It’s been 2 ½ years
since I’ve been to Yoga. Pregnancy, baby and breast feeding all meant that my
regular practice of Yoga was placed on hold. But the icy chill of winter
and the yearning from my soul could wait no longer so back I went.
After 10 minutes of being in the class, I was reminded of the powerful lessons
Yoga has taught me about living an empowered and mindful life.
Here are my top 10 life lessons yoga has taught me:
Here are my top 10 life lessons yoga has taught me:
1. We grow
outside our comfort zone
If we do not
challenge ourselves out of our comfort zone the brain has no opportunity to
learn new ways or habits. As we stretch ourselves out of our comfort zone the
body learns new muscle memory and we take ourselves beyond what we know. This
is where we experience achievement and empowerment.
2. What we find
most difficult is what we need most
I learnt very
quickly that there were going to be a few postures that I hate! But as I embraced
those ones I learnt that those were the ones that offered me the most growth
and transformations. Liken this to people in our lives. Perhaps the ones which
challenge us the most are the ones we need the most.
3. Everything I
have is within me
I have learnt
to trust myself and know that when I look for my inner resources instead of
relying on something outside of myself, I find the place of strength within me.
Anytime I am challenged I can go within and tap into an internal resource and
feel resilient, independent and self-sufficient.
4. My threshold
is only a state of mind
I remember
being in a class where the instructor came behind me and pushed on my lower
back helping to push me deeper into the posture. I was so surprised to see how
my body extended the minute I let go of the belief that I could only go so far.
So I learnt to extend myself beyond the edge of my fear or limiting belief.
5. Proving myself
or pushing myself is a state of Ego not Yoga(Grace)
If I do not
have integrity for each posture and have the patience to allow myself to grow
into the posture, then I am not doing it from a humble, graceful space but more
from a space of competition or comparing myself to others; both ego qualities. How
many times do we need to push ourselves or prove ourselves in fear of judgement
or being compared?
This gives me
the lesson of self-acceptance and patience and allowing myself to grow slowly.
6. The power of
silence and patience
I remember, in
my first class, seeing a sign on the door of the yoga room saying No Talking inside, only silence. I
remember thinking, WHAT? 90 minutes of no
talking…me? No way!!!! But again, as I embraced the power of silence I felt
the stillness in my mind and the feeling of inner peace which matched my head
space. This allowed me to practice more silence and less talking outside the
class. Silence allows me to be more present and listen actively to others
as well as quieten my hyper active mind.
7. Where my
breath goes my mind flows
Ah, the power
of our breath to self-regulate the body. As you focus your breath to a point of
tightness or tension in your body it immediately dissolves and an inner feeling
of lightness and freedom expands. I now stay connected to my breath and use my
breath to constantly relax my body.
8. Stillness is
where the magic happens
After each
intense posture, there is a Savasana or recovery posture of rest. I thought all
the magic was happening in the intensity of the posture, however, I quickly
learnt that when I allowed myself a true space of stillness and recovery I
could reap the full benefits of each posture and restore a set of balance and
peace in the body. This gives me the lesson of stopping and allowing myself a
time to rest and be still.
9. Find the point
of balance
There is a
point in each posture where the duality of pushing and pulling occurs and the
body finds a place of balance where we can stay in forever. This reminds me of
the importance of finding the balance in everything in life so there is not one
part of my life which out-weighs the others.
10. Let go of judgement
and stay in the moment
The minute my
mind starts to judge my posture by thinking I am doing a good job or could do
better or when I start to think of what comes next, I fall out of the posture
and loose the power of being fully present and in the moment. There is magic in
letting go of the stories of the past and the anticipation of the future and
embracing the now!
What are your
greatest lessons from your own practice?
To your truth and freedom with lots of love,
Cheryne
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Monthly Meditation Class held the first Wednesday of every month. 1 July 2015; 8pm-9:30pm
Held at The Tranquility Centre 357 North Road South Caulfield
To Book email Cheryne TOPIC: Cultivating Compassion
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