| Resting in Truth
Dear Friends,
Hope you have had a good start with 2021 after the big Pandemic year. With all the social isolation and restrictions, I can only say, 2020 also brought people together like never before, albeit, through the online medium. Many of us have become crazy busy and so consumed by this new discovery and its immense possibilities! Now it remains to discover the middle path… Today is the beginning of the Uttarayana period - the position of the Sun in relation to the earth's revolution begins to shift from South to the North. This is considered the most auspicious time of the year! It is also our harvest festival in South India, time to celebrate and venerate the field, the Sun, our farmers and their tireless toil. The field is also a beautiful metaphor for our inner ground, that needs to be tilled, weeded and replenished continuously. A group of us have been coming together a few hours every week to study, share and reflect on the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali. This has been, for most of us, the best anchorage through this period of uncertainty. We are currently on the Isvara Pranidhana sutras. As I listened to one of the teachers, it made me realise how important it is to find the restful space within, beyond that which is bound by strife and struggles. To get there, stay there and live from there is all the abhyasa that is required! This space within, is our ultimate ground of truth. With the right effort and mental attitude (Bhavana), we can experience a sublte shift in this direction with our daily practice. In asana, as we deepen our body awareness, making the breath smooth and subtle, when we experience a sense of expansive restfulness (sukham) and vibrant steadiness (Sthiram), we know we are touching this ground. Through the practice of pranayama, as we work with our breath, we can cleanse and declutter the inner channels to quietly settle in and replenish ourself. Slowly with practice, we can let go of everything we have been holding on to and allow ourselves to move deeper... let even the breath and the "practising" self drop… Every day, we find some time to meditate, to come back into this space and rest, trusting, only this moment fully lived gives us the experience of truth. Everything else is just corrupted memory and imagined ideas of the future. Just this moment is the only moment where we will find the truth… stay here, rest here… From this space, we can simply witness the struggles without getting entangled. Just that watching will begin to shift something within. We will find the path to freedom that is lit from within. As we walk this path, individually and collectively, we can create a powerful ripple effect... A simple realisation that only by taking care of ourselves, we will be able to serve the world better. Wishing you a very happy 2021, let us be fully alive and present to everything that life has to offer because every moment is a gift! much love, Saraswathi Reflections from YogaVahini: Resting in Truth
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