Tag Archives: Faith

7 Limbs

I have an opportunity.  I have no choice but to see it this way, so I am.  You see, I can’t teach yoga for the next several weeks.  I have to limit my activity and my practice.

I had a little surgery that keeps me grounded for a bit.  No driving for a couple of weeks.  No lifting.  No vigorous activities.

Notice I didn’t include yoga in the list of no-no’s.  That’s because it isn’t there.  (But wait, you ask, you just said you can’t teach or practice…so it must be on the list!)

Yoga is an 8-limbed path, many times depicted like a tree.  So, you see, I have 7 other limbs to practice.  Asana, postures and poses used in classes or home practice, are but one.  The other 7, not as popular in the mainstream as asana, but equally valuable are: Yama, Niyama, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi.

I’m going to use this time to dig a little deeper, seek out the dark corners and shine the light.  And you’re welcome to join me.  I hope you will.  What questions do you have?  If the yoga experience seems appealing, but the asana practice doesn’t, what would you like to know about deepening your own practice?

The beauty of yoga is that there are no rights or wrongs.  It is a practice as individual as each of us.

Love and light.

  
 

 

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You’re Welcome

Happy New Year! As we welcome 2013, I am feeling an overwhelming sense of inspiration. 2012 was a year of breaking new ground, stepping out into faith and reaching past limits. As I reflect on all of my blessings-those that were apparent and those that slipped in quietly while I wasn’t looking- I realize what lies ahead is the fruition of the work I’ve been doing all along. And the work I will continue to do. And the work I have yet to do. I know there is so much to do, yet I am not daunted. Instead, I feel ready for what lies ahead, even though I have no idea what that may be.

My hope is that you had a rewarding 2012, and that you have a blessed and fulfilling 2013.

Peace. Love. Light.

and Namaste.

Take the First Step…

There’s a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. that I love. “Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” Lately, I’m finding staircases all around. At least I am seeing the first steps…

I realize that not choosing to take those first steps is a disservice. When I choose not to step out in faith, I am saying to the universe and the powers that be that I believe I know best. How arrogant of me! I ask for opportunities to grow and become the person I am supposed to be, but when I sit in fear, what am I really saying? I’m not acting from a space of gratitude for those opportunities. I am instead shrinking from the responsibilities placed
upon me to do the work.

So, I sit here today, putting out this message so that it is clear: I am taking the first steps. I do not need to see the whole staircase. I trust it is there.

I have many chances being given, so it is with excitement and gratitude that I will accept them all. I will have no expectation other than they are the gifts I have asked for.

So, reader, do you dare join me on the staircase? I would rather fall down the stairs than to never attempt the journey. I hope you find the space to believe that yourself.

What frightens you? I am choosing to think that I cannot fail…so guess
what? I cannot. Neither can you.

Shanti.