "inhaling," ingesting or partaking of "certain" substances, or engaging in any hard-core, partying (I know - it is amazing and boring) - anything of the sort in the present tense is certain to send me places only deep meditation has revealed. (And of course, that experience is so much more sublime!) But seriously, early this evening, after working on the theme for my yoga classes this week, I sat in meditation. More on my meditation in a minute. I am working with the second of the brahmaviharas this week - karuna - or compassion - and linking it to "Inner Spiral" and its capacity for widening and making space in our pelvis - but also in our lives - and ultimately in our hearts. Inner Spiral is the third of Anusara's Universal Priniciples of Alignment. I recalled that John Friend focused ...

I have a dear friend who always signs her letters and emails with "Blessings..." A year or so ago - I remember my teacher, John Friend - the founder of Anusara Yoga say to a gathering of his teachers - that one of the most important practices we could ever do was to send blessings to others - especially to those we have difficulty with. He noted that we could radically shift the energy of a situation, a room, or even a person. I have observed a significant shift in how I feel and act, since I have been doing the practices suggested in my previous blog entry. I am looking at situations or individuals that I couldn't imagine feeling positively about - very differently - with gentler eyes and a compassionate heart. There is a softness to how I am seeing and experiencing things. And, I breathe more deeply...All good! I've come to realize that, that when we embody practices of forgiveness and gratitude - and send loving thoughts to all things and all people - it results ...