Have you ever had the experience where someone shares an insight with you and it feels familiar as if you know it and you’ve heard it before, but you never spent any time on it, or maybe you did at one time but forgot? That happened to me the other day. I was listening to a podcast with a famous yoga teacher and he referred to the yoga practice as a mirror. I am sure I have heard this a million times in the last 17 years yoga has been in my life, but for some reason, on this particular moment in time, it landed with me.
Yoga teaches us to watch. We watch our mind, our energy, our body, our habits and all the different layers of ourselves. In that watching we might find that how we approach our yoga practice is very similar to how we approach other aspects of our lives. For example, is your tendency to check out and go through the motions just to get to the end? Perhaps your tendency is to push yourself to exhaustion, or do you rarely challenge yourself and only go for the easy stuff? Do you give yourself the space to play, or are your always striving for perfection? Do you close down to the teacher and resist their invitation, or do you rely solely on them and deny your own wisdom? Do you judge yourself/those around you the entire time? Do you attend only one style of class and reject the rest without ever giving them the chance?
Once you identify your habit or approach you can ask yourself,”is this how I approach my relationships, my work, my self-care, etc.?” This usually requires more watching. Keep in mind, we aren’t doing this so that we have something to hold against ourselves or even to change ourselves. We can avoid all that by approaching it with curiosity instead of judgment. Seeing yoga as a mirror is an opportunity to get to know ourselves. When we awaken to our blind spots and patterns, we are finally able to get out of our own way and experience life without the weight of them. All of this from a lil’ ol’ yoga practice?!
So what happens when a pattern reveals itself, but still persists? That’s where I come in. I can help you navigate the unfamiliar terrain. Blind-spots were created for a reason and are usually very ingrained in our way of being; they aren’t easy to see on our own, so it can take some time, patience and guidance to unpack. If you like to work in a group, keep an eye out for a new workshop I am hosting this fall (Oct. 13, 20 & Nov. 3) at Ritual Yoga in Sacramento. It will be a great entry point into this kind of exploration. Details will be announced early September. If you prefer to work more privately, I am available for that as well.
I hope you are enjoying this journey of life. I am truly honored to be engaged in it with you.
