The thing that is really hard, and really
amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming
yourself. – Anna Quindlen
I
had a conversation with my hairdresser a few weeks ago while I was getting my
hair cut. She was telling me how often a
client comes in with a photo or image on their phone of a hairstyle they like
and want her to give them. The person in
the photo often looks nothing like the client, has a totally different hair
color and texture, and often these clients leave dissatisfied with the outcome
despite her best efforts to gently tell them that it’s not really possible to
make their hair look that way.
We
all want to look good, we all aspire to be better, brighter, as beautiful as we
can be. But that aspiration has to be
grounded in reality. It has to come from
wanting to celebrate who we already are, rather than a desire to be
something/someone else. My teacher Todd Norian says “Yoga is being virtuosic in
who you already are.” Bottom line, if
you look like Meg Ryan don’t bring your hairdresser a photo of Sophia Vergara. Stand
bright and beautiful in your Meg Ryan-ness!
In
the 6 Qualities of Consciousness, Danny Arguetty says “Though we are all different,
we are all connected….this (Tantric) point of view is deeply focused on the
gift of the diverse expression that is human embodiment, as opposed to the
quest of extraction from life or a re-unification with a larger energy.”
The
Tantric tradition of Anusara Yoga is based in non-duality, meaning not
two. When we see life from the viewpoint of non-duality, we
see how the One can only be expressed thru the many. Since the Absolute is all-encompassing, it is
only through the diversity of forms and creation that we begin to glimpse the
wholeness that is Universal Consciousness (or God if you prefer). There are yoga traditions that teach
disconnect from the body, from worldly pleasure and individuality, but one of
the many reasons I love the non-dual Tantric tradition is that it celebrates
the body. It just does not make sense to
me that we were created to simply overcome the creation that the Divine
manifested into the world - that this body is an impediment to freedom and
transformation. Tantra teaches that the
body can be a portal to achieving those ends, not an obstruction we need to get
past on the way to something better. It is not beyond but through the body that we are able to reach liberation.
Imagine that there was only one type
of tree, one type of flower. Life would
be so boring. I envision the Universe as
a giant puzzle, and each of us is a small but integral, irreplaceable piece. If
you’ve ever done one of those 1000 piece
puzzles you know the frustration that comes from getting to the end and
discovering that a piece was missing – even just one tiny piece out of a
thousand would diminish the whole picture. As I was writing this blog
post and searching for a picture of a puzzle with a missing piece I
found countless websites dealing with this very topic - clearly the
Universe wants the picture to be complete!
When we don’t step as fully, as completely, as beautifully as we can
into the light of our own being, we are shorting the universal puzzle. We are holding back the fullest expression of
the Divine that can manifest into the physical world.
Non-dual Tantric practices, such as Anusara Yoga (and other mystical,
non-dual traditions) gives us access to 2 primary aspects of ourselves – the ever
unchanging, ineffable, eternal spark of divine light that is our true nature,
and the beautiful, unique, individual physical/mental/emotional form we exist
in in the world. Yoga is about uniting
or yoking those 2 things together, interweaving them so they are inexorably
linked and in doing so gives us the insight into the fullness of our own being
and at the same time the nature of the Universe.
We are all made of the same "stuff",
and when we can step into our own authentic light as fully as we can, we reveal
divinity to the world. We help to
complete the wholeness that is the nature of being. We can’t do that trying to be someone else.
We have to be the piece of the puzzle that we are, and recognize that if we’re
not filing that role as completely as we can, the overall puzzle is not
complete without us.
There are many beautiful
writings and teachings about this, but this week I’m leaning towards Lady Gaga’s:
I'm beautiful in my way'Cause God makes no mistakes
I'm on the right track, baby
I was born this way
Don't hide yourself in regret
Just love yourself and you're set
I'm on the right track, baby
I was born this way.
Just love yourself and you're set
I'm on the right track, baby
I was born this way.
Off the Mat: I used to go to
a chiropractor who had a sign hanging in her office that said “99% of all
unhappiness comes from comparing yourself to others.” Not sure if the percentage is quite that
high, but I’d be willing to bet that it’s close. Notice this week how often your happiness is dependent
on comparing yourself to others – not only the way you look, but the way you
act, the way you do your practice, the way you relate to your family or
friends. And then, from a place of
wanting to be your best, most beautiful self (not fixing something that is
broken, or judging yourself too harshly) make a shift in your thinking to celebrate who you already are.
On the mat: We worked on very “muscular” poses – meaning that we had to use a lot of muscular energy, using that feeling of the muscles “hugging the bones” as a self embrace or hug, deeply honoring our bodies as divine vehicles for awakening. Try lots of Uttkatasana, Garudasana, Garudasana arms in Vira I, arm balances, garudasana legs in handstand or headstand – anything requiring your muscles to fire up!
Open to Grace: Open to the
potency of your own being.
Celebrate who you are but open
to your own possibilities.
Muscular Energy: Embrace who
you are right now, knowing it holds the seeds of all you can become.
Hug muscles to bones and
even deeper and connect to your uniquely divine presence.
Firm muscles and create the
outer form of your exceptional, irreplaceable puzzle piece.
Inner Spiral: Widen your sitbones
and widen your potential to be your biggest brightest self.
Outer Spiral: Sink your
tailbone down and anchor yourself in the beauty of who you already are
Organic Energy: Let the
radiance that is inimitably you shine forth.
Pour your irreplaceable
spirit into the unique form of your body and light up the pose from the inside.
Let the light of your divine
spirit shine through your individual pose.
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